Spa….t your weekend away!

Seeking Solace?

Tranquility. Health. Revitalization. Maybe that’s what I was channeling while I sat in this temple in Sukothai, Thailand. Tranquility is what I definitely needed even if I wasn’t channeling it.

I had just spent the previous two days trying to catch a train. I know….crazy. But true. Trains in Thailand had gone on strike and I was stranded, along with a Dutch couple in the town of LopBuri (just south of Sukothai). Known for its monkeys, Lopburi had little more and we wanted to leave.

Two days later at 5 a.m. we finally found a train that would deliver us to this pristine and tranquil setting of temples, water and lush forest.

Ahhh….sound good? Sound like something you need? I think The Ranch at Live Oak in Malibu is right up your alley then. Offering relaxation, detoxification and every other oxation, this ranch is the perfect mix of luxury and pampering with a purpose.

The Ranch at Live Oak Malibu

Hike the mountains surrounding Malibu, where in one intensive week, you will gain physical endurance, shed unwanted weight, tone up and detoxify all while “getting off the grid” and back to nature. The program is strictly Sunday to Saturday with a maximum of 14 weekly guests and includes private cottages with spectacular views and home-grown organic food. Book with CTravel by the end of October and you will save $1,000!

But do your plans include Europe? Are you traveling there on business or find yourself living abroad for a while? Why not book yourself into the SHA Wellness Spa in southern Spain. In between Valencia and Alicante (both have international airports), the spa even offers a complimentary massage upon arrival.

SHA Wellness Spa

Experience Macrobiotic cuisine at its best both for the weight loss and health programs. The lectures only enforce the program. A full staff of medical and nutritional as well as fitness will ensure that your goals are achieved. Book with CTravel by the end of December and you will be eligible for their special spa trek package.

Finally, want a taste of Morocco, but don’t want to go through the hassle of getting there? I mean what would be the point if you’re trying to relax at a spa? Well good because the IC Montelucia Resort and Spa in Phoneix is ready for you.

IC Montelucia Resort and Spa

The Spanish music and courtyard fountains put you in southern Spain. The exotic scents of the Joya spa will entice your senses. Try a belly dancing class at the spa. Sit next to a fire-pit and have drinks at the Kasbah. Indulge your senses with a true hammam experience in Joya Spa.

And if you book with CTravel your rates could be as low as $279 a night! So what are you waiting for?

Dash for Cash in New Zealand

September Sun!

It’s September in Bermuda and yet the temperatures don’t seem to be dropping. I’m a runner and I’m just waiting to be able to exercise without melting. What could make exercise more enjoyable? How about a cash incentive.

What am I talking about? The New Zealanders have it right with the Orewa Dash for Cash event on January 15th on the Orewa Beach near Auckland. So it costs $10 to enter the event, but EVERY participant is given a cash, voucher or spot prize for just entering!

And don’t forget in January it will be summer in New Zealand so if you’re going to run why not make sure it’s worth it? But who from Bermuda is going to travel to New Zealand for a run? Well…probably no one.

Which is why I say pair it up with a fantastic trip with Tauck tours.

Run for your cash on January 15th, enjoy Auckland and then on January 21st join Tauck Tours for your private charter around both the North and South Islands of New Zealand starting from $2,595 for a nine-day immersion.

What does this include? Make cultural connections, from ancient Maori dance traditions in Rotorua to country life at a working farm; explore your adventurous side on a jet boat cruise; pamper your palate on a green-lipped mussel wine cruise in Marlborough Sounds and at a wine tasting and lunch at Mudbrick Vineyard on Waiheke Island; and view some of the world’s most beautiful natural wonders during a luncheon cruise on Milford Sound and a visit to Walter Peak Country Farm.

Sounds good to me and if it sounds good to you check-in with Carl Paiva, the CEO of CTravel for the deals. The tours start in January and run all year-long!

Fancy visiting New Zealand’s large neighbour? Why not combine a visit to Australia with a chance to see world-class tennis? The Australian Open runs from January 17th until January 30. Or make sure you’re in Australia for their day and enjoy a Jazz & Blues Festival in Melbourne on January 23rd.

It’s the time to head down there because, again, it’s summer and finally Tauck Tours is also offering a private charter. What better way to see this massive island? The 12-day adventure in the begins with two nights in Melbourne at the top hotel in this beautiful city.

Guided sightseeing offers you an insider’s perspective on life here, from visits to landmark sights to dinner aboard a traveling tramcar. Then it’s off to two nights at Ayers Rock with a sunset toast at mystical Uluru and a three-night stay at Peppers Beach Club in Port Douglas with a catamaran cruise to the Great Barrier Reef. Your last four nights will be spent in Sydney where breakfast with the koalas, a private Sydney Harbour luncheon cruise and champagne with the kangaroos of the Blue Mountains ensure an authentic taste of life Down Under!

What about an authentic taste of the Italian culture? What about pretending you’re in the Sopranos? Zegrahm and Eco Expeditions have just the thing for you! This is no ordinary tour. It has taken Z&E years to put this together and now they have an incredible circumnavigation event around Sicily. It’s only one time a year – April 4 – so it will book-up quickly.

Send yourself around Sicily

What does this include? From Malta, you embark on a luxury small ship cruise around the island of Sicily, famed for its archaeological legacy and culinary traditions. The itinerary visits Phoenician settlements near Marsala, and the Greek temples of Agrigento and Selinunte.

Then you tour the Roman theaters and villas of Taormina and Lipari, and discover the ornate architecture of Norman-Arab castles and cathedrals in Cefalu, Palermo, and Monreale.

Of course there are also  wine and olive oil tastings, visits to outdoor markets, and gourmet meals at local restaurants along the way.

So what are you waiting for? Oh Carl Paiva’s number? Well check out CTravel’s website and enjoy the savings they can give you for these incredible vacations!

Tis the season to sail?

Kayaking through Halong Bay, Vietnam

Sailing through the green mountains and kayaking around beautiful blue water was my way of finding a break from overnight bus after overnight bus in Vietnam. I found myself sailing on the traditional boats for three days in Halong Bay.

This beautiful bay is a UNESCO site and it is amazing. These limestone islands jut out of the water and offer visitors even a chance to see caves where Viet Cong used to, and stalactites do, hide. Throw some crab on my plate and garnish it with shrimp and I’m not sure why I left.

Or why you’re not going! And why not go for Christmas? For $5,999 you can sail on the luxury yachts of Seabourn around Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam for 16 days! The cruise departs on December 21 and will be the ultimate in luxury as it pulls-in to Hanoi and Bangkok to name a few of the stops. The cruise used to be $13,000 but if you contact CTravel they can help you book for the recently reduced price.

Or maybe you’re hoping to infiltrate a closed country? No I’m not talking about North Korea….it’s Bhutan. A beautiful and often forgotten country north of India. From yak herders, rhododendron forests, snow-capped peaks, alpine meadows, rare birds and animals, and intricate temples, Bhutan offers it all….but it also requires you to have a guide. Yep! Unfortunately there is no such thing as independent in this aggressively closed country.

Bhutan Trip with Zeghram and Eco

So why not join Gary Wintz and Zegrahm and Eco Adventures and spend 14 days trekking to ancient monasteries, nature preserves, and sacred spaces in a country nearly unknown to Western travelers.

Book with CTravel for your April 10 to the 23rd adventure in one of the most secret societies!

But Robyn, you say, you were going to tell us about travel deals in Europe! You’re right I was (I said so in yesterday’s blog for those who haven’t been ardently following). None of that is to say these deals are to be forgotten. Nope!

Instead Abercrombie and Kent are offering a trip through the Winter Wonderland of Prague, Munich and Berlin for nine nights at the price of six. When? Well for the winter markets of course. This includes Munich’s traditional market, which has been held on Marienplatz for 600 years where the festive Alpine music rings out and the mulled wine never ends! And Prague’s Old Town Square, which fills with festive market stalls and is overlooked by gothic buildings that ring with Christmas carolers.

Of course all of these deals are available by contacting CTravel (it is CTravel Thursday by the way). So get on the phone and get yourself on one of these amazing vacations!

Thursday? Wanna go to Greece?

Athens by Night

For the two of us there were four beds. We thought we had struck a deal with the ticket lady in Venice.

“Sure, sure you can have a private room.”

Now we faced four beds. We were two. We had 48 hours until we landed in Piraeus, Greece and being the backpackers we were we had hit the grocery store for our food.

We spread-out. Opened our food and ate our dinner. But I was sure. I was sure any minute we were going to have another two people knock on our door and demand their trundle beds in the prison-size ship room.

We made it to Piraeus, but it wasn’t pretty. We barely got sleep with zero space. We had a shower that sprayed the entire bathroom. So why not do the trip pretty? Why not live in a luxury that supplies designer soaps, aromatherapy scents and handmade chocolate paired with a chilled bottle of French wine?

And why not make the trip with Silversea Cruises which offer just this luxury with the combination of Venice, Trieste and Rimini in Italy with Dubrovnik, Croatia, Corfu and Athens in Greece? If you book with CTravel before August 31 you will save 60% on your fare and received $500 in onboard credits!

Not fancying Venice? Want something a little less Mediterranean? Silversea Cruises also offers a trip from Bridgetown, Barbados to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on October 24 for 16 days. This cruise will hit St. Lucia, Grenada, French Guiana and multiple posts in Brazil before finishing in Rio! If you book this before August 31 the total trips will cost $5,798 before airfare from Bermuda.

River cruising more your style? Looking for a vacation for next year? I mean it is August already! Well Tauck Discovery has the gift of time for their European River Cruises in 2011. For previous Tauck clients they will receive two free nights in a hotel at the beginning or end of their trip OR one on each end. New clients will get one free night!

French River Cruising

Of course you have to book before September 30, 2010, but how can you not when the chances of resting gently down the stream through French Vineyards could be a reality? For ten days at $4,490 Tauck travelers can visit Paris, Lyon and Avignon to say the least!

So what are you waiting for?? It’s CTravel Thursdays and it’s the chance to book your next amazing trip cruising in style in the Mediterranean or Carribbean…..river boating it through France in 2011!

On top of that, if you contact CTravel for your next trip you can save!

Tango Time in Buenos Aires

Taking a time-out on the streets of Buenos Aires

“Keep your eyes down or you’ll get asked to dance.”

My eyes stayed plastered to the floor and sometimes, just to mix it up, on the table. I was NOT going to Tango and no one was going to catch my eye.

That’s the danger in the local dance halls in Buenos Aires. Like the one my friends Maria and Jennie dragged me to in the capital of Argentina. A sparse dance hall, there were a multitude of tables and chairs that emptied to fill the rectangular dance floor when the band resumed.

It was a freakish and yet amazing site to see hundreds suddenly move en masse. But Tango is not the only draw to Argentina. Nor is South America the only continent you can visit from here.

Nope! What about the frozen continent? What about Antarctica? What about taking it with Tauck World Discovery and do it in luxury?

Route for Antarctica

The best part? From select American cities the airfare to Buenos Aires is only $890 per person and, AND… if you are a repeat customer you get two nights free in a hotel at the beginning or end of the trip. If you are a new customer you get one free night!

And what does the trip include? Good question. Two days in Buenos Aires before flying to the southern tip of Argentina.  A visit to the Terra del Fuego National park? Some Penguins? Some Glaciers? Sign me up.

Or perhaps you want to wander where the Incas did? Well prior to the Spanish decided to enter South America. Tauck also has a 13-day tour for you too. It’s $4,655 per person and includes Peru and Bolivia. But who can forget Machu Picchu? Well Tauck can’t and you won’t.

Peru and Bolivia

Finish you Inca trail with La Paz, which was founded in 1548 by Spaniards. The highest capital city in the world above sea level, La Paz is also home to the highest golf course on Earth; in the thin air, a good tee shot will travel an amazing distance! Venture just outside the city to explore the lunar-like badlands dubbed the Valle De La Luna (Valley of the Moon), a stone landscape of deep gullies and bizarre rock formations, before heading to La Paz’s city center to soak up some local color in the bustling Indian Market.

OR maybe you’re look for something to do with the family? Something for the kids for Christmas? What about visiting the Christmas markets in Europe?

For 8 days and $1,990 per person Tauck’s new Christmas Market river cruise along the Danube from Vienna to Nürnberg aboard ms Swiss Jewel offers a new approach to discovering the magic of the Christmas Markets in Germany and Austria… a 700-year holiday tradition!

And remember Tauck’s Tours can all be booked through CTravel and are subject to the extra night or two hotel stays for free! Contact CTravel for more details.

Take your chances in Chile?

Patagonia, Chile

I landed in Santiago, Chile after almost 38 hours on planes and sitting in airports such as Singapore, Tokyo and Dallas. Actually Dallas included an unintended stay-over when I slept through my departure AT the gate. Should that have told me something? Yes. I needed more sleep.

Luckily I got it in a Dallas airport hotel and the next day flew to my intended first-stop in South America – ever – Santiago. Chile. I don’t speak Spanish and I didn’t have a guidebook, but I did have the name of my hostel and a taxi service.

Golden. But where was I going to go? Chile’s long and thin and difficult to navigate by land. Especially when I landed there in their spring (late September).

Eeny, meeny….miny….moe: Patagonia. Best decision I ever made as I witnessed glaciers for the first time in my life and the most spectacular scenery at the end of the world. Well almost.

I couldn’t quite make it to Ushuaia, which names itself the most Southern city in the world, thanks to bus schedules. So I stayed in Punta Arenas and almost made it to the tip of the world. But don’t let that stop you!

Punta Arenas in Patagonia, Chile

Why not combine spa with adventure and a chance to visit tuxed-out non-flying birds? Why not spend New Years’ Eve in the luxury of a high-end cruise that will depart from Ushuaia (in Argentina) deliver you to some glaciers, cross the straight of Magellan and visit Magdela Island where 120,000 penguins await?

If that’s not your cup of tea, Chile by Sportstour, which you can book through CTravel, also offers New Years Eve in Chile’s desert and the highest in the world – the Atacama Desert. With moon-like landscapes that will mystify why not try it? Make the New Years resolution.

New Years Eve may seem miles away as we enter August, but if you’re looking for a deal in December you need to book with Windstar Cruises for their 2-for-1 deals. Take a 15-day cruise to:St. Barts, Tortola, Virgin Gorda, Curacao, Aruba
Transit Panama Canal, Isla de Coiba, Quepos, Tortuga Island.

If you book by August 14 (i.e. only nine days away) one person can sail for 15-days for :$3,575 pp. It was originally $7,149 per person. Can’t think of a nicer place to be spending Christmas!

Varanasi/Robyn Skinner

Or maybe you want something sooner? Something for September? Why not travel on the only Riverboat along the Ganges between Kolkata and Varanasi, India?

The next trip for the 56-person Bengal Pandaw river cruise is September 27th. There are only ten cruises a year! Each one is 11 days, but the entire trip includes stays in Kolkata for a night and Varanasi (the holiest city in India) for two.

For more information on the Bengal Pandaw Riverboat contact Carl Paiva, CEO of CTravel at 292-3033 and for the other deals check CTravel’s website or give them a call.

And as always: check the Travel Deals’ Page for more advice.

The first time…..

A Christmas Market in Europe

I ever spent Christmas away from home I was cold and in Europe.  It was 2002 and I had just finished a TEFL (Teach English as a Foreign Language) course and I was hoping to find a job. I also rented an apartment with a buddy of mine so money was tight and so was time.

My family wasn’t particularly thrilled, but I didn’t have much of a choice. And to be honest I was glad I did. Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic was fantastic with Christmas Markets in every square, mulled wine warming my hands and fantastic wood carvings to enjoy. Even the tubs of fish on the corners (kept this way to be fresh for Christmas dinner) were an interesting site.

Ok it’s cold, but isn’t Europe supposed to be cold? Isn’t the snow and the real warmth of the mulled wine worth it? For me? Yes.

What is the point? Well Viking Cruises, through CTravel, are offering amazing deals this Christmas in the form of 2-for-1 cruising and 2-for-1 airfare with free wine on select 10 and 8 day cruises. One of those includes a 10-day cruise from Nuremberg, Germany to Budapest, Hungary.

Where would you spend Christmas Eve? Vienna. And Christmas Day? Riding into the woods surrounding this operatic city.

Or maybe the sun, sand, sea option is more your speed?

Why not save 63% on an Oceania Cruise through CTravel to go from Miami to Grand Turk, Tortola, and St. John’s to name a few Caribbean destinations.

The cruise departs on January 2, 2011 and extends itself for ten days. But a Penthouse that would have cost $6,049 this year will only cost $2,500.

A Veranda will reduce from $4,849 to $2,000 and an outside room will move from $3,449 to $1,500.

by Robyn Skinner

Do children get included in your plans? Or maybe you’re looking for absolute luxury with a hint of history? Well Disney, yes I wrote Disney, offers an eight-day Egypt vacation that includes three days of cruising along the Nile.

You know, that little river that snakes through the country. But before boarding you will stop in Cairo for a tour of the famous and incredible Egyptian Museum. This place is packed to the rafters with old Egyptian goodies.

The on to a camel and a lift around the Pyramids, before flying down to Aswan (you know, where the Dam is) and then cruising for three days until Luxor.

Here the tour guides (because there are two with Disney tours) will take you to the Valley of the Kings and the temples that imbibe this town.

Disney is offering this cruise in April, June, July and December next year.

So what are you doing with your two days off? Well booking a trip with CTravel I hope (well when they open after the Cup Match holiday anyway). Happy Cup Match Bermuda!

It’s Thursday so travel to Argentina

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 “Does anyone need coca leaves?”
Huh? What kind of tour had my friend Jenny taken me on? I looked at her.

“Robyn, it’s totally normal here. You’re going more than 3,000 metres above sea level and chewing coca leaves helps with the nausea.”

But these leaves are more than altitude – acquainters. In Andean culture these leaves play an important ceremonial role.

Oh and in case anyone was wondering, yes coca leaves are the material cocaine is made from and they are legal in Argentina. But before you start thinking I was drugging myself I will let you know that it takes more than a kilo of the leaves to make some minor amount of the drug.

Jenny and I shared some coca leaves (it comes in tea and candy too!) and continued on our van tour of the pink/red/yellow and incredible hills of Northern Argentina.

And the buses were ok….I mean if you like an Argentinian Idol wannabe singing over the mic or a guide who couldn’t be bothered to speak at all. And I got antsy! We barely walked and the tours required hours of sitting on a bus. We had booked the cheapo tour and it showed.

Which is why I wish I had known about the Backroads Tours which combine exercise and culture in a nicely tied package complete with wine tasting and dulce de leche (a butterscotch-type spread that Argentinians eat on everything).

So where do they go? Here’s the map of the 8 night/7 Day trip and it includes many of the sites I included in my gallery before.

But, you ask, how much does it cost? Well they cater to both couples and singles. For singles it ranges from $800 to $920.

I can’t think of any reason not to do this tour. They even have some tours in October this year! I wish I had!

But if you’ve done the North of Argentina or you’re hankering for the Patagonian wilds, Backroads have those options too!!

Just check with CTravel (because it is CTravel Thursdays!!) and they can help with all of your bookings.

Fancy visiting the Asian side of the world? Yeah I did too! I spent almost four months here, ate my weight in Pad Thai and then finally headed to South America.

But did you want to do something this fall? A cheap and cheerful trip to Dubai/India/Thailand and Vietnam….to name a few?

Or maybe you’re looking for a great deal that will still get you off-island (and away from Rock Fever) next spring?

Well Oceania Cruises, through CTravel are offering some amazing deals on trips – 63% off!! So do you know how much that means the above trip will cost? For 25 nights to go from Hong Kong to Dubai it ranges from $3,125 to $6,250.

Before? It ranged from $8,199 to $14,699. How crazy is that? Totally nuts if you ask me, but don’t. Instead ask CTravel agents who know what this is all about!

I can’t think of a sport I don’t do….oh wait there’s golf. But hey that’s me. Luckily we’re different people and lots seem to enjoy watching this little ball round the green.

So if you’re one of these why not book your trip to the Masters’ Tournament in Augusta next April. I know, I know it seems to early to plan that, but it’s not.

Why? Because Horizon & Co are offering $500 less on packages for anyone who books their trips  with CTravel before August 1 this year.

What do they include? Absolute luxury for four days of incredible golf. I can’t say much more but you know that CTravel definitely can. So check out what they’ve got and remember to return to my daily blog….tomorrow!

Wanna cruise to India?

Palolem Beach India/Robyn Skinner

Worried that it would mean bedding-down in a bug-ridden mattress and caravanning with the dirty backpacker? No worries there is a trip arriving in February for you.

I wish I had heard of this when I went to India. There is a seventeen day vaca/cruise around India and Sri Lanka with Zegrahm & Eco Expeditions. It sounds amazing. From Chennai you would board your boat and go to the likes of Sri Lanka and the West coast of India.

Sri Lanka is the only country, island, place I have been too and though the beaches compared with Bermuda (I am Bermudian).

Where do you go? To Candy, which is actually inland, where the dancers perform and the Temple of the Tooth. What is that? A most holy place for Buddhists who believe the left upper canine tooth of the Lord Buddha himself resides here.

Then you would go back to India and explore Cochin with its mix of colonial architecture and amazing fishing skills. And finally Goa!

My god Goa. That is where God may have made this country. Palolem Beach is about the best sunset I have ever seen in my life (see my pic above).

The Route

And I haven’t even started on the food. In Sri Lanka you will be inundated with fish and rice dishes of all sorts.

In India the spices will blow you away. I can’t comment on the cruise, but the CTravel agents can. I promise you, you won’t be disappointed with these countries. They are stunning.

Have you got kids? Have you failed to plan a trip this summer? Looking for something for the end of the year?

What about Disney? I know, I know. It’s the mouse with ears, but it’s also fun. Even for adults. Hell I went there when I was in College and loved it.

So why do I bring this up? Well because luckily Disney Destination, which you can book through CTravel, are offering free dining between August 15 to October 7 and October 22 to October 28, etc for every night of your stay in a Walt Disney World Resort…. Just check it out with CTravel.

What does this mean? You have to book by August 14 to take advantage. Why would you go? I mean besides the rides, the inevitable stuffed characters? Well how about 40% off staying in a Disneyland Resort through October 2.

Do you need anymore? Didn’t think so. Oh wait their website: www.ctravel.bm: Book it

Hagia Sophia in Istanbul/Robyn Skinner

For the traveler sans kids? And you’re not sure you’re ready for India? Don’t worry there’s plenty. Fancy some Gladiators? Or  Echoes from the minarets while shopping in the Grand Bazaar? Remember my trip if you do…there are only certain ways to negotiate.

Now back to what I was talking about. Well I did it alone, but couples, yes any two people friends etc.. can book a trip with Insight Vacations and Alitalia (the two have teamed-up) and save…wait for it wait for it – $500 for an organised trip of some of the most amazing cities in Europe or quasi-Europe (Istanbul).

Even better it’s for October so things won’t be busy in Europe and hings will be cheaper i.e. flights and there will be less people there. Where am I talking about? Fly to Florence, Rome, Istanbul, and Athens and go up the Parthenon or visit the Turkish bazaars. These tours are varied and can suit the laid-back to the intense. But to get the discount you need to visit – CTravel.

Brought to you by CTravel Thursdays! Check out the Travel Deals' page for more information.