Sunday, October 7, 2012

Ca' Sagredo:  A Venetian Dream



 


Ca' Sagredo is a unique place to stay if you would like to experience the true Venice.
A 15th century palace turned luxury hotel still gives every guest the feeling of a private residence.
Located on The Grand Canal, about a 25 minute walk to Piazza San Marco, Ca' Sagredo is a wonderful gem.  If you love VIP treatment, you have made the right choice.  We have excellent contacts with management to insure the best for your stay.

Away from the crowds of Piazza San Marco, you will experience Venice as a local with amazing shops and fabulous neighborhood restaurants.  Stroll and have it all.  A gondola ride is at your front door along with a wonderful cafe.

Restaurant L'Alcova, in the hotel, has a beautiful terrace on The Grand Canal.  Dine with delicious mediterranean cuisine featuring a superb location.



 


We did a tour of The Venetian Islands with our own private boat and captain.  Ask me to arrange this special excursion for you.  We visted Murano, world famous for glass-making and Burano, a quaint island with beautiful canals and colorful buildings.  This is a great place to shop for gifts and learn about the tradition of lace making.

Perfect for pre and post cruise stays as you are mniutes away from the port.

For a true Venetian experience, choose Ca' Sagredo.



Thursday, September 27, 2012

About Me

I have been experiencing and selling luxury travel for 30 years.
The Cove:  Atlantis Delivers Ultimate Luxury





Atlantis has always been a top resort for us to recommend with great success.
For years I’ve watched customers continue to return year after year and wondered even after walking thru the place what the lure could be. Our arrival was amazing!  The magnificent open-air lobby was a gorgeous combination of water and nature.  We exhaled and the magic of The Cove started to unfold.  After having a personal escort to our impressive deluxe ocean suite, we settled in and decided to explore.  There are 20 swimming areas catering to every desire.  From zero-entry and children’s pools to free form and formal pools.  The Cove is situated on two of the most outstanding beaches in the world – Cove and Paradise beaches.   If you’d rather relax by the pool, 2 unique experiences are located at The Cove and Paradise Beaches.  Adults can indulge in the vibe at Cain and all ages can have fun at Cascades.   Amenities at Cain are bar service, beach concierge and plush day beds.  Poolside and beach Cabanas are available for daily rent with a personal concierge.
We experienced other new additions to the $1 billion collection at Atlantis namely a 63 acre thrilling waterscape Aquaventure and beautiful Dolphin Cay.

If you enjoy great dining, you’ve come to the right place.  There are 20 culinary choices at the resort and Marina Village.  At The Cove we enjoyed Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill featuring Southwestern cuisine at it’s best.  Bahamian Club and CafĂ© Martinique were also favorites.  For a wonderful casual buffet experience, Mosaic at The Cove was excellent.  Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

For casino lovers, the Caribbean’s largest is here.  And after you’re through you can stop in at Aura, the new, two-story upscale nightclub operated by Pure Management Group.

We love to cruise but agreed The Cove & Atlantis experience was another great option because it not only offered all activities and fantastic dining options but also delivered with luxury suite accommodations and concierge service.  The best of the best can be experienced on a land based vacation.
 
 
 

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Pompano Beach Club:  A Bermudian Charmer




Title #0




After getting through this long cold endless winter we were looking for an easy trip to exhale and catch some much needed sun.  Because we’ve traveled so much and have many favorites, we went around and around but always ended up with Bermuda as one of our all time favorite places.  The flight (under 2 hours!), outstanding beach, amazing sunsets and simple beauty all played a part in our return to the charming Pompano Beach Club.  The hotel is family owned and recently celebrated its 50th anniversary.  The Lamb family is currently in their 53rd year of “inn keeping” in Bermuda.  Pompano was the first “fishing club” on the island but soon after evolved in to a small resort.  All the guest room buildings are still named after local game fish to keep them in touch with their fishing club heritage.  The dramatic setting makes this lovely, personalized place an unforgettable experience.  Pompano is still the only resort in Bermuda that has a large, shallow sandbar – enabling guests to wade out for several hundred yards in knee to shoulder deep water at low tide.  Families are welcome and will find a kiddies pool, game room, shallow water ocean swimming, water sports center and 3 outdoor hot tubs children of all ages are allowed to use.  There aren’t any required dinner times for families with children.  Golfers will love having Robert Trent Jones designed Port Royal Golf Course right next door. 

The new Ocean Grill restaurant has a wonderful ambiance, drop dead ocean front setting along with impeccable, friendly service.  We were very pleased with the variety and excellent selections on this menu.  Desserts will satisfy any chocolate connoisseur.
It’s never been a better time to visit Bermuda.  Airfares are low and great vacation packages are available with good added value.


Pompano has been Trip Advisor’s #1 ranked Bermuda resort for the past five consecutive years.  This recognition is well deserved and has been earned thru the consistent, passionate attention given day in and out to the resort and each and every guest.



 
 

Title #7


Concierge Travel & Cruise Consultants, Inc.
 
A Proud Member of Virtuoso!

 
Concierge Travel & Cruise Consultants, Inc. is a member
in the "by invitation only" Virtuoso luxury travel network, comprised of top leisure
travel agencies in North and South America, the Caribbean and Australia. 
 
Less than one percent of travel agencies in America are admitted for membership in Virtuoso.
This renowned network of luxury travel specialists leverages its combined annual sales of more
than $3 billion to negotiated special upgrades, amenities, values and truly rare travel experiences
exclusively for the clients of its member agencies.
For the clients of Concierge Travel, this translates to complimentary room upgrades, airport transfers,
special dining experiences, exclusive shore excursions and custom itineraries, offered by the world’s best
providers of upscale travel.
 
We are very proud to have been invited to join Virtuoso and now to be able to offer these
additional perks to our clients.
Beyond the monetary values, Concierge Travel’s membership in Virtuoso gives its agents
reinforced direct relationships with the finest hotels, resorts, spas, cruise lines and tour operators
in the world, as well as and expanded resource of insider destination knowledge. Virtuoso also provides
the services of Virtuoso On-Site ground operators in more than 60 countries, all dedicated to insuring
the happiness and comfort of Virtuoso agencies’ clients.
 
For more information about Concierge Travel and our new Virtuoso travel offerings,
call us on 201-891-0070
or Toll free 1 877 2 SPOIL U.

Round Hill:  An Oasis of Luxury Villas on Jamaica



 
 

When I think of Round Hill, I can still remember waking to the sounds of lovely birds and feel the wonderful connection to nature and serenity.  We started each day with a delicious breakfast prepared personally for us accompanied by Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee.  Should we stroll on the beach, sink in to a good book or learn yoga today?  Perhaps a trip to the outstanding spa would be the order of the day…What a great place to chill and re-connect with what’s important!

The resort was founded by John Pringle, a charming Jamaican with lots of great contacts.
He was brilliant and understood that getting the right mix was paramount.
Our exquisite villa, formerly owned by Oscar Hammerstein, had the most outstanding appointments not to mention the drop dead view of the lush grounds and hypnotic Caribbean Sea.  . We heard tales the theatre impresario was so inspired he wrote most of the score for  The Sound of Music while vacationing here.  One of the most interesting things about Round Hill are the people who have spent time here.  Paul McCartney,  Ewan McGregor, The Duchess of York, Emma Thompson & Sigourney Weaver to name a few…

Ralph Lauren has recently applied his amazing design talents and come up some crisp, alluring accommodations. 

Round Hill’s new chef, Martin Maginley, is consistently exceeding all expectations.
In addition to introducing new menus and a new restaurant at Round Hill, he has been collecting prestigious awards including being named Chef of the Year in the Caribbean and being asked to prepare a five-course menu at the James Beard House last September.

If you like adventure and unique activities, Chukka Adventure Tours, is offering the exclusive Polo Collection of Adventures to their guests, i.e. soar through the treetops on a Canopy Tour at twilight, take a high tea horseback tour, or indulge in private Polo lessons.  We can work with a pre-arrival concierge to confirm any of these exclusive activities and arrange private transportation to each venue.








The villas at Round Hill are perfect for family vacations or a private getaway as a couple.
The luxury is incomparable and the warm, friendly staff is there to take care of you and anticipate your every need.  They became our friends for the week. 
Norwegian Cruise Line :  Cruising The Med in Freestyle Bliss



 





I’ve cruised to many destinations throughout my career in travel and one of my all- time favorite destinations is The Mediterranean.  Pure bliss.   Whether it’s a focus on Italy or Greece with a little Croatia or Turkey, I’m ready.  NCL has enhanced this experience with their revolutionary Freestyle approach onboard.  We started sailing on their fleet 12 years ago and have been doing a least a cruise a year  with them for ease, flexibility, variety and world class service.    We found plenty of time to do sightseeing during the day (ask us about private shore excursions with our Virtuoso on-sites in every country) with a great variety of dining options and times onboard in the evenings.  If you want a table for 2 at 7pm in your favorite restaurant onboard,  Voila! You’ve got it!  Cuisine onboard includes Cagneys  (steakhouse) , Le Bistro ( French gourmet), Asian, Brazilian Churrascaria, Italian , and Teppanyaki with Habachi chefs.  You also can show up at a choice of 2 other restaurants and be seated to enjoy the menu of the day or evening .   If a burger and fries sound best, The Blue Lagoon is at your service.  The options are varied and all are top notch.  Smart casual dress onboard is appealing and easy on the packing side of a long trip.

If you like luxury suites,  The NCL ships deliver the best.    We’ve sailed in penthouses and owners suites and can say first-hand all of these accommodations are fantastic.  A floating luxury hotel.  Exclusive embarkation and debarkation, butler and concierge service, priority tender tickets,  assistance with restaurant reservations and spa appointments are a few of the special services you’ll  receive as a VIP guest onboard.   The Courtyard Villas and Garden Villas work so well for families who want an exclusive, luxurious experience at sea.  All are on a private floor, known as The Haven, with exclusive restaurant, bar , pool area and  spacious place to relax in the sun.  Tell us about your family and we can help to find a suite that’s perfect for you.

One of our cruises on The Norwegian Gem did a roundtrip itinerary from Venice.  Excellent choice so a pre-stay in Venice got us off to an amazing start.  I always like to hand pick the best hotels and would highly recommend Ca’ Sagredo, a lovely 14th century palace, private palazzo turned luxury hotel, located on the Grand Canal between Ca’D’Oro and the Rialto Bridge.  Location is so wonderful,  not crowded and surrounded by attractive boutiques and great restaurants.   We have inside contacts there so let us know when you’re ready to try something truly unique.
NCL offers  great ships and fabulous itineraries to many European destinations.   Norwegian Epic, Norwegian Jade and Norwegian Spirit are all on hand to deliver an outstanding cruise experience.
News for next year will be the luxurious Norwegian Breakaway sailing from New York to Bermuda starting in May!