Some of you may know that Viking River Cruises has clearly established itself as the indisputable master of the world’s great rivers.  Today they have announced their plans to let some of that remarkable success flow directly into the Seven Seas.  OK, maybe not seven right away but at least a couple.   Travel Weekly has a great article this morning about Viking’s plans to launch their first ocean-going vessel, the Viking Star, in May of 2015.

The initial voyages will ply the Baltic and Mediterranean Seas.  It will fit into the mid-size category with 928 passengers.  One thing that should set it apart from its competitors in this market is the fact that shore excursions and beer and wine with lunch and dinner will be included.

“Another unusual feature will be a ‘snow grotto’ in the spa in which ‘snowflakes gently descend from the ceiling through chilled air,’ according to a Viking description,” reports Travel Weekly.   To learn more, I  encourage you to visited our branded Viking Cruises site and click on Viking Oceans tab at the top.

When your friends ask if you have heard that Viking has just entered the world of ocean cruising, I suggest you give them a dismissive look and a roll of the eyes and simply respond, “Please!  I follow Travel By Terry.  I heard about that eons ago!”

This particular trip began with a connecting flight from DFW to ORD through DTW.  You will have to forgive the airport codes.  That’s just how we travel geeks talk.  The translation is Dallas-Fort Worth to Chicago through Detroit.  The real translation is that this is the airline industry’s droll little way of taking an insipid two-hour experience and stretching it, like a salt taffy pull at the state fair, into an excruciating five or six hours.

My tight connection in Detroit required a mad dash from one end of Terminal A to the other. To illustrate the distance involved, it required catching a train even though it is just one  concourse.  Seriously!  My lunch plans evaporated faster than the beads of sweat on my forehead somewhere along the mad dash between gate A79 and A23.

When I arrived at my airport hotel, I was in a decidedly cranky mood.   Here’s a little insider tip: The phrase “airport hotel” may sound innocuous but whenever you find those two words co-joined, it seldom portends a joyous experience!  Finding that my assigned room had not been cleaned (it was four in the afternoon by this time) and then that the new room contained not a single flake of soap, did nothing to elevate my rapidly plummeting mood.

THE WORM FINALLY TURNS

Strangely enough, it was at this precise moment that things took a remarkable turn for the better. Dame Fortune, in her own inscrutable way, was about to transform her countenance from a  brooding scowl to a broad smile.

My traveling companions and I were famished so we asked the desk clerk for a recommendation.  She suggested a nearby place that would come collect us in a van and return us to our humble abode after dinner . . . humble being the operative word.  A few moments later our chariot arrived and we were spirited off to 

THE GREAT ESCAPE RESTAURANT

Little did I realize that the remainder of the evening was going to provide an entire series of surprises. It was virtually impossible not to notice the first.  Dominating the parking lot not to mention the horizon. was an 80 foot tall, 108 kw wind turbine.

The restaurant has an entire page on their website called Going Green that explains this restaurant’s remarkable commitment to protecting the environment.

The next surprise was Justin, our server. He brought us menus but asked us to put them down while he shared some information about the history of the establishment.  Ten minutes later we realized just how much fascinating history there was.  The Bar & Banquet Room are still a part of the original structure built on this site in 1889.

Two of the most famous patrons of the bar in the early days were Tom Mix and Al Capone whose respective smiling / sinister visages gaze / glare at you from a nearby wall.  If you are an aficionado of the early western movies you will immediately recognize the name Tom Mix. Many of the saloon scenes were  shot in this building.  Al Capone sold booze to the establishment in the early part of the twentieth century.  More details can be found on the restaurants About page.

Another tab on the restaurant’s homepage is labeled “Hauntings” and is dedicated to a fascinating account of a night spent there by the Chicago Paranormal Detectives.  I predict that those of you with an appetite for such phenomenon will greatly enjoy the read.  As Justin carefully explained, the picture you see below is one of two “hot spots’.  (I thought for a moment I was sitting in one of the hot spots but it turned out that was just male menopause.)   He explained that he had stepped it off and the two spots were exactly 30 paces apart.  I think the significance was this is the normal distance for a duel or shootout but since I was into my second glass of wine by this point, I wouldn’t want to be held to that.

We haven’t even gotten to the food which was excellent.  The restaurant specializes in baby back ribs, broasted chicken and chicken pot pies.  I sampled them all as I am about to explain.  We had such a delightful evening that the next day I stood up at the conference I was attending and bragged about our experience (I am a Texan, after all).  The next evening I returned with about 25 of my closest friends.  Thank you Brian Great, the proprietor (hence the name of the restaurant, don’t you see?) for the nice complimentary bottle of red wine and the cappuccino.

One of the great things about travel is that often times pleasant surprises are just around the next corner.  Serendipity, like lightning, can strike anywhere . . . even in the shadow of the airport in Chicago!

I recently interviewed Vicki Freed,  the Senior Vice President of Sales and Trade Support & Services for Royal Caribbean International, right here on this incomparable little blog and one of my queries was, for her at least, this very familiar and possibly tiresome question:  “When will Royal Caribbean start sailing year round out of the port of Galveston?”

For a little context, travel agents throughout Texas and surrounding states have for a few years now  been clamoring, cajoling, carping (and various other exertions too embarrassing to mention in print) for Royal Caribbean to position a ship in Galveston year round.  We travel types are nothing if not annoyingly persistent.

I have big news!  Let me share a brief excerpt from a press release issued today.  “Royal Caribbean International, the cruise line known for first at-sea innovations, announced today that it is basing 3,114-guest Navigator of the Seas year-round from the Texas port city of Galveston.”   Unlike when mighty Casey struck out, there was great joy in Mudville today. More than one of our travel agents was observed doing the happy dance on their desks!

Since by design, these “Hear It Here First” posts are intended to be short and sweet, you can click here to read all the details.One exciting aspect of the news is that not only will Navigator of the Seas begin sailing year round from Galveston beginning this November but also will be emerging from an extensive drydock revitalization in February of 2014.  

This is absolutely going to be a very popular ship and departure port so start making your plans now.   Click here if you would like a full schedule of departure dates and itineraries and reach out to me for prices and to secure space.

Remember, you heard it here first.  And, if you didn’t, then clearly you aren’t as devoted a follower of this blog as you should be!  Come on, let’s muster a little fanatical devotion here.

Christopher Columbus discovered St. Maarten on November 11th, the holy day of St. Martin of Tours, and thus named the island after him.  If I had known back in college days that all you had to do to get an island named after you is become a saint, I might have behaved a little better.   I am not suggesting by the picture below that this constituted Christopher’s mode of transportation.  I remember from zoology class that there are such things as sea horses but I am relatively certain these are not examples.

One of the peculiarities of this tiny island is that it is shared by two sovereign nations, Holland and France.   This fact no doubt explains the provocative phrase the tourist board likes to bandy about. “Where European sophistication and raw island passion have fallen in love.”   Another way to say it is St. Maarten is a “Caribbean Paradise with European Panache”.   Suffice it to say that there is a lot of “Old World” charm on this “New World” isle.

I could ramble on about the myriad activities (take horseback riding on the beach, as a random example), the splendid and variegated beaches, the night life that never ends (can you say 14 world-class, Vegas style casinos) and the dozens of dazzling places to dine but, as you no doubt have observed from past posts, I am a humble man of very few words.  You haven’t noticed?

I would much rather husband our brief time together and tell you about an amazing resort located on this Caribbean gem.  I am referring to none other than the incomparable

La Samanna

The name of this resort comes from the owner’s three children:  Samantha, Natalie and Amanda.  It’s fortunate he wasn’t more prolific or the resort might be unpronounceable.

In the words of the The ID Travel Group brochure, “La Samanna, an Orient-Express hotel, lies in 55 acres of lush, tropical gardens, overlooking Baie Longue stretch of white
sand beach.”  This property is ideally suited for anyone looking for a place to relax and let the gently lapping waters of the bay gingerly wash away the accumulated cares deposited there by a frenetic lifestyle.  If stress is the poison that kills, La Samanna is the antidote that revives.

That doesn’t mean that resuscitation has to take only one form.  An exuberant toast shared by new-found friends under a canopy of stars can be just as invigorating as an afternoon nap in a gently swaying hammock.   A sumptuous dinner in an elegant bistro famous for their French cuisine, with apologies to Shakespeare, can serve as well to “knit the raveled sleeve of care” as a restful night’s repose.

Here is one of those insider tips we love to share in these “Incredible Isles” posts.

 “For a couple looking to dine at the most exclusive and romantic table on the island, Le Cave is the spot.  Located in the wine cellar of La Samanna, guests can arrange a private dinner with a customized tasting menu and wine pairings.  It is the most amazing setting for a special occasion.” –Jennifer Molloy, Reservations Manager.

If even these prescriptions are insufficient to straighten out the kinks in your tortured psyche, then there are always the nine beckoning spa treatment rooms where the combination of Asian transcendental music and lightly dancing magical fingers will have you slithering out of the treatment room like a great gray slug.  OK, not one of my more gentile metaphors but, you have to admit, it does evoke a powerful, if rather slimy, mental image.

I know you will be completely shocked when I tell you, I just happen to have a very special offer should you at this point be gathering up possessions to sell so you can experience La Samanna for yourself.  I am not going to give you a lot of details because 1) that is not what we do here and 2)  if I did, I would have to add a couple of hundred words in mice type of legal disclaimer.

So let me just hint that my little offer includes upgrades, paying for less nights than you stay, some free insurance and such.  If you are intrigued, contact me and I will quite gladly send you the offer . . . along with the mice type disclaimer . . . suitable for framing!

First things first.  The title of this blog does not contain any typos.  To demonstrate it we need to journey back to your freshman English class with Ms. Pringle and parse this title.  Don’t memories of parsing sentences, declining nouns and conjugating verbs just make you tingle all over?  OK, first you have to stop thinking about the girl who used to sit in the row ahead and two seats over.  She is now twice divorced, sixty pounds overweight and has a drinking problem, so try to get a grip.

Element One:  One&Only

This is an absolutely incredible collection of resorts in some of the most beautiful locations in the world.  We are talking places like Dubai, Mauritius, and Cape Town.  At the risk of contributing to the delinquency of hormonally charged teenage guys around the blogosphere, this is one of the rotating pictures on the One&Only website homepage.  My own hormones, sadly, are a mere shadow of their former selves and yet I confess my opinion of hanging basket chairs has just skyrocketed exponentially.

I also have to admit that to call a resort chain One&Only seems a little incongruous to me. Shouldn’t a chain called “One” & “Only” have only one link?  Aren’t you glad your mind doesn’t work like mine?  At any rate I am very glad this particular chain has several links because every one of their resorts is in a class by itself.  As they like to put it, each of their resorts “delivers a distinctive experience born of its environment and local culture.”

Element Two:   Reethi Rah

I know it sounds like a pep squad cheer from some small Ivy League school (Reethi Rah, Sis Boom Bah)  but it actual means “Beautiful Island” in Dhivehi.  I will take their word for that because, while my English may not be all that stellar, my Dhivehi is non-existent.  Reethi Rah is an all-villa resort with 130 of the “most luxurious and spacious villas in the Indian Ocean.”

All the One&Only Resorts, Reethi Rah included, are known for their signature Spas by ESPA.   Apparently you can dash from a steamy sauna directly into a stimulating ice fountain which honestly sounds a tad too stimulating for my taste.  I am more of a “tranquil, one-hour, full-body, please don’t hurt me massage”,  kind of guy.

You need not fear that your palate will have to take a back seat to all that pampering.   I know you will love the international cuisine and spectacular wine cellar at The Reethi Restaurant.  The Tapasake serves tapas-style Japanese dishes in an over-the-water setting and Fanditha is a “boho chic” beach restaurant offering Mediterranean cuisine. I have always believed if you are going to be chic, you might as well go the whole nine yards and be boho chic.  Not to sound immodest but I have been told I pull it off fairly well.  Wait, maybe that was bozo chic.

Here is a little insider tip about the property from Nancy Brassem, Destination Specialist at ID Travel Group.  “The courtyard situated before accommodations features a chaise lounge.  At the base of each couch, the resort provides a warmed foot bath and foot massage before your even enter your room.  What a welcoming, relaxing start to your trip!”

Element Three:   The Maldives

The Republic of The Maldives, also called the Maldives Islands, is an island nation located in the Indian Ocean southwest of India.  It is a double chain of twenty-six atolls.  You are probably wondering how the heck does one get there.  One excellent way is to fly Emirates from any one of several US Gateways to Dubai.  Stop off a couple of days and experience the United Arab Emirates.  Next, hop an Emirates non-stop flight to Malé International Airport.  Then comes the fun part.  Take One&Only’s luxury yacht for the 75 minute boat ride to the North Malé Atoll and the Reethi Rah. 

Piece of cake, right!  Come on, where is your sense of adventure? Just think.  When friends ask where you got that glorious tan you can shake your pom poms and shout, “Reethi Rah, Sis Boom Bah!”

Yes, avid reader, I am keenly aware that my list of categories on this blog is proliferating like a family of cabbage patch rabbits.  I am trying to restrain myself . . . I really am!  I have even considered professional help but I can’t seem to find anyone certified in treating “compulsive category creation syndrome”.  The fact that I seem to be the only one afflicted with this malady might explain the dearth of psychiatric specialists in the field.

But enough about me . . . assuming that’s ever possible.    Did you know that there are reputedly 180,497 islands on planet earth?  Can you name all of them . . . in reverse alphabetical order?  OK, neither can I.  But I do feel I am safe in saying that not all of them are incredible.  As your devoted guide in all things travel, I plan to obviate the need for you to visit all 180 plus thousand to sort out the incredible from the inconsequential. You’re welcome.

As a wily follower of Travel By Terry, you can sit back, relax and have the world’s most incredible isles and their corresponding exquisite resorts delivered right to your doorstep . . .  or in this case desktop, laptop or hand held device.  Over the course of the next few weeks, months and years (don’t worry, the decade will fly by before you know it), you will learn about exotic locals like Vanua Levu, Fiji and Cap Juluca, Anguilla (Gesundheit!).  Not to mention you will discover other places so exclusive they are only whispered furtively among the au courant after a backwards glance as “Private Islands”.

Hawaii? Bermuda? The Bahamas?  That’s fine I suppose for the hidebound traditionalists.  But if you have even a thimble of Robinson Crusoe’s blood coursing through your veins (or Thurston Howell III, for that matter), those places will never do.

John Maynard Keynes is said to have lamented, “My only regret in life is that I did not drink more Champagne.”  I will have failed you if that solemn day comes when you hear God utter an ominous “Check, please!” and your last regret is that you have not visited some of the world’s most incredible isles.  I like to think of these outcroppings as precious stones that fell from God’s overturned jewelry chest when He was chortling over our audacious pride.   But that’s just me.

As an added inducement to your patronage, this week only I am offering an iron clad guarantee.  If anyone drowns along the way, I will refund an entire year’s subscription to this blog.

You don’t know about the subscription?  That comes later when my ineffable charm has the hook firmly planted.  Anyway, what could be more fair than that?

So strap on your water wings, you are in for one grand island hopping adventure.  In the days ahead, I promise you enough cocktail party fodder to last you a lifetime.  Should you want to experience one of these jewels for yourself, we just happen to have a new travel partner who specializes in incredible isles.  What an amazing coincidence!

One of the few times you will catch Vicki just hanging around!

She has set an incredible record of accomplishment.  Should I attempt to catalog her rather daunting list of achievements here, it would only serve to make Vicki blush and, more importantly, take time away from hearing her valuable insights.  I suggest instead you read her full bio here.

What is even more remarkable though is how she has managed to reach the pinnacle of the cruise industry while retaining such warm affection and high esteem among so many of her colleagues and travel industry constituents.  I refrained from saying all because surely there must be someone out there for whom Vicki is not the flavor of the month but lacking an electron microscope and a research sabbatical, so far I have not been able to detect one.

What you will discover for yourself when you listen to the recorded interview below is that Vicki combines a keen intellect with an ebullient charm.  This happy confluence of gifts has served her well in her career.  She embodies the brand she represents:  contemporary style and timeless grace.  Cream rises inexorably to the top and Vicki is the executive equivalent of crème de la crème.  Hey, I would be right there too if I hadn’t somehow become a little curdled along the way!

Before you listen to the interview, you might be amused (not that I was at the time) by this quick aside.  In preparing for the interview I alerted my co-workers not to come calling, put my phone on Do Not Disturb, turned off my cell phone and securely shut my door, all to insure that the recorded call would be as clear as possible.  Notwithstanding all my precautions, sixty seconds into the interview a window washer started spraying what sounded,  to my ears at least, like a 3″ fire hose on to my exterior windows rattling the window panes and shattering my nerves.  By some miracle, you will not be able to detect the clatter on the recording!

I seem to have been assigned a guardian angel who requires both morning and afternoon naps.  Granted looking after me has to be particularly exhausting but why can’t I have someone shepherding me around with a little more energy or perhaps, more importantly, a less perverse sense of humor!

OK, let’s get to the good stuff!  In our conversation, Vicki, among other things:

1)  Offers some excellent advice to first-time cruisers

2)  Gives us just a peek into the new Quantum class of ships on the near horizon

3)  Nimbly explains how “Every Ship Can Be The Best Ship”

Click here or on Vicki’s picture to see probing questions magically transformed into perceptive answers right before your very eyes . . .  or ears, I suppose, in this case.

Do you have a favorite travel industry executive that you would like to see subjected to the unquestionable prestige of appearing on Backroom Banter?  Vicki has set a very high bar but if you do have someone in mind, send me their name and I will see if can’t appeal to their charitable spirit as I did with Vicki.

Even I am astute enough to recognize that the entire populace does not share this view.  Therefore, this post will attempt the impossible.  (Why squander our time on the merely difficult, right?)  I shall attempt to deconstruct and reprogram the minds of those of you whose opinion of golf tends to parallel a popular quip attributed to Mark Twain, among others. “Golf is a good walk spoiled.”  Whoever may have said it first, it succinctly sums up to the opinion of a multitude of non-golfers.

As seems to be the case ever more frequently in my advancing years, in this matter I am convinced my view is the proper one and all those of a contrary opinion are sadly misguided.  Having shed all pretense of modesty, let me begin to marshal my evidence before I lose your attention altogether.   Here are three incontrovertible reasons why golf should be part of every vacation.

1)  Golf Affords The Opportunity For A Fresh Beginning

I have a preacher friend who once told me that he loved preaching in black churches.  When I enquired why, he replied, “In black churches,  you get to start over every week.”  He did not mean this in any derogatory sense.  Quite the opposite.  He admired the black churches’ emphasis on forgiveness and manifold grace.

This may seem a bit of a stretch but golf is like that.  When you stand on the first tee, you have nary a blemish on your scorecard.  The card in your hand looks positively pristine, not unlike the closely mown grass under your feet.  You may have gouged and hacked your way through the previous round to the utter consternation of the groundskeeper but all those snowmen (8′s for the uninitiated) on your last scorecard are but a wispy vapor of the mind, melting into nothingness in the morning sun.

As you peer down the first fairway, in a moment of sheer delusion, you ask the starter about the course record.  You pretend it is idle curiosity but inwardly you are fantasizing.  You never know, right?  Sometimes that seductive mirage even lasts a hole or two.  I once started a round with two birdies.  If they could only bottle euphoria like that!

2)  Golf Is Played In Idyllic Surroundings

Have you ever walked the grounds of some palatial estate dreaming that some day your ship would come in (personally, mine broke apart on the twin reefs of poor judgment and bad advice several years ago) and when it did,  you too would finally live in such breathtaking environs?  My humble suggestion . . . in the meantime, of course . . . is to just take up golf.  I have strolled the grounds of the Palace of Versailles and I have ambled through London’s Kew Gardens.  I have also played the incomparable Pebble Beach and Maui’s stunning Plantation course and the former pair have nothing on the latter.

If you are a lover of nature, if you like beautiful panoramas and grand vistas, if you like endless variety, fresh air and the sound of birds chirping, if you like gently rolling fields and  towering pines . . . you get my drift . . .  may I gently remind you that the game of golf is played in the great outdoors where nature in all its grandeur is, at least  temporarily, your private estate.

3)  There Is No Such Thing As A Bad Round Of Golf.

OK, admittedly this blanket assertion assumes no freak accidents such as golf cart rollovers, lightning strikes or beanings of your fellow golfers.   Let’s dismiss those negative thoughts at the outset.  Barring such rare occurrences, golf reminds me of a comment I once heard about sex.  Even when it’s bad, it’s good.  As long as you go to the golf course with the right attitude, every round can be a pleasure.

I know what you are thinking.  Precisely because golf is played outdoors, isn’t it true that the vicissitudes of nature are always looming to spoil your outing.  Au contraire, mon ami.  As Oscar Wilde famously said, “There is no bad weather . . . only inappropriate clothing.”  That is precisely why they make rain gear!

I once arose at six in the morning keenly anticipating my first round of golf ever in Ireland.  I flipped on the TV to catch the weather only to be told that I should expect rain and gale force winds off the North Sea.  When my friends and I entered the clubhouse, we were met by the club manager who made the sign of the cross muttering, “God bless you, my children” under his breath.  Not even the locals had ventured out.  True to the forecast there was steady rain and forty mile an hour winds all day.  Ever prepared, I was wearing the proper gear for the conditions.  This undoubtedly renders my sanity suspect, as if it took this final bit of evidence, but I have to say that experience is one of my favorite golf memories of all time.

You may have heard that various federal agencies are warning that this will dramatically cut the number of air traffic controllers, Transportation Security Administration, personnel at airport security and Customs and Border Protection personnel.  Whether this in fact will eventuate is perhaps debatable.  A lot of political posturing on both sides revolves around such subjects today.  Since we can’t predict the future, the best we can do is give you advance warning about potential problems.   Like you, I have read that a reduction in air traffic controllers could adversely affect airline flight schedules and operations causing delays.  This could lead in turn to longer lines at airport screening and possibly even longer lines at customs.

You may recall in a previous blog post I talked about how travel agents can provide robust assistance when things go awry.

*  As professional travel agents, we are hardly strangers to navigating through weather related and mechanical delays.  If the scenario described above were to unfold, we will quickly offer alternative travel plans.

*  Since travel often consists of several components, our assistance extends not only to securing flight arrangements but also rebooking hotels and car rental reservations.  Our job is to get you to your destination quickly and with as little hassle as possible.

Here are a few practical tips for getting through the security line a little faster.

As I mentioned in the above referenced post, “You can either be that person standing in a long line praying all the options are not gone by the time you reach the front of the queue or you can be that relaxed traveler standing to the side, sipping a latte and talking calmly to his or her travel agent.”

Even if you didn’t book with us, we will try our best to assist you. For the next few weeks we all might be in for a bit of a bumpy ride.  We are here to help!

Remember, always come to Travel By Terry to  “Hear It Here First”.

My rationalization is simple (again, not that I really need much of one).  I recently started a new category on this blog called “Hear It Here First” where I promised to share breaking travel news thus ensuring your status at cocktail parties as the “Seer of Syracuse” or wherever the heck you call home.

One of our valued travel partners, Royal Caribbean International, promotes a giant, three-day blowout sale just twice a year they call their WOW SALE (hence the title of this post).  As special partners, they have given us a little heads up on this offer which does not launch until this coming Monday, February 25th and ends Wednesday, February 27th.

Here are the basics of the offer:

1)  Book any sailing departing on or after May 1, 2013.  3-Day WOW Sale includes cruisetours and sailings on their entire fleet!

2)  Deposits are reduced by 50%

3)  Up to $200 of Onboard credit

* For a fuller explanation of terms and conditions, click here.

Now that you are armed with this advance notice, you can reach out to one of our trusty cruise specialists who will in turn gather information regarding you, your preferences and your immediate travel aspirations.  Then come Monday, our agent will pounce like a ravished Bengal tiger and secure the best possible cabin and price before the other hapless rubes out there have finished their morning coffee!

Here is a list of some of our cruise experts.

Sandy DuVall  *  Lila Tapp  *  Velma Tollison

Damon Webb  *  Judy Richardson  *  Elaine Goad

Cheryl Lobo  *  Linda Matthews  *  Lana Elpiner 

When you click on the agent’s name, you will be provided a robust profile and contact information for that agent! Check out a few agents and when a particular agent’s cruise experience strikes your fancy,  just reach out to them by phone or email.  It really is that easy!

If you have been thinking about taking a cruise and have been waiting for the perfect value to come along (we don’t offer deals), act immediately.  Hey, I had a root canal this week. This little sales pitch has to be less painful than that!