Fabian in Maldives

Where in the world...

So this is heaven! 

Fabian Lebrija: June 2014

I recently spent 4 unforgettable nights in the Maldives at Taj Exotica Resort and Spa as a guest of Taj Hotels. The lush 56-acre island is what dreams are made of and the moment your boat pulls up, I can promise this: your jaw will drop.

After flying halfway around the world, the last thing you want to deal with is getting on a small float plane or a long boat ride. What’s nice about the Taj Exotica is that a few minutes after you land at the Malé airport, you will be taken in a speedboat for no more than 10 minutes.  Please don’t get me wrong… there are other Amazing properties throughout the Maldives that are worth that extra time such as these amazing properties:

• Four Seasons Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru
• Gili Lankanfushi Maldives (formerly Soneva Gili)
• One&Only Reethi Rah 
• Park Hyatt Maldives Hadahaa
• Soneva Fushi  
• Cocoa Island by Como 

I am just pointing out a “plus” in staying at the Taj Exotica is that it is close to Male. The moment you collect your belongings and clear customs, your worries will disappear and you can stop thinking all together. A Taj representative will be waiting to escort you to the boat, where you will be at your hotel within minutes.



I was fortunate enough to stay at an "overwater bungalow" that had a plunge pool on the balcony. You need to stay in an odd numbered suite since you then get unobstructed views of the Indian Ocean and a bit more privacy (obviously Travelworld of Coronado will take care of this). There’s no need to bring electrical adapters or converters as the rooms have plenty of multi-pronged outlets. One of the nicest amenities with getting an overwater bungalow is that you have your own butler that helps with EVERYTHING.  My butler unpacked my suitcase, took me around the island whenever I needed to go somewhere, brought me lemon and chili for my breakfast in the room… EVERYTHING. It is veeery easy to get in touch with your butler…. Just dial a two digit number from your room and voila!  If you are lazy or in a hurry, you call your butler and get a ride to and from your room to wherever you are going within minutes.

THINGS TO DO

The Maldives is definitely a romantic destination, but can be geared towards families as well.  I personally think pairing with another country is an absolute MUST; for example, the south of India, Sri Lanka (what I did, you can read my post here), or the United Arab Emirates.

The main attractions are water-based. The turquoise color of the water is ridiculously beautiful and warm all throughout the Maldives at roughly 87°F (31°C) in peak season. Guests can pretty much do any type of water sport. I saw people jet ski, wind surf, stand up paddle, parasail, waterski, go for banana boat rides … but the real treat is diving or snorkeling. I focused on this, as it was absolutely impressive. The water was so clear and warm and had beautiful coral and fish.

Other fun things to do are spot small black tip reef sharks, and even pet stingrays. The resident marine biologist does a nightly feeding for both and gives an interesting educational talk. FYI: I was told there are no snakes or mosquitoes in the Maldives so no worries about Malaria. Bugs definitely weren’t a problem and I didn’t use my bug spray once, unlike in India or Sri Lanka.

On my last evening in “paradise”, I took a traditional boat ride and went out on a one-hour sunset cruise. This is worth doing, as you get a feel of the tranquility and serenity of what is the Maldives.

IN THE KNOW
You cannot bring in alcohol. So if you're thinking of bringing in a bottle of bubbly to celebrate (even in your suitecase), leave it behind as it is a strict Muslim country.  Don't get me wrong, you can buy alcohol there and no one cares but you just can't bring it in.

There is absolutely nothing to do in Male, the capital. There is no such thing as a "city center", nightlife (you create your own), nor your typical historical site-seeing. The point of going to the Maldives is entirely to enjoy the water and relax (disconnect)

The Maldives is a bit more expensive than I imagined. I know it’s an island nation (made up of 1,197 islands, 200 of which are inhabited), so everything is rightly marked up but this destination isn’t cheap. Taxation is what drives the prices way up, so be prepared to stuff your wallet before travelling.

BEST TIME TO GO
December to April is the high season, which encounters the drier northeast monsoon. From May to November you'll experience some rain during the southwestern monsoon that occurs at this time, but you'll have the least company and best prices at the resorts. Plus, surfers will catch the best waves, and divers will see the most life on the reefs. Maldives never sees overcrowding though!

It’s important to note that some Maldivian holidays follow our own Georgian calendar, while others abide by the lunar Islamic calendar. Island holidays won’t affect your resort stay too much, although some visitors have remarked that Maldivians are slightly less hospitable during Ramadan.

Click here to view my photo gallery.

Best Of The Best - 2014 Virtuoso Style!

 Check out the 2014 Virtuoso Best of the Best! This year's directory brings a wealth of information on the more than 980 Virtuoso-preferred hotels and resorts worldwide. You'll find tips from Virtuoso travel advisors to help you make the most of your stay, along with details on complimentary amenities like room upgrades, breakfast daily, resort credits and more. Plus, be sure to check out our new Exceptional Experiences throughout the directory, which your Virtuoso travel advisor can custom design just for you. 

See how Virtuoso can open doors for you - around the world! Explore your world, your way, with exclusive amenities at all of the hotels and resorts in this directory:

Navigate to any section of the world and read about Virtuoso's preferred hotels and resorts from Cape Town to Paris. Virtuoso can take you anywhere - in style.

Voted outstanding in select categories by Virtuoso travel advisors, take a look at these hotels are standouts this year and start planning your next luxury getaway.

The Virtuoso Hotels & Resorts Preview program welcomes seven extraordinary properties. Review the newest 'Best of the Best' in this issue.

These are just a few of the best parts of 2014's 'Best Of The Best'. Flip through for information, pictures and to get to know some of Virtuoso's finest properties, then contact Travelworld of Coronado to help plan your next vacation.

Biggest Celebration of Life is to Travel

Biggest Celebration of Life is to Travel

Every new year comes with new reasons to celebrate - birthdays, graduations, anniversaries...in other words, time spent with the ones you love. This select collection of trips is perfect for heralding any special occasion and we just had to share it with you.

Each features exclusive Virtuoso amenities and extras, compliments of traveling with us. So how will you mark the occasion? Whatever you choose, we will collaborate with you to customize every detail of your festive journey!!

Trips of a Lifetime

 

With a new year around the corner, naturally it's a time to look back at what you've accomplished, what you would have done differently and of course create a list of new years resolutions. This year lets add 'go on my dream vacation' that list! Not sure what your dream vacation is made of yet? We can help you! Here are some trips of a lifetime that could become your reality come 2014...

Adventure in Abu Dhabi
Watch a camel race, ride the world's fastest roller coaster, barter in a souk, and gaze up at the world's "furthest leaning man-made tower" all in a single day. Those are just a few of the adventures that await visitors to Abu Dhabi.

Discover the Galapagos
Meet blue-footed boobies, sea lions, marine iguanas and penguins. Visit the Charles Darwin Research station and the historic barrel, that has served as an archipelago post office for two centuries! 

Uncover History in Israel
Visit Jerusalem, the home to holy sites of the three major monotheistic religions- Christianity, Islam and Judaism. Then trek the new Gospel Trail in Northern Israel and make your way south to float in the Dead Sea. End your trip in Israel's cultural capital, Tel Aviv!

Explore Kenya
You could spend a year in Kenya and never experience all that there is to see and do. This rich country offers a wealth of exhilarating adventures from big five safaris to insightful encounters with Maasi elders and village craftswomen.

We want to create your trip of a lifetime in 2014! Contact us for more information.

Tania in Jade Mountain, St Lucia

Where in the world... 

My 'babymoon' to St Lucia 

September 2011 

By: Tania Swasbrook 

As a seasoned traveler does, it’s now become habit that I book my own vacations last minute! We were going on our 'babymoon' (an American tradition in which you take a trip in the 6th month of your pregnancy as a last 'hurrah' before the world as you know it ends when the baby arrives) and so we wanted something relatively close, adults only and romantic. We’d never been to St Lucia and had had some request about it so I looked into it.

 There are 3 Virtuoso properties in St Lucia. Jade Mountain and Ladera Resort (on the West coast of the Island in Soufriere) and Cap Maison Resort & Spa which is on Gros Islet in the north (more developed in tourism) near the capital of Castries. * Both Ladera and Jade Mountain are known for their “3 walled bedroom” (meaning outdoor living) and the minimum age is 15…and Ladera is closed in September. Cap Maison had the TV’s and “walls” which we were trying to get away from and although gorgeous, we wanted to try something different. So off we went to Jade Mountain.

I’ll be brutally honest in saying that I didn’t give it much thought or investigation. It was starting to get cold in NY so we just wanted to get away. We booked our Jet Blue flight (one of the only direct ones) and off we went. A 5 hours flight later (oops, thought is was closer) we arrived (a bit longer than we thought but St Lucia is, after all, near Venezuela).

It was obvious from just the plane ride that St Lucia is a place to go on your honeymoon or with “that special someone” as the majority of visitors were couples. We went through immigration and got our luggage (all quite fast) and our driver from Jade Mt was there to pick us up. The drive to Jade Mountain Resort is no more than 20 miles but it takes about an hour to get there given the windy roads. Its actually a nice drive (albeit windy and hilly) but you get a sense of the place. You pass by fishing villages and small towns with multicolored houses and scenic views of the ocean and rain forests. Once you come to Soufriere, the fun starts. It’s about a 15 minute climb up to the hotel. You most likely wouldn’t be able to go without four-wheel drive and walking it would be an incredible work out. They don’t do much to fix the roads in order to keep it more private as the beaches and views from the area are incredible and would be filled with non-hotel visitors.

The area (which is that spot you reach after climbing that hill from Soufriere) is called Anse Chastanet and it encompasses 600 lush tropical acres bordering two soft sand beaches. It is St. Lucia's only resort property with the iconic view of both the Piti and Gros Piton mountains floating upon the Caribbean Sea.

Not only do you get a UNESCO World Heritage Site anchored by the twin peaks on land, the resort’s two crystal-clear bays are part of a designated marine reserve protecting miles of colorful coral reefs teeming with tropical fish. The beach is known for excellent scuba diving and snorkeling and many of the reefs are accessible by simply swimming a few meters out from the beach.




The beach is part of the private resort owned by Russian-Canadian architect Nick Troubetzkoy. Troubetzkoy purchased Anse Chastanet in the 70’s and was determined to revolutionize conventional thinking as to what a hotel room should look like and why one hotel room should not be a cookie cutter duplicate of the next. Troubetzkoy’s love for large open spaces built in harmony with nature was first realized in his redesign of Anse Chastanet Resort, and now has reached a new level of sophistication in his creation of Jade Mountain…the more upscale of the two resorts.

When we arrived to the very top (Jade Mountain is at the top of the hill, Anse Chastanet is at the bottom) we were taking straight to our room. Now, I knew it would be open air living, but I really didn’t know what that meant or what to expect and hadn’t thought about the fact that this meant no AC. At first I thought I was going to have some sort of panic attack. Coming from the summer in NY, I could not fathom it and both my husband and I just looked at each other like a deer in headlights. Then came the news of no TV or electronics (ie Phones in the room) (although there is very fast WiFi which is free) . I thought I was hearing things. I just remember asking our Major Domo (aka Butler) where the “other wall” was.

You know what though? Best thing ever. The first day was a bit rough as I actually don’t remember the last time I was somewhere with no AC. Both of us were coughing up all the “gunk” (we kept kidding that we were allergic to nature) and by the end of the trip, I actually was fearing going back to AC filled, pollution based NYC. My skin was the best it had ever been, I think we actually lost weight from all the walking and fresh air, and even our eyes were clearer. And when was the last time you saw stars? At night you could actually see the galaxy it was so clear. It did feel a bit as though we were in tree houses or the movie Avatar.

The food was obviously seafood based with a Caribbean (creole) twits. Not my absolute favorite but it’s a personal taste. They have an excellent 'sommelier 'at the main restaurant for Jade Mt whom was very knowledgeable and professional making the ambiance particularly upscale. The spa at Jade Mountain, albeit small, was very comprehensive (from couples massages to pre-natal massages to facials). They have a gym as well (both spa and gym have AC) but you really don’t need to go at any point given the amount of walking you do! Service was a bit disjointed. Your front of office staff was incredible (Manuel and Jeff particularly) and the butlers and some of the waiters at the Jade Mountain main restaurant (there is only one exclusively for Jade) were fantastic. But then you’d get some of the other staff that was not as “fantastic” and I think a lot of it had to do with the mixture of the two resorts.

Let me explain. It took me a while to understand the relationship between the two resorts (Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain) but basically, as a guest of Jade Mountain – the more upscale, elite of the two - you can roam the entire area, eat wherever you want and enjoy all the activities and amenities both resorts have to offer. By the way, when I say “roam” I mean that very loosely as remember that the resorts are on a hill so you literally go up and down to get anywhere (like your room to the beach) which is an excellent work out (they do offer shuttles for the Jade Mountain guests but that’s no fun). On paper, having the two resorts intertwined sounds like an excellent marriage. However, the demographics of the two resorts are completely different. Those staying at Jade Mountain and paying over $1500 a night are expecting the best (Note: we had a special travel agent rate, thank you Jade Mt!). They are high net-worth individuals and perhaps described best as “high maintenance” travelers. Point is, they are very different to those at Anse Chastanet paying $250 a night. You may see where this is going. When you are at the other restaurants or the beach, the staff doesn’t actually know whom you are so that may be where the issue lies. This is my one main criticism.

However, to my grand delight, as we were walking up from the beach we literally ran into Parrot Cay’s (Virtuoso resort in Turk’s and Caicos) former General Manager whom was recently brought in as the new general manager of Jade Mountain and Anse Chastanet. I believe that he’ll have this issue resolved in no time at all.

The good thing is that most packages come with meals included as things are expensive on the resort. I did leave the best for last though…the rooms are something out of this world. It is no surprise that they have won so many awards. Even the “Bachelor UK: was filmed here (and returning soon!). I can’t even begin to describe them and the pictures don’t do them justice so here is a short video we took.

So the question is: would I recommend Jade Mountain? If you want to get away from it all…pollution, AC, stress and revive and regenerate…then absolutely. If you are a honeymooner (or simply want to spend quality time with that special someone) then absolutely. Just make sure you are informed as to where you are going, how far, and what it entails.

The most surprising thing? The St Lucian’s love of country music and line dancing!!

Tips:

• Take advantage of the activities such as climbing the Pitons or jungle biking (if that’s your thing), sunset sail or visiting Soufriere or the volcano (try to get a water taxi there so you avoid that steep hill road). 
• If you can afford it, make one of the transfers from the airport by helicopter. Its an 8 minute ride but well worth it to avoid the winding roads. 
• Take mosquito repellant and good sandals (not flimsy flip flops only!)

 _____________________________________________________________________
*  A fourth hotel was added to the Virtuoso collection after this trip. Sugar Beach, A Viceroy Hotel (use to be the Jalousie Plantation)

#DoYouTravelworld

Our Visit to SpacePort America

Our Visit to SpacePort America 

Where in the World...
Spaceport America, New Mexico
by: Francis Contreras

On March of 2011, Fabian and I went to visit SpacePortAmerica...same month when the Accredited Space Agents surpassed the $10 million mark in sales of future Space flights. We couldn’t believe it. What seemed like just a dream a year ago is now a reality.

We flew into El Paso Texas and drove to Las Cruces which took about 45 minutes. Las Cruces is a very small town with the best hotel being “Hotel Encanto” . From there we drove to the Spaceport America which was another 45 minutes. Very scenic drive with the mysteries of the desert displayed all around and the infamous America “ghost towns” all throughout.  

Arriving to the Spaceport was like a mirage. It blends in perfectly with the landscape. It was designer by Sir Norman Foster (along with Philip Stark). Foster’s other projects include the new airport in Hong Kong, Beijing International Airport, Metro Bilbao, Wembley Stadium and the “Gerkin” Swiss Re  Building in London.

We really couldn’t believe we were there. Still a work in progress but my goodness…what a sensation to be present in the creation of  history. It is set to be completed by end of this year.

A few days later, the BBC's Richard Scott was the first journalist to be allowed inside the Virgin Galactic spaceship. Read story here

This is just the beginning of an extensive program for Virgin that will not cease until the system is as safe as it can possibly be.  With no actual competitors and only a handful of other companies even talking about offering sub-orbital tourist spaceflights, Virgin Galactic are fully expected to be the first to operate commercial flights. However that is not the priority, safety is their guiding star. 

#DoYouTravelworld