European River Cruise: Luxury Guaranteed

Almost all of the major European countries have broad wide rivers flowing through it. So if you ever come across an advert of a cheap airfares of an already visited destination, think again.One of the most unique and beautiful ways to discover and explore Europe is through its rivers. This is the reason river cruising is beautiful, unique and luxurious way to  discover Europe. Let me describe you some of the most amazing features of river cruising.

First step is to select the best cruise company. Some of the best cruise company have got staterooms stored with all the features a good luxury city hotel room would have; like comfortable beds, Floor-to-ceiling sliding-glass door with French Balcony (most staterooms & suites), private bathroom, hairdryer & premium  bath products, Full shower with glass door, Flat screen satellite TV with movie channels, Well-stocked minibar with complimentary bottled water, Writing desk and many more items of ultimate luxury. Most cruise itineraries come with all meals included with guided city tours of the major cities it passes through.

If you are planning a river cruise subscribe to their website  for the deals applicable from time to time for cheap holiday package.

Paris being the epitome of romance and being rich in heritage and history has been very popular choice for river cruising. We have a 11 night tour program starting from Paris and finishing  in London and is very popular with the tourist. This program covers sights like Vernon for a choice of guided visits to either Claude Monet’s stunning gardens at Giverny or magnificent Bizy Castle, Caudebec, where you can really customize your visit. Choose first between an included excursion to the poignant Normandy landing beaches , Joan of Arc’s historic Rouen, and in Conflans, choose between a visit of Vincent van Gogh’s Auvers-sur-Oise or Napoleon and Josephine’s elegant Château de Malmaison before heading back to Paris for a visit of Notre Dame Cathedral with its splendid Rose Window and much more.

Spray from The French Legacy

I happened to watch the MTV show “Splitsvilla” last Sunday. The concept and the content of the ‘ reality show’ did not impress me as much as the shooting location did. After ‘googling’ around for some time I managed to discover , what I call a dreamland.  Today, every second Indian couple desires to spend extravagantly and travel international forgetting what their own country has in store for them.  I was in Chennai on an official tour during that time. The very next day, I started for Pondicherry. I was in Chennai for contracting local vendors and tour operators for the coming season to build best travel packages. I contacted the resort official and informed them of my arrival. 

  

 

Nestled on the outskirts of the quite town of Pondicherry and just 18-20 km from the main bus terminal; the resort is undoubtedly best suited for honeymoon and romance; and relaxed stress busting vacation. I was taken for a tour around the resort by the manager. The resort is suitable to people from all places and has variety of dining options in all three of its speciality restaurants. It also has a Bar cum discotheque and a pool bar where you can go to if you are a party. 

The suits have been very ornamentally named and each of them has its own specialty. All of them is very tastefully decorated with the “Ferns” and “ Cascade” offering Garden Views and water views respectively. Honeymooners would prefer the “ Havens” which comes with a sky Jacuzzi; or the “ Bermudas” with waterfront villas extending out to the lake.

If you have every wanted a typical “ Bollywood” song sequence in your romantic holiday, I would recommend the “ Guadeloupe”. Apart from having a Jacuzzi in the room, the lagoon surrounds the suites offering feeling of an independent lagoon. The privacy is much more extended with the “ Tahiti” and comes with a private infinity pool. ‘’

It could also be a wonderful location for a broad meeting or conferences. As one of the best travel agents in Australia, we would certainly recommend this if you are planning a tour to India.

Lucrative: Pay at Hotel Offer

One of the most lucrative offers that comes across while searching for cheap hotels rates is “ Pay at Hotel “ offer. However, sometimes such offers are actually not so lucrative as they sound. When you are very tempted by such an offer and your mind feels that “you have to go for it”, do recheck certain things to make sure that you are not at a loss.

Say you block a hotel room considering the “ pay at hotel offer” in HKD800/AU$142 NOW. However, since you are travelling after 2-3 months, you might end up paying much more due to the increase of the ROE. However, if you confirm a hotel from a travel agent/ consultant, you will not be required to pay extra than the payment as per the agreed amount. Just make sure you have the confirmation voucher. Sometimes a traveller might be in a win win situation if the rate of exchange goes down.

Even if you are paying by card, you are definitely paying extra. You would be charged a remittance fee and the exchange rate will be as per the Bank and not the online rate. Even if you pay cash in the local currency, the same is charged when you by foreign exchange from a bank or dealer. Usually, you will never get the foreign exchange as per the online rates. It is usually 1-2 units higher.

Mostly, in the “ Pay at Hotel” options, the taxes are not included in the published price. The taxes range from 10% to 20% of the basic amount. A travel agents’, booking has all taxes included, except for some countries while paying the city tax at the hotel is mandatory.

Next time you come across a “ Pay at Hotel offer”, please check the mentioned so that you do not end up at a loss. Also while confirming a booking with an online portal, please check the nature of complaints on the internet. There will be no complaint free booking portal, however, the nature of complaints will help you understand its quality and service commitment.

“ Pay at Hotel “ offers might work when you are travelling within your own country where exchange rates do not fluctuate. 

Passion for Travel -!-

It is interesting to understand what motivated Mr Christopher Columbus, Mr Vasco da Gama, Mr Marco Polo and many others to take out their ship with many other brave unknown sailors to measure the ocean and discover new routes and lands. I guess the primary motivation for all these explorers were discovering new places. These guys were not excited by cheap airfares or holiday packages. To be very honest, another motivation was definitely bourgeoisie driven. This would not have been possible without their passion for travel. The passion for travel and the motivation to find new destination combined could be their driving force. Let’s now ride the time machine and come back to the present. What could be the motivation factor for Mr Bear Grills to travel the unexplored destinations and live as close to the nature as possible? What I understand from them is that if you have the passion for a certain activity, then you do not look for the deal. Had Mr Amerigo Vespucci not discovered that Brazil or West Indies is not the parts of Asia, then we would have been designing our package maybe quite differently or probably Brazil would not be playing for Copa America Cup.

I have become a travel consultant to design travel packages for the passionate travelers. That however does not mean that the packages are expensive. It means that while recommending or deciding on the destination, price should not come first. Your likes, passion and reason to visit a destination should be the only criteria. Once destination is finalized, the best price is provided so that it becomes a cheap holiday package to destination of a client’s ‘choice.  Say, the if the client comes to me and says that he wants thrill and excitement in his package. He is traveling with children who are very attracted to Animals, I would recommend Hong Kong with a trip to the Ocean park if the pax traveling from Asia or Australia. From these places he would also get cheap air tickets to Hong Kong.

There are clients who want exotic nightlife during their trip with a blend of amazing, adventure activities. I usually suggest them places in Thailand as Thailand is well connected from other parts of Asia and Australia. They have been provided hours of Dirt Biking in Pattaya to satisfy their adrenaline rush and then loads of absolute moments in the bars on the walking street in the evening.

A group of young architecture students wanted a tour a part of their course in planning & architecture. However, most of the students were on educational loans and could not afford too high prices. We made the group to travel to India (South Indian Temples and Forts of Rajasthan, Agra and Delhi.) Not just this, on their entire trip they were accompanies by a trained professor from different colleges of engineering who provided them guided tour in these places highlighting the architecture and constructional endeavors.

Beyond The Itinerary - Amazing Bars

If you are a party animal and is looking for some absolute moments during your holidays, here are a few places we would suggest you. Your usual holiday package may not include these places but the best travel agent who knows what you want and will definitely suggest you to make you feel special.

Sky Bar-Bangkok: What could be cooler than sipping up “a Sunset 63 (Absolut 100 vodka, Cointreau, pineapple and orange juice) suspended on a precipice over the city 820 feet in the air? One of the most popular destination for the Bangkok party hunters, Sky Bar is one of the highest roof top bar in the world. Situated above the 60th floor of the posh Bangkok Hotel, Lebua, the bar offers, spectacular views of the illuminated Bangkok. If you happen to visit Bangkok, this is a must “out of the itinerary” visit that you must try.

Al Sarab Rooftop Lounge – Dubai: Feel like the Lawrence of Arabia in this bar, which is a perfect spot to sip a glass of: Marakesh Blazer (Dates, Ron Zacapa Rum, Don Julio Reposado Tequila, Johnnie Walker Gold label, and Chocolate bitters.) The shisha adds to the flavor already created by the well placed cozy fireplaces, dimmed lanterns and the mellow sounds of the oud player. It’s simply- maddhhash

Rockbar-Bali: This is certainly a rock star among the bars of the land. A part of the Ayana resort & spa, this bar is situated 14 meters above the Indian Ocean giving the visitors a grand spectacle. Being short of the vocabulary to explain a visit would do justice. But, keeping mind, the bar is open only on Friday and Saturday.

Ayana’s Pool Bar-Bali: A place to party during the day. Pool Bar at the RIMBA’s is a unique & central feature. Have the signature cocktail with selection of sandwiches and salads without leaving the pool. Visitors may sit on the immersed bar stool or on the comfortable day beds and enjoy the moment. A fun place to be if you want to dip & sip.