Hacienda Tres Rios

RIVIERA MAYA, Mexico -- The fourth stop of Travel Agent’s recent tour of Cancun and Riviera Maya properties was a visit to the first family-focused resort on our agenda, Hacienda Tres Rios. This hotel is perfect for families. Its guests-only Tres Rios park is just right for clients looking to snorkel in cenotes and see all kinds of wildlife and fauna just a short walk from their hotel rooms.

When we arrived earlier this week, the property was preparing for a soft opening, but it is expecting to be fully operational by the spring. It has 273 junior suites. We saw room #1121, a Ceiba Junior Suite with two double beds or a king bed. It also comes with a sofa, a balcony and an indoor Jacuzzi. We also saw room #1122, a Casa Grande, which can accommodate six people and which we consider the best room of the property. It has a king bed with a Jacuzzi right next to it and a dining area. Agents should contact Miriam Martinez, wedding and social events sales manager, at 011-52-998-891-5266 or mmartinez@haciendatresrios.com. Stay tuned as Travel Agent brings you more properties we saw during our one-week tour of Riviera Maya and Cancun resorts.

Mandarin Oriental, Riviera Maya

RIVIERA MAYA, Mexico -- The third stop on Travel Agent’s recent tour of Cancun and Riviera Maya properties was perhaps one of thee best luxury products we’ve ever seen in Mexico. The Mandarin Oriental, Riviera Maya was the definition of modern, trendy elegance. This was high-class at it best, from the property’s six artists' sculptures located throughout the property--essentially creating an outdoor art museum--to incredible rooms like the Presidential Villa, offering three bedrooms, a rooftop plunge pool, two floors, and there are windows in front of the sink offering views of the ocean. Book these for clients looking for the best of the best, but other rooms such as our Villas Selva, or “jungle,” will not disappoint.

We stayed in room #347, which offers an outdoor pool set in the heart of the property’s jungle landscape. The room also comes with a king bed, a bathroom with a Jacuzzi and a separate closet area. Our favorite subtle feature was the sliding door from the bedroom to the bathroom, which was actually a mirror on the other side, making you feel completely isolated in your bed. Another neat touch is that all remote controls in every room glow, so you won’t have problems channel surfing in the dark. Agents should call Oscar Molina, senior sales manager, at 011-52-984-877-3251 or omolina@mohg.com.

Stay tuned as Travel Agent brings you more properties we saw during our one-week tour of Riviera Maya and Cancun resorts.

Feed Your Appetite: Food, Shopping, Culture in Rome

It’s time for celebration. My favorite place to eat seafood in Rome is now open for lunch. Co-owner Anna Maria Gabrieli met me at Quinzi & Gabrieli (+39 06 79 389, info@quinziegabrieli.it) near the Pantheon and Piazza Navona (Via Delle Coppelle 5) and, with a wave of her hand, set the waiters in motion. A tsunami of fresh Mediterranean catches kept arriving, from the freshest oysters to eggplant and shrimp rolls, to slightly grilled langoustine to pasta with morsels of shellfish. This is the perfect place to have a long, fabulous lunch after spending the morning on a Context Tour or just wandering around. Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, Dustin Hoffman, and Leonardo Di Caprio come here when working on films in Rome— book for dinner and do some people watching, or have a sumptuous lunch, followed by a nice long nap.

I decided to walk off my lunch by wandering over to the Gattinoni boutique at Via Sistina 44  to see if there was something I could fit into after my enormous meal. I adore Guillermo Mariotto, the creative director, who showed me his 2009 designs the other day. His look is a combination of the classic and mystic, with a twist of naughty. . .  just like the Venezuelan/Venetian himself. The haute couture atelier on Via Toscana 1, near Via Veneto, is where iconic stars like Ingrid Bergman have founder Fernanda Gattinoni display her creative genius; now Guillermo brings in the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow. Satisfied that I could still fit into at least a scarf after my huge repast, I continued on to the rooftop bar at the Sofitel.

A table at La Bella Vista, the seventh floor terrace bar, a glass of perfectly chilled Pietrablanca, and all’s right with the world. The sky was banded with sunset colors, layers of blues, and swallows swooped and dipped above umbrella pines in the park below.  I really love this bar— it’s positioned directly toward the sunset and, during cocktail hour, drinks come with little square bowls of parmesan cubes, roasted almonds, and nibbles of Norcia salami. What could be better?

Then, though it seemed impossible to eat again, I did: dinner at Le 49, masterminded by former Alain Ducasse hand Chef Omar Agostini. The Rome Villa Borghese Sofitel is celebrating its fifth star, surely at least in part because the food is so good. The garbanzo soup and the risotto with pigeon were divine. This young Italian chef has a very bright future and is awaiting a new restaurant space in 2009, when the Sofitel continues restoration of the former Boston Hotel at Via Lombardia 47, near the Via Veneto. For now, though, Le 49 is cozy, with a gentleman’s club atmosphere.

In the food for the soul category, the Sacred Music Concerts take place during the last half of November in the four Papal Basilicas. Programs include works by the masters— Brahms, Haydn, Mozart, Bach— performed by a variety of orchestras in some of Rome’s most evocative settings. Visit www.festivalmusicaeartesacra.net.

Make the Most Of Your Culinary Fam Trips

Nancy Harkrider of ExploreAsia.net recommends how to have fun on culinary fam trips and bring back knowledge that builds your business. 

I got a call the other day from a travel agent planning a fam trip to China. She wanted to get some ideas about how she could come back with strategies for selling culinary tours. Afterward, it occurred to me that these ideas might be helpful to Travel Agent readers. Think of it like this: It starts with appetizers and moves to the main courses before finally lingering over dessert and coffee.

Trip preparation is essential. I recommend you go about this systematically and creatively so you are ready to understand what you are experiencing.

o    Do some self study— watch videos and review resources like Travel Agent.
o    Visit the International Culinary Tourism Association website www.culinarytourism.org.
o    Locate friends and associates who have been on a trip similar to the one you are taking and find out what surprised and excited them as well as what they didn’t like so you can go on the trip with ideas to use for your future culinary groups.
o    Go to some local restaurants with the same cuisine you will be experiencing on your trip. Chat with your server and find out what people like about this particular type of food. Better yet, invite some of those veteran culinary travelers to join you for a meal.
o    Take a book or audios about culinary travel or about the country you will be visiting. It’s amazing how much more exciting and relevant this is when I am actually airborne.

On the trip, the first recommendation is to relax and immerse yourself in the amazing experiences you will be having. I find that the better time I have, the more I can translate that passion to my customers.

o    Keep something handy for recording the best bits from your tour leader, conversations with locals and to record your own reflections. I strongly recommend an audio recorder, one small enough to fit in your hand, with the power to record seven-eight hours before you need to upload to a computer. A small notebook works well too
o    Take advantage of conversations with others on the fam trip. Exchange ideas for how what you are all experiencing can be translated to selling points for customers.
o    Encourage your tour leader to talk about experiences with other travelers in terms of what they love, their questions as well as what they wanted more of about their culinary travel.
o    Take pictures, concentrating on close ups of food and people since those types of pictures sell your story with customers. Make sure someone takes some pictures of you enjoying your culinary adventures.
o    Make it a point to find at least one fellow traveler on your fam who is enthusiastic about staying in touch and sharing ideas.

When back home, reflect on what you learned.
o    Organize your notes, images  and audios in a way that you can really use when working with clients who are interested in culinary travel.
o    Write about your experiences via your website, a blog or newsletters geared to potential customers.
o    Stay in touch with that culinary travel “buddy” as each of you builds your culinary niche.
o    When your customers go on a culinary journey, connect with them after the trip. They are your most valuable resource for revisions and modifications that will guarantee five-star recommendations from future culinary groups.

Food for thought!

Azul Fives Hotel, by Karisma

RIVIERA MAYA, Mexico— The second stop of Travel Agent’s recent one-week tour of the Riviera Maya and Cancun properties was the impressive Azul Fives Hotel, by Karisma in Playa del Carmen, which is slated to open December 1. Like our host property, the new Azul Sensatori Hotel, by Karisma that we told you about Wednesday, this was also unlike many all-inclusive properties we’ve visited in the past.

Just 15 minutes from the heart of Playa del Carmen, this resort features close to 360 rooms. But lets get right to point: Go no further than booking the one-bedroom suite. There perhaps is no room more impressive at this price. You can book a one-bedroom suite and a Deluxe Room next door, essentially making up a two-bedroom suite. The stairs of the one-bedroom suite lead to the rooftop where a Jacuzzi, a bed, a bar and wrap-around couch await. The Jacuzzi is high enough so a client can appreciate the views even while he or she is in it. The rooftop area can accommodate between 30-40 people and the room, including the Deluxe Room, can have up to six people for a total cost of about $1,100 or about $150-$170 a person, per night.

Think about it: $150-$170 per person, all-inclusive with some of the best amenities you can get anywhere in Mexico. This is the perfect spot for a bachelor or bachelorette party or perhaps something a bit classier like a family reunion. A personal chef and/or bartender can also be hired for this room at an extra cost. Agents should contact Alexia Muralt, sales manager, at 011-52-998-872-8080 or amuralt@azulsensatori.com. Stay tuned as Travel Agent brings you more properties we saw during our one-week tour of Riviera Maya and Cancun resorts.