Latest Travel Blog Entries

Wednesday, March 03, 2010

Guests on over a dozen departures of Tauck’s popular "Classic Italy" tour this year will be treated to an exclusive "insider" experience with one of the world’s leading names in fashion.  While in Florence, they’ll enjoy a private guided tour of the Salvatore Ferragamo Museum and a wine tasting hosted by Salvatore Ferragamo, the grandson and namesake of the renowned Italian fashion icon.

Housing the designer’s sketches, photographs, patents, lasts of celebrity feet, and some 10,000 shoes designed and created by Ferragamo, the museum is a testament to his amazing impact on the worlds of fashion and design.  Ferragamo’s legacy has been carried forward and expanded by his children and grandchildren, and today the Ferragamo name adorns shoes, leather goods, fragrances, eyewear, watches and more.

Tauck guests will be hosted at the museum by Salvatore Ferragamo, grandson of the designer.  The 37-year-old Ferragamo manages the family’s 1,730 acre Il Borro estate in Tuscany and the production of its acclaimed Il Borro wines, which will be showcased in the wine tasting following the museum tour.  Dating back to 1760, the Il Borro estate was completely restored by the Ferragamo family after their purchase of it in 1993.  The Il Borro winery opened in 2007 and today produces a number of top quality wines featuring cabernet sauvignon, merlot, syrah, sangiovese and petit verdot grapes.

The museum tour and wine tasting are featured on selected departures of Tauck’s "Classic Italy" tour through an exclusive partnership between Tauck and AuthentEscapes, which specializes in providing insider access to iconic figures in food, wine, sports, entertainment and global culture.  Besides Florence, Tauck’s 14-day "Classic Italy" itinerary (from $5,990 pp, double, plus air) also visits Venice, Cinque Terre, Assisi, Orvieto, Naples, Pompeii, Sorrento, the Amalfi Coast and Rome, where guests enjoy an exclusive, after-hours tour of the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel. 

The private Ferragamo experience is included at no extra charge on 13 departures of "Classic Italy;" June 30, July 14, August 4, September 6, 11, 20, 25 and 29, and October 4, 9, 13, 18 and 27

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Virgin America announces bag fee change – the airline has changed its baggage fee to a flat $25 rate (up from $20,) for all checked items (excluding the first and second bag for First Class travelers; and the first bag for Main Cabin Select and Main Cabin Refundable Fare travelers).

Sunday, January 31, 2010

As you get ready to travel?

Here are some tips to give you peace of mind while you are away and make sure you do not make your house as a target of opportunity. These are some simple precautions from the experts.

• Be mindful of who is around when you are discussing your trip - there is no need to let too many people know or draw attention to the fact your house might be empty for a period.
• The best deterrent is to have someone housesit. If that is not possible, ask a trusted neighbor or friend to take in the newspaper, mail, and any other deliveries and keep an eye on the house. Give them your trip plans and an emergency phone number so they can reach you in case of an emergency. You can also arrange with the post office and newspaper to suspend delivery for the time you are away.
• Lock doors, windows and secure sliding doors (a metal rod or a broomstick in the sliding door track is an inexpensive lock), as well as the garage, the basement, and the attic. Some people even disconnect the power to motorized garage door openers.
• Move any valuables from plain sight.
• Check on your appliances, unplug anything that doesn't need to be on while you're away. Lower air conditioning/heating units to energy-saving levels.
• Set timers to turn on lights if you do not have someone staying at the house.

Thursday, January 07, 2010

Tauck tours offers experiences and enhancements to ensure that our guests enjoy true value for vacation investment with virtually everything included in one upfront price. Tauck calls it the “WOW” factor because their new included cultural connections and experiences reveal facets of each destination that many travelers never encounter.

In Europe, Tauck tours treats you to experiences like these that you wouldn’t have if you traveled on your own.

- An after-hours guided visit to the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel – a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take in the treasures without the usual crowds.
- A gala evening in Lobkowicz Palace at Prague Castle with a private tour of its “Princely Collections” exhibit, reception and dinner
- A private, after-hours dinner at the Tower of London featuring the impressive, 700-year-old Ceremony of the Keys with which the Tower is secured every night
- Lunch in Stalin’s secret Moscow bunker, previously hidden from the public
- Dinner accompanied by traditional Gypsy music followed by after-dinner drinks aboard a private cruise on the Danube
- An “Irish House Party” in the private parlor of a family-owned Georgian mansion in Dublin, complete with Irish music and cuisine 

Here’s just a hint of the Tauck tour experiences you can enjoy in North America 2010:

- A private cocktail reception and dinner at Honolulu’s Iolani Palace and a gourmet cooking experience on Maui
- Lunch in a wine cave in the Sonoma Valley and a culinary experience led by an epicurean concierge in San Francisco
- A visit with a homesteader in the Alaskan wilderness
- A private candlelit evening tour of the Laurier House National Historic Site in Ottawa
- A “town hall meeting” in New Hampshire, hosted by a local expert

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Egypt: Jewels Along the Nile 12 days from $4,900 per person double plus on-tour air Luxor ~ Edfu ~ Nile Cruise ~ Aswan ~ Abu Simbel ~ Cairo ~ Giza ~ Memphis

Watching the sun set over the Nile on a felucca cocktail cruise Riding on a camel at the Pyramids and in a horse-drawn carriage to the Luxor Temple complex Experiencing a spectacular sound and light show at the Pyramids and Sphinx Discovering Egyptian antiquities like the Valleys of the Kings and Queens with an expert Egyptologist Tauck Exclusive – exploring the inside of an ancient mastaba tomb during a visit to Sakkara, the location of the Step Pyramid of Djoser Picking up some cooking tips during a demonstration and galley tour on a 4-night Nile cruise aboard the Nile Adventurer Learning about present-day Egypt during a lecture by a professor of modern Egyptian history