09 July 2014

I arrived into Barbados after a very pleasant British Airways flight from Gatwick on 13th June. We checked into Seabreeze on the South Coast, my host hotel for the next five nights. A small boutique style hotel, with cold towels and a rum punch on arrival. The rooms are fairly basic but adequate. The bathrooms were very clean and functional but could do with a facelift. Three restaurants at this hotel. One A la Carte, one buffet, and another beach restaurant. All food was of excellent quality, I couldn't fault this little hotel at all. The small beach had a watersports centre, although the waves made it difficult to windsurf etc. The following day I was to see eight hotels..... The Crane Hotel: lovely location, very rustic, beach with crashing waves. Beautiful accommodation, and restaurants, pools etc. A little bit out on a limb, you would need a car if you stayed here. Little Arches Hotel: very small boutique hotel, very friendly staff and lovely rooms, all slightly different. The restaurant has won awards for the standard, so good choice if you want to get away from it all, and don't want any entertainment. Turtle Beach Resort: fantastic all-inclusive property, with good facilities for children. Good standard all-rounder property. Hilton Barbados: monstrosity of a building, although situated in a good location, with ocean views from every room. Personally I wouldn't want to stay here. Radisson Aquatica: business style hotel on a nice stretch of beach. Again I wouldn't stay here unless on a business trip to Barbados. Courtyard By Marriott: corporate hotel, which I feel wouldn't be right for any of my customers. Blue Orchid/Coral Mist: small apartment style property. Low category, not very clean, but in a great location on the beach. For the budget holiday to Barbados. Ocean 2: fabulous property on a lovely beach in St Lawrence Gap. Can walk out of property to Bars/Restaurants etc. The accommodation is very contemporary, but a good choice for those who want excellent accommodation in a lively location. Sunday 15th June: a day of activities! My day started with a historical tour of Barbados, on an old bus, really informative and interesting including visiting the house George Washington stayed in whilst in Barbados. I then experienced the Atlantis Submarine, where you are taken by boat out to a submarine, you then dive down to see a couple of shipwrecks and marine life. Fantastic experience. Next we were off to see the Mount Gay Rum factory, tour and lunch. Very informative with rum tasting, and a very tasty lunch. Came out with a smile on my face! This was followed by Ariel Trek, Barbados! What can I say, I'm glad I did it, but sure I'm getting too old to swing through the trees 150 metres high! Great fun! And lastly, 4 X 4 Island Adventure. Fantastic laugh, incredibly funny driver, who shook us all up a bit. Again great fun day out for a family. Monday 16th June: back to the airport to visit the Concorde Experience. The hangar houses the first Concorde which flew into Barbados with the queen on-board. Interesting to walk through, and see the cockpit. Lunch was at the Boat Yard, a private beach club, where you can Jet Ski, trampoline have a lunch of chicken, fish or burgers. Enjoyable couple of hours, followed by a Catamaran Cruise on-board the Tiami Catamaran Cruises. Free bar, load music, and swimming with the Turtles! Fantastic few hours. Tuesday 17th June. More Hotel Visits..... Crystal Cove: lovely family friendly all-inclusive property. Quite a few steps around the property. Lovely stretch of beach, with watersports, one main restaurant and a beach bar. Good choice for an all-inclusive Holiday. The Tamarind: lovely stretch of beach. Good quality property, but I must say the hotel has just been refurbished, I was a little disappointed, that some of the furnishing in the reception looked worn. - Welcome to the Caribbean! The House: boutique, very up market property, suitable for couples, as very small nowhere to get away from the other guests. Next door to Daphne's restaurant a fabulous french style restaurant on the beach. Treasure Beach: Small to mid-sized property, with lovely rooms, especially the top floor rooms, which have vaulted ceilings. One restaurant, one bar, but the best rum punch on the island! Loved it for those who do not want to break the bank. The Club: very Americanized large property, which needs a lot of attention! Next door to Simon Cowell's villa. Mango Bay: small boutique all-inclusive property in Holetown. Tucked away on a small beach, but in the centre of the town. I felt a little claustrophobic in this hotel, and some balconies could look into other rooms. Not very private. Coral Reef: beautiful old style property. If you are looking for something special, this would be my choice, understated elegance, with a fantastic spa. I had a fantastic few days on the friendly island of Barbados. Very lucky to experience another Caribbean Island.

10 October 2011

I have always wanted to visit Morocco, so when I was given the opportunity to visit Marrakech I jumped at the chance. We travelled with Easyjet from Manchester to Marrakesh and stayed at Club Meds 4 Trident property La Palmeraie - an ideal property just outside the city. It also had complimentary shuttle transport into the centre of all the hustle and bustle. The hotel is also all inclusive. The hotel is a low rise complex with large rooms with Moroccan decor, nice and cool due to the tiled floors. Most of the rooms interconnect so ideal for families. The food choice and quality is excellent in both the main buffet and Moroccan speciality restaurant. The all inclusive covers all meals, drinks and facilities, including a tennis club and flying trapeze! Plenty to keep the kids entertained when they are not at the excellent kids club. There is regular entertainment for those who wish to take part. In the grounds of La Plameraie there is a quiet adults section called La Riad much more exclusive for those who wish to relax. The hotel also has an excellent spa; I can recommend the Oriental full body massage. It was excellent! Guests staying at La Palmeraie also have the use of the sister property Club Med La Medina, which is situated right on D Jemaa el Fna Square, right in the heart of the action! Guests are permitted to use the all inclusive concept at this hotel too. So, if you fancy a drink in between shopping relax in the rooftop bar and watch the world go by. We travelled through the labyrinth of souks on a horse and carriage, where you can see the handbags and ornate lanterns being made, you can also visit a tannery if your nose is up to the challenge. The square and souks at night are mesmerising lots of hustle and bustle, loads of people! There is a fair amount of development taking place in Marrakech, five star hotels and shopping malls, it is soon to be a very upmarket city to visit. We experienced some excellent nightclubs including Pasha and Jad Mahal, the drinks can be expensive but worth one visit, I wasn't expecting Marrakech to be like this one bit. The nightclubs are excellent. I will certainly visit again in the near future, as only a short hop to get some very different culture. Marrakech is a great destination.

17 November 2010

Ethihad flight via Abu Dhabi, very good service and flight. On arrival in Cochin, I stayed at the Orion Homestay in Cochin for 2 nights, although basic the rooms had everything you needed, and the food was good, the family looked after us well. Felt that this particular Homestay suited the younger market/backpackers. I also visited the Noah's Ark Homestay, where the hosts were very friendly, and again supplied really good food, a real Indian Food experience. In Cochin, I visited the Santa Crus Basilica, St Francis Church (Vasco Da Gamas Burial Place), and some Chinese Fishing Nets, I also experienced a folklore show called Kathakali, showing how the makeup is put on whilst telling a story using mime and music. I then travelled to Munnar the tea and spice region for 2 nights, staying at Ambadi, which is a little more up-market, rooms were very well equipped and a good size, would suit clients of all ages. I also visited the Royal Mist, which was a little more basic, but the family more than made up for this as they were very friendly, and had two delightful children, who loved a game of cards! This area is where the tea plantations are situated, I visited the Kolukku Malai Tea Plantation the highest in India, a very long journey by jeep to get there, but very interesting to learn how the tea is produced, and eventually gets to our teacup. Munnar town is bustling during the evenings with lots of market stalls selling tea and spices. I then travelled to Thekkady and stayed at Pepper County, which was situated on a spice plantation, the owners of the property showed me through the spice planation and explained the processes that pepper etc is harvested. Pepper County was very comfortable, spotlessly clean, with really comfortable beds and the softest towels I have ever used. Again the food was superb, and the hosts very attentive. I visited Koshys Homestay too, which was very basic accommodation, again suited more for the backpackers market. Again a very warm welcome. Whilst in Thekkady I went to Periyar Tiger Reserve, which was an eventful day, as I broke my ankle whilst trekking. Thank goodness I didn't see any Tigers! The hospital looked after me well, even though a little antiquated. I then travelled by houseboat from Kumarakom to Allepey a lovely relaxing experience and stayed 2 nights at Vembanad House an old farmhouse on the river banks, very beautiful and tranquil setting, would suit those who want relaxation and ayurvedic treatments, and again fantastic hosts and food served on palm leaves. Whilst here I had a full massage at the Ayurvedic Clinic which left my skin feeling fantastic. All in all, a wonderful experience in a very beautiful part of India, most definitely will return.