Alkar Travel

http://alkartravel.com Italy is our most popular vacation destination, and we're proud to be a working partner of the Italian Government Tourist Board.
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Other areas of expertise are Switzerland, Austria, Scandinavia,

In addition to travel planning, we specialise in European destination weddings and honeymoons, and golf vactions in Scotland, Ireland, Spain and more.

01/26/2023

Flying into Miami, after a very bumpy ride this evening….first leg of a five day holiday cruise on Celebrity Silhouette. Will be visiting Key West this time, another destination off the bucket list!!

01/19/2023

We are excited and honored to have Britannia Golf, our sister company, named as finalist for Scotland's Best Inbound Golf Tour Operator. A huge thank you to all of our clients, friends and vendors who have supported us over the last 25 years.

01/02/2023

Wishing you all a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year….Let’s roll….

12/24/2022

Wishing you all the joy of the season.

12/10/2022

Back to the Future?

On Sunday Jeffrey and I spent the last night of our journey at the retro “TWA” Hotel at JFK Airport. We shared nostalgia for the iconic building by Aero Saarinen my favourite architect.

A time portal to the past. Both Jeffrey and I have flown out of this terminal back in the day so the memories run deep. I can remember it being built in the late 50’s. The building was always futuristic, so ahead of its time. It has withstood the test of time. A magnificent monument to Saarinen’s creative imagination and genius.

The TWA Hotel is both quirky and fun, right down to the old Constellation airplane “Connie” which was restored and is used as a bar. The interior of the hotel is authentic 60’s with music, working Olivetti flight departures/arrivals board, preservation of the original tile floors and the signature red and white TWA color theme throughout. A sprinkling of vintage cars complete the retro image…

It was an inspired and fortunate decision to preserve this building. The impressive job of restoration has converted the masterpiece TWA Terminal into a luxury hotel.

That said, I am so very sad we have lost both TWA and Pan Am airlines….once the pride of America. We have lost so much…not the least of which is excitement.

Humbly I present my photo impressions of the hotel….

12/10/2022

Life on the “EDGE” ?

Profile of a ship…

Prior to 28 May, Jeffrey and I had never been on a mega ship. Big ships, yes but a floating resort was something we neither fancied nor would have considered.

This changed when we found the perfect Greek island itinerary which happened to be on Celebrity Cruise’s new mega ship, “Edge”. Our first sight of her was in Civitavecchia, the Port of Rome. My first thought “Oh My God” what have we done?
Following our initial shock at the sheer size of her, our next was of awe. She was absolutely beautiful.

New concepts start at the bow. Nothing like a clipper ship, Edge’s bow is remarkable.
Another new concept which blew us away, was “The Magic Carpet” an absolutely brilliant idea. An oblong pod which is basically an elevator, built along the outside of the ship. This innovative feature has multiple uses… a bar, a casual restaurant, a meeting place while the ship is at sea, but even more impressive is that it’s also used as a landing station when the ship is tendered. This makes getting on and off the dreaded tenders both easy and civilised…refreshing towels and a cool drink await as soon as you step onto it…a brilliant new innovation. No matter how many cruises you may have taken, Celebrity Edge is quite different. Beautiful contemporary design and elegance runs throughout, and whimsical touches where you least expect them.

The interior is designed in such a way as to minimize the barn-like feel inside a large structure. Public areas are beautifully broken up, and the designers have done a great job, making it easy and convenient to get around. The elevators alone were a pleasant surprise. Super fast, with soft lighting around each - reflecting red for down, green for up… Because there were plenty of elevators, we never had to wait long for one. Public areas were just beautiful and the ship was spotless, a blessing in this post covid age we live in.

Jeffrey and I are senior citizens as you know….or should know! Our travel days are numbered but we continue to check off the few remaining items on our dwindling bucket list as long as we possibly can.

For this voyage we booked a Sky Suite, and on Edge our experience was spectacular! Our Suite came with a spacious balcony and marble bathroom with shower, tub and separate WC. Being in a suite also gave us a butler, access to the exclusive Luminae Restaurant, and “The Retreat”. This is a private area with pool, elegant well spaced sun loungers, private sun decks, private lounge and cafe etc. Premium drinks and gratuities along with priority boarding and disembarkation are included with the price of a Suite.

It’s well worth the extra money to have these amenities, which at the end of the day are less costly than the equivalent on land and make a huge difference if you don’t want to engage with the madding crowd. It’s about peace and privacy as far as we are concerned.

The Luminae Restaurant is able to compete with the finest restaurants anywhere. Bright and airy contemporary, yet elegant style. Tables are well spaced and staff very attentive. We were warmly greeted by name at every encounter… Menu choices were superb and varied, our sommelier friendly and knowledgeable. FYI..for the churls among us, they can and will bring you anything you want….within reason!

In every corner of the ship, the contemporary and functional design reflect a new level of convenience and creature comfort for the passenger along with some quirky serendipity. Colours are soft and welcoming without being drab….and whimsical elements pop up in unexpected places throughout the vessel. Overall the ambiance is elegant, and the ship is anything but boring.

Celebrity Cruises started out as a Greek company, therefore the ship captains are normally Greek, as befitting a sea odyssey. On this occasion we have Captain Tassos, who charmed us all with his informative stories, historical facts and humorous anecdotes regarding the ports of call. We visited Santorini, Rhodes, Mykonos and Naples. I will write more and share some images of these ports in separate postings. For now, here are my impressions and views of Celebrity’s brilliant ship Edge.

I do have one serous complaint however. On our last day….we had to disembark!

11/29/2022

Goodbye Lisbon……

11/29/2022

Goodbye Lisbon… we are sorry to leave you….

11/29/2020

Ben Nevis from a window...Banavie, Fort William area of Scotland.

11/29/2020

Ipanema Beach, Rio de Janeiro with “Two Brothers” in the distance. Probably the most famous beach in the world....

11/29/2020

Positano is waiting for you....

05/17/2018

Day 5 on Uniworld’s River Royale - Pauiliac - gorgeous chateaux and roses...a glimpse of Chateau Lafite Rothschild and black swans in a moat...

05/15/2018

We have never been on a river cruise but today finds us on Uniworld’s beautiful River Royale sailing the Garonne River in the Bordeaux area of France. Stay tuned as we share our experience....

04/08/2018

Fishermen of the world....can you guess where they are???

clues...Brazil, South Africa, Greece, Italy, China, Caribbean...... let Alkar Travel create your best Fish Tale...

03/23/2018

I took the cover photo some years ago in Honfleur France. Below is a close up of the little restaurants that line this beautiful harbour, and below that is an oil on canvas I did based on my photograph.

There is a very unique river cruise on Uniworld, which offers a stop in Honfleur, along with visits to The Landing Beaches of Normandy and Monet’s garden at Giverny.

If not on your bucket list...it should be. Call us!

11/06/2017

We’re on Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas....entering Fjordland National Park, New Zealand...no words necessary. This is the Milford Sound..

08/30/2017

Alkar Travel Escorted Safari 2018

Address

11535 Nuckols Road, Ste B
Glen Allen, VA
23059

Telephone

+18043468714

Website

http://alkartravel.com/, http://gaelaweddings.com/

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