Norwegian Pearl Inspection and Lunch

On thursday Sept 24th I arrived at Pier 27 to join other agents for the Ship Tour and Luncheon.
There were about 50 agents and we were all signed in by 11:00AM. Due to security we did not board till 11:45AM. We were given two room number and went to see each cabin. One was an inside Cabin Deck 8. I like the bathroom but the cabin itself was tiny. Then on deck 10 we took a look at an OceanView Balcony Cabin. Same thing. Nice Bathroom and Balcony but tiny cabin.
We went up to Deck 11 and just looked for an open cabin that was being cleaned. Much better.
Suite Cabin much larger. So if I was booking my clients on this ship. The lowest Catagory I would reccomend would be the Suites with Balcony. Next we rushed down to the Summer Palace Main Dinning Room for Lunch. One of Four Dinning Rooms. It was very beautiful. Low Ceiling and Russian Paintings of Katherines Palace in St. Petersburg. Lunch was very nice.
Spring Rolls, Lobster Bisque Soup, Salmon, and a Chocloate Desert to die for. The offered Red and White Wine and any Soda or Tea you wanted and coffee. Next we had one hour to see the
public Areas. I like the pools, the Gym, the Spa, etc. The Atrium of the ship was only two stories and they had a huge movie screen playing videos etc on the main wall. I noticed windows everywhere in the eating decks such as the Buffet Lunch Area. The hallways where the cabins were not wide enough for me. I also felt claustropobic on the Cabin Decks. The ship is decorated in cool tones with warm accents. I felt the serve yourself dinning areas were to plan and not appealing. I would reccomend this ship for those that like to stay up on the sports or pool decks.
But the overall impression I got was the ship was too dark and boxy. Not enough light and Dark public areas. I prefer Holland America or Celebrity myself. Even Royal Carribean sometimes.
She will be sailing Alaska and the Carribean in the winter next year. As always their shows and water sport activities are top notch. The shopping deck had quite a few stores and nice and large walkway. This ship would be a good choice for a family or couple on a tight budget as NCL is priced to sale. Resturants looked good and it dine when and where you want that many people like. Like other ships. They have a electronic board showing time and how long before you can be seated. I like this ship more than the older ones. Just not enough outside decks and light for me. Robin

Linda & John trip to Sandals Negril Jamaica

Linda and John Moore trip to Sandals Negril with a site inspection at Beachs in Jamaica on August 23 to 30th 2009. John and I and our friends/relatives David and Jeanette spent a fantastic week at Sandal Negril. It was so nice to just relax and enjoy the Beauty of Jamaica. And it was even sweeter that we were upgraded three categories to the Grand Luxe Beachfront Rooms in the Coconut Cove buildings; which was 50 feet from the waters edge and valued at $7000.00. We swam about 3 times everyday with water temperature of 82 degrees. The air temperature was between 80 and 86 degrees.
John and David are both Certified Scuba Divers; so they did a 30 foot dive and two 70 foot deep dives during the week. John said he would recommend these dive sites at Sandal to anyone. Diving at Sandals is free to certified divers, they supply all equipment and only charge $10.00 per day for a wet suit if you want one. You can make two dives per day. You can get your Open Water Certificate if you stay 7 days or more. There is an added fee for the Certification.
The white sand of the seven-mile beach at Negril goes on forever and is so beautiful.The dress code is casual; men dress in shorts and collared shirts for dinner and only the Kimonos restaurant did you have to have long pants and make reservations. They have Six restaurants to pick from each night. Kimonos restaurant was Asian. The Bayside restaurant was international and had buffet style breakfast and lunch; but for dinner was sit down dining and more of a steak house. Barefoot by the Sea served seafood and was right on the beach. Beautiful table settings but you sat on hard wooden benches with cushions and not very comfortable and all the food is cooked over at the Sundowner restaurant and then brought out to your table. The Sundowner restaurant has Caribbean West Indian dishes and is an indoor restaurant with elegant place settings and service. This was my favorite restaurant at Sandals Negril by far. The 4C’s was Italian the meal started with a cold buffet with appetizers, salads, breads and desserts. Then you order your main dish of Pasta; which you would pick from there menu and they make it up in there open kitchen. Also on the beach and they did the pasta on a hot plate in the middle of the restaurant. The Café Sandals Grilled served sandwiches, burgers, fries, fried chicken and was very good and a big hit as there was always people hanging out there. They closed a different restaurant every night being it was the slow season; but you did not know till you walked up to the restaurant that night. Also John was disappointed that they did not have lobster at any of the restaurants.

The management team put on a welcome cocktail party and we met all the staff. It was very nicely done and we enjoyed meeting all the different people. They also do a private dinner for return guests with the managers on a different day.

General Manager Horace Peterkin hpeterkin@grp.sandals.com

Sales Manager Jeffrey Burke JBURKE@grp.sandals.com

We did a site inspection and there we were told that Sandals Negril was at 65% capacity. All the rooms have air conditioning. The internet there was $60.00 a week or $39.00 a week if you had a lap top. For the people that had butler service they were given cell phones that dialed directly to the butler for whatever they wanted. It was amazing how many young couples had the butler service. John got a bad sunburn while we where there and the SPA did a lily wrap on him, they wrapped him up in sheets that were soaking in a tub of Ice and water it helped take the pain away. The SPA was so nice; I did a salt scrub and loved every minute of it.
We used the swim up bar a couple of times but the young couples took it over most of the time and played volley ball in the pool so the ball would go flying and hit you on the head while you were trying to cool off and have a drink.
The private dinners on the beach for the wedding couples or honeymooners was done so nice and it was $170.00 and well worth it. Even if you had a anniversary or feeling romantic you could do this too.




We picked a three package tour that was $100.00 per person and well worth it. They took us in a van to the Black River at St. Elizabeth where we saw many birds and
Alligators.





We had a buffet lunch Jamaican still and it was good.

From there they took us to Y/S Falls a 7-tiered waterfall where you ride a tractor drawn jitney up to the falls.

Then we finished our day at the Appleton Estate Rum Factory where they served us rum punch and gave us a tour and then had everyone sample 7 types of rum and John says they were very good. They sold the rum cheaper than any where else put people did not get the fact that you can not carry the bottle on the plane and when they went to check in they had to put them in there check on luggage; I wonder how many bottles made it home unbroken.

Before we went all we heard was go to Rick’s Café; they have the best food and it so much fun. Okay so when we got to Sandals Negril they said it was not safe for us to do it alone and we had to go with them either by $20.00 per person taxi/tour guide or $72.00 catamaran from the resort. The boat ride was a party boat and we did not want to do that. Big mistake as it cost for the 4 of us $190.00 to eat and drink and the food was not that good and for 3 hours the total cost was $270.00. The divers did a few dives and kept coming up to us to pay them more for another dive. It was nice to see the dive but after you saw them dive there was nothing else. They had a band later when it was time for us to leave so we guessed people liked it for that. Any way the four of us vote it as a tourist trap and other than the divers it got thumbs down all around.

We also did a site inspection at Beaches Negril and to get there we walked to Beaches Sandy Bay which was right next door to us and then took the free shuttle to Beaches Negril. We also were given cards to show that we were staying at Sandals Negril to get on the Beaches properties. I liked Beaches Negril very much but they had a lot of stairs to all the rooms. The children’s programs were great and they even had child care room with cribs. The lazy river was so much fun that Jeanette and I kept going round and round. We had lunch there and the pizza was very good. The guys did the water slide and they liked it. We found out that Beaches was 95 % full. Also they have X-BOX games that are tried there before going on sale to the public. The internet was cheaper at beaches they sold cards of $5, $10 or $15.00 to use it.

Anthea showed us around, but my contact was Iesha Samuels isamuels@grp.sandals.com and we also met with the general manager Carl Hendriks hspittle@grp.sandals.com.

Lazy River and Water Slide at Beaches Negril



We would highly recommend Sandal’s and Beaches Resorts to any client.

Mendocino Get-away: Stanford Inn by the Sea

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit Mendocino and stay at the Stanford Inn by the Sea. The drive from San Jose was long but very picturesque.

This beautiful property is nestled on a hillside, sitting atop a meadow overlooking Mendocino Bay. The inn has 32 guest rooms, 9 suites and a rambling lobby, all paneled in redwood & pine. The inn includes such amenities as wood-burning fireplaces, phones, wireless internet, business services, TV, VCR players, and room service. It also has a beautiful solarium enclosed pool and spa and many workout rooms. The inn also offers complimentary full breakfast and afternoon hors d’oeuvres.

The Ravens restaurant is outstanding and is nationally known for its vegetarian cuisine. Some of the vegetables are grown in their own private gardens.

The Mendocino area has many wonderful things for you to explore and do.
I was only able to stay for one night but would have preferred to stay 3-4 nights to enjoy some of the nearby activities such as hiking, swimming , kayaking and much more.

In closing I had a wonderful experience and looking forward to returning to enjoy more of the wonderful scenery and activities.

A weekend getaway at Half Moon Bay

Ken and I had a chance to get-away for the weekend so we stayed in the Half Moon Bay Lodge. One of the nicest boutique style hotel of Best Western Hotels. We were quite impressed as we first checked-in. There were two rooms available for us to choose from and we choose the room with the garden-view. The other room had a view of the dried up part of the golf course which was not appealing. After checking-in at 8:00pm, it was time for a relaxing soak in the jacuzzi. A pool was next to it so after 15 minutes, I took a dip into the pool to cool off. A dry sauna was available also, so I took advantage of it on the next day. What a night to start!

On our second day, we had a continental breakfast. It was not great but we could make our own waffles so this made it exciting.

Our day followed by taking a long walk at the Ritz. The Ritz had a long walkway over looking the beach so you'll see local residents taking walks with their dogs. It's a perfect morning exercise for about two hours following the golf course pathway. We rested at the outside bench looking into the ocean and the golfers. It is a perfect place to relax and enjoy watching the golfers playing golf. As a golfer myself.........I watch them played with frustration and could relate to it quite well. Except this time, I am totally relaxed sitting there and enjoy the perfect view of both the golfs and the beach.





Later in the afternoon, Ken and I headed to the famous Barbara's Seafood Grill. A place we have aways wanted to try each time we drove by with our family but didn't have time to eat there. The restaurant is a hole-in-a-wall but after the 30 minutes wait........it was well worth it. We ordered fish and chips and it was totally yummy for $10.99pp, even for someone who is picky eater like me. Note: for Seniors 62 and over, it is $6.99. Well Charlotte, let me know when you want to go?

After the late lunch, we went back to the hotel and enjoyed our bottle of wine with French bread & cheese. Later it was time for relaxation again.........back to the jacuzzi, swim, and hot sauna........hm.........I could get use to this!

You see! We needed to take a short weekend to get away.........a totally relaxed & enjoyable weekend.

A rack rate of $129.00 per night is a steal. I was given a $50.00 voucher for the next stay, a real surprise.

I definitely recommend this hotel to your clients. They will thank you for putting them there for such a deal with great and wonderful amenities.

Blog tip of the week

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To: the Email Posting Address you created (mine is tracy1g.cmtn@blogger.com)

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Cramer Collection - July 17, 2009

I attended the Cramer Collection last night which was held at the Cypress Inn, Cupertino, with Velma, Charlotte and Pena. As usual, it was filled with wholesalers, company reps, travel agents and owners. The trade show had reps of many luxurious hotels, such as the Davenport Hotel in Spokane; The Bardessono in Yountville; The Fairmont San Francisco; Quail lodge, Carmel; The La Playa, Carmel by the Sea; Huntley, Santa Monica; Rancho Bernardo Inn, San Diego; The Spa at Balboa Bay, Newport; The Wynn and Encore, Las Vegas; Encantado, Santa Fee, NM; Dreams, Los Cabos; and Grand Velas, Riviera Maya, Mexico - just to name a few. We collected bagsful of brochures and goodies.
We also stuffed our faces with chopped ahi on Crispy tortilla, beef satay, cheese and crackers, sliced fruit, and mini desserts of lemon bars, cream puffs, fruit and chocolate tarts and quenched our thirst at the open bar.
They had over 30 giveaways of one to two nights stay at the participating hotels, and some included spa treatments. No, we didn't win a prize, but we sure had fun.

One of my favorite places to visit - Grant Pass

Grants Pass Visitors and Convention Bureau's Quarterly Newsletter
What's going on in Grants Pass?

'Hut-to-hut' hiking offers comfort between daily treks The beauty and majesty of the mighty Rogue River offer more than rafting! Rogue River rafting & hiking adventures take place in one of the most poetic canyons on earth and are perfect for first-time river runners, families and experienced rafters and hikers alike. The Rogue River offers a near perfect combination of exciting but safe rapids, warm water, a lovely green canyon, a comfortable pace, majestic trails and plenty of wildlife. A Rogue River hiking or rafting trip is a trip that you can take with the whole family and create those family memories that will last you a lifetime. You can often spot salmon on their way to their breeding grounds upstream or you may even catch glimpses of eagles, otters, deer or even a bear. "People want to feel like they're getting out of the hubbub. But they don't want to sleep in a tent and eat freeze-dried food,"Brad Niva. "On this trip, you can bring the kitchen sink - or a case of wine. We'll carry it down the river for you." Check out the full article about Hut-to-Hut hiking on USA Today's website.
To book a rafting or hiking trip on the Rogue River, please visit the rafting and hiking outfitter database.
Event in Grants Pass - Summer 2009Concerts in the Park
Watch, listen and dance to a concert while enjoying the beauty of the mighty Rogue River. Concerts in the Park kicked off on June 30, 2009 at Riverside Park with Funktional Fusion, one of Southern Oregon's hottest bands! This band is from Grants Passs, OR and you can expect nothing but the best from this very gifted and talented group. Check out the Concerts in the Park website for the full list of groups that will be performing this summer.

Back to the 50'sThe Towne Center Association of Grants Pass is once again hosting the annual Back to the 50's celebration. Held on July 21, 2009 through July 25, 2009. Over 550 classic cars participate in the cruise in Downtown Grants Pass held on Saturday, July 25, 2009. In addition to the classic car cruise enjoy a poker run, downtown merchant specials, a free 50's concert and a car show in Riverside Park. For more information and a schedule of events, please visit the Towne Center Association's website or give them a call at (541) 476-5773. Be sure to check out our online event calendar for a full list of events happening in Grants Pass this summer!Cycle Oregon is coming to Grants Pass!
The best way to sum up Cycle Oregon might be through the honorary title riders have bestowed upon it: The Best Bike Ride in America.
That's because Cycle Oregon delivers the best combination of scenery, challenge, amenities, camaraderie and philanthropy of any ride out there. A fun-loving mix of back-road riding and two-wheeled tent revival, the event moves from town to town with 2,000 or more riders enjoying generous hospitality and providing direct financial benefits to our host towns as well as cycling-related causes throughout Oregon.
And it's a new route, and a new experience, every year! In 2008, Cycle Oregon 21 included 2,200 participants from 44 states and 11 foreign countries. We are proud that they have selected Grants Pass, Oregon as one of their lay-over days in September. We look forward to the 2,000 plus visitors, and the boost to our economy that this event will provide to Grants Pass.Art Along the Rogue 2009 - Moves to Riverside Park
In it's 7th successful year, Art Along the Rogue will make the move to the park on the Rogue River. Riverside Park will come alive with art and music on October 3 & 4, 2009. New this year: A collabrative piece of chalk art! Spear headed by nationally known street painter, Tracy Stum and three local artists inlcuding Ann DiSalvo, Janet Gogue & Cathy Gallatin. This is a must see event. You won't find any event like this in the State of Oregon. New to Art Along the Rogue this year is the "Art Along the Rogue Community Art Show!" This show was originally a part of "Take a Walk on the Rogue" held in September. From kids to adults, painting on canvas, we are delighted to have this show as part of Art Along the Rogue.Former First Lady, Laura Bush visits Grants Pass and rafts down the Rogue River - Next stop for the First Lady: Crater Lake
Laura Bush walked down the concrete boat ramp at Almeda Park with four lifelong friends from Midland, Texas, to begin a three-day raft trip down the wild and scenic Rogue River. "We travel together all the time. We love national parks, and we like to do rivers too," Bush said. "We've been adventurous all our lives." Brad Niva, owner of "Rogue Wilderness" is the company taking Bush & company down the wild and scenic Rogue River. Niva said the company kept the trip quiet for a few months for Bush's sake. "We are very pleased and excited to have her choose Grants Pass and Southern Oregon as her vacation destination." Soon they were floating down the Rogue through Almeda and Argo rapids, heading for the Rogue Rivers' wild section. "We're just thrilled to be here," Laura Bush said. Laura Bush's next stop: Crater Lake National Park.
The Grants Pass Visitor's and Convention Bureau wishes all of you a happy and safe summer.