Quick Escape to San Antonio

San Antonio RiverwalkSan Antonio might be home to the Alamo, but it’s the Riverwalk that lends the city its charm. Take the steps down to this soothing river, shaded by tall cypress, oaks, and willows and you feel transported to a tropical setting just below the busy downtown streets. But the reason I love San Antonio is the fantastic biking. Rent bikes from the Blue Star Bicycling Company at the Blue Star Arts Complex and pedal on the 10-mile-long bike trail called the Mission Reach. It’s not uncommon to find herons, egrets, families of ducks, and turtles lounging in the waters, and colorful wildflowers in full bloom. When the trail ends at Mission Road, you can turn right to visit Mission Concepcion or left to visit Mission San Jose. These early 18th-century Spanish colonial missions are now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and part of a national historic park. I always bring my camera to poke around these impressive buildings and get great shots of the light and shadows reflecting off the walls.

But there’s so much more! Two world class art museums, San Antonio Museum of Art and the McNay, one of my favorite botanical gardens in the country, and that dining mecca, The Pearl, that I first described upon its debut in this Washington Post story. Home to the San Antonio branch of the Culinary Institute of America, award-winning restaurants, and a chic boutique hotel built from the remnants of the Pearl Brewery called Hotel Emma, the Pearl is my go-to neighborhood in town. The top restaurant here is Cured, but you better love meat and reserve in advance.

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Savoring the Great Outdoors in the June ActiveTravels Newsletter

It’s the beginning of the big family travel season. If you want to keep your kids happy with as much activity as possible, in some of the most spectacular settings in the world, then try one of the tried and true trips in the latest ActiveTravels newsletter. They all received rave reviews from members or from our own firsthand experience. Also in this month’s issue, we offer you a Quick Escape to Provincetown, Massachusetts, and a wonderful deal in Napa Valley. Please check it out! 

 
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The Key to Getting a Better Hotel Room

For those of you who missed my story in this Sunday’s Boston Globe, here’s the unabridged version on how to get a better hotel room:
 
After an exhausting 4-hour flight delay, you arrive at your hotel, only to wait on a long line at check in. You can’t help but take out your frustration on the person working the front desk. She smiles, types in your information, says, “Have a nice night” and hands you the key to the worst room in the property. You know, the one that’s next to the noisy ice machine a good quarter-mile from the elevators. 
 
Don’t underestimate the power of the front desk, notes Jacob Tomsky, author of the best-selling Heads in Beds (Doubleday), now available in paperback. Tomsky, 35, spent a decade in the hotel industry, 7 of those years manning the front desk at an upscale midtown Manhattan hotel. We caught up with him in New York to get some pointers. 
 
So how do you get the front desk to give you the best possible room?
Kindness and patience are always the best start. The front desk is doing their best to please everyone, so there’s no need to go overboard about that one special occasion that brought you there. The key here is to differentiate yourself from the 300 other people checking in that day. Providing a gratuity right away will go a lot farther than anything else. It’s a nice way to thank the agent for their hard work. It will also make them pause, look up and do everything to find you the best room and upgrade you. 
 
Was there ever a case when someone’s rude behavior resulted in a downgrading of a room? 
Absolutely. Almost daily. If you are demanding and say something terrible to me or my co-workers, then I’ll put you into a room that’s horrible, one that’s loud or has an obstructed view that doesn’t let in any sunlight. And the best part, you’ll never know. 
 
Is it better to book a room via a travel agent or calling the hotel directly than to reserve through websites like Hotels.com or Priceline? 
From a business standpoint, people who book through third-party travel sites are looking for a discount. The likelihood that they’ll return to your hotel is close to nil. So discount reservations are our last priority. Also, those third-party sites often don’t know the property. I once had someone checking into a midtown Manhattan who wanted a beach view. A good travel agent knows to call the hotel 2 to 3 days before you arrive to speak to the front desk or general manager. It’s a business of people serving people. The more you can connect with the hotel, the better your stay. 
 
Is it worthwhile to return to the same hotel in a city to hopefully get the best room?
Definitely. I had guests meet me just one time and then email me upon their return. I’ll go out of my way to ensure they have a nice room. The best time to get an employee’s name is not when something goes wrong, but when it goes right. When you return to the property, you can find that employee and pick-up where you left off. It’s all about relationships. 
 
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Escape to Alcatraz

It wasn’t until this last trip to San Francisco that I finally made it to Alcatraz. The ferry over to The Rock was always booked and even though I grew up on a steady diet of true crime books, there’s countless other sights in San Francisco to pick from. But I have to say that I loved it, especially the captivating 45-minute audio tour narrated by former Alcatraz prisoners and prison guards. “Move over to the next cell,” says a scruffy voice, “this is where Frankie planned his escape.” It really gives the empty prison cells so many more layers. A word of advice: book your ferry well in advance. 
 
Before heading to Alcatraz, we wisely chose to have lunch at Fog Harbor Fish House. Located on Pier 39, the second floor seafood restaurant overlooks the expanse of San Francisco Bay. Sourdough bread, fresh out of the oven, arrived at the table. Then we downed local oysters, a spicy garlic shrimp dish that was a hit at our table, fried calamari, and a wedge salad. Service was excellent and we easily made it to the Alcatraz ferry on time. 
 
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Best Wildlife Viewing, Amalfi Hotels, Nola, and More in March Newsletter

As I write this, I can’t help thinking of one client who is currently in the middle of the Australian Outback and another client in remote Khajuraho, India. They know nothing of presidential primary results and probably don’t care. That’s the beauty of travel; we can choose to escape current events or reality, living off the grid if we so desire far away from headlines. I’m in the midst of working on a Power Point presentation for a talk I’m doing in Maine this month on the subject of adventure travel. I discuss why I’ve devoted so much of my career to the outdoors and the reasons for its allure. For me, it’s the rare chance to be in the present thinking of nothing other than climbing that mountain, finishing a long bike ride, or paddling to the next campsite or backcountry lodge. It’s a gift, really, and I don’t take it for granted during these often dizzying times. 

 
There’s no doubt that the opportunity to see wildlife is one of the best reasons to get on a plane and travel. In March’s ActiveTravels newsletter, we pinpoint five of our favorite places to see wildlife and the best form of outdoor recreation to get you there. All of these adventures come from firsthand experience. Lisa divulges her favorite lodgings on the glorious Amalfi Coast and talks about our best tips for getting oriented upon your arrival in a new locale. We also introduce you to a Tanzanian safari outfitter who can work with more moderate budgets, and discuss why March is a great time to visit New Orleans. We plan on doing exactly that with the kids later this month. 
 
 
 
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How to Create a Yearlong Itinerary

Yes, we’re happy to offer advice on a romantic river cruise in Europe or a family multisport adventure to Costa Rica, but now and then we get requests from clients that offer real challenges in the world of travel and thus get us very excited. Recently a middle-aged couple from Boston signed up as members of ActiveTravels and wanted our help to create a round-the-world epic yearlong journey for their sabbatical. We spent an hour on the phone with them on Monday night and I spent a good chunk of yesterday trying to figure out the major legs of their flights. It’s still not ironed out, but it will go something like this: Boston-Lima-La Paz-Quito-Bogota-San Fran-Honolulu-Tahiti-Auckland-Sydney. From Sydney, they’ll take affordable flights across Australia and Southeast Asia, most likely Sydney-Melbourne-Perth-Bali-Kuala Lumpur-Bangkok-Hanoi-Hong Kong-Shanghai. But once they reach Sydney, they’re off the grid, so to speak, booking their own short and affordable flights until they reach China. This way, they have some spontaneity built into their itinerary and if they want to spend two weeks in Bali instead of one, so be it. I have to fit Tibet in there somewhere, then it’s off to Tokyo-New Delhi-Amsterdam-Boston. In Europe and India, they’ll be taking short affordable flights all over the continent, similar to SE Asia. Then it’s back home on this September to September romp. 
 
Once we book the major international flights, we’ll sink our teeth into the itinerary, booking all their requests and our suggestions, including a weeklong cruise in the Galapagos, hiking in Tibet, and stays in ashrams in India. The hard part is estimating the amount of time to spend in each locale. Sure, you can get a good taste of Australia in three weeks, but it’s nice to double that time and include Tasmania, Broome, the Kimberley, and Kakadu National Park. But every add-on leads to an omission further down the road, so it becomes a great big balancing act. One that I cherish like a kid in a candy store. 
 
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Portugal, Copenhagen, Maine, and Delray Beach, Florida in March Newsletter

Thanks to affordable direct flights and a favorable exchange rate, Portugal is quickly becoming a popular getaway this summer. Distances are relatively short between must-see cities and seaside villages, so it’s an ideal country to rent a car and explore. We’re happy to design an itinerary that includes lodging, driving routes, private guides, activities, and recommended restaurants. Or we can suggest a guided tour that best fits your dates. In the March ActiveTravels newsletter, we break down the best cities and towns to visit in Portugal. We also discuss our top hotel choices in Copenhagen, remind members of an exciting and affordable 5-day itinerary in the Maine woods with Northern Outdoors and Maine Huts & Trails, and talk about a quick escape to Delray Beach, Florida. Enjoy! 

 

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