Iguazu Falls

Collette is introducing a new concept called modular touring and is launching it with their new Wonders of South America cornerstone itinerary which is on sale now with departures starting in May 2012.

Personally, I think the idea is a good one.

Cornerstone Itinerary

Rio de Janeiro

Essentially, travelers can purchase this 11-day South America highlights tour that will feature Rio, Iguazu Falls, Mendoza and Buenos Aires. Rio de Janeiro is host to soccer’s World Cup in 2014 as well as the 2016 Summer Olympics and Collette passengers can spend three nights in this exciting and happening city.

Spice it up with a bit of Chile

For those who want to delve deeper into the continent, the new 11-day tour may be extended to 16-days with the addition of Chile featuring Bariloche, a Lake Crossing of the Andes, Chilean Wine Country and the sights of Santiago, Chile’s capital city.

Add an Amazon experience or the Lost City of the Incas…or both!

Then there are the pre and post extensions that can be added to either the 11-day or 16-day  itinerary. Choices include the Brazilian Amazon pre-extension where you can spend three nights at the Jungle Lodge and one overnight in Rio; or add on the 7-night Machu Picchu and Peru post-extension to either base tour for a complete South American journey. 

South America – Your Way!

Machu Picchu

You see where I’m going? Not literally…though I have been to Chile and Argentina with Collette and, if time had allowed, I would have opted for some of these add-ons. After all, you’ve traveled a pretty long distance so why not take advantage of seeing more of what the continent has to offer, especially Machu Picchu? I recall on this journey meeting a couple who had been in South America close to a month – they were leaving Santiago, Chile, the next morning to fly to Easter Island. I think having the ability to customize your vacation…to take an escorted tour and add components that make it more personal - (all without having to do too much work) – is the best of both worlds.

Easy for travel agents to custom tailor a group trip

We have already been seeing interest in South America grow. With the introduction of this modular concept of a shorter base tour with many options, Collette has made it easy for travel agents to custom tailor an unforgettable and comprehensive South American vacation for their clients based on budget and desired length of vacation stay.  

“We created this new, flexible tour to be customizable with optional modules that will uncover the many marvels of South America – its beauty, culture, history, cuisine, entertainment, and geography,” says Allison Flint, Collette product manager. “It’s a South American vacation your way – as long or as short as you want and we will definitely have clients interested in the 28-day adventure. These are the same clients who have already traveled on our Complete South Pacific tour.”

Top attractions and off the beaten path experiences

On the cornerstone itinerary, Collette has included the most sought-after attractions like a visit to Iguazu Falls and  Rio’s Christ the Redeemer statue with culinary experiences like learning how to craft the famous caipriniha cocktail and indulging in a Brazilian-style barbeque at a renowned ‘Churrascaria’ restaurant. In addition to the experience of viewing Iguazu Falls’ “Devil’s Throat” from a platform perch, other tour highlights include a tango lesson in Buenos Aires; a train ride to the top of Rio’s Corcovado Mountain to see the statue of Christ the Redeemer, one of the New Seven Wonders of the World; and a tour of Mendoza, the lovely Argentinean city within the shadows of the Andes Mountains and the ideal base for exploring the Caminos del Vino wine route. Experience the flavor and history of Argentina’s most famous wine, Malbec, during a gourmet wine pairing lunch and visits to bodegas in Mendoza.

The starting at price for the 11-day Wonders of South America tour is $2599 per person, double, land only. For more information and details of the pre- and post-extension options and alternate Chile itinerary, I suggest you call 800-340-5158.

An escorted tour that is flexible enough to fit any budget or length of stay issues. I think this will be a home run with travel agents and travelers and South America is the ideal destination to kick-off this modular tour concept.

Thanks to those of you who have read our blog, returned for another visit, and maybe even commented on one of our posts.

Traveling Well has been going strong since 2009 when we launched our first Reality Tour series showcasing South America’s wines and wonders. No one is more amazed that we have been able to continually contribute travel news, tips, and destination spotlights each week  than your regular contributors given what comes up in the course of any given business day at Collette!

So now, we hope you’ll forgive us but for the next four days, you will see rcycled blog postings while Johnny Quest welcomes a new baby and I am off for some R&R with my family on the lakes and in the mountains of New Hampshire.

Recycling is good since maybe the articles we have chosen to highlight this week were missed the first time around and this is your second chance to read some of our more popular postings.

It also gives your contributors a chance to re-charge. I am counting on the fresh New Hampshire air to provide new insight and informative dialogue for future blog posts and, for my colleague; well, maybe a crying baby will bring him running back to the office filled with crazy inspiration that comes from lack of sleep.

Happy Reading!

Tech on Tour:  Postcards from around the World

Five Fresh Travel Tips

My Top 5 Travel Books

Food on Tour

Israel: You have to see it to believe it

I know we are barely a week into summer, but if you don’t already have a summer vacation planned, why not look ahead to travel September through December?

While many Collette passengers do travel in the summer months (the Canadian Rockies are beautiful this time of year), many of our clients opt to travel in the fall when school is back in session and families are less apt to be tourists.

Choosing Collette means all the work is done for you – our escorted tours include hotel accommodations, most meals, sightseeing, and the services of a tour manager – so all you have to do is choose a destination and give your travel agent a call. We can even help with airfare and getting to and from the airport with our complimentary roundtrip home to airport sedan service.

 Here are some suggested destinations and tours to consider in the fall:

 1.)    New England

You may think this is too obvious a choice and while I live in this region, many Americans haven’t experienced the back roads, historic sights and autumnal foliage of New England. The 10-day Cruise the Bays and Railways of New England includes time in all 6 New England states.

 2.)    Ireland 

Renowned for its “forty shades of green”, this country is just right in the fall for donning an Irish hand-knit fisherman’s sweater and enjoying the sights (and a Guiness) on a cool, crisp autumn day. Check out our popular Shades of Ireland tour.

 3.)    Holiday Tours

For those who want to experience the beauty of a destination that has already had its first snowfall and who doesn’t mind the idea of packing a hat, scarf and winter parka, then a holiday tour in December might just be for you. The 7-day Quebec Holiday tour features stays in three Fairmont properties and dinners in quaint local restaurants. 

 4.)    The U.S. South

During the summer months, the heat and humidity of the American South may deter some travelers but come fall, Collette’s Southern Charm tour offers plenty of departure dates when the temperatures are a bit cooler. Featuring Charleston, Savannah and Jekyll Island, this week-long adventure epitomizes true Southern hospitality and charm.

5.)    South America

The seasons in South America are the reverse of those in the Northern Hemisphere making spring (September – November) an ideal time to visit places like Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Santiago, Chile, when temperatures are mild. I’m partial to our Wines and Wonders of South America tour since I had the opportunity to travel there in 2009. You can read my observations about that tour and the countries of Chile and Argentina here.

It looks hot here! Australia's Outback.

Here in New England the temperature has been hovering at zero. Old Man Winter has us in his grips and with more snow predicted, he doesn’t seem ready to loosen his stranglehold any time soon.

In spin class the other day, I pedaled furiously in an attempt to break a sweat and get warm for the first time in a long time. As often is the case with exercise and me, my mind wandered and I imaginined myself on a bike ride to a warmer destination.

Here are my top 5 warm weather longings (but not necessarily destinations I recommend biking to from New England):

1. Southern California. I guess the recent Academy Award nomination buzz and missing friends who live here, makes this my current top warm weather getaway…again.
2. A journey to the South Pacific. It’s summer time in Australia and New Zealand right now…enough said.
3. Just about any island in the Caribbean would work.
4. Argentina. I traveled here on our Wines and Wonders tour and would love to re-visit Mendoza and sip Malbec in a bodega along Los Caminos del Vino wine route.
5. A game drive in South Africa. I promise I wouldn’t complain about the heat – not once.

Where are you longing to go to escape winter?

More and more, travelers today want a vacation where food and wine is the main attraction. Knowing this, Explorations have included plenty of wine tastings, culinary classes and opportunities to savor local cuisine in each of its small group tours.

To really get to know a destination, there’s arguably no better way to do it than by diving right into its cuisine. Winery visits and samplings, especially, can impart a whole text book’s worth of history – how the grape came to the region, how things like climate and irrigation affect the wines taste, and how wine production can impact a region’s entire economy.

And while I love all the background commentary, there is nothing quite like simply sipping a chardonnay or full-bodied red surrounded by beautiful scenery. Here are my personal favorite places to enjoy a sip or two of vino:

1. Napa Valley, California
2. Mendoza, Argentina
3. Tuscany, Italy
4. Colchagua  Valley, Chile
5. Champs-Elysées, Paris

I’d love to hear your favorite places to sniff, swirl and taste. Comments are always welcome!

Follow along with Melissa and find out what an escorted tour is really like as she makes her way from Santiago, Chile to Buenos Aires!

Discovering the lost city of Petra (a new wonder of the world), navigating through the Wadi Rum Desert, seeing India’s monument of love, the Taj Mahal at sunset, experiencing the plains of South Africa – travelers are all over these once-in-a-lifetime moments. Exotic travel is topping the charts. 

But… isn’t home where the heart is?

For all those vacationers opting to take one BIG trip every year, there are just as many people taking a couple of vacations instead and staying closer to home. Tours visiting destinations in the United States are also popular.

This year our National Parks tour (always a top choice) celebrated renewed popularity. It seems that Ken Burns’ much talked about PBS documentary struck a chord with many Americans. Travelers are also embarking on rail journeys through California and foliage tours through New England, which offer a great mix of activity and relaxation.

Long or short trips, exotic or domestic, travelers win either way. It’s just about getting out there.

Must-See Exotic Destinations:
New Zealand
Angkor Wat, Cambodia
Lhasa, Tibet
Egypt – the Pyramids at Giza
Monteverde Cloud Forest – Costa Rica
Machu Picchu, Peru

Can’t Miss U.S. Destinations:
Colonial Williamsburg
National Parks
Colorado Rockies
New York City
San Francisco
Mackinac Island

On today’s agenda is packing, re-packing, and begging Debbie to take some of my stuff in her luggage. Kevin surprised us by announcing that lunch would be included today for our entire group and all the arrangements have been made for that. I am hoping for one last empanada before returning home…

I’ll wrap things up and leave you with some final observations about Collette’s Wines & Wonders of South America tour:

Relax. And Smell the Roses.
It’s not easy to break daily habits like rising at the crack of dawn. But this tour has plenty of free time and morning departures that are reasonable (especially since the evenings run a bit later). Debbie and I felt that we were able to fit in some people-watching, and enjoyed some down time back at the hotels. I even was able to work in a run and hit the hotel’s fitness centers. The result is a more rewarding experience. We saw many things and we saw them well.

Yum!

Do like the locals.
Go on and try something you’d never eat at home, especially in Chile and Argentina where we found the food and drink delicious (except for the mate). Seek out the mote con huesillo from a street food cart in Santiago, eat a hot dog smothered with guacamole, mayo, tomatoes and onions… and worry about your cholesterol later! Definitely drink the vino—I can’t wait to try to find back home some bottles of wine from the bodegas we visited! If you’re not exactly sure what you are ordering or eating because of translation issues – think of it as a travel adventure. It will taste better that way!

Learn a few phrases.
Speaking of translation, Debbie and I traveled to South America without a clue about Spanish (I took 8 years of French) but we weren’t worried.  First of all, Kevin is fluent in many languages including Spanish (which he learned just 18 months ago) and because Collette’s tour managers are with you throughout the journey, he provides a comfort level as well as some Spanish lessons on the motor coach. Thanks, Kevin! But with free time on your own, learning a few simple phrases can ease the awkwardness and might even earn you a smile. Kevin has many funny stories about talking to locals and getting a raised eyebrow or two because of using the wrong in his translation. But who cares? We found the people throughout our journey to be friendly and willing to help. Get a pocket-size phrase book and leave your inhibitions back home. Your effort will be appreciated.

Pack light.
I can’t overstate this. I was so impressed with Jim and Sue, well-traveled passengers from Colorado who were in our group and came with small carry-on size bags. Sue did a great job of mixing up pieces in her outfits so she

Sue & Jim

always looked like she had something different on. I could take a lesson or two from Sue! Packing light just streamlines your travel experience, plus it leaves room for all the wine and souvenirs you’ll buy because of the advantageous exchange rate here. I know it seems obvious but if you’re buying some new luggage, don’t buy a black bag. Opt for something that you won’t have to worry about identifying like Debbie’s red polka dotted bag—easy to spot from a mile away from the luggage carousel!

Be outgoing even if you are an introvert.
Make an effort to chat with a local, many speak some English, and some like Susana and Carlos, who hosted us in their home for dinner in Buenos Aires, will give you insight into the destination that you’d never get from a guide book. And don’t just limit yourself to the locals. You are on a group tour—talk to your neighbor on the motor coach. In fact, sit near someone other than

Making friends- the best part of travel

your travel companion at dinner. I learned so much about so many places around the world from our well-traveled group. In the course of a few weeks, I have made new friends—and that is truly one of the great joys of travel!

Thanks for tuning in—I’d be happy to answer any questions you may have about this tour and if I don’t know, I will do my best to find out for you. To see the complete itinerary of this tour, click here.

~Melissa

Salude! From Debbie & Melissa

The music, provided by a small band playing from a balcony, together with the dimmed lights, and seating at three separate tables that allowed for prime front and center stage viewing made it difficult for Kevin but he did his best to visit each table and have everyone raise their glasses to the end of Wines and Wonders. Again, there were many stairs to climb in this venue and no elevator but Debbie and I considered it a warm up to what preceded dinner—tango dance lessons!

In a studio tucked off the main restaurant, we learned the basic 8 steps of the tango with one of two expert dance instructors. Let me say, these instructors make it look so easy when they break it down step by step. When you try to execute the steps alone, it really isn’t that bad. It’s when you join with a partner that things go awry. And while I’m no Ginger Rogers, it was a cultural adventure that I am glad to have taken part and to do so in Argentina, its birthplace, made it all the more special!

Certifiably Tango'ed!

The driveway leading up to the old ranch house is flanked by tall trees and it appears we are one of the first tour buses in the parking lot. It is a warm, sunny day and we are happy to accept a cold drink and empanada (meat pastry) from one of the many gauchos near the entrance to welcome us.  Kevin is able to pull some plastic chairs around a thatched “umbrella” to give us some shade.

Debbie goes off to ride on horseback along with Elizabeth and I wait my turn for a wagon ride around the ranch with Cirilo showcasing the wide, open countryside devoted mainly to cattle and horse breeding.

Maggie with horse

Now Cirilo is a story onto himself. It appears that he is the lead gaucho if you will. Perhaps he owns the place—I’m not quite sure—but it appears he has been here for many years.  Although he speaks no English that I am aware of, flirtation needs no translation. It wasn’t hard to decipher his meaning when he pointed to his ring finger on his right hand and gestured to see if my finger was as bare as his. It was not and I laughed to think how many others he has practiced that crestfallen face on. Before stepping down from the wagon, Cirilo said his good bye though I knew it wouldn’t be the last I would see of him. For now, let’s just say I was kissed by my first cowboy–an Argentine gaucho no less!

Me with a "gaucho!"

Before lunch I toured the historic old ranch house to see first hand the history of the Estancia Santa Susana which has belonged to the Rossiter family since 1860. It was decorated like many western U.S. ranch homes accented with cowhide and other masculine touches save for the dining room which was clearly done for the lady of the house. 

Lunch at the Estancia Santa Susana is a feast! Our group was seated in a large pavilion after entering through a general store. The servers brought steak, chorizo sausage, blood sausage, and tenderloin. Salad, vegetables and wine rounded out the meal followed by dessert and coffee. Next up…a folklore show with live music, dancing and even a tango demonstration.

The emcee started the show with a list of all the nations represented at the Estancia Santa Susana that day. Kevin had already prepared us to hoot and holler the loudest when he announced Estados Unidos (United States). I was amazed at the long list of countries represented from around the world! The most spectacular performance was a dance with boleadoras.

After the show, the gauchos ask women to dance—and yes, Cirilo sought me out immediately.

Cirilo has numerous silver coins attached to his large leather belt. Traditionally, gauchos wore all their money on their belts as a way to show how wealthy they were. Another way that gauchos can show off their worth is in the ring, so to speak. Following lunch and dancing, we wandered over to a small set of bleachers to watch the gauchos and their horses demonstrate their horsemanship skills.

In spite of the dust and dirt caused by the horses galloping past, it was amazing to watch Cirilo and two other gauchos each control ten horses. They could make them as still as statues. In the second part of the demonstration, the three gauchos competed in a game called “la sortija” (the ring). Three rings hang from a horizontal post and the gaucho approaches in a full gallop and attempts to pass a small wooden stick (think popsicle stick) through the ring, no larger than 2 inches in diameter. Cirilo was definitely the most skilled in this demonstration.

The day was great fun, and a cowboy lover’s dream. The sweetest part was that many of the women in the audience (including me) got a kiss on the cheek from a gaucho (who else but Cirilo?) along with a souvenir “silver” ring that had been plucked from the string. If you want to see traditional Argentine countryside, a visit to Estancia Santa Susana is worth a visit.