Stephanie Back Broadcasting in the Crowne Plaza Pittsfield; An Earthquake and Swine Flu in Mexico; InsureMyTrip.com Providing Trip Cancellation Packages; Distinguished Hotel’s New Property in Ireland and London; The Historic Riverside Hotel in Fort Lauderdale; Beluga Encounter at the Mystic Aquarium; Summer in the Berkshires; Thrifty Car Rental’s New and Improved Website.
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Stephanie was supposed to be broadcasting from the Blue Bay Resorts Grand Esmeralda today but had her Mexico trip cut short. A “Travel with Stephanie Abrams” listener had heard about the Blue Bay Resort on the show and planned to host her son’s wedding there. Stephanie flew in to Acapulco, Mexico for Tianguis, and was booked to travel afterwards to Cancun for the wedding.
On Sunday, after broadcasting that weekend from the Crowne Plaza Acapulco, Swine Flu started to receive major media attention. Stephanie was still trying to finalize her plans to fly to Cancun on Wednesday April, 29. 500 people at Tianguis came in from Cancun and flights were booked until May 1. Stephanie was given the option of leaving Tuesday the 28th but would have to miss a full day of Tianguis. She decided to book a flight for Friday and waitlist herself for a sooner flight. As she was confirming the flight with a representative Aermexico’s booth at the Tianguis convention center an earthquake shook the building. It lasted 30 seconds and registered 5.6 on the Richter scale. Like new builds in California in recent decades, Mexico designs its buildings for earthquakes and there was no damage in the city. The earthquake’s epicenter was 50 miles north of Acapulco, so what Stephanie experienced was just the fringe of the event. Click here to read her blog entry on the earthquake.
As the earthquake hit, the US issued a travel advisory against trips to Mexico. The bride and groom of the wedding were already on their way to Cancun. The wedding plans were cancelled but the couple remained in Mexico with six friends, deciding to take the honeymoon first. Stephanie and her husband decided that it was best to fly home. Their flight to Acapulco had been with Aeromexico but all Aermexico flights have stopovers in Mexico City. This presented a difficulty for their return flight home. Stephanie received overwhelming support from others, including the Managing Director of the Crowne Plaza Acapulco, to help her leave the country safely.
In order to avoid Mexico City, Stephanie booked a Continental Airlines non-stop flight from Acapulco to Houston with a connecting flight to Newark. Stephanie was not so much concerned about the threat of illness at the Mexico City Airport but rather the hassles she would face there. After arriving in Newark, Stephanie and her husband needed to get to the JFK Airport to pick up their car. She called the Big D. Brown Limousine company and was shuttled to JFK in style. The cost was only $20 USD more per person than a taxi ride fare.
Stephanie states in her last blog post on her trip to Mexico, “Once the travelers advisory is lifted, Mexico will once again take its rightful place as a leading destination for travelers.” Click here to read about her take on Swine Flu and her premature departure from Mexico.
Stephanie’s experiences in Mexico made her reflect on the importance of travel insurance. She says, “Nobody needs insurance until they need insurance”. InsureMyTrip.com is currently receiving double their normal call volume from people asking question about an existing trip and those planning for the future. Coverage varies from company to company and there are subtle differences within policies. Agents at InsureMyTrip.com guide customers based on their needs and concerns. One of the most useful pieces of coverage is the “cancel for any reason” policy. It is more expensive but covers a broad spectrum of cancellation needs. There are 10 companies that provide this type of coverage, most require travelers to purchase 14 to 21 days of coverage and to do within the timeframe of making a deposit on a trip. Only two of the companies have pandemic exclusions.
For more information visit http://www.insuremytrip.com/
Visit click here to make your own photo gallery on sabrams.com. You can register for free and upload up to 5,000 images.
Fun Facts:
Tianguis comes from an Aztec word referring to an open market place.
Guests Include:
Jim Grace, President & CEO, InsureMyTrip.com.
www.insuremytrip.com
Topics Include:
Visit www.travelers411.com linked on www.sabrams.com. It is a great community for travelers.
Stephanie’s mission is to provide her listeners with insight into suppliers in the travel industry and to present products that will inspire them. CEO of Distinguished Hotels Bill Burruss’ collection of hotels embodies this trait. There are currently seven properties in the unique collection with three or four new additions planned in the coming weeks. They are handpicked by Burruss himself who has to feel strongly about the destination before adding it to the group.
One recent addition to the Distinguished Hotels collection is Glasson Hotel and Golf Club located in Glasson, Athlone, Ireland. Stephanie broadcasted “Travel with Stephanie Abrams” live from the hotel and has had the hoteliers of the property on the show more than once. Tom and Breda Reid initially converted their beautiful farm to a golf course with the help of Christy Connor Jr., a golfer and golf course architect. They took the next step in 2000 and built a hotel comprised of 29 guestrooms which they later extended to 65 guestrooms. The property is surrounded by a loch and has stunning views.
Click here to listen to Stephanie’s December 28, 2008 interview with Tom and Breda Reid. The interview begins at 35:44.
For more information visit http://www.glassongolf.ie/
Distinguished Hotels has several destinations in England. The Royal Park in London is in the north corner of Hyde Park two blocks from Paddington Station. The hotel is comprised of three restored, mid 19th century townhouses. The rooms have marbled floors, heated towel racks, handmade Bellestrata beds and are exquisitely furnished with antiques. It epitomizes the classic English hotel and Burruss states that it has the best concierge service he has ever experienced.
All Distinguished Hotels guarantee the US dollar rate.
For more information visit http://www.distinguishedhotels.com/
The Riverside Hotel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida has hosted many celebrities and public figures over the decades. Built in 1936, it is the city’s oldest hotel. It is situated on the famous Las Olas Boulevard, 80 percent of which is owned by the hoteliers.
The hotel hast two restaurants on site, the Grill Room on Las Olas, which is a four diamond steak house, and the Indigo which offers al fresco dining on the tree lined boulevard. There is also the Wine Room, a private dining facility which offers selections of the world’s finest wines, and the Golden Lyon Bar. The hotel has 217 guestrooms including 4 suites in its executive tower. It is 2 miles from the beach and the Southside of the hotel is adjacent to the New River. The Riverside Hotel offers reasonable rates for families and business travelers and posts special packages on its website.
For more information visit http://www.riversidehotel.com/
Guests Include:
Bill Burruss, CEO and Founder, Distinguished Hotels.
www.distinguishedhotels.com
A.J. Jabbour, General Manager, Riverside Hotel.
www.riverside.com
Topics Include:
Stephanie tries to get the bulk of her traveling done between November and May of each year because the spring, summer and fall seasons in Berkshire County are fantastic. In nearby Mystic, Connecticut is the Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration. When Stephanie last spoke with Assistant PR Director, Becky Giantonio, the aquarium was flying beluga whales to the property by fed-ex planes.
Click here to listen to Stephanie’s November 9, 2008’s interview with Becky Giantonio. The segment begins 19 minutes, 30 seconds into the hour.
Now that the weather is warming up Mystic Aquarium is bringing back its Beluga Encounter program. It is a 90 minute interactive program where guests learn about the history and physiology of beluga whales and then get into the water with the whales while wearing waterproof gear. The trainer feeds the whales and participants watch close by and are eventually allowed to touch the animals. 6 people are permitted in each session. The program began May 3 and continues through October.
Stephanie had an encounter with Franco the sea lion at Coral Island in St. Thomas.
For more information visit http://www.mysticaquarium.org/
Stephanie is debating going to Irish Fest in Milwaukee this year. She would love to go again but there are three Tanglewood performances that weekend and she would hate to miss them. Tanglewood is the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra and just one of Berkshire County’s world class attractions. Others include the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute (home of 30 Renoirs) MASS MoCA, Shakespeare and Company and many roving exhibits.
Stephanie recounts a story about Sarah, Duchess of York’s recent visit to Berkshire County. Sarah was scouting colleges for one of her daughters and was preparing to visit Williams College. Her driver took her to a nearby hotel where, on his passenger’s behalf, he asked the front desk staff if they could provide a complementary courtesy room for about 10 minutes so his passenger could change her outfit. This request was refused by the first hotel the driver took her to. The second hotel they stopped at was going to charge her $100 USD. The last property they tried, the Williams Inn, obliged. Stephanie says it is a lesson in the importance of hospitality.
Stephanie is joined by Chris Payne the Sr. Manager of the Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group. The Thrifty.com website has been recently upgraded and has new features. Customers can look at the inside and outside vehicles and get a 365 degree view of them. The information on the site gives customers all the details of the automobile they are interested in.
For those who aren’t particular, Thrifty car rental has a “wild card” option for customers. Customers can lock in a great rate and then are surprised with the vehicle they get. Wild card customers are guaranteed a mid-size vehicle.
For more information visit http://www.thrifty.com/ and http://www.dollar.com/
Guests Include:
Rebecca Giantonio, Assistant PR Director, Mystic Aquarium & Institute for Exploration.
www.mysticaquarium.org
Chris Payne, Senior Manager, Corporate Communications, Dollar Thrifty
Automotive Group, Inc..
www.thrifty.com
www.dollar.com
www.dtag.com
