The Golden Road to Samarkand Uzbekistan & Turkmenistan

Travel company, Jon Baines Tours, has launched a new tour, The Golden Road to Samarkand and Turkmenistan, hosted by journalist and author Jonathan Fryer.

Travellers will explore Turkmenistan and its desert cities which have borne witness to some of history’s most dominant empires. Throughout the trip, travellers will learn about the Silk Road and its links to both the Chinese and Roman empires and how it continues to influence the modern world.

Khiva City Walls
Khiva City Walls

Jonathan Fryer is a freelance British writer, lecturer and broadcasterw ho has reported from around the world for magazines, radio and television stations. He has written more than a dozen non-fiction books and teaches a course in Humanities at London University’s School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS).

Itinerary Highlights:

  • Arrive in Tashkent and visit the Museum of Applied Arts.
  • Visit the Hast Imam, walk through the Chagatai Cemetery, drive to Samarkand, eat at a Sufi clinic, visit the honey bazaar and arrive in Samarkand.
  • Visit Langar village, Shakre Sabz, a local winery for a wine and cognac tasting, hear a talk on horses and the Silk Road, drive to Bukhara, stop off at local potteries.
  • Spend a day in Bukhara, visit the prison (zidan).
  • Arrive in Khiva, the region’s renowned slave trade centre.
  • Cross into Turkmenistan and fly to Ashgabat.
  • Savour local caviar and views across Ashgabat’s glittering marble and gold towers.
  • Visit the National Museum and tour the city.
  • Enjoy a farewell dinner.

Jon Baines runs specialist cultural tours and medical study tours, tailormade tours and corporate and golf tours. Each tour gives travellers privileged access to the country.

For more information go to www.jonbainestours.co.uk

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Poland Your Way – Culinary Course

Sierakow Manor

I recently did a bit of consulting for an UK-based tour operator, Poland Your Way, for the launch of its Polish culinary course. The operator has launched this fabulous package for enthusiastic gourmands interested in learning more about Poland, its cuisine and culture. Travellers have the option of staying for three or four nights, with accommodation and courses provided at a country manor hotel, close to the historic city of Krakow.

Sierakow Manor
Sierakow Manor

The hotel, Sierakow Manor, was once a 19th-century Polish nobleman’s home but it has been lovingly restored, offering a perfect mix of historical elegance and modern comfort. During the day, guests will gain an understanding of Polish culinary traditions, local ingredients and cooking techniques. Classes and demonstrations will be run for English speakers. The groups will be relatively small, with a maximum of 12 people per class.

Some common dishes you’ll get to know include pierogi (dumplings), uszka (a smaller version of pierogi), barszcz (beetroot soup), golabki (stuffed cabbage leaves) and bigos (hunter’s stew). The hotel also produces a range of traditional pickles and jams, as well as stocking a range of local produce such as honey, cheeses and beers. All items are available for sale for guests to take home.

Sierakow Manor Bedroom
Sierakow Manor Bedroom

Each evening guests will enjoy a three-course dinner of traditional Polish food, with wine or Polish beers. On one night, there will be a tutored vodka tasting experience, comprising of eight varieties.

If you stay for the fourth night, you also have the option to enjoy an excursion into Krakow, a guided city tour and an optional lunch in the historic Kazimierz district.

3 nights £505 per person (sharing twin or double room). Non-cooking partner, £355, includes all meals and the vodka tasting. £100 single supplement.

4 nights £655 per person (sharing twin or double room). Non-cooking partner £505, includes all maels and the vodka tastking. £130 single supplement.

Poland Your Way can also arrange optional extra excursions for those who want to extend their stay futher.

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56th Parallel Promotes Siberia Adventure Opportunities

Siberia

Sydney-based 56th Parallel adventure travel specialists are promoting Siberia as a place to add to your bucket list.

Often perceived as desolate, inaccessible, the world’s image of Siberia is beginning to change. Now Russia’s harshest lands are emerging as a place to relax, play and explore, with tour company, 56th Parallel making trips to Siberia easier and more luxurious than ever before.

Siberia
Siberia

The 56th Parallel website www.56thparallel.com will aim to share Siberia’s true beauty with the rest of the world. The company offers a range of itineraries catering to all tastes, from action-packed adrenaline tours, to more leisurely experiences based around exploring Siberia’s ancient and modern cultures, customs and cuisine. Clients can also create their own customised, private itineraries. Clients can enjoy everything from the ballet, to rafting and rock climbing, the banya (Russian sauna) and vodka tasting.

With nine UNESCO sites and nearly 100 sites under consideration, Siberia’s natural beauty has always inspired tourists, artists, photographers, wildlife lovers and adventure sports entusiasts for generations.

Check out the promotional video from 56th Parallel below…

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Real Russia Launches Explore, Discover & Experience Tours

Vladivostok Voyager

Premier providers of travel and visa services to the Russian Federation, Real Russia, have launched a series of tours to take travellers beyond the clichés of Russian culture – vodka, fur, spies – revealing the true beauty of this country. These tours will take you everywhere from the 60,000 lakes of the north west region of Karelia, to the volcanoes of the Kamchatka Peninsula in the east.

 Vladivostok Voyager
Vladivostok Voyager

Travellers can peruse the tours online at www.realrussia.co.uk and pick from a range of classic trips like the Trans-Siberian or Trans-Mongolian tours, to lesser known explorative expeditions like Vladivostok Voyager. Once you’ve been inspired by a trip, the team at Real Russia tailormake the trip to your individual requirements according to season, duration, personal preferences and budget. The tours on offer can take you through all nine of Russia’s time zones, in any season, even the harsh winter.

Real Russia has provided inspirational tours to Russia and former Soviet states including Ukraine, Georgia, Kazakhstan and the Baltic countries for more than a decade. The UK-based company is and officially accredited specialist agency and has partnered with local companies in 50 cities across Russia.

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Grand Hotel Europe Launches Vodka Experience

Russians are famed for many things, but arguably none more so than their love of vodka. This tipple is said to have been first created in St Petersburg. To celebrate this long-standing Russian love, The Grand Hotel Europe in St Petersburg has created a vodka experience where guests will learn how to pair the Russian spirit with food, have a cocktail masterclass with the hotel’s head barman, and indulge in specially created vodka spa treatments.

Grand Hotel Europe St Petersburg
Grand Hotel Europe St Petersburg

First up comes the food pairing. The hotel’s executive chef will take vodka enthusiasts through the classic accompaniments of Astrakhan Beluga Caviar, marinated salmon, and strawberries with icing sugar. Once guests have let the knowledge seep in, they’ll then spend an evenign with the sommelier and learn how to create some of the most popular vodka based cocktails  including, a Dirty Martini, Bloody Mary, Moscow Mule and White Russian. To finish, guests will be pampered with one of two vodka-based spa treatments designed to rid the body of unwanted toxins – the welcome to Russia vodka scrub or the vodka massage.

With the hotel’s lobby bar serving no less than 22 types of vodka, the Grand Hotel Europe really is the place to head if you want to indulge in a lengthy Russian session of vodka imbibing and zakuski devouring, or just buff up your knowledge of the traditional tipple.

The vodka experience is priced from £72 per person, and nightly rates start from £272 for a superior king room per night including taxes. Visit www.grandhoteleurope.com for more information.

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Camping in Croatia – App Makes It Easy

Croatia Camping App

The Croatian Camping Association has developed a mobile app for Android and iPhones. The app is free to download and has a wealth of information for camping enthusiasts heading to Croatia this summer. The guide lists 200 sites in Croatia and is constantly updated.

Croatia Camping App

Each site listing features photos, descriptions, contact information, and some even have YouTube videos. Plus there’s handy GPS data to make locating the nearest site easy. The app also provides the latest weather forecast, the exchange rate, and traffic information, as well as useful emergency numbers. The best bit? Once downloaded nearly all of the functions can be used without internet connection. Find out more at www.camping.hr/mobile-app

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Hotel Lone – Croatia’s First Design Hotel

This month property developer, Maistra has opened Hotel Lone in the picturesque Istrian resort of Rovinj in Croatia. The 248-key hotel is situated in a unique location near the sea, surrounded by centuries-old Park Forest Zlatni Rt and only a few minutes’ walk to the town centre. Together with the five-star Hotel Monte Mulini (opened March 2009), and hotels Eden and Park, Hotel Lone will be part of the exclusive Monte Mulini zone.

Hotel Lone was designed as a contemporary expression of the classic Croatian resort of hotel from the 1970s, with sea-facing terraces and large lobbies, by the 3LHD architectural team from the Croatian Faculty of Architecture under the guidance of architect Silvije Novak. Interiors saw 3LHD working with Croatian designers Numen. In 2009, while still on the drawing board, Hotel Lone became the first Croatian member of exclusive lifestyle brand Design Hotels AG.

Hotel Lone

The hotel’s interiors are based on the theme of contrast, with fabric as the connecting element. This varies from a thin ‘veil’ in the restaurant separating operational and seating areas; rich to decorative murals in the lobby; and dynamic wall coverings in the rooms. The bright and open lobby area features white stone surfaces, fabrics in tones of beige and gold and furniture with oval lines, echoing the curve of the building’s exterior. Conceptual artist Ivana Franke created the large space sculpture for the lobby. Made of steel and measuring 8.7m, the sculpture’s solid elements entwine without actually touching, creating an impression of weightlessness and suspension.

Colours and materials in the 248 spacious guest rooms are more muted with warmer darker fabrics, wood including Slavonian oak, and terrazzo. All rooms, including the 11 suites and one presidential suite of 129 metres, have either sea views or views onto the Golden Cape Forest Park, and balconies and laminated mirrors are placed alternately on side walls to reflect light and an image of the surrounding vegetation. Bathrooms are separated from the room by glass walls, allowing penetration of natural light.

Hotel Lone

This blending of the hotel’s natural surroundings with its interiors continues into its spacious public areas, with interior planting and gardens creating smaller, more intimate areas some of which extend to expansive outside decked terraces. This hints at Hotel Lone’s status as the region’s first significant conference hotel, with 10 multi-purpose meeting rooms and an auditorium with a seating capacity of 600, all equipped with state-of-the-art technology. Together with its sister hotels in the Monte Mulini zone, Hotel Lone is capable of hosting major events with over 3,000 participants.

The restaurants and bars of Hotel Lone will uphold the gastronomic standards established by Hotel Monte Mulini, offering a mixture of traditional Croatian and Mediterranean fusian-style food with a wine list featuring many vintages from the surrounding region of Istria. The three restaurants include a Sushi and Seafood Bar – E; as well as an à la carte restaurant – L; and less formal dining experience – On. Guests can relax in several bars including the Lobby, Conference and Vital bars and the night club bar – Lone – which hosts live performances by acclaimed domestic and international jazz artists.

Finally, one of Hotel Lone’s main attractions is its spa. Covering an area of 1,700 square metres, it connects to the wellness centre of Hotel Monte Mulini, creating an impressive total of 2,500 square metres. The wellness offer at Lone is focused on facial and body treatments, including massages and a scented steam sauna, Finnish sauna and infrared sauna; gym, relaxation room, indoor fresh-water pool with special hydro-massage effects; and two connected “sunken” rooms, offering the opportunity to float and relax on hydro massage beds and chairs. There are eight multi-function treatment rooms using Bioline and Comfort Zone products, some of which have glass walls with views of the surrounding national park.

A short stroll along the marina from Hotel Lone is picture-postcard perfect Rovinj, a reminder of how the Mediterranean used to be. A central square is edged with lively cafés and restaurants spreading out on to a charming harbour, from which spread narrow cobbled streets crowded with Venetian-roofed houses. There are endless opportunities for idle browsing in the many colourful galleries and shops filled with local arts and crafts. Pride of Rovinj, and dominating the skyline, is the 18th century church of St Euphemia. The view of Rovinj’s wooded islands from the bell tower is worth the climb!

Rovinj is easily reached from the UK by flying to Pula (served by Ryanair) or Trieste.

Hotel Lone

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DoubleTree by Hilton to Debut in Bratislava

DoubleTree by Hilton is set to debut in Slovakia’s capital city, Bratislava, this April. The hotel will be part of a new sport complex and tennis arena, a short drive from the historic city centre. The hotel will offer 120 comfortable guest rooms in three categories: Guest rooms, Deluxe rooms and One Bedroom Suites. Each room will feature king or twin Sweet Dreams by Doubletree Sleep Experience beds, MP3 alarm clock, LCD satellite televisions, wifi and walk-in shower or bath. The hotel will boast an indoor heated swimming pool, saunas (dry and steam) and a fitness centre.

For more information visit DoubleTree.

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Walking with Bears in Slovakia

I’ve written about similar trips before so was excited to hear that the UK’s leading trekking holidays company, Walks Worldwide, is now working closely with conservation group, Projekt Medved, and has created a unique trip called ‘Walking with Bears’ in the High Tatras mountains of Slovakia.

The High Tatras are the highest mountains in the Carpathian Arc which stretch from Romania to the Czech Republic.  The range is small in area but they are very steep and provide the only High Alpine environment in Europe north of the Alps.  There are a number of well-marked tourist trails but the highlight of this new trip are the days spent off the trail, following animal tracks and ancient smuggling paths in the company of guides who know the region and wildlife inside out.

Bear

This trekking holiday with a big difference, provides the chance to walk not only in a spectacular mountain area populated by bears, but with the intention of seeking the mighty beasts on foot!  The tour actually begins in Poland and initially follows recognised way-marked trails across the High Tatras, descending into Slovakia.  On reaching the Ticha, the group will be joined by a Park Ranger who will take the group ‘off piste’ and walk among the mountains and valleys in an area where tourists are normally forbidden.  This unique opportunity is restricted to a maximum group size of eight people in order to minimise disturbance.  Walking is graded as demanding, hiking at altitude in mountainous terrain for up to 9 hours per day.

The one-off trip departs on Sunday 14 August and costs from £985 pp (land only). This includes ground transportation, 7 nights’ accommodation, most meals and the services of and expert walking and wildlife guide. Call 0845 301 4737 or visit www.walksworldwide.com

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