Posts Tagged ‘Kirker’

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Deals: save £785 on a tour of Thailand

Friday, August 7th, 2009

By 101 Holidays newsdesk

The Sarojintravel deals september 2009Elephant Hills Nature Reserve

Head for Thailand in September and save £785 pp on an 8-night luxury Thailand and Jungle Safari with Tropical Locations. The price, from £1,119 pp, includes 6 nights on the beach staying at the 5* Sarojin in Khao Lak on a B&B basis, 2 nights full-board at the Elephant Hills tented camp, an elephant-back safari, scheduled flights and private transfers. Book by September 7 for departures throughout September. For more details, visit Tropical Locations.

Classic CottagesDorset Cottages

In the UK, Classic Cottages is offering 20% off stays at The Old Coach House in Dorset’s stunning Piddle Valley. Sleeping 4, a week from August 14 now costs £677, a saving of £169. Set in the village of Ansty Cross, this stylish hideaway is in easy striking distance of spectacular Lulworth Cove, the market town of Dorchester and one of the region’s finest foodie pubs, The European (as testified by 101 Holidays Director, Catherine Leech, who lives locally). More details from Classic Cottages.

SS VIEW 1136 Deals: save £785 on a tour of ThailandSS PEROUSE%20 %20BREAKFAST%20OUTSIDE Deals: save £785 on a tour of ThailandLa Perouse, Nice, France

Kirker Holidays is offering 5 nights for the price of 4 at La Perouse hotel in Nice from £760 pp for departures up to August 31. Soak up the poolside views of the Baie des Anges or explore Nice’s charming old town and flower market. The price includes return scheduled flights, private transfers and accommodation on a B&B basis. Kirker’s handy guide notes will give you some cracking restaurant recommendations too. More details from Kirker Holidays.

Grand Hotel Anthelia - HotelGrand Hotel Anthelia - Executive room

Save £150 pp on a week’s stay at the Grand Hotel Anthelia in Tenerife. Departing September 1, a week with Prestige Holidays now costs from £854 pp on a B&B basis, including flights and private transfers. Set on the waterfront in Costa Adeje, this 5* resort has a spa, 7 pools, 5 restaurants, a children’s club, tennis courts and reduced green fees at a choice of local golf courses. More details from Prestige Holidays.

MSPolarlysWaterfall580x235 Deals: save £785 on a tour of ThailandDiscovering NorwaySlideshow main image

Hurtigruten is offering free flights, 2 free excursions and no single supplement on bookings made by August 31 for their Classic Round Voyage departing on selected dates from October to December. Departures include Christmas and the New Year and there’s a great chance of seeing the Northern Lights. This 11-night cruise now costs from £957 per person full-board including free flights from a range of UK airports. More information from Hurtigruten.

MRU.A.2008.116936.001 Deals: save £785 on a tour of ThailandVeranda Paul mauritiusVeranda Paul

Hayes & Jarvis is offering a week at the 3.5* Veranda Paul & Virginie hotel on Mauritius for £699 pp from September 1, a saving of £275 pp. The price includes half-board accommodation, flights with Emirates Airlines and transfers. More details from Hayes & Jarvis.

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Cheap summer holidays, July 2009 - save up to 25%

Thursday, July 16th, 2009

By 101 Holidays newsdesk

17160001 Cheap summer holidays, July 2009 save up to 25%Comfortable sofas surround the multi-burner in the sitting-room.17160105 Cheap summer holidays, July 2009 save up to 25%

Classic Cottages has availability for a week’s stay from July 25 at Leys Cottage in north Somerset. The rental cost has been reduced by 25% to £775 for up to 6 people. Part of an old farm, complete with Gloucester Old Spot pigs, it’s bang in the middle of Exmoor National Park and close to Dunster Castle and Dunster’s lovely sandy beach. Find more UK holiday ideas.

SS 2 Cheap summer holidays, July 2009 save up to 25%SS 10F Cheap summer holidays, July 2009 save up to 25%

Kirker Holidays is offering 7 nights for the price of 5 at the 5* Elounda Gulf Villas & Suites on Crete. A week now costs from £1,390 pp (saving £436 pp) including flights from Gatwick or Manchester, private transfers and accommodation with breakfast. Choose from luxurious 1- and 2-bedroom suites or a villa with private pool, some with views over the Gulf of Mirabello.

Choupana Hills - Swimming pool and viewChoupana Hills - Room

Generally a little cooler than the Med in August, Madeira is still under 4 hours’ flight away. Prestige Holidays is offering a saving of £218 pp on a week at the luxurious Choupana Hills departing August 17; pay £1,069 pp on a B&B basis including flights from Gatwick and private transfers. It’s a far cry from Madeira’s blue rinse reputation with contemporary Thai-style rooms, a great spa and stunning views of Funchal.

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Real Holidays has an exclusive offer of 25% off stays at La Casa in Collina, a 7-room boutique hotel in the heart of Italy’s Marche region. 3 nights half-board now costs £490 pp, excluding flights (Ancona and Pescara airports are both 90 minutes’ drive away). The infinity pool has stunning views over the rolling Marche hills, there’s a great restaurant (the owners are former restaurateurs) and the rooms are stylish and contemporary.

Colours of the Fall Tour9906 09 12 Fall Color Autumn Colour New England web Cheap summer holidays, July 2009 save up to 25%fall red tree Cheap summer holidays, July 2009 save up to 25%

It may seem a bit premature to be thinking about autumn but the New England Fall season is something really special. Jetsave is offering a 10-day “Colours of the Fall”  escorted tour of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Vermont and New Hampshire from September 18 for just £929 pp, a saving of £275 pp. As well as leaf-peeping, highlights include a day in Boston, a visit to Martha’s Vineyard and Plymouth Rock and a trip on one of the world’s steepest rail tracks aboard the Mount Washington Cog Railway.

Isles of ScillyIsles of ScillyIsles of Scilly

Closer to home, autumn in the Isles of Scilly generally means sunshine, balmy water and warm temperatures. Prestige Holidays is offering 3 nights at Tresco’s Flying Boat Club from £315 pp based on 6 sharing a luxurious 3-bedroom beachfront house. Based on stays in October and November, the price includes return helicopter flights from Penzance, transfers on Tresco and self-catering accommodation. Guests have access to the Flying Boat Club’s restaurant, gardens, indoor pool, tennis courts as well as free entry to the Abbey Gardens and free golf on the 9-hole St Mary’s course.

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Summer festivals 2009

Saturday, May 16th, 2009

Puccini FestivalRavello festivalPescara Festival

By 101 Holidays newsdesk

If you don’t trust those ‘barbecue summer’ predictions for your 2009 dose of festival fever, the sunny south of Europe has plenty to offer.

Festival Cap Roig

From July 5 to August 15, Catalunya hosts the annual Festival Cap Roig. Artists from the world of dance, world music, opera, jazz and classical music descend on the Botanical Gardens in Calella de Palfrugell. This year’s stellar if eclectic line up includes Michael Bolton, Leonard Cohen, Julio Iglesias, James Taylor, UB40, Anastacia, Jamie Cullum and Chic. Tickets go on sale this week. Vintage Travel offers a range of villas with private pools within easy striking distance. Just 10 minutes away is Sa Blava, with 3 bedrooms, a rural location and more than an acre of gardens and woodland. One week’s rental from July 3 costs £1,495 (for up to 6 sharing) and £1,895 between July 10 and August 21. Return flights and car hire are not included.

Pescara Jazz Festival

The Pescara Jazz festival in Abruzzo, Italy, runs from July 16 to 19. Since 1969, this renowned festival has pulled in top names from Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington to Bob Dylan and James Taylor. Passes costs from €20 to €70 per day; this year’s line up is still to be confirmed but our man on the ground tells us that George Benson, Simply Red (on July 13), Ahmad Jamal, Chick Corea and the Roy Haynes Trio are slated. Long Travel offers 5 nights at the Villa Maria d’Abruzzo, just outside Pescara, from £310 per person bed and breakfast (flights not included).

Ravello Festival

Ravello hosts its own annual festival from June 26 to September 27; this year’s theme is Il Coraggio (courage), with more than 100 events in the fields of orchestral and chamber music, jazz, visual arts, literature, cinema, design and dance. Set in the famous Villa Rufolo in Ravello, many performances are free; tickets for the others cost €35 (gardens) and €50 (box seats). Performers include Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal, Bermuda Acoustic Trio, the Strasbourg Philharmonic orchestra and Michael Nyman. Click here for the full programme (PDF file). Long Travel offers a week in the 4-star Hotel Giordano in Ravello from £432 per person bed and breakfast (flights not included).

Puccini Festival

Each year, Puccini’s most popular operas are performed in the spectacular lakeside theatre in Torre del Lago, close to Lucca, Puccini’s birthplace. This year’s performances, between July 10 and August 22, include Manon Lescaut, Turandot, Tosca and La Boheme. Kirker Holidays offers 5- and 6-night packages from £1,440 per person, including flights, hotel with breakfast and opera tickets.

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Istanbul luxury hotels reviewed

Friday, February 20th, 2009

Istanbul luxury hotels

By David Wickers, 101 Holidays editor

Istanbul in summer is a hot and hectic place - but there’s a seriously cool way to enjoy its remarkable palaces, mosques and bazaars.

I have just returned from a 4 day trip to Istanbul where I stayed at two luxury hotels, the Kempinski and the new Four Seasons (pictured above). Both are situated on the banks of the Bosphorous, the narrow straits that separate Europe from Asia.

With outdoor pools, al fresco dining and views across to Asia on the opposite banks, they are more like seaside resorts than city hotels, yet just 10 minutes or so by taxi from the main sights. As places to return after a long morning’s sightseeing, they are unbeatable.

And these are no ordinary five star retreats; each has been converted from a 19th century Ottoman Palace, built as imperial summer boltholes for the sultans.

The newest is the Four Seasons. The soft and natural interiors are a long way from the glitz that your average Ottoman would have demanded, although the standards of service would please the most demanding of pashas. It opened a few months ago, as sister to the Four Seasons Sultanahmet, which was earlier converted from a prison in the old heart of town. The Four Seasons on the Bosphorous has 166 rooms - hardly boutique, but the feel is surprisingly intimate. The spa is remarkable.

The Ciragan Palace is the older and larger hotel (313 rooms, mostly in a modern annexe), virtually next door. Restored and reopened by Kempinski in 1991 after a massive fire, the style is more traditional. It scores particularly highly on food, from what could well be the world’s most elaborate breakfast to the award winning Turga restaurant, which serves recipes derived from historic Ottoman recipes.

Both hotels are bookable through Kirker Holidays.

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