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Archive for category *Hot*

PRIDE Travel’s DePetris Wins Top Travel Industry “TrendSetter: SuperStar” Award

Jun 27

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, News & Press Releases | No Comments

S. Nathan DePetris of PRIDE Travel

S. Nathan DePetris of PRIDE Travel

TravelAge west magazine announced the 2010 Trendsetter awards as the feature article on the cover of the June 21, 2010 Issue. Among those received its top industry honors of TrendSetter, PRIDE Travel’s S. Nathan DePetris received the winning award in the category of travel agent SuperStar. The award marks the second category out of four that PRIDE Travel was honored for at this year’s gala ceremony; Marc R. Kassouf, the company’s co-owner and CEO, also received the runner-up award in the Best Community Service Effort category.

The TrendSetter award for travel agent SuperStar was conferred at the black tie annual TravelAge West WAVE awards ceremony held June 10th at the Four Seasons Beverly Hills. The travel industry’s top executives, experts, and figures were in attendance recognizing the best of the best in the industry. Accepting the winning award in the category for PRIDE Travel was S. Nathan DePetris, its co-owner and COO. Mr. DePetris and PRIDE received the award for their overall efforts as an agency and agent providing superlative service, forward-thinking innovation, and consistently hard work under unusual circumstances. As a token of recognition, the award’s sponsor Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises bestowed a seven night Caribbean cruise for two on a Celebrity Solstice-class vessel, in a veranda stateroom. Mr. Kassouf and Mr. DePetris are planning to book a western Caribbean cruise February of 2011 to celebrate this accomplishment. Although they have sailed on countless Caribbean cruises, they find Celebrity Cruises’ offering of Roatan, Honduras intriguing and are excited to sail on the Celebrity Solstice which they had previously toured extensively but not had the opportunity to sail; Celebrity Cruises’ new Solstice class of vessels are arguably destinations unto themselves, designed for the discerning guest. Additionally, the sailing presents an opportunity to further enhance their first-hand experience of this unique and superlative product and the additional port knowledge in order to better serve PRIDE Travel’s clients.

In winning the award for SuperStar, DePetris noted that Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: award, gay, Industry, pride travel, superstar, travel, travel agency, Trendsetter

PRIDE Travel’s Kassouf Receives Travel Industry TrendSetter Award: Community Service For Second Year In A Row

Jun 27

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, News & Press Releases | No Comments

TravelAge West TrendSetter Award Recipients 2010

TravelAge West TrendSetter Award Recipients 2010

TravelAge west magazine, the leading trade magazine for travel agents and the travel industry in the 14 western states, announced the 2010 Trendsetter awards as the feature article on the cover of the June 21, 2010 Issue. Among those honored, Marc R Kassouf and PRIDE Travel were awarded Best Community Service –runner up– for the second year in a row for their exemplary and continued contributions to the Center of Long Beach. The Center, which provides extensive community and health programs to the local and Gay and Lesbian community, has been the beneficiary of Marc’s and PRIDE Travel’s contributions individually and as a company for almost a decade. Contributions have helped the non-profit charitable organization raise in excess of $100,000 to supplement its budget enabling programs such as youth suicide prevention, health awareness and disease prevention, counseling and mentorship, elder-care, and numerous other local programs benefiting the community. When he received the nomination, Kassouf said “To even be nominated for this amazing award is an honor in itself”, pointing out that “Winning would be a nice ‘bonus’.”

The trendsetter award for best community involvement was conferred at the black tie annual TravelAge West WAVE awards ceremony held June 10th at the Four Seasons Beverly Hills. The travel industry’s top executives and experts were in attendance recognizing the best of the best in the industry. Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: award, community, community service, gay, Industry, pride travel, travel

PRIDE Travel’s DePetris Nominated for TrendSetter Award: SuperStar

Jun 1

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, News & Press Releases | No Comments

Pride TravelIn announcing its nominations for the prestigious TrendSetters Award, industry magazine TravelAge West has nominated PRIDE Travel’s S. Nathan DePetris in the category of Travel Agent SuperStar. The nomination marks the second category out of four that PRIDE Travel is being honored for at this year’s gala ceremony; Marc R. Kassouf was previously named as a nominee in the Best Community Service Effort category.

DePetris is one of only two finalists being nominated and is already assured to win either the top TrendSetter SuperStar award, or the runner up award. Upon hearing of his nomination for the award, Mr. DePetris was “truly excited to learn that I’m being recognized for all my hard work…” He is delighted to be considered for such an honorable award, pointing out that “…I already feel like a winner!” The TrendSetter awards are slated to be conferred at the black tie annual TravelAge West WAVE awards ceremony being held mid-June at the Four Seasons Beverly Hills. The travel industry’s top executives and experts will be in attendance recognizing the best of the best in the travel sector.

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Tags: 2010, Age, award, Nominee, PRIDE, pride travel, Setter, travel, TravelAge, Trend, Trendsetter, West

PRIDE Travel’s Kassouf Nominated for TrendSetter Award: Community Service

May 31

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, *LGBTQQ*, News & Press Releases | No Comments

Pride TravelFor the second year in a row, industry magazine TravelAge West has nominated PRIDE Travel’s Marc R. Kassouf for its prestigious TrendSetters Award in the category of Best Community Service Effort. As one of only two finalists being nominated Kassouf , is already assured to win either the top TrendSetter award for Best Community Service Effort, or the runner up award. “To even be nominated for this amazing award is an honor in itself” said Mr. Kassouf, pointing out that “Winning would be a nice ‘bonus’.” The TrendSetter awards are slated to be conferred at the black tie annual TravelAge West WAVE awards ceremony being held mid-June at the Four Seasons Beverly Hills. The travel industry’s top executives and experts will be in attendance recognizing the best of the best in the travel sector.

Mr. Kassouf and PRIDE travel were nominated again this year for their exemplary and continued contributions to Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: 2010, Age, award, Nominee, PRIDE, pride travel, Setter, travel, TravelAge, Trend, Trendsetter, West

19 Tips for Better Travel Photos

Jan 12

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, TripClips, TripTips | 2 Comments

–originally published by: The Independent Traveler, Ed Hewitt

taj mahal photo photography camera taking a picture

It wasn’t that long ago that many travel photos were taken, developed and then dumped into boxes, rarely to be seen again — unless a basement flood forced someone to throw them all away. These days, things aren’t so different except that now the photos get dumped onto external hard drives, perhaps to await a hard drive crash instead of the proverbial basement flood.

But in most collections of vacation and travel photos, a precious few of the very best shots are often spared this fate — those photos that are somehow more enduring or more interesting, or (I think most importantly) that best capture the spirit and sensation of the trip. What is it that keeps these photos from the dustbin of our traveling history? Often they are simply better photographs. That is, the “keeper” photo isn’t of a favorite person, place or activity — it is better composed, better lit and thus simply more visually interesting than the run-of-the-mill vacation snapshot.

There are plenty of resources out there for folks with thousands of dollars of photographic equipment, but what about the rest of us — those of us with a point-and-shoot digital camera or even simply a smartphone? What can we do to get better, more lasting images from our travels? Following is a collection of low- and no-tech tips to help you improve your keeper count on your next trip.
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Tags: better, better photos, how to, how to take, how tos, photo, photos, picture, tips

A Culinary Revival in Istanbul — The city’s Ottoman restaurants rediscover a legendary cuisine with cosmopolitan roots

Jan 8

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, Asia, Eat, Europe, Middle East, TripClips | 6 Comments

By J.S. MARCUS – Wall Street Journal

Istanbul

[OTTOMAN1]
Photo: Tugra, in the Ciragan Palace Kempinski hotel (Kerem Uzel for The Wall Street Journal)

Elegant restaurants along the Bosphorus prepare fish beautifully and plainly, in a Mediterranean style similar to that of Italy or Greece. In Beyoglu, Istanbul’s nightlife hub, tables are cluttered with tavern food in tapas-like portions. It’s all delicious, of course—and a little familiar.

But when you encounter a delicate rice pilaf flavored with clarified butter, or a perfect slice of baklava, the dozens of pastry layers dissolving one by one on the tongue, it’s a reminder that Istanbul is home to another cuisine, one as complicated and sophisticated as contemporary Turkish food is simple and sustaining.

The cuisine of the Ottomans, whose empire once stretched from Baghdad to Budapest, was perfected in Istanbul in the 15th and 16th centuries in the kitchens of Topkapi Palace, home of the sultans for 400 years. Ottoman control of the spice trade was at its peak, and the cuisine’s hallmark is its deft mixing of sweet and savory flavors. Today, dishes such as delicately stuffed Black Sea mackerel and sea bass flavored with mastic, an aromatic resin usually reserved for desserts, are appearing on menus at some of the best restaurants. A chef in the classical Ottoman period might have devoted his whole working life to one dish; modern-day chefs have special training and often base their interpretations on archival research.

The cuisine’s revival comes as many people in Istanbul are becoming more interested in their Ottoman heritage. The flowering of Ottoman restaurants is among the most visible results. Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: cuisine, culinary Istanbul, culinary Turkey, food, good places to eat, great food, Istanbul, ottoman, Turkey

World’s Coolest Pools –Travel+Leisure

Dec 19

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, Asia, Australia & Oceana, Europe, Latin America, North America, Play, See, TripClips | 1 Comment

Get wet at these wild and wonderful swim spots.

From Travel+Leisure Magazine, December 2009 By Jimmy Im

Sally Randall Brunger, creative director of men’s knitwear line The Brungers, traverses the globe for inspiration for her collections—and she knows a cool pool when she sees one. “I can’t imagine anything more fun after a day of meetings than to toss off my heels and dip into a pool where I can swim to the bar and order my favorite cocktail.”

For the notorious “it” girl from the glamorous ’80s club era, the pool at the Grace Hotel in Times Square fits the bill. The midtown hotel has one of the most talked about pools in New York City. With two swim-up bars, live DJs, and a projector screen, it’s at the heart of the action—complete with half-naked guests.

Pools are fast evolving from background scene-setters to the main attraction. The 21st-century pool has blossomed from mere swim spot to an imaginative work of art that flaunts a “wow” factor—be it a pool elevator, a whitewater slide, hidden grotto, or interactive aquarium. With all these bells and whistles, who cares about a diving board?

Of course, a buzz-worthy pool doesn’t just happen overnight. “The interesting aspects of cool pools are in the choice and use of materials,” says Cool Pools and Hot Tubs author Vinny Lee, “and its shape should complement the surroundings and landscape.”

“It’s all too easy to design a pool that looks good, but to make strong and powerful connections to a place, a climate, a landscape, an atmosphere or a feeling—now that’s cool because it’s unrepeatable,” says Marwan Al-Sayed, one of the designers of the pool at the stunning new Amangiri resort in the Utah desert, which is built around a natural stone outcropping.

Other pools are more of a novelty attraction. Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: best pool, great pool, largest pool, pool, pools, World's Best Pool

Top Ten HotSpots for High Tea — A Global Tour

Dec 14

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, Africa, Asia, Eat, Europe, Latin America, Middle East, North America, TripClips | No Comments

From :

SINGAPORE – Fancy a cuppa? From highbrow salons to highland plantations, the world’s best places to have tea.

1. London, England

Ladies, don your gowns; gents, start pressing your ties. Afternoon tea at the Ritz is a splendid formal affair: silver pots and fine china chink at 4 p.m. sharp under the vaulted glass and chandeliers of the Palm Court. It’s not cheap, but you’ll be in good company — this venerable hotel has served exotic infusions to everyone from King Edward VII to Charlie Chaplin. If the budget won’t stretch, try alternative institutions: the organization Classic Cafes champions the formica-countered greasy spoons of the 1950s, a dwindling number of which are still serving brews in vintage surrounds. Tie not required.

2. Trans-Siberian Railway, Russia/Central Asia
Nonstop, the epic Moscow-Beijing train journey takes over six days. The best way to spend them is befriending your carriage mates — Russian businesspeople, Mongolian traders, Buddhist monks. Each car has a samovar, a hot-water urn where you can top up your mug to ward off the Siberian chill. Samovars are more than kettles: entrenched in Russian society, they’re made for communal drinking. The local saying ‘to have a sit by the samovar’ means to talk leisurely over endless cups of tea. Fill your flask — and those of your new-found friends — and watch Europe roll into Asia.

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Tags: afternoon tea, afternoon tea recommendations, best afternoon tea, best high tea, best places for tea, best tea, cream tea, formal tea, High tea, high tea recommendations, tea

Airport napping rooms let you sleep your layover away

Dec 10

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, TripClips, TripTips | No Comments

By Roger Yu, USA TODAY
Tiny airport sleeping rooms — similar to the cubicles that Asian travelers use to catch a snooze in between flights — have arrived in America.

Atlanta, the world’s largest airport, opened five Minute Suites this month where tired passengers can doze for $30 an hour. The rooms — 7 feet by 8 feet, or about the size of two office cubicles put together — are equipped with a daybed sofa, pillows (with disposable covers), fresh blankets, a small desk, Internet access and a flat-screen 32-inch monitor with DirecTV and flight information. They have systems to mask noise.

San Francisco International plans to follow suit. It’s hired a California company to design 14 rooms of about 90 square feet for its international terminal. The rooms will have similar amenities. Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: airport hotel, airport hotels, airport sleep, capsule hotel

Travel’s secret societies

Dec 1

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, TripClips | No Comments

–Bert Archer: From Wednesday’s Globe and Mail Published on Tuesday, Dec. 01, 2009

The word “exclusive” is bandied about a lot these days. Most businesses above the level of Wal-Mart use it to make customers feel special – without actually excluding anyone. But a number of travel-related groups, clubs and perks deserve the adjective: They genuinely are invitation-only.

In the airline world, fliers can become members of programs such as Continental’s Chairman’s Circle, United’s Global Services and a nameless group that gets preferential treatment from SAS. Never heard of it? There’s a reason. To paraphrase financier J.P. Morgan, if you have to ask, you’re not member material.

Peter Brown, who used to own an eponymous travel agency in Toronto, has been chasing exclusive memberships and perks since he retired 20 years ago. One of his favourites is Lufthansa’s first-class terminal at Frankfurt, with its 15 kinds of champagne and 20 Scotches, a still-operational smoking lounge and, best of all, drivers to get you across the tarmac directly to your gate. Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: frequent flyer, frequent traveler, lavish, opulent, swag, travel, travel benefit, VIP

Eight Top-Secret Questions to Ask When Choosing A Travel Agent

Aug 27

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, TripTips | No Comments

You’ve decided to choose and hire a travel agent. How do you sift among the many companies locally and nationally? How do you choose between a large firm or a boutique service agency and know you’ve chosen the right person to entrust with your valued leisure time? You require information about the person who will be researching recommending and handling all your travel details in order to make an informed decision. Consider the following eight questions to assist you in your decision making process:

1. Major Industry Credentials: “What major industry certifications do you have, for example from The Travel Institute or CLIA?” You should expect your travel agent to hold at least one certification from either the Travel Institute, or the Cruise Line Industry Association (CLIA for short). Yes, it’s true here as in every field that not every person who holds a credential is really good, and not everyone who doesn’t is bad. However, if a professional is serious about what they do, they should have one or two of the following under their belt, the higher the better. This is especially true of those in the industry more than 5 years. Note that other minor certifications by product, brand companies, or destinations, while excellent, do not count as major industry credentials. Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: agent, best agent, best travel agent, choosing, choosing agency, choosing agent, chose travel agent, consultant, counselor, how, how to, specialist, top travel agent, travel

The Top Reasons Why YOU Should Use A Travel Agent

Aug 10

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, TripClips, TripTips | No Comments

With all the recent research and dialogue about travelers returning to using travel agents more and more, we thought to remind ourselves… Why use a travel agent?

Here’s the “short list”:

  • Convenient One-Stop Shopping: Travel agents can handle every aspect of your trip from airline tickets to lodging, ground transportation, activities, tours and more.
  • Consumer Advocate: If you should have a problem during your trip, travel agents can act on your behalf to see that proper restitution is made.
  • Expert Guidance: Travel agents are experts in helping travelers get where they need to go and in helping to create possibilities most people never would have dreamed were possible.
  • Save Time: Avoid the headaches and let the travel agents call around and do all the time consuming work of planning a complex itinerary.
  • Choice: Travel agents offer you an array of options and price quotes from a variety of travel suppliers, giving you the upper hand when making your final travel decisions.
  • Less Stress: Planning a trip can be stressful. There are so many options and details to worry about. Travel agents do the work, resulting in less stress for you.
  • Updated Information: Travel agents are constantly communicating with the travel community, thus giving you the most up to date info on airlines, hotels, car rental agencies, travel visas, and other travel services to consider as you plan your trip.
  • Customer Service: Travel agents offer that “personal touch” to your travel planning experience- Offering help and advice that a website cannot provide.
  • Travel Documentation: Travel agents can help you to prepare and organize any necessary documents that you may need in order to travel outside of the country. They can direct you to your local passport office, and they know where you need a visa, as well as any other documentation that you might need along the way.
  • Travel Expertise: Many travel agents are considered experts in the area you are traveling to and have probably already been to your chosen destination.
  • Best Value for Your Money Spent: Travel agents can help you to make your dollars go farther while you are away. They have access to finding all sorts of deals, some that can only be booked by and through a travel agent! Read the rest of this entry »
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Tags: reason, reasons to use, top, travel agency, travel agent, use, why

Just Released Forrester Research Finds Frustration With Online Travel Websites

Aug 5

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, TripClips, TripTips | No Comments

Forrester Research issued a new study, “Using Digital Channels to Calm the Angry Traveler,” by Henry Harteveldt, that reports there are 15 percent fewer travelers who enjoy using the web in 2009 than there were in 2007.

Just one in three online travelers in the U.S. feels that travel websites do a good job presenting travel choices, down from 39 percent in 2008. A greater percentage of travelers who are fed up with travel websites may be returning to use traditional travel agents.

According to Harteveldt, travelers feel that they, and their business, are taken for granted by travel websites. Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: internet travel, online travel, research, study, travel, travel agency, web

Worst Part of a Trip May Be Booking It on the Web

Aug 3

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, TripClips, TripTips | No Comments

By SUSAN STELLIN
Copyright, NEW YORK TIMES
Published: August 3, 2009

If you dreaded sitting down at your computer the last time you made travel arrangements or felt frustrated by all the time and effort it took to sort through pages of results for flights and hotels, join the crowd.

A new report, to be released Tuesday by Forrester Research, found that far from embracing the do-it-yourself era, many consumers were fed up with the complicated process of planning and booking travel.

“What we’ve seen is growing frustration,” said Henry H. Harteveldt, a Forrester travel analyst. “Consumers see other Web sites becoming easier to use — retail Web sites, banking Web sites, media Web sites. But travel is treading water as a category. There are very few travel companies that are really looking to improve the planning and booking process.”

Instead, customers are forced to figure out extra fees, wade through fine print and understand industry terms like the difference between a deluxe and a standard room, in addition to educating themselves about destinations, flights and hotels, Mr. Harteveldt said. Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: internet travel, online travel, research, study, travel, travel agency, web

Is it OK to steal Hotel Ameneties ??

Jun 17

Posted by Marc, Owner & CEO in *Hot*, TripClips | 1 Comment

By Lynn Yaeger

(Travel + Leisure) — I stole a laundry bag from the Alvear Palace Hotel in Buenos Aires. It was made of thick ivory linen, embroidered with the words “dry cleaning” in cerulean blue, and looked like something that I could have found at an antique textiles show. But that wasn’t the case.

I’m usually pretty scrupulous about purloined souvenirs. Of course, I help myself to soap and shampoo, sewing kits, even those black sponges meant to spruce up your shoes — oh, and ballpoint pens and darling little notepads. But the laundry bag was my first sojourn into the land of, what shall we call it … outright theft?

How widespread is this brand of petty larceny? Read the rest of this entry »

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Tags: Amenities, Bathrobes, Hotel Amenities, Hotel Toiletries, Resort, Slippers, Stealing, taking, Taking from Hotel, Toiletries

Reminiscence of Christmas Past – Our Christmas Time 2008 River Cruise aboard the MS AMAcello from Nuremburg to Budapest with Christmas Markets.

Jun 15

Posted by Nathan, Owner/Manager & COO in *Hot*, Europe, TripJournals | 1 Comment

Join PRIDE Travel as we reminisce of cooler and more festive times this summer, about where many of our signature holiday traditions—Christmas trees, gingerbread, nutcrackers, St. Nick, and candy canes—come to us from in Germany, Austria, and the heart of Europe.

Come discover the medieval atmosphere of Nuremberg’s Christmas Market with us, and sample its famous holiday gingerbread or hundred-year-old secret recipe Gluhwein. Stroll through Regensburg’s romantic Christmas Market, savoring dumplings with vanilla sauce. In Passau, shop for unique crafts like hand-painted porcelain and Bohemian glass ornaments. In Melk, visit the awe-inspiring Abbey whose library is legendary. Come with us this hot summer’s eve as we wistfully recall the spirit of the Holiday Season…
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Tags: AMA Waterways, Amacello, austria, bavaria, budapest, Christmas, Christmas Market, Christmas River Cruise, germany, Holiday Market, Holiday River Cruise, hungary, melk abbey, neuremberg, nuremberg, nurnberg, prague, River Cruise, vienna