Eating Your Way Through The Las Vegas Buffet

Buffets in Las Vegas have gone upscale - and so have their prices.  The day of the $5.99 buffet is long gone, replaced with gourmet dining in an all you can eat format. Here is a rundown of the most popular buffets in Vegas along with the pricing (current as of Feb. 1, 2013). Meals as described are dinner, unless otherwise stated.

Aria Resort and Casino - The Buffet. This buffet is known for it's quality, variety and comfort for patrons. Extensive renovations were recently completed and the buffet reopened with the hip vibe of the hotel that still allows patrons to dine in comfortable and fairly quiet surroundings. There is a Tandori oven and fish market with cooking done right at the station. Breakfast is $17.99 weekdays, lunch is $20.99 weekdays, dinner is  $31.99 on weekdays, $39.99 on weekends. Brunch available on weekends.

Bellagio - The Buffet.  The Buffet at Bellagio was one of the first to feature gourmet food when it opened in 1998. Offerings include perfect rare beef sirloins, rack of lamb and the best of Italian, Japanese, Chinese, seafood and American cuisines. Breakfast is $17.99 weekdays, lunch is $20.99, dinner $31.99 Monday - Thursday and $37.99 on weekends. A gourmet brunch is available weekends.

Paris Las Vegas - Le Buffet.  Crave French food? Then this buffet won't disappoint.  In a faux village setting, enjoy authentic beef Bourguinon, roast duck or coq au vain.  The made to order crepe station is the highlight of this nightly buffet. There are five food stations, each themed for a particular province of France. Dinner is $30.99 weekdays, $33.99 on weekends.

M Resort and Spa - Studio B Buffet. This off strip buffet was voted the Best Buffet in Las Vegas by the Las Vegas Review Journal in 2010 and has a noteworthy extra - unlimited wine and beer with lunch and dinner. The weekend seafood items go on and on - snow crab legs, oysters, steamed clams and mussels. In addition, a live action cooking studio shows chefs preparing meals on large screens while you dine. This buffet is a bargain! Breakfast weekdays - $10.99. Lunch weekdays - $15.99. Dinner weekdays - $23.99. Weekend Seafood Brunch - $39.99.  Weekend Dinner (Fri., Sat. Sun.) $39.99.  Children's pricing also offered.

Cosmopolitan - Wicked Spoon. Cosmopolitan's Wicked Spoon offers daily and weekend brunch as well as daily and weekend dinners. Small plate meals are the main selections and the beautiful presentations beat many of the other buffets on the strip. Individual portioning allows for more sampling of the many different types of food on the menu such as pork belly banh mi sandwiches, veal sweetbreads, dirty rice and more. Weeknight dinner is $36. $38 on weekends.

Wynn Las Vegas - The Buffet. Voted Best Buffet in Las Vegas by USA Today, guests can indulge in 16 food stations at this buffet.  You'll be spellbound walking through the entryway. Enjoy flavors from around the world, such as Italian porchetta and braised veal short ribs. There is a huge selection of desserts and a dried fruit and cheese station.  Dinner is $36.99 weekdays, $39.99 weekends.

Caesers Palace - Bacchanal Buffet.  No where is the idea of excess more visible than at Caesers new Bacchanal Buffet, a huge $17 million undertaking. There are nine kitchens that prepare more than 580 food items over breakfast, lunch and dinner daily.  The 25,000 square foot dining space offers views of the Garden of the Gods pool complex. The carvery can offer up to nine meats, the Chinese station has excellent dim sum and roast duck.  Don't forget dessert, including made-to-order souffles and chocolate and cheesecake lollipops.  Dinner is $44.99 weekdays, $49.99 weekends.

 Bally's Las Vegas - Sterling Brunch. This brunch is available on Sunday's only and as one of the last vestiges of Old Las Vegas, this buffet features lobster and caviar with unlimited champagne. Held in Bally's Steakhouse, the service is superb, with an $85 per person price that is double the cost of any other buffet on the strip. It is held in Bally's Steakhouse.

Rio - Carnival World Buffet. The Rio is considered the best buffet to take kids, who will find all favorites here like mac and cheese, hamburgers and hot dogs, barbecue sandwiches and make-your-own milkshakes.Adults  can choose from a dim sum station, a noodle bar with a variety of Vietnamese, Thai and Chinese specialties, and a Brazilian churrascaria where meat and veggies are grilled up right in front of you. Other food stations focus on Mexican, American and Italian cuisines, Leave room for dessert -  the  buffet has more than 70 varieties of pies and pastries, cakes, cookies and - best of all - a gelato bar. Prices range from $25 - $40.

Call us to book any of these fine hotels for your visit to Vegas. 516-608-0568.

Disney's New Art of Animation Resort

Say hello to the newest hotel at Disneyworld Florida - the Art of Animation Resort.  This resort, situated near Disney's Pop Century resort, features value priced family suites that can hold up to six guests in four themed areas.  Choose from Finding Nemo Suites, Cars, The Lion King or Little Mermaid themes rooms. In addition, there are 864 standard rooms as well. 

The Family Suites feature three separate sleeping areas, including a Master Bedroom with queen sized bed, a sleeper sofa that converts to a double bed, and a unique "Inovabed" that will have the kids fighting over who gets to sleep in it - the bed converts from a table for four to a double bed!  There are two bathrooms and a kitchenette, which will save plenty of money over having to eat three meals a day in the parks.

There are two dining areas - Landscape of Flavors, Disney's quick serve dining choice offering breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks, and the Drop Off, a poolside snack bar and pizza delivery service. There is bus service to other Disney World Resort locations.

For the Finding Nemo suites, the courtyard has The Big Blue Pool, the largest of the pools at the resort, the Drop off, The Schoolyard, a water play area fr the kids, Squirts Righteous Reef Playground and huge icons that help tell the story of the film featuring Mr. Ray, Crush, Marlin and Nemo. There is also Movies Under the Stars here!

At Cars, there is fun and relaxation for the whole family. There's the Cozy Cone Pool,  the Leaning Tower of Tires and visit with Lightning McQueen and Sally outside the Wheel Well Motel. Mater, Fillmore, Sara and Doc are on hand as well.

The essence of Africa is found in the design and motif of the Lion King Suites.  Mufasa will greet the kids at one end while Scar can be found a few steps away. There is a Bone in the Yard Playground for the little ones as well. The Lion King Courtyard is steps away from the  Big Blue Pool.

And finally, the Little Mermaid is the area that has standard rooms. There are icons of King Neptune, Ariel and Sebastian while Ursula adds drama to the scene. The Flippin' Fins Pool is in this area. Just a note that these rooms are furthest away from the Restaurants shops and lobby.

Having priced this for several families,  we can tell you that you can save up to $2,000 for 7 nights over the cost of family suites in the other Disney resorts. 

Disney has also refurbished Fantasyland in Orlando to make it even more magical.  Adding Enchanted Forest and Storybook Circus nearly double the original size of this are of the Magic Kingdom.

The Enchanted Forest is an interactive area that features Belle's French countryside. You'll be able to visit "Under the Sea- Journey of the Little Mermaid. The Beasts Castle houses the "Be Our Guest" Restaurant. Belle's Village has Maurice's Cottage where a magical mirror is the doorway to a new kind of story telling that will take you  into the Beast's library to meet Belle and Lumiere.

At the Storybook Circus, Dumbo The Flying Elephant is now twice the size with a second ride added.
Cool off at Casey Jr. Splash and Soak Station, a circus themed water play area.

And there is more coming! Opening in 2013, Princess Fairytale Hall will welcome guests to meet Aurora, Cinderella and other Disney Princesses. In  2014, the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train will feature a first of it's kind train of vehicles that swing back and forth.

Ready to book? Call us, we are Disney College of Knowledge Graduates who can help make your Disney vacation all you want it to be. 516-608-0568.

Review of Club Med Sandpiper Bay

I wanted to love this resort, I really did. As the only true all inclusive in the United States, Club Med Sandpiper has a lot going for it but if you are an all inclusive junky, you will find a world of difference between this resort and most all inclusive resorts in the Caribbean.

Club Med Sandpiper is located on the St. Lucie River in Port St. Lucie, Florida. It is not on the beach and should not be considered a beach resort. There is some sand but the "beach" is actually a lake. There are water sports - paddleboards and Hobie Cats are included. Wave runners and motor boats are available at extra cost. There are three pools - one adult only at the far side of the resort, one a zero entry pool for families and a kiddie pool with small water park.

This resort just underwent a $30 million renovation but in all honesty it is difficult to understand where this money went.

Rooms are a good size for families but do not expect luxuries you would find in other resorts. You'll find them large but basic. Family rooms have a king sized bed with two sofa beds on either side of the room and a large round cocktail table in the center. There was a work desk as well. The king bed was very comfortable but unfortunately in most rooms the air conditioning vent is directly over one side of the bed and whoever sleeps on that side on the bed is going to be very cold. The pillows are also the smallest pillows I've ever seen. There are also suites available that feature bunk beds in a separate room.

The bathroom consists of two areas, one a vanity outside of the actual room with a sink and then the actual bathroom with another vanity and sink, toilet and shower and tub. The bathrooms have been refurbished but not all areas were well though out. The vanity outside the room has a makeup mirror and a chair to sit on to do your makeup. However, if you sit on the chair, you cannot get your legs under the vanity because there is an apron that hangs under it. The makeup mirror doesn't have a long enough arm to put your makeup on and the lighting is terrible. We ended up putting makeup on in the actual bathroom, where the lighting was better.

There is a huge walk in closet with dressing area. This was a nice touch for family privacy. There is also a coffee pot and refrigerator with two bottles of water. We could tell the bathrooms were refurbished, but apparently to save money the refrigerators were not and they showed their age.
The rooms were very clean, but in my room I noticed there there were dark spots on the terracotta floor. It appeared to be dirt spots that were sealed into the tile.

There are two restaurants on property, one called The Marketplace which is a buffet and Soleil, which offers salads, sandwiches and appetizers. One issue with the restaurants is that they are not open all day. The Marketplace is open for two hours in the morning, two hours for lunch and four hours for dinner. Soleil is open from 9:30 am to 10 pm but the menu offerings are very limited.
Hours for breakfast at the Marketplace were 7 am to 10 am. Lunch was noon to 2 pm, dinner from 6-9 pm.

The Marketplace food tasted very good but we felt that we were eating the same food every day, there was not much variation. Another issue we found is the set up of the buffet is awkward. The lettuce for salads are in one place and the toppings such as carrots, mushrooms, dressing are in another area. Hamburgers and hot dogs are near a grill but the rolls are in the corner of the bread area far across the room.

There were stations that prepared specialty dishes, such as oriental or French food but the chefs didn't  keep up with cooking and very often the dishes were empty. One night there was a huge line for desserts, as there was one chef slicing pies and cakes as people were on line.

One thing not to pass up is Club Med's chocolate bread. They had a light version and dark version that were out of this world. Take a few slices at breakfast and ask the chef to make French Toast with it. It is a treat you won't forget.

There is some jarred baby food available and each day a different vegetable is pureed as gourmet baby food. For instance, one day it was broccoli and leeks. I saw plenty of adults eating the daily special.

In our opinion for the price the resort charges, there should be a regular restaurant on site that serves more than sandwiches and salad and something should be available nearly 24 hours. Many people we spoke to agreed.

There is one bar on site. It is an indoor bar and is open all day and into the night. Brace yourself because children are permitted in this area, so it is not unusual to see children dancing there. Some top shelf liquor is available but I did hear a few gripes about Jack Daniels not being available as well as some beers.

If you are a golf or tennis junkie, this resort is for you. Both are available on site. There is also a kids tennis court, with small nets and appropriate rackets. And there is golf for kids.

There are three clubs for kids - the Mini-club for ages 4-10. Juniors and Teens programs for 11-17 year olds. There is also Baby Club Med. Baby Club Med is for babies 4 months to 23 months. There are two groups, one for walkers and one for non walkers. Operating hours are from 8:45 am to 5 pm. You may drop off your child during two time frames only - 8:45. - 9:30 or 2pm - 2:30. There are scheduled activities. There is also a Pajama Club available for $28 per night that operates from 7pm to 1 am so parents can have some evening time to themselves. There is also a baby bottle room with a refrigerator, microwave, sink, bottle brush, soap, filtered water, milk, yogurt and snacks.The Mini Club has two age groups - Geckos for ages 4-7 and Manatees for 8-10 year olds.

Service throughout the resort was acceptable in most areas but not exemplary. We arrived with a group and were directed to park our car on the side of the driveway for the check in process. We were quickly greeted and checked in, then directed to park our car in the parking lot and bring luggage to the check in area to be taken to our room by a porter.

I parked the car as directed, dragged my luggage to where the porters were supposed to be to find no one there. After waiting several minutes I saw a female employee pushing a luggage cart with suitcases on it. I showed her my room key and asked her how to get to my room. Instead of asking if she could help, she pointed to the direction if my room and walked away, leaving me to pull my own luggage to the farthest part of the resort myself.  No offer to take the bags. After walking to my building, I also discovered I could have parked my car in a different area much closer to the building. No one went out of their way - pointing instead of guiding if you had a question on where something was. I realized I missed hearing "My Pleasure" when thanking an employee for an answer to a question.

Many employees are also "performers" . The girl that checked me in told me she would also be performing in that night's trapeze show. I thought she was kidding until I saw her on the high wire.

Another thing many of the agents on this trip noted was the lack of areas looking "finished". For example, there was an outdoor "courtyard" area around the conference rooms. This area was not finished professionally. There was a cheap looking corrugated roof. The beams around the roof area were unfinished. Many people remarked that they felt the area looked unfinished especially after a $30 million renovation.

We carefully observed the other guests to see if they appeared to be having a good time. We noticed the most activity during outdoor Zumba classes and an evening trapeze performance (although there is no place to sit during that show, everyone was standing for the show.) Since we visited in November,  the resort was not very crowded and the air was chilly so not many were by the pool. We did see kids paddle boarding in the river on a daily basis.

Did I like the resort? Yes, I would rate it a solid three in a one to five scale. Did I love it? No. I don't consider it a four or five star resort but it is priced that way. If you expect an all inclusive resort similar to what you will find in the Caribbean you will be sorely disappointed.

Don't think of comparing this resort to anything you may have experienced in the Caribbean. If you know what to expect and you do not expect a Caribbean type of all inclusive, you won't be disappointed.

To see all our photos of Club Med, click here

Rome Review - Tours and Best Western Art Deco Hotel

Ciao tutti!  We recently spent three nights in Rome prior to embarking on a cruise to tour Rome.  What a fabulous city!  It was all we thought it would be and more.

We arrived in Rome on a Sunday afternoon and took a shuttle to our hotel, the Best Western Art Deco.  The hotel is small, just 68 rooms and in a well located area with public transportation nearby
(The hotel is a seven minute walk from the Termini train station).

We were greeted by GianLuca, a rather brusk man with what seemed liked little patience.  It was 1:00 and he told us our room would not be ready until at least 2:00.  He handed us a map, pointed out where the Spanish Steps, Colosseum and Trevi Fountain were, took our luggage and told us to come back after 2 PM.

It is a bit startling to be less loose in an unknown area. We began wandering the streets, which were fairly deserted and did not leave us with a warm and fuzzy feeling. After a few wrong turns, we discovered the train station and stopped in some neighborhood stores.  We found a lovely place for lunch, as a reasonable 5 and 6 Euros each for a pasta dish.  One thing that is very expensive throughout Europe was soda - the least amount of money we found a can of soda for was 2.50 E and up.  Meanwhile, a bottle of water was .39E. So you know what our preferred beverage was!

We got back to the hotel at 4 PM and were told our room, number 102, was ready.  No baggage help - GianLuca pointed us to the tiny elevator and we shlepped our bags up to our room.  We initially liked the corner room, a fairly good size for a European hotel room.  Upon entering was a small "hallway" with the bathroom on the left and closets on the right.  We had a king sized bed, arm chair in the corner, t.v. and a mini bar, and a desk and chair.

The bathroom was spacious, with a toilet (and a tank high on the wall, which created a tremendose "whoosh" and creaky noises as it refilled), a bidet, high tub with jets and hand held shower.  Also a sink, but absolutely no space to leave toiletries.  We were continually bringing our toiletry bag in and out of the bathroom.  Another odd feature was that there was no control of the temperature of the water when taking a shower.  We'd set the hand held shower head at an acceptable level and were continually burned as hot water poured out and then cold. It seemed like if anyone flushed a toilet or put on the tap while you were showering, you could be guaranteed a burn.  We had to wait until we got on our cruise ship to enjoy a long shower that had the temperature remain as it should have been!

The bed was extra hard - I had no problem with it but my spouse was miserable.  The room was spotlessly clean, which is the most important factor for a hotel for us.  Even though there were some cracks in the bathroom tile and sink, everything was gleaming.

We decided to lay down and rest, as we had been up more than 24 hours between the time change and our flights and didn't wake up until 6 the next morning.

This hotel provides a free breakfast from 7 - 10:30 AM.  As you sit down, you are brought a pot of coffee (undrinkable for me, who enjoys light and sweet coffee and even difficult for spouse, who likes strong coffee).  Some mornings the coffee was as thick as mud, even if we asked for "Americano" coffee. 

There were scrambled eggs, which quickly ran out each morning, grilled meats such as prociutto instead of bacon.  Also some excellent yogurt, fruit, cereal, pastries, and juices.  The orange juice is from blood oranges, dark pink and among the best orange juice I've ever tasted.

On day two we had pre-booked a "Skip the Line" Tour of the Colosseum with Dark Rome Tours.   After breakfast, we decided to walk to the Termini Station and purchase a ticket for the Hop On, Hop Off bus to tour the city and get to the Colosseum in time for our tour.  Since we had an early morning tour of the Vatican the next day, we decided to take the two day bus ticket.

We also purchased our subway ticket for the Vatican Museum at the Termini Station the next morning. Since our tour was to  began at 8:15 the next morning, the subway was the best way to get to the Vatican.  That was the only place I had problems with the language barrier, as the girl at the information booth did not speak English at all. It all ended well as we were able to figure out what to do.

Our tour bus was the red 110 Open bus. You are handed earplugs that you insert into the plugs near your seat and turn the channel to your language.  You then hear a pre-recorded discussion of where you are (or in many cases, where you have been - the tape ran behind where we actually were and in some cases indicated something was on the left hand side of the bus when it was on the right). The first stop was Santa Maria Maggiore Church, which we discovered was walkable from our hotel. Then on to the Colosseum, Circus Maximus (which is nothing but a grass lot), Piazza Venezia, St. Peters, Ara Pacis (for shopping for high end designers), Trevi Fountain, Barberini and then back to the Termini Station.

We did the full tour, then went back to the hotel an hour or so to pick up our tour tickets, returned to the bus and got off the bus at the Colosseum. Our Skip the Line Tours for the Colosseum and Vatican were with Dark Rome tours.  The company was excellent.  We found our tour guide, Simone (a male) and were off.  Simone was an archaeology student, who gave us information on the Colosseum in detail. His English was very good and he was easy to understand.  Who knew that the Colosseum was all marble and the marble was pilfered by the ancient Popes to be relocated to the Vatican?  That made for some huge gouges in the columns and walls of the Colosseum.  It is truly fascinating to see buildings so old that are still standing.

We then went on to the Forum, which we found even more interesting as that is where the population actually lived and then on to Palantine Hill.  Simone was a great guide as far as the archeology aspect of the tour -but he didn't seem to like Americans very much. He made a few remarks about Americans, the most memorable being that the Americans who go to the American colleges in Rome cause "big problems" with their out of control drinking and trashing of things in Rome.  We were told every weekend there are reports about American students being arrested for their partying ways and that we should lower the drinking age in the U.S. so they wouldn't come to Italy and trash the country. It seemed to us Italy has enough of their own problems that student drinking couldn't possibly be the worst issue for the Italians.

When visiting any popular attractions you should purchase Skip The Line Tours.  There are thousands of people at the main sightseeing areas and the ticket lines are unbelievably long. You will save hours by purchasing your tickets before you leave.

After four hours being on our feet, we decided to take the bus back to the hotel and rest up for our tour early day the next day.  While walking back to the hotel, we found a delightful sidewalk restaurant where we had a nice three course meal for 15E each.

When we went back to the hotel, we also decided to book a night tour of the city in order to take some nice nice photos.  We booked a tour through the hotel that was to pick us up the next night after our Vatican tour.

The next day we were out of the hotel by 7 AM to take the subway to the Vatican.  As a veteran of the NYC subway system, I thought this would be a snap to take the subway in Italy - until I realized I didn't know which direction we had to go to get to the Vatican and it was rush hour. We knew we needed the red line going in the direction of Battastini but how to get there? We were pushed along with a crowd so large I had to plant myself against a wall until the first train came and took on as many people that could fit so we had a clear path to walk.   After taking a deep breathe, we easily found the correct train and were on our way.

Our tour was again through Dark Rome Tours, and the tour advised us to get off the subway at the stop marked "Cipro" - the stop after the main Vatican station.  Upon emerging from the train stop - we looked around and saw  nothing but neighborhood.  We began walking in the direction we assumed the Vatican would be and later found a sign with an arrow pointing the way.  We later asked a street vendor which way and she pointed us in the right direction.  We found our group and were ready for our tour of the Vatican.  Our tour guide (I believe her name was Francesca) was excellent.  She was enthusiastic and her English was outstanding.

We were able to go past the long lines to purchase tickets right to the Vatican Museum, which was fascinating. The many rooms are filled with historical art by Raphael and Michaelangelo, as well as Raphaels' students who finished a room that was not completed when he died.  We saw the former Popes Quarters, the door that goes to the current Pope's living space, the tapestry room and more. It is awe inspiring to be in rooms with items that go back thousands of years.

Then on to the Sistine Chapel. This was a bit of a let down only because you are unable to take any photos in the Chapel.  To see Michaelangelos spectacular paintings and not be able to take a picture is disappointing.  Do you know why pictures cannot be taken? Not because the flash will ruin the recently restored chapel, but because a Japanese company paid for the restoration and now own all the copyrights to the chapel.  How could the Italian government have allowed such a thing to occur, that thousands who come to see this work of art cannot take a single picture of it? 

On to St. Peter's Basilica where my top wish was to see Michaelangelo's Pieta.  When the Worlds Fair was held in New York in 1964/65, the Pieta was displayed and I vividly recall seeing it while I was there as a child. Francesca was delighted to meet someone who actually saw it during that time, as it is the only time the Pieta was removed from St. Peters to be displayed elsewhere.  The statue was as striking as I remembered it as a nine year old.

The rest of St. Peter's was amazing and we could have spent an additional two hours viewing all there was to view.  We thoroughly enjoyed this tour.  We walked through Vatican Square, caught the Hop On Bus and took it to the Trevi Fountain.

When we disemarked the bus at the Fountain stop, we found the fountain wasn't just around the corner, we had to do quite a bit of walking to get to it.  We stopped at a pizzeria for a pizza which we split between us. It was a four cheese pizza that was probably one of the best pizzas we've ever had.

The Trevi Fountain seems to be the most over-rated attraction in Italy.  There were thousands of people crowded around this beautiful fountain pushing to take pictures throwing their coins. I was absolutely stunned at how many people there were. The surrounding area is restaurants and souvenier shops. Lucky for us, it began raining and many people ran off, so we were able to enjoy the fountain without being pushed and prodded.

Checking our watches, we discovered we needed to get back to the hotel to get ready for our evening tour, so off we went to the bus.

The evening tour was through a company called Carrani Tours. We were to be picked up from our hotel for what was described as a 2-1/2 hour tour of Illuminated Rome. We were picked up and taken to sit at the Carrani offices until 8:15 PM when they loaded the bus from their office. Our tour was over by 9:30, after those of us who did not book the dinner option were taken back to our hotel. (The dinner tours was supposed to be 4 hours).

They drove by the sights so quickly it was impossible to take pictures. Led us on a long walk to the Trevi Fountain to take pics, sped by the Colosseum, which was magnificent yet no stop for photos. Taken to the Vatican for much too long for pictures.

Tour was not as advertised. There are many other tour companies to use in Rome - I would not put clients with this tour company.

The next day, our Rome visit was over.  We checked out of the hotel quickly with two lovely women at the front desk (only day we didn't see GianLuca) , our car service picked us up and we were off to Civitavecchia for our cruise!

Why You Need Evacuation Insurance When You Travel

No one ever thinks they may need evacuation insurance when they travel on a vacation. Yet if you are seriously injured when traveling, getting home in an emergency can cost a fortune that Medicare and most U.S. health insurance plans don't cover.

While evacuations such as this are rare, circumstances can suddenly make evacuation a necessity that can bankrupt travelers. Case in point - read this story about a man who hunts throughout the world and was severely injured when his tree stand was hit by a falling tree and collapsed, breaking four vertebrae in his back:  http://www.travelinsure.com/who/atravelingnightmare.asp.

The total cost of his evacuation? $122,000. And he had no insurance. But he certainly advocates for it now.

The U.S. government will do its best to assist in getting citizens out of a foreign country if an event of this kind occurs, but they are not responsible for paying for it. Airlines more often than not don't have enough seats to accommodate a passenger on a gurney plus a medical attendant and medical equipment. Nor do they want the potential legal problems of transporting  seriously ill passengers.

Trying to arrange your own evacuation is also a difficult task. Language can be an obstacle and rules and regulations aboard are difficult to maneuver through.

If you've purchased travel insurance with emergency evacuation, the insurance companies have 24 hour travel assistance to negotiate the strange waters for you.

Our advice to clients asking if they need travel insurance is if you can afford to lose everything you have paid for your  trip if you are ill and can't travel before you are scheduled to leave and if you can afford to medivac yourself in the event you become seriously ill while traveling, then you don't need insurance.

How much does emergency evacuation cost? MedjetAssist estimates the cost of evacuating from Rochester MN to New York City at $16,000. From South Africa to Boston -  $125,000. Domestic emergency evacuation cost about $20,000 and international transports $75,000 and up.

If you still opt out of buying travel insurance you can purchase just an emergency evacuation plan, but keep in mind that type of policy covers only any emergency evacuation and nothing else.

Please call us at  516-608-0568 for more information.

Hints for Using Your Cell Phone When Traveling

With today's new 4G phones and the love people have for posting their vacation pictures on Facebook and Twitter, people can return to a cell phone bill in the thousands of dollars - if no one tells them about roaming charges when transmitting data and pictures.

Case in point - a travel agent recently posted a situation on an agent board where one of her clients returned from an Alaskan cruise to a $600 cell phone bill.  She never used the phone on the cruise, but took many pictures and did not turn off her data plan on the phone. In not turning off the data plan, her phone was still hooked up to the cruise ships satellite system for receiving e-mails and texts - even though she did not look at or answer them, and she was charged a roaming fee for each of these items that came through on her phone.

At the very least, when traveling, especially out of the U.S., if you plan on bringing your cell phone with you, you must call your cell phone provider and speak to them about what your options are when traveling with your cell phone.  They will tell you what your fees will be to wherever you are traveling to and how to turn off features on your phone so that you do not incur huge fees.

For example, when we travel by cruise, air or car, I call my carrier, A T & T and add an international calling plans (if traveling outside the U.S.)  They will tell me how much per minute I will pay for incoming or outgoing phone calls.  A T & T always had advised me to turn off the wi-fi and cellular service or put the phone in "airplane" mode so that I am not charged for unnecessary usage.  I usually will  leave my phone off unless I am expecting an important call, or I need to make a call.
This is especially true when cruising and traveling through multiple countries. 

If I know I will be checking e-mails or texts or possible posting photos on line, I will call A T & T and add a Data Plan. This plan costs $30 and gives me more megabytes of data than I will use.
The first time I traveled out of the country and did not add the data plan, I came home to an additional $90 on my cell phone bill for checking e-mail, sending e-mails and putting photos on line  One bill was all it took for me to call A T & T and ask them what I could do to reduce my costs the next time I traveled. The international data plan was all I needed to add as well as the international calling plan.

The next time you plan to travel - before you leave,  call your cell phone carrier and ask how to keep your bill down.

Resort Review - LeBlanc Spa Resort - Adults Only

The minute I stepped into the lobby, I knew this was going to be a special vacation. 

I took in the fresh scent of lemongrass as I eyed the beautiful surroundings – check in desks to the left, softly curtained sitting areas to the right and the bright blue water of an infinity pool in the back. On the beautiful white sand beaches of Cancun this 260 room Palace resort  is 25 minutes from the  airport in the  hotel zone within walking distance to a Flea Market, Mall and restaurants. But you will have no need to leave the resort because the food is fabulous. The resort is rated Five Diamonds by AAA and is the #1 rated resort in Cancun by Trip Advisor.

A porter met us as we arrived in our car, took our luggage and gave us a tag to take to the check in area of the lobby.

As we entered the lobby we were greeted with a delightful cooled drink of coconut milk, so refreshing. We were invited to be seated at one of the check in desks and had a warm aromatherapy neck wrap put on our neck to start our vacation before we even signed in.

We were warmly greeting at check in, which took less than five minutes before we were on our way to our room. Our room was number 418 with a partial ocean view. The halls in the hotel remind me very much of the Hyatt Grand in Cancun - the building is shaped like a triangle with open hallways. If you look down you can see and hear the murmur of a waterfall in the lobby below.

The rooms are lovely. Upon entering is a hallway with two closets on the left and a table in between them. To the right is the bathroom with a double Jacuzzi tub that is open to the room. In the center is the sink, to the right is the glass enclosed toilet and shower. The shower has double walls of showerheads. One wall has a high head and six jets going down the wall. The wall on the right had one rain showerhead. It took a few minutes for me to figure out how to turn them on but what a luxury of multiple shower jets relaxing you after a long flight.

Inside the bedroom was a king sized bed with four pillows, two of them goose feather. Across from that were a credenza with four drawers, a refrigerator and liquor dispenser. To the right of that was a desk with lamp.

Near the Juliet balcony was a table and two chairs. On either side of the bed were nightstands built into the wall that had great lighting within the stone top. There was also a drawer in each of these.

The bath amenities consisted of Bulgari items - shampoo and shower gel, conditioner, soap. Also included were LeBlanc items - shower cap, shave kit, toothbrush set, vanity kit, shoe polisher and a sewing kit. There was also a hair dryer in the closet.

Every room has a bottle of wine waiting for you. There is nightly turn down service with petit fours,  upgraded liquor cabinet, a mini-bar with snacks, soda, juices, bottled water and domestic beer, flat screen TV., DVD and CD player, bathrobes and slippers, a safe, coffee maker and iron and ironing board. Another luxury is a comfort menu which includes a choice of specialty pillows and aromatherapy. Free phone calls to the U.S. are available from your room, a great way for parents with kids to keep in touch with home to make sure the kids are alright.

All rooms at this resort have a floor butler. I did not meet my butler at check in but he did stop me when I was returning from the pool to introduce himself and find out if I needed anything. I did ask him to change my aromatherapy scent nightly and one night he drew me a surprise bath. It was a wonderful luxury, and he kept the water hot until I got to the room (we were over an hour later than we thought we would be). I also asked to have the regular soda in my mini-bar changed to diet and that was done promptly. I didn't think I would need a butler, but found it was a luxury I could quickly get used to!

There is 24 hour room service, five bars and five restaurants. Blacaitalia is an Italian restaurant, Blancorient an Oriental restaurant, Lumiere is French fusion a la carte or an eight course tasting menu. (This is the only restaurant that requires reservations.) More casual eating venues are Blaninternational in the Central Lobby next to the main pool. For breakfast and lunch an international buffet is served and at dinner it becomes a steakhouse and Mexican a la carte. Food was very good and one treat I love was their home made popsicles. They were fruit, dessert and "flower" flavored with tastes such as cantaloupe, hibiscus, rice pudding, sweet and salty, watermelon, and more. These were my indulgence since the flavors changed at each meal. 

Your meats were cooked to order; there was not a lot of pre-made food at this buffet. For instance, for lunch you could take a piece of raw meat (steaks pork, etc.), chicken or fish and shrimp from the iced platters that were out, bring it to the chef and have it cooked exactly as you wished.   

Blancterrace is located on the 3^rdfloor near the pool. For breakfast there is an international a la carte menu, for lunch the most amazing brick oven pizzas are made and for dinner, brick oven pizzas and specialties are served.  Sample the white pizza with pear pizza – fabulous!

The bar in the lobby is Blanclobby where in the afternoon, tea and coffee was put out with cookies and pastries. Later on, sushi is added. Other bars were Blancstage, on the 3^rdfloor where nightly entertainment is available along with pool tables and darts. Blancsol is a swim up bar with snack service in one pool, Blancluna is another swim up bar with snack service from 8 AM – 10 PM. Blanceclipse is located next to Blancsol and specializes in Daiquiri beverages.

24 hour room service includes salads, beef and broccoli fajitas, chicken wraps, mahi-mahi, Chicken Pita, Grilled Veggie Panini, Surf & Turf burger, grouper sandwich, smoked turkey sandwich, burrito, gazpacho, onion soup, tomato consommé, chilpachole seafood soup, linguine, lasagna, penne, cannelloni, steak, chicken breast, desserts such as stuffed dates, crème Brule, apple cake, chocolate mousse, coffee cream. Full breakfast is available as well.

One of the pluses of staying at LeBlanc is that you may dine at some of the nearby Palace resorts – Moon Palace, Sun Palace or Beach Palace. We tried dinner at the other resorts every night except one, where we ate at Blancitalian. I was sorry we didn’t eat here every night. The service was spectacular and the food – bellissimo! We ordered an appetizer, soup, salad and a main dish and in between these courses, outstanding small plates to share were brought out.  The wine sommelier listened to the types of wines that people in our party were looking for and brought out exactly what they wanted.  Shared plates of each dessert were also brought out.  This dinner was one of the best meals I’ve enjoyed at a resort.

There are three pools. One is an activity pool on the lower level outside the gym and spa. There is a swim up bar and water aerobics and pool volleyball and table tennis are offered.
Off the main lobby is what is called the "quiet" pool. This is the largest pool and also has a swim up bar. On the third floor is the rooftop pool. This pool does not have a bar at all but you can order food and drink and it will be delivered to you. While many resorts have drink service around the pool, this is one of the few that offers food service as well as drink service. There is a menu you can order a small selection of food and desserts from that will be brought to your chair as you are lazing in the sun.

This hotel has a lovely beach. There are a few palapas on the beach and some lounge chairs. The beach sand is nice and the water warm although there are some waves.

The gym at LeBlanc is excellent. There are plenty of machines and classes that are free, including Pilates, yoga etc.

The spa is wonderful here. There are 19 treatment rooms and a multitude of treatments you can have here, including a "fish spa", where you can soak your feet with tiny fish eat the
outer layer of skin off your feet.

One of the best free amenities here is the hydrotherapy circuit. Your attendant will take you to a room to change into your robe and slippers, and then direct you to the sauna, where she will ask how long you want to stay in the room and come back and get you when your time is up. The next step is a cool shower, then a trip to the sauna room after you are sprayed with your choice of herbal water which leaves you smelling fresh and relaxed.

After the steam room, another short shower and you are led to the Jacuzzi. You are invited to have a drink of some herbal water - chlorophyll, cucumber or fruit flavored water.
On to the Jacuzzi for a few minutes then it is time for the cool water pool for a few minutes to close your pores. Finally, a warm pool.

To finish your treatment, you can sit in the foot spa, where a flip of a switch starts the Jacuzzi and your feet are given a relaxing treatment. All at no charge.

The staff treats all guests as royalty. There is almost nothing you can ask for that they can’t get for you. The pool butlers were the best – you can’t simply walk up and get a towel. When you go to the towel bar, a concierge will take your towel and help find a seat where you want. Need shade? They’ll move an umbrella for you. Want to overlook the beach? They’ll move your chairs to face the beach. This was luxury and spoiling all rolled into one.

On our last day we were certainly reluctant to leave. Our butler arranged to pick up our bags and they were brought downstairs.  Check out was quick and I was sad when the bracelet was cut off my wrist – it meant this stay was truly over.

Who is LeBlanc for? Adults who want relaxation and pampering, great food in a luxury setting. Call us for more information or to book - 516-608-0568