HOLIDAYS made easy
Welcome to the world of stress-free breaks
WHEN is the first moment that you really relax on holiday? Is it the first morning, after waking up in your hotel or on a wonderful cruise? Is it the end of the first day, when you’ve started making memories and can enjoy a cool, celebratory drink? Or is it actually the moment you shut your front door and leave ordinary life behind?
We’re all different, of course. But one thing unites us all: the better a holiday is arranged the easier it is to relax.
And stress-free holidays are what this issue of Check In is all about.
SIMPLE STEPS
We’ve found a host of travel companies, tips and ideas that make holidays simpler, better and easier than ever.
If you’re flying, turn to page 16 for simple steps to help tackle crowded airports. My favourite is not to dress for success, but to dress for security (hint: too many layers, metal belt studs and pockets full of tissues are not going to help).
Security staff also suggest a final look through handbags, rucksacks and pockets as we approach the conveyor belt. Apparently, the little bottles of hand sanitiser lots of us carry (and forget we’re carrying) trigger more secondary searches that anything else.
TAILOR-MADE TRIPS
Another way to guarantee a stress-free holiday is to get an expert to do the planning for you. I’m thrilled that ‘old-fashioned’ travel agents are thriving again online, on the phone and in person.
Chat to one for a healthy dose of enthusiasm and expertise. You’ll find the best don’t just build the perfect holiday. They also check in afterwards to see that all went to plan.
On pages 12 and 13 we focus on bucket-list holidays in Canada, whether you book a campervan or log cabin, visit a big city, cross the country by train or look for natural wonders, whales, whales bears and more. more Tempted? As well as small-group tours, destination experts at Trailfinders can create bespoke holidays to take in everything you want to see.
From summer sun to winter sports you can also get an expert on your side at Tui. Its packages are back in fashion as we crave an easier life, with flights, hotels and transfers brought together in a simple, single deal. Better still, resort staff have inside knowledge on everything from restaurants to days out. Tap into it and it’s one less thing to worry about while you’re away.
FIVE-STAR SERVICE
Fans say relaxing is particularly easy on a cruise, as you basically unpack once then wait for the world to come to you.
But which cruise to choose? We showcase the best in each issue of Check In and this time we’ve found some real gems.
Firstly, there are the stress-free cruises with Saga, detailed on page 4. How are they stress-free? Well, recent Saga guests I’ve spoken to didn’t just love their time at sea. They also raved about having a chauffeur collect them at home and having their luggage delivered to their cabin. Oh, and having it done in reverse on the way home.
Some of the world’s most luxurious cruises go under the microscope on pages 10 and 11. Board a Regent Seven Seas cruise, and you will be on a five-star, all-suite ship enjoying big walk-in wardrobes and even bigger private balconies.
Fancy a three-course meal in your suite? Not a problem. Want restaurant bookings at the next destination? The concierge team will arrange them. Need laundry doing? It’s included, along with everything from gratuities to excursions.
No-fly cruises, where you board your ship at a UK port, are another way to holiday stress-free. That’s where Ambassador Cruise Line comes into its own. We’ve got more details of this on pages 8 and 9.
We’ve also got the lowdown on the Mediterranean’s sunniest and most popular ports on page 6. See them on a cruise with NCL or any of our other favourite lines.
INSPIRING IDEAS
Follow some of our other travel tips for equally relaxing holidays around the world. There’s Barbados, which we feature on the opposite page. I long since fell in love with the beaches, the food and the happy atmosphere on the island.
And my favourite Barbados fact? Alongside London, New York and Paris, Barbados was the only place in the world to get regular Concorde flights. If that doesn’t prove you’re holidaying in a jet-set paradise, then I don’t know what will.
Escaping the crowds is my final tip t for a relaxing holiday – and in Europe you can do so in ‘secret Spain’, where green hills meet blue seas on the country’s northern coast.
In quiet areas such as¡ Asturias, featured on page 19, you can switch off altogether in national parks, stylish spas (Las Caldas hotel has a gorgeous one) and rustic restaurants galore.
Or head to Bilbao, one of Europe’s most under-rated (and under-visited) cities. With the Guggenheim museum, a ‘floating’ swimming pool and a bridge like no other it’s a top mini-break choice. Read about it on page 18.
Then book a holiday, take a deep breath, and relax.