AMANGATI OVER NEW YEARS YES OR NO?
Q – We have heard relatively little about the new Aman Yacht, Amangati, in the Caribbean this winter. My husband and I love the Aman Hotels, and I noticed they have a nice Caribbean seven-night itinerary from Bridgetown to St. John’s on December 26th. What do you think is really special about this new vessel?…
WE WANT TO CHOOSE THE BEST RIVERBOAT OPTION NEXT YEAR ON THE DANUBE. BUT HOW DO WE KNOW WHICH LINE HAS HANDLED THIS SUMMER’S FIASCO IN THE BEST POSSIBLE WAY?
Q – 9.3.26 – We are determined, along with my wife’s brother and his wife, to cruise the Danube next year. We will be contacting you if you have room for us. But given all the negative publicity about record-draught and inoperable itineraries this summer that often turned into bus tours, I have to wonder:…
IS THERE A QUICK IDEA YOU CAN GIVE US OF THE COST TO SHIP LUGGAGE DIRECTLY TO OUR HOTEL?
Q – We have a tour coming up with Collette that will begin in Zurich. We live in Spokane, so we’ll need to change planes a couple of times, and we are seriously considering shipping our luggage to make sure we have everything we need for the start of the tour. Is this something you…
WE JUST NOTICED SOMETHING ODD ON OUR RECENT PRINCESS CRUISE. WHAT ARE WE MISSING?
Q – 9.2.26 – We have just returned from our second cruise after a bit of a demographic nightmare on an NCL ship. Princess seemed more upscale, and we really enjoyed our time in the lower Caribbean. It helped that we were joined by good friends. We all noticed a kind of anomaly none of…
We are thinking about attending the Palio Horse Race in Siena, Italy in 2028. Any general information you can provide?
Q – We have been to Italy three times, including two trips on your Signature vacations over the past nine years. We have been clients for more than two decades, as you know, and now we are seriously thinking about trying to get into the Palio horse race, an event we have heard you talk…
DOES THIS GIFT FOR A VERY LOVING HUSBAND SOUND AS THOUGH IT MIGHT BE WORTH THE COST?
Q – 9.1.26- My husband and I are avid skiers, and we often use a condo in Park City, Utah for some wonderful vacations. But my husband’s 60th is coming soon and I want to take him to Japan, a destination he has always wanted to visit. I have heard there could be some really…
PLANNING A RIVER CRUISE NEXTYEAR BUT REALLY WONDERING WHICH LINE HANDLES LOW OR HIGH WATER ISSUES BETTER THAN THE OTHERS
Q – As a client, I try not to bother you often, using your websites and our assigned Concierge to answer many of our questions. But as a former naval researcher, I can tell you that one question I’ve been researching is unusually elusive and I am thinking many of your clients and followers might…
WE WILL BE IN THE ATLANTIC ON A LARGE SHIP DURING STORM SEASON – HOW WILL THEY AVOID GIANT WAVES AND SICK GUESTS?
Q – 8-12.26 – My wife and I will sailing Celebrity in the Caribbean during late October which is a part of the major storm season. We are curious if there are any policies about avoiding storms or just plowing right through them on a larger ship. How does that really work and would they…
I FLY OUT OF ATLANTA DO I NEED TO CHECK IN A DAY BEFORE MY FLIGHT?
Our Managing Editor, Richard Turen, helps direct traffic inside London Heathrow Q – I am planning two, possibly, three trips to Europe later this year. In setting up flights, I am wondering what the real travel pros are recommending in terms of airport and connection times. It was always an hour and a half for…
MT. EVEREST – AND YES I’M BEING SERIOUS
Q – Believe me, I am not going to ask a travel adviser whether or not I should climb Mt. Everest. But I am a serious 26 yea-old climber, the nephew of a client, and I am in serious training to do Everest as soon as I can. My Uncle, Steve “K.” has told me…
GIVEN THE CHAOTIC NATURE OF PLANNING FLIGHTS THESE DAYS, WE ARE THINKING OF USING ONE OF THE BETTER CONCIERGE AIR TICKETING SERVICES YOU HAVE RECOMMENDED. WHAT DO THEY NORMALLY CHARGE?
Q – (6.13.26) – Just reviewing some of the questions and responses on Traveltruth we are strongly considering using one of the better Concierge/Air Ticketing Services given the somewhat chaotic nature of flying these days . We would only use one of the firms that includes Flight Monitoring. Can you tell us your current advice…
FLIGHT CANCELLATIONS, AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER SHORTAGES, HUGE FARE RAISES ON INTERNATIONAL ROUTES, AND CROWDED AIRPORTS IN EUROPE RTEQUIRING NEW FORMS OF ID: AS WE PREPARE TO MAKE OUR AIR ARRANGEMENTS FOR TWO WEEKS IN BRUGES, ANTWERP, AND AMSTERDAM, SOME AIR ADVICE WOULD BE REALLY HELPFUL. ALL I SEE ONLINE IS ‘BOOK EARLY”
Q – My girlfriend and I keep received airline warnings and airport updates that make us wonder if we should contemplate traveling to Europe at all this fall. Our friends who will be traveling to Spain (we are headed to Belgium and the Netherlands) keep telling us we should book with one of the larger…
JUST HOW MUCH CAN WE EXPECT IN TERMS OF PRIVATE ROOM SERVICE DINING ON A LINE LIKE SILVERSEA, SCENIC, OR CRYSTAL?
Q – We have never sailed with any one of the cruise line son the 2026 List of The World’s Top Ten Cruise Lines. We have sailed with so-called “Premium” Lines four times. I travel frequently for work and never feel I spend enough time with my wife. We want to book several of, what…
HOW HARD WILL THE WALKING BE ON OUR ABERCROMBIE & KENT SEPTEMBER SIGNATURE TOUR?
Q – As you are aware, we will be joining you, along with 34 other Churchill & Turen clients on the Ponant Yacht chartered by A&K around the southern coast of Italy this coming September. The entire program will begin in Florence and end in Venice. In reviewing the just-released list of shore excursions for…
IS IT TRUE THAT THERE ARE NOW VISA REQUIREMENTS FOR ENTERING FRANCE?
Q – We have friends who left for Paris for a week of rambling around and investigating croissants “fillings” in the better neighborhoods. They know we are leaving for Paris ourselves next month on a Scenic Seine River Cruise and they warned us that there is a new Visa system in place that can take…
IS THERE ANY WAY TO BUY PARISIAN SKIN CARE PRODUCTS/PERFUMES ETC. AT A DISCOUNT ANYWHERE IN THE CITY?
Q – We visit Paris as often as we can. This time, however, our journey has a new purpose – we want to try to find a store where we can find quality French beauty products, health supplements, and the kind of typical drugstore products you might find at a CVS in the States, There…
IS IT TRUE? CONSUMER REPORTS NAMES THE THREE BEST CRUISE LINES
Q – 4.23.26 – I must confess that I have been a subscriber to Consumer Reports magazine for more than three decades. I believe strongly in their consumer stance and I have demonstrated that belief with occasional donations. Our washer/dryer, bedding, and the two automobiles in our garage are all purchases based on their favorable…
NEVER MIND THE AIRLINES, CRUISE LINES, AND HOTELS: WHERE IS THE NEW SEASON OF WHITE LOTUS BEING FILMED?
Q – 1.29.26 – Let’s just say we like to be ahead of the crowd when it comes to staying in really chic places in Europe. This gets complicated because my partner and I have developed “Mike White Syndrome” which takes the form of a need to experience the hotel stars of the very next…
IS CASKET RESTING REALLY A THING IN JAPAN?
Q – 3.28.26 – Don’t judge me harshly but I was on Tik-Tok the other evening and a dimpled, freckled, exquisitely-smiling influencer was explaining that lying in caskets is “sweeping” Japan and that all visitors to the country who want to be cool and up with the times should try it out. We are leaving…
GIVEN WORLDWIDE INSTABILITY – WHERE ARE EUROPEANS GOING ON VACATION THIS SEASON?
Q – 3.27.26 – One has to imagine that travel to the US is way down from Canada and similarly down from our “former” allies in Europe. My husband and I were wondering what the Europeans are now viewing as prime destinations for Holidays abroad? A – The numbers show that travel to the…
I AM 81 – I AM BEING QUOTED TRAVEL INSURANCE RATES THAT COULD PAY FOR MY CLUB MEMBERSHIP ANNUALLY? HOW DO I GET THE BEST RATES?
Q – (3.7.26) – I have two trips planned this year – one a land tour to the Canadian Rockies and the other a cruise to ports in Asia operating out of Bangkok. I am 81, my wife is a bit younger, and we are in relatively good health following my bypass surgery two years…
IS THIS A GOOD USE OF POINTS IN COPENHAGEN?
Q – It looks like I finally have enough Bonvoy Marriott points to get a two-or three night stay at one of their overseas properties. We are sailing out of Copenhagen in September and we were wondering if you feel that using our points at the Copenhagen Marriott is a good idea? Or, should we…
CONSIDERING CANCELLATION OF OUR SCHEDULED EGYPT TRIP – WHAT TO DO?
Q – We have a rather special privately planned trip to Egypt scheduled to depart in the next 45 days. With war in the region we have to face the necessity of canceling our long-awaited trip to Egypt. Do we cancel now or let the tour company in Egypt cancel? . The government is telling…
WILL MY TRAVEL INSURANCE POLICY COVER MY CANCELLATION OF AN UPCOMING EGYPT CRUISE AND TOUR GIVEN EVENTS IN IRAN?
Q – (3.3.26) – We have been planning a Viking River Cruise along the Nile along with several days of land touring for almost a year. We obviously will not be going. Our insurance is through Travelex and we are wondering if they will cover the entire cost of the trip. We are scheduled to…
WHEN WILL A CRUISE LINE TRY TO BUY OFF BOOKED GUESTS?
Q – (2.23.26) While I am thinking about it, maybe sometime you could explain when and why a cruise line will offer to buy a confirmed cruise passenger out of their booking. A person sailing with us told us Regent offered a full refund if they would cancel their cruise. A – It would almost…
WE ARE MAKING THE CONVERSION FROM OCEAN TO RIVER CRUISING: HELP!
Q – We have been traveling on luxury programs abroad for the past twelve years including four of the cruise ranked “Best in The World” on your sister site, “Cruisetruth”. Recently, at the urging of close friends, we are planning on doing both the Danube and the Rhine next year on the best rated riverboat…
A SIMPLE QUESTION: HOW LIKELY IS IT THAT WE MAY BE CONFRONTED ABROAD ABOUT TRUMP-ERA POLICIES OR U.S. IMMIGRATION ACTIONS?
Q – We have been on four separate trips to Europe since we were married. We are now planning a trip that will include time in Italy and Spain. Both my husband and I are having some qualms about the way we may be greeted given the news about Trump’s disengagement from NATO and the…
WHAT IS THE BEST WAY FOR “INTELLIGENT’ TRAVELERS TO PLAN A RATHER COMPLEX PERSONAL ITINERARY ABROAD?
Q – We are interested in planning a rather complex itinerary that will likely include time in New Zealand and Australia. This will involve meeting beer distributors (my field) meeting local artists (a passion of my wife and while also watching the All Blacks play, enjoying a private yacht for a few days including a…
WHY ARE SO MANY FOLKS STILL GETTING SICK ON EVEN THE BEST CRUISE LINES?
Q – We were watching a feed on Tik-Tok that showed that one of Regent’s ships, the Mariner, had an outbreak on a sailing between Miami and Honolulu this January with many of the older guests aboard this longer itinerary getting sick. The video was not pleasant to look at and we are wondering if…
