• NOT SURE YOU CAN ANSWER THIS; HOW DO YOU PLEASE A SEAFOOD LOVER WITH ONE OF THE BEST MEALS OF HER LIFE DOWN UNDER?

  Q – (5.20.25)  A bit of a challenge for your researchers: My wife of forty-two years loves great seafood. We will be on a tour of Australia through Scenic and I am wondering if there is one seafood gourmet dining option that is better than all the rest. I really want to knock her out! I suppose you might say we’re foodies but she has no idea I am planning this. Is there one best option?

  A – We think there is but start working on your reservation right away. You want to try for Saint Peter, a new restaurant by, perhaps, the most famous chef in Sydney, Josh Niland. His “Saint Peter at the Grand National Hotel” is seen as an ultra-creative “scale to tail” fish concept. For an incomparable night, try to book a room in the adjoining 14-room luxury 14-room boutique hotel. The rooms continue the theme with fish-fat soap and ceramics made from fish bones.

  You will want to order the 10-course Chef’s Table experience. If you can’t get in for dinner know that they are open for lunch. You can’t taste the best of Aussie cuisine at the moment until you’ve dined with dishes overseen by Chef Niland. 

  Australians don’t pay all that much attention to stars from a tire manufacturer in France. Instead, they rely on their own system, the Three-Hat ratings. Of course, Saint Peter comes complete with a rare “3 Hat” ranking.

   

• JUST REQESTING YOUR BEST HOTEL UPGRADE SECRET

  Q – I travel a lot and, if I’m being honest, I don’t spend a lot of time worrying about getting a deal or an upgrade and my secretary is far too shy to ask hotels for special treatment. But my wife and I have some trips upcoming and I wonder if you might reveal the two or three best ways to get an upgrade. I am sure that some of your legion of followers would appreciate your response, even if the hotels might not.

  A – There are 11,237 posts online that address this question. Some have bits of truth while others are patently false. Here are the five secrets the real pros who work in the hotel sector rarely discuss:

  Rule # 1 – Never book your room through an 800 call center online. Always book directly with the hotel making sure you are not engaging with a ghost site.

  Rule # 2 – The best rates are going to come from members of the top-level travel agent groups producing many billions of dollars annually for the top hotel chains. The room rate may match what the hotel will offer you directly but you will be eligible for complimentary perks like free upgrades (really) and full breakfast included. 

  Rule # 3 – If you are not booki8ng in advance try to arrive at the property between 4:00 and 6:00 OM. That is when rates are often reduced.

  Rule # 4 – Give the front desk a real reason for upgrading you. It might be your birthday, your anniversary, or perhaps, “I’ve always dreamed of spending the night at your hotel”. 

  Rule # 5 – Be extraordinarily nice to the front desk staff. Simple – but it works because “nice” is often not what they encounter as a rule, 

• LOOKING AT PANAMA CANAL CRUISE IN WINTER – SHOULD WE WAIT UNTIL WE OWN IT?

  Q – (5.16.25) – There is this bucket list idea that originated with my lovely wife that we need to cruise through the Panama Canal. I am a Construction Engineer by trade and I have read a bit about the construction phase and I am also intrigued. We were directed to your website because you only evaluate and list sailings for the world’s top ten lines. We want to do a Canal cruise in February but all we could find was a ship operated by StarPride Cruises. We have never heard of them and they are not on your list. Meanwhile, I could not find a single alternative. What is going on here? Is your site just wrong?

  A – You have actually uncovered a rather remarkable trend among cruisers. Panama Canal cruises were extremely popular at one time providing ports on either side of the journey in Mexico and the Caribbean. But a regular series of high-end ships doing a “season” of Canal cruising really boils down to one current option – Windstar Cruises and their ship the the Star Pride. It carries fewer than 400 guests and cruises between Costa Rice and Panama. 

  Here are some key ports:

  • Colon, Panama – The starting point for many itineraries.
  • Panama Canal – A full daylight transit through the canal.
  • Balboa, Panama – A gateway to Panama City.
  • Isla Parida, Panama – A secluded island with pristine beaches.
  • Golfo Dulce (Puerto Jimenez), Costa Rica – A biodiverse rainforest region.
  • Quepos, Costa Rica – Near Manuel Antonio National Park.
  • Puntarenas, Costa Rica – The final stop for some itineraries.

  The Windstar Product is not among the Top Ten Ranked Cruise lines but they are in the top fifteen. Their itineraries and food, including outdoor dining, get high marks. The ship itself was formerly owned by Seabourn Cruises where it sailed the world. 

  These days, the top-ranked cruise lines (www.cruisetruth.com) only sail through the Canal on repositioning cruises between the US and Europe. These twice-a-year sailings normally take place in April and October to allow for the resumption of summer and winter sailing schedules. 

  The major cruise lines believe that demand for Canal cruises has dropped substantially during the past decade. Executives believe that this is more a comment on the ports surrounding this itinerary than it is about the Canal itself. 

  

• HEADED TO THE DANUBE IN SEPTEMBER – WILL WE BE GREETED BY YANKEE GO HOME SIGNS?

  Q – (4.27.25) – This September, we are headed on our first river cruise on Viking. I think we may be less traveled than some of your readers and we are getting extremely concerned about the anti-American feelings we hear mentioned on the news. There are obviously a lot of European who can’t stand Trump because of his abandoning NATO, tariffs, lack of support for Ukraine etc. But how will all of that affect US travelers? If we are going to be placed in a position as Americans of defending our country, I think we are comfortable delaying our overseas travels until calm prevails. My local travel agent says I am a “worry-wart” and I should just go and have a good time, or words to that effect. How are you counseling your clients on this matter. 

  A – This general subject is generating dozens of questions addressed to Traveltruth and we receive about five or six inquiries a week from guests of Churchill & Turen Ltd. over the phone. (800-445-7979)

  We can well understand your concerns. We explain to our clients that, yes, there is a significant degree of anti-US Government  reporting and editorial coverage in large segments of the European press. We are seeing things said about our current government that are new and some respected observers feel that, where in the past the American people were not necessarily linked to the actions of any President, that is not the case now. 

  We have been collecting a database of anti-American commentary from the world press in preparation for future articles we are working on. One of the things we discovered is that the most vitriolic commentary we could find, referring to our President as a certified “Psychopath” did not appear in any newspaper in Europe – it appeared in the Toronto Star.

  But, to date, there seems to be no connection to what is shown overseas on TV and what appears in their newspapers and any overt anti-American actions taken toward tourists. Most of the world, a vast majority, feel that Americans are some of the nicest tourists on the planet and we are among the highest spenders. 

  Some travelers with imminent plans to travel abroad, are stating concerns about confrontation, tough questions, and political arguments. We think these concerns are overblown and there are few facts to support the contention that this will happen.

  It might be wise to sort of turn the tables. Instead of you heading for the Danube, let’s suppose that you meet some tourists from Budapest sitting at the next table in your favorite restaurant back home. Are you going to start questioning them about Orban’s leadership and arguing politics over dinner?

  You won’t do that because it is impolite and not really part of our culture and the manner in which we interact when we meet citizens of other countries. The same can be said of Europeans. They are generally far too polite to confront visitors for their political beliefs. 

  Sadly, you would be far more likely to possibly encounter a political argument on a cruise or tour filled with Americans of various educational backgrounds.

  Go and enjoy. Turtles just don’t have much fun. 

   

• Are Air Tags A Good Idea When Traveling Overseas: My Teenager Says Yes

  Q – My wife  travel overseas two or three times a year since my retirement. We have not had a major lost luggage issue but our next-door neighbor has had two such experiences. My teenage son says I should get the Air Tags. Wondering if that is a good idea?

  A – We highly recommend that all international travelers use Apple’s Air Tags in/on their checked luggage when traveling overseas and domestically as well if there are connecting flights. 

  No one has developed a better system than Apple for monitoring where your luggage is at any stage of your journey. The capabilities of Air Tags are increasing and there are now several airlines that work in tandem with the system. At a cost of $75-$100 for a set of three, we think this is a reasonable investment. 

  The biggest mistake made by Air Tag users is allowing the batteries to run low. They do need to be fully charged prior to your departure.

  We do not accept compensation for any products ever recommended on any of our consumer sites. We like to recommend Apple products because they seem to need the money. 

  By the way – you can now have your Air Tags engraved with your name and contact information. We think this is an unnecessary expense as your normal luggage tags will suffice. Do be certain that your luggage tags on your outbound flights  show the name and location as well of the dates of your first  hotel.

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No one on our staff is a “salesperson”. We have earned our worldwide reputation by always trying to be “Travel Truthtellers”. We don’t churn out trips to Vegas or airline tickets. Instead, we devote 100% of our energies to the planning of the vacations in the lives of our guests that truly matter.

Our on-site offices in 91 countries enable us to provide the very best locally organized travel arrangements for some of our country’s most passionate travelers. Everything we do, from escorted tours to cruises, from safaris, to riverboats, is done on a truly personalized basis.

• We’ve been named one of the nation’s Top Ten “Bespoke” Travel firms by Travel + Leisure
• Celebrating our 36th year. We have Operations offices in Illinois and Texas. Angela and Richard Turen are based at our Corporate Headquarters in Naples, Florida.
• We do not employ travel agents or any outside sales agents. We do not believe that travel should ever be “sold”. Our gimmick is exposing the truth about every top-tier travel product we represent. For instance, we rate the world’s top ten cruise lines, publish those rankings, and those are the only cruise lines we will represent.
• No one on our staff “sells” Our Concierge Team is fully salaried and we do not hire Travel Agents or Outside sales people. This allows us to draw from a deep pool of talent. When you work with us you work with a “Team” dedicated to the success of every aspect of your overseas vacation. No one on your team is commission-based.
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• Conde Nast has named us both the World’s Best Luxury Cruise and Riverboat Specialists for the past decade. We are the only firm to share this honor. We have won more “World’s Best Travel Specialist Awards” from the Editors of Conde Nast Traveler than any other travel firm in the United States.
• One of our owners is currently the Senior Contributing Editor at the nation’s most respected travel industry publication.
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