Christmas in Paris 2011

At Printemps, shoppers can find special offerings from Chanel.

Richard Nahem, an ex-New Yorker living in Paris, leads private insider tours showing visitors the Paris most of them never see on their own (www.eyepreferparistours.com), and also writes a popular insider's blog www.eyepreferparis.com.

It’s holiday time again in Paris and the city is decked way out beyond the halls with boughs of holly. Blazing light displays, Christmas markets and fairs, ice skating rinks, and special holiday concerts are just a few of the joyous activities happening around the city. Here is a selection of the best and brightest for the month of December and beginning of January.

Galeries Lafayette offers rock-and-roll themed displays.

Holiday Store Windows

Galeries Lafayette is mad about rock music and this season the theme is called Noël Rock ‘n’ Mode. Animated dolls designed by New York artist Alexander Wang are fashionably dressed in rock n roll garb and strum away on their guitars and beat their drums furiously. Next door at Printemps it’s all about the eponymous fashion house Chanel. Noel Reves d'Evasion (Dreams of Escape) pays homage to Karl Lagerfeld and Chanel, and the windows have miniature Karl dolls prancing about with his camera and alternate windows show Chanel’s global locales Moscow, Los Angeles and Tokyo with clever and imaginative sets and animated dolls. On the Faubourg St. Honoré, Hermés just drips with over the top luxury with a Moroccan inspired theme including crocodile Kelly bags, ostrich motorcycle helmets, and a set of shiny gold boxing gloves.

Galeries Lafayette
40 Blvd. Haussmann, 75009

Printemps
64 Blvd. Haussmann, 75009

Hermés
24 Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré, 75008

Ice Skating

Sharpen those blades and put on those skates so you can cut up the ice with your fierce figure eights in the rinks of Paris. Every winter The Hotel de Ville/City Hall offers free skating on the plaza. Nothing could match the sensation of ice-skating high above the city in the Eiffel Tower with the breathtaking views. 

Hotel de Ville Rink –Till February 27
Open Monday to Friday 12PM to 10PM, Saturday, Sunday, and Holidays 9AM to 10PM
Admission free, skate rentals 5 euros

Eiffel Tower Rink- Till January 2
11AM to 9PM daily
Free for tower visitors

Holiday displays at the Place Vendome

Christmas Markets and Fairs

Shop, shop, shop till you drop and eat, eat, eat, till your tummy hurts at the fabulous Paris Christmas markets. Starting at the base of Place de la Concorde, the Champs Elysees has the largest market in the city brimming with great gifts, hot wine, Christmas ornaments, cotton candy, and much more. Inside the Grand Palais is a grand fair, Jours de Fetes, much like an old fashioned amusement park with a giant Ferris wheel, games of chance, and a carousel.

Champs Elysees Christmas Market till January 2
Jours de Fetes till January 2

Holiday Concerts

No Christmas holiday in Paris would be complete without classical music pouring out of the famed churches.
 
At Notre Dame
Tuesday, December 20, 8:30PM, Admission free - Christmas concert with organist Olivier Latry
Thursday, December 29, 8:30PM, Gregorian Chants Tickets 18 euros

At Saint Chapelle
December 17 to December 30, concerts at 6PM & 8PM
Various performances including Christmas Carols, Bach, Vivaldi, and Schubert

At Saint Sulpice
Thursday, December 29, 8:45PM –Mozart Requiem
http://www.classictic.com/en/Search/France/Paris/2011-12-15/0,0,0/page1.html

On Location: Disney's Animal Kingdom Resort

It’s been many and many a year since I visited Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, but after having my proverbial socks knocked off by Aulani in Hawaii (I say proverbial only because the place emphasizes barefoot luxury), I accepted an offer to accompany some members of the Fisher Travel team to see how the theme park is holding up.

I had forgotten how massive the resort is, and how many resort hotels are included within its boundaries. For the record, Disney owns more than 47 square miles in Orlando. That’s about two Manhattan Islands. It’s seriously big.

I’m staying at Animal Kingdom Lodge, an homage to African game reserves. Having stayed in several game reserves in Africa, I can say that they got plenty of details right, and that there is something utterly breathtaking about watching a giraffe amble along right outside one’s window, whether that window is in the Serengeti or in Orlando. (Though I will admit that my first thought upon seeing the giraffe was “Oh, no, if a lion comes along right now the kids are gonna be traumatized…” Fortunately, there are no lions or any other dangerous animals in the “Savanna” area of the park, but it would certainly be a good way to teach kids about the circle of life...Or maybe not.)

My room at the lodge is quite nice—smallish, and not ideal for business travel (not a lot of electrical outlets, and a dining-style table in lieu of a desk), but perfectly good for a couple or a small family. (And I already mentioned the views over the savanna—those are tops.) Oh, yes, and while the beds in my room don’t have mosquito netting all around them, there is a decorative panel of netting at the heads of each bed. It’s a pretty touch (must remember to suggest it to my interior designer), and a fashionable nod to African necessity.

After checking in, I headed over to the Saratoga Springs resort, part of the Disney Vacation Club, for a spa treatment. Elizabeth did a wonderful job working out (most of) the knots in my back, and the spa facilities look lovely. (I was pressed for time, so I didn't get a proper tour, but there seemed to be a good number of rooms, and the women's lounge was very soothing. Might go back there just to unwind in the hot tub...)

For dinner, I went with my host over to the California Grill at the Magic Kingdom’s Contemporary Resort, which nowadays looks delightfully retro. (It has undergone an extensive renovation since its 1971 opening, but maintains a few early-1970s touches.) The restaurant is huge and rather noisy (not a great option for a quiet romantic dinner), but kids are welcome and can learn about fine dining while looking down over the Magic Kingdom. (Great touch: Guests who dine at the restaurant can keep their receipt and come back at 900 p.m. for unobstructed views of the fireworks show over the Magic Kingdom.) The food is delicious, and covers a surprising range of styles. We started with a Dragon sushi roll (tuna, shrimp tempura, bell pepper, avocado and a chili soy glaze) and then tried an artisan flatbread (BBQ-flavor, delish) before moving on to the formal first course (a single, huge goat-cheese ravioli) and the main course…which, by then, we were too full to eat. (Well, I was, anyway.) The grilled pork tenderloin was just wonderful—incredibly tender, and served over goat cheese polenta with a zinfandel glaze. 

Tomorrow I’ll be going on a Wild Africa Trek around the Animal Kingdom—this is a new feature of the resort, so I’ll be eager to see what that’s like… 

French Affairs: Atout France in Miami, Day One

The annual French Affairs conference kicked off in Miami on Sunday, with French tour operators and specialists gathering to talk about the future of the country’s travel industry, and how they all could help it grow.

Anne-Laure Tuncer, the director of Atout France USA, kicked off the event by noting that since French hotels have been allowed to go up to five stars (as opposed to the previous four), many new hotels are working towards earning that extra star.

Visits from U.S. travelers have increased, she added, with expenditure up to $68.3 million. While the economy is still struggling throughout Europe, there are “encouraging signs” of recovery—especially for agents, she noted. Seventy-six percent of agents responding to a poll reported that they had seen an increase in business this year over last, thanks to their expertise, value-for-money and value-for-time (a five minute call, Tuncer noted, can save hours of research). “An agent is a consumer’s best resource,” she added, and said that French businesses would be increasing their investment in the U.S. market.

Antoine Huet, the VP manager for global alliance sales at Air France, said that his company is working towards a five percent growth from 2009 to 2029. Notably, Air France/KLM is launching a mobile app that will work across most service providers (iPhone, Android, Blackberry) for everything involved with flying, from booking to follow-ups after landing. The airline is one of 20 in the Skyteam alliance, and Huet noted that a full three-quarters of global air traffic is now covered by alliances.  

Marketing and network seem to be dominant themes of the event, and several small panels were held on various aspects of reaching out to new clients and partners. Nathalie Poto, marketing, travel leisure manager, France Tourism Development Agency, said that the Atout France website will have “self-serve style” webinars next year to educate agents, and Stéphane Ballot, e-marketing nanager for the agency, said that other new tools for e-marketing were also on their way for next year. (He also noted that of the 23 million visitors to Atout France’s website, a full 7 million were from the U.S.) 

Gianni Miradoli, COO of Classic Holidays, rather pointedly said that tour operators need help from local tourism authorities in order to better promote destinations, and Poto said that the brand is working with partners to determine where to hold trade shows and other marketing events.

Keep visiting www.travelagentcentral.com for our continuing coverage from French Affairs.

On Location: A Visit to the Aulani Spa

Aulani celebrated its grand opening tonight with a beachfront ceremony that started off with a real rainbow stretching over the resort. I can only assume that Disney now controls the weather, too.

The day started out with more chances to talk with the Aulani team. Korri McFann is the worldwide marketing & business development director at Disney's Fairy Tale Weddings & Honeymoons, and he is helping to create Aulani’s weddings and honeymoon packages. The first wedding at Aulani is scheduled for the first week in October, and four weddings are schedule for 11/11/11. Nice touch: For families who already have children, McFann says that her team is developing weddings that marry not just the couple, but combine two families into one. Naturally, the ceremonies include little Disney touches, like little Mickey Mouse crystals in the bouquets (below). While the resort doesn’t have any dedicated honeymoon packages set in stone yet, McFann believes a five-day honeymoon vacation should be around $2,000 per couple, and will probably include spa time, private beach cabanas, beverages and excursions.

Jeff Morosk is the director of landscape architecture for Disney, and he helped create the overall aesthetic of the resort. The finished product, he says, is “about the many facets of Hawaii—its history, its present and its future.” Native plants are featured throughout, little “menehune” (mythological Hawaiian characters) are hidden in the gardens, and animals are subtly carved into the rocks along the paths. Bo Bolanos, the principal concept designer for Walt Disney Imagineering, estimates that there are more than 300 of these hidden animals throughout the resort, and adds that even he’s not sure where they all are. “It’s a discovery for me, too.” One challenge Bolanos faced with designing Aulani was working on a significantly smaller scale than he might at any of the company’s other resorts. Instead of 300 feet of space to work with, he had to find ways to create the same effect in only 60 feet.

After chatting with the “Imagineers,” I headed over to Aunty’s Beach House, a dedicated children’s space at the resort. The house has many rooms with different kinds of activities for different ages and interests—board games, computer games, videos, toys, sports equipment…just about anything a kid could need to stay entertained while mom and dad unwind on the beach or in the spa. Coolest part: There's even a tool shed for arts and crafts. I get the feeling Aunty's will be a bit more inventive than macaroni pictures. (I didn't get to chat with Aunty, a new Disney character created for Aulani, but reportedly she and Uncle come by regularly to tell stories to the kids. Are grown-ups allowed to listen in?)

And then there's the spa. Laniwai (meaning “freshwater heaven”—water is a dominant theme) is fairly large as spas go, so there’s never a sense of over-crowding. Upon check-in, guests get a small stone with a word carved into it, and they are asked to meditate on that word during their stay. (Mine was “Balance.”) In the middle of the spa is a small pool, and guests can put their stones in the pool before heading off to their therapies. Design-wise, the real novelty at Laniwai is the co-ed hydrotherapy garden, which is included in all treatments but can be booked independently. The garden has six distinct motion-activated showers guests can wander through before jumping into either a warm Jacuzzi or a cold-water plunge pool (depending on preference), and several herbal soaking tubs. It’s a really lovely way to spend an hour or so before or after spa treatments, and guests should budget extra time to unwind outside. (Nice touch: Guests also get a custom-made scrub when they check in. I opted for a maile sugar scrub—it smells a little sweet, but not cloying. Quite nice.)

Inside, the sauna and steam room areas have little refrigerators filled with towels, making the heat much more bearable. And the main lounge has a full range of lotions and hairsprays and whatnot, so guests don’t have to leave the spa looking like they’ve just…well, left a spa.

Teenagers have their own dedicated spa at Laniwai. Painted Sky has special treatments just for younger guests, and kids can try their hand at making their own perfumes. (Be afraid. Be very afraid.)

I opted for a hot-stone massage, and largely passed out while my therapist did her work. Turns out, hot stones really are soothing. I can actually move my shoulders again. 

Keep visiting www.travelagentcentral.com for more on the opening and the beach and the "Waikolohe Valley" pools tomorrow!

Visit resorts.disney.go/aulani

How Cancun Replaced Spring Breakers With Families

Cancun

As the annual Cancun Travel Mart Mexico Summit sets to kick off on October 12, agents and operators get set to do business in one of the best luxury, family destinations in all of Mexico.

That's right, Cancun is now both glamorous and family-friendly, a far cry from the once MTV-inspired party destination that it once was from the late '80s to 2005. The former mecca for drunken, college debauchery is now - and has been for the last six years - a haven for families and multigenerational travel, replacing the days of wet T-shirt contests with family picnics and wine-pairing dinners.

My first trip to Cancun was as a 20-year-old Spring Breaker in 2000 and my second trip was the following year. For those two trips, I was admittedly among the rowdy crowd of North Americans who pounded Coronas all afternoon, inhaled Jell-O shots by night and slept through all hours of the morning.

But every time I have gone back since, I have seen less and less evidence of this era. A hurricane in 1988 was responsible for the birth of the Spring Break phenomenon in Cancun and it was a hurricane in 2005 that washed it away.

It was Hurricane Gilbert in 1988 that devastated all of the hotels in Cancun and, in turn, scared away every possible market except one, the Spring Break travelers. In many ways, the wave of spoiled college kids who crashed the destination, actually saved it and put in the forefront of Mexico tourism. But as time went on, this same clientele was responsible for driving all other markets away.

That was of course until Hurricane Wilma again swept away most of Cancun’s hotel product in 2005. But this time, instead of simply rebuilding, the hotels stepped it up a notch and upgraded as well. Now, with most hotels leaning toward the luxury side of the market (at least 80 percent of all Cancun hotels are now five-star in rating), the hotels were shutting out most of the Spring Break clients.

Whereas agents were booking packages for about $350-$400 for Spring Break clients, they were soon booking packages of at least $1,200 for families looking for a luxury experience.

Travel Agent is encouraging all agents to keep this destination in mind when booking family vacations this holiday season with hopes of keeping the Spring Break era dormid and the luxury, family market vibrant.

Visit www.cancun.travel

Travel to Cuba is Now Open ...and I Dont' See a Catch

With three tour operators making announcements to start sending U.S. clients to the once-forbidden destination of Cuba, it’s safe to say the news agents have been waiting to hear for decades has finally arrived.

You can send your clients to Cuba.

Your clients do not have to be a certain age, do not have to have family in Cuba and do not have to be students.

And the catch isn’t really a catch at all.

A trip there needs to be set up through an operator who’s been approved through either the People to People education program or an operator who's been approve to conduct religious education tours. The People to People initiative requires Americans to take part in various cultural experiences in Cuba, essentially, as the name implies, putting them in direct contact with the people of Cuba with hopes of learning about the way of life in the country.

But one can argue that these are usually activities a client visiting a country for the first time wants to do anyway. Now, you won’t be allowed to just sit on a beach sipping Mojitos for the entire trip, but how many of your clients do you think are going to want to do this anyway? Will they use their opportunity to visit a country they were never able to visit before just to do the same daily activities they could have done in other Caribbean islands for years?

And from reading most of the itineraries from the three operators who have already announced tours to Cuba, the cultural mandates seem to be very loosely interpreted. You won’t have to take classes there or dig ditches for a day. Instead a cultural experience can mean anything from meeting farmers who grow tobacco to driving to dinner in a 1950s classic American car.

With help from the Center for Caribbean Religion and Culture, for the first time, Globus will present travelers a rare opportunity to experience the enduring faith, colorful history and lively culture of this captivating nation with its new itinerary for 2012: Cuba: A Spiritual, Historical and Cultural Journey.

Insight Cuba got the tour operator ball rolling when it announced in late June that it was reauthorized by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to send Americans to Cuba.

Abercrombie & Kent will be offering trips through the People to People program, which was implemented by President Clinton in 1999 and suspended by President Bush in 2004 before President Obama resurrected the program this January.

Visit www.gocuba.ca.
 

On Site: Disneyland's Soundsational Summer Begins

Disneyland holds a lot of personal memories for me. Growing up in Southern California, it was an annual family vacation spot. Every year, we would travel to Disneyland to take in the same familiar rides, sights and sounds. But what's always struck me about Disneyland is that while many things are still the same as I remember them to be, they're also different, too.
 
Those differences can be attributed to the fact that the theme park is always changing and improving, and this year is no different. This month, Disneyland Resort is welcoming two new major rides and a brand-new parade, in addition to making improvements to the historic Disneyland Hotel and overhauling the Disney California Adventure Park.
 
Today, Travel Agent attended the opening ceremony of The Little Mermaid - Ariel's Undersea Adventure. This "dark ride," which is located in Disney California Advenuture Park, takes guests through the world of Ariel from Disney's "The Little Mermaid," infusing the film's famed musical score and numbers throughout the ride. To celebrate the opening of the ride, Disney Parks & Resorts Chairman Tom Staggs welcomed the film's composer, Alan Menken, to the stage, as well as Jodi Benson, the original voice of the film's main character. Benson performed "Part of Your World" for more than 250 journalists who were in attendance to cover the grand opening.
 
Just before the Memorial Day weekend, Disneyland also welcomed its newest parade, Mickey's Soundsational Parade. The parade featured nine themed units, all with an emphasis on melodies and dance performances inspired by some of Disney's most popular films, from "The Lion King" to "Mary Poppins."
 
Tomorrow marks the official grand reopening of the Star Tours motion simulator ride in Disneyland's Tomorrowland. The ride has been updated with new storylines--more than 50 different onces to be exact--and now features eye-pooping 3-D technology.
 
Tomorrow is also when we'll get a recap stratight from Disney executives about all of the company's new projects--including the makeover of Disney California Adventure Park (expected for completion in April 2012), the debut of Aulani, A Disney Resort on Oahu in August and much more.

On Site: Paddleboarding Craze Set to Sweep Sandals' Jamaican Resorts

Joe Pike paddleboards in Jamaica

Sandals Resorts across Jamaica are gearing up for a "March Madness" of their own as employees and guests get set to wet their feet in the world of paddleboarding, a new offering by the all-inclusive giant that is sure to be an instant addiction among water sports junkies.

And Travel Agent was on hand to be the first to try it out.

Royce Hanamaikai and Todd Caranto, co-founders of the California-based Pau Hana Surf Supply, along with Josh Schwartz, president of Watersports Direct International and water sports consultant for Sandals Resorts Inc., hosted yours truly at the Sandals Royal Caribbean Resort and Private Island in Montego Bay, Jamaica last week. The three-man crew attracted a large audience as they passed the craft along to myself as well as water sports directors from the other Jamaica Sandals properties.

“The coolest thing about it is seeing all the people who line up to watch. There is always a big audience,” Caranto says. “People are just curious. They see people basically walking on water and wonder what we are doing.”

I consider myself pretty athletic, but balance and water usually make me look like I’ve had too many Red Stripe beers. Just ask the folks at Cap Juluca in Anguilla how my little water skiing lesson went two years ago. But these surfer dudes made me look like a professional in just five minutes. If only golf worked that way.

And like the water sports instructors from the other Jamaican Sandals Resorts that Hanamaikai. Caranto and Schwartz were training the same day, I was instantly hooked.

From left, Josh Schwartz, Watersports Direct International and water sports consultant for Sandals Resorts Inc., and Royce Hanamaikai and Todd Caranto, Pau Hana Surf Supply.

So much so that I took up Hanamaikai and Caranto on their offer to be among the first people to ever paddle board down Jamaica’s famous Martha Brae river. Sure, I may have taken a few nasty spills, but in my roughly 16 or 17 times visiting Jamaica, this will definitely be one of my fondest memories.

“The most satisfying thing is seeing how fast people usually catch on to this,” Schwartz told us. “In five minutes, they are doing something they probably never imagined doing in their whole lives.”

The best way to describe the sport is if kayaking and surfing got drunk, hooked up and conceived a child. The board is vertical as opposed to surfing. The board is extremely sturdy so balance isn’t an issue. You kneel on the board, stand straight up and then use both hands to grip the oar, paddling on either the right or left side, depending on which way the wind is blowing that day.

Schwartz says that he, Hanamaikai and Caranto have been trying to bring the sport to Caribbean resorts for two years until Hanamaikai and Caranto literally began knocking on doors in Jamaica when Sandals bit. Caranto says Sandals evaluated several board manufactures and then chose Pau Hana and the Big EZ Hawaiian board.

Author Joe Pike take his new-found paddleboarding hobby to the Martha Brae river.

“We were literally going door to door, just knocking on doors and seeing if there was interest,” Hanamaikai told us. “When we came here, there was instant interest and we knew we had a winner. Everyone here was really welcoming to the idea. I just knew the hotel had a great sense of water sports and what their guests would enjoy it. From there, everything basically just went really smoothly and now we plan on having this great activity at every Sandals resort that wants it.”

The program at Sandals is expected to be launched to Sandals Royal Caribbean guests this week. After that, it will be rolled out at the other Sandals properties in Jamaica. The program will come to Turks and Caicos in about a month and then throughout the rest of Sandals’ Caribbean properties shortly after.

“I really think the Sandals brand of water sports is really different than any other water sports offerings at other resorts,” Schwartz says. “And Sandals is really the first resort to officially brand its water sports. Those ‘Sandals' logos on the boards aren’t stickers. That's the real thing. I don’t think any other resort is branding their water sports the way Sandals is. It’s really exciting to be a part of.”

Visit www.PauHanaSurfCo.com and www.Sandals.com.

Wizarding Whimsy: On Location at the Wizarding World of Harry Potter

Wizarding World of Harry Potter

Okay, I'll come clean. I am a die-hard Harry Potter fan. I've read all the books (multiple times), seen all the movies (multiple times) and I'll stop right there before I embarrass myself further. So when last summer I heard about the opening of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios, I knew it would only be a matter of time before I was riding on Hippogriffs and swilling butter beer, all donning a wizard's cap. (Okay, I'm not that bad, but I hope I've created a nice picture for you.)

In September my family suffered the loss of my grandmother, and in the spirit of bringing the family closer together, my cousins and I decided to make a pilgrimage to Orlando and finally embrace the magic. Just back from the highly anticipated trip, I can say with certainty that a vacation to theme park is one that is sure to please your clients young and old and is a genuine feel-good, family vacation.

 

Where to Stay

I suggest staying at one of Universal Studios' three Loews hotels, including the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel, the Loews Royal Pacific Resort and the Hard Rock Hotel. Each of the three is within walking distance to Universal Studios and Universal Studios' Islands of Adventure and CityWalk. What's more, guests of these resorts can use their key cards to jump the long lines at the majority of the rides in the parks. Note: Key cards may not be used to cut the line at Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey or Universal Studios' Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit roller coaster.

We stayed at the Hard Rock Hotel in a Deluxe Room. All of the 650 guest rooms (including 29 suites) have 32 inch HD flat screen televisions, wireless internet, Keurig coffee makers. The resort is also home to six food and beverage outlets, and is the closest to the parks.

The Magic Begins

Like anything that receives so much publicity, the first question to ask is 'will this live up to the hype?' In short, yes. Walking into the Wizarding World went way beyond walking onto the set of the movie - it was like we were actually there.

The journey starts in Hogsmeade, where your clients will find replicas of all the beloved shops mentioned in the books, from the Hogwart's Express to Honeydukes to Olivander's. The buildings (some with sweetly crooked chimneys for that whimsical effect) stand on cobblestone streets lined with butter beer carts. Nice touch: Not a single detail was spared. Moaning Myrtle even makes an appearance in the public restroom.

At the top of the street sits Hogwarts, the main event, and home to the attraction that started all the buzz - Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. I highly recommend visiting this ride in the evening, because it is nearly impossible to even move in the area during the day time. According to a receptionist at the Hard Rock, January is typically the slowest month, but thanks to Harry Potter, the resort was completely sold out when we visited in early January. As a nice treat, during the evening the castle's windows are illuminated and the waiting area is aglow with lanterns. It's easy to believe in the magic.

Your clients won't mind the long wait to get onto the ride, as the designers of the attraction have created it so that you wind your way through the castle. Here, paintings come alive just like in the books, and characters appear through very realistic hologram effects. When you finally do get to the ride itself, you feel as if you have been on it the whole time.

I don't want to ruin all of the fun, so I'll leave the surprises of the ride up to your clients to find out. But let me just say that it is a whirl and twist of 3D special effects, IMAX-style images and some other turns that will leave them lining up for more. Personally, I jumped on that line another three more times. Note: For your clients who are above the ages of 21, like my cousins and myself, there are several beer carts located throughout the World and on the line leading up to the castle, for a little adult refreshment.
 

Universal After Dark

After a trip (or two or three) on the rides, head out of the parks to Universal Studios' CityWalk for a little late night fun. The flurry of restaurants and bars was the perfect way for my adult cousins and myself to unwind after a day running around with scores of high-pitched kids (yes the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is fantastic, but it is still a theme park).

After a few Coronas and a spicy Mahi Mahi at Latin Quarter, we were ready for after hours when the restaurant transforms into a nightclub.
 

Who to Sell to

Yes, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter is most definitely a family attraction, and is best sold to your typical family traveler. But if you know how to combine the fun and nostalgia of childhood fantasy with the right hotel, good restaurants and late night revelry, this can be a perfect sell to the over 21 crowd. For the record, not one of my cousins is under 21, and we will definitely be going back for another helping.

A Tour of St. Lucia’s First-Ever Casino

Blackjack picture

ST. LUCIA – So, I managed to go four straight days in Las Vegas without playing a single hand of Blackjack, keeping intact my New Year’s resolution to not gamble in a casino. And what happens?

The day I arrive for a four-day press trip to St. Lucia, the island opens its first casino since it was discovered by Columbus.

Now, I could have easily stayed away, but I had to get a first-hand look at something I thought I’d never see on this Caribbean island. The Treasure Bay Casino has 257 slot machines (90 percent of which are penny slots), nine Blackjack tables, one Craps table, one Roulette table, 31 televisions in the bar and three poker tables in a private area. The casino is located in the Bay Walk mall in the heart of Rodney Bay, the area of the island with the most vibrant nightlife.

The temptation to sit down at the brand new, green felt Blackjack table — that hadn't yet seen a single spilled drink or a frustrated gambler's pounding fist — subsided quickly for two reasons: The “How to Play Blackjack" pamphlet to the left of the table, which alerted me to the fact that most of the people I would play with here would not be experts of the game (something that has cost me money in the past), and … the dealer was not yet on duty.

But I must say, the place looked very clean, very professional and, unfortunately for me and the locals of St. Lucia who are inexperienced in table games, very inviting.

The casino also has a handful of $1 minimum Blackjack tables, meaning you can gamble for hours without losing too much dough. I spoke to Jeff Prusinowski, vice president of gaming operations for Treasure Bay Casino and Hotel, about the casino. Prusinowski's company is based in Biloxi, Mississippi, and owns and manages several casinos in the Caribbean, in locations such as The Bahamas, Aruba and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Thirty-six nationals and 10 to 15 ex-pats work at the casino, all of whom went through 10 weeks of training prior to the opening, according to Prusinowski. Locals are allowed to gamble. Locals, as well as tourists, need to become a member of the casino in order to wager. To become a member, all you have to do is present your I.D. and sign a form.

I’ve been hearing about the possibility of St. Lucia opening a casino for some time now, but I honestly never thought the government would allow it. Prusinowski said the plan to open this casino first sprouted in 2004.

“I always say the Ministry of Tourism should be called the Ministry of Experience,” said Sen. Allen Chastanet, minister of tourism and civil aviation in St. Lucia, “because tourism is really about your experiences and adding a casino is just another way we can tailor visitors’ experience of St. Lucia. It’s just one more thing we can give them.”

Visit www.stlucianow.com and www.treasurebay.com.