August 23, 2025 • 53 mins
The Wishing Well's Terrie Dean and Harry Reif discuss this week's travel news and Hot Deals!
In this episode we continue to explore the top culinary and food tour companies of 2025. Discover cultivted global gastronomy adventures—cruising cuisine. Whether you're a seasoned foodie or a curious traveler, this episode offers insights into the best ways to taste the world!
In this episode we continue to explore the top culinary and food tour companies of 2025. Discover cultivted global gastronomy adventures—cruising cuisine. Whether you're a seasoned foodie or a curious traveler, this episode offers insights into the best ways to taste the world!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is a Lifeless Ordinary, the travel show and podcasts
from your friends at the wishing Well two forty three
f Avenue in Harsmert and online at the wishing Well
dot biz. The wishing Well is your ultimate luxury concierge
travel agency and a Lifeless Ordinary is a travel show
and podcasts hosted by Terry Dean, bringing her over forty
years of experience in the travel industry to help guide
(00:21):
you to great experiences in your travel, whether it be
around the block, around the country, or around the world.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
Let's bring in Terry Dean and.
Speaker 3 (00:28):
Say hello, how are you this wonderful weekend. It's good
to see you. Good to see you too. Chris and
Harry also here.
Speaker 4 (00:35):
I'm happy to be here. It's always good to see
both of you.
Speaker 1 (00:37):
I look forward to our conversation every Saturday morning as
we talk about life, we talk about travel, we talk
about a lifeless Ordinary.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
We really do.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
And I love Saturdays because it gives us a chance
to all three sit down together. A lot happens in
a week, I want to tell you, a lot happens
in a week, and we certainly have seen some busy,
busy days at the wishing Well. Thank all of you
all out there who tell us that you continue to
listen to us, you enjoy this show called a Lifeless Ordinary.
(01:08):
We hope that you're able to travel vicariously through some
of the words and the trips that we bring to
your doorstep, and that you grab a cup of coffee
or your favorite beverage and enjoy it with.
Speaker 4 (01:19):
Us with a little inspiration too for.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
What's the next exactly?
Speaker 1 (01:23):
So what we get caught up on all the stuff
we have missed over the last week.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
Not a bad idea, Chris. One thing is you know
I love good news, especially in the travel industry. So
we're going to tell you that trip costs are trending
lower for this Labor Day and according to some industry experts,
travelers exploring the United States this upcoming Labor Day weekend
(01:48):
are in for a good, good deal, as booking data
shows that flights, hotels, and car rentals are all cheaper
this year compared to last year. I'm going to say, see,
I told you, I.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
Told you so.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
The organization found that domestic air trip airfare is six
percent lower than in twenty twenty four, averaging about seven
hundred and twenty dollars per ticket, while flights are three
percent cheaper and car rental costs are down three percent.
Even gas prices have remained relatively low, matching the averages
(02:29):
recorded in summer of twenty twenty one. When it comes
to international travel, pricing is a little more varied. Hotels
are about two percent cheaper, and airfare has risen eight
percent year over year. So I think, all in all,
some great news for people who have some vacation time
left for Labor Day. If you're interested in going somewhere,
(02:52):
you're going to go a little bit cheaper, and I
think that is good news.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
I understand how Labor Day is next week.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
I don't either. I know.
Speaker 3 (02:59):
It's boggles my mind. I can't even believe we're at
the end of August. I mean I just blinked and
it was the fourth of July, not long ago. How
did we get here? But it goes so fast, it
really does. And speaking of how fast time flies, I've
got a fall travel report for you. Here's where Americans
(03:19):
are going. Canadian travelers, as we have heard, they might
be avoiding the United States. Maybe not, but Canada travel
hasn't been dampened at all. As a matter of fact,
Expedia did a travel report and they show that US
travelers have their sites set firmly on Canada for the
(03:40):
coming season. In fact, searches for Whistler, British Columbia are
up a whopping forty percent year over year, and that
uptick is followed by a twenty percent increase in searches
for bamp Alberta. Nova Scotia rounds out the top three
with a fifteen percent increase in search volume. And these
(04:01):
scenic destinations are not only trending, but they're also more
affordable in the fall.
Speaker 2 (04:07):
What have you got to say about that, Harry?
Speaker 4 (04:09):
I think that is right on target. Chris and I
had a great time talking about Rocky Mountaineer not too
long ago. And the places that you're mentioning, not Nova Scotia,
but the other places that you're mentioning. We're all part
of our trip, and I can tell you there are
some extraordinary reasons there, really are. Go see those places.
It'll put you back in touch with Mother Nature and
(04:30):
it'll make you feel good just being there. The weather's great,
the scenery is fantastic. And we're going to talk about
food today. The food was even better.
Speaker 3 (04:41):
Yet now here's some key information to help with the
travel planning. The sweet spot to fly to Canada is
between September the twenty second and October third, because flight
prices are generally lower during that period. A few fall
travel tips. In addition to revealing where everybody's headed during
(05:01):
leaf peeping season, there's a few additional travel gems for
globe trotters. September the twenty ninth and October the twenty
seventh offer the lowest domestic fairs for flights FYI. October
the twenty sixth and November the twenty fourth are the
best travel dates to keep in mind for international deals.
(05:21):
November sixteenth and September the first are the cheapest nights
for domestic stays, just in case you were wondering, and
the top destinations include foliage escapes like Mystic and Norfolk,
Canadian gems like Whistler, and international hotspots include Taromina, Italy
(05:42):
and Cairo, Egypt. So a few little tidbits of information
to kind of help you out if you're planning for
something this fall. I think that's great news, great great news,
and I did want to also mention got some great
news about one of our favorite partners. I love these guys,
Holland America. They are my go to for Alaska, always
(06:05):
have been, Chris. You know, I've done this for about
forty eight years, and I can tell you ever since
I've been in the industry, I was always told when
I was training, there is but one company to use
to Alaska, and that's Holland America. They own Alaska. I mean,
for crying out loud, they even own the rail system
(06:26):
that's there. They own hotels there, The rail they own
is McKinley Explorer, and it is the pinnacle of everybody's
experience when they go to Alaska. Well, I am so
pleased to say that Forbes has named Holland America the
best cruise line in Alaska, and that's great news. One
of the most authentic overall Alaska cruise experiences, Holland America
(06:50):
holds more Glacier Bay permits than any other cruise line.
It features a wide range of onboard wildlife experts and
ammerses guests in local cultures through workshops and activities like
It's Alaska Up Close program. So I definitely can recommend
the seven day Glacier Discovery itinerary and all of that
(07:11):
commentary comes to us courtesy of Forbes, who are king
in the travel industry. Actually, and I know we have
a couple of things that Harry wanted to share today. Harry,
you've got one piece of news, I think, and then
we're going to head into some sales.
Speaker 4 (07:27):
Yeah, I had one piece that I wanted to share
with you, actually two parts to it. But one of
the things I wanted to caution people about as we're
getting into these holiday seasons, and that is about travel scams.
And if you're listening, hopefully you've never fell victim twent
of these. There was some of this made the national
news this morning on the radio and the television about
(07:49):
a fellow that was on a United flight. Something happened
during his flight. He called United and actually talked to
an agent who then referred him to another airline to
read blokok for a canceled flight, And sadly, that United
agent gave him a bad telephone number and he ended
up talking to a scammer and he lost about seventeen
(08:13):
thousand dollars for these six rebooked tickets. So, yeah, to
be very careful who you're talking to and when there
are travel interruptions or travel problems. You want to be very,
very careful. You want to know that you're talking to
the real person. And it's sad that even the airline
referred him in this case to someone that wasn't legitimate.
(08:33):
But we're seeing a lot of things going on right
now with AI to Terry and Chris that I want
listeners to just be cautious about. When we talk about
using a travel agent. One of the things that we
have in our toolbox is we have, you know, fixed
telephone numbers, We have fixed protocols and authentication to make
sure that the person we're talking to and they make
(08:55):
sure that we're the person that they think we are
as we make changes. AI is right now tricking people
and some people are getting duped out of money. There
are mirror websites out there, So if you're traveling this
holiday season, and if you're searching for deals, which I
think is a great thing to do, be sure that
the deals you're searching for, be sure that the places
(09:18):
that you're contacting are in fact legitimate. Don't get scammed.
Even travel agencies are popping up on the internet. Now
you think you're talking to a travel agency, if you
don't know where that place is or who they are,
figure out how to authenticate them before you're doing something.
So that's my caution for in the news. Yeah, and
(09:38):
that's broadcasting.
Speaker 3 (09:39):
That's actually a great point, Harry, because one of the
things that we like to stress to our customers at
the wishing Well, and one that I'd like for people
to really have as a takeaway from this new segment
that Harry just brought to you, is that at the
Wishing Well, we believe that the booking process is part
of the relationship that we're building with you or future travel,
(10:01):
but it starts with trust. And you know, we like
to sit down with our clients. We like to find
out a lot about them. What was your last trip, like,
what are some trips that you've taken before? Give us
sort of a roadmap to your life of some things
that you like, you enjoy, so that as we talk
with you, paint sort of starts to form on a
(10:23):
canvas so that we can begin to collaborate with you
and cultivate and curate the ideal itenerary for you. And
that doesn't happen with somebody you've never met over the
phone or on the internet. And sadly, as Harry said,
you can really be taken for a ride if you
(10:46):
aren't using someone you trust and you have a relationship with.
Speaker 4 (10:50):
And when you talk to somebody you have a relationship with,
they know you know, they know your voice, they know
the kinds of things you say, they know your habits.
And AI is getting great, it's getting better, but it's
not yet to the point where it can replicate all
of that. And you know, the caution that I have
is there's some great opportunities out there, and if it
(11:11):
looks too good to be true, it probably is too
good to be true. And why risk a vacation, your
family's entire vacation on something that's not legitimate. You know,
we build all the relationships we have with our suppliers
on trust, and we do authentication on top of trust.
That's all for you, as our travelers, to make sure
(11:32):
your experience goes flawlessly or at least as flawlessly as possible.
Speaker 1 (11:37):
And Harry, I know you can help us book some
of those flawless experiences, and especially if we're looking for
a hot deal.
Speaker 4 (11:43):
Yeah, and Terry was talking about travelists holiday season, and
one of the things I want to talk about is
is there anybody out there that loves driving up and
down I ninety five.
Speaker 3 (11:54):
No, okay, already driving on any roads that have a
five at the end.
Speaker 4 (11:59):
Yeah, I know you don't touch any of those roads
if you're one of the people that does not like driving.
But you need to get somewhere, particularly if you want
to head south of the auto train. Amtrak's Auto Train
is having a flash saale and through the end of
the month of August, through the twenty ninth of August,
they've got fiers as low as thirty nine dollars for
the Auto Train, which means you can go down to
(12:21):
Florida and take your car with you so you can
see any of the sites.
Speaker 3 (12:26):
Down there in New Universal Epic that would be great
to see.
Speaker 4 (12:30):
It will be fantastic, and this is a great way
to do it and not have to rent a car
when you get down there. Thirty nine dollars. That's amazing
how you could do that. You couldn't do it with
the gasoline and get down there on thirty nine dollars,
that's for sure. That is good through the twenty ninth
of August. And if you're down there, one of the
things that you might want to do too. There's a
lot of cruising going on out of Florida and some
(12:52):
of our partners have some special sales. I wanted to
mention Real briefly. One of them is our partners at
Canard is one of the high end lines, very elegant.
They have what they call their white Star service. So
you're talking about ships like the Queen Elizabeth. They're going
down to the Caribbean, lots of places. They've got fares
(13:13):
going on right now starting at nine hundred and ninety
nine dollars plus onboard credits. We have lots of those,
more than I can talk about.
Speaker 3 (13:22):
And this is classic iconic cruising at its finest. Yeah,
these ships are not like the other megaships. They never
will be. Canard when they partnered with the Crown, they
did it right.
Speaker 4 (13:37):
Yeah, they have to keep that level of service up
there to keep that endorsement. So Canard is one of
the lines if you really want to do some elegant cruising,
they are on the list. Another partner out there that's
got some great deals going on right now is Real
Caribbean and they've got a sale going on where they've
got savings over eight hundred and fifty dollars instant savings.
(13:59):
They're putting bonus savings on top of that on a
couple of they're really cool ships, the Star and the
Icon Terry. Those are some of your favorites, right right, Yeah,
So we've got a big sale going on with them,
and more than I can list in terms of the
particular cruises. But one of the ones that I will
say is they've got a cruise out of Miami I
saw for under four hundred dollars including taxes and fees
(14:24):
on the Wonder of the Seas. They had another one
going out of Port Canaveral for six hundred dollars on
the brand new Utopia of the Seas. So lots of opportunities.
If you want to get down to Florida, you can
ride the auto train down there, have your car, park
your car, jump aboard a cruise ship and take a cruise.
How's that for an all vacation.
Speaker 3 (14:44):
If you're one of those folks who has really saved
your vacation days because you don't know why you did that,
that's you. I'm talking to you, Chris. I'm actually looking
right at you. September is actually a fabulous time to
grab deals they're going on. And these cruise lines, as
(15:06):
Harry was mentioning, especially lines like Royal Caribbean, are going
to offer cruises this time of year under four hundred
dollars per person. I mean for a week long cruise,
Are you kidding me?
Speaker 2 (15:18):
It's fantastic.
Speaker 3 (15:19):
That's all of your meals, that's your entertainment, that's ports
of call, and if you chose not to do short excursions,
that's literally what you'd pay.
Speaker 4 (15:27):
You just stay on board and you enjoy the pools,
enjoy the hot tubs, lots of nice things on board
that you can enjoy and those are all and snack
to your heart's delight, and a little more because exactly
your food's included as well if you're not cruising. I
had two other ideas I wanted to mention real quickly.
Our friends at Globis have some tremendous deals right now
(15:51):
for departure yet this year they've got a Scottish Highlands
escape that I saw out there for under nine hundred dollars.
I think it was about eight hundred and seventy dollars.
And Globis is one of our more popular tour operators.
We like them a lot they are.
Speaker 3 (16:06):
They are a first class land tour based operator.
Speaker 4 (16:10):
And for eight days for eight hundred and sixty nine
dollars in Scotland, for Ireland, seven days for just over
one thousand dollars. Those are some tremendous deals. You want
to head down to Morocco, We've got deals seven days
from eight hundred and fifty dollars and all of these
are for departures. Yet this year one of the ones
I saw, I saw Switzerland. This one fascinated me. Switzerland.
(16:33):
How about Switzerland for Thanksgiving?
Speaker 2 (16:36):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (16:36):
Novich.
Speaker 3 (16:36):
And you know what's great about these, Harry, is that
Globus is really again another iconic first class tour operator.
And when you hear prices like this, please remember that
Globus is that that particular tour operator who does everything
fully escorted. So you're not by yourself doing these site
(16:57):
seeings and trying to learn about new locations and destinations
perhaps you've never seen before. No, you're going to have
someone with you who is trained to show you the
best of the best while you're there. Not only that,
but most all of your meals are included and some
of the behind the scenes type of tours that Globus
throws in that make these trips really special.
Speaker 4 (17:19):
Yeah, they really do a great job. We spoke a
lot about Italy all through this year in twenty twenty five,
and about a lot of stuff going on in Italy.
Hold back. Well, if you've held back but you still
want to go, you've got some time into November. I
saw southern Southern Italy escape there nine days, nine days
for under fourteen hundred dollars. That's tremendous. Kind of got
(17:43):
people to shy away from Italy a little bit because
of all the thing's going on there. But if that's
on your agenda, you can do that. And then there's
one more I wanted to mention, if you want to
get in a vacation before the end of the year,
the wishing Well. We talk about group trips sometimes and
there's a special tab on our site where you can
see all of the group things that we've got going
for this year and for next year. But I still
(18:05):
have some space left. On our trip down to the
Biltmore Estate in Ashville, North Carolina, I picked the first
weekend that the place is going to be lit up
for Christmas, that is the week of November third through
the sixth It's a Monday through Thursday trip. This trip
leaves from the front door of the wishing Well, So
you bring your car to our office, you park it
(18:27):
in our lot, and you jump on board. It's a
motorcoach trip. We include all your breakfasts, all your dinners,
We include admission to the Biltmore Estate, we include visit
to the We go up on the Blue Ridge Parkway,
lots of things along the way that we do. And
(18:47):
these are trips that are designed for people that may
not want to jump on board an airplane, but want
to have a completely escorted week paid for a week
where you don't have anything to worry about. Can get
any better and parking your car in good old Harrisonburg
and leave the driving to us, as the folks at
Greyhound used to say, but also the touring and everything
(19:09):
else all taken care of. And that trip is six
hundred and ninety nine dollars a person, for your food,
for your transportation, for your admission. So still time to
do something. As the temperature start to cool off a
little bit, we're getting into the fall. That's my last
one that I wanted to talk about.
Speaker 1 (19:26):
Terry, you mentioned a tab on your website. I recommend
that you go to the Wishing Well dot biz and
on the upper right hand corner, you're going to find
a link to this show, a Lifeless so Ordiner. You
find all the old podcasts that we've done, going all
the way back to the first show that you did
four or five years ago, way back when.
Speaker 4 (19:46):
Yeah, and if you.
Speaker 1 (19:47):
Look, two episodes ago, we did a show called Culinary
Compass navigating world Flavors.
Speaker 4 (19:52):
Turns out that was just part one.
Speaker 2 (19:54):
It was today is part two.
Speaker 1 (19:56):
You're gonna want to stick around because we're gonna continue
our trip around the world enjoying great culinary experiences. Next
here on a lifeless ordinary.
Speaker 4 (20:04):
Who would think of driving off to a new destination
without guidance from Google or Siri. Let the Wishing World
guide your next travel experience. Travel the world as you
enjoy the very best destinations and all they offer at
the best prices. Our mobile travel app keeps your vacation
on track and keeps you connected with our team of experts.
For help, if you need it, call us at five
four zero, nine, zero eight two three three three stop,
(20:28):
buy two forty three and nef avenue or visit us
at the Wishingwell dot biz.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
And welcome back to a Life Less Ordinary, your travel
showing podcast from your friends at the wishing Well. They're
on Neff Avenue in Harrisonburg. I recommend you stop by
and say hi. You're open today until one, yes, sir,
and then your back open Monday through Friday. You can
find all the hours on the website at the wishing
Well dot biz or give them a call five four
h nine oh eight twenty three thirty three.
Speaker 3 (20:54):
And we love it so much, Chris. Sometimes you'll see
cots set up. That's just that is foolishness.
Speaker 1 (21:02):
A couple of weeks ago, we did a show called
Culinary Compass navigating World Flavors. That was just part one.
Today we're going to continue that conversation. And I'm excited
because I love food.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
Who doesn't, you know? I mean that is that is
paramount I think.
Speaker 3 (21:16):
And food has kind of always been the passport to memories.
You know, how many times have you been somewhere and
you'll catch a whiff of something that somebody's fixing and
it'll transport you back in time to something that your
grandmother made or your mother maid, or you'll see something
on a menu and you'll go, oh, my aunt made that,
(21:37):
she made it so good. Well, that's kind of where
we're going to go, because a bowl of bowlonnaise can
transport you straight to Marseille, a glass of biolo to
the hills of Piedmont. And today, on a lifeless ordinary,
I want to take you on a journey as a
(21:57):
food critic might just reviewing the taste of the meal,
but the texture of the entire travel experience. And there
are tour operators and cruise lines out there who have
elevated food from a side note on your trip to
the very heartbeat of your entire journey. And these are
(22:19):
companies that understand that when you taste a region it's wine,
it's bread, it's oils, its traditions, you actually come to
know it in a way that no monument or museum
could ever teach you.
Speaker 2 (22:35):
And that's just the truth.
Speaker 4 (22:36):
You're speaking to my heart, Terry, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (22:38):
I know right. So I want us to have.
Speaker 3 (22:40):
A little fun today this Saturday morning, as I review
in true critics fashion, the best of the best in
luxury culinary travel. And the first company I want to
start with is one that has long been one that
I've swooned over ever since I've been in the travel industry.
They're not one that a lot of people talk about.
(23:02):
They keep a very low profile. You don't see them
out marketing like you would maybe Viking Cruise Line, for example.
But they're nevertheless one of the top tour operators in
the world. They specifically curate luxury. When you travel with
Abercrombie and Kent, we call them the white Glove Feast
(23:26):
because they really are. And Abercrombie and Kent is like
dining in Michelin three star. The service is flawless, the
ingredients impeccably sourced, and the experience it's a smooth silk.
They're small group tour journeys average just about fourteen guests,
so you see where I'm going here. I mean that's exclusive,
(23:49):
you know, sometimes even fewer than that.
Speaker 2 (23:51):
The intimacy is key here.
Speaker 3 (23:53):
It opens the kitchen door literally to experiences you can't
buy off the street. Now picture this. You're in Bologna,
You're strolling through the morning market. You smell that earthy
Porcini mushrooms. You see the wheels of parmigano being cut
right in front of you. Yes, but you're not just browsing,
(24:16):
you're actually being guided by a chef, and that's so cool.
They introduce you to the fishmonger, his cheesemaker, his spice dealer,
and later that day you're rolling pasta doo in a
private villa, wine glass in hand. You're going to learn
the subtle flick of the wrists that makes the difference
between one pasta and another. And that evening you're going
(24:40):
to be seated in a five star Plasio, dining on
courses paired with borrows that have been cellared longer than
most of us have been alive. So that is kind
of the picture of what Abercrombie and Kent does. They
create this experience, and you can see it's very curated,
(25:01):
and it's done so for a very few, very exclusive
number of people who are fortunate enough to make their
way onto these Abercrombie and Kent adventures. The target audience
here that they tend to draw from are sophisticated couples.
They're in their fifties to the seventies, usually well traveled professionals,
(25:24):
often celebrating anniversaries, milestones, or they're just simply hungry for
the best and the average cost. Think of this as
you're tasting menu of travel fourteen thousand to sixteen thousand
dollars per person for about a ten to twelve day itinerary.
That might sound a little pricey, but again, so is
(25:46):
any Micheline meal.
Speaker 2 (25:48):
It's going to be.
Speaker 3 (25:49):
And the value, I would say is it's irreplaceable, It's unpriceable,
it's unforgettable. So if you are interested in these kinds
of curate adventures and the type of culinary experience that
only Abercrombie and Kent knows how to deliver, that would
be the way to go.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Yeah, these are once in a lifetime experiences, for sure,
they are. There are things that you can take pictures at,
you can talk about, you can you know, even record
a video, but there's nothing like experiencing that, you know,
in person, three D real time.
Speaker 2 (26:29):
Yeah. Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (26:30):
And another one that kind of comes to my mind
is a company called Butterfield and Robinson kind of on
par with Abercrombie and Kent. Really we call this Michelin
on two wheels. You know, if Abercrombie and Kent is
the tuxedoed Maitre d Well, Butterfield and Robinson would be
the salmier who hands you a bike helmet with your
(26:52):
glass of rioja. Their hallmark is movement, cycling or walking
through landscapes kind of punctuated by meals that taste like
the reward you've earned, you know, for just being with them.
They have maximum groups at about sixteen guests, often a
mix of adventurous couples and friends in their forties to
(27:16):
sixties who still really relish a good climb followed by
a great bottle of wine.
Speaker 2 (27:21):
I mean, that's your reward.
Speaker 3 (27:22):
When you get to the top, you're going to take
along this you chilled bottle of wine and you're going
to enjoy that when you get to the top of
the hill. Imagine riding through Spain's Doro Valley. The road
kind of winds past some sunlit vineyards, your God's pointing
out the very plots where the last greatest grapes were grown.
(27:44):
And by midday you're welcome into a bordego where the
owner hands stained purple from harvest, pours you a glass
straight out of the barrel. That is an experience, I mean,
that's what we travel for. That's what those experience this
should be all about. And lunch, you're gonna have a
rustic feast of roasted lamb, charred peppers, earthy olive oil,
(28:08):
food that tastes you can taste the soil in the
sun right in it. And when the day's done, you're
going to clean up for a Michelin star dinner where
the contrast of sweet earned hunger and hate couture cuisine
makes the flavors really sparkle.
Speaker 2 (28:25):
Now, I love that.
Speaker 3 (28:26):
I love that Butterfield and Robinson has again this same
kind of curated experience, just like Abercrombie and Camp. But
you'll love this price point little different average price for
a tour like this five to nine thousand dollars for
a week. Their target audience are going to be food
forward cyclists really and hikers, those who believe that the
(28:51):
best meals are paired with a sense of accomplishment.
Speaker 4 (28:55):
Well, this sounds to me, Terry, like you've identified two
great opportunities need to sit down and have a gastronomical feast,
but you're aiming them at two different kinds of audience,
as a little bit younger, maybe more active audience and
another more experienced, more mature audience. But the neat thing
(29:16):
about it, in my listening to you talk about this
experience these experiences is that they both end with a
wonderful meal and that's always a great way to finish
a day of adventure.
Speaker 3 (29:29):
Oh yeah, and that's the whole focus of today's trip.
You might remember, Chris. A couple of weeks ago, we
talked about one of my favorite operators in this genre,
really a company called back Roads. We call them the
Farmhouse Table. They're very akin to what we're talking about
here with Abercrombie and Kent. And I won't go back
(29:49):
over every little detail that we covered in that week's show.
Please do go back, though and listen to a Life
Less Ordinary on the Wishing Wells website, but talked about
back Roads. They also produce a lot of experiences that
have to do with hiking, biking, multi adventurous type trips,
(30:11):
and their average cost is a little bit lower for
their tours forty three hundred to sixty five hundred dollars
for six days, and their target clientele are really families
and multi generational groups or anybody in their thirties to
sixties who wants authentic, active, twisted type of itineraries. It's approachable, luxury,
(30:34):
it's warm, it's welcoming, but it's a little bit different
than these two luxury tour operators like Abercrombie and Kent
and Butterfield and Robinson that we previously talked about, but
still back Roads has it going on. I think another
tour operator that I want to kind of tip my
hat to today is one called Classic Journeys, and they
(30:58):
would be considered under the handcrafted hospitality. I think they're
a bit like walking into a jewelry box restaurant tucked
in a back alley. It's a small exquisite. You know
you found something special when you're on one of their tours.
There are group's average about ten to twelve guests, maximum eighteen.
And I'll tell you that's the sweet spot of where
(31:20):
we're seeing a lot of our clientele these days wanting
to be you know, we do still have clients who
are very budget friendly based looking for something like that,
but majority of our clients these days when they come in,
they go, I don't want a large escorted group.
Speaker 2 (31:37):
I don't want that.
Speaker 3 (31:38):
How many people are in your group, Terry, We're looking
for something no more than twenty people. So this is
kind of one of those This is Classic Journeys. Every
itinerary feels are teasonally designed. Take Provence for example. You
might begin the day wandering through some lavender fields. Then
you're going to step into a farmhouse kitchen where you
(32:00):
learn to make that bowl your base. Each herb and
spice is going to be explained to you as if
it were a family heirloom. I mean, that's a curated experience.
And then the evening ends where else in a chateau courtyard,
sipping rose as the sun turns the stone walls. Just
this golden, beautiful sunset yellow. That's a picture that right
(32:24):
there is a painting, but that's your experience when you're
traveling with Classic Journeys. Their average cost is about sixty
three hundred dollars per person for about six days. And
again their target clientele, they're going to appeal to discerning
couples in their fifties to seventies who really crave that
(32:44):
authenticity without the fanfare. Guests who would rather cook in
a farmhouse than done in a palace, you know. Those
that would be another differentiating feature of the Abercrombie and
Kent folks versus Classic Journeys. So these are going to
be people who are maybe looking for something a little
(33:06):
less pomp and circumstance, if you will.
Speaker 4 (33:09):
Yeah, this goes back to what you were talking about earlier, Terry,
when you were talking about the kind of process that
you go through when you're working with a travel agent,
whoever that travel agent is. You want to get them
to the point where they understand you, understand your personality.
That's where we're able to steer you towards one experience
(33:29):
over another. All of these experiences are for food lovers,
but there are three four different, very unique experiences that
end with an outstanding food experience. So yeah, and that's
just a great way to think about this, and it's
a great way to emphasize to our listeners how important
it is and how worthwhile that time spent is. When
(33:53):
we're asking you all those questions, we're not trying to pry,
we're not trying to, you know, to interview you for
for a position, but we're trying to understand what kind
of traveler you are and the people that you're traveling with.
Speaker 3 (34:06):
It's a bit of a matchmaking experience, if you will.
I mean, if you've ever known or heard about people
who are in the matchmaking business, they can't really do
that very well until they get to know you a
little bit. And really what we do at the Wishing
Well sort of as a kin to something like that,
because we want to match you with positively the best
(34:27):
kind of experience possible, because if we don't get that right,
nothing that follows after that is going to be as
good for you as we want it to be. And
that's really while we do what we do.
Speaker 4 (34:39):
And a tremendous investment of time on our part. If
we do it right, that means you're going to come back,
and the next time you come back, we'd have to
do that process again because we know who you are,
we know the experiences you've been on, You've told us
about how you react to those experiences. So it just
is a it's like an ongoing conversation with a family member.
(35:01):
You don't have to get to know each other. You know,
after that first date you kind of know what to
expect and what's going to be happening in the future.
Speaker 3 (35:10):
Now, the ones that we've talked about so far, Abercrombie
and Kent, Butterfield and Robinson, classic Journeys, back roads, all
of these have something woven that's in common with them
and that they are all some of our Virtuoso properties.
So we're very proud of that when you are booking
one of these tours at the Wishing Well in and
(35:32):
also included in your experience are going to be those
Virtuoso amenities that automatically come along just because you've booked
at the Wishing Well, and those things are going to
be upgrades at your hotel breakfast every day, which is
you know, you're not going to get that everywhere, especially
if you're in the US, unless you've booked through a
(35:53):
Virtuoso office. You're going to get, you know, some extra perks.
You're going to get one hundred dollars spending money just
to have it property. You're welcome. And so those are
the kind of things that happen when you book at
the Wishing Well on any of these kind of experiences,
and those are.
Speaker 4 (36:08):
The things you get, the tangibles that you see, but
the intangible part of that experience is also very important.
I spoke earlier about travel scams. Our virtualso partners are
all vetted partners. There are known entities. We know that
you're going to have a great experience, doesn't mean it
might not rain a day or two while you're there.
Things that are uncontrollable, but everything that's controllable, everything that's
(36:32):
possible to make your trip, make your journey, make your
travel experience very special, very unique, very memorable. We know
that that's going to be there when we book with
our virtual so partners.
Speaker 3 (36:44):
I want to talk about one more tour operator before
we head into our crew's partners, and the last one
on my list for the land based tour operators is
a company called Artisans of Leisure. First of all, I
love that name, but I'm going to call them the
Private Tasting Menu because finally, Artisans of Leisure, if the
(37:06):
others are fine dining, this is the private chef's table. Everything,
and I mean everything is private. It's bespoke, it's curated
to you and you alone. So an eleven day food
and wine tour of Northern Italy might include a truffle
hunt in Piedmont, a private tasting with a Barolo producer,
(37:28):
a Michelin starred lunch in Florence, and a day in
Venice with a chef who takes you from rialto market
straight into his kitchen for a private cooking class. You
are not going to be sharing that moment. Or these
moments collectively with strangers, it's going to be you and
you alone. So this is completely curated, completely customized, and
(37:52):
I think anytime we use that word, I mean think
of housing in real estate. You use the word customized,
you expect to pay more for that. But there are
a lot of people who will because these are experiences
they really don't want to share with somebody else. They
want these experiences to be curated just for them. And
it's not necessarily bragging rights, it's just because that's how
(38:15):
they like to do it, that's how they like to travel,
and they're willing to pay for it, and pay for
it you will with artisans of Leisure because the average
cost of one of these experiences is between twenty to
twenty seven thousand dollars per person, depending on how many
people you're bringing along on this experience with you. And
their target clientele, these are the high net worth couples
(38:38):
or families usually in their forties to sixties, who want
exclusivity and they are willing to pay for it. They
want privacy, perfection, and they want personalization. So artisans of
Leisure is a whole another level when we start talking
about these curated culinary experienceperiences and the who gets it right.
Speaker 4 (39:03):
And if you don't think that that's an experience that
maybe you can do tomorrow or next week, it's still worthwhile.
And that's what this show is about. It's still worthwhile.
Check out these people that Terry are talking that Terry's
talking about. Check out some of these companies. Look at
their websites, live a little bit through the website. Maybe
(39:24):
you can't afford the experience. But what we're trying to
do on the show is highlight some of the luxury
culinary experiences that are out there. Even if they're not
all for you or not all possible for you, there's
nothing to say that you can't look at them and
understand them and appreciate them, right, Terry.
Speaker 3 (39:41):
Yeah, And one thing I want to point out about
this is that, yes, we are talking about luxury culinary experiences,
but I also want to tell folks who are listening
to us today on a Lifeless Ordinary. First of all,
that's the name of our show, a Lifeless Ordinary. Okay,
So we're going to bring you to that table to
the limit. However, I think it's very important for people
(40:02):
who are listening to know this culinary experiences and truly
good food experiences don't have to be done at twenty
to twenty seven thousand dollars per person. We can point
you to a lot of tour operators and even independent
type of experiences, great restaurants when you visit a location.
(40:25):
That's what's in the toolbox at the Wishing well These
are just some of the highlights that I wanted to
bring to you today because that's the topic of our show.
But let me just tell you, the wishing Wells toolbox
is loaded with lots of great information. No matter your budget,
no matter where you're going, We're going to always try
(40:46):
to make sure that you have that great experience, no
matter what it costs.
Speaker 4 (40:50):
There's a lot of distance between being way up in
the clouds with some of these experiences in the ground,
and we have a full list and access to places
so that once we find out who you are, what
you want, what you like, we can you move along
that whole area and find the right mix for you,
(41:13):
the right experiences and the right budget.
Speaker 1 (41:15):
And one of the things that I love is even
if your vacation, maybe you're you're heading to Disney World,
you can find a great restaurant and find some great food,
even if it's just for that one meal.
Speaker 2 (41:27):
Oh no kidding, it will be memorable.
Speaker 4 (41:29):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (41:29):
When beck and I went to Vegas for our honeymoon,
we specifically chose and I can't remember now. I think
it was Emerald Lagassi's restaurant, just because we wanted to
go somewhere that we wouldn't forget sure, And of course
I forgot whose restaurant was, but I will not forget
the food. We had the most tender steak. I still
don't know the secret of how they made the potatoes
the way they did, they were amazing. And all of
(41:53):
our other meals, we had pizza one night where with
some of the employees from the casino down in the
basement we found a place. Yeah, but the one meal
that was the one we remember, And so you can
do that.
Speaker 2 (42:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (42:04):
And the one thing I also wanted to add here
is that even with that six hundred and ninety nine
dollars special to the Biltmore that Harry's talking about over Christmas,
where you're going to see a lot of Christmas lights,
is going to be filled with some great food opportunities.
And I can tell you that because I know Harry,
and I know that on that trip there's going to
(42:28):
be some great restaurants that people are going to visit.
So that's what I mean when I say, don't get
hung up on the budget. Some of the ones that
I've pointed you to today, yes they are luxurious, and
yes they do command a higher price point, but there's
always other ways to do that.
Speaker 1 (42:45):
All right, We're going to take a quick break when
we come back. Should we find some other locations to
enjoy some delicious food.
Speaker 2 (42:52):
Let's do cruises.
Speaker 1 (42:54):
Cruises is what we'll talk about next here on a
Life Less Ordinary.
Speaker 4 (42:57):
Who would think of driving off to a new destination
without gidments from Google to Syria. Let the Wishing World
guide your next travel experience. Travel the world as you
enjoy the very best destinations and all they offer at
the best prices. Our mobile travel app keeps your vacation
on track and keeps you connected with our team of experts.
For help, if you need it, call us at five
four zero nine zero eight two three three three stop
(43:20):
buy two forty three, nap Avenue or visit us at
the Wishingwell dot biz.
Speaker 1 (43:25):
Hey, welcome back to a Life Less Ordinary. Today we
are talking about culinary adventures. Our show is Culinary Compass,
Navigating World Flavors.
Speaker 2 (43:35):
Pardon yes, I love it.
Speaker 1 (43:39):
So we talked about some great group experiences. We've talked
about some very exclusive, cultivated experiences. Now let's talk about
some of those experiences on the open sea.
Speaker 2 (43:52):
Let's do that.
Speaker 3 (43:53):
And you know, before I do, I have to just
put in a little plug here because the cruise line
I'm about to talk to you about is one that
kind of is a little close to home for the
Wishing Well. You might remember about a year or so ago,
we did a group cruise with our own local chef,
Tassy Pippert. Everybody knows Tassy Pippert here in the area
(44:16):
and love the kinds of things.
Speaker 2 (44:18):
That she creates.
Speaker 3 (44:19):
Well, we made a home for her on the OC sorry,
the Regent Cruise Line when she went and did a
hosting as a guest chef on board the Regent cruise
that we did to Greece and the Mediterranean, and they
liked her so much Chris, that they actually offered her
a position on Oceana, their sister ship, as a guest
(44:43):
chef while she went six weeks through Alaska.
Speaker 4 (44:46):
I spent my summer vacation.
Speaker 2 (44:48):
Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 3 (44:49):
So we were so proud to be in some way
just a small part of that introduction that she had
to a fabulous cruise line, which I'm going to talk
about right now, and that is they have, of course,
what they call their floating cooking School. Cassie was a
part of that. On the cruises to Alaska for the
last six weeks, you step on to an Oceana ship
(45:11):
and it feels like you've wandered into a culinary institute
at sea. Their culinary center is a full hands on
classroom where you might learn knife skills one morning and
regional specialties the next time. Picture a day in Sicily Ashore.
You're going to be touring a family vineyard, maybe tasting
(45:34):
some vino under the vines. Back on board, you're in
the culinary center, making your own pasta guided by a
professional chef, and dinner that night at Ember their modern
American restaurant or Aquamar kitchen where wellness needs flavor. You
are going to dine on some of the best culinary
(45:57):
dinners and lunches you've ever had in your life. I
promise you that an all multi course. That's the great
thing about cruises. You know, you have these multi course dinners.
Literally every night you're given a menu, and of course
every night you can order up to I think it's
five to six levels of courses on every cruise dinner menu.
(46:22):
And this is no exception. The average cost of an
Oceana cruise that does vary, but on a ten day
Mediterranean that might run you about five to eight thousand
dollars per person in a Veranda category. Room and culinary
classes are included in that, so you don't pay extra
(46:42):
for these great curated experiences on Oceana cruise line. Their
target clientele is going to be definitely food loving couples,
usually about fifty plus in age. Many of these are
retired professionals who want hands on cooking experiance. Is an
elegant but not overly formal ships, So you'll find that
(47:04):
the clientele on board in Oceana ship is really very
friendly and probably a lot of folks that you'd have
a lot in common with.
Speaker 4 (47:13):
Yeah, probably people out of your neighborhood kind of folks,
folks that you might you know, live near. And the
one thing I will say about these ships and these
kitchens on there, I come out of education, I've taught
a lot of schools, a lot of places all around
the United States. I have never taught in a kitchen.
I've never thought of teaching in a kitchen is beautiful
(47:34):
as these culinary kitchens. You talk about a room with
a view, a classroom with a view, terry, all of them.
You know you've seen them too. They have these views.
You're looking out on the ocean, some of the best
views on the ship, and you're still supposed to be
paying attention to what's going on in front the great
because you can do both.
Speaker 2 (47:53):
It's not like the old school days we remember.
Speaker 4 (47:55):
No, not at all.
Speaker 3 (47:57):
Yeah, this is a this is a cut above, I
would say. Ye. The next cruise line that I want
to focus on is one called Silver Sea. I like
these guys. This is really more of your yacht style cruising,
if you will. They have a program called sa LT
appropriately for a culinary class, don't you think it's sea
(48:19):
and land taste, And they've gone all in on food
with their salt program. Think of it as a culinary
echo system at sea. On board the Salt Kitchen, they
serve dishes that change with every port. The salt bar
shakes cocktails infused with local herbs and spirits, and the
(48:41):
salt lab gives you the chance to cook what you've
just tasted ashore.
Speaker 2 (48:48):
I do too. I like that whole concept.
Speaker 3 (48:50):
Imagine if you will sailing into Roads, that's a town
in Greece. That morning you're going to shop with the
chef in a local market. Afternoon you're learning to prepare
some exclusive dish in the lab, and that evening your
dinner is flavored with saffron and regano very ingredients you
(49:12):
carried on board with you. So just a fabulous kind
of experience. The average cost of a silver Sea yacht
style cruise is going to be about seven thy to
twelve thousand per person for that ten day voyage, depending
again on your sweet category, and their target clientele is
going to be some well traveled couples. And I know
(49:34):
that because when we sell Silversea at the office at
the Wishing Well, those are the kind of customers who
gravitate to Silversea. They're well traveled, kind of in their
fifties to seventies, cultural explorers who want to dig deep
with every port through food and story. Now the next
(49:54):
one that's on my list, I love this one. I
once upon a time was gifted a James Beard cookbook.
And I don't know if you know anything about James Beard,
but he is kind of the pinnacle of all great chefs.
He was kind of the male version of what Julia
Childs used to be. So Windstar Cruises with its fleet
(50:16):
of three hundred passenger yachts again, we're back on the yachts.
They bring the James Beard Foundation on board. On select voyages,
you're going to dine with guest chefs, and they actually
attend cooking demonstrations and you can follow them into the
local markets. On every voyage, however, James Beard inspired dishes
(50:37):
are featured on menus at no extra cost. You won't
do that anywhere in New York City. I promise you
picture yourself on a yacht in the Caribbean. By morning,
you're walking through a local market with a Beard chef.
That evening, you set down with a four course hosted
dinner with curated wine pairings, and then you watch as
(51:00):
the sea takes you and drifts you out through the sea,
and you're still sitting in the dining room watching the sunset.
That's a picture right there. Average costs for these experiences
on Windstar about thirty five hundred to sixty five hundred
dollars per person for a seven day cruise. They do
younger professionals. Actually that's their target clientele, food loving couples
(51:23):
in their forties to sixties again who enjoy that intimacy,
access to the chefs and casual atmospheric dining. So I
love the fact that we have two great choices here,
both land based and cruise. There are many other cruise
lines who really have a sharp focus i'd say on
(51:45):
culinary experiences. Not to mention Regent Cruise Line. I know, Harry,
you did that when we just recently took another group
out and really celebrity cruise line, which is more of
a moderately priced cruise ship, just did that to Spain,
Portugal and Morocco. Culinary experience, just.
Speaker 4 (52:05):
Great culinary experiences, lots of variety, lots of choices, and
again a little bit of an upscale but very affordable,
I thought, and just a great you know, they're a
great choice. You've you've kind of run the gamut there.
You've made me very hungry. I am so hungry. I'm
looking at Chris and Chris is nodding also, right, Chris,
(52:27):
what do you think.
Speaker 2 (52:28):
I think we're all hungry.
Speaker 1 (52:30):
I'm heading home after the show's done.
Speaker 2 (52:32):
I'm going to get myself a baloney sandwich.
Speaker 1 (52:35):
Well, yeah, maybe that will be it, but it's going
to be a big meal, I'll tell you that.
Speaker 3 (52:39):
Well, what a fun time. I mean, this is really
what it's all about. These are not just meals, They're moments.
They're kind of woven into the journey with care and
seasoned with memory. And if this show has stirred your
appetite for adventure, let us know. I mean at the
wishing Well. That's what this show is all about. It's
about delivering experiences and travel to you and Chris. We
(53:02):
are easy to find. We are located at two forty
three nef Avenue in the Valley Center in Harsenburg. You
can call us We're at five four oh nine oh
eight two three three three, or look us up on
the web. We are at the Wishingwell dot biz.
Speaker 1 (53:19):
This has been a life less ordinary. The travel show
from your friends at the Wishing Well at two forty
three nef Avenue in Harrisonburg. If you have any questions
on topics discussed today, please reach out to the Wishing
Well online at the Wishingwell dot biz or five four
oh nine oh eight, twenty three thirty three. Eight Past
episodes are available on the iHeartRadio app. And we'll see
again next Saturday morning at ten for a life less
(53:41):
ordinary from the wishing Well
This is a Lifeless Ordinary, the travel show and podcasts
from your friends at the wishing Well two forty three
f Avenue in Harsmert and online at the wishing Well
dot biz. The wishing Well is your ultimate luxury concierge
travel agency and a Lifeless Ordinary is a travel show
and podcasts hosted by Terry Dean, bringing her over forty
years of experience in the travel industry to help guide
(00:21):
you to great experiences in your travel, whether it be
around the block, around the country, or around the world.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
Let's bring in Terry Dean and.
Speaker 3 (00:28):
Say hello, how are you this wonderful weekend. It's good
to see you. Good to see you too. Chris and
Harry also here.
Speaker 4 (00:35):
I'm happy to be here. It's always good to see
both of you.
Speaker 1 (00:37):
I look forward to our conversation every Saturday morning as
we talk about life, we talk about travel, we talk
about a lifeless Ordinary.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
We really do.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
And I love Saturdays because it gives us a chance
to all three sit down together. A lot happens in
a week, I want to tell you, a lot happens
in a week, and we certainly have seen some busy,
busy days at the wishing Well. Thank all of you
all out there who tell us that you continue to
listen to us, you enjoy this show called a Lifeless Ordinary.
(01:08):
We hope that you're able to travel vicariously through some
of the words and the trips that we bring to
your doorstep, and that you grab a cup of coffee
or your favorite beverage and enjoy it with.
Speaker 4 (01:19):
Us with a little inspiration too for.
Speaker 2 (01:21):
What's the next exactly?
Speaker 1 (01:23):
So what we get caught up on all the stuff
we have missed over the last week.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
Not a bad idea, Chris. One thing is you know
I love good news, especially in the travel industry. So
we're going to tell you that trip costs are trending
lower for this Labor Day and according to some industry experts,
travelers exploring the United States this upcoming Labor Day weekend
(01:48):
are in for a good, good deal, as booking data
shows that flights, hotels, and car rentals are all cheaper
this year compared to last year. I'm going to say, see,
I told you, I.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
Told you so.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
The organization found that domestic air trip airfare is six
percent lower than in twenty twenty four, averaging about seven
hundred and twenty dollars per ticket, while flights are three
percent cheaper and car rental costs are down three percent.
Even gas prices have remained relatively low, matching the averages
(02:29):
recorded in summer of twenty twenty one. When it comes
to international travel, pricing is a little more varied. Hotels
are about two percent cheaper, and airfare has risen eight
percent year over year. So I think, all in all,
some great news for people who have some vacation time
left for Labor Day. If you're interested in going somewhere,
(02:52):
you're going to go a little bit cheaper, and I
think that is good news.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
I understand how Labor Day is next week.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
I don't either. I know.
Speaker 3 (02:59):
It's boggles my mind. I can't even believe we're at
the end of August. I mean I just blinked and
it was the fourth of July, not long ago. How
did we get here? But it goes so fast, it
really does. And speaking of how fast time flies, I've
got a fall travel report for you. Here's where Americans
(03:19):
are going. Canadian travelers, as we have heard, they might
be avoiding the United States. Maybe not, but Canada travel
hasn't been dampened at all. As a matter of fact,
Expedia did a travel report and they show that US
travelers have their sites set firmly on Canada for the
(03:40):
coming season. In fact, searches for Whistler, British Columbia are
up a whopping forty percent year over year, and that
uptick is followed by a twenty percent increase in searches
for bamp Alberta. Nova Scotia rounds out the top three
with a fifteen percent increase in search volume. And these
(04:01):
scenic destinations are not only trending, but they're also more
affordable in the fall.
Speaker 2 (04:07):
What have you got to say about that, Harry?
Speaker 4 (04:09):
I think that is right on target. Chris and I
had a great time talking about Rocky Mountaineer not too
long ago. And the places that you're mentioning, not Nova Scotia,
but the other places that you're mentioning. We're all part
of our trip, and I can tell you there are
some extraordinary reasons there, really are. Go see those places.
It'll put you back in touch with Mother Nature and
(04:30):
it'll make you feel good just being there. The weather's great,
the scenery is fantastic. And we're going to talk about
food today. The food was even better.
Speaker 3 (04:41):
Yet now here's some key information to help with the
travel planning. The sweet spot to fly to Canada is
between September the twenty second and October third, because flight
prices are generally lower during that period. A few fall
travel tips. In addition to revealing where everybody's headed during
(05:01):
leaf peeping season, there's a few additional travel gems for
globe trotters. September the twenty ninth and October the twenty
seventh offer the lowest domestic fairs for flights FYI. October
the twenty sixth and November the twenty fourth are the
best travel dates to keep in mind for international deals.
(05:21):
November sixteenth and September the first are the cheapest nights
for domestic stays, just in case you were wondering, and
the top destinations include foliage escapes like Mystic and Norfolk,
Canadian gems like Whistler, and international hotspots include Taromina, Italy
(05:42):
and Cairo, Egypt. So a few little tidbits of information
to kind of help you out if you're planning for
something this fall. I think that's great news, great great news,
and I did want to also mention got some great
news about one of our favorite partners. I love these guys,
Holland America. They are my go to for Alaska, always
(06:05):
have been, Chris. You know, I've done this for about
forty eight years, and I can tell you ever since
I've been in the industry, I was always told when
I was training, there is but one company to use
to Alaska, and that's Holland America. They own Alaska. I mean,
for crying out loud, they even own the rail system
(06:26):
that's there. They own hotels there, The rail they own
is McKinley Explorer, and it is the pinnacle of everybody's
experience when they go to Alaska. Well, I am so
pleased to say that Forbes has named Holland America the
best cruise line in Alaska, and that's great news. One
of the most authentic overall Alaska cruise experiences, Holland America
(06:50):
holds more Glacier Bay permits than any other cruise line.
It features a wide range of onboard wildlife experts and
ammerses guests in local cultures through workshops and activities like
It's Alaska Up Close program. So I definitely can recommend
the seven day Glacier Discovery itinerary and all of that
(07:11):
commentary comes to us courtesy of Forbes, who are king
in the travel industry. Actually, and I know we have
a couple of things that Harry wanted to share today. Harry,
you've got one piece of news, I think, and then
we're going to head into some sales.
Speaker 4 (07:27):
Yeah, I had one piece that I wanted to share
with you, actually two parts to it. But one of
the things I wanted to caution people about as we're
getting into these holiday seasons, and that is about travel scams.
And if you're listening, hopefully you've never fell victim twent
of these. There was some of this made the national
news this morning on the radio and the television about
(07:49):
a fellow that was on a United flight. Something happened
during his flight. He called United and actually talked to
an agent who then referred him to another airline to
read blokok for a canceled flight, And sadly, that United
agent gave him a bad telephone number and he ended
up talking to a scammer and he lost about seventeen
(08:13):
thousand dollars for these six rebooked tickets. So, yeah, to
be very careful who you're talking to and when there
are travel interruptions or travel problems. You want to be very,
very careful. You want to know that you're talking to
the real person. And it's sad that even the airline
referred him in this case to someone that wasn't legitimate.
(08:33):
But we're seeing a lot of things going on right
now with AI to Terry and Chris that I want
listeners to just be cautious about. When we talk about
using a travel agent. One of the things that we
have in our toolbox is we have, you know, fixed
telephone numbers, We have fixed protocols and authentication to make
sure that the person we're talking to and they make
(08:55):
sure that we're the person that they think we are
as we make changes. AI is right now tricking people
and some people are getting duped out of money. There
are mirror websites out there, So if you're traveling this
holiday season, and if you're searching for deals, which I
think is a great thing to do, be sure that
the deals you're searching for, be sure that the places
(09:18):
that you're contacting are in fact legitimate. Don't get scammed.
Even travel agencies are popping up on the internet. Now
you think you're talking to a travel agency, if you
don't know where that place is or who they are,
figure out how to authenticate them before you're doing something.
So that's my caution for in the news. Yeah, and
(09:38):
that's broadcasting.
Speaker 3 (09:39):
That's actually a great point, Harry, because one of the
things that we like to stress to our customers at
the wishing Well, and one that I'd like for people
to really have as a takeaway from this new segment
that Harry just brought to you, is that at the
Wishing Well, we believe that the booking process is part
of the relationship that we're building with you or future travel,
(10:01):
but it starts with trust. And you know, we like
to sit down with our clients. We like to find
out a lot about them. What was your last trip, like,
what are some trips that you've taken before? Give us
sort of a roadmap to your life of some things
that you like, you enjoy, so that as we talk
with you, paint sort of starts to form on a
(10:23):
canvas so that we can begin to collaborate with you
and cultivate and curate the ideal itenerary for you. And
that doesn't happen with somebody you've never met over the
phone or on the internet. And sadly, as Harry said,
you can really be taken for a ride if you
(10:46):
aren't using someone you trust and you have a relationship with.
Speaker 4 (10:50):
And when you talk to somebody you have a relationship with,
they know you know, they know your voice, they know
the kinds of things you say, they know your habits.
And AI is getting great, it's getting better, but it's
not yet to the point where it can replicate all
of that. And you know, the caution that I have
is there's some great opportunities out there, and if it
(11:11):
looks too good to be true, it probably is too
good to be true. And why risk a vacation, your
family's entire vacation on something that's not legitimate. You know,
we build all the relationships we have with our suppliers
on trust, and we do authentication on top of trust.
That's all for you, as our travelers, to make sure
(11:32):
your experience goes flawlessly or at least as flawlessly as possible.
Speaker 1 (11:37):
And Harry, I know you can help us book some
of those flawless experiences, and especially if we're looking for
a hot deal.
Speaker 4 (11:43):
Yeah, and Terry was talking about travelists holiday season, and
one of the things I want to talk about is
is there anybody out there that loves driving up and
down I ninety five.
Speaker 3 (11:54):
No, okay, already driving on any roads that have a
five at the end.
Speaker 4 (11:59):
Yeah, I know you don't touch any of those roads
if you're one of the people that does not like driving.
But you need to get somewhere, particularly if you want
to head south of the auto train. Amtrak's Auto Train
is having a flash saale and through the end of
the month of August, through the twenty ninth of August,
they've got fiers as low as thirty nine dollars for
the Auto Train, which means you can go down to
(12:21):
Florida and take your car with you so you can
see any of the sites.
Speaker 3 (12:26):
Down there in New Universal Epic that would be great
to see.
Speaker 4 (12:30):
It will be fantastic, and this is a great way
to do it and not have to rent a car
when you get down there. Thirty nine dollars. That's amazing
how you could do that. You couldn't do it with
the gasoline and get down there on thirty nine dollars,
that's for sure. That is good through the twenty ninth
of August. And if you're down there, one of the
things that you might want to do too. There's a
lot of cruising going on out of Florida and some
(12:52):
of our partners have some special sales. I wanted to
mention Real briefly. One of them is our partners at
Canard is one of the high end lines, very elegant.
They have what they call their white Star service. So
you're talking about ships like the Queen Elizabeth. They're going
down to the Caribbean, lots of places. They've got fares
(13:13):
going on right now starting at nine hundred and ninety
nine dollars plus onboard credits. We have lots of those,
more than I can talk about.
Speaker 3 (13:22):
And this is classic iconic cruising at its finest. Yeah,
these ships are not like the other megaships. They never
will be. Canard when they partnered with the Crown, they
did it right.
Speaker 4 (13:37):
Yeah, they have to keep that level of service up
there to keep that endorsement. So Canard is one of
the lines if you really want to do some elegant cruising,
they are on the list. Another partner out there that's
got some great deals going on right now is Real
Caribbean and they've got a sale going on where they've
got savings over eight hundred and fifty dollars instant savings.
(13:59):
They're putting bonus savings on top of that on a
couple of they're really cool ships, the Star and the
Icon Terry. Those are some of your favorites, right right, Yeah,
So we've got a big sale going on with them,
and more than I can list in terms of the
particular cruises. But one of the ones that I will
say is they've got a cruise out of Miami I
saw for under four hundred dollars including taxes and fees
(14:24):
on the Wonder of the Seas. They had another one
going out of Port Canaveral for six hundred dollars on
the brand new Utopia of the Seas. So lots of opportunities.
If you want to get down to Florida, you can
ride the auto train down there, have your car, park
your car, jump aboard a cruise ship and take a cruise.
How's that for an all vacation.
Speaker 3 (14:44):
If you're one of those folks who has really saved
your vacation days because you don't know why you did that,
that's you. I'm talking to you, Chris. I'm actually looking
right at you. September is actually a fabulous time to
grab deals they're going on. And these cruise lines, as
(15:06):
Harry was mentioning, especially lines like Royal Caribbean, are going
to offer cruises this time of year under four hundred
dollars per person. I mean for a week long cruise,
Are you kidding me?
Speaker 2 (15:18):
It's fantastic.
Speaker 3 (15:19):
That's all of your meals, that's your entertainment, that's ports
of call, and if you chose not to do short excursions,
that's literally what you'd pay.
Speaker 4 (15:27):
You just stay on board and you enjoy the pools,
enjoy the hot tubs, lots of nice things on board
that you can enjoy and those are all and snack
to your heart's delight, and a little more because exactly
your food's included as well if you're not cruising. I
had two other ideas I wanted to mention real quickly.
Our friends at Globis have some tremendous deals right now
(15:51):
for departure yet this year they've got a Scottish Highlands
escape that I saw out there for under nine hundred dollars.
I think it was about eight hundred and seventy dollars.
And Globis is one of our more popular tour operators.
We like them a lot they are.
Speaker 3 (16:06):
They are a first class land tour based operator.
Speaker 4 (16:10):
And for eight days for eight hundred and sixty nine
dollars in Scotland, for Ireland, seven days for just over
one thousand dollars. Those are some tremendous deals. You want
to head down to Morocco, We've got deals seven days
from eight hundred and fifty dollars and all of these
are for departures. Yet this year one of the ones
I saw, I saw Switzerland. This one fascinated me. Switzerland.
(16:33):
How about Switzerland for Thanksgiving?
Speaker 2 (16:36):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (16:36):
Novich.
Speaker 3 (16:36):
And you know what's great about these, Harry, is that
Globus is really again another iconic first class tour operator.
And when you hear prices like this, please remember that
Globus is that that particular tour operator who does everything
fully escorted. So you're not by yourself doing these site
(16:57):
seeings and trying to learn about new locations and destinations
perhaps you've never seen before. No, you're going to have
someone with you who is trained to show you the
best of the best while you're there. Not only that,
but most all of your meals are included and some
of the behind the scenes type of tours that Globus
throws in that make these trips really special.
Speaker 4 (17:19):
Yeah, they really do a great job. We spoke a
lot about Italy all through this year in twenty twenty five,
and about a lot of stuff going on in Italy.
Hold back. Well, if you've held back but you still
want to go, you've got some time into November. I
saw southern Southern Italy escape there nine days, nine days
for under fourteen hundred dollars. That's tremendous. Kind of got
(17:43):
people to shy away from Italy a little bit because
of all the thing's going on there. But if that's
on your agenda, you can do that. And then there's
one more I wanted to mention, if you want to
get in a vacation before the end of the year,
the wishing Well. We talk about group trips sometimes and
there's a special tab on our site where you can
see all of the group things that we've got going
for this year and for next year. But I still
(18:05):
have some space left. On our trip down to the
Biltmore Estate in Ashville, North Carolina, I picked the first
weekend that the place is going to be lit up
for Christmas, that is the week of November third through
the sixth It's a Monday through Thursday trip. This trip
leaves from the front door of the wishing Well, So
you bring your car to our office, you park it
(18:27):
in our lot, and you jump on board. It's a
motorcoach trip. We include all your breakfasts, all your dinners,
We include admission to the Biltmore Estate, we include visit
to the We go up on the Blue Ridge Parkway,
lots of things along the way that we do. And
(18:47):
these are trips that are designed for people that may
not want to jump on board an airplane, but want
to have a completely escorted week paid for a week
where you don't have anything to worry about. Can get
any better and parking your car in good old Harrisonburg
and leave the driving to us, as the folks at
Greyhound used to say, but also the touring and everything
(19:09):
else all taken care of. And that trip is six
hundred and ninety nine dollars a person, for your food,
for your transportation, for your admission. So still time to
do something. As the temperature start to cool off a
little bit, we're getting into the fall. That's my last
one that I wanted to talk about.
Speaker 1 (19:26):
Terry, you mentioned a tab on your website. I recommend
that you go to the Wishing Well dot biz and
on the upper right hand corner, you're going to find
a link to this show, a Lifeless so Ordiner. You
find all the old podcasts that we've done, going all
the way back to the first show that you did
four or five years ago, way back when.
Speaker 4 (19:46):
Yeah, and if you.
Speaker 1 (19:47):
Look, two episodes ago, we did a show called Culinary
Compass navigating world Flavors.
Speaker 4 (19:52):
Turns out that was just part one.
Speaker 2 (19:54):
It was today is part two.
Speaker 1 (19:56):
You're gonna want to stick around because we're gonna continue
our trip around the world enjoying great culinary experiences. Next
here on a lifeless ordinary.
Speaker 4 (20:04):
Who would think of driving off to a new destination
without guidance from Google or Siri. Let the Wishing World
guide your next travel experience. Travel the world as you
enjoy the very best destinations and all they offer at
the best prices. Our mobile travel app keeps your vacation
on track and keeps you connected with our team of experts.
For help, if you need it, call us at five
four zero, nine, zero eight two three three three stop,
(20:28):
buy two forty three and nef avenue or visit us
at the Wishingwell dot biz.
Speaker 1 (20:33):
And welcome back to a Life Less Ordinary, your travel
showing podcast from your friends at the wishing Well. They're
on Neff Avenue in Harrisonburg. I recommend you stop by
and say hi. You're open today until one, yes, sir,
and then your back open Monday through Friday. You can
find all the hours on the website at the wishing
Well dot biz or give them a call five four
h nine oh eight twenty three thirty three.
Speaker 3 (20:54):
And we love it so much, Chris. Sometimes you'll see
cots set up. That's just that is foolishness.
Speaker 1 (21:02):
A couple of weeks ago, we did a show called
Culinary Compass navigating World Flavors. That was just part one.
Today we're going to continue that conversation. And I'm excited
because I love food.
Speaker 2 (21:12):
Who doesn't, you know? I mean that is that is
paramount I think.
Speaker 3 (21:16):
And food has kind of always been the passport to memories.
You know, how many times have you been somewhere and
you'll catch a whiff of something that somebody's fixing and
it'll transport you back in time to something that your
grandmother made or your mother maid, or you'll see something
on a menu and you'll go, oh, my aunt made that,
(21:37):
she made it so good. Well, that's kind of where
we're going to go, because a bowl of bowlonnaise can
transport you straight to Marseille, a glass of biolo to
the hills of Piedmont. And today, on a lifeless ordinary,
I want to take you on a journey as a
(21:57):
food critic might just reviewing the taste of the meal,
but the texture of the entire travel experience. And there
are tour operators and cruise lines out there who have
elevated food from a side note on your trip to
the very heartbeat of your entire journey. And these are
(22:19):
companies that understand that when you taste a region it's wine,
it's bread, it's oils, its traditions, you actually come to
know it in a way that no monument or museum
could ever teach you.
Speaker 2 (22:35):
And that's just the truth.
Speaker 4 (22:36):
You're speaking to my heart, Terry, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (22:38):
I know right. So I want us to have.
Speaker 3 (22:40):
A little fun today this Saturday morning, as I review
in true critics fashion, the best of the best in
luxury culinary travel. And the first company I want to
start with is one that has long been one that
I've swooned over ever since I've been in the travel industry.
They're not one that a lot of people talk about.
(23:02):
They keep a very low profile. You don't see them
out marketing like you would maybe Viking Cruise Line, for example.
But they're nevertheless one of the top tour operators in
the world. They specifically curate luxury. When you travel with
Abercrombie and Kent, we call them the white Glove Feast
(23:26):
because they really are. And Abercrombie and Kent is like
dining in Michelin three star. The service is flawless, the
ingredients impeccably sourced, and the experience it's a smooth silk.
They're small group tour journeys average just about fourteen guests,
so you see where I'm going here. I mean that's exclusive,
(23:49):
you know, sometimes even fewer than that.
Speaker 2 (23:51):
The intimacy is key here.
Speaker 3 (23:53):
It opens the kitchen door literally to experiences you can't
buy off the street. Now picture this. You're in Bologna,
You're strolling through the morning market. You smell that earthy
Porcini mushrooms. You see the wheels of parmigano being cut
right in front of you. Yes, but you're not just browsing,
(24:16):
you're actually being guided by a chef, and that's so cool.
They introduce you to the fishmonger, his cheesemaker, his spice dealer,
and later that day you're rolling pasta doo in a
private villa, wine glass in hand. You're going to learn
the subtle flick of the wrists that makes the difference
between one pasta and another. And that evening you're going
(24:40):
to be seated in a five star Plasio, dining on
courses paired with borrows that have been cellared longer than
most of us have been alive. So that is kind
of the picture of what Abercrombie and Kent does. They
create this experience, and you can see it's very curated,
(25:01):
and it's done so for a very few, very exclusive
number of people who are fortunate enough to make their
way onto these Abercrombie and Kent adventures. The target audience
here that they tend to draw from are sophisticated couples.
They're in their fifties to the seventies, usually well traveled professionals,
(25:24):
often celebrating anniversaries, milestones, or they're just simply hungry for
the best and the average cost. Think of this as
you're tasting menu of travel fourteen thousand to sixteen thousand
dollars per person for about a ten to twelve day itinerary.
That might sound a little pricey, but again, so is
(25:46):
any Micheline meal.
Speaker 2 (25:48):
It's going to be.
Speaker 3 (25:49):
And the value, I would say is it's irreplaceable, It's unpriceable,
it's unforgettable. So if you are interested in these kinds
of curate adventures and the type of culinary experience that
only Abercrombie and Kent knows how to deliver, that would
be the way to go.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Yeah, these are once in a lifetime experiences, for sure,
they are. There are things that you can take pictures at,
you can talk about, you can you know, even record
a video, but there's nothing like experiencing that, you know,
in person, three D real time.
Speaker 2 (26:29):
Yeah. Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (26:30):
And another one that kind of comes to my mind
is a company called Butterfield and Robinson kind of on
par with Abercrombie and Kent. Really we call this Michelin
on two wheels. You know, if Abercrombie and Kent is
the tuxedoed Maitre d Well, Butterfield and Robinson would be
the salmier who hands you a bike helmet with your
(26:52):
glass of rioja. Their hallmark is movement, cycling or walking
through landscapes kind of punctuated by meals that taste like
the reward you've earned, you know, for just being with them.
They have maximum groups at about sixteen guests, often a
mix of adventurous couples and friends in their forties to
(27:16):
sixties who still really relish a good climb followed by
a great bottle of wine.
Speaker 2 (27:21):
I mean, that's your reward.
Speaker 3 (27:22):
When you get to the top, you're going to take
along this you chilled bottle of wine and you're going
to enjoy that when you get to the top of
the hill. Imagine riding through Spain's Doro Valley. The road
kind of winds past some sunlit vineyards, your God's pointing
out the very plots where the last greatest grapes were grown.
(27:44):
And by midday you're welcome into a bordego where the
owner hands stained purple from harvest, pours you a glass
straight out of the barrel. That is an experience, I mean,
that's what we travel for. That's what those experience this
should be all about. And lunch, you're gonna have a
rustic feast of roasted lamb, charred peppers, earthy olive oil,
(28:08):
food that tastes you can taste the soil in the
sun right in it. And when the day's done, you're
going to clean up for a Michelin star dinner where
the contrast of sweet earned hunger and hate couture cuisine
makes the flavors really sparkle.
Speaker 2 (28:25):
Now, I love that.
Speaker 3 (28:26):
I love that Butterfield and Robinson has again this same
kind of curated experience, just like Abercrombie and Camp. But
you'll love this price point little different average price for
a tour like this five to nine thousand dollars for
a week. Their target audience are going to be food
forward cyclists really and hikers, those who believe that the
(28:51):
best meals are paired with a sense of accomplishment.
Speaker 4 (28:55):
Well, this sounds to me, Terry, like you've identified two
great opportunities need to sit down and have a gastronomical feast,
but you're aiming them at two different kinds of audience,
as a little bit younger, maybe more active audience and
another more experienced, more mature audience. But the neat thing
(29:16):
about it, in my listening to you talk about this
experience these experiences is that they both end with a
wonderful meal and that's always a great way to finish
a day of adventure.
Speaker 3 (29:29):
Oh yeah, and that's the whole focus of today's trip.
You might remember, Chris. A couple of weeks ago, we
talked about one of my favorite operators in this genre,
really a company called back Roads. We call them the
Farmhouse Table. They're very akin to what we're talking about
here with Abercrombie and Kent. And I won't go back
(29:49):
over every little detail that we covered in that week's show.
Please do go back, though and listen to a Life
Less Ordinary on the Wishing Wells website, but talked about
back Roads. They also produce a lot of experiences that
have to do with hiking, biking, multi adventurous type trips,
(30:11):
and their average cost is a little bit lower for
their tours forty three hundred to sixty five hundred dollars
for six days, and their target clientele are really families
and multi generational groups or anybody in their thirties to
sixties who wants authentic, active, twisted type of itineraries. It's approachable, luxury,
(30:34):
it's warm, it's welcoming, but it's a little bit different
than these two luxury tour operators like Abercrombie and Kent
and Butterfield and Robinson that we previously talked about, but
still back Roads has it going on. I think another
tour operator that I want to kind of tip my
hat to today is one called Classic Journeys, and they
(30:58):
would be considered under the handcrafted hospitality. I think they're
a bit like walking into a jewelry box restaurant tucked
in a back alley. It's a small exquisite. You know
you found something special when you're on one of their tours.
There are group's average about ten to twelve guests, maximum eighteen.
And I'll tell you that's the sweet spot of where
(31:20):
we're seeing a lot of our clientele these days wanting
to be you know, we do still have clients who
are very budget friendly based looking for something like that,
but majority of our clients these days when they come in,
they go, I don't want a large escorted group.
Speaker 2 (31:37):
I don't want that.
Speaker 3 (31:38):
How many people are in your group, Terry, We're looking
for something no more than twenty people. So this is
kind of one of those This is Classic Journeys. Every
itinerary feels are teasonally designed. Take Provence for example. You
might begin the day wandering through some lavender fields. Then
you're going to step into a farmhouse kitchen where you
(32:00):
learn to make that bowl your base. Each herb and
spice is going to be explained to you as if
it were a family heirloom. I mean, that's a curated experience.
And then the evening ends where else in a chateau courtyard,
sipping rose as the sun turns the stone walls. Just
this golden, beautiful sunset yellow. That's a picture that right
(32:24):
there is a painting, but that's your experience when you're
traveling with Classic Journeys. Their average cost is about sixty
three hundred dollars per person for about six days. And
again their target clientele, they're going to appeal to discerning
couples in their fifties to seventies who really crave that
(32:44):
authenticity without the fanfare. Guests who would rather cook in
a farmhouse than done in a palace, you know. Those
that would be another differentiating feature of the Abercrombie and
Kent folks versus Classic Journeys. So these are going to
be people who are maybe looking for something a little
(33:06):
less pomp and circumstance, if you will.
Speaker 4 (33:09):
Yeah, this goes back to what you were talking about earlier, Terry,
when you were talking about the kind of process that
you go through when you're working with a travel agent,
whoever that travel agent is. You want to get them
to the point where they understand you, understand your personality.
That's where we're able to steer you towards one experience
(33:29):
over another. All of these experiences are for food lovers,
but there are three four different, very unique experiences that
end with an outstanding food experience. So yeah, and that's
just a great way to think about this, and it's
a great way to emphasize to our listeners how important
it is and how worthwhile that time spent is. When
(33:53):
we're asking you all those questions, we're not trying to pry,
we're not trying to, you know, to interview you for
for a position, but we're trying to understand what kind
of traveler you are and the people that you're traveling with.
Speaker 3 (34:06):
It's a bit of a matchmaking experience, if you will.
I mean, if you've ever known or heard about people
who are in the matchmaking business, they can't really do
that very well until they get to know you a
little bit. And really what we do at the Wishing
Well sort of as a kin to something like that,
because we want to match you with positively the best
(34:27):
kind of experience possible, because if we don't get that right,
nothing that follows after that is going to be as
good for you as we want it to be. And
that's really while we do what we do.
Speaker 4 (34:39):
And a tremendous investment of time on our part. If
we do it right, that means you're going to come back,
and the next time you come back, we'd have to
do that process again because we know who you are,
we know the experiences you've been on, You've told us
about how you react to those experiences. So it just
is a it's like an ongoing conversation with a family member.
(35:01):
You don't have to get to know each other. You know,
after that first date you kind of know what to
expect and what's going to be happening in the future.
Speaker 3 (35:10):
Now, the ones that we've talked about so far, Abercrombie
and Kent, Butterfield and Robinson, classic Journeys, back roads, all
of these have something woven that's in common with them
and that they are all some of our Virtuoso properties.
So we're very proud of that when you are booking
one of these tours at the Wishing Well in and
(35:32):
also included in your experience are going to be those
Virtuoso amenities that automatically come along just because you've booked
at the Wishing Well, and those things are going to
be upgrades at your hotel breakfast every day, which is
you know, you're not going to get that everywhere, especially
if you're in the US, unless you've booked through a
(35:53):
Virtuoso office. You're going to get, you know, some extra perks.
You're going to get one hundred dollars spending money just
to have it property. You're welcome. And so those are
the kind of things that happen when you book at
the Wishing Well on any of these kind of experiences,
and those are.
Speaker 4 (36:08):
The things you get, the tangibles that you see, but
the intangible part of that experience is also very important.
I spoke earlier about travel scams. Our virtualso partners are
all vetted partners. There are known entities. We know that
you're going to have a great experience, doesn't mean it
might not rain a day or two while you're there.
Things that are uncontrollable, but everything that's controllable, everything that's
(36:32):
possible to make your trip, make your journey, make your
travel experience very special, very unique, very memorable. We know
that that's going to be there when we book with
our virtual so partners.
Speaker 3 (36:44):
I want to talk about one more tour operator before
we head into our crew's partners, and the last one
on my list for the land based tour operators is
a company called Artisans of Leisure. First of all, I
love that name, but I'm going to call them the
Private Tasting Menu because finally, Artisans of Leisure, if the
(37:06):
others are fine dining, this is the private chef's table. Everything,
and I mean everything is private. It's bespoke, it's curated
to you and you alone. So an eleven day food
and wine tour of Northern Italy might include a truffle
hunt in Piedmont, a private tasting with a Barolo producer,
(37:28):
a Michelin starred lunch in Florence, and a day in
Venice with a chef who takes you from rialto market
straight into his kitchen for a private cooking class. You
are not going to be sharing that moment. Or these
moments collectively with strangers, it's going to be you and
you alone. So this is completely curated, completely customized, and
(37:52):
I think anytime we use that word, I mean think
of housing in real estate. You use the word customized,
you expect to pay more for that. But there are
a lot of people who will because these are experiences
they really don't want to share with somebody else. They
want these experiences to be curated just for them. And
it's not necessarily bragging rights, it's just because that's how
(38:15):
they like to do it, that's how they like to travel,
and they're willing to pay for it, and pay for
it you will with artisans of Leisure because the average
cost of one of these experiences is between twenty to
twenty seven thousand dollars per person, depending on how many
people you're bringing along on this experience with you. And
their target clientele, these are the high net worth couples
(38:38):
or families usually in their forties to sixties, who want
exclusivity and they are willing to pay for it. They
want privacy, perfection, and they want personalization. So artisans of
Leisure is a whole another level when we start talking
about these curated culinary experienceperiences and the who gets it right.
Speaker 4 (39:03):
And if you don't think that that's an experience that
maybe you can do tomorrow or next week, it's still worthwhile.
And that's what this show is about. It's still worthwhile.
Check out these people that Terry are talking that Terry's
talking about. Check out some of these companies. Look at
their websites, live a little bit through the website. Maybe
(39:24):
you can't afford the experience. But what we're trying to
do on the show is highlight some of the luxury
culinary experiences that are out there. Even if they're not
all for you or not all possible for you, there's
nothing to say that you can't look at them and
understand them and appreciate them, right, Terry.
Speaker 3 (39:41):
Yeah, And one thing I want to point out about
this is that, yes, we are talking about luxury culinary experiences,
but I also want to tell folks who are listening
to us today on a Lifeless Ordinary. First of all,
that's the name of our show, a Lifeless Ordinary. Okay,
So we're going to bring you to that table to
the limit. However, I think it's very important for people
(40:02):
who are listening to know this culinary experiences and truly
good food experiences don't have to be done at twenty
to twenty seven thousand dollars per person. We can point
you to a lot of tour operators and even independent
type of experiences, great restaurants when you visit a location.
(40:25):
That's what's in the toolbox at the Wishing well These
are just some of the highlights that I wanted to
bring to you today because that's the topic of our show.
But let me just tell you, the wishing Wells toolbox
is loaded with lots of great information. No matter your budget,
no matter where you're going, We're going to always try
(40:46):
to make sure that you have that great experience, no
matter what it costs.
Speaker 4 (40:50):
There's a lot of distance between being way up in
the clouds with some of these experiences in the ground,
and we have a full list and access to places
so that once we find out who you are, what
you want, what you like, we can you move along
that whole area and find the right mix for you,
(41:13):
the right experiences and the right budget.
Speaker 1 (41:15):
And one of the things that I love is even
if your vacation, maybe you're you're heading to Disney World,
you can find a great restaurant and find some great food,
even if it's just for that one meal.
Speaker 2 (41:27):
Oh no kidding, it will be memorable.
Speaker 4 (41:29):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (41:29):
When beck and I went to Vegas for our honeymoon,
we specifically chose and I can't remember now. I think
it was Emerald Lagassi's restaurant, just because we wanted to
go somewhere that we wouldn't forget sure, And of course
I forgot whose restaurant was, but I will not forget
the food. We had the most tender steak. I still
don't know the secret of how they made the potatoes
the way they did, they were amazing. And all of
(41:53):
our other meals, we had pizza one night where with
some of the employees from the casino down in the
basement we found a place. Yeah, but the one meal
that was the one we remember, And so you can
do that.
Speaker 2 (42:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (42:04):
And the one thing I also wanted to add here
is that even with that six hundred and ninety nine
dollars special to the Biltmore that Harry's talking about over Christmas,
where you're going to see a lot of Christmas lights,
is going to be filled with some great food opportunities.
And I can tell you that because I know Harry,
and I know that on that trip there's going to
(42:28):
be some great restaurants that people are going to visit.
So that's what I mean when I say, don't get
hung up on the budget. Some of the ones that
I've pointed you to today, yes they are luxurious, and
yes they do command a higher price point, but there's
always other ways to do that.
Speaker 1 (42:45):
All right, We're going to take a quick break when
we come back. Should we find some other locations to
enjoy some delicious food.
Speaker 2 (42:52):
Let's do cruises.
Speaker 1 (42:54):
Cruises is what we'll talk about next here on a
Life Less Ordinary.
Speaker 4 (42:57):
Who would think of driving off to a new destination
without gidments from Google to Syria. Let the Wishing World
guide your next travel experience. Travel the world as you
enjoy the very best destinations and all they offer at
the best prices. Our mobile travel app keeps your vacation
on track and keeps you connected with our team of experts.
For help, if you need it, call us at five
four zero nine zero eight two three three three stop
(43:20):
buy two forty three, nap Avenue or visit us at
the Wishingwell dot biz.
Speaker 1 (43:25):
Hey, welcome back to a Life Less Ordinary. Today we
are talking about culinary adventures. Our show is Culinary Compass,
Navigating World Flavors.
Speaker 2 (43:35):
Pardon yes, I love it.
Speaker 1 (43:39):
So we talked about some great group experiences. We've talked
about some very exclusive, cultivated experiences. Now let's talk about
some of those experiences on the open sea.
Speaker 2 (43:52):
Let's do that.
Speaker 3 (43:53):
And you know, before I do, I have to just
put in a little plug here because the cruise line
I'm about to talk to you about is one that
kind of is a little close to home for the
Wishing Well. You might remember about a year or so ago,
we did a group cruise with our own local chef,
Tassy Pippert. Everybody knows Tassy Pippert here in the area
(44:16):
and love the kinds of things.
Speaker 2 (44:18):
That she creates.
Speaker 3 (44:19):
Well, we made a home for her on the OC sorry,
the Regent Cruise Line when she went and did a
hosting as a guest chef on board the Regent cruise
that we did to Greece and the Mediterranean, and they
liked her so much Chris, that they actually offered her
a position on Oceana, their sister ship, as a guest
(44:43):
chef while she went six weeks through Alaska.
Speaker 4 (44:46):
I spent my summer vacation.
Speaker 2 (44:48):
Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 3 (44:49):
So we were so proud to be in some way
just a small part of that introduction that she had
to a fabulous cruise line, which I'm going to talk
about right now, and that is they have, of course,
what they call their floating cooking School. Cassie was a
part of that. On the cruises to Alaska for the
last six weeks, you step on to an Oceana ship
(45:11):
and it feels like you've wandered into a culinary institute
at sea. Their culinary center is a full hands on
classroom where you might learn knife skills one morning and
regional specialties the next time. Picture a day in Sicily Ashore.
You're going to be touring a family vineyard, maybe tasting
(45:34):
some vino under the vines. Back on board, you're in
the culinary center, making your own pasta guided by a
professional chef, and dinner that night at Ember their modern
American restaurant or Aquamar kitchen where wellness needs flavor. You
are going to dine on some of the best culinary
(45:57):
dinners and lunches you've ever had in your life. I
promise you that an all multi course. That's the great
thing about cruises. You know, you have these multi course dinners.
Literally every night you're given a menu, and of course
every night you can order up to I think it's
five to six levels of courses on every cruise dinner menu.
(46:22):
And this is no exception. The average cost of an
Oceana cruise that does vary, but on a ten day
Mediterranean that might run you about five to eight thousand
dollars per person in a Veranda category. Room and culinary
classes are included in that, so you don't pay extra
(46:42):
for these great curated experiences on Oceana cruise line. Their
target clientele is going to be definitely food loving couples,
usually about fifty plus in age. Many of these are
retired professionals who want hands on cooking experiance. Is an
elegant but not overly formal ships, So you'll find that
(47:04):
the clientele on board in Oceana ship is really very
friendly and probably a lot of folks that you'd have
a lot in common with.
Speaker 4 (47:13):
Yeah, probably people out of your neighborhood kind of folks,
folks that you might you know, live near. And the
one thing I will say about these ships and these
kitchens on there, I come out of education, I've taught
a lot of schools, a lot of places all around
the United States. I have never taught in a kitchen.
I've never thought of teaching in a kitchen is beautiful
(47:34):
as these culinary kitchens. You talk about a room with
a view, a classroom with a view, terry, all of them.
You know you've seen them too. They have these views.
You're looking out on the ocean, some of the best
views on the ship, and you're still supposed to be
paying attention to what's going on in front the great
because you can do both.
Speaker 2 (47:53):
It's not like the old school days we remember.
Speaker 4 (47:55):
No, not at all.
Speaker 3 (47:57):
Yeah, this is a this is a cut above, I
would say. Ye. The next cruise line that I want
to focus on is one called Silver Sea. I like
these guys. This is really more of your yacht style cruising,
if you will. They have a program called sa LT
appropriately for a culinary class, don't you think it's sea
(48:19):
and land taste, And they've gone all in on food
with their salt program. Think of it as a culinary
echo system at sea. On board the Salt Kitchen, they
serve dishes that change with every port. The salt bar
shakes cocktails infused with local herbs and spirits, and the
(48:41):
salt lab gives you the chance to cook what you've
just tasted ashore.
Speaker 2 (48:48):
I do too. I like that whole concept.
Speaker 3 (48:50):
Imagine if you will sailing into Roads, that's a town
in Greece. That morning you're going to shop with the
chef in a local market. Afternoon you're learning to prepare
some exclusive dish in the lab, and that evening your
dinner is flavored with saffron and regano very ingredients you
(49:12):
carried on board with you. So just a fabulous kind
of experience. The average cost of a silver Sea yacht
style cruise is going to be about seven thy to
twelve thousand per person for that ten day voyage, depending
again on your sweet category, and their target clientele is
going to be some well traveled couples. And I know
(49:34):
that because when we sell Silversea at the office at
the Wishing Well, those are the kind of customers who
gravitate to Silversea. They're well traveled, kind of in their
fifties to seventies, cultural explorers who want to dig deep
with every port through food and story. Now the next
(49:54):
one that's on my list, I love this one. I
once upon a time was gifted a James Beard cookbook.
And I don't know if you know anything about James Beard,
but he is kind of the pinnacle of all great chefs.
He was kind of the male version of what Julia
Childs used to be. So Windstar Cruises with its fleet
(50:16):
of three hundred passenger yachts again, we're back on the yachts.
They bring the James Beard Foundation on board. On select voyages,
you're going to dine with guest chefs, and they actually
attend cooking demonstrations and you can follow them into the
local markets. On every voyage, however, James Beard inspired dishes
(50:37):
are featured on menus at no extra cost. You won't
do that anywhere in New York City. I promise you
picture yourself on a yacht in the Caribbean. By morning,
you're walking through a local market with a Beard chef.
That evening, you set down with a four course hosted
dinner with curated wine pairings, and then you watch as
(51:00):
the sea takes you and drifts you out through the sea,
and you're still sitting in the dining room watching the sunset.
That's a picture right there. Average costs for these experiences
on Windstar about thirty five hundred to sixty five hundred
dollars per person for a seven day cruise. They do
younger professionals. Actually that's their target clientele, food loving couples
(51:23):
in their forties to sixties again who enjoy that intimacy,
access to the chefs and casual atmospheric dining. So I
love the fact that we have two great choices here,
both land based and cruise. There are many other cruise
lines who really have a sharp focus i'd say on
(51:45):
culinary experiences. Not to mention Regent Cruise Line. I know, Harry,
you did that when we just recently took another group
out and really celebrity cruise line, which is more of
a moderately priced cruise ship, just did that to Spain,
Portugal and Morocco. Culinary experience, just.
Speaker 4 (52:05):
Great culinary experiences, lots of variety, lots of choices, and
again a little bit of an upscale but very affordable,
I thought, and just a great you know, they're a
great choice. You've you've kind of run the gamut there.
You've made me very hungry. I am so hungry. I'm
looking at Chris and Chris is nodding also, right, Chris,
(52:27):
what do you think.
Speaker 2 (52:28):
I think we're all hungry.
Speaker 1 (52:30):
I'm heading home after the show's done.
Speaker 2 (52:32):
I'm going to get myself a baloney sandwich.
Speaker 1 (52:35):
Well, yeah, maybe that will be it, but it's going
to be a big meal, I'll tell you that.
Speaker 3 (52:39):
Well, what a fun time. I mean, this is really
what it's all about. These are not just meals, They're moments.
They're kind of woven into the journey with care and
seasoned with memory. And if this show has stirred your
appetite for adventure, let us know. I mean at the
wishing Well. That's what this show is all about. It's
about delivering experiences and travel to you and Chris. We
(53:02):
are easy to find. We are located at two forty
three nef Avenue in the Valley Center in Harsenburg. You
can call us We're at five four oh nine oh
eight two three three three, or look us up on
the web. We are at the Wishingwell dot biz.
Speaker 1 (53:19):
This has been a life less ordinary. The travel show
from your friends at the Wishing Well at two forty
three nef Avenue in Harrisonburg. If you have any questions
on topics discussed today, please reach out to the Wishing
Well online at the Wishingwell dot biz or five four
oh nine oh eight, twenty three thirty three. Eight Past
episodes are available on the iHeartRadio app. And we'll see
again next Saturday morning at ten for a life less
(53:41):
ordinary from the wishing Well
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