Category Archives: All-Inlcusive

I’m not a food blogger, but I do eat food

Leave a reply

As you’ve already seen – this week we are travelling onboard the Viking Orion in Bermuda.  There is a lot to like about this ship and the overall Viking Ocean experience, and we’re happy to report that certainly includes the food.  There are several dining options to choose from –

  • The Chefs table – a fixed menu with varying themes and wine pairings
  • Manfredi’s Italian Restaurant – a crowd favorite (you need to book early when you get onboard).  It’s a traditional restaurant recalling Italy’s beloved trattorias.
  • The main restaurant, simple called The Restaurant.  Daily changing menu with a focus on local cuisine
  • World Cafe – Casual atmosphere with inside and outside dining.  Buffet but elevated.  Chilled King Crab legs are part of the routine every night!
  • Wintergarden – Go here for High Tea in the late afternoon
  • The Pool Grill – very popular – excellent burgers

There is no extra charge for any specialty restaurants on board

They say you can eat with your eyes – so be prepared to be quite full!

Beef Carpaccio – The Restaurant

Beef Wellington – The Restaurant

Boar sausage Ragu pasta – The Restaurant

Prosciutto and Melon – The Restaurant

 

Calamari – Manfredi’s

 

Veal Saltimbocca – Manfredi’s

Grilled lambchops with Mushrooms – One of my breakfast (yes breakfast) choices in The Restaurant

 

Nordic Hotdog – The Pool Grill (has shrimp in mayo and pickled onions) – could be an acquired taste!

Grilled Prawns with a make your own cocktail sauce option – The Restaurant

Salmon Benedict

Poached Salmon

Hangar Steak – The Restaurant

 

Indian Samosa appetizer – The Restaurant

 

Grand Marnier Crepes – The Restaurant

Experience culture up close and personal on a river cruise

Leave a reply

Travelers are finding river cruises more and more attractive because they offer a great immersive experience into the local culture. GetAway Travel offers a great group trip on one of the industry’s premier river cruise lines. There’s more information here — https://getaway.travel/unique-getaways/spring-city-wine-house-burgundy-river-cruise

AmaCello

This river cruise slated for 2022 takes you through some prime wine country in France. You can sit on the deck in your recliner and catch some sun with vineyards and great cities and villages rolling by like a travel movie.

Entertaining, relaxing and intimate

If you haven’t taken a river cruise, at GetAway Travel we can whole-heartedly recommend one, because we’ve taken many. There’s a lot to like about a river cruise and a lot to enjoy!

There is a smaller group of people on board the ship and you can make new friends. Everyone gets a room with a view. Because you are traveling on a river, there are no buffeting waves like you’d experience on the ocean.  And everything is just a short walk from your cabin.

Wi-Fi is free so you can share your experiences real time with family and friends.

Once you dock, no pressure

Once you dock, you’ll find yourself in the heart of the city with plenty to do and see.

Excursions are included in the cruise package and you can pick your activity level. Choose a tour with an activity level that is gentle, regular or active. Do you want to take a walking tour with a guide? You get your own personal headset and it’s a local guide with plenty of local insight into the area and the culture.

Continue reading →

What I did on my sun & sand vacation

Leave a reply

Remember when you’d return to school after summer break and the teacher would assign the dreaded “what I did on my summer break” essay?  I mean, growing up in small town Wisconsin, did they really think we did something worth writing about?

I’m older now but that same question still haunts me each and every time I return from a sun/sand vacation to Mexico, Jamaica or the Dominican Republic.  Seriously, um…it was hot and sunny and all inclusive.  Need I really say more!  Yet people always ask and somehow I seem to feel obligated to elaborate…..so here goes.

Unlimited food, unlimited beverages, super bright sun, wonderfully cool air conditioning, afternoon naps and a few great books.  Need I really say more?

Sure there is beach volleyball, pool games, aerobics, yoga, snorkeling and excursions if someone is so inclined but for me a beach chair, book and sunscreen are all I really want or need.

That is the beauty of a beach vacation.  One can do as little or as much as one wants, be waited upon or go jogging on the beach, catch up on that elusive thing called relaxation or play hard.  The all-inclusive beach sun/sand vacation has something for everyone.

Some of the great places we’ve found particularly wonderful recently are:  Secrets Cap Cana and Breathless Riviera Maya.  Here’s my travel professional opinion:

  • Beaches – Secrets Cap Cana
  • Food – Breathless Riviera Maya
  • Room – Secrets if you are more modest, Breathless if you are there with someone special and want to spice things up a bit
  • Service – top notch at both places
  • Pools – both have a quieter pool and a more active pool so it’s a toss-up

Secrets Cap Cana

Breathless Punta Cana

Every kid should swim with the dolphins

Leave a reply

Depending on your age, you either grew up with Flipper or Dolphin Tale or Free Willy.  Me, I’m a Flipper fan through and through.  Maybe it was the crush I had on Sandy (the cute teenager in the show) but regardless, I never missed an episode and secretly longed for a job as dolphin trainer.  If you’ve read my blog before you know I grew up in small town Wisconsin and dolphin training wasn’t exactly a sought-after career so the likelihood of that ever happening was…well let’s face it….zero!

But it’s hard to kill those childhood dreams and then one day….the dawn of swim with the dolphins started showing up in places like Mexico and Jamaica.

Oooh boy I could not wait to do it!  I got in the water, stood on the platform as instructed and then got my first feel of those lovely gray mammals.  I shook its fin, I waved to it.  I was in heaven!  I’m sure my smile was ten feet wide.  All that of course was the buildup to the ultimate dolphin experiences…..so as instructed, I got in the water, stretched out my  arms when my (yes my) two dolphins passed by I grabbed their dorsal fins and got towed through the water.  Hint, stop smiling here or you get a big drink of dolphin pool water.

Now that was fantastic…but wait…it gets better.  Back out into the water and floating on my tummy, toes pointed down and the next thing you know my dolphins are pushing me right out of the water.  I had my arms raised in victory!  Nothing could have been better.

At least that is what I thought at the time (circa 1980) until this past winter.  You see my husband and I had the privilege of taking our grand kids on a cruise in January and the two older ones (15 & 11) got a swim with the dolphin experience as a Christmas gift.  This time I got to watch and yes, it was even better than my own dolphin encounter.  I was able to witness them learning to love the dolphins as much as I do.  Two super wide smiles, two kids who could not stop talking about their experience.  I guess you could say it was twice as good as my own experience.  So, take my advice, splurge on the Royal swim for your kids…and the kid in you!   It is a memory you’ll cherish forever.

2017 Apple Vacations Big Sale

Leave a reply

The 2017 Apple Big Sale is going on Now

Pick your destination:  Cancun/Riviera Maya, Punta Cana, Puerto Vallarta, Cozumel and Jamaica.  We have special savings on all Apple Vacations plus very Exclusive Savings on All-Inclusive Charter Air Packages of 7 nights or more from Chicago, Rockford and Milwaukee.   Some travel date restrictions apply – contact Sue or Paul for more details (262) 538-2140.

Here are just a few of the properties included in this year’s sale

Adults Only All-Inclusive

Family Friendly All-Inclusive

Call now to get you first choice on dates 262.583.2140

New Group GetAway Just Added – but you must act soon

Leave a reply

Have you ever taken a European river cruise?  Have you ever cruised with Uniworld Boutique River Cruises?

river-princess

Our customers love to cruise on Uniworld.  In fact it has one of the highest rates for repeat trips amongst all the suppliers we use.

 

You may very well ask why that is.  Well for starters, the standards of accommodations, food and service are extremely high.  The ships have very tasteful interiors and yes they are all different, with each being as unique as your voyage.   Typical cruise lengths are 8 – 15 days and everything is included, making for carefree and truly effortless travel.   Included are: scheduled airport transfers, all dining on board, unlimited beverages (including many premium spirits), personalized shore excursions, fitness center, Wi-Fi, on-board entertainment and all gratuities.

kinderdijk-windmillsOK – is this a commercial?  Yes it pretty much is and here is why.  We currently have some very special amazing prices on select Uniworld Cruises including our group cruise in April 2017 from Amsterdam to Antwerp.  This “Tulips and Windmills” cruise is scheduled to coincide perfectly with a visit to the famous Keukenhof gardens which has over 7 million bulbs in bloom each spring.  Additionally we will visit the windmills of Kinderdijk, the picture perfect villages of Veere, Hoorn and Enkhuizen, and the cities of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Bruges and Antwerp.  So much to see and so much to do but you need to act fast.  Why?  Because our amazing special pricing only lasts until October 11.  Give us a call at 262.538.2140 to reserve your spot with our group.

For additional details on the ship and the trip you may also want to visit our web page.

 

 

Europe GetAways in 2017

Leave a reply

We have 2 exciting European Group GetAways scheduled for 2017.  They may both be cruises, but they are completely different!

1-Wine_grapes07First up is the Wines of Western Europe which includes Bordeaux (France), Basque (Spain) and Portugal.  Our group will be sailing aboard the luxurious Azamara Journey.  Azamara Club Cruises is at the crossroads of where luxury and destination immersive cruising meet.  This ship only holds 694 passengers and has a wonderful mix of amenities.  She’s a perfect-sized vessel: small enough that it’s never too far from one place to another, yet large enough to provide variety on long itineraries. On our trip we will experience late evening and overnight port stays.  The Journey was completely refurbished in 2016 –  it received new spa suites in the fully renovated Sanctum spa with updated decor in marble, light wood and a cream palate. Every suite and stateroom has new beds with the same decor scheme, and the restaurants also received a modern upgrade.

Our 12 Night GetAway begins in Southampton England on September 4 and ends in Lisbon Portugal on September 16.  Along the way you will experience the worlds foremost wine region in Bordeaux, spend a day at the Guggenheim museum in Bilbao, wash Tapas down with Rioja wine, and sip port in the Douro Valley – and so much more.  You can find more details at our website.  We hope you can join us.

salzburg2Our second European Group GetAway for 2017 is in December.  Why December?  Christmas Markets!  Come with us and celebrate the season as we cruise along the Danube aboard the Uniworld SS Maria Theresa.  We last visited Christmas markets in 2014 and everyone had such a great time that we knew we’d definitely do it again.

If you’re tired of commercialism taking over the holidays, you will be very pleased with the traditions and romance of real Christmas markets where the gifts are not mass-produced but craftwork of real quality.   Our group will begin in Budapest and sail along the Danube while visiting Hungary, Slovakia, Austria and Germany.  Every stop along the way will feature special Christmas Market excursions.  You can find more details on the itinerary at our website.

Every Uniworld ship is as unique as it’s itinerary and the SS Maria Theresa is no exception.  It’s opulent 18th century décor is a floating homage to one of the Habsburg empires most beloved ruler.  The food, drink and service on Uniworld are absolutely outstanding – and everything is included!  Call now as there are limited time promotions where even the air is included!

  As always, we can be reached at 262.538.2140 or send us an email: paul@getaway.travel or sue@getaway.travel

 

Problems? Not for you.

Leave a reply

Six months ago you booked a special family vacation at an all-inclusive resort in the Caribbean.  You love to travel and fully understand what a special time this will be – so much so, that you enlisted other family members to go with on the trip.  Mom and Dad, Brothers, sisters – everyone was excited.

Did you know that 3 days before you departed on your much-anticipated family vacation, the resort determined they were oversold.  Did you know your name was added to a list of people who were moving to one of their sister properties an additional hour drive away from the airport.

Did you also know that they were only moving some of your family?  Some of you would stay at the original property and others would stay at the sister property.

Did you know this?

Of course you didn’t know.   You use a travel agent.  In fact, you have a great travel agent that works diligently on your behalf.  An agent that solves problems before you ever even know about them.  GetAway Travel LLC – solving problems that their clients didn’t even know they had since 1999.

Getaway awesome

Looking Forward – 2016 Year in Travel

Leave a reply

European vacations continue to hold great value. The US Dollar remains at historic low levels vs. the Euro. This is good news for travelers to Europe as you definitely get more bang for your buck.  Our best advice for Europe is to plan ahead – this is not a destination that typically rewards the last-minute traveler.   The best way to start planning your European vacation is to schedule a consultation with Sue.

Uniworld River Baroness Honfleur France 3-26-2009 4-32-41 AMRiver Cruising continues to grow and for very good reasons. Our clients absolutely love to take River Cruises. All it takes is to try it once and you will rave about it forever. Be aware however that not all river cruise companies are equal. You can research endlessly on your own, or you can call us to discuss. Our goal is to find out about what you want to do, how adventurous you are, what you like and what you don’t like. What are your travel dreams?  Our recommendations are simply based on you and your needs, that’s it.

iberostar-rose-hall-beach-poolAll Inclusive vacations will remain hot, hot, hot. The industry continues to upgrade old properties and build new ones. There are All-Inclusives for all tastes and budgets. Well we know you want a warm weather, beach destination, but are you looking for a romantic escape or a family/multi-generational getaway? Do you want basic dining choices or a more gourmet experience?   How does a canopy covered bed and open air shower sound? Or a private plunge pool within mere steps of your suite? The choices go on and on.  We can help narrow it down to something you will love.

According to the experts, air ticket prices are down but add-on fees are up.  The simple fact, is you need air tickets to get to many vacation destinations. They are the transportation, not the vacation.

Cheap will remain, well….cheap. While the dictionary defines cheap as inexpensive, it also defines it as something of poor quality or shoddy. Continue to be cautious about anything advertised as cheap, supercheap, ultracheap, etc. A fantastically cheap vacation is not a good value if it is actually craptastic (this is our official industry word for cheap vacations!). Everyone wants good value and that’s where we help – get the best value for your money that actually gets the vacation experience you are looking for. Will it be cheap? We certainly hope not.

The best things in travel continue to come to those who plan ahead. For example, how about planning 2017? You may not be ready yet, but we are. We have 2 special group options worth considering.

Join us in January 2017 for our GetAway on the Getaway.   We will do all the following:  go down the highest water slides at sea, attend award-winning Broadway shows, experience Iron Chef dining, walk the plank and be endlessly entertained and pampered.   Book now and choose between Free unlimited drinks, Free Specialty Dining, Free Shore Excursions or Free WiFi.

In September 2017 we will be hosting a very special Wines of Western Europe group on the Azamara Journey.  Beginning in England, we will sail to France, Spain and Portugal.  Azamara specializes in unique itineraries that include overnight stays in many ports.  Our group will be in Bordeaux, one of the world’s foremost wine regions for 3 days.  But that is not the only World Heritage region we will visit – see our web page for all the details.

Thinking about a destination wedding?

Destination weddings are very popular and for very good reasons:  They can cost considerably less than a traditional wedding, and often include more.  You can choose from many amazingly beautiful locations.  You and your select family and friends get a wonderful vacation experience you will always remember.

We have helped many clients just like you have amazing destination weddings.  We are such experts that in fact, our own wedding was a destination wedding!

#10 Destination Wedding