Renovated RIU Tequila Reopens Nov 28

After $15 million dollars US and 3 months of renovations, the RIU Tequila is about to reopen ready for the winter season. RIU resorts are well known with Canadians for their consistently great service, clean and well run properties.

The RIU Tequlia is one of RIU's Club properties that is set next to an 18 hole golf course and near their sister resorts of RIU Lupita, RIU Yucatan and RIU Playacar.

Changes to the resort include the addition of flat screen TVs in the Junior Suites, irons and ironing boards in all rooms, the Bamboo a la carte restaurant with Asian inspired food, and refurbished public spaces.

CARL'S TIP: Note that this All Inclusive property is not right on the beach but has a short shuttle or walk to the beach. If you are on a budget, it is great property to choose as we usually get better pricing with it being just off the beach. The bonus is that you can use the facilities of RIU Yucatan and the RIU Playacar.

To check rates on this newly renovated property, visit my online booking engine at:

http://www.tpiworldwide.com/carlhenderson/bookings.asp

or give me a call at 416.972.9688 or 1.877.972.2275 there are some great rates available this winter!

Royal Caribbean Cruises Limited - Changing the Cruise Industry

As many of you may have already seen in the news section of my travel site (Click Here), I recently was fortunate enough to have been invited on board the brand new Celebrity Solstice cruise ship which in my mind, is the most beautiful ship at sea – modern and contemporary with a host of new and unique features such as the Lawn Club, glass blowing demonstrations and an incredible Cirque de Soleil type show taking ship entertainment to new levels. The ship definitely wowed and impressed me on every level and I believe is going to be taking Celebrity Cruises to a new level.

Celebrity Cruises is owned and operated by Royal Caribbean Cruises Limited who are also the parent company of Royal Caribbean International, the company responsible for creating the new Oasis of the Seas which will be the world’s largest ship at sea and the most incredible feat of ship building ever.

For cruise lovers, Royal Caribbean Cruises Limited offers something for everyone and continues to be the leader in bringing new cruise ship designs, technology and features to their ships. Celebrity for more upscale higher end ships with a modern, designer style, outstanding food and service that provides attention to every last details. Royal Caribbean for years has been delivering the ‘wow’ with innovative features such as rock climbing walls, skating rinks and now the new Oasis of the Seas is going to have incredible features such as zip lining, an aqua theatre, a rising bar, park with trees and plants and so much more.

Both new ships for the lines are just the first in a series, proving once again, Royal Carribbean Cruises Limited is leading the way in changing the history of the cruise industry.

Celebrity Solstice

More on the new Celebrity Solstice Class – Click Here

Sailing the Eastern Caribbean this winter and the wonderful Mediterranean Sea in summer 2009


Oasis of the Seas

Join me on a group sailing of the Oasis of the Seas - Feb 06, 2010

email me for details - chenderson@tpi.ca

More on the new Oasis of the Seas - Click Here

Book with a TICO Registered Agency for Protection

IATA, the International Air Transport Association has stated that there are at least 20 international airlines at risk of bankruptcy at this time thanks to financial instability in the US, fuel prices and a downturn in the number of travellers flying.

This is just a reminder that when you book with me, I am with a registered TICO Travel Agency meaning if an airline you are booked on does go bankrupt you have some (perhaps full) coverage for reimbursement through TICO's travel compensation fund.

If you are booking your own flights directly with the airlines you do not have coverage. I do charge a service fee on air only bookings - but there are definitely advantages of using a professional travel consultant and the TICO Compensation fund is one of them.

Here are some of the more recent closeures:

Zoom Airlines - August 28 '08
Oasis Hong Kong Airlines - April 9 '08
ATA Airlines - April 4 '08
Aloha Airlines - April 2 '08

Click on the link below to visit the TICO Website or feel free to call me to learn more.

External Web Link

www.carlhenderson.ca

Who is Running that Website?

First of all thanks to all of you who have emailed me regarding my new online booking engine and online travel store. I hope you enjoy using them and you can shop with confidence as you know I am always there behind your bookings to help you out with any questions you may have.

That brings me to the reason of this blog entry - I urge you to watch where you are doing your online shopping for travel and any other items. Make sure you know it is a reputable supplier. I know many people purchase online but in the last 2 days I have been reading reports about consumers who have lost a lot of money buying online.

The first was purchasing tickets for Olympic events. Someone set up a company and professional looking website selling event tickets that they never had. Come the time to fulfill the orders they apologized that they were unable to secure the tickets and filed for bankruptcy closing their doors leaving many consumers out money and sitting with airline tickets to China, a hotel room and nothing but a TV to watch the events . In many cases this happened to family of Olympians competing in the events.


The second is a scam that is going around to purchase your international driver's licence for anywhere from $60 up to $200 online, when you should be buying it at CAA for only $15!

Just a reminder to be careful where you are doing any online shopping. If it is travel related and you don't see it on my site, give me a call or email and I will gladly help you out and make sure your bookings go through a secure and reputable tour operator. What I have available online is a small fraction of what I book for clients.

Cheers,
Carl

www.carlhenderson.ca