Travelore News: Venice To Charge All Visitors To Access Historic Center

VENICE, Italy (AP) — The mayor of Venice says Italy’s new budget law will allow the lagoon city to charge all visitors for accessing the historic center, not just those spending the night.

Mayor Luigi Brugnaro announced on Twitter late Sunday that the tax will be extended to include anyone arriving in the city to “allow us to manage the city better and to keep it clean,” and “allow Venetians to live with more decorum.” The city council will determine the tax amount and collection mode.

Some 25 million people visit Venice each year, with about one-fifth spending at least one night in the historic center. Overnight visitors are currently charged a small tax per night.

Brugnaro said the substantial cost of cleaning and maintaining security has so far been paid “only by Venetians.”

Luxury Comes To Expedition Cruising

Ponant introduced the expedition ship Le Champlain (shown here in Norway) earlier this year. It is one of the first expedition vessels to offer a range of luxurious amenities.CreditCreditPonant

New small ships built for adventure are also offering a full range of amenities, from saunas and fine dining to solariums and luxury suites.

By Elaine Glusac

When it launches in spring 2020, the 126-passenger National Geographic Endurance from Lindblad Expeditions will have amenities on par with a luxury vessel, including two restaurants, a glass-walled yoga studio, an infinity Jacuzzi facing the stern and two saunas with panoramic windows so heat-bathers won’t miss the passing scenery. Such features aren’t uncommon on larger ships, but they may be the first to sail in northeast Greenland and along the Northeast Passage from Norway across Russia.

Generally associated with small ships bound for remote locales, expedition cruising has historically focused on the destination rather than the conveyance. Ships were strictly base camps for Zodiac trips to view the icebergs of Antarctica or hike game trails in remote Alaska.

Now the vessels themselves are getting an upgrade from Lindblad and several other lines, freeing passengers from choosing between adventure and comfort.

“The ship was just a place to lay your head at night, but there is a real growing segment that wants more,” said Colleen McDaniel, the senior executive editor of Cruise Critic, the online review site. “They want hard-charging experiences in port and onboard they want some luxury and space. That’s a niche that a lot of cruise lines are trying to fill.”

Small ships, big growth

With small ships bound for offbeat destinations, expedition cruises account for a small sector of the cruise industry. In 2018, Cruise Industry News put it at about one percent of the global market, but found that 28 ships have been — or will be — launching between this year and 2022, suggesting this style of cruising is catching on.

“Expedition travel is growing in leaps and bounds for a few reasons,” said Susan Boehnstedt, the president of Critics Choice Vacations, part of the Virtuoso network of travel agencies, based in Queen Creek, Ariz. “One, is that the typical ocean liner cruise client has traveled this way for years,” she said, referring to big-ship ocean cruising. Then luxury river cruising gained in popularity, and now, “they are looking for something a bit smaller and up close and personal.”

Crystal Experience, which includes the ocean liner Crystal Cruises and Crystal River Cruises, will add its first polar ship, the 200-passenger Endeavor, to its Crystal Yacht Expedition Cruises collection in August 2020.

While visiting Antarctica, the ship is designed to keep guests toasty, from heated storage in the cabins meant to dry wet parkas quickly to a two-story solarium with a swimming pool and hot tub. Among amenities, there will be six restaurants, including one from the celebrated chef Nobu Matsuhisa, a pair of helicopters for excursions, and a three-person submersible. Its 17-day inaugural journey from Japan to Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula starts at $24,949 a person.

A suite in Ponant's new Le Laperouse ship.CreditPonant

Underwater lounges and submarines

“There are people who just want the basics, but there’s a whole group of people who might not have gone to those places until the luxury is there,” said Marcella Rappoport, a cruise specialist at Ovation Travel in New York.

For fine food and lavish suites, she recommends the French line Ponant, which is leading the expansion race, launching two 184-passenger ships in 2019, two more in 2020 and a 135-cabin ship in 2021. Its newest vessels, Le Laperouse, which made its debut in June, and Le Champlain, an October newcomer, each have a Blue Eye lounge, with oblong portholes, low underwater lighting and hydrophones that transmit the natural sounds at sea. Sofas vibrate in time with the acoustics (upcoming 13-day trips in the Amazon region start at about $8,200 a person).

Demand for expedition cruising is attracting both new lines, including Norwegian Yacht Voyages, which is expected to unveil a 222-guest ship in 2022, and line expansions, such as two new 264-passenger polar-class ships from Seabourn, each carrying submarines as well as kayaks, expected in 2021 and 2022. Silversea plans to introduce its 100-passenger Silver Origin in the Galápagos in 2020.

Known for its river ships, Scenic Luxury Cruises & Tours plans to send out its first ocean ship, the 228-passenger Scenic Eclipse, in early 2019, visiting places like Panama and Colombia (10 days from $9,295) and Alaska (13 days from $6,645), and carrying a six-passenger submarine and two helicopters.

Offbeat adventure and culture

Smaller ships make it possible to pull into smaller or shallower ports, such as the French Iles des Saintes in the Caribbean, and many expedition ships, such as the new Lindblad ship, are built to navigate polar ice.

Not all expedition cruises visit extreme destinations. Sometimes they go culturally deeper. Since 2010 the luxury tour operator Abercrombie & Kenthas been chartering Ponant ships to offer expedition cruises in places such as Japan and Antarctica by reserving entire ships and bringing in its own experts and guides.

In 2018, the company began expedition cruises in Greece, and in 2019 it will add Italy, following the coast from Livorno on the Mediterranean south around the boot and back up to Venice (13-day trips from $11,995 a person), as well as the remote Kimberley region of Australia (13-days from $15,495 a person).

“These new expedition cruises will attract a more adventurous person who may not be looking for a cruise but now sees this as an easy way to get to outer islands or parts of Japan without flying around a lot,” Ms. Rappoport said.

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A version of this article appears in print on Dec. 30, 2018, on Page TR6 of the New York edition with the headline: Cruise Lines Enhance Small Ships for Expedition Travel. Order Reprints

Travelore Tips: The Latest New Experiences In Ireland

No matter how many times you go to Ireland you’re going to discover something new.

Ireland is a destination that is constantly adding more experiences to its extensive list of top quality things to see and do, meaning there is always a reason to head for its welcoming shores.

Among the newest experiences are a driving school for children at Tayto Park in County Meath and the recently opened Roe and Co. Distillery in Dublin, both of which have made it into Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel 2019, the highly anticipated annual collection of the best travel destinations, trends, journeys and experiences to have in the year ahead.

The collection outlines the top 10 countries, cities, regions and best value places to visit in the coIrelandming year, as well as the 10 best New Openings, Places to Stay, Food Experiences and Attractions for Kids.

The Attractions for Kids list features the Nissan Driving School at Tayto Park, Ireland’s first ever driving school for kids and an exciting new dimension to the ever popular theme park and zoo. Children get the chance to drive a miniature battery-operated Nissan car along a purpose-built, road-marked traffic course, learn the rules of the road and get their own special driving licence.

On the New Openings list is Roe & Co. Distillery, named in honour of the world-famous nineteenth-century Irish whiskey maker. Scheduled to open in April 2019, it is the latest addition to Ireland’s burgeoning whiskey industry. The distillery has created a blend of the finest quality malt and grain whiskies, aged in first-fill ex-bourbon casks, which will be celebrated and explored in a new visitor centre.

For whiskey lovers, a further new offering is also available in the newly released Teeling Single Pot Still, the first new Dublin distilled Irish whiskey for nearly 50 years. Produced from 50% unmalted barley and 50% malted barley, a uniquely Irish mash bill made famous by Dublin distillers of old, the new whiskey is exclusively available in Ireland. It’s a great reason to visit the working Teeling Distillery, soak up the sights and sounds and sample a piece of liquid gold history.

For those who prefer a pint of the famous ‘black stuff’ there is another new attraction at the Guinness Storehouse in Dublin. Ireland's most popular attraction features seven floors of interactive experiences revealing the history of the brew and its place in Ireland’s heritage.

Now the Guinness STOUTie presents the ultimate in pint personalisation. Using technology to add natural malt extract to the iconic creamy head of a Guinness pint, the Storehouse can adorn a pint with a sepia toned selfie of the drinker.

An innovative way to come face to face with the perfect Irish pint.

www.ireland.com

It’s A Jungle Out There: Costa Rica With Kids

 Crater expectations … Poás, one of six active volcanoes in Costa Rica. Photograph: Matteo Colombo/Getty Images

Contributed by Jane Dunford

Full of exotic animals and rainforests but also child-friendly, Costa Rica is the perfect natural playground for a family adventure

It’s dark in the rainforest, the air thick with strange croaks and chirps, and our group moves slowly, following José’s torchlight. As he gestures for us to stop, we gather around in silence, the adults as keen as the children to see what he’s spotted. There on a leaf, with its bulging orange eyes, neat green body and comically big tangerine feet, sits a Costa Rican tree frog. Cue delighted squeals all round.

“It’s so cute!” whispers my niece, Georgia, and I nod, partly relieved it’s not a boa constrictor or tarantula.

We’re halfway through a night safari at Maquenque Ecolodge in the far north of the country and the jungle feels tangibly alive. Caiman eyes shine at the edge of the lagoon and frogs and toads of all colours and sizes add to the howler monkeys, turtles and toucans we’d seen earlier in the day.

For somewhere the size of Denmark, Costa Rica packs a powerful punch when it comes to wildlife. A quarter of its land is protected and, with half a million species, it’s one of the world’s most biodiverse countries.

A wild natural playground with decent tourist infrastructure, it seemed the perfect choice for an adventure to remember with a 12-year-old. It is our first trip together, my first time alone in charge of a child (I don’t have kids) and the longest Georgia has been away from her parents. My plan is to show her a world away from life at home – and get her back in one piece.

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 Flight of fancy … great green macaw. Photograph: Getty Images

After a night in the capital, San José, we hit the road. The landscape quickly changes as we snake up into the hills, swathes of mist hanging in the cloud forest. Road signs warn of fauna crossing: monkeys, anteaters and a badger-shaped creature with a long, raised tail that we don’t recognise, though one soon scurries across our path (we later find out it’s a raccoon-like coati).

It’s an easy three-hour drive to La Fortuna, our base for the next couple of nights. The small mountain town is the gateway to Arenal Volcano national park and a hub for activities from zip-wire tours to white-water rafting.

Our first foray is a safari on Rio Blanco (its waters more of a muddy brown than white), floating on rafts through a landscape Georgia deems “just like The Jungle Book”.

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 Jane and Georgia walking in the foothills of Arenal Volcano

We pass monkeys swinging through the canopy, a sloth hanging motionless in a tree and an iguana high up on branches, silhouetted against the sky. Bright blue morpho butterflies flit alongside us and there’s nervous excitement as we come surprisingly close to a caiman and spot crocodiles on the riverbank. A torrential downpour – our school summer holidays fall during Costa Rica’s rainy season – just adds to the fun.

The rain stops in time for an afternoon trek in the national park, dense mist clearing to reveal the looming volcano. Arenal last erupted in 1968, and we hike over a black lava landscape, already thick with rainforest, climbing higher for phenomenal views across lakes and mountains.

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 Green giant … La Fortuna waterfall. Photograph: Getty Images

Hot springs go hand in hand with volcanoes and there are several to visit in the area. It’s almost dark when we arrive at Ecotermales, a magical place with naturally warm waterfalls and various-sized thermal pools – perfect for an after-hike soak.

La Fortuna is fully geared up for tourists (restaurant tips include Snapper House for delicious ceviche) but our next stop, a homestay in Juanilama, a rural community three hours north, takes us well off the beaten tourist track. The women who founded it aim to give visitors an authentic taste of village life and bring in a bit of extra cash.

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 Now you see me … red-eyed tree frog. Photograph: David Tipling/Getty Images

Our host is Eli, who lives with her three children and three-year-old granddaughter Victoria, and we stay in a simple wooden cabin in her garden. Georgia practises her Year 7 Spanish, bonding with Victoria as they play with kitten Blancanieves (Snow White). We eat fried plantain and gallo pinto(Costa Rican rice and beans) and on a tour of a smallholding learn about everything from pineapples – which each take a year and half to grow – to cassava, and press our own fresh sugarcane juice.

The next day, our drive to Maquenque takes us farther north again, over bright green hills and along bumpy unpaved roads lined with pineapple plantations. The lodge is part of the Maquenque Wildlife Refuge – a remote area of lowland tropical rainforest and wetlands to the south of the Nicaragua border. It’s exciting just getting there: cars are abandoned for a boat to take us across the river.

Accommodation is in 15 wooden bungalows with terraces overlooking a lagoon, or high up in treehouses. You don’t need to leave the 68-acre grounds to see incredible wildlife. There are 8km of marked trails through the forest. With more than 400 species of birdlife (including the rare great green macaw), there’s constantly something to gawp at: we see huge scarlet parrots, iridescent green ibises and a chestnut-bellied heron, wings outstretched in the sun.

On our last morning I sign us up for a kayaking trip on the San Juan river. Monkeys, iguanas and crocodiles are among wildlife we’re likely to spot, says Cristian, our guide.

Not the best place then to capsize – and we’re reassured that no one ever has. So it’s a bit of a shock when somehow we do just that and end up in the water, clinging to our kayak, drifting downstream. We’re soon safely back on and Georgia’s laughing – but it’s a while before I can fully focus again on the lush jungle scenery and the kingfishers and giant lizards Cristian points out.

It’s another memory-bank moment from an action-packed week – a proper adventure and one I doubt either of us will ever forget.

Way to go

Rickshaw Travel offers tailor-made itineraries to Costa Rica. The three-day Lava Flows of Arenal Volcano costs £235pp; the two-day At Home with the Tico costs £98pp and the three-day Nature Calls costs £245pp. Transport (either transfers or car hire) and flights extra. British Airways flies direct to Costa Rica from London Gatwick

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 ‘A little slice of Eden’ … Maquenque Eco-Lodge

It’s a little slice of Eden, untamed but very comfortable, and great for children, with a pool hidden in the jungle and a restaurant right on the water. Most produce served comes from the gardens and we drink straight from coconuts and dine on plantain and baked fish.

On our last morning I sign us up for a kayaking trip on the San Juan river. Monkeys, iguanas and crocodiles are among wildlife we’re likely to spot, says Cristian, our guide.

Not the best place then to capsize – and we’re reassured that no one ever has. So it’s a bit of a shock when somehow we do just that and end up in the water, clinging to our kayak, drifting downstream. We’re soon safely back on and Georgia’s laughing – but it’s a while before I can fully focus again on the lush jungle scenery and the kingfishers and giant lizards Cristian points out.

It’s another memory-bank moment from an action-packed week – a proper adventure and one I doubt either of us will ever forget.

Way to go

Rickshaw Travel offers tailor-made itineraries to Costa Rica. The three-day Lava Flows of Arenal Volcano costs £235pp; the two-day At Home with the Tico costs £98pp and the three-day Nature Calls costs £245pp. Transport (either transfers or car hire) and flights extra. British Airways flies direct to Costa Rica from London Gatwick