TRAVEL
Home & Away with Robert Walshe Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts launches Shangri-La Escapes, a collection of specially created packages from select hotels and resorts throughout the world. Designed with travelers’ passions in mind and aiming to offer the very best of Shangri-La hospitality, Shangri-La Escapes have been crafted to please the shopaholic, the gourmand, the spa junkie, the nature lover, and the culture vulture. The packages include VIP services at Shangri-La restaurants, spas and nature reserves or special touring opportunities to unlock exclusive insider access to a destination. Travelers can explore nature on a private island in the Maldives, in the jungles of Borneo, off the coast of Cebu or with the pandas of Sichuan. Adventures of the palette await in a few of the world’s most culinary-obsessed cities: Hong Kong, Beijing, and Guangzhou. Amateur historians can marvel at the cultural sites of Chiang Mai and Guilin. Fashionistas can hunt for treasures and bargains in Bangkok and Shanghai. And those looking for a relaxing spa retreat can embark upon CHI journeys in Borneo and Penang. For more information and reservations, please contact a travel professional or access the website at www.shangri-la. com
Weekend Hotspot
The best thing about Moscow is the remarkable architecture that lines the city’s streets. Not many cities can boast such a collection of imposing structures, and few are the places where the weight of history sits so heavily. Everywhere you turn in this city, rousing sights and iconic images abound: the Red Square, St Basil’s Cathedral and the Kremlin come together to contribute to one of the world’s most dramatic skylines. Moscow also has a couple of attractive parks and gardens: Alexandrovsky Garden,
Neskuchniy Garden and Gorky Park (made famous by Martin Cruz Smith’s novel). These can be particularly attractive in winter, when, covered in snow, they capture the city’s stark beauty perfectly. Moscow hotels offer excellent properties but tend to be expensive. My favourite is Baltschug Kempinski a classic European grand hotel, with a historic façade dating from 1898. The hotel is part of a gracious 19thcentury architectural ensemble, with a direct view of the Kremlin, Red Square, and St. Basil’s Cathedral The opulent marbles lobby is the central focus of this luxury hotel. Guests gather there to meet friends and business associates, and also to enjoy the decadent afternoon tea. There are also excellent business facilities, with 9 conference and banqueting rooms within the building. The health club and fitness centre is available to all guests, and includes state-of-the-art exercise and relaxation facilities www.kempinski.com A reminder that S7 airlines fly directly ex Dublin or connections are available through Budapest with Malev Airlines www.malev. com
Weekly Best Buy
Join Joe Walsh Tours one of Ireland’s leading religious tours specialist, for the Beatification of Pope John Paul II on the Feast of Divine Mercy on Sunday 1st May. Offers include 4 nights Rome from €674pp on a B&B basis, 4 nights Rome & 3 nights San Giovanni from €824pp, 4 nights Rome on a B&B basis, 3 nights San Giovanni on a full board basis. All prices include return flights, accommodation as per itinerary, services of a Joe Walsh Tours representative and airport taxes. Insurance is optional and available on request for €25 per person. Flights depart: 29 April 2011 from Dublin &
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Cork, 30 April 2011 from Belfast. www.joewalshtours.ie. From the cosmopolitan cities of Sydney and Melbourne to vibrant Cairns, Australia’s East Coast is the ultimate holiday destination. There are endless unspoilt beaches, breathtaking natural treasures and action packed activities to keep you entertained. For anyone thinking of taking a trip to Down under, Abbey Travel’s Australia Travel Centre should be your one stop shop for everything Australia. Abbey Travel’s, Australia Travel Centre, have the following fantastic fares with Qantas Airways. Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Cairns from €521 + €335 tax. Travel: 16th April to 20th June 2011. Book now as sale ends on the 13th April. *Flights are from Dublin/Cork to Australia via London and Hong Kong. www. abbeytravel.ie. Who says the Easter Bunny isn’t real? He’s alive and hopping at the Radisson St Helen’s Hotel in Dublin this spring so why not take the kids for a fun-filled overnight family break full of sweet surprises. The fun starts on your arrival at the stunning five-star Radisson Blu St Helen’s Hotel, when children will be given their very own Easter Egg which is bound to keep them occupied long enough for you to settle into your luxurious room.
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For those families staying at the hotel for Easter Sunday there will be much egg-citement when the hotel’s Easter Bunny makes an appearance in the grounds for the children’s Easter Treasure Hunt. This cracking Easter Family Package is available from just €210 per room (for two adults and two children sharing), for one night’s luxury five star accommodation, a Super Buffet Breakfast, and the buffet lunch or dinner in talavera. The package is available for bookings from 16th - 24th April 2011, subject to availability, but the Easter Bunny will only be in attendance on Easter Sunday. www.radissonblu.ie/ sthelenshotel-dublin Robert Walshe is a freelance contributor / broadcaster and is guest travel writer for River Media newspaper titles across the island of Ireland
Home and Away Extra The recent rebranding of The Courtyard by Marriott Hotel in Galway to become The Pillo Hotel & Spa marks the official launch of a new Irish Hotel brand, ‘Pillo Hotels’. The company is led by former senior executives of Jury’s Doyle Hotel Group, and backed by Dublin based private equity firm Ion Equity. With the current challenges facing the Irish hotel sector, “Pillo Hotels” presents itself as a well funded vehicle with the necessary expertise to steer debt burdened hotels beyond the current difficulties. Speaking at the launch, Director of Operations Conal O’Neill said; “While there is no clear end in sight to the difficulties being experienced in the Irish hotel sector, work we have undertaken indicates that there is still room for improved operating and financial performance in many hotels regardless of the economic conditions. Hotel owners, banks and receivers should view this as an opportunity and look to engage with well funded hotel operating companies that have the expertise to make a difference to these businesses.”
with Kathleen Murray
with Kathleen Murray: Animal Behavioural Therapist
Do cats and dogs really get along together?
Cats and dogs can get along really well together if they are brought up properly together. If you have had a cat for a while and then get a young pup there will be some settling in to do. The cat will not like the intrusion and may go away for a while or may be a bit rough with the pup, but if you keep the cat indoors in a cage and let the pup get over its curiosity, by allowing it to sniff the cat without getting injured, then the novelty will wear off very soon and they will be able to co-exist quite peacefully. The pup must always be corrected for getting too “enthusiastic” if it tries to get the cat to
run so he can chase it, or is too excitable during any play with the cat. The cat will soon get used to it and then not pay too much attention to the pup after a few days. Make sure that the pup has enough exercise so that the cat is not the target for his energy release or frustration. If you have just gotten a new adult dog and it is showing a tendency towards being aggressive with the family cat then the cat needs to be put into a cage for its own safety and the dog should be put on a lead. The dog needs to learn to ignore the cat. This is very important but
will take a little time to achieve. You can practice each day a few times by bring the dog into the room when the cat is in the cage. If the dog ignores the cat then reward it but if it shows “interest” then chastise the dog for that until it stops. There are many ways to chastise a dog… none of them should contain shouting or hitting as part of it. This only slows down the process and may even excite the dog into being even more aggressive toward the cat. If you have a dog already and then get a new kitten, the kitten has all the rights. It has the right to wander about without being licked, nosed,
pawed or whatever else that the dog has in store for it. The dog is the one that needs to be controlled. When the kitten has more confidence and starts to approach the dog itself then things will need to be supervised in case the dog is unsure about how to react. It is very important that the animals are never let alone together until you are certain that they get along. No matter how well your dog and cat get along in their lifetime a strange cat passing by outside will still always be an intruder and something to be chased by your dog… and most likely your cat too.