46 wicklownews
TRAVEL
Home & Away tinental Airlines and Delta Airlines, which all fly directly to New York City.
Holiday Hotspot
NYC & Company, the city’s marketing, tourism and partnership organisation, has announced the preliminary figures for visits to New York City in 2008. Around 343,000 people visited New York City in 2008. New York City holds the number one position for all travelers on the island of Ireland to the USA. With up to nine direct daily flights from Ireland to New York City, ease of access is an important factor in attracting the increasing number of Irish travelers. Air fares are extremely competitive amongst the three airlines plying the routes from Ireland, Aer Lingus, Con-
There are two wildly different Mallorcas; one which delights the bucket-and-spadewielding masses, and one that has served as a playground for the rich and famous since the island’s 1930s heyday. Despite the thousands that pass through its airport every day, Palma belongs very definitely to the latter, with a stylish array of boutique hotels and high-class restaurants gracing its beautifully preserved medieval buildings.
Reads is a privately owned, totally unique five star luxury hotel with just 23 rooms. Situated at the foot of the Tramuntana mountains it is surrounded by landscaped
Living
TUESDAY 31 MARCH 2009
with Robert Walshe gardens and tranquility yet is just 15 minutes by car or 20 minutes by train from the magic city of Palma. The magnificent stone house dates back to the 16th century and was converted to a hotel over a period of seven years. Aer Lingus and Ryan Air fly to Palma from Cork, Dublin and Shannon while Easy Jet depart Belfast daily
Weekly Best Buy Enjoy a four star camping holiday with great deals from the French Holiday Centre. With over 319 campsites in 15 European countries, the French Holiday Centre is sure to have something to suit the whole family. If you take a return car trip to France on the direct service between June 1 and August 31, you will receive a free return trip to Britain for a car and two adults on cruise ferry services from Dublin to Holyhead or Rosslare to Pembroke. To book your four star camping holiday or for more information please visit www. frenchholidaycentre.ie Fancy following the historic Inca Trail and immersing yourself in all that Peru has
Learn to draw with Jarla
to offer? Abbey Travel has a special 13 day Inca Discovery tour of magnificent Peru that is guaranteed to impress even the most intrepid traveler. This 13 day journey through Peru costs from just €2,345 per person in low season (plus airport taxes) and from €2,875 per person in high season (plus airport taxes) and includes flights, transfers and accommodation. www.abbeytravel.ie
Home and Away Extra Cunard has revealed details of its new Queen Elizabeth ship, which will enter service on October 12, 2010, with a voyage to the Canary Islands and Madeira. The line said the 2,000-passenger ship will pay homage to the first Queen Elizabeth, with double and triple-height
public rooms featuring wood paneling, intricate mosaics, chandeliers, marble and art deco styling. It will offer additions to the normal Cunard entertainment programme, with extras inspired by the era of the first Queen Elizabeth, including piano evenings, and period dancing, from traditional ballroom to the jitterbug and the jive. The first no-frills long-haul flight between London and Malaysia took off last week when Air Asia X launched its Stansted-Kuala Lumpur service. The service is initially operating five direct flights a week, and connects at Kuala Lumpur with flights to destinations including Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Bali and Australia. The route will be serviced by an Airbus A340-300, which holds 286 seats including 30 “XL” seats with 60-inch pitch See www.airasia.com. Robert Walshe presents “The Amazing 80s “on KFM, Ocean FM, and on Northern Ireland radio stations Five, Six, Seven FM, Q102 (Derry), Q101 and Q97. He also is a freelance travel contributor on radio and in press.
Weekend Hotspot Set amidst one of the most scenic and historic estates in Ireland, The RitzCarlton at Powerscourt, Co Wicklow is a 200- room resort showcasing Palladian style architecture and offering guests a host of amenities. Two championship-calibre golf courses on the grounds, a 30,000 square foot luxury spa by ESPA and a Gordon Ramsay signature restaurant feature The seven-story hotel exhibits many Georgian influences in its design, from the lobby located on the fourth floor of the hotel with views of the Powerscourt Gardens and the Sugarloaf Mountain to the layout of the spacious guestrooms and suites. Approximately 60 per cent of the rooms are suites of 700 square feet (68 square meters), the largest in Ireland, featuring relaxing color schemes as well as floor to ceiling windows.