Unlimited blue in French Polynesia

Honeymoon cliches become reality in French Polynesia where detecting new shades of blue is an activity on itselve. Although there are enough cheaper and closer destinations where the sea is also a blueish and the lagoons are also undefinable transparent, Tahiti and its sister islands stay an ultimate honeymooners paradise. Avoid dissapointment and shattered dream by making the right decisions and staying in the right hotels and places. For experienced travelers there are only two options: the new Four Seasons in Bora Bora and yachting with Bora Bora Cruises or Humana Cruises.

The Four Seasons is ultra-new, stylish, luxurious and an example of how hotels in French Polynesia all have to be. (Almost) perfect service, huge overwater villa's with FREE (an alian word in French Polynesia) wifi everywhere, iPod docking stations, huge plasma's, somptious beds and of course the Bora Bora lagoon right in front of your doorstep... Or set sail with Humana Cruises in the quite unknown Tuamotu's. This is a divers paradise where the lagoon of Rangiora is a postcard perfect. Although Bora Bora is very commercial and not as perfect as one would think, it still stays on the toplist of many love birds and blue sea devotees. More fancier and slik is the T'a Moana yacht in Bora Bora. Upmarket cruising, fine dining and relaxing while French Polynesia passes by. But be willing to spend money or French Polynesia will leave a bitter aftertaste.

Lost islands in the Med

The ultimate way to discover Greece is to cruise from one small island to another.
Tussock Cruising sails to Greek, hidden drops in the Med with names like Kalymnos, Arki and Fourni... Extreme slow traveling with only the wind deciding which way to go and what to do (or not to do). Tussock Cruising is the only "Gulet" organisation who actually sails during a trip. Every day, sometimes the whole day long the sails are up and the only sound is the wind pushing the boat forward. This is by far the best way to relax, unwind and of course see and experience Greece (and Turkey) from a very unique and non-touristy side.

The Oberoi Zahra, new style river cruising

Without a doubt the best way to experience Egypte is to cruise along the Nile. Even just being docked along the quay in Aswan gives a special oasis sensation, hectic noise of the bustle of the city included. The new style to cruise the Nile is boarding the ultra-luxurious Nilecruiser the Oberoi Zahra. Sleek, minimal, stylish (only too bad about the fake woods on the floor). Every room has floor-to-ceiling windows, even the bathrooms. She has dedicated private mooring places to avoid the hectic piers where all the other cruisers board. Of course the Zahra comes with a price but for those who can stand the sizzling heat of the Egyptian summermonths the Zahra offers a reasonable price. After all, Egypt is all about the desertheat and that special steamy atmosphere.

Nomads of the Seas, flyfishing in No-man's-land

Today my article about Nomads of the Seas got published in De Tijd, the financial newspaper in Belgium. A good reason to look back at this unique sailingtrip we did a good month ago. We cruised around the area of Puerto Montt in northern Patagonia on what is by any doubt one of the most high-tech ships in the world. Owner Andres Ergas made sure the hardware for this flyfishing expedition is top-end: 25 milion dollar boat, US Army zodiac of one milion, state-of-the-art helicopter,... Definately the ultimate way to discover this end of the world and most of all, to (learn how to) flyfish. Mister Ergas is quite ambitious and is planning more ultimate experience places all over Chile. From ultra-skiing in the Andes to going deep into the Atacama desert. Will be interesting to follow that. On the other hand, tourism and hospitality in South-America is growing so fast, that even a high-end project like Nomads is suffering from growing pains. My feeling is they have to make sure that the software, or the people running these operations, is as good as their hardware. I guess they still have some fine-tuning to do. Let's keep an eye on that!