What is boutique tourism, and why might it be the best vacation you’ve ever had? Three of the four “best trips ever” began with a host in the area or an informed friend. Travel stress and uncertainty can often strip you of the relaxation that you had hoped for. You may even need a vacation after your vacation. Boutique travel is the answer. All you need to do is turn up, have fun and enjoy the trip. A travel expert who anticipates your unspoken and spoken desires and solves logistics is not a guarantee of a good trip, but it is a great place to start.
Travel when and where you like, how you choose. Your vacation is all about you. We will tell you about our experiences on the road to show the benefits of boutique travel.
Boutique Cruising: Peace of Mind During Pandemic
Cruises are the last place you would want to be in a pandemic. A 500-person booze cruise might have the same effect, but a boutique cruise for small groups is different. There is a central hub for all activities, food and housing.
Imagine how many people pass through the lobby of a hotel, eat at three restaurants per day and go to different activities. You see the same people on the boat every day. They are there for every meal and activity. Everyone had to have been tested recently to enter the country. We were reassured by the numbers, and we ran contact tracing scenarios through our minds.
Aqua Cat Liveaboard: Our Experience
We were told that we would be crazy to embark on a Bahamas dive liveaboard at the beginning of 2021. The Bahama diving sites can be reached only by liveaboard. How could this trip work? Thank you, it turns out very well.
We didn’t need to worry about getting into a random cab because the driver of our company met us at airport. While we waited for crew members to clean up the ship from bow-to-stern after the previous guests, we went to the marina to enjoy margaritas with conch fritters.
We only saw 11 guests and crew for the rest of the week. We didn’t worry about what restaurants were open or if any activities had resumed. The crew was amazing and took care of all the details. We could dive five times per day and also take part in optional (included), island excursions for hiking, swimming, and playing. It was the same old, familiar normal that we loved. That’s exactly what we wanted from boutique travel.
Boutique Tour: Ancient Egypt Tour on the Nile River Cruise
A Nile River Cruise is one of the few experiences that can awaken your travel spirit. Exploring a four-thousand-year-old civilization that built structures large enough to be seen from space is somewhere on everybody’s bucket list. Egypt has always been on everyone’s bucket list. It should be more of a question about ‘how’. A boutique tour is a good option.
Is Egypt safe ? It’s generally safe, but can be confusing, crowded, dirty and uncomfortable. Cairo is home to more people than New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago combined, yet they do not use the Latin alphabet. Then add to it the cultural differences and oppressive heat of the desert. It may not be the best of times depending on your type of traveler. It doesn’t need to be this way.
My experience with Innovative Travel in Egypt
Ed, my husband, and I both had completely different experiences in Egypt. He was with his family who had ordered trips on a la carte. I went on a boutique tour. He recalls the crazy cab rides and being the only person standing at the train station during the evening prayer. I was greeted by a representative of the company at my arrival gate and was whisked away through immigration to enter an air-conditioned SUV. A phone charger and a bottle of water were waiting for me.
Both of us saw the Pyramids. I stayed near the gates of Giza, and from my pool, I could see the Pyramids. We began our day in the early morning and had a behind-the scenes tour of the Grand Egyptian Museum. Ed rode a camel in the midday sun on the flatulentest camel the world has ever seen. Ed and I both visited the Valley of the Kings, but only I was accompanied by our private guide. Ed, on the other hand, just found someone hanging around at the entrance. I had a private tour to Abu Simble – one of Egypt’s remotest and most impressive antiquity sites.
All of these things happened to me, but I didn’t have any headaches. After I booked a luxury Egyptian holiday with a boutique provider they took care the rest. This is a convenient service.
Experiences: Boutique Bike Tour in Thailand
Every traveler will end up in Thailand sooner or later. We developed a personality quiz based on the experiences that people have had in Thailand.
One type of person will look for the cheapest food along Koh San Road to save money so that they can collect ping-pong balls in Pattaya. Another person spends a lot of money to feel as if they have never left home. The coolest people, however, take a two hundred mile boutique bike tour along the Thai coastline. If you come across people who are like this, I suggest you sign up for their blogs or something.
Cruise the coast to Samui
Our Thai adventure didn’t begin on Koh San Road but at the Bangkok Conrad. We got a great deal because I am a Hilton Concierge and took advantage of my employee discount. We expected value-priced luxurious accommodations, but it was all so …. Western. Our guide, who met us at the hotel lobby to begin our four-day Thailand cycling adventure, changed everything.
We saw the real Thailand or places that most tourists do not. We had curried crab that was superior to anything we could find in the city and the sweetest fruit from roadside stands. We watched the countryside move at 14 miles an hour, instead of the chaotic capital. The boutique bike tour was key.
Tic got to know us from the moment he met us at our Hotel to the time he dropped at the ferry to Koh Tai. What was our favorite food? How fast can we cycle? What did we want to see? He designed a tour that was completely customized based on our interests. Tic’s four-day boutique tour was more educational and more fun than the day trips we would have booked from vendors along Koh San Road.
Boutique Ayurveda – Guidance and Innovation
Sri Lanka has a fascinating history, which is always connected to India but also slightly different. The country is home to the largest Asian elephant species, 2000 years of Ayurvedic culture, and an ancient fortress Sigiriya Rock, which has been called the eighth wonder of the World. Sri Lanka is a popular travel destination because of its natural parks, ancient sites that are well preserved, and beach resorts.
Sri Lanka is a destination that offers a lot. You might wonder why it’s not already well-known. A 25-year civil war ended only in 2009 and the 2004 tsunami destroyed much of Sri Lanka’s tourist infrastructure. The train system is decent, but not connected to an international airport. Traffic feels like it belongs in Death Race 2000. We chose a boutique Ayurvedic hotel in Sri Lanka because of this.
Experiences at a Boutique Ayurvedic Resort in Sri Lanka
We were happy to have chosen a boutique Ayurvedic resort, with all that Sri Lanka has to offer and the obstacles we faced. As we weren’t welcomed at the airport like in Egypt, we were able to enjoy the chaos of Sri Lanka on our own. We could not read the signs at the airport, so we just followed the crowds to customs. We could only make out the warnings about the draconian penalties for drug possession, but we were able to guess at the rest of penal code. We met our driver after walking past the airport appliance store. He drove us through the traffic to the remote jungle retreat.
As soon as we arrived on the property, decompression began in earnest. We practiced mindfulness, ate herbs from the retreat garden, and had an Ayurvedic consult. Even though Ed was leaving his job of 20 years, the stress he was feeling at that time melted away during the retreat. We felt a decade younger both in our mind and body. When you are moving to a new house, you need to relax and refocus.
We never saw this side of Sri Lanka again after we left the retreat. The retreat provided us with information and guidance that allowed us to see Sri Lanka as a local would and avoid the tourist traps.
We stayed at Hikkaduwa after the retreat and experienced the tourist clichés. The Ayurvedic herb garden was only interested in selling “cures” and the best restaurant was run by Australian expats.
The’moonstone’ mine was way too expensive and I don’t think they’ve mined anything for the past 20 years, but they still paid men to speak to busloads full of tourists from the pit. Even though we saw the good and bad of Hikkaduwa – but the Ayurvedic Resort was the highlight, even the best parts could not compare.
Why Booking a Boutique Experience is a Good Idea for Your Next Vacation
You can enjoy peace of mind with boutique travel, convenience and simplicity, enhanced experiences and guidance when you most need it. You’ll find that boutique travel offers many benefits.
Consider how much you spend on each day of travel, including everything from booking your airfare to taking time off. Is it worth trying to cut corners on your vacation? According to the According to the article, 77% of those who went on the best trips knew a local host and/or had a knowledgeable companion.