Best Short Breaks Tour Operator 2010

ShortBreaks Ltd has been selling short breaks holidays since the company’s inception late 1998 and there really is nothing more important to us than striving for quality of products and service and there is nothing more rewarding than being acknowledged for this and we have just been able to add another award to those we have been given in the past.

Last Saturday, 5^th Jun I attended the workshop organised by Atout France UK, France Tourism Development Agency based in London formerly known as Maison de La France, at the newly opened Park Plaza Westminster Bridge Hotel and they couldn’t have chosen a better venue.

This contemporary, design-led hotel is situated in London’s South Bank, within walking distance of the city’s most iconic attractions, including Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, the London Eye and the London Aquarium and it is a delightful hotel place for such professional event!

Atout France did a fantastic job and the whole organization was absolutely faultless. A superb business workshop and a delightful and vibrant gala evening event. The whole package was outstanding!!

The workshop had over 90 French Exhibitors from Regional Tourist offices, accommodation providers to leisure, culture and transport suppliers all with the purpose to promote their products, destinations and services.

It was a great opportunity for me to be there and meet many of these exhibitors in the light of our future developments and potential business opportunities.

The peak of the workshop culminated with the evening special event French Travel Trade Awards 2010. The French Travel Trade Awards give special recognition to 8 operators for their contribution to the promotion of the destination France in various categories and take into account innovation, initiatives and general dedication to France in the programmes.

The evening event was held at the pillar-free ballroom which was superbly decorated for the event with a kind of seductive touch provided by the dancers dressed in a “Chicago Musical” whom kicked off what was an incredible and thrilling night for ShortBreaks.

Celebrity host of the night was Gyles Brandreth who was funny and entertaining and presented all the 8 awards.

After a delightful meal with plenty of wine served by the impeccable staff, I could already feel the pressure and tension when Giles Brandreth went back to the stage to read the programme. The award ceremony started with a massive boom as the first award presented was for the Best Short Breaks Tour Operator 2010 where ShortBreaks appeared amongst the 4 nominees.

After few minutes of suspense, the name of the winner was disclosed and guess what? We did it!!! You can only imagine my delight, felicity and pleasure. It was unbelievable, surprising, and incredible!!

French Government Tourist Office

ShortBreaks has been awarded Best Short Breaks Tour Operator 2010 beating tough competition all those demonstrating strong commitment and creativity during the very challenging economic climate of the past 2 years. I had the honor to go on stage and collect the award in front of a very excited audience and it felt awesome!! I can only describe it as the cherry on the cake!!

And how do the winners normally celebrate their successes? Of course with some good champagne!!!

In fact the party which kicked off after dinner was absolutely magical!!

The opening of two massive curtains at the end of the ballroom unveiled one of the most amazing display of flute glasses I have ever seen.

The golden colour of the champagne, its intense perlage and delicate smell raised the party to a completely different level and I can still see the amazed and astounded faces of all the guests watching at that phenomenal spectacle.

It goes without saying that we should all be proud of this great achievement and it wouldn’t have been possible without the work, commitment, dedication and professionalism that all the staff at ShortBreaks put into their your daily work.

The ShortBreaks name is up there with the best in the industry and it is imperative to continue providing and constantly improve the quality of service our clients are experiencing now. It is crucial to our ongoing success to stay ahead of the game and I can say, hand on heart, that we will do our best to stay where we belong…at the top!

When visiting the city of lights, a must see is Versailles. The palace is beautiful and breath-taking but that is not the only reason to visit the little hidden away district of Paris. Its quaint cafes and shopping are just like Paris, but with a tranquil spin. It makes sense to spend an extra weekend in this district to relax and re-group, and where else should you stay then the Trianon Palace.

Only 20 minutes from the centre of Paris stands this two building Hotel retreat, where you can find everything you want and more. It is very easy to get to on the Metro; just a 20 minute ride on the VICK train, that can be boarded from Concorde, a central station with many connecting lines.

The rooms are exquisite, with a room for us all; there are the standard rooms which would give most 4 stars a run for their money, but if you are looking for something extra why not try one of their suites. There are 23 suites in total which have all been recently decorated to standards fit for a princess. All the suites contain a king size bed, both bath and shower and living rooms as well as nicely sized wardrobes, to fit in all that Paris shopping. The Versailles suite is the most decadent with a view of the palace gardens and even its own kitchen, if you require it.

There are many places to eat in this establishment including the Gordon Ramsay Au Trianon gourmet restaurant, which serves French-inspired cuisine. If you feel like a night of self-indulgence why not book to eat at the VIP table, hidden away behind the main dining area, with your own window facing the kitchen so that you can see the brilliant chefs at work, preparing your meal over a bottle of champagne. For breakfast, afternoon tea or even just a drink there is the La Veranda Brassiere or Gallery bar.

The hotel is also home to many salons, which can house events up to 300 guests and conferences rooms, but the most spectacular is the Salon Clemanceau. It is a beautiful room near the back of the hotel with magnificent decor, one that has not been changed since the First World War due to its importance; on the front wall stands the Treaty of Versailles. It was in this very room where the allied powers and Germany signed the historic agreement.

One of the reasons this hotel is perfect for that weekend retreat is its spa. It has 14 treatment rooms, a 200m indoor swimming pool, 24 hour fitness room and a hairdressing salon.

Whatever you need, or just fancy you will find it at the Trianon Palace & Spa and it’s only just around the corner from the Versailles gardens, Marie Antionette’s Estate & Trianon Palaces.

As if that wasn’t enough reason to go there are several Operas and ‘spectaculars’ at Versailles this Summer  - it’s well worth the visit.

Following news of Guardian travel writer Benji Lanyado’s planned trip to Paris recently, the day has arrived for his departure for Paris from St Pancras, London.

For those new to the story, Benji’s actions in Paris will be influenced solely by suggestions given by his 321 or so Twitter followers.

@benjilanyardo #TwiTrip Updates on Twitter

You can follow his updates here, here, here and via this blog.

Read more…

Note: You can read the latest on Benji’s Paris #TwiTrip travels here.

In an interesting Guardian article posted yesterday, travel writer Benji Lanyado asks whether the recent adoption of Twitter as the micro-blogging site of choice among the celebrity elite, tech-geeks and marketing gurus could become the solo traveller’s best friend.

Twitter - Latest Tool to Revolutionise Online Travel?

Stephen Fry has been championing the usefulness of Twitter, claiming he is always using it while on his travels. Already ranking 3rd in Google search for the term ‘Blog‘, Stephen Fry is now one of Twitter’s most followed users (85,000 followers and counting).

And so, having researched the stories having broken via Twitter before even the local media knew anything about them (Denver runway plane crash and the Hudson river emergency landing), Benji - Twitter profile benjilanyado, announced how he planned to run an experiment. At some point in the not too distant future, the Guardian travel writer will be departing for Paris. Very little pre-planning is going into his travel schedule. In fact, the writer will be relying wholly on tweeted tips from his twitter following.

Interestingly, while road-testing the system, he asked yesterday whether anyone could suggest a ‘cool/cheap hotel for Paris next week. challenge mamashelter - its story of renovation posted here back in October 2008. Hotel Particulier De Montmartre was another hotel listed on Benji’s feed, along with hotel price comparison site hotelly and Oops Budget Hotel. The Paris camp site idea would perhaps end up buried under later tweets. A real stroke of genius came only two hours of the original hotel request tweet… Brillliant Tips posted a blog entitled ‘Travel via Twitter - Looking for a Cool Hotel in Paris?‘ aiming the post squarely at the travel writer.

Paris Boutique Hotel, mamashelter

I am looking forward to establishing if Benji’s plans to tour Paris, guided solely by user’s tweets will succeed. I am putting faith into this little endeavour and believe it will provide further evidence of Twitter’s emergence as the tool to revolutionise online travel.

I will be reporting back here regularly, updating you on Benji’s progress.

As with the rest of the world’s hotel industry, the Guardian reported yesterday that the luxury 4 star end of the Paris hotel market is suffering more than the budget end. This is probably not that surprising given the current climate but what it can mean is that a stay in a really stylish individual hotel may not be out of the reach of mere mortals.

I have been lucky enough recently to stay at the stunning Trianon Palace and Spa in Versailles with it’s views of the Versailles Palace and the amazing gardens. The journey from door to door from South London via Eurostar and a 20 Minute RER journey from Gare Du Nord was about 3 hrs which even my two sons found manageable.

The hotel get the balance of luxury and relaxation just right. Right now there are one night breaks from just £169 per person including Eurostar - if you can stretch to it, ask about a room at the front of the hotel - floor to ceiling windows and batchrooms as big as my house. Of course there’s a cost, but given the current climate you may be surprised. Oh and did I mention the Gordon Ramsey restaurant……

Offers like this are around at the moment, and ones like the 3 for 2 offers at the higher end hotels in Ghent , Lille, Bruges as well as Paris are worth checking out.