A Luxury Travel Blog

Formerly with Skyscanner, Aaron Ritoper is the Vice President of Business Development at Fly.com, a website which scours major airlines, international carriers and online travel sites, and helps people easily sort and refine results by criteria such as number of stops and departure times and traveller class.

What is it that you do exactly?

I’m in charge of developing the Fly.com business across Europe. This means I manage our all commercial relationships, ensure we achieve our targets, and communicate across markets to spread the word on Fly.com (sharing the latest flight deal insights). Travelzoo travel producers are very knowledgeable, so I spend time with them to review the latest bargains.

On the technology side, the flight search experience is constantly developing, and hours are spent with the team to build the flight search product of the future.

What do you enjoy most about what you do?

It’s not every day that you get the chance to build a global brand with the talent and resources of a company like Travelzoo. I love the challenge and the reward that we see as people discover how much better Fly.com is at finding cheap flights compared to legacy websites.

What would you say are the 3 best places you’ve ever stayed?

Méribel – Is fantastic place for a ski vacation. The last time we went “hors-piste” with a ski guide, and when he handed out avalanche beacons and put a snow shovel in his backpack that definitely made a lasting impression.

Iceland – Seeing the Northern lights was definitely high on my list. I stayed out in the countryside outside of Reykjavik and around midnight green oscillating light filled the sky.

Hawaii – A wonderful place for a family vacation, we stayed at the Grand Hilton in Waikoloa and found it very family friendly. The dolphin pool in particular was a big hit.

What’s been your most memorable dining experience to date?

Probably the time I ate barbequed buffalo on an Indian reservation in New Mexico. They had the whole animal roasting on a spit and there were demonstrations of traditional dances with rhythmic music – it was very festive!

Have you rubbed shoulders with the rich and famous, either through your work or your travels?

I’m constantly on airplanes so I’ve run across quite a few celebrities along the way. Within the travel world, I enjoyed speaking with Stelios Haji-Ioannou not too long ago just before my easyJet flight from London to Nice, France. I happened to be one of the first people on the plane, so tipped off the flight attendant that an important guest would be following me.

What currently ranks highest on your travel wish list?

It’s about time for a surfing trip, so I’m hoping to spend some time in Biarritz, France soon.

Many thanks, Aaron. Having experienced the Northern Lights in Greenland myself, I can understand how that might be up there as one of your highlights.

Hotel Ranga in Sudurlandsvegur, Iceland, a member of Special Hotels of the World, has been recommended by The Sunday Times as the best hotel in the world from which to view the northern lights. The Northern Lights, also known as the Aurora borealis, are one of Hotel Ranga’s biggest attractions and can be best seen between the months of September and April.

A weekly pick of luxury travel links for your perusal…

• Journey back in time on the Royal Scotsman
• Five star luxury at its best, from Graycliff
• Marvel at Emperor penguins with Polar Cruises
• Discover thousands of years of civilization courtesy of Arts in Europe

Heed the call of the wild and experience America’s last frontier. The sheer grandeur of Alaskan vistas will ignite your imagination. Cruise through sparkling fjords or journey inland and catch a glimpse of wild brown bears fishing for giant salmon. Hike through glacial rainforests or take an exhilarating dogsled ride. If you’ve dreamed of wandering through a pristine wilderness, Alaska is the place for you – take a look at Royal Caribbean’s ‘Answer the Call of the Wild’ Alaskan cruisetours.

Experience a spectacular Norwegian coastal voyage aboard Hurtigruten. Known internationally as “The World’s Most Beautiful Voyage”, this enchanting vacation showcases Norway’s dazzling scenery of fjords, snow-capped mountains, bustling villages and picturesque towns. Winter may be the most special time to experience the Norwegian Coastal voyage – a hidden gem. A truly spectacular time to see Norway’s northern reaches with majestic scenery, the Polar Light and a surreal experience not found anywhere else. Uniques to these sailings are the exciting winter excursions including dog sledding in Tromso, the Lofotr Viking Feast, and snowmobiling over the frozen fjords of Lapland. And what winterland would be complete without an encounter with the awe-inspiring Northern Lights? Aurora borealis is a truly rare phenomenon occurring only in the winter.  2 for 1 special offer: book selected 12, 7 and 6-day Norwegian Coastal voyages departing in October, November and December 2008 and your companion travels free.  This offer is unfortunately not valid on suites, however.

This week Forbes Traveler has run a feature entitled “10 Gorgeous Glaciers“. It caught my eye not only because of the beautiful pictures but also because I have a particular interest in this subject. Few of you will know this, but my PhD was in glaciology.  Alas, Greenland – where I worked – doesn’t get a look-in; instead, the following make the shortlist:

• Biafo Glacier, Pakistan
• Perito Moreno Glacier, Argentina
• Glacier Bay, Alaska
• Furtwängler Glacier, Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania
• Pasterze Glacier, Austria
• Vatnajökull Glacier, Iceland
• Yulong Glacier, China
• Fox and Franz Josef, New Zealand
• Athabasca Glacier, Canada
• Antarctica

Follow in the wake of Scott and Nansen by booking a cruise on the new Silversea expedition ship, Prince Albert II. This state-of-the-art vessel set off for the Arctic last month but will head to the opposite pole later in the year for the summer in the far south.  Luxury on board combines with pure adrenalin once the ship docks, as it visits some of the world’s most remote landscapes and enters tiny ports where few cruise ships have been before.  This is not soft adventure: it is full-scale exploring, from a base that is super-luxurious, with every high-tech facility.

Bring Antarctica’s beauty home from a special photographic cruise of Antarctica, South Georgia and the Falklands. From the 19th November professional photographer Richard Harker joins the experts on the ‘Minerva ‘ for a 21-day journey to help aspiring photographers capture intimate images of this ultimate travel frontier. One-on-one sessions, on-board workshops and informative lectures provide every photographer, from point-and-shoot to professional, with the opportunity to learn new skills and techniques. Antarctica’s stunning landscapes and teeming wildlife offer countless opportunities: majestic blue icebergs glimmering in calm clear waters, camera-friendly penguins and midnight Austral sunsets that hover endlessly on the horizon, painting rainbow hues on dramatic polar skies. Book with A&K by 31st May 2008 and save £350 per person on the special photographic cruise.

Last year Norwegian Coastal Voyage Inc. changed its name to Hurtigruten to reflect their new global identity. What started as the world’s most beautiful voyage along the Norwegian coast has expanded to incredible journeys to the Arctic, Greenland and Antarctica, and even an incredible 67-day Arctic to Antarctic voyage. Visit their site to learn more.

iExplore, named the Best Adventure Travel Website by Forbes Magazine and Travel + Leisure, has announced a list of top 10 world travel destinations as determined by purchases made by adventure and experiential travellers.  Egypt retains its number one spot, but South Africa jumps to the number 2 spot (from 19th position the year before). Argentina and Italy fell to 21st and 26th positions respectively, having previously been in the top 10. Here’s their current top 10, with the previous year’s ranking in brackets:

1. Egypt (#1)
2. South Africa (#19)
3. China (#6)
4. Antarctica (#2)
5. Peru (#4)
6. Galapagos (#17)
7. Thailand (#5)
8. Costa Rica (#11)
9. Tanzania (#8)
10. India (#14)

Hurtigruten – formerly known as Norwegian Coastal Voyage – is offering incentives on visits to Greenland, a place that I myself would love to return to one day. Book any Greenland voyage with them before 31st January 2008 and receive $500 off on suites and $350 on other state rooms. Choose from their fantastic selection of expedition voyages, all of which immerse you in an authentic Greenland experience. Become one with the extraordinary icecape and wildlife, and interact with and learn from descendants of Vikings and Inuits. More information on the offer is available here.

More details are starting to emerge on the cruise ship that is reportedly sinking somewhere near King George Island (near the South Shetland Islands between Antarctica and the southernmost tip of Argentina).  The 2,400-tonner liner, MV Explorer, owned by Toronto-based Gap Adventures [site seemingly very slow at present, perhaps understandably], was built in 1969 and had 100 crew and 54 passengers on board. It has apparently hit some ice and was listing at 25°, with the captain and his first officer remaining on board, and all other passengers and crew safely evacuated on life vessels. MV Antarctic Dream, a Chilean ship in the area, has been diverted to help with the rescue. MV Explorer herself helped in the rescue of the crew of a sinking Argentinean supply vessel that had hit a rock ledge off Anvers Island in Antarctica, in 1989.

Update from the BBC:

Ms Hayes, vice-president of marketing for Toronto-based Gap Adventures, told the BBC News website: “The M/S Explorer hit a lump of ice off King George Island this morning and the impact left the vessel with a crack in the hull the size of a fist.

“All passengers and crew have been evacuated, they are all accounted for and are safe and well and have been transferred to another vessel.”

There’s breaking news just in that a cruise ship has crashed into an iceberg off Antarctica. It’s been reported that 154 passengers were on the vessel. A ship has been diverted to help collect passengers from lifeboats.  Let’s hope that everyone is safely accounted for. More later.

Greenland is one of the few places that I can tell people I’ve been to and be quietly confident that they probably haven’t. It rarely gets covered in the travel press, so a recent mention on MSNBC naturally caught my eye. With doubles starting from $270 a night at Ilulissat’s four star Hotel Arctic, this is about as luxurious as you’ll get in Greenland. As well as staying in the hotel, you can be accommodated in one of their aluminium igloos overlooking Disko Bay. An array of folk has stayed there, including the likes of the Icelandic-born singer Björk and the Swedish Prime Minister Göran Persson. Alternatively, there’s Hotel Kangerlussuaq (where I have spent one night) – close to the Arctic Circle - which starts at $240 a night for a double.  It’s not all that luxurious by the standards of some parts of the world, perhaps, but ultra-luxurious when you compare it with camping outside at sub-zero temperatures! (Click here to see an interview of Matt Lauer and video footage that accompanies the article.)

Fancy a trip to Arctic Norway or the Galapagos Islands?  National Geographic, famed for its own stunning travel photography, is running its 19th World in Focus photography competition. First prize is a trip to your choice of the above two destinations.  If instead you just want to gawp at the amazing images from last year’s contest, then have a look here.

American Express is offering more than 25 amazing travel packages, including a luxury RV trip across America, an adventure in Antarctica and a South African safari.  Travellers daydreaming about their next luxurious getaway need look no further. From 17th to 27th April 2007, US and UK American Express card holders will have the opportunity to stop dreaming and start bidding at American Express’ Going Once web site. American Express will auction off one unbelievable travel package a day and, once a trip goes on sale, the price will drop every 20 minutes. The deals will continue to drop in price until 7:00 pm ET or until they sell out, whichever comes first.