Not your usual travels & tapas

It’s time for European travel again especially now that Philippine Airlines will be allowed to fly to Europe once more!

Spain and France remain to be top European destinations of choice among travellers. Personally speaking, they are also two of my favorite countries to visit.

When my good friend Angelique Villaraza learned about my love affair with these two European countries, she right away hooked me up with Jose Macicior, a Spanish man who owns Travels & Tapas that specializes in custom-made tours for Spain and France. Jose was in the country recently to promote his tours.

Jose and his Filipino wife Isabel Aspillera, being the founders of Travels & Tapas, have lived in the Philippines, Spain, Belgium, the US and England. They started organizing gourmet travels for friends and family in 2002, which proved to be an enormous success. Eventually, they decided to bring their experiences and know-hows to the Asian market and in 2013 established Travels & Tapas.

Travels & Tapas aims to plan the logistics of a successful trip to Spain and France for tourists who want to have a not-the- usual experience of those two countries. It provides the most personalized and best organized tours in the market. You can tell  Jose and Isabel your budget and they can create a tour for you replete with an itinerary for each place you choose. Most of their tours are guided by a trained tour manager or Jose himself if one requests him. They provide access to places not generally opened to tourists, so their clients can discover hidden places and works of art that are out of public view. At the top of their list is client comfort with their hotels and restaurants chosen after an exacting selection process, with emphasis on quality and good service, charm and style.

The diversity of Spain and France when it comes to their gastronomy, wines, climates, geography and regions makes them  must-see and must-go destinations. Oh, did I mention that they are two of the top countries in the world with the largest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites?  Want a reservation in Arzak or El Celler de Can Roca and you can’t get one? Get a Travels & Tapas tour and its team can get you a reservation! One can discover the splendor and decadence of Roman, Phoenician, Jewish, Christian or Muslim civilizations.

With Travels & Tapas, one can enjoy a journey into the past and present replete with exclusive access to private residences and art collections. If architecture and art are one’s main interests, the couple can organize a tour to the magnificent UNESCO sites of Salamanca, Toledo, Santiago and Granada. They put strong emphasis on the architectural treasures along the route of the Pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela or Bordeaux, the Chateaux de Dordogne and Loire Valleys in France. They also can offer exclusive access to private stately homes in cities and the countryside to discover the way some people were privileged to live and perhaps still live. Hunting parties at private estates can also be organized.

If one prioritizes cultural or religious tours, Travels & Tapas recommends the Pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, this being the most important pilgrim route in medieval Europe. The company provides support vehicles and luggage transfer, information and route maps for this pilgrimage with optional visits to Lourdes and other religious centers.

(Check out www.travelsandtapas.com or e-mail [email protected] for inquiries.)

Misibis Bay is a luxurious and exclusive hideaway in the lush province of Albay in the Bicol region. Built on a private stretch of beach along the southern tip of Cagraray Island, this five-hectare island resort may be reached via a 50-minute flight from Manila to Legazpi, then a 45-minute land travel or a 15-minute private chopper ride to the island.

The charm of Misibis Bay

I wrote about Mövenpick Hotel in Cebu a few weeks back when I attended a wedding there. It certainly was a great discovery in Cebu. I then went to another wedding in Bicol and stayed at Misibis Bay. It was my first time there and definitely not my last! 

Misibis Bay’s 37 luxurious, Asian-inspired villas are designed with high, airy ceilings, expansive terraces with direct access to the pool or a secret path to the beach. Its 53 Garden View rooms boast of chic interiors perfect for budget-conscious travellers who wish to experience luxury.

Guests can take a barefoot stroll in the exclusive one-kilometer beach front, made more unique with exotic shells and volcanic pebbles. For an ultimate land and water adventure, Segway, ATV, dune buggy, Avalon Fun Ship, jet ski, kayak, Hobie cat, wind surf and a lot more are available for guests to enjoy. Outside the resort, guests have the option to explore the wonders of this province by marveling at the perfect symmetry of the Mayon Volcano, the rolling hills of Camalig and Daraga, and the boiling waters of Nag-Aso Lake, or take a plunge in the waters of Donsol and swim with the whale sharks.

Bicol has breathtaking venues for an intimate feast or a sumptuous banquet. From a refreshing breakfast on top of a hill overlooking the majestic Mayon Volcano to a private dinner set-up in a white-sand beach illuminated by a thousand stars, or in a candle-lit amphitheater that offers scenic view of Albay Gulf, guests are ensured of a truly memorable dining experience.

Of course the food in Bicol is to die for with Bicol Express and Pinangat topping my list of must-have dishes! The food in Misibis Bay is wonderful and I ate (again) to my stomach’s content!

Misibis Bay is accredited by the Small Luxury Hotels of the World and takes pride with the service it provides to its guests.

A stay in Misibis Bay is a must when in the Bicol region.

(For inquiries, call (02) 661-8888, e-mail [email protected] or visit www.misibisbay.com.)

The power of speed

Tattoo showcased the raw speed and power of a Lotus F1 car by bringing within the reach of the Filipino people the true-to-life experience of being behind the wheel of a real Lotus F1 car through the features of the authentic Lotus F1 simulators.

In an intimate dinner at the Outback Steakhouse in Glorietta 4, guests were given a sneak preview and the first chance to try out the one-of-a-kind Lotus F1 simulators. True to Tattoo’s premium on speed, guests were encouraged to feel the unique virtual experience of what it was like to go up to 300 km/h in the Lotus F1 car of either Filipino pride Marlon Stockinger or Lotus F1 champion Kimi Raikkonen.

Tattoo brand ambassador Marlon Stockinger stepped into the exclusive dinner to give guests his well wishes as well as a few pointers on how to race using the Lotus F1 Simulator. After a quick talk and briefing by real Lotus F1 engineers, the Tattoo Lotus F1 Simulation Challenge began. In the ultimate speed test to see who could finish with the fastest time on the tracks of a typical F1 circuit, guests were pitched against each other to outrace one another. Three “speedsters” emerged at the top, with close scores of an average of 1.40 seconds per lap. In third place was Top Gear Magazine’s Sharleen Banzon, while Angelo Sison of Pinoy Loves Wheels took second place, and Ivan Isada, who was part of the victorious Team Tattoo for the Manila Speed Show Pit Stop Challenge, came out on top.

Head of Tattoo Nomadic Broadband Business Dong Ronquillo said, “We want our guests to know the speed and power that Tattoo has personified through our broadband services. Bringing the Lotus F1 experience closer to the public gives them a more hands-on experience of what the brand can bring to the table. It’s all about getting to the speeds you want and the services that can bring you there, that is what has to Tattoo offer.”

Tattoo@Home offers a complete line-up of home broadband connections for those who prefer to surf indoors with their families while Tattoo Torque, the ultra high-speed unlimited home broadband service, has the fastest connections reaching 150mbps.

(For more information, visit tattoo.globe.com.)