What are your options when you're traveling in India, but craving really good sushi?

Has this ever happened to you? You’re somewhere far-flung … say, China or Peru … and despite all the exciting culinary choices around you, you’re overcome with an inexplicable desire to go for Italian.

We say, give in and make an occasion of it. Here are some off-culture recommendations for a few major destinations.

Sushi in Mumbai. If the city formerly known as Bombay — an obvious center of great Indian food — has over-tandooried your tastebuds, then head for the Taj Palace Hotel to supp at Wasabi, the India branch of the ultimate authentic Japanese sushi house.

Prime Rib in Dubai. Once you’re had your fill of finger food, return to familiar knife-and-fork territory with Chef John Wood’s mustard-crusted prime rib of beef, complete with breathtaking view, at Al Muntaha atop the Burj Al Arab Hotel. (Start with the lobster Caesar.)

Mojitos in Ho Chi Minh City. After you’ve sampled your share of authentic Vietnamese food from those upbiquitous stand-up stalls, splurge for a sit-down dinner and consider indulging in what communist countries do best — providing genuine (and legal) Havana cigars for just a few bucks. Precede this with Cuban fare such as spicy meat balls and a strong Cuba Libre. La Habana is the place, near the Opera House.

Haute French Cuisine in Bangkok. Turns out the best French restaurant in Asia is at the top of the Oriental Hotel, which is why movie industry executives and the international diplomatic corps keep Le Normandie on speed-dial. The six-course degustation menu with optional wine pairing will make you genuinely thank your wife for sneaking your best dinner jacket into your luggage.

Whatever your off-culture inclination, avoid burger joints in far-off lands unless you’re hankering to hang out with the backpack crowd. Is that snobbery? Perhaps. But we’re dispensing advice about dinner, not about democracy. (After all, there is no such thing as equality among restaurants.)

Bon appetite!

The infinity pool at the Ritz-Carlton Reserve resort at Phulay Bay overlooks the Andaman Sea

But for those with a more plebeian orientation, itʼs hard not to recall Fantasy Island. I mean that in a good way.

In Thailand, just 54 rooms will be supported by close to 300 staff; each guest will have a personal concierge; and nearly anything you wish can be accommodated at any hour you choose.

In the spa, there are 11 treatment rooms ‒ it would be normal to find this quantity at a 400-room hotel ‒ and beyond the resort itself there are opportunities to explore pristine neighboring islets ‒ uncommon at a hotel of any size.

Originally, plans for Ritz-Carlton Reserve were made at a time of vibrant economic development and the timetable for their development ‒ perhaps 15 locations in all ‒ has slowed, but not been derailed. Among its many distinctions, Ritz-Carltonʼs management team is known for taking the long view, thus avoiding knee-jerk changes to a brand that is renown for its graciousness and constancy.

The Reserve resort at Phulay Bay, reached via the airports at Krabi (40 minutesʼ distance) or Phuket (2 hours away), will open for business on December 22, 2009.

Other Ritz-Carlton Reserve properties are anticipated as well: Molasses Reef, a Turks and Caicos project that was 75 percent complete when partner Lehman Brothers collapsed, will be resumed when another financing partner steps into the role. Guacamaya in Costa Rica is expected to open in 2011, and Dorado Beach in Puerto Rico is slated for a 2012 opening. Beyond those, Ritz-Carlton is actively considering Abu Dhabi, South Africa, India, and a ski resort location for additional Reserve locations.

Our choices for extracurricular activities at Phulay Bay: a seaplane tour with a private picnic on an outlying island; a candlelit massage within view of the sunset; and at least one lazy day with absolutely no advance plans whatsoever.

Peg Prideaux, CTC
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Maiko Girl, by Kuroda Seiki, Maiji Period, 1893, courtesy of the Tokyo National Museum

North American travelers started cutting back on travel to Japan more than a decade ago when the yen seemed expensive against the dollar, measured by travelers using what I call the Coca-Cola index (as in, “A Coke costs $10 at the Narita Airport!” ‒ that spoken by a fellow traveler in 1995 at the yen’s peak).

Since then, many world currencies have gained against the dollar, while the dollar has recently done well against the yen. Foreign currency exchange is an odd soup and doesn’t hold still, of course; yet its weird math puts Japan back on the travel list again. My seat companion of 15 years ago would say, “Coca-Cola is expensive here, but it’s not as bad as in (fill in the blank) …”

So, Japan is back on the traveler’s agenda. As it should be. For many westerners, a visit to Japan means the unraveling of cultural mystery, and of such things great trips are made. Lest you fear Japan’s past might not capture your interest, remember James Clavell’s novel Shogun, which stayed on the best-seller list almost infinitely and became the second-highest-watched television epic of all time. In fact, a re-read of Shogun is an enormously satisfying preview to any first trip to Japan.

Another lens through which to view Japan’s history and culture is its numerous museums and non-commercial galleries, of which there are well over 100 in Tokyo alone. There is so much to view that exhibits change frequently, so don’t worry if you visited a few years ago ‒ what’s on display now will likely be a fresh grouping.

It has been awhile since we published our secret list of favorite Tokyo museums in Passport Newsletter. Here is another look in a somewhat shorter and abridged form:

Tokyo National Museum, Japan’s largest and most comprehensive repository of antiquities and traditional art. The huge collection of about 90,000 items is spread over several buildings, and it takes days to see everything. 13-9 Ueno Koen, Taito-ku. Tel: 81-3-3822-1111.

National Museum of Western Art. In a building designed by Le Corbusier, the museum has significant holdings of 19th-century French paintings as well as Matisse, Picasso, Pollack, Ernst, Miro, and Dubuffet; old masters including Tintoretto, El Greco, Rubens. 7-7 Ueno Koen, Taito-ku. Tel. 81-3-3828-5131.

Japan Folk Crafts Museum. Contains the most important collection of early Japanese paintings, porcelain, textiles, pottery, lacquerware, furniture, toys, metalwork, costumes, and masks. 4-3-33 Komaba, Meguro-ku. Tel: 81-3-3467-4527.

Ota Memorial Ukiyoe Museum. Rare masterpieces of Japan’s major ukiyoe woodblock artists. 1-10-10 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku. Tel: 81-3-3822-1111.

Tokyo National Museum of Modern Art. Every important Japanese artist from Meiji to contemporary times is included in this collection of paintings, prints, calligraphy, sculpture, and handicrafts. 3 Kitanomaru Koen, Chiyoda-ku. Tel: 81-3-5777-8600.

Japanese Sword Museum. A permanent display of swords and fittings by famous Japanese sword makers, ancient and modern. 4-25-10 Yoyogi, Shibuya-ku. Tel: 81-3-3379-1386.

Nezu Art Museum. An outstanding display of Japanese paintings, calligraphy, sculpture, china, lacquerware, metalwork. Japanese garden with teahouses. Reopened three weeks ago after having been closed for two years for renovations. 6-5-1 Minami Aoyama, Minato-ku. Tel: 81-3-3400-2536.

Kite Museum. Kites of all kinds and shapes from Japan and other nations. Fifth floor, Taimeiken Building, 1-12-10 Nihonbashi, Chuo-ku. Tel: 81-3-3271-2465.

Sumo Museum. Items concerned with the history of Japanese wrestling, starting from the 18th century. 1-3-28 Yoko-ami, Sumida-ku. Tel: 81-3-3622-0366.

Mori Art Museum. One of the city’s most exciting showcases for contemporary art as well as offering superbly presented exhibitions on design, media art, fashion and architecture. Museum admission includes entry to Tokyo City View, a 52nd-floor observatory. Mori Tower, Roppongi 6-chome, Minato-ku. Tel: 81-3-5777-8600.

National Art Center, Tokyo. Housed in a spectacular building that itself almost qualifies as a work of art, the National Art Center, Tokyo, opened in 2007, is the country’s largest exhibition space. It lacks a permanent collection, but presents exhibitions that cover both classical and contemporary art. 7-22-2 Roppongi, Minato-ku. Tel: 81-3-6812-9900.

– Peg Prideaux, CTC
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France's high-speed train, Thalys, boards passengers in The Hague, Netherlands.

Those in Europe who are responsible for high-speed rail service are thinking about business travel needs, but leisure travelers can also benefit from ever-improving European rail service.

Why Travel by Rail?
One big advantage of rail is that itʼs a less stressful way to travel, partly because it is more comfortable, and partly because the rail station experience is so much more tolerable than a typical airport. Also, with far fewer weather delays, one can generally count on on-time departures and arrivals. And finally, for journeys of two to four hours, the door-to-door time for passengers is usually shorter via rail than via air.

Existing High-Speed Lines
Many European high-speed routes are already in existence, with more coming as the European Union continues to integrate its infrastructure. Present high-speed routes ‒ weʼre talking about trains that travel at 300 km per hour or faster (thatʼs 185 mph or more) ‒ can add to your travel ease and help you avoid air or roadway congestion.

High-speed train travel already operates between these pairs of cities: London to Paris or Brussels (Eurostar), Paris to Lyon or Marseille, Brussels to Cologne, Madrid to Barcelona, Madrid to Seville or Malaga, Milan to Bologna, Naples to Rome, Rome to Florence, and St. Petersburg to Moscow.

In addition, other cities are connected by routes that are mostly (if not 100 percent) conducted over high-speed rails, such as Hanover to Berlin, Frankfurt to Cologne, and Paris to Geneva.

Future High-Speed Lines
These routes are in process:

• Service between Paris and Amsterdam, beginning mid-December 2009, will save over an hour over present train travel.
• In the UK, plans are afoot to add high-speed rail between London and Glasgow, cutting present travel time roughly in half.
• France, which is a leader in high-speed rail, will add new lines from Paris to Brittany, and Paris to Lyons.
• In Scandinavia, there are plans for a high-speed connection between Helsinki and St. Petersburg.

An EU priority for high speed rail is to expand the number of cross-border routes, in anticipation of which the EU is funding infrastructure development of the numerous tunnels and bridges required to realize this goal.

Bottom line, once youʼve flown transatlantic, rail travel is a fast, comfortable and civilized means of making your way around Europe. And it just keeps getting better.

‒ Peg Prideaux, CTC
091109

The Wall Street Journal as travel trend-setter? Well, perhaps not every day; but today theyʼre pointing experienced travelers toward Sanya, China as Asiaʼs answer to Hawaii. And theyʼve hit the mark for those who seek to be among the first in new places. As Bruce Stanley reports in todayʼs Journal, luxury hotels such as the Ritz-Carlton and Mandarin Oriental have recently opened along the beachfront and that, as we all know, puts foreign adventuring in the uber-comfort zone.

Now is a great time to consider visiting Sanya, as peak season for travel is October to March.

Above, courtesy Mandarin Oriental. Below, courtesy Ritz-Carlton

While there are several new resorts in the area, two vie for the rank of flagship.

The Mandarin Oriental, on the southern tip of Hainan Island, sits like a backlit rhinestone brooch between green hillsides and an aqua sea. It has an introductory offer of three nights for the price of two in select accommodations. The hotel’s website and staff operate in five languages.

An ocean-view room is 2,000 CNY (Chinese yuan) per night, or about $293 USD at this writing. An ocean-front pavilion with a private plunge pool is 2,600 CNY per night, or about $380 USD. The top category, ocean view suite, at over 1,000 square feet plus a large balcony, is 3,799 CNY per night, or about $556 USD. For those seeking an exotic honeymoon or anniversary, this is easily the equivalent of top suites costing twice or three times as much depending on the island destination; so itʼs a great buy, particularly if your air mile credits can help you get there.

The Ritz-Carlton, on Yalong Bay overlooking the South China Sea, offers the largest spa in the region. Standard rooms offer garden or lagoon views; ocean views start 1,900 CNY per night (about $278 USD), and a two-bedroom ocean-front villa is about 8,000 CNY per night (about $1,170 USD) at over 2,700 square feet with accommodations for four. Like its competitor, the Ritz-Carlton offers select packages with a third night free. (By ‟select” we mean not applicable across the board to all dates or room categories.)

How to Get There

To reach Sanya, fly into Sanya International Phoenix Airport, which is about an hour from Hong Kong by air, two-and-a-half hours from Shanghai, and three-and-a-half hours from Beijing. Once on the ground in Sanya, youʼre about 25 minutes from the resort area. Recommended: Use the hotelʼs own private car transfer service, presently at a cost of roughly $15 to $25 USD. Alternately you can bargain with local taxi drivers for a rate; expect results in proportion to your linguistic skills.

Prices or currency values mentioned here (August 17, 2009) are subject to change and fluctuation.

It should go without saying (and yet I’m saying it), no one pays to be covered in Passport Newsletter’s monthly printed newsletter or our blog. Our only criteria for offering information is its potential value to you as a traveler.

– Peg Prideaux, CTC
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