When it comes to gastronomy, Sevilla is a quite traditional city. Some of the best tapas bars are found here, and locals don´t need much more. Easy. But recently, some new restaurants are intending to ¨educate¨ the citizens of this beautiful Spanish city. One of them is Abantal, nestled in between the historic center and the modern part of town.

Big tables with enough space for intimacy, excellent service and great wines. The menu offers surprises such as a pure olive oil tasting as a starter, or a delicious ox meat.

Julio Fernandez manages this Andalusian creative cuisine place. A young chef, with innovative ideas, that tries to tell the ¨Sevillanos¨ about new food experiences beyond the exquisite world famous tapas, but without losing the local roots.

Hotels or Villas?

When it comes to choosing between a perfect stay at a luxury hotel, or a more private experience in a villa, there are some details to take into account:

Hotels offer many services at all times, day or night, with a full team at your disposal. Villas also have private staff in most cases, but not all services may be available.

Transportation to and from the villa depends on your own, or you have to arrange it. Hotels offer transfers.

Villas have more intimacy, you do not share a building with anyone else...

but in hotels, you get to know more people!

Villas always have the same staff , hotels change it and you find different faces everyday.

prices are normally higher in villas, unless you spend your time in those suites at private resorts in islands...

The great combination for both things could be Villazzo, an excellent idea for staying in a villa with all the facilities and attention found in a luxury hotel. In Spain, they have outstanding villas in Marbella, and Different Spain can get special rates and attention for those interested in it.

I find it a very good choice, you have the privacy and the services at one time. I am a hotel lover, but this option sounds quite good for an extended stay. Yes, prices are higher than a nice suite in a luxury hotel, but I think the difference is clear. Villazzo is another growing choice to be taken into account more and more...

BTL Lisboa Tourism Fair

The 07 BTL travel fair in Lisboa was held between January 24th to 28th. It was bigger than previous years, and most of the affluents visited it during the afternoon. I visited the fair for 3 days and had the chance to meet various touroperators and agents, and especially some 5 star hotels in Portugal of future luxury hotel openings that I may add to my selection of recommended properties.

Additionally, I have to say that the website of the BTL fair was not good enough. It was not updated, registration procedures failed quite often and the communication was not fluent between visitors and the organization. Let´s hope they improve this aspect for next year...

http://www.btl.fil.pt/

Fine dining in Sevilla

Fine dining in Spain is a great experience. Our gastronomy has definitively become one of the best in the world, and some of the most awarded restaurants are in Spain. When it comes to Andalusia, the southern region of the country and probably the most typical, food is based on mediterranean products, and more and more combined with a touch of international ingredients. There are excellent places for a fabulous dinnner, and maybe the location of such places is what makes it even more magical. In Seville, the capital of Andalusia, we can find places like La Alqueria , managed by the world famous Ferrán Adriá, and the only restaurant in Andalusia with 2 Michelin stars. Tasting menus at 125€ pp without wine. Also recommendable is Sevruga , a cosy 3 level place by the riverside of Coria, a little town just minutes from Sevilla. Private wine cellar and average price of 35€ pp a la carte. Once in the city, Egaña Oriza is an elegant restaurant in the center, managed by chef Jose Maria Egaña, and with private rooms available. Another little gem in the city: Az-zait an intimate place with excellent service. Around 50€ pp.

Sevilla is a paradise for tapas. With an endless list of tapas bars, it´s also highly recommendable to stroll around the streets, go from bar to bar, enjoy local wines and gastronomy. Restaurants are very good, but a tapas tour is a must when visiting this charming city.

Jets & Islands

Luxury travel always heads for new trends and options. In the recent years, private jet services have been one of the main demanding options when it comes to moving from one place to another. Several companies offer a wide variety of services, jet models and flights. The customer profile is not the rock star or CEOs as it used to be, but more and more it´s approaching companies using it for their trips or business. It rivalizes any first class onboard service at a top airline, personalized treatment is taken for granted and the most important thing: you fly when you wish, no schedules.

Using a private jet to get to a private island, is quite a good idea. These type of islands, easily found in Mauritius, Seychelles or Fidji to mention a few, are easily prepared to accomodate couples, groups or families and pamper them with the most luxurious and incredible services you can imagine. Places to get lost, forget about the rest of the world and enjoy an array of facilities and activities.

In a world of stress and hard work, finding yourself in such places is a rewarding experience. Packages and prices vary, but it´s reaching more and more customers who are discovering the fact that living for working can be turned into working for living.

Interview in ¨A Luxury travel Blog¨

I have been interviewed at one of the best luxury travel blogs on the net: ¨A Luxury travel Blog¨ ran by Dr. Paul Johnson. Details at:

http://www.aluxurytravelblog.com/2007/01/08/interview-with-eduardo-blanco-of-different-spain/

This blog is highly recommended for tips, reviews and news about the luxury travel industry in all its aspects.

www.aluxurytravelblog.com

From the client´s side

Professionals tend to create a marvellous scene when it comes to promote their business, hotel, spa or agency. This is obviously normal, each company is the best for the owner and the people working there, so sometimes the client finds an array and diversity of products and services that claim themselves to be the best in their sector. What to choose? which hotel to go?

Well, let´s face it from the client´s point of view, since we all become clients when we travel, too. Sometimes we choose a hotel because we know somebody that works there or recommended it for some reason. Or maybe we select an event agency planner because the image it gives is quite professional. But most of the time we rely on little details that make the difference, and this is the key, to be different. In which way? that´s the secret. Excellent customer service, great image, good facilities or location, attentive staff? it´s a mixture of it all, but what´s true is the fact that clients are more and more especial and demanding, which obliges the travel agent, the hotel or the meeting planner to be updated, ready to answer all questions and available. Finding people with such qualities is hard, but once you have it, clients see it very quickly. it´s all about customer service again, but in a world with so much competence, wouldn´t you want to reach higher than the rest? for me, small details count, and that´s what makes the difference.

Working with people

We are people, work and live surrounded by others like us, and need to be in mutual balance and coordination as much as possible. In tourism, you work with people, and for people. The concept of service does not mean the fact that you become some kind of slave for another person that is paying you for certain services, it is a question of respect between both parts.

In hotels, every guest is different, and the staff should always treat everyone the same, because each person is supposed to receive an equal treatment. Offering vip treatment, special amenities, etc. to someone who pays more is normal, but we must remember that maybe the guest staying at that reduced priced single room can bring you more business in the future.

When it comes to offering personal service, like I do at Different Spain, it´s a mistery to know how your guest is gonna react, feel or behave. He/she may not like you from the beginning, or you may feel that it´s a difficult client, but approaching the person in a polite way, introducing yourself and being nice at all times assures that half of the work is almost done. Even if the person is a very important CEO, or a VIP, or a celebrity, I always treat them the same, nicely and kind, and never acting as if I was honoured to have them as guests or feeling lucky that they came to me, something that I may think or not for myself, but this type of clients are normally used to have a lot of persons around them , at their service or trying to get something out of them. Maybe all they want is to feel like just another citizen in town, without big useless luxuries and people asking if they need something.

The best luxurious service you can give is to make them feel relaxed and happy, they already have a stressed life sometimes so all they search is for tranquility and calm atmosphere in their free time. I once had an important businessman coming to Seville, I took him for a nice stroll by the river at sunset and I showed him a couple of local tapas bars in Seville. He said he missed these small pleasures of daily life and that he was happy to be able to enjoy such walk with a disconnected mobile phone and mixing with the locals. Sometimes life is so easy that we just insist on making it difficult...

The Different Spain project

Together with music, travel is my favorite hobby. It implies money and time, so sometimes I cannot have both, but I always try to escape from the daily routines when possible.

I discovered my passion for travel when I realized I could hardly sleep the night before taking a plane or starting a trip. Those tickles in my stomach...

Then, I also noticed a great interest for hotels, in which I have always felt like at home. We all love to visit luxury hotels, and once you´ve been to a few, your level of exigence does not go any lower, believe me. But there are many other 4 star, country hotels, charming little properties not considered as luxury ones that deserve attention and that have something we sometimes don´t find in others. But I will talk about hotels in other posts.

All these attractions, combined with a sense of service, help-orientated to every guest, visitor and tourist, made me think that yes, the world of tourism was my natural element. This is why, after some years working in airlines, hotels and other industries related to tourism, I decided to be my own boss and do things my way. I may be lucky or not, specially in such a sector with so much competence, but I believe in what I do, and have a little secret: I love this job, helping people and offering advice and assistance. If you can make people feel that you are passionate about it, and that your best reward is their satisfaction, the rest comes easily.

It´s all about people. Treat them well and you will get the same back. Easy.