In this article, we have rounded up the most fascinating travel experiences and stories around the world.
A sensory wine experience
Keeping your bellies happy is the top priority for us and it is not coincidental that we try to leverage the local flavors. Part of this consistent effort is the Wine Degustation sessions being held every evening at Cava Idea, the resident wine cellar. Our world-class cava houses the richness of the Greek vineyards: the grape varieties of Macedonia, Thrace, Central Greece, Peloponnese, Crete, and the Greek islands. Our expert guides will be very glad to navigate you through the Greek viticulture and reveal the secrets and dimensions of wine to you. The main corpus of the discussion will be stipulated on the tannin, acidity, sweetness, reduction, oxidation, aging and all the other basic notions that appertain to wine-making and tasting. Do not omit to try Sauvignon Blanc (white grape), Grenache Rouge (red grape), Xinomavro (red grape), and Roditis (white grape). Best of all, the wine tasting sessions are for free. Besides, (Travel) “Happiness like a fine wine should be savored sip by sip.” – L. Feuerbach-, and this is something we know inside out.
The world’s most expensive dessert
The world’s most expensive dessert is served at The Fortress Resort & Spain Sri Lanka. The desert, named “The Fortress Stilt Fisherman Indulgence”, is priced at $14,500. Ornamented with an 80-carat aquamarine precious stone and a sophisticated carving, made of chocolate and representing an old-time regional fishing technique with a fisherman clinging to a stilt, the delicacy is composed of pomegranate, compote, mango, Champagne sabayon, Irish cream, and gold leaf Italian cassata.
The staff interviews at the Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts
Once at a Four Seasons hotel, the GM of the hotel interviewed a dishwasher at the last stage of the hiring process. A tactic that illustrates not only how important the dishwasher’s job is but how important he is too.
Southwest Airlines’ beautiful story
A grandfather’s wife made a desperate call to Southwest Airlines to organize a last-minute flight ticket, describing a crisis circumstance:
A grandfather urgently needed to fly from a corporate trip in Los Angeles to his daughter’s home in Denver to live the very last moments with a person he loved: his three-year-old grandson who was in a coma after having been beaten to death by his mother’s boyfriend. The little boy would be taken off life support at 9 p.m. that night, donating his organs to save over 25 lives. A big delay on the road and airport made the man almost miss the flight scheduled at 11: 50. At 12:02, 12 minutes after the supposed departure flight time, the pilot, having held the plane, welcomed the grandfather to the waiting plane: “Are you, Mark? We held the plane for you and we’re so sorry about the loss of your grandson.” Mark, walking down the jetway with the pilot, told him: “I can’t thank you enough for this” to receive once more his generous response: “They can’t go anywhere without me, and I wasn’t going anywhere without you. Now relax. We’ll get you there. And again, I’m so sorry.”
Despite not deriving from the exact hospitality industry, but from its cognate airline business, this heart-wrenching story is evincible of how companies opt for going above and beyond to personally respond to a valued customer with an experience that marks his life. The pilot of the story deviated from the rigorously strict airline guidelines that no flight should be held for any reason and designed an experiential memory that would emotionally engage the client in an inherently personal way forever. In this way, the pilot and Southwest airlines created uniquely positive feelings that harmonize the customer perception and contemporaneously steer the brand reputation.
Blogger Christopher Elliott communicated and shared this story that Nancy, Mark’s wife sent him, to Southwest Airlines and published it on his blog with the awesomely articulated comment: “I’m speechless. Twelve minutes may not sound like a lot to you or me, but every second counts when you’re an airline. Southwest can turn an entire plane around in about 20 minutes, so 12 minutes is half an eternity.”
