running through the fountains

running through the Joke Fountains (c) 2019 by David Ourisman, all rights reserved

We visited the fountains at Grand Peterhof Palace our first morning in St. Petersburg. One of many ornate palaces in Russia, Peterhof was built by Peter the Great. Though one of the most popular attractions in Russia, we never felt hemmed in by crowds because the grounds are so massive.

Grand Peterhof Palace fountains (c) 2019 by David Ourisman, all rights reserved

Don't miss the Joke Fountains (pictured at the very top of the article). A fountain randomly* shoots jets of water at pedestrians who walk along the cobblestoned path in front of these benches. The young girl in the picture has dashed along that path, successfully missing the spray of the fountain. Obviously, it's a fun place for kids!

The beautiful gardens of Peterhof Palace rival Versailles in their scale. Be sure to visit on a sunny day!

*randomly? ... not really!!! A park attendant, hidden in a small booth behind the fountain, controls when the fountain shoots its water.

copyright (c) 2019 by Ourisman Travel LLC. All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell, a Virtuoso® Member. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.

postcard from Paris | Napoleonic throne

Napoleon's throne (c) 2019 by David Ourisman, all rights reserved

The Louvre is one of the largest museums in the world — as well as one of the most visited. Visitors typically follow the crowds, flocking to see the Louvre's two most celebrated objects, the Mona Lisa and the Venus de Milo. I remember, back in the 70's, actually being able to view the Mona Lisa — but a typical visitor's experience is now seeing the crowds gathered around a small painting in the middle of a large gallery.

My inclination is always to avoid the crowds, to take the path less travelled, to go places that most don't even know about ... and in the Louvre, that would be the Napoleonic Apartments. Located in the Richelieu Wing, you'll discover memorable examples of Second Empire decorative art ... including this throne. One of the Louvre's best kept secrets, you'll enjoy opulent rooms that rival Versailles ... without the crowds.

copyright (c) 2019 by Ourisman Travel LLC.  All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell, a Virtuoso® member. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit our website.

four tips | avoiding overtourism

tourists exploring the grounds at Cliveden (c) 2018 by David Ourisman, all rights reserved

Overtourism affects all of us when visit popular tourist destinations. Europe had 671 million visitors in 2017, the eighth year of sustained growth in its tourism industry. We've all experienced the loathsome effects of too many visitors in the same places — long lines in front of the pyramid at the Louvre in Paris, huge crowds crowding the Piazza San Marco in Venice, a precious few seconds on a moving conveyer in front of the Crown Jewels in the Tower of London. Overtourism also means crowded airports, long security lines, and wasted time in immigration.

Here are my top tips for avoiding overtourism. Short version — be a contrarian.

(1) Avoid high season. Unless you have school-age children, don't travel in the summer. I can guarantee that Italy will be hot and crowded in June, July, and August.

(2) Visit when everyone else is staying away. For instance, many visitors deserted Paris during Sunday "Yellow Jacket" protests on the Champs Elysées. Hotel occupancy went way down, and some of the more popular tourist sites were closed. I would see this as the perfect opportunity to avoid the Champs Elysées, explore less-known parts of Paris, and plan a Sunday day trip to Versailles, Chartres, or Giverny. Are you a nervous traveler? Just engage a knowledgeable tour guide, and you'll be kept far from any affected areas.

(3) Arrange for special access. Sit in Churchill's chair in the War Rooms (while the crowds filing past the plexiglass window wonder what kind of VIP you are) or witness the Changing of the Guard's concert from inside the Wellington Barracks (with nobody between you and the troops). Visit the Vatican Museum before it opens to the crowds (and without waiting in line). Yes, you'll pay for the privilege — but that's what keeps it exclusive.

(4) Get off the beaten track. You might explore the English countryside as the ten (10) tourists pictured above are doing at Cliveden. Ourisman Travel has partnerships around the world with companies that know their destinations like locals ... because they are locals! Special bonus feature after the break — the outline of a 10-day, 9-night off-the-beaten-track itinerary in Portugal and Spain, suggested by our friends at Made for Spain, completely customizable. Contact us to plan this trip!

skipping the queue | what's it worth?

from commons.wikipedia.com, photo owned by the Saeima Chancellery and used by permission

Here's a long line winding around the corner in Saeima, Latvia. Why so many people in queue? They've come for the Night of Museums, an annual event held across Europe. The following equation describes the phenomenon we're seeing here...

free admission = lots o' people = long queues

... which brings up a question I just responded to on fodors.com: "Just wondering if it is worth buying skip the queue tickets for Versailles." My short answer: Yes!!! Read on for my long answer...

Life is short... Thus begins the provocative headline on a recent advertisement I saw, but I disagree with the ad's conclusion: "Life is short: you should be playing the world's finest golf equipment!" NOT!!! Life is a gift, I would say, so make the most of the time with which you've been blessed!

This is especially true of travel. Say France is on your bucket list, and visiting Paris and touring Versailles are something you've been looking forward to for years. So you plan your trip, spending thousands of dollars on flights and hotels. What that nets you is time in France; you've essentially bought 3 or 5 or 7 days to explore Paris and to experience all it has to offer.

So how do you want to invest your precious time? You could spend hours of your vacation waiting in queue: an hour in line at the Louvre, an hour at the Musée d'Orsay, another hour at Versailles. That time adds up, and you will have squandered that most precious of resources, your leisure time. If 5€ could buy you an extra hour to sit outside a café, sip your cafe au lait, and watch as Paris walks by your table — wouldn't that be worth it?

So, yes, skip every queue you possibly can. Buy your tickets in advance. Get the Paris Museum Pass that gets you right in. Ask your travel advisor about engaging expert guides who can help you experience so much more while making much more efficient use of your time. (And while we're on the subject of queues, get Global Entry and TSA pre-check to avoid those lines as well — the best $100 you can ever spend).

copyright (c) 2017 by Ourisman Travel LLC. All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell, a Virtuoso® Member. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.

one fine stay, indeed!

OneFineStay apartment on rue Saint Andre des Arts in the 6th arr.

This review of a OneFineStay apartment was written by guest columnist, Jessica O... more information below at the bottom of the article. 

I recently had the pleasure of staying in a gorgeous Parisian flat listed through One Fine Stay. Overall, I can safely say that the experience was near perfect — but it was absolutelyperfect for a francophile such as myself, in Paris on a weeklong romantic getaway with my partner, Tom. 

The apartment was situated on the Left Bank of Paris in a phenomenal location, close to the St. Michel subway stop, walking distance from Notre Dame, and mere steps away from countless restaurants and dining establishments. As they say, location is everything, and we could not have handpicked a more desirable spot. 

As an individual living on a restricted diet (unfortunately), I was even able to find a gluten-free creperie nearby and an organic, gluten-free market just a street away, a luxury I had never anticipated. Had we decided to see a French movie, there was a movie theater across the street. There was trendy, young shopping available just a couple blocks away, and easy-to-rent bikes available to ride around the city. 

Even our trip to Versailles was as easy as taking a train to dinner, an RER train being available at the closest subway station to our flat. My boyfriend went on a morning run to the Eiffel Tower, which was visible from our window, and we were able to start our mornings with much-needed coffee, thanks to the kitchen’s French Press (we bought the grounds just down the street).

Having your very own Parisian flat for the week is the ideal experience for anyone interested in a truly immersive French cultural experience. Sure, you won’t benefit from the perks of a Concierge, turn-down service, or room service… but considering our unique preferences, the benefits more than made up for it. 

Rather than relying on the amenities of a high end hotel, you’ll find yourself interacting much more with the local culture… picking up groceries to cook a meal in your fully-stocked kitchen, or enjoying a glass of wine in the living room while you run a load or two of laundry in your private washer/dryer. Plus, without a TV in the flat, we spent our evenings talking and exploring, truly making the most of our trip and of each other.

For a French-culture junkie, ever on a quest for all-things-French, the set-up was downright idyllic. I was able to use the free wifi to work during my stay, and the use of One Fine Stay’s iPhone came to our rescue on more than one occasion. Thanks to an app called City Mapper — similar to the likes of HopStop, which I used regularly while living in NYC — the former difficulty of acclimating to the metro system was a challenge of the past. The phone’s data and wifi allowed us to map out our destination from wherever we were, making it possible to hop on the subway and head to our next stop with only minimal planning in advance. 

We enjoyed the benefits of unlimited texts and internet, even to the US, and received concierge-like customer service on an as-needed basis. When we struggled to turn on the apartment’s hot water, they walked us through the steps to restore it. They were available to provide us with near-immediate assistance when the French washer and dryer confounded us, and followed up to ensure our needs had been met. 

Rather than having daily maid service, the maid came once per week. She cleaned our dishes, took out the trash, replaced our towels and linens, and restocked our luxurious L’Occitaine toiletries. There was even a French hairdryer there for our use, an amenity I was thrilled to discover, having long, unruly hair. 

One Fine Stay also provided us with some snacks, as there was no mini-bar available, although a few more bottles of water would have been helpful. (That being said, a bottle of wine, some fresh fruit, and some French chocolate would have been downright perfect). 

The experience gave us the sort of privacy one simply cannot experience in a hotel stay, allowing us a degree of self-sufficiency that permitted us the freedom to daydream that we were real-life ex-pats. There is simply no better way to indulge your adventurous side than by braving French living all on your own. The knowledge that we had immediate help at our disposal, 24-hours-a-day, gave us the courage to maximize our experience there and resulted in a culturally immersive Parisian dream for the length of our stay. 

Be forewarned, however, that one thing was missing: an elevator. It was one sacrifice we made in order to enjoy the gorgeous historic building, making our way to the fourth-floor flat on an original staircase. (Being young and fitness-oriented, we considered the 70+ stairs a great leg work-out). Otherwise, only the presence of our dogs could have made our week-long stay any more perfect. 

For the right traveler, One Fine Stay is certainly a company to consider for your next getaway. And for an honest to goodness Francophile? One Fine Stay is your ticket to a veritable Parisian paradise. [Editor's note: book through your Virtuoso travel advisor for advice finding your perfect Parisian apartment ... and a Virtuoso amenity!]

The guest columnist is my daughter, Jessica O, not the Jessica Ourisman who is my daughter-in-law and CEO of Ourisman Travel. Her Instagram handle is @jessicagrey091 

exclusive access to Europe's attractions

"Chateau Versailles Galerie des Glaces" by Photo: Myrabella / Wikimedia Commons.
Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

The Hall of Mirrors at Versailles looks just like the picture above (if you could visit without the crowds). Having time alone in the chateau would hint at the elegant lifestyle of Louis XIV and Marie Antoinette. Space and sunlight, gleaming mirrors and soaring ceilings, and tall windows looking out over manicured gardens all speak to the unparalleled luxury enjoyed by the 18th century French aristocracy.

But this isn't how most tourists experience Versailles. For a sense of the more typical visitor experience, click here. How different when you're in a hallway crammed shoulder-to-shoulder with tourists casually dressed in shorts, t-shirts, and sneakers with cameras around their necks. Not the travel experience that many luxury clients desire.

What's the alternative to the thundering herds? If you're looking for an experience you'll always cherish (granting you bragging rights for the rest of your life), we can arrange exclusive access to many Europe's most popular tourist attractions such as Versailles, the Sistine Chapel, the Louvre, and Buckingham Palace. Our Virtuoso tour companies and on-sites can provide the treasured memories you're looking for. Just drop us an email if you'd like to explore the possibilities.

copyright (c) 2015 by David Ourisman LLC. All rights reserved. We provide Virtuoso and other Preferred Partner amenities as an affiliate of Brownell Travel. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.

when is a trip to Paris NOT a trip to Paris?

I received a phone call the other day from Pablo who, with his wife, wanted to plan a last-minute trip to Paris. He had posted an online request, asking travel consultants to make proposals that he and his wife could consider. One travel agency, he told me, had quoted him $7,400 for a package that included four nights at a 5 star hotel and round-trip flights from Tucson. I asked Pablo to tell me more about the package that had been offered him. They would be staying, he said, at the Trianon Palace in Versailles.

Pablo had never been to Paris and did not know much about the destination. I told him that the hotel that was recommended to him, the Trianon Palace, was not even in Paris. I told him that the same package was actually available for under $6,400. I spoke with him about some 5 star luxury hotels in Paris, in the middle of everything he would want to see, in the same price range.

But the final word I left with Pablo — and that I would leave with you — was this: If going to Paris is a dream you've had for a long time, don't plan it last minute. Don't book your tickets the week before you leave when airfares will be exorbitantly expensive; you'll be paying full fare and sitting in coach. If you can, visit in the spring or fall, when the city isn't crowded with tourists and the lines are much shorter. And don't fly off to Paris without first having thought out your trip: creating a day-by-day itinerary that makes sense, learning about your options in getting around (weekly Metro passes), getting Museum passes that will let you skip the lines, and — yes — planning a day trip to see the beautiful palace at Versailles (pictured above at the right).

If you're dreaming about going to Paris, take the time to plan it right!


5 star luxury hotels in Paris (search here on Google)

copyright (c) 2007 by David J. Ourisman. All rights reserved. If you have comments on this column, or questions about booking travel, email me or visit my website.
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