Ultimate Christmas gift: Flexjet to the Olympics

Have you booked your ticket to Vancouver yet? The Winter Olympics are coming, and you can count on flights being packed. When that happens, even first class flying’s a drag. And, there’s no upscale treatment for every other part of the travel experience — from curb to gate and baggage claim to the door — which is were you’re bound to spend at least several hours on your journey. If you want to make your trip to the Games memorable, skip the airlines and go private. The Flexjet 25 Jet Card program offers the travel experience you deserve, and a partnership with the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games will get you access to behind the scenes action that the regular fans won’t even know is possible. Quantities are limited, and you’ll need to travel between February 26 and March 1, 2010.

Guests buying the Flexjet 25 Jet Card — 2010 Gold Edition will receive exclusive access to an award-winning athlete and a look behind the action in Vancouver. But, this is nothing compared to tickets to the events that everyone wants to see: the Closing Ceremony, Men’s Ice Hockey Gold Medal Game, Figure Skating Gala Exhibition and three Short-Track Speed Skating gold medal races. You’ll also receive three nights at Vancouver’s Sutton Place Hotel and access to the city’s top restaurants. And you’ll have your choice of jets, including the Learjet 40 XR, Learjet 45 XR, Learjet 60, Challenger 300 or Challenger 604 business jets.

This is far more than mere private jet travel: the latest from Flexjet 25 is an unparalleled experience in one of the world’s most memorable athletic traditions.

“We continually search for ways to create unique travel opportunities that provide unparalleled access for our owners, wherever their travels take them,” said Sylvain Levesque, Vice President, Marketing, Flexjet 25. “In a time when consumers are more discerning with their spending, we are excited to offer this once-in-a-lifetime experience that jet card owners will remember for years to come.”

Sead Dizdarevic, Chairman and CEO of Jet Set Sports, which is partnering with Flexjet, “Our partnership is a winning combination of the best in private aviation with the premier hospitality our customers have come to look forward to at the Games.”

This is the second jet card inspired by an expert offer. Last year’s involved exclusive access to private meeting experts, with packages offering inside looks at the art world with Barbara Guggenheim and learning to play Texas Hold ’em from World Poker Tour bracelet winner Antonio Esfandiari, among others.

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Dream Escape: the name says it all

The problem with most vacation packages is that they’re … well … packaged. You may have some room for a little tweaking, but you aren’t going to stray far from the menu. As an alternative, you could reach out to an upscale travel agent or concierge, but you’ll probably wind up with an experience centered on destinations rendered inaccessible only by price – which, for a particular demographic, isn’t inaccessible at all. For those with the means to clear all but the most absurd of financial hurdles, the real challenge becomes getting into the places that are designed to keep you out – or which at least aren’t intended to accommodate.

This is where David Tobin’s Dream Escape excels.

Dream Escape is Scotland’s most exclusive travel planning company, constructing careful and extensive vacation experiences that you won’t find anywhere else … and may not even dream up on your own. Whether you want to inhabit a castle for a few weeks, taste the latest single malt before the rest of the world learns of its existence or zip around the Scottish countryside (there’s lots of it) in the sports car of your fantasies and toss your head onto a different pillow each night, Tobin can probably put together an itinerary that will turn you on.

The process begins well before you hit the road, with Tobin’s team getting a sense for what you like and what you don’t, soliciting any specifics you’ve already chosen and providing ideas that may not occur to you on your own – if you don’t know what can be done, you won’t know to ask. Groups of all sizes can be handled, including celebrations involving hundreds of your closest friends … all of whom expect to be carted around on private jets.

By the time you land in Scotland, everything is ready (well, the details are actually nailed down long before the wheels on your Gulstream drop). You’ll be accompanied throughout your escape by an expert on the details of your trip, though you can certainly choose to have some elbow room if you like. In my mind, this concierge is like an easily accessible itinerary: I don’t print them, and I don’t read them … but I want someone to let me know where I should be someplace, when and how to get there. This is just one of the ways in which the annoyances of travel are stripped out of your trip, and you are truly free to enjoy yourself fully.

The “everything’s taken care of” mentality can manifest itself in unusual ways, underscoring how closely Dream Escape watches even the smallest of moving parts. One party, for example, wanted to drive – a collection of sports cars (such as Lamborghinis) was the backbone of the getaway. Obviously, these rides were waiting for the guests when they landed; that’s just common sense. Each one had a GPS device with directions for the entire trip already planned into it – now, that’s thinking! And since people like me exist (i.e., navigationally impaired), the cars were stocked with prepaid cell phones that had the relevant digits already added to speed dial. The only thing missing was an imaginary friend to whisper words of wisdom into the guests’ ears. As soon as there’s a way to pull that off, I’m sure Tobin will find a way to work it into somebody’s vacation.

Doubtless, you’ve figured out by now that working with Dream Escape can be pretty costly. And, you’re right. These trips are not for the weak of wallet. Specific prices vary with the nature of your plans, especially if they involve private residences (such as castles), luxury jets or rare automobiles. Tobin did tell me that it’s possible to pull a trip together toward the lower end of the five-figure range, but it’s pretty clear to me that it takes a bit more than that to unleash the full power of his talent and connections. There are plenty of experiences out there in the $30,000 to $50,000 neighborhood – but if you’re ready to drop more than $100,000, I have a feeling Tobin’s imagination is the only limit.

Now, if you’re looking to roll at this level, you’re probably concerned about discretion. The last thing you’d want is a guy like me hearing – and writing – about your tastes, means and experiences. Well, you’ll be comforted to know there’s plenty Tobin wouldn’t tell me, and names were just the tip of this confidential iceberg. Your secrets will be safe.

Conspicuous luxury is a bit taboo during a recession – nothing makes peasants revolt quite like seeing the haves living the good life. So, skip the new house, watch or car, and call Tobin. Dream Escape will deliver the experience of your life, and nobody needs to know about it – except the like-minded folks you want to see drooling over what Tobin pulled off for you.

Private jet, 4 weeks in hotel, starts at NZ$1

The bidding starts at NZ$1, but it probably won’t stay there long! New Zealand Luxury is auctioning more than NZ$30,000 in luxury travel with a reserve that’s 0.033% of its value. The package includes four weeks worth of accommodations at an exclusive private villa, flights on a private jet and local trips by helicopter. Oh, and did I mention the yacht? And the chauffeur-driven private car?

Yeah, not bad for NZ$1. Hell, it’s not bad for NZ$30,000.

If you don’t win the big auction for a small price, don’t sweat it. Maybe you’ll be able to pick up some clothing from Untouched World – the proceeds of which to go Untouched World Charitable Trust.

Bad economy? Quit whining and buy a private jet!

Sorry about the rude title for this article, but it’s the heart of the message being delivered by the poor jet makers at Cessna.

See, they are fed up with the bad publicity the private jet has received in recent weeks. Fed up with the press complaining about broke automakers taking their jets to DC, fed up with the public complaining about their morally corrupt bankers flying the company jet to their vacation destination while you watch your retirement fund sink deeper every day.

So, if you make private jets, what do you do? You tell people to shut up and buy a jet!

The message Cessna is trying to deliver, is that the corporate jet is not a luxury item, it’s a business tool used to outperform your competitor, it’s apparently “all about availing yourself of the tools to do your job”.

This is all part of their new “leadership campaign“, and in this economy I guess its the only thing you can do – beg and grovel. And if you are one of the sad people who can’t afford a private jet, I guess you could always rent one for a little loving!

Super Bowl attracts fewer private jets

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: rich people feel pain, too. Super Bowl weekend is usually a big one for private jet rental, but a fierce recession is forcing more to take airlines or … dare I say it … watch the game at home.

Around 750 private jets are expected to touch down in Tampa for Super Bowl XLIII, down 25 percent from last year’s 1,000. The last time the Super Bowl was played in Tampa – eight years ago – 1,250 of these chariots of privilege came to town.

The sting is quite real for Jets.com, a Quincy, MA company in the chartering business. Last year, the company sold 55 Super Bowl charters. This year, only 18 have been booked. And, let’s be realistic. With only a day left, I just don’t believe another 37 will be nailed down at the last minute.

Meanwhile, there is no shortage of stupidity at the destination. Ed Cooley, a senior director at Tampa International who oversees aviation planning for the Super Bowl, says, “We just don’t know” the reason for the private jet drop-off.

Seriously?

[Via St. Petersburg Times]