Holiday Gifts: Over-The-Top Items For The Luxury Traveler’s Wish List

by McLean Robbins on


For many, making a holiday wish list is a tradition they’ve practiced since childhood. But as we grow up, these “must have” items often become fewer and further between. We can afford most everything we want, from a new iPad to that plane ticket to Bora Bora, assuming we save appropriately beforehand. But, of course, there are always a few extra special items that we’d love if money were no object. Here are a few of our favorites for this holiday season.

Flexjet 25 Jet Card
This debit card allows access to private Learjets and Challenger aircraft for any location on any day of the year. For a minimum $100,000 investment, customers can reach nearly 5,000 airports with just 24 hours advance notice, plus get access to special perks through Flexjet partnerships, including tee times at 50 of the most exclusive private golf clubs in North America, membership in Abercrombie & Kent’s exclusive Marco Polo Club an upgrade (upon availiabilty) to Lake Austin Spa Resort’s Lady Bird Suite and instant elite member status in Korean Air and Qatar Airways’ membership clubs for a full year following the purchase of a single long-haul first- or business-class ticket. Sounds good to us.

Sandy Cay, A Bahamian Private Island
Sure, you could buy your loved one a car or a great trip for their holiday gift, but why not go over-the-top and get them an entire island? For just $15 million, Sandy Cay could be yours. Don’t worry, it comes with a lot of stuff already available for use. The 8+ acre is located in the Abacos and is currently being used as a private family retreat, but, as the brochure says “the potential is enormous for the use of the island as an upscale private boutique resort.” Look there, you’ve bought yourselves a potential hotel too! The island houses four residences ranging from 5,200 to 1,500-square-feet, a private harbor with room for five vessels (boats included), a commercial-grade fitness center, and two beaches. Did we mention there’s also a fully-equipped dive shop and assortment of beach equipment?

%Gallery-171696%Jason Wu’s Grand Tourista Bag for St. Regis
If you haven’t heard of Jason Wu, we’ll give you a hint — he’s the guy who designed Michelle Obama’s inauguration dress in 2008. The acclaimed young fashion designer has made his first foray into travel with the Grand Tourista bag designed exclusively for St. Regis hotels. It’s pricey, at $1,995 (available now for pre-order) but not overly extravagant compared to many designers. The oversized tote combines classic canvas and black Italian leather (products that travel well) and the bag itself is inspired by Wu’s time in Florence, a traditional spot on the European Grand Tour. We’d love to carry this understated bag on our next trip. What about you?

A Travel Trailer No Camper Should Live Without
No camping trip is complete without some sort of tailgate event or ’round the campfire huddle with adult beverages. Trick out your truck with the ultimate trailer by Bulleit Frontier Whiskey. Featuring manly leather furnishings, wood finishes made from reclaimed bourbon casks, glassware and an entertainment system to rival the finest man cave (flat screen, blu-ray, state-of-the-art sound), this truck wouldn’t be complete without a one-year supply of Bulleit Bourbon and Bulleit Rye. This limited edition baby (just two will be made) is a hefty $150,000, with 10% of the purchase price going to a foundation that supports AIDS research. It’s available exclusively through the Neiman Marcus holiday catalog.

A Four Seasons Around-The-World Trip
Many people put an around-the-world trip on their travel bucket lists. But what about a trip that goes ’round and ’round via private jet, staying exclusively at Four Seasons hotels and resorts from Boston to Bali? We’re pretty sure that’s right up there with amazing, and you can go for just $70, 950 (double occupancy — singles are an extra $8,650). From September 14 to October 5, 2013, passengers will travel from Seattle to Tokyo, Hangzhou, Shanghai, The Maldives, Istanbul, St. Petersburg, Marrakech and New York on a 22-day journey, complete with private concierge, educational lectures and much more.

[Image credit: Flexjet.com’s Learjet 70 aircraft]

Galley Gossip: Gifts for flight attendants (and travelers)

by Heather Poole on

A stun gun, Xanax, travel massager that glows in the dark, ten foot pole for not touching things with, these are just a few of the things my flight attendant friends want for Christmas. What, not your gift-giving style? Okay so perhaps one of these will do….

1. PASSPORT COVER – In this day and age you might not want to advertise your country of origin. Not to mention it’s kind of fun dressing up the old passport some of you should be very proud of based on the number of stamps inside. If you’re a passenger, check out the adorable covers at Flushshop.com. Flight attendants will want to go with Modcloth’s Safety Misinformation Passport Wallet. (pictured)

2. BAG TAGS – All those crew bags lined up against the wall in flight operations look alike. No one wants to end up on a layover with clothes we’ve never seen before. A unique bag tag will help. One of the the funniest ones I’ve ever seen read “Baggage Handlers are Hot.” Ya know that bag made it to its final destination! Flight attendant Bailey loves Anne Taintor’s line of sassy, vintage bag tags. (And he’s going to kill me for sharing this with you.)

3. OVEN MITTS – The oven racks are hot, hot, hot! This is why flight attendants no longer have fingerprints. Because I’m always accidentally leaving mine behind on the airplane, I can never have too many pairs. Flight attendant Eric is a fan of Grips. As for me, I like Fred’s Hot Head dog shaped insulating mitt.

4. MINI TRAVEL ROLLER SET – Looking good is important to flight attendants. This is not always easy when our layovers are only eight hours long and we’re scheduled to work ten to fourteen hours a day. But somehow flight attendant Joann always manages to look fabulous and I have a feeling it has something to do with her Conair mini roller set.5. GREEN TRAVEL/REUSABLE TOTES – My friend Melanie can tell domestic flight attendants from international ones by the bags they carry on their layovers – Harrods vs Trader Joe’s. For just $2.99 you can help us show off our travel style with a fun international tote from World Market. Or how about (sending me) a Loot Bag from Anya Hindmarch, creator of the “I’m not a plastic bag” bag.

6. TRAVEL SOUND MACHINE – At the layover hotels, flight attendants are usually assigned one of two rooms – the one across from the elevator or the one next to the ice machine. My friend Cady wouldn’t have been able to survive a Disney Cruise or her last visit with the in-laws without her Brookstone travel sound machine. It’s great at blocking out noise from others.

7. TIFFANY’S AIRPLANE CHARM BRACELET – Because it’s from Tiffany’s! And it’s an airplane. Need I say more?!

8. A FULL FARE TICKET – So we can actually get to where we’re going! The flights are full and flying standby is not always an option anymore. Earlier this year Jet Blue offered a 30 day all-you-can-jet pass for just $599. Something like that would have been amazing for the commuter in your life.

9. VIDEO CAMERA – Documenting travels can be just as fun, if not more fun, than actually traveling! Don’t believe me? Just ask Sodwee, AKA Airboy – or better yet watch one of his videos. I love the Flip because it’s easy to use.

10. iPAD – Staying connected to family, friends is very important. Being able to do a last minute trip trade is just as important! So is watching movies, listening to music, and surfing the web on a layover. That said, nothing in the world would make a flight attendant happier than an iPad. Santa, you listening?!

Check out my 2009 Gift Guide

Top five best carry on bags for travel gifts

by Annie Scott on

If you’re looking for a gift for a traveler this year, consider getting them a stylish, utilitarian carry on bag. Carry on bags make great travel gifts, because not only are they useful, but travelers are happy to have more than one — there’s nothing more depressing than having no options.

Carry on bags, in this traveler’s opinion, need to have a few basic things:

  • a slot for easy access to travel documents
  • multiple compartments to keep things organized
  • space for a laptop in a sleeve
  • lightweight build
  • space for at least one change of clothes

As long as it meets those basic criteria, any bag at all can be used as a carry on. Still, some are far and away better than others. Check out the gallery below for Gadling’s Top Five Best Carry On Bags for Travel Gifts — these are sure to delight the recipient’s aesthetic and pragmatic desires.

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10 Ways to Give the Gift of Travel

by Annie Scott on

Does all the rushing around of the holiday season make you want to get away? You’re not the only one. In fact, it might just behoove you to give someone the gift of travel this year. There are more ways to do so than you think — and ways in all price ranges. Here are ten ideas:

10 Ways to Give the Gift of Travel

1. Airline miles. Airline gift cards are tricky; you sort of feel like a jerk for giving anything less than $100. However, if you have some spare miles floating around from those last few business trips, you can get them transferred to somebody else — and that’s a great gift. Check with whatever airline you fly most for their procedure. Alternatively, you can donate your airline miles to charity in someone’s name. Johnny Jet explains how here. ‘Tis the season.

2. Hotel gift cards. Almost all hotels, from the budget set to luxury boutique hotels and bed and breakfasts, offer gift cards. Some will allow you to purchase a number of nights and spa treatments, etc., and some just go by dollar amount. The easiest way to give this gift is of course to get it for free. Luxist is giving away Four Seasons gift cards through December 10 here.

3. Zipcar membership. Zipcar offers “an alternative to car rental and car ownership.” If your recipient is 21 years old or older, they have a valid driver’s license, and meet a few other criteria here, you can gift them with membership or a dollar amount, and totally claim you gave them a car. Zipcar has also set up a Get Zipcar site so that you can send a message to your parents that says “I’d like to come home for the holidays” or a silly message like “Happy BMW to me!” and encourage them to get you a car.
4. Food. It may not be as good as the real thing, but food is part of the essence of travel. If you know your friend is just dying to go to Paris, why not take them to the best local French restaurant to let them enjoy the Parisian cuisine? Alternatively, you could buy them a cookbook or, even more generously, make them a gift card good for one meal from the country of their choice cooked by you.

5. A guide to the city where they live. Sometimes, you don’t have to leave home to travel. Staycation! Most of us don’t go to our local tourist haunts very often (and for good reason), but guides to your own city can alert you to cool features you didn’t even know your town had. Series like City Walks can help you explore your local area in a whole new way.

6. City Pass. Know someone who’s already planning their next trip? Get them a City Pass. The price varies by city, but the pass will get them discounts as high as 50 percent on major attractions and enable them to skip ticket lines.

7. Boat trip. Almost every city has a body of water with boats on it, and you probably almost never ride them (unless you live in Staten Island). Museums are great, but nothing takes you away from your usual routine (literally) like getting out on the water. You may just be traveling up the river and back, but simply changing terrain can feel like a mini-vacation and give you a whole new perspective on a place.

8. Give something they have to travel to use. Examples: a tent, skis, fabulous swimwear, an enormous backpacker backpack. This is a good idea for someone who deserves a vacation but needs a little push.

9. Give language-learning software/books. Another way to inspire someone to travel is to get them excited about another language. You have to know someone pretty well to know that they’d like to learn a language (and which languages interest them), but a question like “If you could learn any language in the world, what would it be?” should get you all the information you need. If they seem excited, get them a simple book or go whole hog and get them Rosetta Stone’s TOTALe package. Once they start to learn the words, it won’t be long before they skip town.

10. Invite someone to your home. If you have out-of-town friends or family, one way to give them a travel gift that costs you nothing is to invite them, officially, to come visit your city and stay in your home. Even if you’ve known them for years, people can feel awkward about asking to stay with you instead of forking out the cash for a hotel. Make a pretty invitation good for a four-night stay (it’s a good idea to specify the length, so they don’t feel like they’re asking for too many nights or, conversely, overstay their welcome), and the likelihood of them coming to visit will greatly increase.

Happy shopping to you all, and happy holidays!

Gift idea: Clear System by 3-1-1 Travel Bag

by Jamie Rhein on

Here’s a traveler’s gift idea that has use. The Clear Bag System by 3-1-1 Travel Bag was made with the air traveler in mind. Instead of loading up 3 ounce prepackaged travel size bottles into a zip lock bag, you fill the various bottles of the Clear System with shampoo, mouthwash, lotion, etc. then slip them into the system’s clear plastic carrying case that meets TSA standards. There are a few options to choose from depending on how many products you take along with you.

One thing that I like about this system is that you can fill up the bottles with the products you need and just top them off between trips. It also cuts down on waste because instead of buying travel sizes over and over again, you can fill these from your larger, regular size bottles.

The numbers 3-1-1 refer to the TSA rules for carry-ons.

  • 3 ounce or smaller liquid container or gel
  • 1 quart-size clear plastic , zip-lock bag holding 3 ounce or smaller containers
  • 1 bag per passenger placed in security bin.

Clever, huh? Works kind of like a mnemonic for a spelling bee or some method used to remember the Periodic Table. If you want an explanation for these regulations, the link leads to that as well.