The best holiday destinations and travel ideas!
For anyone interested in sushi and Japanese food in general, touring markets in Japan is a must. We arrange early morning visits to the wholesale Toyosu Market in Tokyo to watch the tuna auction. We also arrange insider food tours of Tsukiji Outer Market. Artisans of Leisure customizes private Japan tours that provide an in-depth culinary and cultural experience. We arrange specialty …
Munich, the capital of Bavaria in southern Germany, is a cultural powerhouse that offers visitors historic neighborhoods, world-class art museums, Baroque palaces, traditional beer halls, World War II sites and diverse excursions. Many of our private tours in Munich start in Marienplatz, the medieval town square in the historic city center, especially notable for the famous Glockenspiel in the facade of the New Town Hall. The…
Cairo in Egypt is one of our favorite places in the Middle East to browse for decorative arts. For interested travelers, we arrange insider shopping tours in Cairo and elsewhere in Egypt, including visits to top antiques shops as well as upscale boutiques, favorite sections of bazaars and private studios. Upon request, we can also arrange private appointments with Egyptian artisans who make and sell beautiful pottery, jewelry, inlaid wood, metalwork and blown glass objects. …
Roman ruins are found throughout England, from Hadrian’s Wall in the north to the ancient hot springs complex at Bath in the south, reflecting the country’s occupation by the Roman Empire from 43 to 410 A.D. One of the largest and best-preserved of these ruins is the fourth-century A.D. Chedworth Roman Villa, a National Trust-run archaeological site in the Cotswolds. An area of southwest England best…
Few images evoke summer like the whitewashed houses, blue domed-churches and spectacular scenery of Santorini. One of the most beautiful islands in the Aegean, it offers incredible cultural touring, luxurious resorts and outstanding food and wine. A volcanic eruption around 1600 B.C. shaped Santorini’s unique topography of steep cliffs, black sand beaches and spectacular caldera, the crescent-shaped rim of a partially submerged volcanic crater. Today, whitewashed buildlings spill down terraces to the Aegean Sea while traditional villages and wineries dot the inland terrain. Our private Greece tours feature…
The south of France, a magnet for artists and writers during the postwar years of the 20th century, is an incredible destination for touring art collections, villas, and the former homes and studios of luminaries such as Cezanne, Van Gogh and Renoir. One unique private collection on the Cote d’Azur, however, belongs to the legendary La Colombe d’Or, a small, historic auberge (inn) and restaurant in the medieval village of Saint-Paul de Vence. La Colombe d’Or (“The Golden Dove”) is one of our favorite lunch destinations in the area, a must-…
Rwanda is the perfect destination for travelers interested in unique wildlife and beautiful scenery. Artisans of Leisure travel specialist Carly Walter recently returned from a trip to Rwanda, visiting its beautiful capital, Kigali, and its three national parks, where she enjoyed gorilla trekking, luxury lodges and more. Q: Why did you …
Enjoy this interview with Ashley Isaacs Ganz, founder & CEO of Artisans of Leisure, about her most recent visit to China with her family. Q.) What inspired this trip to China? The country is changing so quickly, and I wanted to revisit some of my favorite cities to focus on new hotel, …
The countryside around St. Petersburg, Russia, is filled with palaces and parks that make wonderful private day trips from the former imperial capital. One of our top excursions from St. Petersburg is Catherine Palace, where we arrange for our travelers to skip the entrance lines to tour the beautiful interiors of the Baroque building. To gain even more insight into the palace and its history, we arrange an exclusive visit to the nearby Tsarskoselskaya Amber Workshop, which is not open to the public. The workshop is famous …
