The Financial Express FEBRUARY 5 l 2012 l 9

l F l O l O l T l L l O l O l S l E l

HOLIDAYS are hugely impor-tant to many of us. Couplesandfamiliesfromalloverthe

world save and dream all year in an-ticipationof aspecialtrip.

Unfortunately,mostpeopledonotdo a very good job of planning theirvacations. As the forces of globalisa-tion open ever more destinations totravellers, the choice can be over-whelming—somanyplacestosee,solittle time. Most people, therefore,choose a destination based on basicgeographical features, i.e. beaches,mountains, rivers. Or, they narrowtheir choices based on politicalboundaries—“I’ve never been to Ar-gentina, let’s give that a try.” For be-ginners,that’sthewaytodoit.

But there are different perspec-tivesontravelplanningthatcanhelpyour vacations add so much more toyour life than just beachside relax-ation with a colourful drink nearby(although that certainly has itsplace). Seasoned travellers seek togetadeeperunderstandingaboutthe

worldandthemyriadchallengesandopportunities it presents. Some-timesthatmeansgoingtoaplacesim-ilar to a previous vacation spot togain a different perspective (e.g.DubrovnikaftertheGreekIsles).Wealso seek out some off-beat locationsthatmaybecomethe“nextbigthing”because we want to get there beforethe wave of change washes over theplace (many experienced travellershead to Cuba for this reason; they

want to go before Americans startvisiting by the millions when sanc-tions are lifted.) Finally, people canuse a holiday to add something totheir life, to collect precious experi-ences. This is what I consider, firstandforemost,whenIplanaholiday.

I’ll mention what prompted someof myrecenttripsandwhatIhopedtoaddtomylife.● Lake Como: I went to this exclusiveItalian hideaway to gain more in-

sight into how global high net worthindividuals stay, spend and live.While many very wealthy visitorsandpart-timeresidentsstayinvillas,thereisanopenatmosphereinthere-gion,soitiseasytomeetotherguestsin the evenings. Insights gainedtherehavehelpedmecraft luxuryof-feringsthroughoutourbusiness.● South Africa: I’ve always enjoyednature shows, but National Geo-graphic is one thing and actually go-

ing on a safari is quite another. Iwanted to see how the animals be-have and, interestingly, going on aluxury safari exposes the travellersto two types of animals—those out-side the camp and your fellowtravellersinside!● Kashmir: I am fascinated withlearning how a place rebuilds itstourist reputation. What givestourists the confidence to travel to afascinating but recently troubleddestination? As travellers look toplaces like Sri Lanka and Myanmar,Kashmirofferssomeguidance.● Paris: On my last leisure trip toParis, I went for an education in art.This is a key area of expenditure formany of our wealthiest guests and Iwanted to learn more about what in-spires their passion. With its worldleading museums and global appeal,Parisistheperfectplace.

Deepak Ohri is CEO of lebuaHotels & Resorts. He can be

reached at deepak@lebua.com

DEEPAK OHRI

There are differentperspectives on travel

planning that can helpyour vacations add so

much more to your lifethan just beachside

relaxation with a colourfuldrink nearby

How to plan a holiday

Vishakha Talreja Guha

AS AN inquisitive trav-eller I often wonderwhat's the best way toexplore a city, on foot,hoppingontoatourist

busorjustfollowingaguide.WhileIamsureeveryonehasanopiniononthis,onatriptoSpainIdiscoveredabiking trip around Barcelona wasimmensefun.Of course,thiswasaf-ter I had done the usual touristystuff—from taking the hop-on-hop-off bus to walking down thebustling La Ramblas boulevard toshoppingatthehigh-endPasseigDeGracia street.

One morning, impressed by acolourfulpamphletondisplayinthehotel lobby, I decided to get morefromGaudi'scitybytakingabicycletour. It was as easy as walking downto the departure point, Hard RockCafeinmycase,tenminutespriortothetour.That'sthestoryof howImetmy bike. Of course, the best was yetto come.

After being assigned our gearedcycles, a bottle of water and a ten-minute chat during which our vi-vacious tour guide Elizabeth out-lined the sights that we would bevisiting, we were ready to go with

our machines. The mini-tourhad 14 of us, and it was quitea motley group—completewith honeymooning couple,familyof four, teenagersandcollege friends.

As I peddled down thestreets of Barcelona, I re-alised how bike-friendly thecity was—bicycle lanes andstructuredtraffic.Theroadswere a delight as much asthesightsandsoundsof theSpanish city. What elsecould one ask for on a win-ter morning.

Our first stop was thepopular tourist attractionSagrada Familia. WhileElizabeth filled us in onthe unfinished marvel, weleaned on our cycles, oureyeshookedtothechurch,appreciating its sheer magni-tudeandarchitecture.Theworkon Antoni Gaudi's masterpieceis still on. The construction isnot supported by any govern-ment or official church sources.Privatepatronsfundedtheinitialstages and now it is being fundedthrough revenue from touriststickets and private donations. In-deed, it's not just architecture, butthe history and controversy thatmakes this UNESCO site so fasci-nating.

After the church, it was time tohit the roads again, heading to-wards Barcelona's Central Park,Parc de la Ciutadella. While wecrossedmainroadsforSagrada,rid-ing in close proximity with cars andother vehicles, now it was mainlypavements and smaller back lanes.That's where I had my Bollywoodmoment, riding in the midst ofserene lanes dotted with mapleoaks. The destination was equallypicturesque. The right time to getthe camera out and go trigger hap-py...clicking people, trees and the fa-mous fountain. The park gave ussome empty tracks too, where wecould cycle around in abandon.Olympic cyclist John Howard wassorightwhenhesaidthatthebicycleis a curious vehicle—it's passengeris its engine.

But it was our next stop that com-

pleted theholiday.Yes,thebeach!It'sfuntorideinagroup,butonlyif youarecarefulnottobumpintoeachother.Sotherewere some falls and giggles in be-tween. We reached the BarcelonaOlympic Port, which has a man-made beach—Barceloneta Beach—asthetheareawasfullyregeneratedbefore the 1992 Olympic games. Theweather was perfect...the sun shin-ing bright, but a cool breeze too thatdidn't make atmosphere humid. Nowonderthebeachwasbustlingwithpeople—some taking a stroll, someeatingatrestaurantsthataboundonthe beach and some just playingwiththeirpetsandchildren.Indeed,no holiday is complete without thesun, sand and beer! The icing on thecake was that our tour included afreedrink.Weparkedourcyclesina

cornerandthegroupsatdowntoen-joy beers and cocktails. I opted for aSanMiguel,aFilipinobeerwhichisquite popular (and cheap) in Spain.After a sip, I knew this was to be mypoison fore the rest of the vacation.After the beach, we headed back toPlaza Catalunya, crossingBarceloneta district and ridingdown the Diagnol Mar.

Walking back to the hotel, Ithought how in the Bollywood flick,ZindagiNaMilegiDobara,thethreeleadactorswhoindulgeinallkindofadventures were not shown riding abicycle. I wondered if they tried cy-cling on the streets of Barcelonawhile shooting there. And ifthey didn't, well they really missedout on something!

In our explorationof Spain, which,incidentally, is a hotand affordabledestinationbecause of theeurozone crisis, wetake readers on acycling tripthrough theOlympic city

La Sagrada Familia (above) and a row of cycles on a Barcelona street (below)

Parc de la Ciutadella (above) andPort Olympic (right)

La Rambla street (top) and the famoushop-on-hop-off bus (above)

BARCELONABiking in