The Hotel de Russie is a luxury five-star hotel located in the heart of Rome between the Spanish Steps and Piazza del Popolo on the Via del Babuino. Living in Rome, I walked by The Hotel de Russie almost daily. The location, close to the Northern Gates of Ancient Rome, is within easy walking distance […]
Read more »Legend has it that 2,000 years a Villa for Emperor Augustus rested on the same site that today is the home of the Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria. Stepping off the busy downtown streets of Sorrento into the grounds that make up the hotel… one does feel transported back in time. The hotel, surrounded by […]
Read more »J.K. Place Firenze is perhaps my favorite hotel in Florence. It’s not on the river, nor is it the most luxurious… but it’s just so comfortable. You’ll see guest after guest talk about feeling like you’re in a “luxury home or apt.” And that’s so true. After dealing with crowds in Florence, you feel […]
Read more »We were fortunate to live in Rome for three years and traveled often to the Amalfi. Of all the hotels we visited and stayed, Il San Pietro Di Positano was always my favorite. I love Positano – the beauty, the shops, and even the steps. But sometimes Positano can get a “little crowded.” Which […]
Read more »“Positano bites deep. It is a dream place that isn’t quite real when you are there and becomes becomingly real after you have gone. Its houses climb a hill so steep it would be a cliff except there are stairs cut into it…” So wrote John Steinbeck in the May 1953, (from Harper’s Bazaar). […]
Read more »Ruby Princess – Rome We docked in Civitavecchia in the early morning and fondly said farewell to the Ruby Princess. Having lived in Rome a few years, we knew Civitavecchia and how to get into the city. We jumped on a Regionale Train and journeyed into Rome. It was great to be back “home” again. […]
Read more »Ruby Princess – Naples After 10+ days of traveling the Mediterranean, we returned to the shores of Italy. The Ruby Princess arrived in Naples in the early morning. I was up early and took these photos of the sun rising behind Mt. Vesuvius. In the early morning, the busy port of Naples was stirring as […]
Read more »We had the opportunity to visit the Hotel Cipriani and Palazzo Vendramin by Orient-Express during a summer trip to Venice. We boarded the private launch from Piazza San Marco and comfortably headed to the tip of the Giudecca Island. Here, in a MUCH quieter part of Venice, we disembarked at the Hotel Cipriani. […]
Read more »Ruby Princess – Venice…. On the second day of our 12-day cruise, we again spent the day anchored in Venice. Prior to our evening departure, we explored Academia and Dorsoduro. I enjoy walking in the Academia/Dosoduro neighborhoods as you are detached from the crowded, more touristy sections of Venice. We also had a special invite […]
Read more »Ruby Princess – Venice…. Our 12-day Mediterranean cruise started in Venice, Italy. We’ve been fortunate to travel to Venice many times, but we’ve never departed from the city on a cruise ship. One of the advantages of starting this cruise in Venice was we had an overnight stay in the city… so we could stay […]
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Ron Phillips is an Independent Consultant of Brownell Travel 
Ron Phillips is an Independent Consultant of Brownell Travel