Dana McPherson and Patti Venanzi
I recently had the unique opportunity to join Platinum Seminars, Destination Europe and 15 luxury travel agents on an Iceland Odyssey. Our hosts, Bill Brown, President of Platinum Seminars; Dana McPherson, Vice President, Platinum Seminars and Thorunn Reynisdottir, President, Destination Europe had planned an action packed weekend for us. Thorunn is a native of Iceland and was able to give us a unique view of her country and its warm, friendly people.
Agents traveled First Class on Icelandair, arriving refreshed and ready to explore Iceland Friday morning. Once we received our luggage, our hosts escorted us to the luxury motor coach waiting to take us to the Hilton Reykjavik Nordica. The Hilton is ideally located in the business district of Reykjavik near Laugardalur Park. The historic old town is an easy 25-minute stroll from the hotel. The hotel offers a complimentary shuttle to and from town.
Upon arrival agents were offered a delicious hot breakfast in the award winning restaurant, Vox. The restaurant offers an extensive hot and cold breakfast buffet with local delicacies along with standard breakfast fare. The décor is chic and the service staff were attentive and professional.
Following breakfast, agents were given free time to explore the hotel and settle in before their scheduled luncheon.
The Hilton is one of Iceland’s largest convention centers, able to accommodate upwards of 600 people. The hotel is known for it’s spectacular events, as we witnessed on Saturday during Icelandair’s Annual Party. The convention hall was transformed into a magical winter wonderland complete with an elaborate Ice Bar.
The hotel’s spacious rooms and amenities make it the perfect hotel for families. Families will find the hotel’s ‘Bedtime Stories’, Icelandic storytelling complete with hot cocoa, the perfect way to end the day. Guests can participate in Bird watching lectures, explore modern Icelandic art exhibits or relax in their state-of-the-art Nordica Spa.
More to come tomorrow...