Roger Barrett
I'm based in
Dublin
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It's Nice To Meet You
I have been in the travel industry for over 25 years with specialist experience in long haul First and Business Class travel. My passion is to provide expert advice on both luxury and business travel with the aim of making all my clients travel experiences as enjoyable and seamless as they should be. My clients travel needs are my number one priority.
With extensive knowledge of the world’s most exceptional hotels, resorts and airlines, combined with vast experience in the luxury and economy travel sectors, I pride myself on saving you time and effort by advising, recommending and providing results based on your personal requirements.
As a professional Travel Counsellor, I’m available at a time that best suits your needs - 7 days a week. My commitment to all of my clients begins long before they travel and continues after they’ve arrived home.
I am able to provide you with the opportunity of selecting your holiday in the comfort of your home, office or any other location convenient to you.
I really love what I do and my passion for travel has taken me to all continents around the world including my personal favourite South Africa, with 31 visits so far (honest!) enhancing my experience and knowledge in this amazing country.
Travel Counsellors’ award winning reputation allows me to deliver the great service my clients deserve, so to start planning your next trip please contact me anytime by phone or email.
As the indomitable 'Red' Adair was quoted as saying "If you think it's expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur".
I hope to hear from you soon.
Roger
6 Star Expedition Ultra-Luxury
Home now 24 hours from my break onboard Scenic Eclipse. This Discovery Yacht sets a benchmark for Ultra Luxury 6 Star expedition cruising. Settling into my Veranda suite , we made good time departing Santa Cruz de Tenerife, bound for neighbouring La Palma. This first stop, a dramatic island that gets a small fraction of visitors compared to its neighbours, has the obvious upside of a serenity sel
21 Apr 2025 5 min read
Explora - the only way to cruise...
Cruises seem to be like buses for me in 2024. You never see them, then two come along in 2 months! Explora is the new ultra luxury division launched by MSC. My vessel of choice was Explora I, launched just last year, with their most recent addition, Explora II only in operation since SEP24. My short trip was an exploratory 4 night journey from Venice, south through the Adriatic, via Croatia & Mo
05 Nov 2024 5 min read
Rhine River Cruise
It’s not normally a type of trip that’s ever been on my radar but having taken a last-minute decision on a Riviera Travel Rhine cruise, I have to say I am absolutely sold! As it turns out, there is something serene about peacefully traversing one of Europe’s greatest arterial waterways - who knew?! Flying into Düsseldorf from Dublin, with a short transfer to the MS Oscar Wilde (docked in Köln) I
01 Nov 2024 5 min read
Magical Finnish Lapland
Immediately prior to pandemic lockdown in March 2020, I’d taken a first trip to any Nordic country with a long overdue visit to Iceland. My first time on an aircraft since then and deferred from 2020 due to Covid travel restrictions, I was Nordic bound again, flying mid-December 2021 to Finnish Lapland. A charter flight direct from Dublin into northern Finnish airport of Kuusamo (800km due north o
20 Dec 2021 5 min read
'Iceland - No bad weather, only bad clothing'
After procrastinating for 30 years, I shouldn’t have been surprised at a 24 hour delay to my flight to Reykjavik – it was winter in Iceland after all! What I was more surprised at was the ease at which our exclusive partner OBEO Travel were able to rearrange transfers, accommodation and tours in a few short hours with the typical Icelandic good humour – All done less than 24 hours before travellin
20 Feb 2020 5 min read
'Estados Unidos Mexicanos'
A quick week away to Mexico was a great immersion in the country for my first trip a little while back. Whether you connect via the US or fly direct from a European hub, there is no escaping the gargantuan size of the capital – Mexico City. On approach in the evening, the lights of the city below seem to appear so long before your actual touchdown. This is additional reinforcement of the 9 m
16 Nov 2018 5 min read
'Hello Sunny' (Greater Fort Lauderdale)
Selected to represent Travel Counsellors on a trip organised by the Greater Fort Lauderdale Visitors Bureau, I flew direct from London Gatwick into Fort Lauderdale / Hollywood International Airport (FLL), one of a growing number of US destinations offered by this new carrier, shaking up the transatlantic market. Probably best described as a ‘low cost / long haul’ operator, Norwegian operate the
26 Jun 2018 5 min read
Canada's Western Fringe
A long overdue visit to Canada’s British Columbia province was everything I always hoped it would have been. Beginning in Vancouver city with a great hotel location in Yaletown had any number of dining options within a short distance. This most walkable of cities initially had us at the central Canada Place from where the ‘FlyOver Canada’ experience is located. We entered not knowing what to
16 Oct 2017 5 min read
'Hogtown' (Toronto to you and me)
First time to Canada after more than a dozen times to the US and I certainly was not disappointed. Using the Air Canada Rouge direct flight from Dublin to Toronto (Vancouver also in the summer season) was seamless. Pitched as a ‘low cost’ carrier I certainly didn’t feel that corners had been cut excessively. No seat back TV’s initially throws people, but with their notice to have the Air Canada
11 Jul 2017 5 min read
Ignore the herd, forget Route 66...
If I had a penny for everyone who had the idea of driving Route 66… I have done it myself and for the most part I was unimpressed, in comparison to a drive I did before then. I fine-tuned my plan and ended up with the following route: https://goo.gl/maps/Mysu3 Flying into the ‘Mile High City’ of Denver, Colorado was to be my start point. An easy night there to recuperate before heading the 200
29 Jul 2015 5 min read
Kwazulu-Natal (Place of the Zulu)
I experienced some new amazing places I'd heard of and revisited some of my favourites on my milestone 30th trip to South Africa recently. I flew over with British Airways who operate their new Airbus A380 aircraft to Johannesburg and this experience really was a step forward in quality, space and service. Recovering from the 10 hour flight from London was made much easier by a short stay at th
13 Jul 2015 5 min read
Mauritius - Jewel of the Indian Ocean
This family trip to the Republic of Mauritius (Île Maurice) was for a big birthday for my father-in-law. We stayed in the wonderful Lux La Morne on the south west corner of the island. It’s so named for the freestanding La Morne Brabant Mountain, which rises immediately from sea level to over 550m. Standing on the beach, the views looking up at this iconic UNESCO World Heritage mountain are on
13 Mar 2014 5 min read
Maldives, everything that is promised!
For my fourth visit to the Maldives we decided to celebrate and go all out, spending 16 nights in one of the most impressive properties in the country (and maybe the world?) Shangri-la’s Villingili is situated on the most southern point in the country. Instead of the typical seaplane or boat journey, this actually requires an additional transfer by domestic plane to the airport at Gan from you
18 Feb 2014 5 min read
Easter Island / Rapa Nui / Isla de Pascua (so good they had to name it 3 times)
A lifelong awaited trip to Easter Island (Rapa Nui). Arguably the world’s most remote inhabited island, it can be reached from the Chilean capital Santiago on LAN’s thrice weekly flight (or coming westbound from Tahiti). Famous above all for the 800+ stone statues (or Moai) scattered throughout, Easter Island is now declared a World Heritage site by UNESCO. Bodies carved from the solidified
18 Feb 2014 5 min read
Incomparable Northern Thailand
We brought my mother on her first trip to Thailand and there is nowhere to improve upon the incomparable Dhara Dhevi in Chiang Mai in the north of the country (previously managed by the Mandarin Oriental group). This paradise of a hotel is built within 60 acres of locally farmed rice paddy fields and is home to, quite likely, the world’s top spa. Previously employed rice farmers have now been
18 Feb 2014 5 min read
Africa's Mother City
My 29th visit to South Africa (honestly!). This time to try and improve my time on the incredible Cape Argus bike ride. Staying in a great central location at the Mandela Rhodes Place in the middle of the ‘Mother City’ which provides spacious apartments, a great pool deck and great food. A very necessary relaxing time afterward in the picturesque Cape Winelands village of Franschhoek allowing
18 Feb 2014 5 min read
Land of the Long White Cloud
A trip to New Zealand to visit my sister brought me back to the beautiful Marlborough province of the South Island; home to the eponymous Marlborough Sounds coastal area and is also renowned as the premier white wine producing area in the entire country. All of the above makes this a whole destination in itself. We drove around the relatively compact area enjoying all that it had to offer, incl
15 Oct 2013 5 min read
Luxury Beachfront in the Desert
I travelled in May 2013 to the newly opened 5 Star St Regis Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi with my family. I found this to be a great time of year to visit before the very hot summer. Located on a fantastic 12km stretch of beach with a sparse 3 luxury hotels at this location. It’s fantastic for walks as far as the horizon with uninterrupted views, certainly harder to come by in Dubai in my experi
15 Oct 2013 5 min read
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