So here I'm, writing again about what I love most about "Travelling". Do you also believe like me that there's no amount "enough" for traveling? Yes? Great! So let's start with one of my most awaited traveling experiences so far of mine.
If you know me, you know that I'm more into domestic traveling than going abroad so far. The hotel points and air-miles are the cherry on top to make these traveling memories sweeter. Those who have been reading my travelogues might already know that I'm a big advocate for ITC hotels and this time I also didn't let it be any different and went with the WelcomHotel Port Blair and of course, my preference for traveling with Vistara was an obvious choice.
The Points I burned for this trip:
1. WelcomHotel by ITC, Bay Island, Port Blair: 1,05,600 Green Points for 2 rooms and 6 days excluding Tax
2. Vistara: 54,000 Club Vistara Points excluding Tax for 2 Premium Economy and 2 Economy
3. F&B and Tax: 47,730 Green Points
Total Points Burned: 2,07,330
Axis Edge Equivalent Points: 2,59,162
It was a well-planned trip for which I booked the flight ticket about 3 months back, but hey, sometimes things just don't go as planned. Due to some maintenance issue at Port Blair Airport, the flights had to get canceled and got rescheduled. It was a bummer but the good folks of Vistara managed to get me the same seats on the very next day from the day I planned and also arranged the return flight at award ticket though none were available without charging anything as it was on them which was certainly a sweet gesture.
As you already know, I do mail the property up to check if any upgrades can be done for my stays most of the time, and it was no exception. I got a mail to revert from the General Manager Mr. Anuj himself and to my surprise he himself called me up personally as I mentioned I'll be traveling with older parents, he just gave me a whole travel plan himself and made sure we're coming to the hotel with absolute comfort and arranged an airport pickup as well. This is for the first time I'm seeing this gesture after Postcard Hotels.
The trip was planned more in an easy-going way rather than hopping around to all the spots. When traveling with parents, the two crucial requirements were a comfortable stay at a location to feel relaxed and good F&B of their taste, both of them got fulfilled by WelcomHotel Portblair itself.
The trip of course started with the Airport Transfer provided by Axis Reserve & Atlas. This time I used my Atlas' Airport transfer for Kolkata. It was a morning flight of 9:05 a.m. and the flight was on schedule.
I didn't know a surprise was waiting for us. As I told you earlier, I booked two Economy and two Premium Economy seats, but during check-in, the two Economy seats got auto-upgraded to Premium Economy. It was such a sweet surprise from Vistara. We then moved to the Irish House Lounge of Kolkata Airport, and thanks to Reserve & Magnus' PP, got access to the lounge with the whole family. If you're traveling from Kolkata, this is the lounge you want to be at if you're someone who doesn't like the crowd and wants to get some better F&B
As a morning flight, breakfast was served to us, but hey, breakfast can fill your tummy but what about the treat for the eyes? A person who loves the window seat, can't just help to give a treat to the eyes with the view from the top of the world
It was a nice flight with some really nice meals of which I forgot to take a picture of, obviously, reached Portblair before the schedule timing.
As soon as we landed, got a call from the gentleman who was waiting for us to bring us to the hotel. As being a small airport, it took no time and we boarded the car. Honestly, the weather was too humid to tolerate further. It took about 20 - 25 mins to reach the hotel.
Mr. Anuj was there to welcome us personally and had a great conversation with him. What a gem of a person. He used to work at the Corporate office of ITC in Delhi before coming here and carries over two decades of experience in the hospitality industry. He informed me that due to some maintenance work both the Suites are closed thus he has upgraded both the rooms to their 2nd highest category rooms with a stunning view. This property's USP is the view. The only word that'll come from your mouth after coming to the lounge area at the upper deck is, "Wow". This is a small hotel with about 40 rooms built about 50 years back and served a few years as Fortune Hotels then got to WelcomHotel after getting acquired by ITC Hotels.
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After this, Mr. Anuj and Mr. Shubham who's the Duty Manager came with us to show us the rooms. They provided us with two sea-facing rooms in the middle building which were absolutely amazing. The rooms were cozy and well-maintained and didn't show age at all. Here are some of the pictures of the corner room where we stayed at. We were allotted 309 and 310 rooms and 309 was a connected room to the Suites with room number 308. So if you're visiting here, try to get room 310 for an amazing view.
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ITC Hotels have been very nice to me in terms of upgrading and hospitality, this property went no exception. Mr. Anuj noted that I do like to stay at Suites and to my surprise he accelerated the renovation work and arranged a Suite for the last day. Wait, this was not an upgrade from the previous room. He gave the Suite as a third room for the stay. That's something exceptional and makes your wish respected. Some snaps and a room tour of The Suites
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Apart from these wonderful rooms, they did exceptionally well with the F&B. It does only have one restaurant called Bay Leaf where you can enjoy all your F&B needs, be it buffet or a-la-carte. The 1+1 happy hours also get served here. It does have a Bar which was only operational during nighttime, but the main purpose was being served by the Bay Leaf. Though it may sound less the effort they put in is really good. The F&B Manager Mr. Sovanlal and the Executive Chef Mr. Gaurav made every possible effort to make sure we're having the best of the experience. As we preferred to go with in-room dining except for our breakfast, Mr. Sovanlal made sure he was always taking any request for food during our breakfast time and serving it just the way we wanted and of course with some great recommendations.
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Even with the least equipment, they did wonders. The breakfast buffet spread was very less, but the quality was as good as TLC standard. In most cases, our request for a customized dish is used to get prepared. On our very first day at the property, I asked the Chef if he could make some specific dishes and on our 3rd day of stay, he made sure we were getting it.
Due to the limited availability of ingredients, many things get flow down from ITC Sonar, Kolkata to here for the preparation. Talking about the climate which is quite challenging for many food items, such as croissants can't be preserved here. Preserving is a big issue in Portblair, so what you get is very fresh from the day itself. The one thing I can recommend is Thali of Andaman. It's so damn delicious. It's a fusion of Bengali and South Indian cuisine.
This property is also having a beautiful pool overlooking the sea. As shared by Mr. Anuj, they're looking to expand the property beside the pool and will be adding more Suites and Villas and probably a Presidential Suite. They're expecting this to be done in the next 2 years, which will definitely make sure this property is coming under The Luxury Collection which it actually deserves.
As for this trip, I planned minimal traveling and more relaxation, we didn't travel much. But hey, Andaman is full of beautiful islands and the most beautiful being the Havelock. We planned a trip there. There are plenty of websites where you can plan your trip and one of them being Go2Andaman. I browsed their website and found all the small details.
The booking for the Havelock trip was made by the travel desk of the hotel. It cost us INR 31,800 for 4 pax. We were booked with Nautica in their Royal Cabins which were on the upper deck and were amazing to witness the peaceful sea.
Havelock Island has different beaches such as Kala Pathhar Beach, Elephant Beach, Radhanagar Beach, etc. Though most people prefer Radhanagar Beach I found Kala Pathhar Beach to be more scenic and peaceful.
The package also included unlimited F&B from selected restaurants and we were headed to Something Different Cafe which was really good in terms of F&B. We also carried out a few dishes as the elders loved a few.
Though this can be done at a much cheaper rate if booked outside, we just didn't want to take the hustle. For the ferry booking, you can also go with Makruzz. It's the most popular option out there. There's an option for the Govt. Ferries which will come at 1/3rd of the cost can also be booked at the Port or you can visit Go2Andaman.
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With the beautiful trip to Havelock Island ending there was only one place that we wanted to go, which was Cellular Jail. I only heard about this from my maternal Grandfather who was a part of the Independence movement of India and witnessed how the time was back then and what the patriots had to go through.
The heart-touching light and music show made it visible in front of our eyes. It will certainly give anyone goosebumps. A glimpse of the ending
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It was time to say goodbye to Portblair. It had been a home away from home. A special thanks to Mr. Anuj, Mr. Sovanlal, and Mr. Gaurav for taking care of us so well. It was genuine hospitality that I felt from the heart. This property deserves to be in The Luxury Collection, kudos to the effort of the whole team who left no choice of criticizing. As conveyed by Mr. Anuj, October is the month when you want to come here, and I really wish to come here then to experience the hospitality again.
If any of you are going to visit Port Blair, you know now where to stay.
See you all soon!
