Seoul kicks off a Four Seasons global culinary adventure
The package is special. The hotel takes its guest onto its private jet, a reformed Boeing 757 with only 52 seats that fully recline for maximum comfort. There will be a chef on board to cater to different dietary restrictions and requests, and an in-flight concierge service to have guests fully prepared for their next stops. Guests will go to restaurants or even a chef’s home chosen by chef Rene Redzepi and his team at restaurant Noma in Copenhagen, Denmark, which is considered a leading restaurant in the culinary world. Guests on this tour stay in Four Seasons hotels in the cities they visit and exploring each city by car will also be provided upon request.
A trip this fancy surely has a hefty price tag. It costs $150,000 to join the tour and eat at top restaurants without going through the hassle of calling ahead of time to get reservations. All one needs to do is block off from May 27 to June 14, and follow the itinerary the hotel suggests. The package will take its guests to Tokyo, Hong Kong, Chiang Mai, Mumbai, Florence, Lisbon, Copenhagen and Paris after they pig out in Seoul.
“You will be able to get access to special locations you wouldn’t be able to get to even if you were to spend a load of money by yourself,” said Rainer Stampfer, hotel operations president, Asia Pacific for Four Seasons, during an interview with the Korea JoongAng Daily on a visit to Seoul, adding that the Four Seasons will make the experience something unforgettable for all age groups that have signed up.
“Our core expertise is to know where you eat well, drink well, and where you are entertained… and you have to worry about absolutely nothing.”
“Since there are not nearly as many Korean restaurants [worldwide], guests will be surprised to see how multi-faceted Korean cuisine is and I think it will leave them with particular memories,” said Stampfer.
The entire culinary-focused itinerary will be briefed to guests in Seoul, as Peter Kreiner, Noma’s managing director will come and explain what to expect from the trip. After Seoul, the guests will move on to Tokyo to try L’Effervescence, a French restaurant by chef Shinobu Namae. They will forage for truffles in Florence and meet an 18th-generation butcher.
Stampfer also said that Seoul can be a destination for other themed-trips, such as arts, as the hotel is on a constant search for new travel opportunities in the future. It has two more trips later in the year with one focusing on cultural and historical experiences like visiting temples and one on outdoor activities such as camel trekking.
There is still some room on the Culinary Discovery and interested parties can sign up. For more information, go to privatejet.fourseasons.com/fs
BY LEE SUN-MIN [summerlee@joongang.co.kr]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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