Hello everyone!

This post is mostly for those going to the Creative Retreat in Italy this June, but if you are on the fence...  I really only have 1, maybe 2 spots available and the AIRFARE  DEAL BELOW IS A GREAT PRICE, so CHECK IT OUT!!

I have been looking into different airlines and the deals that they have right
now.  As you know, we are traveling during the summer months so prices are a bit
higher if you don't know where to look.

I want everyone to think outside the box when looking into your flight to Milan.
Yes, we have the standard airlines like Delta, American, United, etc....

BUT, you also have a whole host of airlines from Europe to choose from.

Now I know all of you are from different areas of the world, but I did find a
great deal from Miami, Florida to Milan on Air Berlin!  So if you can
make your way to Miami from your home city, you can fly to Milan for $858! I
know most Int'l airlines in the U.S. will fly to Miami at pretty good prices. 
So look into this if you are interested.

With that in mind, don't just type in your closest major city and Milan, Italy
and only think those are your options. You can fly from your airport to major
cities on the East Coast OR Europe and then take another flight on another
airline to Milan.

Now Milan will have TWO AIRPORT CHOICES: Milan, Linate (LIN) or Milan,
Malpesna (MXP)

EITHER ONE OF THESE IS FINE!

I will have drivers for both airports, so try both to see what the best rate is.

I am flying from Los Angeles to London and then London to Milan on separate
flights. You could also fly to JFK in New York and than JFK to Milan. Or you
could fly from your major airport to Zurich, Switzerland or Rome, Italy or
Paris, France or Munich, Germany and then take a little 1 hour flight to Milan
from those European cities.

So take some time to look around and try all kinds of options.

Because I have so many people from all over, it's going to be hard to find a
discount on ONE airlines for us. I will try to get one on American Airlines
like I did last time, but you can sometimes find even better deals through the
websites that offer cheaper fairs.

Some to try are:

www.travelocity.com
www.expedia.com
www.kayak.com
www.priceline.com
www.orbitz.com
www.travelzoo.com


In addition, try all the U.S. airlines websites as well:

www.aa.com
www.delta.com
www.united.com
www.usairways.com

or European airlines:

www.britishairways.com
www.airfrance.com
www.iberia.com
www.alitalia.com
www.swissair.com
www.airberlin.com
www.virginatlantic.com


The list goes on, but that is a big start for you.

I would highly recommend that Air Berlin flight from Miami to Milan for $858. 
Take a look at it and see how much it would cost for you to get to Miami from
wherever you are located.

If you are going to start booking your flights, here's a few things to REMEMBER:

1. The Creative Retreat STARTS on Saturday, June 22
2. Please ARRIVE TO THE MILAN AIRPORTS BEFORE 3PM (otherwise you will need to take a taxi to our hotel in Bellagio, the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni)
3. The private driver waiting at the airports will have 2 approx. times for pick
up. 10am and 2pm. This may vary slightly but try to plan your arrival
accordingly.
4. The 2 airports in Milan are LINATE (LIN) or MALPENSA (MXP)
5. You may want to arrive a day BEFORE the event (so June21st) so that you can
sleep off the jet lag and be ready to go on Saturday. It's also cheaper some
times to fly week days vs. weekends. If you do this, there is a hotel ON SITE
at Malpensa Airport. Some of the ladies took this option last year and met up
with the private driver the next morning.
6. You ALSO may want to book your fight home a few days after the event is over!
Or longer, depending on what you want to do. The event is over on Saturday
morning, check out is I think around 10:30am, so you can plan to go visit
Venice, Italy or some other location you've dreamed about like Paris, France....
So book your flights through a city you may want to go back and see.... (Paris,
London, Rome) and then add a few days onto the trip so you can sight see!! This
is also sometimes a good way to save $$ b/c flights on Tuesdays are usually
cheaper then going home on a weekend. So check around. :)

Ok, I think I've bombarded you with information today.

Please know I can help anyone with this and if you want me to help you, just
send me an email. I'm pretty good at finding those great deals!

I am organizing the apartments this week and talking with the event coordinator at the hotel, so if you have any requirements for your room or food, please let me know.

~~~~~~~~~~

Now about the Arizona Creative Retreat:

The Creative Retreat in Arizona is March 21-24th!  If you wanted to sign up for that, I will be taking sign ups ONLY until the end of this month, January 31st.   Because of the hotels requirements for a certain number of people and needing to plan for the event on my end, I need to take a final count by that time frame.  So let me know if you want to join us in Arizona for an AMAZING WEEKEND!  You don't have to pay in full by January 31st, you just need to sign up and send in a deposit.  It's going to be a really FUN weekend with Artsy girls,  Shopping at Sweet Salvage, Melrose Vintage and some really cook classes with Beth Quinn, myself and a surprise guest!!

Have a GREAT day,

Laura

P.S.  The photo at the top is with my cute hubby on our 1st trip to beautiful Lake Como, Italy on our 20th Wedding Anniversary!   

Now that the New Year is here, CHA is over (the Craft & Hobby Associations Trade Show) and things are getting back to normal in my house...

Let's get the PARTY STARTED!!!

This is a picture from the Torchlight Festival...  This is a BIG reason why I changed the dates for the Creative Retreat to June instead of September this year.  This is an amazing walk through the town at night and ends at the San Giovanni Church with food and lights and fireworks and music and just one of the "bucket list" things.  This is a whole town coming together for a PARTY and we get to see a little glimpse into real Italian life.  It's just amazing.

This is my family towards the end of the walk.  We go through Villa Melzi gardens, which you usually don't get to do that, and then on towards the church at the end.  

We've done this twice with our family and it was beautiful each time.  Here's some pictures of it from the next year:

Here we are getting the torches lit.  You can see a lot of people around us.  These are locals.  The come to our hotel and that is the starting point.

Some of them wear authentic outfits and they start the procession through town.

and it's an amazing sight to see.  I won't share all about it as I want some of it to be a SURPRISE for those going...

So if you want to come to along with us and enjoy this amazing PARTY and a week in Italy, there are ONLY A COUPLE SPOTS LEFT!!

I would LOVE for everyone to come, but I just can't have more than 24 people at a time.  This is a small JEWEL of a place, there isn't a big convention center here.  You are stepping back in time to a world we just dream about...

So if you are really thinking about it, let me know and I can answer any questions you may have and you can be on your way to Italy in just over 5 months from NOW!!

How EXCITING would that be!!?

Laura