Thank You Tripatini and Athenaeum Hotel for a "Jolly Good Time" in London Town

[Nicholas Kontis]

Every year in November for the past 15 years, I head to London for the annual World Travel Market.
For those of you who do not know of the WTM. The World Travel Market is the second largest convergence of travel & tourism professionals in the world. Held the second week of November at Excel, I attend this travel show to gain knowledge and meet new vendors to join my World Travel List.
Have you heard the saying, "I never win anything." The way I see it, successful guys like myself are destined to prizes. Last year I caught a glance at Tripitini's "London Calling." Just for fun I entered the contest.
To my surprise on a cold, July , Monday morning in San Francisco, I receive an email from Tripatini that I had won the "London Calling" promotion it had been running: a package of two nights at the Athenaeum hotel, two dinners for two with wine, and two one-day London sightseeing passes. Brilliant!
So I decided to arrive in London for the weekend before the W.T.M. and use my two nights stay at the Athenaeum Hotel. It's a family-owned five-star hotel overlooking Green Park in Mayfair near Piccadilly. I could not imagine a better location in all of London. The Athenaeum's location truly is 'the center of the London universe."
And rarely have I ever stayed in such a spacious suite furnished with such thought. Our park-view suite had a king size four poster bed, free espresso, Bose surround-sound stereo, Jacuzzi, even a freezer filled with ice cream.
If you love walking in a city, you couldn't be more central in London. From museums to theater to shopping. One can walk from Green Park to Holborn in 45 minutes, and it's one of the best city walks in the world. The staff at the Athenaeum could not have been more helpful and cordial. My wife and I left the Athenaeum felling like we were royalty.