MAKING DINNER FOR JULIA CHILD AND OTHER TALES

“The importance of Elsewhere is magical.” Bill Tomicki

Bill Tomicki, the well-heeled professional globetrotter who writes the heralded newsletter “ENTREE”, dubbed the "Rolls Royce of travel newsletters" (Vogue Magazine) where "Mr. Tomicki skewers the mediocre and exalts excellence so that his readers do not waste their time and money" (New York Journal of Books) is no stranger to the art of celebration, the true definition of “festival.”

Need the best martini in London, a custom-made bathing suit in Rio at 3 a.m., a beautiful boutique hotel or another luxury item in remote areas around the world? He’s your man. But beware the hotel that forgets to pick up his room service tray or wraps his soap too tight. They will be laid bare by his winsome writing.

Bill is known as the master of "Extreme Travel." He has single-handedly scaled a sacred aboriginal mountain in Australia, lived with Masai warriors in Kenya, danced on the Great Wall of China, climbed to the top of Angkor Wat at sundown, eaten piranhas in the Brazilian Amazon, hunted jaguars in Belize, galloped horses through the royal woods of Versailles, boxed with heavyweight champ Mike Weaver, bicycled through Tuscany, witnessed private voodoo ceremonies in Haiti and ridden elephants at a palace in India.

Bill, educated at Penn, Harvard and Christ Church Oxford, has written about travel for The New York Times Syndicate and Zagat. Besides being the youngest VP of Tiffany and a founding broker of Sotheby’s International Real Estate, he has also been nominated for a Nobel Prize in Literature as well as being knighted in France and Portugal. When in England, please address him as Lord Millcombe. And yes, he did cook dinner for Julia Child. Bill may very well be (as he has been described) the “most interesting” man in America. 

Bill is also committed to helping women in remote areas (word eliminated) become self-supporting through cottage industries, an initiative he first learned about in Swaziland. He also is a benefactor for disabled children in Varanasi, India.

I recently asked Bill to share with me what he has learned from his travels and how we can create better experiences for our customers, fans, and audiences.

Bill, having been to hundreds of cities, multitudes of unique events and experienced so many special celebrations, what stands out as outstanding and memorable service? 

Encountering people who truly care. People who will go out of their way to anticipate your needs. And those who pay attention to details.

You are also a marketing expert and have consulted and worked for some of the most iconic brands in the world such as Tiffany’s and Sotheby’s. What is most overlooked by businesses when marketing their brands?

Personal contact. Fewer and fewer businesses today actually reach out and “touch” their clients any more, so preoccupied are they with mass marketing through the Internet. Never underestimate the impact of a personal letter or phone call.

What details do you observe that you believe enhance your experience while traveling?

I am obsessed with details like the way employees are dressed and groomed; I watch their courtesy to see if it is genuine. Are all things clean and well presented? Is value for price there? I look out for ALL details and am appalled at how many are ignored. I like candles, flowers and good wine by the glass. And nothing moves me like quality. No room for compromise here. Quality should flow through every element of a business so you can smell and feel it the moment you walk in.

What is your fondest travel memory?

Celebrating Holi, the ancient Hindu Festival of Colors, with the Maharajah of Jodhpur, Gaj Singh, at his Umaid Bhawan Palace, one of the world’s largest private residences with 347 rooms. We dressed all in white and, as is the custom, threw colorful powders all over each other.

For those who want to learn more, (and who wouldn’t) subscribe to his newsletter here- www.entreenews.com, $75 a year or call Bill at (805) 895-7485.For those who want to learn more, (and who wouldn’t) subscribe to his newsletter here- www.entreenews.com, $75 a year or call Bill at (805) 895-7485.