Portsmouth, NH—(August 2004)—For more than 25 years, luxe travel guru Mike Thiel has been traveling the world and dishing out vacation tips. Yet he�s never been known to heed one important piece of his own advice—to take it easy and avoid over-scheduling. �I just got back from a weeklong European cruise where I spent nearly every waking minute on the move and doing research,� says Thiel. �What I need more than anything right now is a real vacation.�

Helmsman of the acclaimed Hideaways Aficionado travel club, Thiel logs mega-miles searching the world for secluded, seductive hideaways. He then shares his adventures with the club�s 20,000 travel-passionate members in the semi-annual Hideaways Guide, quarterly Hideaways newsletters, weekly Hideaways Insider e-newsletters, as well as its newest offering, The Hideaways Collection annual directory, featuring best-of-kind, international escapes.

In his candid, detailed appraisals of luxe and intimate resorts and hotels, vacation villas, and yacht-like cruise ships, Thiel almost always admonishes Hideaways Aficionado members to strike a balance between exploring and relaxing—whether they�re vacationing on St. Barth or Fiji. �Slow down and get to know the area like a local,� he urges members.

If they only knew.

This is a man who rarely stays more than two nights in any one place . . . who �did� the Vatican in a blistering 45 minutes . . . who walked 10 miles in Vienna during his �relaxing� river cruise�s day-long stop-over to check out the city�s best hideaways . . . who checks into a hotel, then checks out five or six others in the area—video camera and tape recorder running—just to compare . . . who bounds out of bed before dawn (he�s on vacation, remember) to record the sunrise over the Piazza San Marco for the cover of his magazine . . . and whose passport actually wears out from use.

Knowing the reality of life as a professional traveler, the energetic Thiel is amused at the naivet� of friends, colleagues, and Hideaways Aficionado members who have offered—in earnest—to trade jobs with him. �Sure, I get to visit some exotic lands and to stay at some pretty nice places,� Thiel says, �but it�s a real stretch to think of these trips as leisurely, restful breaks from the work-a-day world.�

�I�m not complaining,� Thiel continues. �I just need a vacation!�

Since 1979, Hideaways has explored the vacation road less traveled, searching for the world�s most exceptional escapes, including exclusive resorts, cozy country inns, boutique hotels, specialty cruise ships, private yacht charters, secluded villas, city-center apartments, guest ranches, charming condos, unique castles, and even entire Caribbean islands. Hideaways� recommendations are profiled in The Hideaways Collection directory, Hideaways Guide, Hideaways newsletter, and Hideaways Insider e-newsletter. For more information, visit Hideaways.com, or call 603-430-4433.