WHEN TOM Cruise landed in Hong Kong for the premier of Mission: Impossible II he arrived on a private jet that he piloted. From the airport, he was whisked by chopper to the rooftop of The Peninsula where a private elevator delivered him down to a press conference. Sound tempting?
If you want a movie star experience then drop a line to Alan Rogers, of Red Carpet Enterprises (redcarpet.co.uk). The company specialises in holiday experiences that rival Hollywood jaunts.
There is in fact a 'Tom Cruise' package where you can fly to Cape Town, take private flight training lessons, choose a route before getting fitted for your own signature flight suit. With a pass to a military airspace in a Hawker Hunter fighter jet to thrust yourself skyward at speeds of 960km/h just 20m above the ground, you can grab the controls and try out all sorts of stomach-churning stunts. A weekend's high flying costs about HK$160,000.
But that's the tip of the ice-berg. 'A 10th birthday celebration saw us hiring a battleship where the inside was themed like a football pitch,' says Rogers. 'An ex-England footballer played five-a-side with the boys' friends, who then finally presented him with a signed shirt and ball from his favourite team. We choose very carefully the appropriate venues and hotels for each occasion. Our travels find us in some of the best villas, venues and hotels in the world, sometimes rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous.'
For a more children-centric experience, Red Carpet can provide a trip to Lapland. A visit to a reindeer farm, sled rides, races with huskies, snowmobile rides across frozen lakes and a stay in a private lodge.
Let's call this the Marlon Brando experience. For the last quarter of his life, the actor lived on a private island and rarely appeared beyond the confines of his tropical paradise. Before the terms 'organic', and 'going green' entered the vernacular, Brando was doing it all.