Travellers' Checks | Sanya package for Hong Kong travellers – from just US$235
Plus the Maharaja disco returns to Kyoto, where it all began in the 1980s
Charlotte Travel’s latest Sanya package includes two nights on Hainan Island with accommodation at either the Hotel Pullman Sanya Yalong Bay Villas and Resort or the much larger Pullman Oceanview Sanya Bay Resort and Spa from HK$1,850/ US$235 per person, twin share, until the end of next month.
Further upmarket, Shangri-La’s Sanya Resort & Spa (above) is offered from HK$2,090 until the end of this month, or you can stay at the Hilton Sanya Yalong Bay Resort & Spa from HK$2,350 during the same period. Prices include flights with Cathay Dragon and daily breakfast.
Connecting cultures
During the Japanese economic bubble of the 1980s and early 90s, a high-end disco franchise called Maharaja flourished across the country, with mirror balls spinning from tropical Okinawa right up to frozen Sapporo. At their peak, it is said, there were about 60 of them. They were popular with foreigners, too, as one of the few places that tourists and other gaijin (“foreigners”) could legitimately let their hair down with locals, momentarily free of any language or cultural barriers. When the bubble burst in the 90s, all the Maharajas closed their doors.