It is with profound sadness that we must announce the passing of our beloved founder, Manos Angelakis, on December 3, 2025. We will all miss him immeasurably, and we will continue to honor his work by republishing his articles in this magazine that he created with his dear wife, Barbara Angelakis. What follows is a eulogy that Barbara wrote for him.
My beloved husband Manos Angelakis peacefully departed this earthly plain in the early hours of December 3, 2025 after a courageous fight with the aftermath of cancer. Cancer doesn’t come by itself; it brings lots of company that ravages the body even after the cancer has been vanquished… and so he has paid the ferryman and crossed the River Styx with great anticipation of his next big adventure.
Manos led a storied life with adventures and experiences galore of wondrous delight. He was born in Athens, Greece to a prominent and historic family at the beginning of WWII and spent his early years dodging bullets in his neighborhood. Things improved rapidly after the war, and by his teens, he was literally living the life of Reilly with a stellar trilingual education and friends and parties galore. His military service was as liaison to NATO. where his special talents made him an invaluable asset.
Afterwards, as a young adult spent on the continent, he was at the forefront of the literary and musical scene during the fabulous 60s, and his stories could fill volumes. But when he crossed the pond to see what was on the other side and met me, his wife Barbara, his life changed in an instant. It was love at first sight.
On our first meeting, he told me he was going to marry me. And after getting to know him – his intelligence … his talent … his spirit of adventure … his joie de vivre … not to mention his good looks … he proved irresistible.
We built a life and joint careers together for 56 years with our last career as writers for the lifestyle magazine, LuxuryWeb Magazine that he created. It was one of, if not the first, consumer lifestyle magazine on the web back in 1997.
Manos was the Managing Editor and wrote about travel, food, and wine with a true dedication and exuberance for his subject. He shared his extensive knowledge for over 25 years. His was a life well lived.
During his earlier career as a commercial photographer, he learned from the top talent in the field, and when he went out on his own, we won a wall of awards. Moving on to video and film production, he was awarded many trophies for excellence. As a travel writer and food and wine connoisseur, he traveled extensively so that he could share his special point of view with his worldwide readers. In fact, we had three highly anticipated trips on the board when he was stricken.
Manos leaves behind a younger brother Michael in Athens Greece, along with wife Barbara, nieces and nephews, friends and colleagues, who will miss him dearly.
Barbara Angelakis is one of the founders of LuxuryWeb Magazine, and she is its Senior Travel Writer. She travels the four corners of the world with a thirst for knowledge and a twinkle in her eye, seeking out the history of people and places and sharing her experiences. She specializes in culture and history along with luxury destinations, hotels/resorts/cruises/spas, and most recently Jewish Heritage, exploring the historical connection between Jews and their host countries. She has been recognized for outstanding coverage as “Journalist of the Year” by the Tanzania Tourist Board and is the recipient of the MTA Malta Tourism Press Award, the first American to receive this honor. For the past 25 years, Barbara has written extensively for LuxuryWeb Magazine, and her work can also be found at The Jerusalem Post, Jewish Link, Epoch Times,and Vision Times.
It was a privilege to know Manos and travel with him on many press trips. His knowledge was so vast that traveling with him was akin to having a professor on each trip. From ancient history to fine wines, Manos knew it all. He was a treasure, an enlightened man, and someone who will be greatly missed. My heart goes out to Barbara.
It is with great sadness that I learned this terrible news. My sincere condolences to you, Barbara.