Tag: beaches
Why I love this New Zealand Beach Resort
New Zealand beach communities are dotted along the country’s coast. Until recently, I thought I’d experienced the best of them – but then I found Waikanae. In a roundabout way, I have my husband to thank for this discovery. If he hadn’t wanted to spend “at least one full day” at the Southward Car Museum, […]
Shell Beach – Best Central CA Vacation Spot
Shell Beach: What makes this area the perfect spot for a summer vacation? Great weather and a relatively laid-back atmosphere. Further north, coastal fog can be a problem, and in some areas to the south, beach resorts are packed in cheek-to-jowl. But Shell Beach, which is the upmarket resort area of Pismo Beach, feels quiet […]
Best La Jolla Shores Hotels, San Diego
La Jolla Shores Beach is a long stretch of sand about a mile from La Jolla’s popular shopping and dining areas in the “village.” The Shores is where San Diego locals and visitors head for walking, kayaking, surfing, sunning, SCUBA diving, and playing in the waves. In short, La Jolla Shores is pretty much paradise. […]
Lava Lava Beach Club – Eat, Play, Slumber
Lava Lava Beach Club. Isn’t that a great name? And here’s the best part: unlike many cool monikers that aren’t as great as they sound – this place is even better. Located right on the beach on the Kona side of the Big Island of Hawaii, the Lava Lava Beach club is both a great […]
Best Hotel Suites Near La Jolla Cove, San Diego
La Jolla Cove is easily the most recognized spot in my hometown – and for good reason. The lovely little beach is a mere dollop compared to the long stretches of sand in the rest of San Diego. And – because it’s sheltered by low sandstone cliffs – La Jolla Cove feels cozy. Snorkelers and […]
Best La Jolla Beach Boutique Hotel
La Jolla beach hotels tend to be busy places, but one boutique property offers a sweet retreat with an ocean view. Scripps Inn faces the Pacific a few blocks south of La Jolla Cove – just far enough from the Children’s Pool seal colony to avoid the masses of visitors that the marine cuties attract. I’ve lived […]
Cozumel Mexico – Warm Beaches & Cool Diving
Cozumel is a magnet for lovers of warm weather, sunny beaches, and great diving. This includes my immediate family – all three generations of us. The youngest likes nothing more than building sand castles; we all love swimming; and the adults get really excited about snorkeling around exotic marine life. I’d heard of Cozumel, but […]
Nevis – a Caribbean Island for Savvy Travelers
Nevis wasn’t the first Caribbean island I visited. Like many travelers, I started with bigger, more obvious places. Some of these have international airports and almost all of them are on the cruise ship circuit. But what I wanted was an authentic experience, a chance to meet local people and learn about their culture. So […]
Lanai Hawaii – Why You Should Go Now
Lanai is the only accessible Hawaiian Island that I haven’t experienced. I’ve stared at it across the water from our Maui vacation rental, but just never felt motivated to plan a visit – mainly because I didn’t know much about it. That all changed when I received this Lanai guest post from Elaine Masters. Read […]
Best Time To Go To New Zealand
The best time to go to New Zealand depends on what you want to do and how fussy you are about the weather. Having said that, there’s really no bad time to visit this beautiful country. Because New Zealand is in the Southern Hemisphere, the seasons are opposite of those in North America, Asia, and […]
Normandy Travel Tips from Doug Hamilton
Doug Hamilton is the producer/director/writer of D-DAY’S SUNKEN SECRETS - the PBS-TV special documentry commemorating the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings on the coast of Normandy, France. D-DAY’S SUNKEN SECRETS will air May 28th on your PBS station (check local listings for time). Doug is an inveterate authentic traveler. In this guest post he shares Normandy travel tips learned in the months he spent in […]
How To Find Authentic Venice
This guest post was contributed by Claudia Coppola who lives in Verona, Italy. “This was Venice, the flattering and suspect beauty—this city, half fairy tale and half tourist trap, in whose insalubrious air the arts once rankly and voluptuously blossomed, where composers have been inspired to lulling tones of somniferous eroticism.” Thomas Mann (1875–1955), […]
4 Secret Spots on California Highway 1
Highway 1 winds along nearly 650 miles of the California coast, providing breathtaking ocean views and glimpses of local life in picturesque communities. The road is discontinuous and relatively slow, so most travelers switch back and forth between scenic sections of Highway 1 and “making better time” on Highway 101. Highway 1 is one of […]