Travel Blog

There may be more places than you think.California's legendary wine regions and famous wineries have the weather, the scenery, the lifestyle, and of course, the wines, that put them at the top of global wine travel lists.But as we are planning our first post-COVID trips, wine lovers should expand their lists of wine tour regions close to home to get our fix of wine tastings, vineyard strolling, and re-stocking our cellars with one-of-a-kind vintages. Vastly different landscapes throughout America's states...

Can you take a Disney family vacation this summer? The answer is not as simple as you might wish (…upon a star… See what we did there?) Disney Parks have multiple locations in both the US and around the world. Asian Disney Parks have successfully re-opened already. In the US, the company had announced it would begin a phased re-opening in July.  Masking Up and Other New Health MeasuresBe prepared for changes to your next Disney experience. The company has implemented...

If you’re one of the majority of cruise travelers, you can’t wait to return to the waves and waterways. (It’s true! Surveys show over a third of cruise travelers want to board a ship within 3 months of the return of cruising!)Cruise travel involves a lot of moving parts (that’s one of the reasons most cruises are booked with a travel advisor’s help). And they all have to be in safe operation. From the moment you leave your home to the...

Recent weeks and days have seen a flurry of changes in travel restrictions and COVID status. Some countries have started declaring themselves COVID-free, while other places - like the US - continue to see spiking numbers.So re-opening rules keep changing and are different from place to place. It’s a lot for our US and Canadian readers to keep up with.Lynn Elmhirst, Producer/Host of BestTrip TV, helps you stay on top of the latest best practices for an informed traveler.Europe and...

You might see this view sooner than you think.The world of travel has begun to re-open. But it’s not like the tap has suddenly been turned full blast. More like a trickle. And there’s a clear pattern that’s going to shape your travel opportunities for at least the rest of this year, and possibly into 2021.Bubble TravelHuman interaction has gone from shelter-in-place, work-from-home and no contact with anyone outside your household, to health authorities laying out phases for a return to normal. Phase...

COVID's impact on travel is having one brilliant effect: it's shining a spotlight on the boom in cruising on the waterways of North America, with new ships and new itineraries to appeal to every cruise traveler's interests.'Bubble' travel is the first step in the return to travel.Lynn Elmhirst, Producer/Host of BestTrip TV and cruise expert, explains the unique highlights of 6 river and fresh water small ship cruises from the West Coast to the East - plus one cruise line...

With back-to-back national holidays, Canada Day on July 1st and America’s 4th of July, many residents of both countries have often packed up as soon as the kids were out of school and headed across the border or across the country for family summer vacations. COVID-19 restrictions mean the biggest holiday weekend of the summer won’t feel quite the same. But we’ve created a US and Canadian travel-inspired menu of sandwiches and sweet treats so your Celebrate-From-Home long weekend in your...

Mark dawn in England on June 21st on your calendar. It will be worth or staying up late at night in North America to experience the online broadcast of one of the world’s most famous celebrations of pre-historic spirituality.Summer Solstice is the astrological event that marks the longest day (the most sun) - and the shortest night (the least moon) of the year. Usually on June 21st, it’s the beginning of the Summer season in the northern hemisphere.A Wonder of the...

There’s good news for travel lovers! We are starting to see travel restrictions lifted.Once we do start traveling again, the world of travel will be different.Here are 3 tips for how to prepare yourself to travel again.By: Lynn Elmhirst, Producer/ Host of BestTrip TV  Coming… and GoingIt’s not enough to have a valid passport anymore .These days, you may not be able to get there from here. Even if planes say they are flying, and hotels are open where you...

Silversea has welcomed its first-ever destination-specific ship, the Silver Origin, designed for ultra-luxury expedition sailings in the Galapagos.It’s a good-news, milestone event for the cruise line - and for cruising.The global pandemic shutdown has resulted in a number of scheduled new ships to be delayed or postponed, so the official flag ceremony marking the completion of the Silver Origin will also echo through cruising, and is hopefully symbolic of its return.The Silver Origin is a unique addition to the Silversea...

June 1st was the 132nd birthday of the iconic Banff Springs Hotel, and this year, the date marked another milestone: the re-opening of the four Fairmont Hotels in Canada’s Western Mountain region following a nearly two-month pandemic shutdown.Fairmont Banff Springs is joined by its sister hotels in Canada’s western mountains Fairmount Chateau Lake Louise, Fairmont Chateau Whistler and Fairmount Jasper Park Lodge, which are also re-opening with new measures for guest and staff protection including physical distancing, new cleaning and...

We’ve already reported some of the hotels and hotel chains offering complimentary hotel stays to essential workers in their own towns. The hospitality of these hotels gives frontline workers a comfortable place to stay between gruelling shifts, while keeping their families safely isolated at home during the COVID pandemic.Now some travel companies have taken generosity and recognition a step further.In gratitude, and awareness of the toll that work on the frontlines of the fight against the global pandemic is taking...

We’re all dreaming of the day we can return to cruise travel. So why not dream big? Vacations are all about treating yourself, and a luxury Crystal cruise is a delightful holiday indulgence. A butler suite on a Crystal Cruise is a dream come true.Crystal Cruises come in different styles:River CruisesRiver cruising on four state-of-the-art, all-suite, butler serviced ships with the World’s Most Luxurious River Cruise Line, featuring the largest standard accommodations in European river cruising, unmatched choices and unrivalled inclusions.Yacht CruisesSublime and...

There may be no dish that evokes cruising more than Baked Alaska.A miracle dessert of warm, caramelized meringue on the outside, still magically full of layers of frozen ice cream on the inside. No one really knows why, but somewhere along the way, it became a classic of traditional cruise culture.Even today, Baked Alaska is often served on celebration, formal or farewell evenings. The ultimate Baked Alaska experience includes 'parades': a procession of dining room staff each bearing a flaming...

In some very special places in North America, Mother Nature has found a perfect formula to make dramatic hillside scenery decked out in autumn colors even more breathtaking: she’s added waterfalls.If you’re planning an autumn colors getaway, here are three fantastic falls that will put the icing on the cake of the fall color pictures you’ll want to post on your social media accounts.Multnomah Falls, OregonAmerica’s West is full of great heights – and great falls. From the Grand Canyon,...

2020 likely marks the last major milestone anniversaries for the Second World War with living members of the Greatest Generation.May 8th is the 75th anniversary of VE Day, or Victory in Europe Day.The day was marked at the time by a spontaneous eruption of joy throughout the streets of London after years of losses under siege and aerial bombardment by the Nazis. Images sent around the world of partying crowds, Churchill and the Royal Family waving from the balcony of Buckingham...

Challenging times call for fresh-baked cookies. For your COVID-19 #StaySafeStayHome pleasure, a cookie recipe for all the home baking and snacking we hear everyone is enjoying during lock down.Not just any cookie recipe. These are cookies of legend.They are the welcoming treat so many guests of DoubleTree by Hilton look forward to when they check in. Receiving a paper sleeve of straight-from-the-oven warm sweet treats makes a hotel stay at one of the company’s nearly 600 hotels in almost 50 countries...

When a destination’s nickname is ‘The Rock’, you don’t expect a warm and cozy place. Newfoundland is the eastern most point in North America, the vanguard of the continent where it faces into the North Atlantic waters and winds that once brought Vikings and still bring icebergs to its shores.  In this dramatic setting and tough climate, only the strong survive. Newfoundlanders are tough survivors, but the opposite to their stark environment with famously welcoming, colorful, charming, musical and comedic culture.The ponies that...

That phrase seems the best way to sum up the business of travel these days. Most of us remain self-isolating at home for our own safety and the safety of our communities. Travel is at a standstill. As of this week, every cruise ship in the world is at anchor, and one airline has even announced it is temporarily canceling all flights between the US and Canada. These are historically difficult times that will shape a generation. It’s requiring us all to learn...

The COVID-19 pandemic kept everyone at home, resulting in an unexpected and heartening clearing of skies and revival of Mother Nature in surprising places. But one thing that continues to disappear from the world… is darkness.Light pollution doesn’t just prevent you from seeing the constellations in the middle of the city. Light spilling far into the countryside interferes with nocturnal creatures’ ability to thrive, as well as the essential rhythms of nature. Many species, including the human species, need periods without light,...