The Caribbean Gets a New Princess, and She's Enchanted
She’s sailing now en route to the U.S. for an inaugural season cruising Caribbean itineraries.
Princess Cruises’ newly completed Enchanted Princess is a beacon for a return to cruising; one of just a tiny number of ships scheduled to begin service this year that is actually on the water.
Home to over 3600 guests, Enchanted Princess is the 5th Royal...
Ah, Venice: Luxurious New River Ship Sailing One of Europe's Most Unique Itineraries Revealed
A passion for style, art, cuisine and living well. Capturing that iconic Italian way of life and the essence of Venice was the goal of the latest ‘Super Ship’ by Uniworld Boutique River Cruises.
The S.S. La Venezia, like all Uniworld ships, is more ‘local boutique hotel’ than ‘river cruise ship’.
We often say that one of the attractions of cruising...
Sweet Spot: New Chocolate Museum Houses the World's Largest Chocolate Fountain
It’s one part of the great trifecta of iconic Swiss contributions to world culture: precision clocks, alpine-produced cheese… and chocolate.
And now, a new museum celebrates the sweetest thing about Switzerland.
The Lindt Home of Chocolate has opened on the outskirts of Zurich. Its centerpiece will get any fan of fine chocolate drooling – and wishing they had brought...
Ins and Outs of COVID Travel
Things sure have changed since this time last year! People want to travel and they want to know what to expect if they did decide to go somewhere so we want to acquaint you with a few things that are in effect at this time (October 1, 2020).
For any of the airlines or tour companies, here are some details...
Santa's Not Just Making Toys in His Village Above the Arctic Circle in Lapland
It’s exactly 3 months until Christmas, and we know Santa and his elves are working full throttle. But not just putting in overtime in the workshop and training the team for their big flight Christmas Eve. Santa's got a new summer gig.
Finnish Lapland, with its Arctic landscapes, Northern Lights, ancient winter customs and herds of wild reindeer, is a natural...
Mount Fuji and 3 Other Mountains You Need to Visit in Japan
France has the Eiffel Tower. The U.S. has the Statue of Liberty. But the visual shorthand for Japan is not man-made. It’s Mount Fuji.
The Japanese archipelago is part of the Pacific Ring of Fire. Chains of volcanic mountain ranges form the spine of the Japanese islands, and mountains have assumed immense cultural and spiritual significance over the millennia.
Nearly every population center is associated...
Cruising Again by November? Industry Association Lays Out Formula to Start Sailing
You might be on a cruise in the Caribbean before the holidays.
Cruising in the Americas – that’s the cruise region for the Caribbean, Mexico and Central America - could begin again in about a month’s time, if significant industry developments this week bear fruit.
Testing the Waters in Europe
Any regular reader of our newsletters will know we’ve been following...
3 New, Impossibly Picturesque Boutique Hotels That Make it Easy to Dream About Your Next Trip to Europe
France. Italy. Spain. If you’re imagining traveling again to Europe, you’ll have no problem picturing yourself in any of three independent boutique hotels that have just opened in spectacular historic properties.
All three belong to the Small Luxury Hotels of the World group of over 500 independent and unique hotels in 90 countries. They all have special character and offer themes...
Roundup of the NEW, COVID Insurance Options for Canadian Travellers
In less than a month, the landscape for Canadian travellers has been transformed.
Back in March, the COVID-19 virus was determined to be a ‘known factor’ and so it was no longer covered by regular travel medical insurance policies. Since then, Canadians who have wanted to travel have not had coverage for expenses incurred if they contracted the virus while abroad.
All...
Our Alberta Roadtrip
Vacationing close to home!
Wanted to get away for just a week. The option that first came to mind was a neighbouring province of Alberta. Haven’t travelled within Canada for quite some time. We travelled for 7 days from August 15th to 22nd, 2020.
Rented a car from Budget who had great rates. The weekly rental for a Dodge Charger 4 dr...