When rain upends your plans on a cruise ship
Weather can derail the best-laid plans. We almost didn’t make it to San Diego and the Oosterdam before she sailed, in fact, because of canceled flights
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On an annual old girlfriends’ getaway – to a fab villa in Jamaica with our own butler and chef
Welcome to Sundown Villa in Discovery Bay, Jamaica right on the ocean. This five-bedroom house adjacent to another two-story four bedroom house, is owned by Gordon “Butch” Stewart, the founder and chairman of Sandals Resorts International.
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The good eats on Holland America’s Oosterdam
If you’ve been aboard a cruise ship lately, you have probably noticed that fitness centers are getting larger while midnight buffets are disappearing
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Rain happens: Making the most of it on a cruise ship
Shore excursions typically go rain or shine — and it’s raining. Pouring actually. We had thought we would go explore before our Sunset Sail but it didn’t look like there would be much of a sunset
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#BestTamalesEver? Try the sweet corn in Matazalan on a local food tour
We are in Mazatlan, Mexico, the second port on our New Years’ cruise aboard the Holland America Oosterdam and we have forsaken a cruise tour today to see the city with a local, through its food.
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Are resorts boring? Some kids think so. This one begs to differ.
The day we were in Los Cabos, we visited Grand Velas—a luxe 307-suite all inclusive resort that also was at capacity with 800 guests, more than 300 of them children.
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On a cruise to Mexico – learning culinary arts, history and culture
This demonstration is part of a larger port-to-table initiative just started and being piloted on the Holland America Ooosterdam
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#BROADMOOR = #BESTHOLIDAYBRUNCH; #BESTKIDSBUFFET
The Broadmoor Christmas brunch also takes tremendous effort. The denouement: The huge chocolate fountain just waiting for strawberries or marshmallows.
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On the newest, glitziest ship afloat
Welcome aboard Norwegian Cruise Line’s new Encore — nearly 1,100 feet long and large enough to accommodate nearly 4,000 passengers and 1,735 crew.
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Rethinking holiday eats
Many families, it seems, are forgoing the traditional home-cooked holiday feast for a restaurant or, like Claridge, a different sort of family celebration. It may be the first year after a divorce or death in the family or simply the desire to do something different.
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Sunday brunch at Safta: eclectic Middle-Eastern cuisine in Denver
Safta, from James Beard Award-winning Executive Chef / Partner Alon Shaya offers signature modern Israeli cuisine, combining the flavors of Morocco, Lebanon, Palestine, Bulgaria and Turkey
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San Antonio has a new kind of “Pearl”
Pearl is the new go-to area of San Antonio – a 22 acre mixed use space for housing, shopping, dining, a year-round farmer’s market, riverside amphitheater and the third campus of the Culinary Institute of America
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Fairmont dominates a hip new downtown Austin
We recently stayed at the year-old, 37-story Fairmont Austin, situated by the lush greenery of Palm Park and Waller Creek, with 1,048 rooms and 60 suites.
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In Denver: learning to make tamales for the holidays
Tamales are a traditional holiday treat in a lot of the American Southwest and South of the Border. I’ve loved them since I was a kid growing up in Texas. But I never knew how to make them.
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A New Adventure: Re-Learning How to Scuba Dive in Belize
I had been to Belize once before on a venture grant from Colorado College six years ago when I last went scuba diving
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In Denver, a huge new taste of Maine!
Maine Shack in Denver has a devoted following who come for the five varieties of Lobster Rolls, chowder and much more
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To Belize for sun, sand and adventure
Belize boasts more than 500 species of fish and marine life. The water is so clear you can see the reef, sea turtles, rays and more from a kayak too
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To a kid-friendly Vancouver
Welcome to the Kids Market on Vancouver’s Granville Island, which draws 10 million visitors annually to its famous public market, restaurants, theaters, galleries, studios and pop-up stores
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A Visit to Lamers Dairy In Appleton, Wisconsin
Lamers Dairy and Store is family owned and operated since 1913. Five generations of the Lamers family have worked hard to produce the highest quality milk products that are distributed under the Dairyland’s Best name and Farmer’s Best home delivery service
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A family vacation in Turkey
People are first amazed by Turkey’s warm hospitable atmosphere, pristine beaches, nice weather, affordability, and the family-friendly resorts are difficult to beat
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Bringing home the Halibut in Alaska
I’m still dubious when we put the baited and weighted hooks in the ocean. They go down 200 feet but immediately one person gets a bite… then another… and another
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Peace, Solitude, Activity, Yums, more — at Kenai Fjords Glacier Lodge
We’ve canoed and hiked a mile through the forest and canoed some more across Addison Lake where the salmon are spawning, thinking we might see a bear snacking along the shore
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All the good eats aboard the Regent Seven Seas Mariner
No wonder the fitness center is so busy at 7 am—when people are on vacation.That’s because aboard the Regent Seven Seas Marinerthe food is not only plentiful but delicious
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Kids Take Alaska Aboard Regent Seven Seas Mariner
When it comes to dinner, Alex (short for Alexandra) Makaev, 9, says that when she is aboard the Regent Seven Seas Mariner she prefers Dover sole or Black Angus filet mignon.
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Fairmont WaterFront in Vancouver: The Bee’s Knees
Welcome to the Fairmont Waterfront, which takes that commitment seriously — complete with 250,000 bees producing 125 pounds of honey every year.
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A Wok Around Vancouver’s Chinatown
We are in a Chinese herbal medicine store, one of 11 here in Vancouver‘s bustling Chinatown, which is one of the largest in North America. There are fish bladders, all varieties of ginger, hair moss, ginseng…
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Visiting Sandy Springs GA: What To Do, See, And Eat With Kids
Sandy Springs is fast become the go-to area for families looking for something fun and unique right outside the thriving metropolis of Atlanta
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To Philadelphia and America’s most historic square mile
Philadelphia is a terrific place to celebrate our country’s birthday. Not only can you walk in the footsteps of the Founding Fathers and mothers (maybe even meeting one or two), but you can also celebrate big time with the Wawa Welcome America Festival, starting June 29
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Dinner and drinks in a Galaxy Far Far Away
Fans of “Star Wars” can now join Jedis in training in drinking inter-galactic blue milk at Disneyland and, beginning August 29, at Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Orlando
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Meet Carly Copley, the star of the Fairmont Copley Plaza
Carly Copley does her job supremely well. She allows the pats on the head, the selfies and even walks-and-talks with equanimity. Of course her team updates her adventures on Facebook and Instagram
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Looking to Plan a Last-Minute Vacation? Dude Ranch!
Still looking for a great summer vacation? Dozens of fabulous dude ranches in the western US are offering great deals and incredible family adventures
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Never tried cruising? Now’s the time!
It turns out that the vast majority of people recently surveyed about vacations who have never been on a cruise — 94 percent — said they’d like to try cruising.
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Rating our way across San Francisco
San Francisco is a terrific city to encourage kids to experience new foods, starting with dim sum where they can point to what they want to try on the cart and commit to just a bite or two, starting at $6 for a portion
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Taking the Kids — to Portugal
Portugal, it seems, is drawing more Americans and American families. It’s safe. It’s affordable and there is great food and wine, of course. And plenty of sunshine.
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Salamanca Spain from CroisiEurope cruise
By Eileen Ogintz SALAMANCA, Spain — We are biking across an ancient Roman bridge – so old that it dates to the first century after…
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Martinhal – Redefining Lodging for Discerning Families
At the Martinhal Cascais, there are bikes for adults and kids, including with training wheels, at the entrance and an extensive property where to ride. The dining room contains an area where kids can play, complete with a kid-sized kitchen. There is a spa and, of course, pool, and a large kids’ club where even babies are welcomed
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Lifestyle and food to admire: Cascais Portugal
Having time to enjoy life –- and those dual roles — is a big part of the Portuguese lifestyle, those here tell us, even busy parents with dual-career households and making time for delicious long lunches is part of that.
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A historic Army post transformed — San Francisco’s Presidio
Welcome to San Francisco’s Presidio — nearly 1,500 acres transformed from a bustling army post to a national park, the largest national park in an urban area, drawing 7.5 million visitors a year
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Family-oriented hotel in Vail – The Sebastian
Every day at The Sebastian, a family-oriented hotel in the heart of Vail Village, there is a complimentary kids’ activity so parents can relax over a drink in the Frost bar, grab a nap or luxuriate in a spa treatment
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Eating Our Way Across San Francisco
We ate until we couldn’t eat any more. Dim Sum, Mac and Cheese, Cioppino (Italian fish stew), enchiladas, more Dim Sum. San Francisco is a foodie paradise
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From Army Post to nation’s largest urban park — The Presidio San Francisco
Welcome to The Presidio, at 1,491 acres with 991 acres of open space—the largest urban national park in the country welcoming 7.5 million visitors a year
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Two new Palladium Hotel Group resorts open in Mexico
The Palladium Hotel Group celebrated the opening of its two new resorts, TRS Coral Hotel and Grand Palladium Costa Mujeres Resort & Spa, located in Costa Mujeres, Mexico
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Hawks Cay: This Florida Keys Resort Is Back and Better Than Ever
Hawks Cay has been the quintessential Florida Keys resort for decades. In 2017,Hurricane Irma devastated the resort. It took nearly a year of hard work and$ 50 million but the resort reopened in August 2018 with numerous improvements.
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On of off the slopes, great food options in Park City Utah
The great thing about Park City is that there are plenty of great food options for those traveling with kids or those, like us with adult kids
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Indulging your inner-foodie at an all-inclusive resort
All-inclusive resorts are also upping the ante when it comes to food. But unlike most cruise ships, these specialty dining experiences don’t come with an extra tab.
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Pho, sushi and street tacos – now serving at a snow resort near you!
What happened to greasy burgers at snow resorts? At Breckenridge Ski Resort’s new Pioneer Crossing, just off the Independence Super Chair on Peak 7, there was Caribbean Chicken Stew served with Cuban con Gris rice
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The pluses of skiing without the kids — at the Westin Riverfront Resort in Colorado
Who says ski trips aren’t romantic. Certainly, they are when you leave the kids behind, one northern California couple said. “This is our time to reconnect,”
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Taking the Kids — calling all chocolate lovers
Today, locals and tourists flock to the Sprungli stores for Luxemburgerti and for chocolates. In fact, at the airport, my daughter used our last Swiss francs to buy a box of Sprungli chocolates to take home. She wasn’t the only one.
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Calling all foodies – all-inclusives are no longer about buffet lines
All-inclusives once were the purview of bland buffets where, like on cruise ships, the emphasis was on quality rather than quality. That has all changed
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When it rains in paradise, there are alternatives to explore
On this rainy day, the club is humming with activity — some kids playing air hockey; others doing a paper Mache craft. In the afternoon, they will feed iguanas
