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My Favorite Fall Foliage Travels—Hiking Sedona, Arizona

Exchange the red leaves of fall foliage with red rocks and you arrive at Sedona, which cools down just enough in the autumn months to offer a handful of hikes with jaw-dropping views. The landscape is a blend of twisted rock formations where monoliths, mesas, some as high as 5,000 feet, hoodoos, hanging cliffs, and spires join serrated red mountain walls. The 3-mile path that weaves through Boynton Canyon is arguably Sedona’s most popular trail, and rightly so. Jagged sandstone walls line both sides of the narrow pass. Prehistoric Native American dwellings can be seen under cliff overhangs that jut out of the mountains to greet you. If you can somehow manage to turn away from the towering scenery, you might be able to spot several alligator bark juniper trees close to 2,000 years old. The tree gets its name from the thick scaly bark that resembles an alligator’s hide. On your return trip, stop for lunch or a drink at the first-rate Enchantment Resort, located at the entrance to Boynton Canyon. The glass encased dining room and lounge offer more exquisite views of the surroundings.   
 

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Introducing Abercrombie & Kent Destination Management

Just the name, Abercrombie & Kent, evokes images of a mysterious Africa, a hidden continent where one goes searching deep into the bush to find gorillas and lions, only to be pampered at night in the most luxurious tents you’ve ever seen. Having been with A&K on two trips, Kenya and Botswana, I can easily say that the experience exceeds all expectations, creating some of the highlights of my travel career. That’s the reason we at ActiveTravels have no qualms about booking clients with A&K around the globe, including cruises to Antarctica and visiting majestic Machu Picchu. A&K now has 52 offices in 26 countries and can offer the traveler far more than what you might find on their website. For travel advisors, they offer the largest network of luxury destination management companies (DMCs). Translation: we can go to A&K for custom-made trips around the globe, whether it’s a family headed to Rwanda to see the gorillas or 4 couples who want to dine their away around Japan. And you don’t have to mortgage the house to pay for these trips. Unlike some of their guided safaris, which can higher priced, they can work with moderate budgets. That’s why we rely on A&K more and more as our business grows. 

 
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Save 20% at the New LIFE Hotel in New York’s NoMad Neighborhood

Opening its doors on April 10th, the LIFE Hotel is located in the historic building that once housed LIFE Magazine. If you like boutique hotels with great design, lots of amenities, a restaurant, and basement speakeasy serving classic cocktails, this is the place for you. Rates start at $249 if you book by April 25th. The circa-1893 hotel will echo the place where renowned writers and artists worked, lived, and played. When the new owners were researching the building, they discovered that the upper floors served as apartments for the celebrated writers and artists of the time. During prohibition, the building even housed a secret bar in the basement. All of these areas are being revitalized with plans to bring back the spirit of the 1920s with modern amenities and comfort.

The hotel offers 98 rooms and will place an emphasis on great service and affordability. Guestrooms will feature oversized beds, large flat screen TVs, vintage desks and contemplative poetry inscribed throughout. Pets are welcome. If interested, please contact ActiveTravels and we’re happy to book the hotel and give you our NYC travel tips.
 
Guest Post by Lisa Leavitt 
 
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Free National Park App

This one comes from my wife, Lisa Leavitt, from her Tuesday Travel Tidbits column. If you’re not receiving the Tuesday Travel Tidbits or our monthly newsletters, send us your email and we’ll put you on the list. Until May 12, Chimani, a Yarmouth, Maine based company, will be offering free apps for Apple and Android users, who want guidance in the National Parks. Usually $4.99 to $9.99, the apps provide trail maps, ranger-led events, biking guides, and even the ever-important directions to find the restrooms in the parks! We have been very busy booking many of our clients on trips to the National Parks this summer, so this will come in handy. Some of the parks that Chimani covers are: Acadia National Park, Cape Cod National Seashore, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, Yosemite and Zion National Parks. 

 
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Marie Pechet, In Memoriam

My conversations with Marie Pechet usually started with a line like this: “I have chemotherapy in a couple hours and you won’t hear from me in the next 3 days.” We had met two years ago when a mutual friend introduced us. She was interested in traveling to an off-the-beaten-track locale, much like her beloved Cape Santa Maria on Long Island in the Bahamas. She would never discuss her health with me.  But I looked online and read one of her stories where she had been battling colorectal cancer since 2008, shortly after her second child was born. Eight mind-numbing years of battling a stage 4 cancer and her incredible spirit shone through those phone calls and literally hundreds of emails I’m now reliving. She wanted an eco-friendly hotel that respected her diet of vegetables, beans, lemon and lime, olive oil, avocado, and nuts. Her older son, now 13, was also allergic to nuts, fish, lentils, and pumpkins. We found a place on Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula, Aguila de Osa, where the owner is known to go overboard to make every wish come true. She loved that property and would often talk about returning, even though her husband, Tiron, loathed the long boat ride to reach it (see the photograph). 

We would book other trips to Dominican Republic, Florida, Tanque Verde dude ranch outside of Tucson, even Bloomington, Indiana, after learning that our daughter goes to Indiana University. She would comment on my daily travel blog, wish us well on our travels, send other clients our way, and write lengthy reviews of all trips where she would be brutally honest about the good and the bad. In truth, she was the client Lisa and I dreamed about when we first started this business 5 years ago. She was battling cancer for close to a decade, undergoing brutal chemotherapy sessions while raising two boys, and had far more zest for life than most people I know. Her cancer would simply not allow her to take life for granted. On Wednesday morning, she finally succumbed to that dreadful illness. We had just spoken several weeks ago, discussing the details of her family’s return to Tanque Verde over the holidays. Death was the farthest thing from my thoughts especially when talking to this enthusiastic woman so full of life. I hope Tiron and the boys do return to Tanque Verde, a land of craggy peaks and long horizons, where I know Marie will take her rightful place in the clouds watching over everyone she touched. In only two short years, she had an immediate impact on our lives and will leave a large void.
 
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A Wonderful Week at the Iberostar Grand Hotel Rose Hall

To celebrate our daughter’s graduation from high school in June, we spent a week at an all-inclusive property in Jamaica. We chose the Iberostar Grand Hotel Rose Hall, an adults-only property only a 20-minute drive from the international airport in Montego Bay. I’ve written extensively about the all-inclusive experience in the Caribbean and Mexico, having stayed at over 30 properties, but this is easily one of the finest. Rooms were spacious, with sunken tub, a fridge stocked with Red Stripe, and a large balcony where you could watch the magical sunset each evening over the expanse of beach and ocean. Connected to two other Iberostar resorts, the beach was long enough to stroll. Granted, we were there in the off-season, but there were more than enough chaise lounge chairs on the beach, with or without umbrellas. The ocean water was heavenly, just the right temperature, which was probably the reason we all got too much sun. All the restaurants surpassed my expectations, serving freshly caught red snapper, shrimp, and copious amounts of jerk chicken. Drinks were plentiful and there was waiter service on the beach, a nice plus (try the Jamaican Smile). We loved the entertainment crew, especially Hashtag and Renee, who were always there with a game to play or story to tell about Jamaica. But most of all I relaxed, reading two books on the beach. What a treat! 

 
I plan on relaxing with my extended family (18 in all) at the Silver Bay YMCA on Lake George the next 4 days. I’ll be back on July 13th. In the meantime, keep active.  
 
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Five Favorite Adventures in National Parks, Hiking the Rim of Crater Lake

I call it a “Holy Shit” moment. One of those rare occurrences in travel when you round a bend and see something so stupendous that you’re shouting expletives of joy. This is exactly what happens when you reach the rim of Crater Lake. You’ve never seen water such a shade of vibrant blue, the result of sunlight pouring down on the deepest lake in America. Ringed by jagged peaks, it’s a captivating site that you’ll want to see from every available parking site. Though if you were wise, you booked a room at the Crater Lake Lodge when they went on sale July 1st for the following year. Rooms with lake view are booked, on average, 13 months in advance says Assistant General Manger Tim Mahoney. That’s not a surprise when you realize the closest lodging after the lodge is in Klamath Falls, a good 59-mile drive. Throw down your bags and take the short hike from the lodge to 8,054-foot Garfield Peak. The views below, especially to the lone island, Wizard Island, are more astounding the higher the elevation. Afterwards, relax on the back porch of the lodge in the rocking chairs and listen to the daily 4 pm lecture by a park ranger on the rugged individuals who were determined to make this special caldera a national park. You can toast to them at dinner that night while dining on bison meatloaf. 

 

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