Great Late Summer Savings from New England Inns and Resorts Association
While most of America is heading back to school, the northeastern part of the country can celebrate one more vacation with the family in late August before school starts after Labor Day. Many lodgings in New England offer deals the last week of August to entice families. NEIRA just sent me their latest listing including many last-minute deals. Rates at Meadowmere Resort in Ogunquit drop 30% the last week of August to $149 a night including breakfast. The Inn at Ocean’s Edge in Lincolnville, Maine, just north of Camden, is $188 a night including full gourmet breakfast starting August 25th. Or head to Newport and stay at Gilded where the mid-week rate is $229 a night. To find year-round savings with NEIRA, sign up for their Inn Crowd emails.
With two mass murders of innocent civilians just this past week in America, you would think the country is hiding behind closed doors watching endless hours of CNN. Perhaps that’s true to some extent but here at our small travel agency on the outskirts of Boston, the phone has been ringing off the hook. In the past 48 hours, I have spoken to a grandmother who wants to bring her entire family of 15 to Belize, two friends headed to the beaches of Bahia, a family going to Kangaroo Island, Australia, a Cuba-bound couple, a group of 10 friends celebrating a 50th birthday by hiking Mount Kilimanjaro, and a number of requests for all-inclusive resorts or boutique properties in Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America. Many people mentioned how they just want to turn off. No television, no newspaper, no constant barrage of violent imagery, or having to hear the next moronic comment uttered by Trump. They want to be on a remote beach with their loved ones reading a good thick novel or, on the contrary, being incredibly active. But one client simply summed it up by stating, “I understand the fragility of life and while I’m still breathing, I want to live.” These are volatile times and nothing good can come out of these abhorrent crimes. But, at the very least, it’s a slap on the face telling us not to take anything for granted, most importantly today. Have a memorable weekend! 
Biking slightly uphill outside of Hunter’s River, horse farms replace dairy farms and the velvety green pasture flourishes. Purple lupines line the trail to add their color to the brilliant canvas. I was on my final ride of a three-day bike tour of Prince Edward Island one September, on assignment for Canadian Geographic magazine. Hunter’s River is less than a 15-minute drive from the fabled dunes and red cliffs of Cavendish, the PEI tourist hub made famous by that young girl in braids, Anne of Green Gables. Close to civilization yet far enough removed to relish the solitude (I’ve only greeted one other biker this day), I’m lost in a bucolic setting that has changed little since Lucy Maud Montgomery penned her timeless novel in 1908. 
Today is my 500th blog and it couldn’t have come on a better day in Boston. Clear blue skies with temperatures in the low 70s, ideal for taking a long bike ride past the horse farms of neighboring Dover and Sherborn. Autumn for New Englanders is a time to reflect on the past year and consider goals for the upcoming year as the leaves change color and soon fall. There’s no better way to process those thoughts than by taking a long bike ride or hike. Hopefully, one of those goals during the upcoming year is to remain active, both in body and mind. Thanks again for checking in and have a great weekend!