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Happy Father’s Day from ActiveTravels

I often joke with my kids that they grew up in the pages of The Boston Globe (the photos on the left are Melanie from a story on mid-coast Maine and Jake from a story on Costa Rica). Lately, I’ve been writing about our family trips for Virtuoso Traveler, like the stellar time we had in Switzerland with Backroads last summer. This is what I live for, creating Dream Day experiences with my family. And it’s probably the number one reason we started ActiveTravels, to hopefully form lasting memories for other families. Thankfully, you don’t have to always travel the world to savor a moment with your children. On Monday, we threw the bikes on the back of the car and drove to Arlington, Massachusetts, to bike along the Minuteman Bike Trail to Davis Square and the latest trail extension into Somerville. It was a leisurely spin, stopping for cold brews, and watching a family of newborn swans, and it was glorious. On Father’s Day, we’re heading to Chinatown for dim sum and then strolling to SoWa Open Market to listen to music, see the art, and grab a beer. Have a Fantastic Father’s Day and get out there with the kids to create an unforgettable experience! 

I want to thank Amy for her wonderful job showing us around the Big Island of Hawaii and the Muskoka Lakes region of Ontario. I’ll be back next with blogs on my recent trip to Medellin and Cartagena. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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First Prize for Best Family Travel Story

I was delighted to receive word last week that my story for Virtuoso Traveler on traveling with the family to the Swiss Alps won first prize in the Family Travel category at the Society of American Travel Writers Eastern Chapter Writing Contest. I don’t take this lightly. I must have submitted 20 stories over the past 25 stories and haven’t received any recognition since my book, Outside Magazine’s Adventure Guide to New England, was published in 1996! Rereading this particular story on Switzerland, I touched on loss, how my kids were getting older, soon graduating from college, and you can’t take these family trips for granted much longer. I think it was this part of the piece that resonated with the judges. Even more surprising was that I received an Honorable Mention in the Miscellaneous category for my Road Trip to Revolutionary War Sites story for Chevrolet’s New Roads Magazine. The highlight of researching this story was having dinner with an old high school friend in Saratoga and spending time with my nephew, Max, in Philly, who was going to school at UPenn. Please have a look at the winning entries. 

 
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Serious Rafting Only a 30-Minute Drive from Boston

Starting next Saturday, April 17th, you can go on a rollicking good ride on the Concord River, just north of Boston. Zoar Outdoor, known for their rafting trips down the Deerfield River in central Mass, is leading guided jaunts on the Concord for any one 14 years and older. For the price of $82, you can rip through three major class III and IV rapids—Twisted Sister, Three Beauties, and Middlesex Dam. Zoar supplies all gear. All you have to do is show up and get ready to scream.

 

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Maine Schooner Mary Day Offers Six-Day Sail for Beer Lovers

Aboard an historic schooner sailing the Penobscot Bay islands of Maine’s mid-coast, modernity slows to a more languid pace. Cruising amidst the anonymous pine-topped islands, stopping at the occasional seaside village, you can’t help but relax aboard these yachts of yesteryear. Dolphins, seals, bald eagles, lighthouses and lobstermen at work are all part of the scenery. Help hoist the sails, read a good thick book, or partake in your hobby of choice. Last summer, I wrote about the popular knitting cruises aboard the circa-1927 J. & E. Riggin for The Boston Globe Sunday Magazine. Now I’d like to tell you about the Camden schooner Mary Day and its inaugural six-day Maine Craft Beers and Home Brewing Cruise set for June 16-22. Passengers will have complimentary samples of Maine beers, and local brews will be paired with each evening meal (baked haddock, ham dinner, chili, chowder, roast turkey etc.). The Mary Day will make a stop at Marshall Wharf Brewing Co. in Belfast for a tour and tasting. Captain Barry King will brew and bottle a batch of his own nut brown ale during the trip, and passengers will go home with a few bottles. 

 
This will be the first craft beer themed cruise in the 76-year history of windjammer vacations on the Maine coast. The all-inclusive trip includes three galley-cooked meals from the wood-fired stove and snacks daily, an island lobster bake, and cozy accommodations with a skylight, window, heat and running water. The 90-foot Mary Day is a wooden two-masted schooner with berths for 28 passengers. She was launched in 1962 as the first coasting schooner ever designed specifically for windjammer vacations. Cost is $955 per person. 
 
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A Week of Adventure at Quebec’s Saguenay Fjord

On my last trip to the province of Quebec, I was fortunate to make it to Baie-Saint-Paul in the Charlevoix region, just north of Quebec City along the St. Lawrence Seaway. Charlevoix has become a foodie destination, cherished by residents of Montreal and Quebec City for its cheeses, breads, fresh salmon, microbrews, and local produce. Next week, I’ll be continuing my journey up the St. Lawrence to the 64-mile long Saguenay Fjord, one of the longest and southernmost fjords in the world. Flanked by walls of ash colored rock that rise some 1,150 feet and forests of balsams and yellow birch, it is also one of the most accessible places on the planet to see beluga whales. For quite some time, Saguenay has been on my wish list as I yearned to kayak the fjord, bike a section of the 256-kilometer “Véloroute des Bleuets” or Blueberry Trail cycling path around Lac-Saint-Jean, raft the Metabetchouan River, and hike high above the waters at Parc national du Fjord-du-Saguenay. The perfect Quebec adventure! As an added bonus, I’m headed back to Charlevoix to bike around Isle-aux-Coudres, an island, smack dab in the center of the St. Lawrence River, and to sample the French dining at several bistros that are known throughout Quebec. Please follow along next week as I blog, tweet @ActiveTravels, share photos on Facebook and Instagram, and videos on YouTube. Have a great weekend! 

 
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Adventures in Puerto Vallarta

Last Wednesday in Puerto Vallarta, I took a fast zodiac boat ride with the family across glorious Banderas Bay. Led by the outfitter Vallarta Adventures, we landed on the docks of the seaside village of Quimixto. We walked the cobblestone streets past the sleeping chihuahas and soon made our way to a pack of horses that were waiting to take us up the mountainous hillside. We got out of the saddle, only to walk to a hidden waterfall where we swam in the cool waters. After horseback riding, we snorkeled with a slew of angelfish and then had a delicious lunch on a quiet beach farther south in Pizotita. Our guide, Poncho, made a helluva margarita for the adults, while the kids were served coconut juice. Life was bliss and we laughed when Poncho said “Where are all the bandits in their big sombreros and guns blazing?” It was so peaceful here that my daughter wandered over to a hammock and took a nap.
 
The next day, a busload of passengers from a Celebrity cruise ship were on the outskirts of Puerto Vallarta, on their way to a nature hike, when they were robbed at gunpoint by a bandit. I was stunned. I had just spent the past two days in Puerto Vallarta, walked the Malecon, the broad boardwalk down by the ocean, had an excellent meal of authentic Mexican fare at Old Town’s Margarita Grill, and felt perfectly safe my entire stay in the region. But then the robbery happened. This being Mexico, which already faces a huge media blitz about crime and their drug cartels, it can only add salt to the wound. Yet, let’s be realistic. There’s crime in every city in America, so why wouldn’t a city of over 400,000 people like Puerto Vallarta face some adversity. I feel horrible for the people on that bus who were robbed of their cameras, money, and cell phones. Hopefully, the robbery was an anomaly and the city can go back to doing what it does best, making guacamole tableside with homemade salsa. For that dish alone, I wouldn’t hesitate to return.
 
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Australia, Maui, and St. Barts Featured in the April ActiveTravels Newsletter

April is always one of the busiest months of the year for us as members book upcoming summer and winter travel. We try to get back to all requests as quick as possible but we appreciate your patience. We’ve also been traveling quite a bit to see firsthand the destinations, resorts, and tour operators we like to recommend. Lisa just returned from Queensland and Melbourne, Australia, which she reports on in our main feature in the April newsletter. On our last trip to Australia, we were stuck inside a small hotel in Cairns for 3 days as a cyclone barreled down the coastline. So, of course, the worst cyclone to hit Australia in 6 years happened in Queensland while Lisa was there again. Fortunately, the eye of the storm was an 8-hour drive to the south so it didn’t alter her itinerary. We also leave today for a weeklong trip to another popular destination, Greece, with a highly reputable tour operator from New York, Heritage Tours. We’ll describe our findings in the May newsletter.
 
In our Travel Tip column this month, we want to remind members to please think of us for all your travels, including cruises and guided trips with the likes of Backroads, Abercrombie & Kent, and Lindblad. We’re a full-service Virtuoso-aligned travel agency that can often get amenities like shore excursions and spa treatments thrown in at no additional cost. Also in this issue, we list our favorite properties in Maui, discuss deals in St. Barts in the shoulder season, and talk about the art scene in Houston for our Quick Escape column. 
 
Be on the lookout for a hotel giveaway in next month’s issue. May marks the 5th anniversary of ActiveTravels so we thought a free hotel giveaway was a good way to start the celebration. Thanks to all of you for helping to make ActiveTravels a success! 
 
See you again on May 1st when we return from our trip to Athens, Mykonos, and Santorini. Happy Travels!
 
Steve and Lisa 
 

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