Dream Day Itineraries Ideally Suited for 2021: Last Stop, Hawaii

Live Ukulele Music on a Big Island BeachThis week at ActiveTravels we’ve been discussing our favorite Dream Day Itineraries for 2021. For close to a decade, we’ve created hundreds of these detailed day-to-day itineraries that include every aspect of your vacation, from hotels to guided tours to reserved restaurants to best places to stop along your drive. As more and more clients take similar routes, we’re able to get feedback directly from you, refining these itineraries so they’re as close to perfection as can be. We’ve also aligned ourselves with the AXUS app, so all information is now within easy reach on your smart phone.

The final destination we’d like to discuss is Hawaii, where we’ve already begun designing routes for clients this coming summer and winter. We usually recommend spending at least 10 days in Hawaii, with stops at two of the islands. It’s really hard to go wrong with any of the islands. Oahu offers the honky-tonk Waikiki Beach, the history of Pearl Harbor, a wonderful Honolulu Chinatown, and the surfers at the Banzai Pipeline. Big Island has it all, from the Wyoming-like horse ranches of Waimea to the black sand beaches of Kona to the very active volcano at Volcano National Park. Maui offers the best golfing and scuba options, and who can resist waking up at sunrise to bike down Haleakala. Then there’s the serenity of Kauai and the chance to take a helicopter ride or private boat charter near the striking Na Pali cliffs. We work with wonderful scuba and deep-sea fishing charters, horseback riding and hiking guides, cooking classes, historians, even a vulcanologist on the Big Island.

Let us know which North American destination interests you in 2021 and we’ll be happy to dive in!

Dream Day Itineraries Ideally Suited for 2021: Northern California

Dream Day Itinerary to Northern CaliforniaSan Fran is the gateway to so many spectacular locales, it’s often hard to choose. Most of our clients first head to the vineyards and fine dining of Napa and Sonoma. The dilemma is what to do next because all the choices are amazing. You can head east for 5 hours and reach arguably the most scenic locale in America, Yosemite National Park. Just as remarkable is the drive down Big Sur, which starts outside of Carmel, about a 3-hour drive south of Napa. But don’t overlook the seaside village of Mendocino and then a memorable drive through the redwoods at Avenue of the Giants, about a 4-hour drive north of Napa. You can continue on to Eureka and the Lost Coast of California, where the beaches are populated with far more seals than humans. You really can’t go wrong with any choice you make! Give us a week or more and your travel interests and ActiveTravels will get to work creating a memorable Dream Day Itinerary to California.

Dream Day Itineraries Ideally Suited for 2021: Utah/Arizona National Parks

Hiking in ZionOutside of New England, this is probably our second most popular Dream Day Itinerary. Start in Las Vegas and 2 ½ hours later, you’ll be staring up in awe at the rock formations at Zion National Park. We work with fantastic guides to get you up high on the trails or inside a slot canyon on the Virgin River. Another 90-minute drive, you’ll be staring down at the hoodoos at Bryce National Park. From Bryce, you can continue east to Canyonlands and Arches National Parks and Moab, or head 2 1/2 hours south to Lake Powell on the Arizona border, a fantastic spot to rent a houseboat and relax. From Lake Powell, it’s only a 30-minute drive to the otherworldly walls of Antelope Canyon. Another 2 ½ hours south and you’ll reach the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, where we can arrange a private helicopter ride or a small group hike with a guide. Continue on to the red rocks of Sedona (we adore the Enchantment Resort) and you’ll soon be in the Phoenix/Scottsdale area for some more hiking and golfing. Please let ActiveTravels know your dates and we’ll design a fabulous itinerary, including our favorite lodging, guides, backcountry roads, and suggested restaurants.

Dream Day Itineraries Ideally Suited for 2021: Atlantic Maritimes, Canada

Skyline Trail, Nova ScotiaAnother part of the world I know exceptionally well are the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island, where I try to return at least once a year. Drive Cape Breton and you feel like you’re in the Scottish Highlands, cruising atop scenic bluffs, taking hikes with moose, visiting whiskey distilleries, and listening to fantastic foot-stomping live Celtic music. But there’s so much more! In New Brunswick, visit the charming seaside village of St. Andrews and then go whale watching, stroll the stunning Hopewell Rocks formation, sea kayak on the greatest tidal shift in the world at Fundy National Park, and search for chanterelle mushrooms with a French chef on the Acadian route to create a memorable seafood meal that evening. PEI offers incredible biking on the 449-kilometer Confederation Trail that runs from one end of the island to the other, a chance to visit the town of Cavendish, best known as the home of Anne of Green Gables, and is known for its gluttonous seafood feasts called lobster suppers. Please let ActiveTravels know the number of days you want to travel to the Atlantic Maritimes and we’ll happily come up with an exciting itinerary.

Dream Day Itineraries Ideally Suited for 2021: First Stop, New England

Dream Day Itinerary to New EnglandMany of you already have first-hand knowledge of what we like to call the Dream Day Itinerary. From a weekend away in the Berkshires to a 4-month sabbatical in South America, these detailed day-to-day itineraries include every aspect of your vacation, from hotels to guided tours to reserved restaurants to best places to stop along your drive. At first, many of these recommended activities stemmed from my own research based on years of being a travel writer. But as more and more ActiveTravels clientele took similar routes, we were able to get feedback directly from you, refining these routes so they’re as close to perfection as can be. We’ve also aligned ourselves with the AXUS app, so all information is now within easy reach on your smart phone.

As we write this, one of our clients is traveling cross-country on a Dream Day Itinerary with stops in DC, Charleston, Atlanta, New Orleans, Houston, Austin, Santa Fe, Taos, Grand Canyon, Sedona, Phoenix, and finally La Jolla. We’ve created itineraries around the world, from a month in Peru to a month in Australia. But as we slowly get back to traveling again in 2021, these tried-and-true 7 to 10-day North American routes are well suited for getting you back on the road again.

By far our most popular Dream Day Itinerary is New England, where we’ve designed over 100 itineraries. Depending on the time of year, we can guide you along the coast from Mystic to Bar Harbor, with possible stops in Newport, Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard, Nantucket, Portsmouth, Portland, Camden, and Bar Harbor. Or we head inland to the White Mountains of New Hampshire, the Green Mountains of Vermont, and the Berkshires in Massachusetts to see the foliage. Some of our favorite activities we organized over the years are hot air ballooning over Lake Champlain, finding moose with a guide in Greenville, Maine, having a clambake on a quiet Nantucket beach, and going lobstering with a genuine lobsterman off Boothbay Harbor, Maine. Want more? How about visiting the Museum of Fine Arts with a curator, biking to the 5 lighthouses outside Portland, or sailing on an original America’s Cup sailboat in Newport. Best of all, having written about this region for half my life, I know the most scenic backcountry routes to find foliage and the apple cider mill without the crowds.

Fall Foliage Driving Trips: Fruit Loop, Hood River, Oregon

Fruit Loop, OregonThis week, I’ll be discussing my favorite picks for September/October driving trips. If interested in any of these routes, please let ActiveTravels know and we’ll design an itinerary that takes into account the latest travel restrictions and lodging where you feel comfortable.

Autumn colors are not usually associated with the Northwest, the land of conifers. Yet, outside of Hood River, the 35-mile Fruit Loop feels like a quintessential fall drive back east. That is, until you look up and see the lofty snowcapped peak of Mount Hood towering above 11,000 feet. The route is lined with pear orchards, fields of lavender, alpaca farms, farm stands, wineries, and an emerging hard cider scene. Sample the wares at Fox-Tail Cider or Hood Valley Hard Cider, and you’ll be surprised to find that the drink is crisp, refreshing, and can easily be paired with the Chinook salmon and steelhead trout the region is known for. Quaff down a cider at the picnic tables behind Solera Brewery in Parkdale and you’ll be mesmerized by the spectacular view of Mount Hood. Make the wise choice of spending the evening at the Columbia Cliff Villas in Hood River and you’ll wake up to a sunrise over the Columbia River Gorge.

Fall Foliage Driving Trips: Highway 385, Rapid City, South Dakota

bison round-up, Custer State Park, South DakotaThis week, I’ll be discussing my favorite picks for September/October driving trips. If interested in any of these routes, please let ActiveTravels know and we’ll design an itinerary that takes into account the latest travel restrictions and lodging where you feel comfortable:

The fall foliage road trip was designed with places like South Dakota in mind. Venture to Rapid City and you’ll have the chance to cruise with relatively little traffic up and down the pine forests and granite passes of the Black Hills. Highway 385 will lead you to Vanocker Canyon and Spearfish Canyon National Scenic Byway, home to waterfalls and golden aspens. Also in the Black Hills is the 68-mile Peter Norbeck Scenic Byway (a 4-hour drive) that travels through six rock tunnels, past towering pinnacles and over pine-clad peaks, only to arrive at the most famous sculpture in the country, Mount Rushmore. As if that wasn’t enough incentive, the 55th annual fall round-up of bison takes place September 25th at nearby Custer State Park. Watch the cowboys and cowgirls drive the herd of some 1,300 buffalo, some of whom will be sold at auction in November. For lodging, it’s hard to top the convenience of the Roosevelt Inn in Keystone, located next to Mount Rushmore.

Fall Foliage Driving Trips: Leelanau Peninsula, Michigan

Sleeping Bear Dunes. Michigan This week, I’ll be discussing my favorite picks for September/October driving trips. If interested in any of these routes, please let ActiveTravels know and we’ll design an itinerary that takes into account the latest travel restrictions and lodging where you feel comfortable:

One of the prettiest fall drives in Michigan travels north of Traverse City on M 22 to the northern tip of Leelanau Peninsula. Slow down and explore the region on this 75-mile loop and you’ll find diverse terrain, from the rolling countryside to historic lighthouses on Lake Michigan to the steep dunes of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The quaint village of Sutton’s Bay is home to Bahle’s, a department store from 1876, and a slew of galleries specializing in local artists and local scenes. Then it’s on to the circa-1858 Grand Traverse Lighthouse at the tip of the peninsula, a white brick lighthouse that looks absurdly small compared to the great expanse of water that surrounds it. Stay at one of the 11 house rentals or more than 80 condos at the lakefront Homestead Resort.

Fall Foliage Driving Trips: Finger Lakes

Firelight Camps, IthacaA fall foliage road trip is more than a mere drive. It also includes apple picking, tasting cider and hot doughnuts, and perhaps most importantly, leaving your vehicle behind to take a much-needed scenic walk to a lonely waterfall, where autumn’s colors reflect off the water. Despite big marketing campaigns from states like Vermont, fall foliage is not restricted to the borders of New England. At Shenandoah National Park, orange beech trees and scarlet dogwoods provide the majestic color. Add fall harvest at vineyards and the annual fall round-up of bison at Custer State Park in South Dakota and you have more than enough reasons to hit the road.

This week, I’ll be discussing my favorite picks for September/October driving trips. If interested in any of these routes, please let ActiveTravels know and we’ll design an itinerary that takes into account the latest travel restrictions and lodging where you feel comfortable:

Route 54A, Keuka Lake, New York
Autumn in the Finger Lakes of western New York State is the time of year when leaves on the maples turn a tad crimson and the grapes on the vines are ready to be harvested for their award-winning Rieslings. Start on the northern tip of Keuka Lake in the town of Penn Yan. Head south on Route 54A and just outside of town, you’ll see signs for Apple Barrel Orchards, a third-generation U-pick apple orchard that makes homemade cider on the premises. Continue south along the shores of the 20-mile long lake to reach Dr. Konstantin Frank Winery. Founded in 1962 and now run by Dr. Frank’s grandson, Fred, Dr. Frank put the Finger Lakes on the wine lovers’ map with his award-winning dry and semi-dry Rieslings. Nearby in Ithaca, Firelight Camps, offers the ideal glamping opportunity.

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New Flights from Boston

If Vienna, Paris, and the Florida Keys are on your wish list, and you fly in and out of Boston’s Logan Airport, you’re in luck. Beginning in February, American Airlines will launch a direct flight from Boston to Key West. Austria Airlines will begin Boston’s first-ever direct flight to Vienna beginning March 29. And bargain European airline Level, which we flew last April to Barcelona, will add flights between Boston and Paris in May, with fares beginning at $140. Love those direct flights!