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Spend Thanksgiving in the Azores

One of Amy’s Dream Days of 2017 was her stay on the Azorean island of Sao Miguel. She had the pleasure of staying at Quinta Minuvida, a small eco-friendly, historic home turned hotel, run by the husband and wife pair of Joao and Rimi. At least five of our clients at ActiveTravels have followed in Amy’s footsteps and all have loved the experience. Now Quinta Minuvida is offering an Azorean Thanksgiving package that includes a 5-night stay in a double suite (either Camélia or Taro), breakfast, an "Azorean Thanksgiving" dinner on Friday night, guided hiking trip including lunch, 2 to 3 yoga classes with Rimi, and optional guided morning meditation twice during the week. Cost is only 550 Euros for the package. Car rental and international flight are not included. 
 

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Use the ActiveTravels Blog as a Resource for Your Travels

It’s been a decade since I began blogging at ActiveTravels. In 2008, I lost more than half my editors as magazines closed down and newspapers cut back severely on their travel pages. But a writer needs to write. Instead of begging for crumbs from editors, I started posting blogs the next year and haven’t stopped since. A decade of content is a lot of material to play with and I always steer clients toward the blog when researching an upcoming trip. Simply type in “Vermont” in the advanced search column to the right of the blog and then type in “Vermont” a second time in Search by Keyword, and you’ll have 155 blog entries on Vermont to choose from. That should keep you busy. Interested in going on a safari? I’ve written 68 blogs that relate to safaris. How about heading to my beloved Nova Scotia on a last-minute summer driving trip? You’ll find 40 entries on Nova Scotia. If you have trouble accessing the content, please let me know and I’ll help you find it. 

 
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Wishing You a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous 2012!

2012 proves to be an exciting year for ActiveTravels. My wife, Lisa, is now an accredited travel agent aligned with two pillars of the travel world, Carlson Wagonlit Travel and The Virtuoso Network. As of March 1st, if not earlier, we plan to launch a new version of the website that will feature travel consulting from me and reservations with Lisa. Though you don’t have to wait until that time to book a trip with us. Lisa is already busy helping couples and families plan their next dream trip. So if you need any help with travel plans in 2012, please keep us in mind!

Of course, I’ll continue to do what I do best, write. I’ll be back on January 9th with my favorite trips from 2011. Have a Happy New Year!

Steve 

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Check Your Bank Account Even While Traveling

So there I was lounging on my patio at the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge after a week of adventure in the Canadian Rockies. I’ll delve into many of my favorite locales from my trip to Western Canada next week. Any way, I was checking my email when I noticed that Bank of America contacted me, saying my funds were getting low. I had transferred money from my savings to checking account before I left, so I should have had more than enough money for the trip. When I went online at Bank of America, I saw three purchases from Stop & Shop and Exxon made in New York and New Jersey the same time I was hiking, rafting, and rock climbing my way through the Canadian Rockies! Obviously fraudulent, I called Bank of America immediately. They cancelled my Visa debit card and quickly refunded me the money that was taken by Mr. Identity Theft. Since I no longer had use of my ATM card, they also wired me money for the rest of the trip. Morale of story. Even though you’d like to leave your life behind on vacation. Sometimes it’s better to check in now and then to make sure you’re not being taken advantage of.
 

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Botswana A&K Guide, Kebby Arabang, Debuts Ilanga Tours

Lisa and I were fortunate to travel with Kebby Arabang on a magical 10-day trip with Abercrombie & Kent to Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Zambia in September 2016. Kebby’s knowledge of the outdoor world was encyclopedic. He knew every mammal, every bird, every tree, even the planets in the sky above. But it was his genuine passion of the subject, seamless communication skills, infectious smile and sense of humor that made him one of the best guides I’ve ever met. I loved mimicking his Botswana accent, especially when he emphasized the letter r when naming the next exquisite bird like the lilac-breasted roller or southern carmine bee-eater. He took it in stride and laughed along with me, even when the joke lasted far too long. 

Kebby emailed me last week and told me that when he’s not leading A&K tours in 2018, he’ll be guiding Botswana trips through his new company, Ilanga Tours. Based on your budget, he’ll take groups through the Okavango Delta and up to Chobe National Park to visit the largest herd of elephants in Africa and cruise the Chobe River on the Namibian border. If you have time, he’ll add on the spellbinding Victoria Falls. If interested in traveling with Kebby, either with A&K or Ilanga Tours, please contact ActiveTravels and we’ll look into availability. 
 
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Check Out the April 2018 ActiveTravels Newsletter

Not surprisingly, Italy is once again the top summer destination for our members, with Spain, Greece, Portugal, Scotland, and Iceland not far behind. Bike or drive through the rolling foothills of Tuscany along the Arno River and you quickly understand why Italy continues to seduce. You’ll stop to taste wine from local vineyards, olive oil from orchards, and walk on the cobblestone streets of medieval villages like Cortona, where Under the Tuscan Sun was filmed. Add requisite stops in Venice, Florence, and Rome, the dreamy landscapes of the Amalfi Coast, Cinque Terre, and Capri, and the growing popularity of Sicily and Puglia and you begin to realize why Italy keeps us busy year-round.
 
We work with a number of wonderful Italy-based tour operators who will custom-design your private trip based on your interests, be it food and wine, biking and hiking, arts and culture, history, or all of the above. They will take care of all the logistics including lodging, transfers, and activities. We also book a number of guided trips, when our clients love to leave all the worries to someone else so they can sit back, relax, take in the sights, and make new friends. In this month’s issue of the ActiveTravels newsletter, we select five group trips our clients have loved. We also talk about Medawisla, the newly revamped lodge run by the Appalachian Mountain Club in the remote Maine woods, and remind you of the benefits of booking with a travel agent. Please have a look! 
 
I’m off to Saratoga, Valley Forge, and Philadelphia next week to pen a story for Chevrolet’s New Roads Magazine on a driving trip to Revolutionary War sites. I’ll be back on May 7th. Have a great week and keep active! 
 
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Follow Cruise Expert Fran Golden On Her New Blog

Working professionally as a travel writer since 1990, I’m fortunate to know the best in the business. If I want to send a client on a European skiing trip with the family, I’m calling Everett Potter for his keen insight. For a golf outing in Scotland, longtime scribe Larry Olmsted is your man. For cruise travel, I’ve always relied on the expertise of Fran Golden. In fact, I’ve quoted her for many of my cruise pieces. Golden has covered the cruise industry for more than 15 years and has personally sailed aboard more than 100 cruise ships. She’s the former travel editor of the Boston Herald and former travel news editor for AOL. Now she’s just been hired by Porthole Cruise Magazine to launch its new blog. If you want to know about the latest cruise ships and their enticing itineraries, it would be worth your while to visit this new blog on a regular basis. 

 

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