As we just completed another trip around the sun, I find myself reflecting on the most common question I get from family, friends and clients: "What’s the best trip you’ve taken?". My pat (and truthful) answer is “the last one I took”. Of course, this can sound trite, but I travel a lot, certainly for business, but mainly because I love travel. In the last year and a half, I have been to 5 continents, 14 countries and about 51 cities. I have honestly not had a trip that I thought was anything less than memorable and great and possibly the best. Here are some highlights from the past year in no particular order:
o Discovering new foods and drinks in unfamiliar places such as lunch with a family in the High Atlas Mountains, tasting exotic fruits in Bogota, balsamic vinegar tasting in Modena and Albariño tasting in Galicia.
o Snorkeling with whale sharks, sea turtles, manta rays and penguins in Indonesia, the Galapagos and the Riviera Maya allowing me to check off many aquatic bucket list items.
o Watching my husband savor every breakfast at the Plaza Athenee and race a Ferrari around a track in Modena.
o Sunsets – all of them whether in Longboat Key, Florida or the Komodo Islands, Indonesia.
o Playing Teeth of the Dog in Casa de Campo with people who actually like golf.
o Finding beauty in expected and unexpected destinations whether traveling by plane, train, car, hiking, biking, sailing, kayaking, skiing, on camel, horse or donkey, whether traveling fast or slow, going off the grid or enjoying the finest luxuries.
o Finding hotels and experiences I can’t wait to share. For some off the beaten path experiences I highly recommend the Banyan Tree Buahan in Bali north of Ubud with it’s open wall suites, Aqua Expeditions for it’s small, intimate 5* expedition cruising experiences and the Azores or Colombia for an easy direct flight from the east coast with a great mix of culture and natural beauty. I just stayed at the newly renovated Casa Pestagua in Cartagena – perfection!
o Professionally, I love working with my travel partners who help me make dreams come true, and I have been recognized as a Virtuoso Adventure Community top producer, top Backroads and Four Seasons Preferred Partner Producer and a Centurion by my host agency.
Here some of the spots I have been to lately:
Europe: Greece: Backroads, Crete, Santorini, Paros, Four Seasons Athens; Spain: Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Grenada, Basque Country, Rioja and Galicia; Portugal: Azores, Lisbon, Porto, Six Senses Douro Valley; Italy: Bologna, Modena, Lake Como, Milan; France: Biarritz and Paris;
The Americas: New York City, Longboat Key, Florida, Miraval Berkshires, Aspen (winter and summer); Las Vegas, Portland, Maine, Wildflower Farms, Hudson Valley, NY, Des Moines, Iowa; Ithaca, NY, Kiawah Island, SC, Chicago, IL; Colombia: Bogota, Medellin, Cannua and Cartagena; Mexico: Mexico City and Riviera Maya; Ecuador: Quito and the Galapagos; Dominican Republic: Casa de Campo;
Africa: Morocco: Backroads, Marrakech, Essaouira and Atlas Mountains, Fez, Casablanca;
Asia: Indonesia: Buahan and Jimbaran Bay, Bali, Aqua Expeditions Komodo Island Cruise,
I am currently setting my calendar for 2024 travels which I know will continue to be exciting and bring me joy. Let me know if I can help make your travel dreams come true.
Wishing you a very happy and healthy new year!