This stainless steel tree by sculptor Roxy Paine in Forest Park, St. Louis just fascinated us.
Panama City Beach for Families
Having fun on the floats at Shell Island
Panama City Beach, situated along the beautiful Emerald Coast of Florida with sparkling white sand and gorgeous Caribbean colored water, used to be the destination of choice for spring break for college students. It still is, but after spending a week there this summer with my grown daughter and seven-year old grandson, I can assure you that it’s a perfect family destination as well.
We split our stay between the Bay Point Wyndham, located a few miles away from the beach on St. Andrews Bay, and the Laketown Wharf Resort, right on the beach. Both destinations were perfect for families. A two bedroom villa at the Wyndham with a kitchenette made it easy to keep snacks and drinks available and offered the perfect sleeping arrangements for our family. With five gorgeous pools, on-site restaurants, an incomparable spa, and a world-class golf course, this resort is an idyllic location. One of the amenities we enjoyed the most was their free shuttle out to Shell Island, an unspoiled and quite lovely National Park located just a few miles away, where you will probably see dolphins.
Read the rest of this article on Ky Doc Magazine HERE
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Categories: Accommodations, Beach, Cities, Countries, Family Travel, Florida, Hotels, Ky Doc Magazine, Panama City Beach, Resorts, Travel with Children, United States
Tags: Jan Ross travel blog, Jan Ross travel writer, Panama City Beach, Panama City Beach Attractions for Families, Panama City Beach Family Travel, Panama City Beach Family Vacation, Panama City Beach Hotels for Families, Panama City Beach Resorts for Families
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Family Getaway to the High Hampton Inn
The High Hampton Inn is closed right now for the season. Snow blankets the Blue Ridge Mountains of Cashiers, North Carolina and this wonderful family resort is tucked in snugly for the winter.
But come April, this lovely location will welcome all the families who have been returning for visits over the decades. I spent a few days there last summer with our grown daughter and seven year old grandson and we learned just why this place is so incredibly popular that families return year after year, even booking their next vacation before they head home.
We made the drive though the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, winding our way through the thick spruce, fir, oak and hickory forests which combine to create a blue haze when the mountains are seen from a distance, thus earning them the name. We actually took this photo when leaving, but it gives you an idea of the beauty of this area.
Gorgeous view of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
We pulled into the resort grounds and were immediately amazed at the beauty of the mountains soaring into the sky which surround the resort. This is truly one of the most idyllic locations for a resort that I have ever seen.
Aerial view of the resort. Photo courtesy of the High Hampton Inn.
Categories: Accommodations, Cashiers, Cities, Countries, Family Travel, North Carolina, Resorts, Travel with Children, United States
Tags: Cashiers Family Travel, Cashiers North Carolina Hotels, Cashiers North Carolina Resorts, Jan Ross travel blog, Jan Ross travel writer, North Carolina Family Travel, North Carolina Hotels, North Carolina Resorts
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Photo Friday: Gulls at Harmony Island, B.C.
Our cruise to British Columbia with Un-Cruise Adventures was absolutely filled with incredible scenery and wildlife sightings. These gulls were just chillin’ in the water around the Harmony Islands.
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Indulge Your Inner Gourmet with Foodie Tours
My husband and I are fans of food. Lots and lots of different kinds of food. We have enjoyed a fabulous gourmet restaurant in Las Vegas and a beachside hamlet in Mexico where he had his very first Corona. We love it all. But it’s difficult, time-consuming and expensive to attempt to sample a variety of restaurants in the many places we visit, so we have figured out the perfect solution – local foodie tours. For roughly the price of one nice restaurant meal, you can enjoy samples (some quite substantial) at a variety of restaurants, bakeries and other, more unique venues like vinegar and oil shops and chocolatiers. It’s also a great introduction to a location as the tour guides are invariably knowledgeable about the area. Foodie tours are a great way to find the best local specialties – and determine which you location you want to return to and sample even more goodies!
We first discovered foodie tours in Amsterdam where we sampled some of the best cheese in the world at the Reypenaer Cheese Tasting Rooms. Located right near Dam Square and easily accessible via one of the many canal boats, this location has a schoolroom like basement complete with tables and chairs. There, they introduce you to a wide variety of their cheeses, accompanied by lovely glasses of wine and expert commentary on what you are tasting.
Read the rest of this article on Travelhoppers HERE.
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The Reynolds Mansion Bed and Breakfast Inn, Asheville, North Carolina
I like to think I am somewhat classy. I have a dining room, china, and silver.
I even set the table in the dining room with my china and silver fairly often.
My family makes fun of me for using china to serve things like tacos but I feel like it should be used, not saved for “someday”.
However.
I have never used, or to be perfectly honest, even heard of a silver spoon rest.
But they have heard of them at the Reynolds Mansion Bed and Breakfast Inn in Asheville, North Carolina.
When we came down to breakfast, we had one at every place setting – in addition to a perfectly lovely table setting complete with all the other silver, china, and beautiful fresh flowers.
This could have been a little intimidating, especially combined with the incredible, opulent furnishings of this beautiful mansion but it wasn’t.
Mainly because of the incomparably gracious and friendly innkeeper, Billy Sanders.
Silver spoon rest. Who knew?
Let me back up.
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Categories: Asheville, Bed and Breakfasts, Cities, Countries, Girlfriends Getaway, North Carolina, United States
Tags: Asheville Accommodations, Asheville B & Bs, Asheville Bed and Breakfasts, Jan Ross travel blog, Jan Ross travel writer, North Carolina Accommodations, North Carolina Bed and Breakfasts, North Caroline B & B's, The Reynolds Mansion Bed and Breakfast, Tom Ross Photographer, Tom Ross Travel Photographer
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Photo Friday: Chatterbox Falls Mist
This waterfall at the end of Princess Louisa Inlet in British Columbia is just beautiful. We hiked to the top and Tom got this great photo.
Cruising the Islands of British Columbia
You won’t find Broadway shows, expansive swimming pools, or numerous theme restaurants on the yacht “Safari Quest” with Un-Cruise Adventures, but that’s just the way the passengers on this small luxury yacht like it. With cabins for just 22 passengers and crew, the yacht is the perfect size for comfort and retains the ability to cruise into secluded inlets and coves that larger ships will never explore. And with a 2:1 ratio of crew to passengers, the level of attention each and every one of the passengers receives is amazing.
Departing from Seattle, this cruise was all about “gunkholing”, a boating term that refers to shallow or shoal water cruising, meandering from place to place and mooring overnight in sheltered coves. In addition, the line seeks anchorages to view wildlife, hike and kayak or just enjoy amazing views. We were astonished by the incredible beauty of the hidden Princess Louisa Inlet with the roaring Chatterbox Falls plummeting from hundreds of feet up the mountain into the water. After kayaking ashore, then hiking up the waterfall, we were even more impressed.
Read the rest of this article on Travel Squire HERE.
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Getaway to the Omni Hilton Head Oceanfront Resort
It was the view that made us fall in love with the Omni Hilton Head Oceanfront Resort.
Our room was great, the resort was gorgeous, the pools were incomparable, the beach front was lovely – all of that added to the love but it was the view from our room that had us completely smitten.
We had stayed at two other equally wonderful resorts on our girlfriends getaway so far but even though they were, indeed, perfectly lovely, neither one offered us a view.
And we are fans of the view.
We were packing up at the previous location the day before our visit, feeling a little sad that this was going to be our last resort and we would be heading home the next day. Very, very sad. We decided one night at the Omni was just not going to suffice. So we added two more nights.
And we were so glad we did.
The Omni Hilton Head Oceanfront. Yep. Gorgeous. Photo courtesy of the Omni.
Unfortunately, we were checking in on a Sunday when their sales and marketing people were not in their office, the front desk knew nothing about a travel writer visiting, and the quite pleasant girl at the check in desk was not at all sure she could put us in a room with a view for the extra days and she might have to charge us extra or we might have to move after one night and things were getting complicated and we were getting a little frazzled.
She was not getting frazzled at all, we were the ones getting frazzled. We seriously wanted a view but we didn’t want to have to pack up and move to another room after one night. She efficiently and calmly went to get someone to help.
That person turned out to be the even more efficient Gray Rains, the Assistant Front Office Manager who smiled, clicked a few keys on the computer, pulled a rabbit out of a hat, did a few card tricks – OK, not really, but he got us into a room with a view for no extra charge and assured us he would talk to the sales people on Monday and straighten everything out. He did exactly that. The sales people called me on Monday and everything was just fine.
So nice to work with professional people. Read more
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Categories: Beach, Cities, Hilton Head, Hotels, Resorts, South Carolina, United States
Tags: Hilton Head Hotels, Hilton Head Hotels on the beach, Hilton Head Resorts, Jan Ross travel blog, Jan Ross travel writer, Omni Hilton Head Oceanfront Resort, South Carolina Hotels, South Carolina Resorts, Tom Ross Photographer, Tom Ross Travel Photographer
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Photo Friday: Cove at Butchart Gardens
Butchart Gardens, located on Vancouver Island, is an absolutely gorgeous location. Flowers bloom everywhere in dozens of colors and there are fountains, walking paths, and lovely views of the water. Tom got this shot of a hidden cove.
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