Tag: travelblog

Belize Sights and Sounds 😎😎😻😻

Belize is such a beautiful place to visit😃By far, it is one of the best places that I have visited. Always a great feeling when you can get long time bucket list items checked off your list. Here is just a compilation of the sights and sounds of Belize: youtube.com/shorts/GNXW02RgTpg

Hopefully you enjoyed the video!😃Belize was one of the stops while cruising along the Western Caribbean! Impressive trip all around especially the speed boat tour of the Belize River. If you ever go, please do the Belize River tour – you will be so glad you did!

I must admit, the Belize River tour isn’t always fast moving. In Belize 🇧🇿, there are spots along the river where you cannot go fast. While sailing along the river, you will see manatees, alligators 🐊, snakes 🐍 etc.

In addition to the tour, you can also visit the Belize Zoo, where you will see a lot of awesome animals. Thankfully this is part of the overall tour – which really adds to the value that this tour has!

OMG 😳 – Aloha Friday Vibes😎🏝🏖

Aloha Friday to you all! Hope that everyone had a wonderful week and that you are all looking forward, as I am, to the weekend.😃 How I love the wonderful song 🎵 “Everybody’s working for the weekend”. So much truth is that song . Even more compelling is working for the next vacation 😂! Here is a great example of how vacationing soothes the soul: youtube.com/shorts/KViwW32NtD8

Hope that you enjoyed the video. This is Punalu’u Beach which is located in Kona, Hawaii. What instantly stands out is the black sand which is just magnificent! Very cool to the touch and so beautiful 🤩. On this particular day, these views were the calm before a big storm which would happen about 10 minutes later.

Matter of fact, the storm ⛈ got so severe that I ended my trip there and headed back to the hotel 🏨. I had planned to visit the Kilauea Volcano which was about 30 minutes away. It was so disappointing at the time but thankfully I got a chance to visit this beach 🏖, and the volcano, in sunnier weather later in the week.

With Spring Break right around the corner, I encourage everyone to book some time to get away from it all, whether in Hawaii or someplace close to home 🏡😃!

Live Your Life😊❤️🙌!

“Live Your Life” is a great motto for today😃! We all want to make the most out of life because life is certainly so fleeting. We have become so much more aware of this fact, living in a pandemic world 🌎. The dilemma is determining what is most valuable in life: experiences or possessions or maybe both? I would love to have more possessions but experiences last a lot longer 😂! Case in point, is this experience at a wonderful resort: youtube.com/shorts/TPzKKA8XmrU

That was the view that I saw from my window, every morning that I walked out on the balcony. Absolutely perfect views for a wonderful hotel 🏨. This is the Ocean Tower located on the grounds of the Hilton Waikoloa Village. If you have followed this blog for some time, you would have noticed various videos from this balcony on previous posts.

I really appreciate beautiful experiences such as these. These experiences makes me want to have more experiences like these in the future. Alas, there is so many places and so little time 😊. Which means that prioritization is absolutely the key 🔑.

There were years in which I did not travel because, unfortunately, I did not realize the importance of forward planning for the vacation. My planning would consist of waiting until close to the week that I wanted to go on vacation and then attempt to book travel. Of course, at that time, everything is very expensive and out of my price range. Only when I started to plan for vacation and booked travel arrangements months before, did I start going on vacation.

Hope that you enjoyed the video above and that you will check this blog, early and often, for new travel adventures! 😃

Life is a beach 🏖 😎🏖🏖!

Find your beach – popular phrase used a lot these days in commercials.😃Finding your beach 🏖, really speaks to finding your happy place, beach or otherwise. With so much going on these days, we are having to find our beaches, early and often. I totally found my happy place which happens to be a beach also 😂 , one of the best that I have visited. I have captured it here: youtube.com/shorts/0SAyFx90GuU

This video was taken from the balcony of the Hilton Los Cabos Hotel. If you have never visited, I hope that you will in the future and that you will get an ocean view room. These room provide the absolute best views. That is probably why these rooms are at an absolute premium to book😊.

Although I have only visited this hotel once, it is absolutely number 1 on my list for visiting again! The amenities were top notch and the grounds of the hotel were immaculate. The only down side to the hotel was that it was not all inclusive. Many of the hotels in Mexico are all inclusive. I think that this hotel is one of the best non-all inclusive hotels in Los Cabos.

Hope that you enjoy the view and that you will make your plans to visit Los Cabos soon and stay at this gorgeous hotel. You will be glad that you did!😃

All Aboard – Sail Away Party 🚢 🎉🎊🎉

If you have ever wondered about the type of entertainment that cruise ships have on board, look no further than this video:youtube.com/shorts/f4u6XOdNrgg

I remember this experience as if it were just yesterday 😃. So much fun and so much eager anticipation of sailing to the Western Caribbean to visit Costa Maya, Belize and Cozumel. I could hardly contain my excitement, just like kid, excitedly waiting for Christmas 🎅.

The video above is just a snippet of entertainment that we had on that day. Once you take a cruise, there is a myriad of things to do. Casinos are there, Broadway style performances also keep you entertained. Comedy shows are onboard along with miniature golf, basketball, swimming etc.

If you are wondering whether daycare and kid care facilities are there, the answer is yes 🙌. There are also adult only pools etc. if you prefer the all adult experiences. Food is there in absolute abundance: buffets, fine dining, fast food etc. it is almost like a airplane, hotel and restaurants all combined into one experience!

I will readily admit that I have not been cruising since the pandemic 😷 so I caution everyone to take all safety precautions to ensure that you get the most out of your experience. The video above is from pre-pandemic times so the experience would have changed since then. I am sure that the cruise lines will do all that is within their power to ensure a safe experience.

I look forward to sailing in the future and I encourage you all to cruise, especially if this is the first time or if you have cruised before. The experience is an excellent one and the memories will last a lifetime! 😃

Atlantis on my mind 😎!

I remember when I visited Disney World as an adult, a number of years ago. I remember waiting for the bus to take me from my on-site hotel to Epcot Center. I was staying at the French Quarter Resort (excellent beignets BTW). While I was outside waiting on the shuttle bus, I saw that one of the folks waiting with me had on an Atlantis Water Adventure shirt. At the time, I had never heard of Atlantis but I was very intrigued that it was in The Bahamas, which is where I always wanted to visit. If you have never heard of this magnificent place, here is an introductory video of it: youtube.com/shorts/CnBBiTmtYMk

To my surprise, not only was it a water park but it had on-site hotels just like Disney. Five years after seeing that Atlantis shirt, I booked a trip to see the lost city of Atlantis 😂. My oh my, was I blown away. Atlantis is a world of fun, contained on the beautiful island of Nassau. First tropical island that I had ever visited and since that time, it has held a special place in my heart.

Not sure if you have heard the tag line or the seen the hashtag #itsbetterinthebahamas, but I can confirm that whatever “it” is, it is truly better there. I had so much fun on the water rides and the hotels were the epitome of luxury. I stayed at the Beach Tower Hotel and it was wonderfully superb.

See why #itisbetterinthebahamas for yourself by booking a wonderful trip to Nassau. When I went, there was no such thing as Covid-19, so if you travel there now, follow all safety precautions in order to get the most out of your stay. I will share video of a humongous water slide (Leap of Faith) that I still can’t believe that I got on 😂 in a later post😀.

Taking a Bite of the Big Apple 🍎😃🙌!

If you have ever been to New York City, you realize why it is the #1 visited city in the USA. Tourists visit this city from all over the world 🌎. Perhaps no other city in America 🇺🇸, epitomizes the spirit of the country quite like New York City. I have included, in this post, one of my favorite memories of visiting this beautiful city and it is located here: youtube.com/shorts/MTx66PpjfLQ

The Times Square pictures were taken from my hotel room at The Marriott Marquis 🏨. For those who have not visited this hotel, this hotel is very popular during New Years Eve of every year. This is the location where the New Years Eve Ball drops to usher in a new year.

It is also located in the heart of the Broadway 🎭 Theatre district. If you are thinking of visiting Broadway, this is most certainly your hotel to stay. You are literally within walking distance to whatever show that you plan to see😃. One of those shows that I was able to see was “Motown on Broadway”. As you might imagine, this show was amazing and the music 🎶 was superb!

Hope that you are having a great weekend and that you enjoy the video that I have linked above. New York City has so much to offer and despite visiting on several occasions to date, I would definitely love to go back and see even more! 😂

Kauai-My Oh My😎🏖🏖

Kauai is truly heaven on earth 🌍! If you have never been, please consider traveling there in the future. It is one of the best Hawaiian Islands to visit. The views are so spectacular- it is a dream 😴. If you want just a small taste of what this island has to offer, take a look: youtube.com/shorts/Em40E-HRd_Y

The waterfalls are truly superb😃! If you have followed this blog, you know that I am indeed a waterfall chaser. I am Water Fall Chaser ESQ😂! After seeing these natural wonders for the first time on last year (up close and personal) I am indeed hooked now 😃. The experience is totally jaw dropping and you must see one to believe how majestic they truly are.

The canyons are such an amazing sight also. You will be totally blown away by the beautiful nature that is relatively untouched on this island and others. The Hawaiian Government does a great job of preserving the nature of Hawaii which makes it more and more beautiful. If you are looking to take a break from the concrete jungle of the USA mainland, look no further than Kauai – which is truly heaven on earth😃🌍!

Volcanic views for days – OMG😆

If you are ever visiting Kona, Hawaii, you have to visit the Volcano State Park to visit the only active volcano on the Hawaiian Islands, Kilauea. Located near The Volcano State Park, you will see outstanding views like these: youtube.com/shorts/cd2F9NFiLao

It is almost other worldly, seeing views like this. Most would probably think that this view would have been captured on another planet. Nope, captured exclusively on the island of Kona. It was an absolute awesome 😎 wonder to be standing there, seeing these type of views.

If you are interested in seeing what Kilauea looks like, I have captured this video in a previous blog post 😃. In order to get an up close and personal view of Kilauea, you have to fly in a helicopter 🚁 above it. On my trip, I stayed on land and captured what I could 😂. It is a small fortune to go on a helicopter excursion of Kilauea. Would be great to do this one day!

Hope that you enjoy the video above and that you have an amazing day 😃!

Dance 💃 🕺🏾Party on the High Seas😃

Nothing quite like a Carnival Cruise 🚢 Dance Party😁! No matter how many times I cruise on Carnival, the experience seems to get better and better. This particular one that I captured, will give you an idea of what I mean: youtube.com/shorts/W07A6Wr80Wo

So incredibly fun 🤩 to experience this type of entertainment with the staff getting involved in it along with the cruise guests. I often wonder how long it takes to choreograph those dance moves 😂. I would guess hours upon hours.

In any event, it was a fun time had by all. This was pre-pandemic which in my opinion, was the best time to have this type of experience. I am unsure how you accomplish something like this, in the midst of a pandemic 😷. Especially with so many people concentrated in one area.

As you can see from the video, kids of all ages are participating in the entertainment. Certainly the way things should be.😊 There is no doubt in my mind that these times will return. You can count on me to bring the sights and sounds to you. Who knows, I might even meet you there 😃😃!