Trip Review: European Arts

Brittany Fenkel and her teenage daughter Anna from Bryn Mawr took a mother/daughter trip to three countries in Europe last summer with a unique focus on the performing arts.  Their custom-planned trip began in Prague with a 3-night stay at the 22-room Hotel Residence Agnes, located in the city’s Old Town. They found the hotel to be charming with staff that treated them like family.  On arrival, freshly made apple strudel, wine, and coffee were offered with complimentary snacks and drinks whenever they wanted.  The staff reviewed their itinerary with them to make sure they knew where to go, made excellent dining recommendations and reservations, did their laundry for free, and even offered complimentary airport transfers and driving services.  The duo took a city driving tour to all corners of the city with our favorite Prague guide, Luba, and also visited Prague Castle on their own.  Their entertainment roster included a jazz concert with the Czech Jazz Workshop at the Jazz Dock (a jazz club literally right on the river) which they said was really fun, authentic, and unique, as well as a version of Swan Lake ballet, performed in a small (but hot) venue without live music, but enjoyable, nonetheless.  A day trip to Cesky Krumlov rounded out their Czech experience.  They then flew to Vienna for a 4-night stay at the Hotel Beethoven, fitting for this arts-inspired trip.  The boutique hotel is centrally located in the city near the Naschmarkt.  They said that their room was spacious and comfortable, but the hotel didn’t have the same family feel and service levels as Prague.  They took a walking tour of the city with a private guide, and she recommend some iconic restaurants and gave them plenty of local lore.  Their long day trip to Salzburg for a Sound of Music tour was also combined with Mozart history.  They were hoping for more Sound of Music stops, but still found Salzburg to be adorable and gorgeous. An incredible classical music concert that included some opera was a Vienna highlight. The top-notch musicians were in period costumes which were both touristy and charming at the same time.  Their last stop was Venice where they flew in and stayed at the upscale Starhotel’s Splendid for 4-nights, located on a canal for easy access and a short walk from the Piazza San Marco.  While the hotel was a bit dark, they said the staff was amazing and they enjoyed their room.  They took a Boat Ride and Walking tour of the city and a tour of the Burano, Murano, and Torcello Islands.  The later was a large group tour, but still fun. They were pleasantly surprised by the lovely Burano which is known for its lace.  They went shopping at a beautiful store that had extraordinary handmade items that the shop sells to many royals and celebrities. Torcello was nothing special, but they were fine with that and Murano was also nice with all of its glassmaking artisans.  A stop for drinks at the Hotel Cipriani was beyond extravagant, but a lovely experience. The Barber of Seville opera performed in an incredible palace topped their stay.  They said the intimate setting felt like an extravagance…so small, personal, special, and creative. It was a truly delightful and memorable way to end their trip. A wow!  Overall, a great trip. They let us know that they walked over 20,000 steps a day in the summer’s 90+ degree heat and loved every minute of it!

Travel Tip: Passport Updates

Did you know that last year the US State Department processed 21,995,760 passports?  It’s a record number that’s more than at any point since tallying began in 1974. That trend doesn’t seem to be slowing down in 2023, especially as a busy spring and summer travel season.  Expect longer wait times with standard processing which is currently 10 to 13 weeks. An expedited service for $60 extra is now 7 to 9 weeks.  The cost of passport renewal or a new application for adults is $130 and $100 for children under age 16. All children must apply in person with both parents or guardians. All new passports also have a $35 acceptance fee.  Expedited return shipping costs are $19.53 for 1-2 day delivery. Note that processing times begin the day they receive your application, not when you mail the documents. If you have urgent international travel plans within 14 calendar days or have a life-or-death emergency and must travel within 3 business days, the State Department also offers an appointment-based service at 26 regional passport agencies. To make an appointment, applicants must call 1-877-487-2778. Walk-ins are not accepted.  And remember to make copies of your passport photo page to keep secure at home and bring a set with you in case they are lost or stolen!

Trip Review: An Atelier Experience

Lauren and her husband traveled to the Atelier Playa Mujeres earlier this month for a birthday celebration. This resort is available for families with children ages 16 and older…an ideal and very popular option for our families with older teens and young adults. The resort is a 45-minute ride north of the Cancun airport and showcases 593 suites. We loved the “nature meets industrial” design of the resort with the low-lying jungle mostly left intact, lots of greenery, and a Blue Flag-accredited beach that incorporates education, the environment, and cleanliness into keeping the beach naturally intact (a few bushes here and there). The beach also has netting to catch the seagrass and you can walk for a while in both directions. Our oceanview junior suite was located on the top floor with expansive views of the sea, jungle, pool, and golf course. The spacious room had a bathroom that can be left open (but still a private toilet area) or it can be completely closed off. Rooms have a king or two queen beds plus a sofabed. Another reason this resort is ideal for our older families! There are plenty of themed restaurant options. Dinner reservations can be made up to three days in advance at kiosks located throughout the resort. Plus an extensive room service menu.  When we didn’t see a restaurant that we would enjoy, we just kept checking back until we did! Mostly excellent meals with plenty of fresh ingredients and always being asked by the friendly waiters about any special food needs. There is also a spacious spa, an excellent gym with fitness programs, fun daily activities including bike tours, kayak tours, and art classes, a few watersports (the water was a bit rough when we were there), golf, evening shows, wine and cheese presentations that are nice before dinner, a main pool, quiet pool and plenty of comfortable loungers at the pools and beach. The Inspira club level offers added amenities and services including a special check-in lounge, lobster on the room service menu, a round of golf, access to the gourmet restaurant that otherwise is an added cost, two club-level pools (an infinity pool on the roof and an oceanfront pool), and more.  Overall the staff went out of their way to show their appreciation and offered top-level service. A relaxing and enjoyable experience!

Travel Tip: United’s Family Seating Update

Next month United Airlines will roll out a new family seating policy designed to seat children under 12 next to an adult for free, even if that means giving them a preferred seat at an economy price. A new automated seat map feature will find adjacent seats at the time of booking, looking first for Economy seats but automatically upgrading customers to Preferred Seats if needed. If no adjacent seat is available, the new policy lets you switch for free to a flight to the same destination that has adjacent seats in the same cabin. Hopefully, the other airlines will follow.

Trip Review: Multi-Gen Fun at Club Med

The Rabson/Wolf Family with 3 generations (ages 16-82) traveled from Boston to Cancun over the winter break to Club Med Cancun. They loved their stay last winter at Club Med Punta Cana and wanted to have another great experience…this trip exceeded that! Their superior rooms were not as updated and spacious as in Punta Cana (this club does have larger and more updated rooming and suite options), but comfortable and clean and ideally located in the middle of this long property as we requested through our Club Med representatives with a ground floor for the grandparents. They could easily go back to the room during the day as needed. The family let us know that young and old had a fabulous time keeping busy and active on this vacation! Many of them took tennis lessons and participated in the weekly tennis tournament. They all tried pickleball, which was fun. There was also beach volleyball, archery, watersports, ping pong, water aerobics, line dancing, yoga, power walks, and of course the midday events such as the color and foam parties on the beach which showcases Club Med at its finest. They all participated in the coffee games such as trivia where they crushed the competition. They were so active that at the end of the week, most of them were given special participation awards!! They let us know that the food was quite good overall and especially easier for the gluten-free family members compared to Punta Cana because so much of the Mexican food is corn-based. This family loves interacting with the GOs (resort staff) and they were outstanding and exemplified the Club Med spirit. The family also loved that the resort is a safe space for the teens to have a ton of freedom. The teen and young adults in the group really enjoyed the evening dance parties! Overall they had an awesome time and appreciate Club Med’s overall congeniality and abundance of activities, food, and entertainment.

Travel Tip: ETIAS

You’ll soon have to pay a visitor fee for visiting 27 different countries in the European Union. The European Travel Information and Authorization System (ETIAS) will be introduced in November for better border control and a way to track tourists who are moving between Schengen countries since there is a limit of 90 days. The automated visa-waiver program will charge non-E.U. citizens between the ages of 18 and 70, an entry fee of €7 or about $7.25. If you’re planning on traveling to a participating nation, you’ll have to submit an ETIAS application and entry authorization ahead of your trip…along with millions of other tourists. We will keep you posted on when the application process will open. The authorization is valid for multiple visits to E.U. countries in a three-year period and will be available at https://www.etias.info/application/.

Travel Tip: Free Park Entry Days

Mark your calendars!  Our National Parks are offering free entry for the following dates in 2023:

January 16 – Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

April 22 – First day of National Park Week

August 4 – Great American Outdoors Day 

September 23 – National Public Lands Day

November 11 – Veterans Day

Trip Review: Thanksgiving in Portugal

The Shumskas Family of Fountainville, PA (2 adults and 2 teens aged 19 and 13) traveled to Portugal for the week of Thanksgiving. Their trip began in Porto with a 3-night stay at the charming PortoBay Flores, a new 5-star hotel in the historic city center located on a pedestrian-only street. The hotel is housed in a 16th-century palace along with a newly built wing that blends the old and new with 66 rooms and suites, an 18th-century chapel, and a lovely patio. The Shumskas parents enjoyed being able to go down to the bar and hang out without the children and let us know that the breakfast (which was included in their rate) was super! On their first full day, the family got to know Porto with a privately guided four-hour walking tour. Highlights of the city included amazing views from the Serra Pilar Monastery terrace, the Dom Luis I Bridge, the tile work at the Sao Bento train station, the Lello bookstore (the inspiration for Harry Potter), the river bank, Cathedral Se XII, Clerigos Tower and more. In the afternoon the family experienced a hands-on tile workshop at Gazete Azulejos, a tile painting atelier that researches, promotes, and preserves the Portuguese tiles used to decorate buildings. The family said the experience was really fun and interesting. Their guide for the walking tour also drove them from Porto to Lisbon with stops on the way in Coimbra to see the famous Joanine Library at the university, Nazare, and Obidos where they visited Casa das Senhoras Rainhas and castle.  They enjoyed talking with their guide about life in Portugal and recent politics.  In Lisbon, the family stayed for 4-nights in a spacious 2-bedroom apartment with a kitchen at Flora Chiado. Located in the heart of the charming Chiado district, there are just 10 apartments in total. They appreciated the delivery of fresh bread in the morning and found the staff to be super helpful and friendly. On their first full day in Lisbon, a 3-hour walking tour gave them a great city orientation. It started at the São Pedro de Alcântara viewpoint – one of the most breathtaking views of the city. The tour included a stroll through the Bairro Alto and Alfama neighborhoods, a stop by the Igreja de Sao Roque church, Lisbon Cathedral, and the Bertrand bookshop (the world’s oldest!) along with the St. Justa elevator. The following day they spent exploring the exotic Quinta da Regaleira palace in Sintra with a stop at the Cabo de Rocha Lighthouse and the beach town of Cascais with a private guide. A new dietary restriction for one of the family members made it slightly more challenging to eat out, but they said everywhere they ate was lovely and tasty.  Overall a slightly wet, but wonderful trip to Portugal!

Travel Tip: Winter Gear Rentals

Winter gear is bulky to pack. Plus some of us live in warmer climates and don’t even have cold-weather clothing. If you are heading to Iceland, there is a new company in Reykjavik that enables you to rent winter outwear. The company is called IcelandCover and they have a location on the main shopping street in town. They offer parkas, pants, raincoats, crampons, hiking boots, and warm beanie hats for men and women. Unfortunately, they don’t have gear yet for children. But they do deliver around the city. From our own experience, it’s critical to have the right outerwear when traveling to Iceland during the colder months which is most of the year! Some of our tour operators also rent coats, waterproof pants, hiking boots, and walking sticks.

Trip Review: Thanksgiving in Cabo

Mindy and her family (parents and two young adults) traveled to Cabo to relax and celebrate Thanksgiving. They stayed at the all-inclusive Paradisus Los Cabos which is located along the corridor between the towns of Los Cabos and San Jose del Cabo. This Leading Hotels of the World property has 305 rooms and suites, a wide and swimmable beach (rare in this area), an expansive beachfront pool, spa, gym, children’s program, daily activities, evening shows, and lots of dining options (a festive Thanksgiving meal included!).  Mindy’s family stayed in the club-level Reserve section with a dedicated concierge who tended to their every need.  This section also has a quiet and adult-only pool and a dedicated section of the beach with added service levels.  Mindy and her daughter also enjoyed some pampering at the spa and the family got the unique opportunity to see the annual sea turtle release.  The weather was perfect with 80 degrees and sunny every day.  Off the resort, they took a private pontoon boat and snorkel excursion with La Isla Tours from Cabo San Lucas. They enjoyed seeing the area highlights and wildlife (including whales and seals) while boating around the Sea of Cortez where it meets the Pacific Ocean.  Unfortunately, the snorkeling wasn’t that great next to Pelican rock, but the sunset was!  Another trip highlight was a cooking class at Metate Cabo, a Cabo San Lucas restaurant, where they had a tour of the restaurant’s herb and vegetable garden and then made salsa and pressed handmade tortillas for quesadillas for a special dinner with dessert and drinks included.  They loved the festive atmosphere and being outside under the night sky. Overall the trip was super relaxing, great family time, and a wonderful way to spend Thanksgiving!