Thursday January 7, 2010

Brr! Baby, it's cold outside. Even down in Florida, the snowbirds are complaining about freezing temperatures. Where can you go to feel the warm sun on your face? Here are a few spots with nice warm weekend forecasts:
Image of Seven Mile Beach outside the Grand Cayman Marriott copyright Charlyn Keating Chisholm, licensed to About.com.
Wednesday January 6, 2010

Fisherman's Wharf is one of San Francisco's main tourist draws, In the midst of it, the recently renovated Hyatt at Fisherman's Wharf has a modern and cool look. A 24-hour fitness concierge is available to help you with those New Year's resolutions, and the hotel has a rooftop outdoor heated pool and hot tub. Knuckles at the Wharf, an upscale sports bar built on the site of the Marble Works Factory, lends an historic atmosphere with original circa 1906 beams and bricks.
Image courtesy Tony Conboy III
Tuesday January 5, 2010

'Tis the season - of New Year's resolutions and fresh starts. If you've decided things are going to be different this year, you might need some help revising your life strategy. During the cooler months, Bermuda's Cambridge Beaches Resort & Spa offers life coaching and relationship retreats with nationally known experts. But don't worry, it's not all hard work. In between working out your goals for 2010, you can take a dip in the indoor pool, reserve one of the spa's "experience rooms," which use aroma, light and crystals to engage the senses, enjoy a wine pairing dinner at Tamarisk, rated one of Bermuda's best restaurants by Food and Wine, and take excursions to the lighthouse, the Maritime Museum, and the Crystal Caves.
Image of the indoor pool courtesy Cambridge Beaches Resort and Spa
Thursday December 31, 2009

I'm spending this week, not at a hotel this time, but in a beautiful condo at the Portofino Island Resort in Pensacola, Florida. Gazing out at the view of sand dunes, the waves kicking up on the Gulf of Mexico and, opposite, the bay, I am reminded of some of the great destinations I shared with you this year. Before we drink a toast to all the fantastic places we'll visit in the next decade, take a look back with me at where we've been in 2009:
- January: Club Med Punta Cana: I took the whole family along to this fabulous all-inclusive resort at one of my favorite spots in the Caribbean, and they're still asking when we can return.
- February: In New York City, the quietly elegant surroundings of Hotel Giraffe on Park Avenue South and my monochromatic suite at The Muse in the Theater District were studies in contrast, but I enjoyed them both.
- March: Casa del Mar: Hollywood's A-listers have long flocked to this posh beach club with four-poster beds and gauzy curtains framing ocean views.
- April: Hotel Hacienda in Ibiza, Spain, this entrancing resort has private plunge pools, terraces suspended over cliffs and relaxing, romantic surroundings.
- May: I got a whole new view of Denver, a city I'd only previously passed through on the way to ski resorts. Staying at the quirky Curtis and the historic and charming Oxford convinced me I wanted to stay longer.
- June: What's romantic about the oldest city in America? Find Ponce de Leon's Fountain of Youth, kiss in the shade of the Love Tree, and spend nights in one of St. Augustine, Florida's historic and romantic inns.
- July: I got a taste of my upcoming visit to Paris with Terry's rave review of the sophisticated Le Bristol.
- August: The debate raged on about hotel spas: love 'em or hate 'em?. Our guides to Spas and Honeymoons both weighed in on the issue.
- September: I discovered two of my new favorite hotels, in very different locales: The Dylan along a canal in Amsterdam, and The Roosevelt in downtown New Orleans.
- October: I continued my tour of high-style European hotels with memorable stops at Sotifel The Grand in Amsterdam, Sofitel Le Louise in Brussels, and Le Meurice in Paris.
- November: I finally got to experience Disneyland Paris, and stayed at the Disney World resort with the best view, Bay Lake Tower.
- December: Winter in Yellowstone National Park brings out the polar bears (the human kind) and the wolves. Plus, we looked ahead at 10 exciting new hotels in 2010 we look forward to experiencing.
Happy New Year, everyone! I hope your travel dreams come true.
Image of the view of fireworks over the Magic Kingdom from a room at Disney's Bay Lake Tower copyright Charlyn Keating Chisholm, licensed to About.com.