Rum and Cigar Festival Elevates St. Barts to New Levels of Luxury Island Lifestyle
It’s a tiny island with a big reputation as one of the most chic destinations in the Caribbean. Legendary St. Barts combines French ‘art de vivre’ with a lush tropical setting and an exclusive atmosphere. If you’ve been waiting to discover – or re-visit – this jewel of the islands, there may be no better time than November. That’s when the Caribbean Rum Awards bring island luminaries and rum and cigar VIP’s from around the world together to celebrate two island...
You’ve Missed Danube Day But You Can Still Discover Europe’s Record-Breaking River
Every year on June 29th, eighty-one million people in 14 European countries celebrate the single river that ties them together and provides drinking water, food, power, recreation, jobs and transportation.Danube Day annually marks the signing of the Danube River Protection Convention, which facilitates collaboration between the countries of the Danube River and the rivers that flow into it to ensure that it’s clean, healthy and safe. It’s also the largest river festival in the world. Huge celebrations take place on the...
Celebrate This Island’s Sweet Harvest at its Annual Summer Mango Festival
On some islands, they like to tell you how many beaches they have, or days of sunshine. On Nevis, it’s how many different varieties of mangoes they have.The answer? Officially, nearly four dozen – and unofficially, it’s estimated nearly 200 different varieties of mangoes grow on this tiny Caribbean island.Nevis makes up the other part of the twin-island nation of St. Kitts & Nevis. Tucked away between Antigua and the British Virgin Islands, Nevis is off the beaten track in...
Signs of Spring Worth Traveling For
Spring may be the most hopeful season.There is nothing more uplifting than seeing Nature reborn every Spring. It’s like an assurance that life will get better again, no matter how tough the dark days of Winter – or life – have been.Between March’s Spring Equinox and the start of Summer on the Solstice in June, the days get progressively longer, dousing us in light, and sparking the renewal of life after a long, dull winter.So it’s no wonder that so...
A Twist on 'April Showers' at This Country's New Year Celebrations
Many modern holiday celebrations put an irreverent twist on their historic – and often more solemn -traditions.Thailand’s Songkran may be one of the most extreme examples of that phenomenon.Ancient Thai culture marked the New Year in what we now call April. The word is Sanskrit, meaning ‘astrological passage’, and it coincides with the rising of Aries and the New Year of the Hindu and Buddhist calendars. Songkran is a three-day ritual, from the 13th to the 15th of April. The final...
Celebrate 50 Years of Disney Magic
They’re calling it ‘The World’s Most Magical Celebration’ and it's a new entry on the travel bucket list of Disney lovers around the world. On October 1st, 1971, after years of imagining and building, Walt Disney World Resort opened in Florida, taking the magic of the Disney universe and beloved characters from the silver screen to real life. Half a century later, some would say Disney World is even better than real life. With millions of visitors every year, the ground-breaking theme...
The Best Celebrations Around the World For You To Ring In the New Year
At long last, 2020 is wrapping up, and a New Year full of hope is just around the corner.This feels like the kind of year you’d toast the year past as early as possible, then call it a night, hoping when you wake up in the New Year, we will have turned the page on the disappointments, challenges, cancelled travels and special events missed during the past year.No need to wait for the clock at home to strike midnight on...
Italy Names Its First 'City of Wine'
Wine lovers have one more reason to get traveling again next year. In celebration of one of its oldest and most beloved products, Italy has declared its first-ever ‘City of Wine’.The Italian association of communities that collaborate to protect and promote their regional wine designations held a competition for the new honor. Barolo - the town with the famous red wine of the same name – was crowned ‘City of Wine’ for the award’s inaugural year in 2021.Nestled between Genoa on Italy’s...
3 Hallowe'en Traditions With Roots in Ancient Celtic Ireland
Frightful Hallowe’en is many people’s top holiday of the year – but did you know that we can thank ancient Ireland for our favorite Hallowe’en traditions? Travel to Ireland these days, and you’ll still be able to connect with the origins of Celtic culture that still swirl in the mists of time in Ireland’s Ancient East. Today’s Hallowe’en is the descendent of the Celtic festival of Samhain (Sow-ann). The celebrations included feasting on the harvest and lighting fires to mark the...
How the Postponed Tokyo Olympic Games Will Feature Japan's National Sport
We should be watching the opening ceremony of the XXXIII Olympiad right now. But COVID has changed the history of the Olympics along with so many other features of our lives. Tokyo 2020 retains the name, but the dates have changed.Originally scheduled to take place from July 24th through the second week of August this year, Tokyo 2020 now opens on July 23rd 2021. They are the first Summer Games to be postponed instead of cancelled due to an international crisis.You can still...