Saturday, September 20, 2014

CRONENBERG'S NW EXPEDITION / Part 2





AMERICAN EMPRESS STEAMBOAT
from, Vancouver Washington, Clarkston Washington, Coeur D’Alene, Idaho,  and Glacier Park.





Our one week cruise exceeded our expectations. Since we have been on over 15 River Cruises throughout the Eastern US and most rivers in Europe, you could say we are true River Rovers, as there is always something to see out your window except when you are in a lock! This “Lewis and Clark” Themed Cruise was full of the most spectacular scenery, along the Columbia Gorge, full of waterfalls on the excursions, Wine Tastings in Washington’s Red Mt Wine area; the Hop On and Hop Off Buses travel right along with the boat, meeting us at every port and taking us to absolutely excellent museums like Ft Clatsop where Lewis and Clark spend their winter overlooking the Pacific, the Reach in Richland, Wa. which not only gave us all the history and Indian Lore but also the story of nearby Hanford which hosted the MANHATTAN PROJECT. The Federal Gov. built a town of about 25,000 occupants in one year to house  its employees who were producing the plutonium for the first Atom Bomb which was dropped on Japan in Aug. of ’45 to end WW2;  99% of the  employees had no idea what they were working on!
The food was as good as any 5 star cruise line and the nightly entertainment, was off the charts, with only 2 couples who had more talent than 10 people combined.  The Riverlorian- lecturer Mary is from Cincinnati and lives in Madeira of all places (where our kids and grandkids live).  She was a wealth of interesting information. Some of the passengers took the HELLS CANYON Jetboat excursion down the deepest gorge in the USA and said it was the highlight of their week. We’d already been on the Rogue River Jet-boat trip and opted for the Nez Perce Indian Monument trip. Most of the cabins on the Empress had verandas and I’d recommend the E category if you want to keep the price down, because it also has a balcony, it’s cozy but very comfortable. The B and A Category are very spacious and opulent. Aug. 23-31.
 I JUST RECEIVED AN EMAIL FROM AMERICAN QUEEN STEAMBOAT WITH THEIR LAST MINUTE FALL HALF PRICE CRUISES, A BUY ONE AND GET THE SECOND PERSON FREE!! I wish I had gotten that deal on our cruise! I’ll be sending a second email with the dates and itineraries in an email to follow.

We headed north out of Lewiston and arrived in several hours at the absolutely pristine lakeside town of Coeur D’Alene, Idaho passing hundreds of miles of bright yellow White Wheat Fields, which had just been harvested and bound for China and Asia to make Asian Noodles. Our luxurious hotel that night was the Coeur D’Alene Spa and Golf Resort, and it topped my expectations again. It sits like a crown jewel on the Lake by the same name, surrounded by a huge Marina, where they will take you for a complimentary  boat ride on a vintage Cris Craft Woodie, across the lake to visit the gorgeous Championship Golf Course with its floating 14th hole. You have to drive over (I’d say at least 150 yds) and then take a boat over to put the green if you were lucky enough to reach it! We opted for a lunch/dinner extravaganza buffet and walked off this feast by a hike along the side of the lake and swim in the indoor pool. Oh the life!                                  Aug 31                                                              

We departed early for our next stop BIG FORK, MONTANA passing some pretty great mountain scenery. This just got us warmed up for the main event, GLACIER NATIONAL PARK. We booked into the Bridge Street Cottage in the Historic Town, which has a well known Theatre which operates all season. It’s located very close to Flat Head Lake, the largest freshwater lake west of the Mississippi, I am told.
                                                                                                             Sept. 1
I have been trying to get to GLACIER NATIONAL PARK ever since I worked as a waitress back in ’63 at the Old Faithful Inn where I had the time of my life, or at least one of the best times of my life! Dick and I have been trying to visit all of the big National Parks and nothing has exceeded Yellowstone for me, (although I loved Bryce and Zion especially, when we took a Tauck Canyonlands Tour two years ago). GLACIER NATIONAL PARK TOPS THEM ALL FOR PURE MAJESTIC MOUNTAIN SCENERY!!!  AWSOME AND HUNDREDS OF W O W S don’t do it justice! We drove the 50 mile ROAD TO THE SUN, a National and World Heritage Site which every Red Blooded American should experience. I jumped out of our car at least 20   times to take pictures that are good enough to frame and put on our  walls, they are so spectacular! We stayed at MANY GLACIERS LODGE, soon to celebrate its 100th Anniversary. It’s kept its historic atmosphere. One of the highlights of our stay was a Cinnamon Bear and her two black cubs crossing the creek right in front of us! Ask me to show you my pictures, priceless! I strongly recommend visiting this International Peace Park which is connected to WATERTON LAKES NATIONAL PARK in Alberta Canada the next few years as they predict that the glaciers will be all melted in the next decade or so. We were planning on driving over the Canadian Border to visit Waterton and taking the lake cruise, but the first rain in 21 days squashed that. We headed west out of the park and stayed in WHITEFISH, MONTANA, home of BIG MOUNTAIN SKI RESORT, and a true gem of a resort town. The mountain looked extremely challenging, past my 2 double hip replacements capabilities!                      Sept. 5                                        
OVERALL DICK AND I FEEL THIS EXPLORATION OF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST IS ONE OF THE TOP TRIPS OF OUR LIVES, AND WE HAVE TAKEN QUITE A FEW!
I HOPE THIS REPORT WILL HELP MOST OF YOU TO BE ABLE TO EXPERIENCE “GODS COUNTRY’ SOMETIME IN YOUR FUTURE!

CRONENBERG'S NW EXPEDITION / Part 1


San Francisco to Glacier Park, Napa, Crater Lake, Mt Hood, Lewis 
and Clark Cruise on Columbia And Snake Rivers

By Pat Cronenberg


WEEK ONE

We are filling in Bucket List destinations we've never visited and started out in one of our favorite cities to visit an old high school friend. We stayed right off Union Square at a 4 star Boutique Hotel, the Kensington Park on The corner of Post and Powell. If you like friendly, intimate hotels which serve coffee, tea and sherry in the lobby and the staff really wants to know if everything is fine, this 1920s redo is great for you! It is connected to the FARALLON Restaurant, reputedly the top seafood restaurant in San Francisco. Try the soft shelled crabs and Mediterranean Sea Bass. AUGUST 14

We had never been to Alcatraz so booked an afternoon cruise tour which we thoroughly enjoyed, but were glad we could "spring out" without swimming in the frigid Bay.! Reserving in advance is mandatory as everything is sold out months in advance. We also enjoyed the very new Exploratorium Museum which was very interesting for all ages, located at Pier 17.

We took off for Napa over the Golden  Gate in our Enterprise Rental and made
5 Winery Visits, The first was Viansa in the Caneros District of Sonoma, a really gorgeous Tasting/restaurant. Second was the home of my favorite Chardonnay, William Hill. They sell it for $25.00 and Krogers sells it on sale sometimes for $15!
Next was Robt Mondavi, as you can imagine a huge operation also with a very good winery tour, voted best in the area, but since we have been on dozens in Europe, we are into strictly Sipping. We saved the best for the last. We loved Cakebread Winery
in the Rutherford area offering a really personalized tasting for $25.00 which was worth it, since Dick was the DD, we shared all tastings with me -the Wino getting the largest benefit. Our final stop was V Sattui, our favorite! This historic 130 yr old hacienda style winery only sells direct to the customer, so Dick got me a Wine Club membership for my birthday. Their wine is the finest either of us have ever tasted! This winery is a must as they  also have free cheese tastings and Italien Deli and by the time you work your way up to St Helena area you are hungry! AUG 15

We crossed over the mountain range separating Napa and Sonoma past the Petrified Forest Park to our digs The DOUBLETREE HILTON, which I can strongly recommend. We were welcomed and were just in time for a wine tasting!! Which no true Wino should resist, so I didn't and was introduced to another direct selling winery HANNA located in Healdsburg and Santa Rosa. This rivals V Sattui in quality.

We were staying in the town of Rohnert Park midway between Santa Rosa and Sonoma, so we headed south to pick up the Sonoma Wine Trolley which took us to 4 of the best wineries in Sonoma, Imagery was a very upscale Designer Winery offering mostly elegant Estate Wines only sold direct, it's owned by Benzinger Winery which we visited next with a complete winery tour with tasting among the. Vineyards. It was an excellent value at $20 per person Including a full tour and tasting. Chateau St Jean rounded out our active wine tasting. We cried "wolf" on The last one and had a gelato instead. AUG. 16

Dick did a harrowing drive all the way up Calif. Hwy One from Bodega Bay north to Fort Bragg which was a beautiful drive along the surfing beaches near the bay, then driving along  the steep cliffs overlooking the huge offshore rock -studded coastline, further north. Dick missed his calling as he should have been a race car driver in Monte Carlo, he is so good at it! However, we DON'T recommend driving the very winding mountain route north of Ft Bragg, just cut over to Hwy 101 on 20 just north of Mendocino as there isn't much to see in Ft Bragg anyway and continue up to the "Avenue of the GIANTS" which you will access at Phillipsville. This 31 mile road is probably the most amazing forest drive in the world. Dick wanted to drive our car thru a Giant Redwood Tree which we did and jumped back on Hwy 101 as my stomach told me it was time to eat and proceeded to dinner in Eureka at Cafe Marina on Woodley Island in Humboldt Bay. AUG. 17

The only way to describe today's sightseeing is AWSOME! We drove up to  Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park and walked up several of the shorter hiking trails past the tallest and fattest trees that exist on earth, averaging 1000 years old. It was a jaw dropping experience that every red blooded American should have. We also weaved through the Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park and drove the HOWLAND HILL RD, where you were sometimes driving through Redwood Trees only inches on either side of the car, one car at a time. Incredible! At the exit we hopped right onto US 199 direct to Grants Pass where we over nited at the HUMBOLDT Best Western where I was able to get in a much needed swim. Aug.18

Today was full of thrills and adventure. We had booked the HELLGATE Jet-boat Lunch Excursion. I had my doubts the nite before due to having to sign my life away regarding any back problems etc. Since I do have some, and remembered  the Jetboats from Queenstown, NZ which scared me to death when they whizzed too close to cliffs for my taste, I really debated if I should do it. However, after looking at their UTUBE advertisement, my hesitation wasn't warranted. I was able to brace my back when we did the 360 spinning and skimmed over some rapids, but over all it was a wet and very scenic, fun experience. I'd recommend it and the cost including a great lunch was only $53.00. We drove 40 minutes to today's destination, ASHLAND for a two night stay to experience  it's Shakespeare Festival. Aug. 19 and 20

We took a break and enjoyed this walkable, charming Theatre Mecca on foot. After a little pampering for Pat at Cloe's Spa for face and feet, we hiked along the Ashland Creek at Lithia Park, keeping our eyes peeled for the bear that was sighted that day. You must drink the Lithia Water to recapture your youth, A la Ponce a DeLeon! I'm looking in the mirror with great anticipation! Ashland has 3 theaters, one outdoor Theater In The Round. This town is similar to Niagra on the Lake with its Shaw Festival or Stratford, Ontario. It's best to order tickets online to guarantee, but you can scalp them as well to fill in additional plays. After arriving. We are glad we stayed at Abigail's B and B here as you always meet interesting travellers who you can share local travel tips with, coming or going in the direction you have or are heading! We got all kinds of tips on Crater Lake, about the grueling hike down and 65 flights back up from the two hour lake cruise. On your way up on 62 don't miss stopping at the Natural Bridge Park to see where the Rogue River disappears into an old Lava Tube and stop for lunch or a piece of Beckie's Restaurant Homemade Pie and then around the corner take in the breathtaking Rogue Gorge and falls. Continue the the short distance to Crater Lake National Park. At 7100 ft elevation, the lake was formed about 5700 BC after a volcanic eruption and it was made a National Park in 1902.
Due to the fact that our next overnite was at the destination Resort of SunRiver Just south of Bend, we descended for a quick 90 minute trip and were glad we did because there was lots to see and enjoy here. SunRiver has 3 championship golf courses, Horseback Riding in surrounding mountains, kayaking and Fly fishing and River Rafting  on the Sun River, biking and hiking the myriads of trails honey combing the resort, not to mention its world class Sage Springs Club Spa. I got to do some much needed swimming in their Lap Pool.
We had an excellent Trout dinner in their Meadows Restaurant, overlooking Mt Bachelor Ski Resort in the distance.This upscale 4 diamond resort is ideal for Multi Generation Family Reunions, Destination Weddings, Girls Getaways, First and Second Honeymoons, Equestrian Or Tennis Groups, you name it. We hated to leave our cozy golf front condo, but TIMBERLINE LODGE on Mt. Hood was calling. AUG. 21

SECOND WEEK

We drove north a short 2 and a half hours and climbed up 6000 ft. all the while passing hundreds of runners who we found out were participating in the famous HOOD to COAST Relay Race which started in the parking lot of this rustic iconic hotel which we fell in love with. In talking to some teams we found out there were over 14,000 runners who ran 200 miles to the Pacific in overnite relay teams! Being the old skiers that we are, we couldn't resist taking the Magic Mile Quad Chair lift almost to the top of The Hood to stand on the glacier where re saw skiers returning from their early morning runs with skies in tow. Some people just can't get enough!!
I think it was a windy 35 F at the top, so be sure to bring a knit hat when you go to Timberline. This hotel was built in about a year and a half during the Depression in 1937  as a WPA Project and FDR dedicated it at its grand opening. I guarantee a stay here will be one of the highlights of anyone's  travel experiences, it sure is at the top of our USA list. Dinner is a must at the Cascade Restaurant and the Osso Bucco was superb, well worth the elevated price.                                                                                                                  AUG. 22

After taking our last picture of Mt Jefferson in the distance, we put the jeep in gear and rolled down the Mountain to the Colombia River which neither of us had ever seen and were amazed how wide and swift it was, and how AWSOME and beautiful the Colombia Gorge is as well. We drove along the Historic Colombia River Hwy. and stopped at the third highest waterfall in the US! Multnomah Falls and hiked up to the bridge spanning the Falls, this was one of 5 more on this scenic road. Magnificent! We continued into Portland, the City of Roses, and when you see her Expansive Rose Garden located in nearby Washington Park, you will see why! The Portland Zoo is there along with the Japanese Garden. We had heard about the famous Saturday Market so we drove straight down to it in the heart of town along the river, which was a great experience with live bands playing and lots of international food stands, and tons of imported Clothing stalls etc. Well, our first 10 days of our adventure had come to an end, and every time we said we can't top this  day, it keeps getting better, Amazing! We checked into the Vancouver, Washington Hilton for our Pre-cruise overnite and dropped off our car. TOMORROW begins our AMERICAN EMPRESS  Columbia and Snake River (a la Lewis and Clark) cruise. AUG 23


#NWEXPEDITION
#BUCKETLIST





Thursday, September 11, 2014


STILL MAKING YOUR OWN TRAVEL ARRANGEMENTS?

 
 Yes, travel advisors still exist—and you’ll soon wonder how you ever traveled without one.

Reason 1: Travelers feel that doing their own planning is empowering and that giving it up will diminish their experience.

Fact: Whether you’re the do-it-yourself type or are looking for someone to completely take the reins, collaboration with a Virtuoso travel advisor eliminates stress so you can focus on the excitement of travel.

Reason 2: Travelers can find everything they need on the Internet.

Fact: A Virtuoso advisor saves time, cuts through the clutter, and can personalize trips tailored to your needs, interests, and budget. Their expertise and connections around the world help you travel better.

Reason 3: They believe an advisor adds to the cost of the trip.

Fact: A Virtuoso travel advisor has access to the same (and often better) pricing that you can find online, and can secure VIP perks such as free room upgrades, daily breakfast, and other benefits you can’t get on your own.

Reason 4: Travelers don’t understand the value an advisor brings.

Fact: In addition to saving you time and money, a Virtuoso advisor helps make the most your free time. Plus, your advisor is available before, during, and after your trip, ensuring peace of mind so you can relax and have fun.

Reason 5: They don’t know how to find one.

Fact: Problem solved—you’ve come to the right place.


#virtuosoagents
#travelagentslakemaryfl


CONTACT US WHEN READY TO PLAN YOUR NEXT TRIP
407 740 6464 
 
 



Thursday, March 6, 2014

VACATION WITH THE KIDS?



 Summer Family Vacations

  The "hot ticket" right now is family cruising with some twists - and here are a few cruise vacations that we're recommending for families!

Discover Historic Europe with Royal Caribbean

Hula in Hawaii with Norwegian Cruise Lines

Get wild in the Galapagos With Avalon Waterways

Leisurely Transit the Atlantic Cunard Line

Island-Hop in the Caribbean  with Celebrity Cruises


For those looking for tips on how to keep the kids in check, and to maximize the
vacation, look at what we're sharing with you - 
 

Seven Family Vacation-Planning Tips Worth Their Weight In Smiles!

1.      Check your flights’ luggage weight allowances, which will change with every airline you use. Pack for the flight with the most restrictions – baggage fees can quickly add up with multiple family members.
Also check with hotels to see if they provide items such as playpen, to avoid schlepping them.
2.       A necessary extravagance: your kids’ one must-have snack. Costa Rica may not stock that rabbit shaped, cinnamon golden yum-yum treat.
3.       It’s easy to get excited and overdo it. Pace your trip with enough downtime for the family member who tires easiest. Also, kids lose patience in line: Visit museums at off-peak times avoid crowds.
4.       What’s the goal of the trip? Ask each family member for the top three things they want to see or do, and make sure to include at least one of everybody’s picks.
5.       Get some family-friendly restaurant recommendations. Especially for fine-dining restaurants, make an early reservation for faster service, and on arrival let restaurant staff know about how long they have until the kids get antsy. They’ll work to get your family in and out within that window.
6.       Prep kids for the vacation by reading books or watching movies and videos about the destination to build pre-travel excitement – but keep some aspect of the trip a secret to enhance the WOW factor!
7.       A good rule of thumb for long flights: Bring a different activity for every hour to keep toddlers entertained. For overnight flights, change kids into their sleepwear and bring a favorite blanket or stuffed animal, so they feel
as much at home as possible.


Make Lasting Memories  / How to Help Your Child Document Their Travels

·         Make a scrapbook – Fill a folder with flyers from hotels, daily newsletters on board the ship, restaurant menus and business cards – anything that will help you remember places you visited.
Then go back and add details, drawings, pictures, and poems.
·         Keep a Blog – blogging lets children share their experiences but, unlike with Facebook or Twitter, they’ll have a lasting online journal of their trip. OffExploring.com offers easy-to-use templates
And will even turn your blog into a printed book.
·         Create an Online Photo Album – Use dedicated sites such as Flickr, Instagram and Photobucket to store and share your photos. You can upload them instantly on board or at your hotel, and you’ll find
Internet Cafés in basically every corner of the planet.
·         Film Your Travels – Have your kids discover the inner Spielberg and record their experiences with a camcorder or even their smart phone. They can share their masterpieces on sites like YouTube.
Speaking of smart phones .. check out the free Trip Journal app by Google called Trip Journal Lite or http://www.trip-journal.com on the web, that lets you share real-time updates with friends back home.


REMEMBER 
A Family that Plays Together, Stays Together!

 
GREAT ESCAPES TRAVEL
407 740 6464 
Web:
Email:
info@getescapes.com 

Facebook - GreatEscapesLakeMary
Twitter - @GreatEscapesFL

#familytravel
#travelingwithkids
#familycruising
#familyvacations