If you’re like us, eating well is the best part of traveling. So in addition to all kinds of restaurants, we also include markets, specialty shops, and food stores in our itinerary. They’re great places to pick up souvenirs, buy gifts for friends, and find supplies for a picnic lunch.
The best food stores are destinations in themselves. And you can learn a lot about local culture by strolling the aisles. One look at the potato chip section in Marks and Spencer will tell you that today’s Britain is a multicultural melting pot.
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California wine country produces a lot more than just grapes. Because of the mild climate, there are excellent local fruits and vegetables all year long. The nearness of the Pacific guarantees impeccably fresh seafood. And artisanal food purveyors are producing wonderful cheeses, salumi, and condiments.
Although wine country is best known for its French restaurants, there are also some great Italian restaurants in the valleys. Read more…
Travel by train is one of the easiest and more enjoyable ways to explore Great Britain. As a rule, it’s less expensive than renting a car. And because Britain is so compact, you can usually get from one end to the other in a day.
You’ll be able to drink in the scenery without worrying whether you’re on the wrong side of the road, and you’ll arrive at your destination ready to go.
Most British trains are modern and comfortable, and with more than 2,500 rail stations, there’s train service to virtually everyplace you would want to visit. Read more…
Based on all the backlash when it opened back in 1992, you’d think Eurodisney Paris would have closed down by now. But rechristened as Disneyland Paris Resort, it’s the top attraction in France, pulling in 50 million visitors a year. And they’re not all American either – 40% of them are from France.
The nearly 5,000-acre park is larger than the Disneyland in California, and almost one-fifth as large as the city of Paris. It’s manicured to perfection with sparking fountains, beautiful plantings, and pretty plazas. Read more…
Rome is one of the most wonderful places in the world. Where else can you experience the grandeur of the ancient world, the splendor of the Renaissance, and la dolce vita 21st century style, all in the same day? It is a city of incomparable pleasures — not least of which is the food.
The best way to experience Roman cooking, aside from eating in all those fabulous Italian restaurants, is to do it yourself at one of Rome’s lively cooking classes. Read more…
Unlike many American cities, Los Angeles never had a large Italian immigrant population. In fact, there’s no predominantly Italian neighborhood like San Francisco’s North Beach or the North End of Boston.
But that doesn’t mean there aren’t terrific Italian restaurants in South California. They’re just not all concentrated in one area. Which means that no matter where you are, there’s probably one that’s not too far away. Read more…
Shopping in Paris is a mixed blessing. On the one hand, you’ll find beautiful, amazing things you will treasure forever. On the other hand, the prices can be so high that they take the fun right out of it.
No wonder Parisians coined the term “leche-vitrine,” which loosely translated means “window licking.”
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No visit to Southern California is complete without a trip to the beach.
Not only is Santa Monica Beach one of the best, it’s also one of the most fun. In fact, it was named one of the “10 Great Public Spaces in the U.S.” by the American Planning Association.
It’s also easy to reach. If you’re flying into LAX, Santa Monica Beach is less than 10 miles away. And you can get there without getting on a freeway, which is always an advantage in SoCal. Read more…
Buenos Aires was heavily influenced by the waves of immigrants who came from Italy in the 1860s and 1870s. The Portuguese that’s spoken here blends Spanish and Italian. In fact, you’ll hear “ciao” more often than “adios.” And Italian food is served all over the city.
Some of the best Italian restaurants in South America are here. And there are also plenty of great pizza restaurants.
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One of the world’s most challenging game fish, bonefish feed in tidal shoals called flats. Instead of taking a boat out to sea, most bonefishing is done by wading out onto the flats with a lightweight rod. Some times a shallow boat propelled by a pole is also used.
Bonefish are usually in two or three feet of water, but they often seem invisible — hence their nickname, the grey ghost. It’s easier to see their shadow than it is to see them. And polarized sunglasses are a must. Read more…
Pastries are one of the best parts of visiting Paris. If you’ve never had French pastries fresh from a patisserie, you have no idea what you’re missing. Although some of the best patisseries in Paris will now ship their goodies, nothing can compare with going into one of these beautiful shops and selecting the perfect sweet yourself.
Our favorite Parisian pastry is the macaron. Nothing like coconut macaroons, macarons are sandwich cookies made with almond-flour meringue. The version eaten today was invented by Laduree, who introduces one new flavor each year. Read more…
Just 20 miles north of Venice, Treviso is a delightful town which has retained much of its medieval charm. Like its famous neighbor to the south, Treviso is laced together with a series of pretty canals and medieval arcades. But unlike in Venice, Treviso hotels are off the tourist trail.
Although Treviso was damaged during World War II, what was left was preserved, what could be rebuilt was sensitively restored, and new construction was designed not to overwhelm the existing buildings. Many of the original frescoes have been preserved, and today, there are stylish boutiques on every corner. Read more…
Located between Cannes and Nice on the French Riviera, Juan-les-Pins (Juan of the pines) was first developed in the 1920s. By the 1930s, trend-setters like F. Scott Fitzgerald put Juan-les-Pins on the map, and today, it attracts pretty much everyone.
The golden-sand beach is one of the best on the Riviera. And if you base yourself here, you’ll find it easy to reach all the attractions of the Cote d’Azur. Antibes and it’s museum are within walking distance. It’s packed during the Cannes Film Festival, so book well in advance. Read more…
San Francisco is one of America’s best cities for dining. Restaurants here have a bounty of fresh seafood and local produce they use to create innovative menus that change with the seasons. And you’ll find local delicacies like Dungeness crab woven seamlessly into their preparations.
The North Beach neighborhood was once the home of most of the city’s Italian restaurants. But these days, you’ll find them in every part of town, from the Mission District to Nob Hill. Read more…
A friend at work is going to travel to Italy for the first time and asked me for a little trip planning advice.
It was harder than I thought it would be, because she only has ten days. And there are so many great places to see in Italy that narrowing it down is a real challenge.
My first tip was not to bite off more than she could chew. On your first trip, you want to see as much as possible. It’s only natural. But the less time you spend traveling, the more you’ll enjoy your trip. So we decided that with ten days, she should only stay in three places. That way, she’d only have two travel days. Read more…
Last year, more than 14 million people took a cruise. Most of them were happy, well-fed, and had the time of their lives.
But some were disappointed, disgruntled, and even down-right miserable. So when you’re finally ready to take the plunge and try cruising yourself, how can you sort through all the cruises ships that are out there to find one that’s right for you?
As is so often the case, our advice is to do plenty of trip planning in advance. The more you figure out ahead of time, the happier you’ll be. Read more…
In 2006, we flew in business class to Buenos Aires. It took forever to clear customs and immigration. And by the time we got to baggage claim, our travel bag was long gone.
Although we recovered it quickly – someone had picked it up by mistake – spending our first two hours in Buenos [...]
As an art history major, I’ve wanted to visit Ravenna since college. It’s a little off the beaten path, so it took me a while. But it was worth the wait.
Ravenna has a fascinating history. At one time or other, it’s been under Roman, Papal, and Venetian rule. But what really put Ravenna on the map was the Byzantine conquest in 540AD. The most beautiful mosaics in the world were produced here during that era. And they’re remarkably well preserved today. Many of them are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Read more…
Banff is a wonderful destination. The natural beauty of Banff National Park is absolutely breathtaking. In fact, it’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site. And the town is packed with good restaurants and cozy pubs.
In summer, you can choose from hundreds of spectacular trails, take a gondola up a mountain and then ride a bicycle down, or just relax with a pint on a roof-top deck with a sensational view. In winter, you can ski, dog-sled, snowshoe, snowmobile, or go for a sleigh ride. Read more…
Growing up as huge Beatles fans, we always thought Liverpool was just a working-class port town that everybody couldn’t wait to leave. So when we headed there in the summer of 2008, we weren’t expecting too much.
There was a Gustav Klimt show at the Tate Liverpool that we wanted to see. And we were surprised that there was a Tate in Liverpool at all. But there were lots of things about Liverpool that surprised us — pleasantly. It was all dolled up for the European Capital of Culture festivities. It shared the title that year with Stavanger, Norway. But all in all, it was one of the most appealing places we visited that summer. Read more…
