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Lindblad Offers Deals to Panama Canal

2016 marks the completion of the massive Panama Canal expansion project that will usher in a new chapter for Panama and cap off the celebration of the Panama Canal’s 100th birthday. Lindblad Expeditions is taking advantage of this historical moment to offer several deals aboard their 62-passenger National Geographic Sea Lion. Guests will explore the Panamanian and Costa Rican coastline, traverse the Canal, snorkel and kayak off deserted islands, and venture up rain forest-canopied rivers, while being led by some of the finest naturalists in the travel business. Book one of their Panamanian cruises by November 30, 2015, and you can choose from free round-trip airfare from Miami OR the Panama City extension on select January and February 2016 dates. On this 2-day Panama City extension, you’ll visit the construction site at the Canal Expansion Observation Center, and see the new highly touted Frank Gehry-designed Biodiversity Museum. 

 
Lindblad is also unveiling a new 9-day land-based trip to Costa Rica that will include a stop at Tortuguero National Park, often called the Venice of Costa Rica for its maze of waterways. From mid-spring to late summer at Tortuguero, four different types of turtle return to shores to lay their eggs, including the giant leatherback, which can weigh over 1,000 pounds. For reservations or additional information on Lindblad Expeditions voyages, contact us at ActiveTravels. 
 

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Excellent Meal at The Whip in Stowe

Unlike many New England ski areas, where all amenities are found on a road leading to the mountain resulting in the look of a strip mall, Stowe grew up around a 240-year-old Vermont village. The charm of skiing Stowe is that you can leave the mountain behind and stroll down Main Street (Route 100) past the requisite white steeple atop Stowe Community Church or go inside Shaw’s General Store, open since 1895, to purchase a flannel shirt. Then there’s the Green Mountain Inn, a former stagecoach stop that’s been in operation since 1833. Thankfully, the chef at their restaurant, The Whip, is relatively new and straight outta Texas. Man, can he cook meat! I ordered the veal cheeks, braised like brisket, and so tender and moist it cut like butter. Jake ordered a gorgonzola-topped filet mignon, also tender and tasty. We topped it off with their signature dessert, sac d’ bon bon, a tower of chocolate mousse that we devoured almost instantaneously. One of the best meals I’ve had in Stowe in a long time. 
 
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Driving to Columbia River Gorge and Mount Hood

Guest Post and Photo by Amy Perry Basseches

With expert local advice, we set our GPS for Vista House in Corbett for long vista views along the river. Then we followed the Old Historic Columbia River Hwy to Latourell Falls, Multnomah Falls, and, eventually, to Cascade Locks for brunch. We met friends at the very local Bridgeside Restaurant and had a yummy salmon chowder. The Bridge of the Gods is right there, but we didn’t go over it. We also missed the Bonneville Dam with apparently very interesting salmon and sturgeon viewing. Instead, off to Hood River we went, then up to Mt. Hood and the historic Timberline Lodge for drinks and handcrafted ales while watching the skiers, in mid-May. Life is rough! Rising 11,239 feet (3,426 meters), Mt. Hood is the highest peak in Oregon, and the second most climbed mountain in the world. At the time of the Lewis and Clark expedition, the mountain was an active volcano and is now considered “sleeping.” I had been to Portland before, but to truly appreciate Oregon, you have to leave the city limits. 

 

 

 
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Take the Ski Bus from Quebec City to Le Massif

When I last skied Le Massif and penned a story on the mountain for The Boston Globe, I took a train from Montmorency Falls, just outside Quebec City. I learned last night at a Quebec press event in Boston that the train no longer runs in winter. However, you can still take the Ski Bus, which picks you up at your hotel in Quebec City and drops you off at Mont-Saint-Anne and Le Massif. Skiing down the trails of Le Massif, overlooking the expanse of the St. Lawrence Seaway, you feel like you’re going to plunge straight into the water. Le Massif also offers guests the rare chance to go rodeling or luging down a 7.5-kilometer trail on the northern face of the mountain. The exhilarating two-hour trip starts with a snowcat ride to the top of the trail, where you’re handed a small sled. Then you start cruising downhill, curving around banks, and sweeping over hills, all with that same glorious view of the St. Lawrence. It’s a blast! 

 
If you love Paris in the springtime, then you’ll adore Quebec City in the wintertime, where, for 17 days, the party never stops. Quebec City’s Winter Carnival is the largest in the world, attracting more than one million people. The 60th anniversary takes place from January 30 to February 15, 2015. Sled down an ice chute, view the impressive ice castle, made from 1600 blocks of ice, eat maple syrup on snow, and see some of the major events like Le Grande Virée, a dogsled race that cruises through the heart of the historic Old City. Combined with the skiing at Le Massif, it’s the ideal to experience of the joie de vivre of this French-speaking city. 
 
I’m off to see my son’s jazz band perform at his college, then spending Thanksgiving week with family. I’ll be back on December 1st.  Have a Happy Thanksgiving! 
 
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September 2015 Newsletter: Cuba, Puerto Rico and Southern US

In this month’s newsletter at ActiveTravels, we talk about Puerto Rico, easy to access on direct flights and no passports required for Americans. It’s also a great month to head down South, so we divulge four hotels we like in Charleston, New Orleans, Tennessee, and Natchez, Mississippi. For our Quick Escape, I recently returned from a spectacular week of adventure in Acadia National Park. We also talk about an outfitter who specializes in custom-made trips to Cuba and introduce our Journey to Global Citizenship Travel Plan. 

 
The last item, a lengthy travel plan, is something we always try to emphasize. By creating a list of destinations you want to definitely visit in the next 3 years, you’ll be assured of finally going to those countries and cities on your wish list. Put them on a calendar and no longer will they be dreams, but a reality. Perhaps even more important, by being organized about where and when you want to go, we can book flights and hotels months in advance, saving you hundreds, if not thousands of dollars. Yes, it’s exhilarating to be spontaneous when it comes to travel, but realize that you pay a hefty price. 
 
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A Stay at the Windermere House in the Muskoka Region of Ontario

Guest Post and Photo by Amy Perry Basseches

For our anniversary, my husband Josh and I decided to venture north of Toronto to check out "cottage country" in the Muskoka region of Ontario. Not quite as far as Algonquin Provincial Park (our next outing), and very popular with people in the City, Muskoka offers 1,600 lakes, just two hours from Toronto. 
 
We really enjoyed our stay at the Windermere House, known as "The Lady of the Lake," which has proudly stood over Lake Rosseau since 1870. It was early in the season, so the full fleet of watercraft to enjoy the lake was not ready (we wanted to goof off and paddle boat…no luck), and the lake water was chilly. However, the chairs on the lawn made for a great scenic reading spot, the pool was lovely, and the pub patio dining was excellent (especially our $24 anniversary banana split sundae; a mere $18.50 USD). We walked and walked in the area, enjoying the sunshine and the lake views. People with homes in Muskoka include Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Goldie Hawn. You can see why. Remote, yet accessible and beautiful.   
 
On our way back to Toronto, we stopped in Gravenhurst, one of the main towns in the region, nicknamed "Sawdust City" because of the long history of logging in Muskoka. Interestingly, from 1940 to 1946, Gravenhurst was the site of a Prisoners of War camp for Nazi officers (at its peak, it held 489 prisoners). After WWII, Irving Ungerman, well-known in Toronto’s Jewish community, and the child of immigrant parents who ran a small butcher shop in Kensington Market, bought the POW camp and turned it into a kosher resort called "The Gateway" which was very successful from the mid-50s to 60s. Our detour to Gravenhurst was far more trivial — a delicious stop at Sawdust City Brewing Company for some craft beer and smoked lake trout (Milford Bay Smoked Trout).   
 
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Travel Outside the Box, Third Stop, Ghana

From the sky, Ghana is a bundle of green on the west coast of Africa, bordered by golden beaches and the warm blue of the Atlantic. Then you reach the ground and one of the most welcoming people on the continent, the reason it’s often referred to as Africa for beginners. “Akwaaba!” (welcome) is the word you’ll hear most in the country, exemplifying the warmth and hospitality of the Ghanaian people. In a country the size of the UK, the variety of sights on a weeklong trip is remarkable. First see the lions and antelope at Mole National Park, the elephants and buffalo in the tropical rain forest of Kakum National Park. Then check out the 700 or so monkeys at Boabeng-Fiema Monkey Sanctuary. Find out about Ghana’s place in the slave trade in the historic town of Elmina. Learn about West African drumming and music in lively Kumasi. Relax on the long stretch of beach near Keta, known for its exemplary snorkeling and dance parties on the beach. Then check out Accra, one of the fastest growing cities on the continent and highly regarded for its food and live music scene. In the Osu neighborhood, sushi bars and clubs belt out the latest Afrobeat sounds from Sarkodie and Guru. 
 
We work with one of the best in the travel business in Ghana, Emmanuel Baah-Fenning, CEO of Ghana Tour Consult. Tell us exactly what you want to do and Emmanuel will throw it together into a weeklong or 10-day package, including guides, transfers, and lodging. All it takes is a 10-hour flight from JFK to have a memorable vacation in Africa. 
 

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