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Don’t Hesitate to Stay at Corral del Rey

We loved our penthouse room at Corral del Rey, a boutique property in the old quarter of Seville, where rooms are located inside a former 17th-century estate. We had a large outdoor patio with views overlooking the Gothic Cathedral, plunge pool, bath built for two, fantastic shower, and a heavenly mattress. It’s no surprise it was our favorite hotel of our entire stay in Spain. We took full advantage of the room, polishing off a bottle of Tempranillo with our nephew, Micah, who’s studying in Seville this semester, before strolling over to a hole-in-the-wall tapas joint with outdoor tables, Estrella. The place is popular with flamenco dancers, guitarists, and singers who perform at the nearby Museo del Baile Flamenco, as we would soon find out when seeing an hourlong flamenco show. The guy I just met at the bar was the guitarist for the show, and wow, was he good, along with two soulful singers, and three incredibly talented flamenco dancers. We made the wise move of booking the VIP show, where only two rows of audience view the show in an intimate setting inside a former wine cellar. The performance was so moving that I looked over at Lisa and saw tears rolling down her cheek. 

 

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Chatwal Lodge to Debut in the Catskills

Chatwal Lodge in the CatskillsWe’re big fans of the location, service, and comfort at the historic Chatwal property in Times Square. So we know we’ll adore the Chatwal’s sister property set to open in the Catskills in April. Located on 60 acres along the wooded shores of Toronto Reservoir, the retreat will feature hand-hewn timbers, huge stone fireplaces and mighty trunks of 40-foot white pine trees towering from floor to ceiling. All 10 suites will have private patios overlooking the lake. Some of the accommodations will also have soaking tubs, outdoor showers, and full kitchens. There’s also 1,000-square-feet treehouse 25 feet above the ground, featuring a fireplace and outdoor deck. Outdoor activities include flyfishing, kayaking, hiking, horseback riding, mountain biking, and badminton. Indoor activities comprise of yoga, meditation, cooking classes and music lessons. Please let ActiveTravels know your dates and we’ll check availability and pricing.

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Highly Recommended Hermosa Cove Villas in Ocho Rios, Jamaica

While staying in Ocho Rios last week, we checked out a relatively new boutique hotel recommended by an old friend. Clinging to the forested hillside and coastline just outside of town, Hermosa Cove features nine villas nestled into the lush landscape. The small retreat, ideal for couples and destination weddings where you can rent the whole shebang, is owned by a couple from Iowa and managed by Duke Molton, formerly of Island Outpost Resorts and the Ian Fleming estate, Goldeneye. Expect that same sense of style at Hermosa Cove, where each villa is decorated with Jamaican sculpture and antiques, and walls are painted a colorful sky blue, peach, or red. Each villa houses a full kitchen and most of the villas have private plunge pools. You can order groceries in advance and they’ll be waiting when you arrive. Several of the villas like the 1BR Calabash and the 3BR Ginger have ocean views from their second story. The grounds are exquisite with a small crescent beach, restaurant that’s already garnering rave reviews for its authentic Jamaican cuisine (open to the public), and a tower where you can go to the top and view the entire coastline. Guided kayaking and snorkeling tours past Jamaica Inn to the point are offered, and, of course, Duke can plan outings to climb the nearby Dunns River Falls, swim in the Blue Hole, tube down the White River, or simply grab a taxi to try the best jerk on the island at Scotchies. 

 
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Top 5 Wildlife Viewing Experiences, Masai Mara, Kenya

As the weather continues to warm in the Boston area, many people are thinking about summer plans. Hopefully, this involves seeing wildlife, one of the most memorable encounters you can have while traveling. July through October is the best time to see the big five in Kenya. Masai Mara National Reserve, on the Tanzanian border, deserves its legendary status as one of the finest safari experiences in the world. All it takes is about an hour of driving in the back of a jeep to be mesmerized by the wealth of wildlife. Mara is Swahili for “dotted hillside” and if you look across the savannah, you’ll spot giraffes, elephants, Cape buffalo, zebras, baboons, lions lounging under tall acacia trees, impalas, and hordes of wildebeests, especially if you travel here during the migration in early summer and fall. Unlike the Serengeti to the south, Masai Mara allows jeeps to go off-road so you get a close-up view of that leopard hiding in the bush. Visiting the Maasai villagers is an added bonus. For a good place to stay, see the story I wrote for Away.com on the ecoresort, Olonana.
 

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A Necessary Stop at Manchester Hot Glass in Southern Vermont

Guest Post and Photo by Amy Perry Basseches 
 
Manchester, Vermont is a year-round destination for many people from the Northeastern U.S. Having grown up in the NYC area, followed by more than three decades in Boston, I’ve been visiting since the 1970s. Recently, for an ActiveTravels member who was here for several days in late December, I had cause to compile 40 years of travel advice for the area. That was a long list! Today, I’m writing about one of my favorite local businesses and travel activities, Manchester Hot Glass. 
 
Manchester Hot Glass is a glass blowing studio open daily to the public, founded in 2000. Owner/artist/teacher Andrew Weill is from New Jersey and started working with glass as a teenager. He says, “Right from the start, I learned a great lesson in humility. Glass is an amazing material – it can be hot and malleable and cold and delicate all at the same time. There is nothing like it. The surprises it can produce are equally as unique.”
 
Believe me, Andrew is a work of art himself. His welcoming nature and fun-loving spirit come through to all who take his classes. In my humble opinion, no trip to Southern Vermont is complete without Andrew. Classes in glassblowing are available any time of year; from $50 – $350, you can be tutored by the best and then take home a unique hand-crafted original (or two or three). 
 
“I blow glass simply because I love it. If I can afford to go to work each day and do what I love, I figure I’m better off than most.” What a great line!  I’ll leave you with this from Andrew: “Glass to me is a lifetime pursuit of knowledge and skill. There is always something new to learn and skills that can be improved upon. As a glass blower, I am primarily concerned with the issues of design, and it is my goal to create unique pieces that people will enjoy.” 
 
If your travels take you to Southern Vermont, let us know. ActiveTravels would be more than happy to help with lodgings, restaurant, and (indoor and outdoor) activity recommendations, as well as in the Berkshires area nearby. 
 
(Photo: Amy’s daughter Sophie and Steve/Lisa’s daughter Melanie at Manchester Hot Glass, August 2012)
 
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Celebrating the 150th Anniversary of Thoreau’s “The Maine Woods”

As an outdoor writer based in New England, I’ve spent a good deal of time following in Henry David Thoreau’s footsteps, from climbing Monadnock and Katahdin to walking the shoreline of the upper Cape to swimming in Walden Pond. In 1864, the great naturalist and philosopher published his book “The Maine Woods” that chronicles his exploration of the remote Maine waterways. In October 2009, I had the good fortune to paddle down the West Branch of the Penobscot River following his route. Our guide was Kevin Slater, a legendary Maine paddler who learned these rivers and the skill to carve his own canoes and paddles from his mentor who he simply called, “the Old Timer.” We spent four glorious days on the water, with few other paddlers, spotting moose, bear, loons, and osprey. In the backdrop was mighty Katahdin, the end point of the Appalachian Trail. The story appeared in an issue of Sierra Magazine, the publication of the Sierra Club. If you want to paddle with Slater on the Penobscot, contact him at Mahoosuc Guide Service. 

 
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Philadelphia Freedom

Washington, DC, garners its fair share of travel press this time of year because of soon-to-bud cherry blossoms. But don’t forget about that other East Coast history hot spot, Philadelphia. Home to one of two U.S. Mint facilities open to the public (Denver is the other; www.usmint.gov/mint_tours), families can take an hour-long self-guided tour of this money manufacturing plant. Unfortunately, they don’t give out freebies. Diagonally across the street is the home of the Liberty Bell, set in a $12.9 million glass pavilion. This tour is also self-guided and free, but guides are on hand to answer all of the children’s questions about that crack. Stay at the Sheraton Philadelphia Society Hill Hotel and you can walk to other Old City attractions like Franklin Fountain, an early 20th-century soda shop that makes the best root beer float I ever had, and Shane Candies, the oldest continuously operating candy story in America. Save room for dinner at City Tavern.  A reconstruction of an 18th-century tavern where Ben Franklin and other Founding Fathers dined, waiters dress up in Colonial garb and serve recipes from that period. 

 

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