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Northern Iraq, Anyone?

If your list of must-see locales in 2012 includes the archaeological sites and exquisite scenery of northern Iraq, you’re in luck. 5 new properties are set to open in Erbil, the capital city of Iraqi Kurdistan in the next year, including two Marriott lodgings and a Hilton. Having broken ties with Saddam Hussein after the first Persian Gulf War in 1991, Erbil was spared the fighting of 2003 onward. Visit the Museum of Civilization to understand the city’s ancient past, then take a short taxi ride over to Shaklawa Road to see a recreation of Istanbul’s famous Blue Mosque. Nearby is Bakery and More, a Lebanese-owned bakery known for their Arabic sweets. Any of the shwarma joints in town is a good place to meet the locals, which now total over a million. 

 

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College Students Ski Killington, Okemo, Pico, and Mount Sunapee with New College Pass

Hey all you undergrads and grad students in the New England area, listen up! Okemo, Killington, Pico, and Mount Sunapee just announced a new partnership and launch of their “4.0 The College Pass”. Available for $369 plus tax through December 15, 2013, the pass offers unlimited skiing and boarding at all four ski resorts for the upcoming ski season. Since Killington already has the lifts running as of last week, what are you waiting for? The pass also allows you to bring 5 college buddies for 50% off lift ticket price. 

 
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Hiking Though Lush Fern Canyon

When it comes to natural beauty, California is blessed with an abundance of riches. So much in fact that many of its state park like Pfeiffer Burns in Big Sur, Crystal Cove in Laguna Beach, and Prairie Creek Redwoods in Orick easily rival the scenery of numerous national parks in America. To reach Prairie Creek Redwoods, you take a spectacular coastal route, Highway 101, north of Trinidad (a small beach community definitely worth a visit) to Orick and then take a twisting dirt road, Davison Road, through groves of mega-sized redwoods to reach the remote sands. Those in the know booked the campsite on Gold Bluffs Beach while others should drive to the end of the dirt road to the Fern Canyon parking lot. As the name implies, Fern Canyon is a gulch with steep walls covered in glistening ferns, rivulets of water dripping down like a soft sprinkler system. On the short walk over to the canyon, trunks of spruce and red alder are covered in moss, giving you a hint that you’re in for a treat. Enveloped in this sanctuary of green, you walk as far as you like, crossing a stream on logs numerous times, before simply returning. But don’t just jump back into your car. Head over to the beach, where we spotted a buck elk with huge antlers gnawing at the sea grasses. Yes, Prairie Creek Redwoods is home to a large elk herd. A nice bonus!
 
A big thanks to Humboldt County for a great week of traveling! I’ll be back on Monday with one more blog from my trip, the surprisingly good Humboldt County wine. 
 
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Royal Air Maroc to Fly Direct from Boston to Casablanca

Morocco has become an increasingly popular destination for our clients at ActiveTravels in the past several years. The only challenge for people leaving from Boston is that there was no direct flight, meaning they usually had to transfer at JFK or Lisbon’s Portela Airport. Thankfully, that’s about to change on June 22nd. Royal Air Maroc has just announced that they will be flying direct from Boston to Casablanca 3 times weekly. Total flight time on the Boeing 787-8 will be 7 hours, 25 minutes westbound and 6 hours 35 minutes eastbound. Royal Air Maroc will also be joining One Alliance in 2020, so soon you’ll be able to use your American Airlines miles to find seats. Once in Morocco, we work with a fantastic ground operator who packages together all lodging, guides, drivers, and restaurants to make your experience as seamless as possible. A typical 10-day itinerary will include Casablanca, Fez, Marrakech, the glorious seaside village of Essaouira, and at least one night at a Bedouin camp in the Sahara Desert. Please let us know how we can help. 

 
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Top 5 Adventures in Florida, Sailing the Keys

With first rate charts and other navigational aids, the Florida Keys are an ideal cruising ground for all sailors, regardless of experience. The famously warm, clear waters of the Keys are a snorkeler’s paradise—shipwrecks and coral parks are plentiful—and secluded beaches number in the hundreds. If you crave terra firma, you can always stop at Key West for a nightcap at Sloppy Joe’s, a favorite hangout of writer Ernest Hemingway.  One full day’s sail west of Key West brings you to the Dry Tortugas, home to Fort Jefferson, which dates back to Civil War days. This is a popular sailing route. If you feel like you’re off the charts, anchor at any harbor and ask the nearest boater for directions. Thankfully, yachting is no longer a sport only for the affluent. Florida Keys Bareboat Charter Company in Marathon bareboat charters a 27-foot Catalina for a cost of $899 per week (7 days/6 nights). 
 

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At Portland’s Drifters Wife, Believe the Hype

Located on the burgeoning Washington Avenue neighborhood in Portland, Drifters Wife has had a loyal following since its debut in 2016, two years prior to Bon Appetit Magazine naming it one of the country’s top 10 new restaurants. But now it’s so popular that food writer Alex Hall noted in yesterday’s Boston Globe “that in July, you’ve got a better shot at getting your kid into Harvard on a full scholarship than walking in and nabbing a table at Beard Award-decorated favorites like Fore Street or Drifters Wife.” You can reserve a table 30 days in advance, which is exactly what we did for a dinner this past Saturday, when we knew we were spending a night in Portland after our visit to Acadia National Park with friends. Those friends are from Laguna Beach, California, home to one of the best farmers markets on the West Coast. So they’re accustomed to getting a vast assortment of fresh vegetables year round. Maine, of course, has a much shorter growing season, but what Drifters Wife finds locally was more than enough to blow us all away. The choice of appetizers and entrees are limited, 4 or 5 appetizers and 3 entrees. But all were exceptional, from starters of grilled shishito peppers and a zesty arugula salad to entrees of a whole black bass and a tender chunk of hake with a clam sauce. Wash it down with one of their natural wines or a bottle of Peeper from Maine Beer Co. Then finish off the memorable meal with a dish of milk pudding topped with pistachio chunks called Malabi. Sublime. 

 
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Biking Puglia, Resort Picks on Amalfi Coast in November Newsletter

Spend 18 nights in Italy and you learn a wealth of travel info on the country. You can read about our bike trip with DuVine Cycling and the resorts we liked on the Amalfi Coast in the latest ActiveTravels newsletter. We also introduce you to the valuable flight and soon to be hotel app, Hopper, and talk about the debut of The Glen Hotel at the base of mighty Mount Washington in New Hampshire. 

 
Have a Happy Thanksgiving with your family and friends. I’ll be back on Monday to discuss the highlights of my recent trip to Kentucky Bourbon country. 
 

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