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The Debut of The Boxer in Boston

Several ski writers who came into Boston last week for the Boston Ski Show mentioned that they loved their hotel, The Boxer. Formerly the Bulfinch Hotel, the Boxer is a nine-story, 80- room boutique hotel housed in a triangular 1904 building that’s Boston’s version of the Flatiron Building. Located on Merrimac Street, not far from the Boston Garden and the North End, The Boxer has a vintage feel, with an old-time room key rack behind the front desk and a circa 1860 map of Boston on the lobby ceiling. Their restaurant, Finch, serves regional fare like New England clam chowder and lobster mac n’ cheese. Rates start at $161 a night. 

 

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Countries on My Wish List for 2014, Namibia

This past November, the travel world descended on Namibia for the annual Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA) conference. Jaded travel writers that I’ve known for years came back to the States raving about the destination. If you’re looking for a safari locale but don’t want to deal the hordes in the Maasai Mara, Serengeti, or Kruger, consider Namibia. On a 10-day to 2-week jaunt, you can track black rhinos, elephants, zebra, giraffes, leopards, lions, cheetahs, and spotted hyena on walking and jeep safaris in the Palmwag Reserve; marvel at Etosha National Park’s massive lunar-like mineral plane while on the lookout for impala, springboks, elephants, and zebra; step into a sea of red, mountain-high sand dunes in Sossusvlei; lunch at Walvis Bay alongside a flock of flamingos; cruise Namibia’s Atlantic coast, getting up close with Cape fur seals and dolphins; and drive along the game-rich Ugab riverbed past the second largest monolith on earth. 
 
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Vetted House Rentals with Villas of Distinction

With the popularity of Airbnb and VRBO, more and more clients are requesting apartment and house rentals with us. For apartments in residential neighborhoods of European and American cities, we enjoy working with OneFineStay. Someone meets our clients at the residence the first day, goes over the apartment, and then gives them a concierge list of restaurants, shops, and sights to see in the neighborhood. For house rentals, especially on the beaches of the Caribbean isles of the Turks & Caicos and St. Barts, it’s hard to top the Villas of Distinction. Each house is personally visited and inspected before being added to the list. It also helps to know the Director of Sales, who ActiveTravels will often call to ensure that the one particular property we like for our clients is indeed fantastic. Try getting the personal lowdown with VRBO. Not happening. 

 
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Go Straight to the Source in Vietnam

One of the reasons I started ActiveTravels was for people across the globe to tell me about their favorite spots to enjoy the outdoors. It’s simply impossible for one travel writer to know all the active hotspots around the world. I also wanted local outfitters who specialize in one region of the world to check in and tell me what they’re doing. A decade ago, I wrote an article for Budget Travel magazine telling reader to go straight to the source. Instead of spending gobs of money to hire an American outfitter to take you to Vietnam, where they simply hire local guides to show you around, go straight to those guides! No one knows their country better than locals and their trips are usually far cheaper. Thankfully, indigenous outfitters are starting to find me and I’m happy to plug them. Just last week, I received an email from Dung Van Nguyen from Green Trail Tours, an outfitter based in Hanoi who has spent the past nine years bringing people around Vietnam. They have trips for bikers, kayakers, trekkers, rafters, you name it, practically any activity you want to do in the country. The cost is as low as $990 US dollars for a 9-day guided bike tour, including lodging and meals.
 

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Family Vacation Critic Names Top Hotels for Families

Since 2008, I’ve written over 120 hotel and destination reviews for Family Vacation Critic, TripAdvisor’s family travel site. Many of the properties I personally visited have just been chosen in Family Vacation Critic’s Listing of Top Hotels for Families. To achieve award status, travel writers had to first visit and vet the resort, giving the property at least a 4-star rating. In addition, the hotel had to be recommended by at least 75% of families commenting on TripAdvisor. The elite group of hotels selected represents the top 12% of hotels listed on the Family Vacation Critic site. I’m happy to play a small role in this inaugural listing, hopefully steering families to a memorable resort and a special vacation. 

 
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Great Late Summer Day Hikes: Climbing Monadnock

Climbing the broad-shouldered peak Henry David Thoreau called a “sublime mass,” Mt. Monadnock, is a rite of passage for many New England children. Just over the border of Massachusetts in southern New Hampshire, Monadnock is less than a two-hour drive from Boston. Its accessibility and locale, smack dab in the center of New England, has made it one of the two most popular mountain ascents in the world going toe-to-toe with Japan’s Mount Fuji. 

 
Early September, when the black flies are long gone and the first hints of fall color can be seen, is the ideal time to bag this 3,165-foot peak. Head up the White Dot trail, one of the steepest ascents, but also one that rewards with you with incredible vistas in a very short time. Above treeline, the forest recedes to form open ledges covered with low-lying shrubs like mountain cranberry bushes. This gives you ample opportunity to rest and peer down at the soft blanket of treetops, small towns with their requisite white steeples, a smattering of lakes and ponds, and farms that fan out to anonymous ridges. Soon you’ll reach the summit, where Thoreau watched in dismay as his fellow mid-19th century trampers inscribed their names in rock. You can still spot names like “T.S. Spaulding, 1853” clearly etched in the stone. 
 
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Canoe the Upper Iowa River, Cresco, Iowa

Don’t worry about crowds on this forgotten run in the glacial-carved valley of northeast Iowa. The Upper Iowa can be paddled for 110 miles from Lime Springs to the Mississippi, but a good 31-mile jaunt from Kendalville to Decorah snakes through cliff-lined gorges below 200-foot-high chimney rocks. Bald eagles frequently soar over the limestone outcrops and deer, mink, raccoon and beaver call the area home. Chimney Rock rents canoes, offers trip planning, and provides a free shuttle. 
 

2 Comments

  1. I love the Boxer Hotel. From it’s flatiron design to its drop dead gorgeously sleek interior this is a first rate hotel. I find the staff is always accommodating. They remember your name and why you are in Boston. The atmosphere and location are great, rooms are clean and comfortable and the food in Finch is top-notch. All these reasons are why I recommended it when I fact-checked and updated the hotel section of Fodor’s Boston.

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