ALONG COMES MARY

This past weekend I had the opportunity to head out to The LA Travel & Adventure Show. The highlights of the day for me? Watching Pauline Frommer, followed by Samantha Brown, speak about their best tips of the trade for traveling. Today, I am excited to share with you what I took away from seeing Pauline Frommer, who takes after her Father, Arthur, & has risen to fame writing wonderful, realistic travel guides for everyone….even Samantha Brown said she uses their references!

Having traveled the world, Pauline truly is in the top of her game when it comes to travel. From favorite web-sites to must-see’s of 2015, Pauline covered it all. Having mentioned the perks of using certain sites that I am well familiar with (Priceline, AirBnB), she also had great things to say about some that I was not yet familiar with:

Hoteltonight.com is her go-to for day of traveling; filled with lavish rooms that just may be going to no one the day of, given time of year, day, cancellations, many major, top hotels will use this web-site to book their rooms at a VERY below average rate (Think a $300 room in New York for under $200), another is Biddingtraveler.com, which I just played with myself & it’s exactly like what Pauline said: The eBay of hotels! It looks to be a great service when you’re on a definite budget & know how much you’re willing to spend; while it may not be an end all to end all, you still get very good, accurate prices for a hotel & you can even select the ratings from lowest to highest you’re willing to go.

Some more great advice I took away? Never get insurance with the travel booking company you use (who knew?) & just a heads up, in many cities, like San Francisco & New York City, renting out a room or your home, a la AirBnB, is illegal.

What I am most excited to share with you is her  list of the top places to see this year. They are….

Cuba
While some may think it is impossible to get yourself here, it is not at all, nor has anyone in the past 15 years had legal trouble in going to this beautiful island. From churches to beaches, she feels Cuba offers so much that you need to see NOW.

Belize
I was excited to hear this as one of my best friends, Nell, hails from Belize! Nell has told me so many gorgeous things about it, & Pauline re-enforced why I would love to see this nation-state. She feels you can become Indiana Jones in Belize as there are so many opportunities to go on archaeology digs & get your hands dirty within these realms.

Belgium
Between the 200th anniversary of Waterloo & a Van Gogh museum opening, Belgium is a somewhat overlooked European country that Frommer wants you to see. (& who doesn’t love Belgian fries?!)

South Dakota
I was a little bit like, “Huh?” when she mentioned South Dakota, but, between buffalo round-up’s & the 76th anniversary of Sturgis Motorcycles celebration happening, it sounds like a very fun state to check out this year.

Tanzania
This is a very sad reason why Frommer (& myself now, also) feels you should head out to Tanzania; poachers are literally killing off the animal population. Its being predicted that rhino deaths will out do rhino births by 2018. Tourism may just change this somber prediction, & Pauline says if its Ebola making you re-consider any thoughts of heading out to Tanzania, that there have not been any reports there, & that most have been near the Europe border, so not much to worry about.

Asheville, North Carolina
“We’re picking Asheville this year because the sketchy riverside area has been totally redone thanks to the New Belgium Brewery, which has poured millions of dollars into this area, making new parks, artists collectives, farmers markets, bike paths,” says Frommer. “It’s just a great place to go. It has the most breweries per capita, so always a party!”

Argentina
This was very interesting; Frommer had much to say about Argentina since there is such a variety of activities to conquer and the peso is continuing to go super far for the dollar. Did someone say…my money would go further? 😉

Chaco Culture Park, New Mexico
A bit like Tanzania, I was disappointed to hear why its pivotal you get out to Chaco; this area has indeed been licensed for fracking, & could easily be destroyed very quickly. Following a bit of my own research, I can see why Chaco is a must-see here in The USA.

Molacca, Spain
Between a beautiful new seaside promenade, to pop up museums happening in nearby Andalucia, Frommer couldn’t recommend Molacca enough, especially as a great base if traveling to Andalucia.

Vienna, Austria
Their famous 100 feet long winding road, Ringstrasse, is celebrating its 150th anniversary with loads of celebrations!

Yellowstone National Park
I have never been, but little did I know that apparently the accommodations in Yellowstone have not been, shall we say, up to par, the past few years & now they’re back at the top with many gorgeous places to stay indoors so you can also enjoy their outdoor beauty.

Washington, DC
Our Nation’s capital. Why not head out to DC? This year they’ll be pulling out all the stops for history buffs as it’s the 150th anniversary of The Civil War & an exhibit happening that will have the contents of Abe Lincoln’s pockets when he was assassinated.

Cunard Cruises
2015 is the year for anniversaries & celebrations. Cunard is having their 175th(!) birthday & they’re celebrating with several anniversary cruises.

And, there you have it! Will you be heading out to any of these destinations this year? xo