Retirement used to mean slowing down. These days, it seems to mean just the opposite. Healthy, active retirees are redefining the term by filling their golden years with excitement and adventure. For the truly adventurous, adventure travel company, Myths and Mountains, offers a motorcycle tour down Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh Trail.
Over two weeks, the tour takes riders from Hanoi to Saigon on 125 cc motorcycles. The trail cuts through historic and tribal areas, and through landmarks of the American Vietnam war like the birthplace of Ho Chi Minh himself.
Ellen Barone is an American writer and wanderer. She co-founded and publishes the group travel blog YourLifeIsATrip.com and is currently at work on her first book "I Could Live Here".
Day of the Dead is one of the most important and impressive festivals in Mexico. Yet many of the most authentic ceremonies remain inaccessible to outsiders.
Travel beyond the guidebooks with small-group, cultural tour company, Traditions Mexico, and experience unparalleled access to Day of the Dead ceremonies deep in the Oaxaca Outback and among the Maya of Chiapas with the following two 3-day tours.
1. The Return of the Souls. Day of the Dead in Outback Oaxaca. October 31 - November 2, 2011.
Oaxaca © Eric Mindling
Beautiful, moving and fascinating and in the midst of the most lovely time of year, Day of the Dead in Oaxaca is not to be missed. This unique trip takes the celebration even one step further, transporting travelers far beyond the crowds and carnival atmosphere that have become the festival norm around Oaxaca city and into a remote village seemingly lost in time in outback Oaxaca.
Slow down, walk the earthen streets, smell the river scented air, and meet bakers, wood cutters and tamale makers, and truly immerse yourself in a small town’s preparations for the return of the souls of their loved ones. Join them in the candle-lit pre-dawn quiet of the cemetery for this one of a kind ceremony.
Ellen Barone is an American writer and wanderer. She co-founded and publishes the group travel blog YourLifeIsATrip.com and is currently at work on her first book "I Could Live Here".
AUTUMN ADVENTURES TURN A NEW LEAF
Why take a drive to view the fall foliage when you can soar above it? Or would you prefer viewing the autumn colors by trotting down winding paths on horseback? Bed and breakfasts are offering unique ways of enjoying the time of year when the deep greens of summer are replaced by brilliant reds, golds, oranges and yellows in a stunning canopy of color. This trip will be one for the photo books.
“Crisp, cool evening air or apples and pumpkins reaching ripeness are certainly signs of fall,” says Mary White, founder of BnBFinder.com. “But nothing announces the arrival of the season like the foliage. It’s a stunning visual spectacle and should not be missed.”
BnBFinder inns are bringing the season’s colors into full view for travelers looking for something a little out of the ordinary. Here are a few highlights:
The View From Above. The Mayhurst Inn (www.BnBFinder.com/MayhurstInn) in Orange, VA, will arrange a fly over the Blue Ridge Mountains and Shenandoan Valley in a Biplane. Package includes two nights accommodations, a full breakfast each morning, and champagne and strawberries in the room along with a post-dinner dessert.
Up, Up and Away! The HideAway Country Inn (www.BnBFinder.com/HideAwayCountry) in Bucyrus, Ohio, also offers guests a view of the foliage from above but this time during a hot air balloon ride over the heart of Ohio’s farm country. A complimentary bottle of champagne is included in this package.
Ellen Barone is an American writer and wanderer. She co-founded and publishes the group travel blog YourLifeIsATrip.com and is currently at work on her first book "I Could Live Here".
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Ellen Barone is an American writer and wanderer. She co-founded and publishes the group travel blog YourLifeIsATrip.com and is currently at work on her first book "I Could Live Here".
When kids go back to school, many adult travelers head to U.S. national parks. Depending on the location, the parks are visited by fewer people during the fall months, and temperatures are typically moderate. No matter where you go, however, there are plenty of appealing activities, as well as lodging choices for every budget.
Here are three examples of autumn-season national park adventures:
Death Valley National Park, California. Unlike most national parks, fall is just the beginning of the park’s peak season. Concessioner Xanterra Parks & Resorts operates the luxurious, 66-room Inn at Furnace Creek, which opens its doors for the season in mid-October. Xanterra also operates the year-round Ranch at Furnace Creek. The resort features three restaurants, lounge, gift stores, golf course, swimming pools and more. Activities in Death Valley include golfing at the world’s lowest golf course, horseback riding, Jeep tours, bicycling, tours of historic Scotty’s Castle, hiking and touring by car.
Ellen Barone is an American writer and wanderer. She co-founded and publishes the group travel blog YourLifeIsATrip.com and is currently at work on her first book "I Could Live Here".
Cities buzz with excitement and a beach escape is always fun, but there’s nothing quite as soul-soothing as getting away to the mountains. From dazzling night skies to snow-capped peaks and evergreen forests, here are five reasons to head for the mountains on your next adventure.
Ellen Barone is an American writer and wanderer. She co-founded and publishes the group travel blog YourLifeIsATrip.com and is currently at work on her first book "I Could Live Here".