Laurie at Travel Leaders/Suntime Travel

Fiji trip 2011

2011-05-13T13:22:00.000-07:00

Fiji is a series of over 300 islands, about half uninhabited. This is one destination where I felt totally relaxed rather than being so busy having to see and do everything possible, needing a vacation after coming home. There is great snorkeling, friendly people (who all speak English along with their native language), wonderful food, and fun shopping. The scenery is absolutely beautiful, and it was a lot of fun visiting neighborhood villages (special permission from your resort will be required to enter a village).

This is one destination I'm definately coming back to some time in the near future.

Sofitel Resort - this is a beautiful resort I stayed at. Convenient location for when you first arrive the Fiji Islands.

Tokoriki is a beautiful intimate resort that I really enjoyed. The staff is very friendly and it's so nice and peaceful.

Vatulele is a very beautiful, very quiet resort for those who want to get away from it all. You feel like you're the only people in the world.

Namale is a very special place for romance, beautiful scenery, living the lifestyle of the rich and famous.

Nadi is one of the main cities in the Fiji Islands. If you're into flowers, make sure you visit the Valley of the Sleeping Giants.

Riviera Maya May 2010

2010-05-14T14:33:00.000-07:00

My trip to the Riviera Maya was amazing! This is such a beautiful part of Mexico. The food is great, the people welcoming, the weather nice and hot, the beaches endless.

The Iberostar Paraiso Maya Hotel was were I stayed. This property is quite large, however I would certainly stay here again.

Iberostar Paraiso Maya Hotel

El Dorado Royale is one of the Karisma properties. Gourmet food, adult-only property, long beach. They take very good care of all their guests.

El Dorado Royale

Looking for a smaller resort that still offers great food, great service, and gorgeous beaches? This is exactly what the Iberostar Quetzal offers.

Iberostar Quetzal

The Sandos Playacar is a large property that offers many things for many people. If looking to stay in shape while on vacation (so you don't have to feel guilty about eatting dessert), the Sandos Playacar has a very impressive work out gym.

Sandos Playacar

This resort, the Gran Porto Real, is smaller than some of the other Riviera Maya resorts making it extremely easy to walk from your room to dining to the beach within just a couple of minutes. Also being in town you're always close to shopping opportunities.

Gran Porto Real

For families who want to go on a true vacation in every sense, this is the place! If staying at the Azul Sensatori there is no need to worry about packing up all your baby things. Everything is available for you from changing tables and baby bathtubs to bottle warmers. A true hastle-free vacation.

Azul Sensatori

If you're looking for a 5 star hotel in every sense, the Iberostar Paraiso Grand Hotel is for you! Not only is it beautiful, but also very easy to get around. There is no need to wander the grounds to find exactly where the restaurant is, because everything is connected and located in the same building. If you do wish to wander, you are welcome to use the facilities of the other Iberostar properties on sight for a change of scenery or a different dining venue.

Iberostar Paraiso Grand Hotel

The Iberostar Paraiso Del Mar is very nice and has a beautiful lobby where you can just sit and relax while sipping your pina colada. It is located on a beautiful long stretch of beach.

Iberostar Paraiso Del Mar

Brilliance of the Seas Mediterranean Cruise

2009-06-30T14:07:00.000-07:00

Cruising the Mediterranean is wonderful. Many different sights to see while only unpacking once. I was able to see a volcanic vineyard, ride a camel, watch meat cook over an opening in the earth...without fire, sample new foods in Morocco, view beautiful scenery, interesting history, architecture, etc. What a fabulous trip!

Sailing on the Royal Caribbean Brilliance of the Seas was wonderful. She is a beautiful ship that offers many extras (mini-golf, water slide, rock climbing wall, etc). Yet, it only took a few minutes to go from one end of the ship on an upper level to the opposite end of the ship on a lower level. Really a nice sized ship. Food was great and the entertainment was good.

Ship Pictures:

Malaga is located in the Costa del Sol part of Spain, so you have miles and miles of beautiful beaches just waiting for you. There's also a lot of history here also. I took a city tour to try to capture the highlights of this city.

Malaga, Spain:

Lanzarote is one of the 7 larger Canary Islands. Each island has it's own beauty and looks different from the next island. Lanzarote is a volcanic island, and is very interesting. Some say it reminds them of traveling to the moon. It rarely rains here so things aren't very green, unless you go to the city where they have irrigation. You need to get out of the city to really appreciate this island. You'll notice in the photos below that the earth is so hot naturally that they can put brush on the ground and it'll start on fire, throw water down a shoot and it'll explode like a geyser, and dig a deep hole in the ground and cook food without any fire in just a matter of minutes. Their wine is sweeter due to the volcanic minerals and local processing methods.

Lanzarote, Canary Islands:

Tenerife is a beautiful island with the highest peak in Spain (Spain owns the Canary Islands). The sky was picture perfect and the scenery breathtaking. This is one of the most popular Canary Islands so the city can get busy, but outside the city limits it's very calm and peaceful.

Tenerife, Canary Islands:

Morocco was not anything like I had imagined. Casablanca is a metropolitan city and very busy. Don't think about renting cars here....very few traffic lights. Driving is more like playing the game "I dare you" since cars come from every direction. The people are very friendly. I was able to visit the Hasann II Mosque which some believe is the 3rd largest Mosque in the world. This is the only Mosque however to be built over water. Traveling to Rabat was about 1-1/2 hour drive but was definately worth it. It's such a pretty city.

Casablanca, Morocco:

Cadiz is the oldest city in the Western Hemisphere and has both an old city and new city. For James Bond fans, this is where Die Another Day was partially filmed (beach scene with Halle Berry). The city offers both an old city beach and a new city beach, however try to take a drive out of the city for scenic views. The town of Vejer is one of the most pictureque spots in the south of Spain with white-washed houses, an old walled inner city, narrow streets, and cute shops.

Cadiz, Spain:

This is where we started and ended our cruise. Fly into Barcelona a day or so before your cruise and you won't regret it. We hired a private driver who charged a flat fee to pick us up at our hotel, drive us wherever we wanted to go, and then dropped us off at the ship to start our cruise. Barcelona isn't an inexpensive city, but it's wonderful to see all the different architecture of the buildings.

Barcelona, Spain:

Jamaica April 2008

2008-05-12T08:17:00.000-07:00

Jamaica....the third largest island in the Caribbean....a beautiful island with nice beaches, good food, friendly people and breath-taking scenery. My husband and I spent 1 week in Ocho Rios to celebrate our wedding anniversary. It was hard to go back home! We're already looking forward to going back soon!