Tag: real experiences
Victoria Falls – Best Places to Stay in Livingstone
Victoria Falls – located between the countries of Zambia and Zimbabwe in Africa – is the world’s largest sheet of falling water. It is nearly twice the height of Niagara Falls in North America. In height and width it is rivaled only by Iguazu Falls in South America. As you might imagine, this notoriety has […]
About Authentic Luxury Travel, About Me
Welcome. You’ve come to the right place if you’re looking for authentic luxury travel options. There’s nothing I enjoy more than sharing what I’ve learned during the course of a long career as a travel journalist and photographer. Looking for a boutique hotel? A private guide in Mumbai? A way to avoid the crowds in […]
Zambia Safari – Hippos & Crocs & Kudus!
The first night of our Zambia safari I awakened to a familiar grumbling noise and issued my usual plea: “Rick, please stop snoring!” “It’s not me,” my husband whispered from a moonlit corner of our tent. “It’s the hippos in the river. They’re really making a racket.” I sat up and listened to the chorus […]
Ancestry Travel – Fixing Your Family Tree
Ancestry travel – think of it as authentic travel on steroids. You wander off the beaten path looking for “missing” family members and, in the process, you make connections with local people and learn about your cultural DNA. It doesn’t get more authentic than that. My trip to Italy to research my roots took me […]
Nevis – a Caribbean Island for Savvy Travelers
Nevis wasn’t the first Caribbean island I visited. Like many travelers, I started with bigger, more obvious places. Some of these have international airports and almost all of them are on the cruise ship circuit. But what I wanted was an authentic experience, a chance to meet local people and learn about their culture. So […]
New York City – An Insider’s Guide – Part 2
New York City is Larry Kessler’s old stomping grounds. In Part 1 of this article, he told us about one of his favorite places to eat and reflected on some of NYC’s iconic people and places. Here’s more of his homeboy insight… “For me, if I had to pick the one quintessential New York City food […]
Manu National Park – Wildly Amazing Peru
Nina Fogelman has a long history with Peru. In 1983 she moved to Cusco to fulfill a one year contract as Director of Alternative Healing Arts Institute. She fell completely in love with the people and their culture. For more than 30 years, she has been immersed in all aspects of this diverse and amazing […]
Larry’s Meaning of Life Travel Experience
My friend Larry Kessler contributed this guest post. The meaning of life. No small task. Thank God for Google ’cause we’re running out of real estate to house the volumes of texts that cover this subject. But hey, since I just had a life changing, meaning of life travel experience, I’d like to offer my […]
Thanksgiving Travel With Airbnb
Thanksgiving travel plans still up in the air? The winter holidays can be challenging for authentic travelers. On one hand, we want to share the time with family and close friends. On the other, we’d like to have a great travel experience. If “over the river and through the woods” is sounding less than melodic […]
Santa Fe Opera – Musical New Mexico
Santa Fe Opera had been on my bucket list for years, and I finally got there last July. I’m happy to report that it was everything I’d hoped for and more. BTW, what I’d hoped for included an authentic travel experience (as well as world-class opera). As I’ve mentioned here before, two of my favorite ways […]
Florence Cooking Lessons and a Recipe
Florence Cooking Lessons was contributed by reader Art Moldavia from San Diego. If Florence is on your bucket list, you’ll also want to read his earlier trip report: “Authentic Florence – Places to Eat.” In 1979, Sharon Oddson and her artist husband, Giuliano “Il Garga” Gargani, opened the fine Italian restaurant Trattoria Garga on Via […]
Authentic Florence – Places To Eat
Authentic Florence was contributed by Art Moldavia, a frequent visitor to Florence. In a note with this trip report, he reminded me that “Florence, once the capital of Italy, is recognized as the ‘Art Capital of the World.’ According to UNESCO, 30 percent of the world’s finest masterpieces can be found in Florence, where the Renaissance began.” […]
Spain – Best Local Private Guides
I’ve spent more time than you might imagine deciding what to call this post. “Travel Spain Like a Local” had a nice ring to it, but after great deliberation (and several cups of tea), I decided it wasn’t quite right. I also discarded “Experience Spain…,” “Private City Tours in Spain…,” and settled on “Spain – […]
New York Botanical Garden
The New York Botanical Garden wasn’t on my must-see list the first time I visited New York City. Nope. Instead, I chose to wait in line interminably to take the elevator to the top of the Empire State Building, and I rushed back and forth across Manhattan from one mega-museum to another. I don’t regret […]
