Earth Day is April 22, and it’s a wonderful time to share stories of travel companies that are making the world we love to travel a better place.
For G Adventures, the focus is on trees. In the last 18 months, the tour operator has expanded its global Trees for Days initiative with seven new community partners. Its network now stands at 22 communities across multiple continents and benefits more than 200,000 local people.
And within the next month, the project will reach a milestone of 6 million trees!
The company points out that trees represent immediate and multi-layered climate solutions: one where tree growing does more than restore ecosystems, it helps rebuild livelihoods, strengthen communities, and create long-term resilience for those living on the frontlines of the climate crisis.
Trees provide shade and shelter for people and domestic animals and crops; forests are homes for wildlife biodiversity; their roots prevent erosion from increasingly violent storms; they absorb carbon dioxide and emit oxygen… and so much more.
With this project, each tree is grown with a long-term commitment to reach maturity, with the first trees from the initiative now beginning to mature in 2026, three years after the program launched.
Furthermore, Trees for Days has been built on a new, more enlightened model than previous reforestation initiatives. It works in partnership with communities. Instead of focusing solely on environmental outcomes or carbon offsetting, the initiative is designed to address the interconnected challenges communities face from the climate emergency, from food insecurity and unemployment to biodiversity loss and climate resilience.
By putting local people at the center, supporting women, uplifting Indigenous communities, and creating economic opportunities, tree growing becomes a catalyst for broader change.
G Adventures has provided examples of some of their latest tree initiatives under the program:
A powerful example of this approach of creating meaningful benefit is in the Philippines, where the Higa-onon Indigenous community is restoring its ancestral forest after decades of environmental decline. Described as their “last refuge,” the rainforest had been severely depleted, and the community, facing extreme poverty, was forced into destructive practices such as illegal logging and mining in order to survive. Tribal elders wanted to protect their sacred forests but had no means to do so.
Today, that story is being rewritten. Trees for Days is supporting the Tribes and Nature Defenders project, which has mobilized over 200 local tribal farmers, 15 youth enthusiasts, and 5 women to physically restore Indigenous lands. Nurseries cultivating thousands of native and coffee trees are helping to restore biodiversity while creating sustainable livelihoods rooted in the protection of the forest itself.
For elders, this project represents a fight for “cultural nature survival," recognizing that the forest and the community cannot exist without one another.
In Kenya, Trees for Days is supporting the farming communities of Embu, who have been battling a persistent drought since 2024. With insufficient or late rains, agricultural productivity and food security are under constant threat.
Trees for Days has partnered with Trees for Kenya to develop agroforestry that directly impacts household health. Over 50,000 seedlings have been distributed to 523 farmers over the past 10 months, bringing the total number of trees grown to over 300,000 since the program's implementation in 2023. The program focuses on fruit trees (mangoes and avocado) and medicinal species, including Moringa Oleifera. Over 20,000 of these seedlings have been sourced from local women-owned nurseries, demonstrating another way tree growing can be a powerful engine in supporting female financial independence.
The impact: For the women running these nurseries, the income from seedling sales is pooled and used to provide loans to group members in need. Bella (aged 64) used her loan to support her household of seven, buying two hens, which now provide her family with fresh eggs and a new micro-income. Julia (aged 58) purchased a goat, which provided fresh milk and drastically improved the nutrition of her family’s daily meals.
When we think of deforestation, we rarely think of the ocean seabed, but the loss of underwater kelp forests in Canada has severely impacted marine biology and the traditional food system of local Indigenous communities. Trees for Days has partnered with Coastal Kelp, which includes the Tsawwassen First Nation, Nuchatlaht Tribe, and Lax Kw'alaams Band, working to restore marine ecosystems through an innovative “seaforestation” approach on British Columbia’s Sunshine Coast. By installing non-invasive moorings in areas previously unsuitable for kelp growth, they have created a ‘false-bottom’ and a brand new marine habitat, which has driven a staggering ecological bounce-back, with new species of kelp returning and the area being repopulated with scallops, oysters, shrimp, and rockfish.
The impact: 10% of all processed kelp is given back to members as community food products, and 10% of the fertilizer created is donated to community gardens
While planting trees is relatively easy, growing them and ensuring they deliver real, lasting benefits is far more complex. G Adventures and Trees For Days believe their community-driven approach will create the most benefits for people and the planet we love to travel.
Images courtesy of G Adventures
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by Lynn on 04/23/2026
By 2039, there will be three new ships in the Princess Cruises fleet, the largest, most advanced ships ever for the cruise line, carrying over 4700 guests each, and dual-fuel, powered primarily by the sustainability-conscious LNG (liquified natural gas). The new class of ships is called the Voyager class, with the first ship scheduled for delivery in 2035.
The new class of ships is another step forward for the cruise line, and its most recent, Sphere class of ships (Sun Princess and Star Princess.)
Here’s how the upcoming Voyager-class of ships stacks up against Princess’ previous classes of ships beginning before this millennium, with Voyager-class representing the next generation in size and technology, but only a slight boost, under 500 additional guests, in staterooms and suites.
According to Princess, the new Voyager-class vessels will integrate the most desired and highest-rated experiences and venues Princess Cruises is known for, with completely re-imagined outer decks, staterooms, and Piazza designs that cater to Princess’ global travelers and worldwide deployments and itineraries. These new ships will build upon the award-winning Sphere Class platform and continue to leverage the latest hospitality and marine technologies.
Many more details have yet to be revealed in advance of the first Voyager-class ship - the cruise line doesn't even have renderings of the vision of the Voyager-class ship!
But fans of Princess Cruises will be watching this space, eager for details as they emerge.
In 1965, Princess Cruises began as a single ship sailing to Mexico, and it has grown into a world-renowned cruise line that connects guests to more than 345 destinations across seven continents.
According to the cruise line, Princess was the first to introduce affordable balconies, flexible dining options, and even weddings at sea officiated by the ship's captain. Princess was also the first cruise line to launch Movies Under the Stars — a now-iconic poolside feature — and continues to lead with experiences that surprise and delight in meaningful ways.
It created MedallionClass: a first-of-its-kind experience built around a simple, wearable device called the Medallion. With tools like OceanNow, Manage Booking, and OceanReady, guests enjoy a seamless voyage focused on personalization and convenience.
Its most recent class of ships—the Sphere Class, with sister ships Sun Princess and Star Princess—represents the future of cruising with groundbreaking design and guest experiences.
Today, Princess is part of Carnival Corporation and operates a fleet of 17 ships with a presence in every region of the globe, on all 7 continents.
Image: Star Princess, courtesy of Princess Cruises
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by Lynn on 04/23/2026
In Alaska, everyone can feel like they’re in a fairy tale. Even the one with the three bears! Wildlife watching opportunities – especially bear sightings – rank among the top reasons to take an Alaska cruise. And I’ve never known anyone to leave disappointed!
But how many different types of bears can you hope to see?
The most common, the smallest— and often the first bear travelers encounter — is the black bear. Widespread across Southeast Alaska, they thrive in the dense coastal rainforest that lines so many cruise routes.
‘Baby Bear’: Adults typically weigh between 200 and 600 pounds, with males on the higher end. They stand about 3 feet at the shoulder on all fours, but can reach 5 to 7 feet when upright. Compared to other Alaska bears, they’re compact — built for agility rather than dominance.
What's for dinner: Black bears are true opportunists. Their diet leans heavily towards vegetarian — berries, grasses, roots — supplemented with insects, shellfish, and the occasional salmon. You’ll often see them along shorelines at low tide, turning rocks with surprising dexterity. They’re also excellent climbers, frequently escaping danger (or napping) in trees.
Wow: Accessibility. In ports like Ketchikan and Sitka, black bears can appear startlingly close to town. It’s not uncommon to spot one from a roadside or harbor edge — a quintessential Alaska moment where wilderness and daily life blur.
That’s why some people joke that the easiest way to see a black bear is a local dumpster!
Black bears are not uncommon in wild areas of other parts of the US and Canada. Brown bears – called grizzly bears inland – are much, much rarer in the ‘lower 48.’ So this is the bear most travelers come hoping to see — and for good reason. Brown bears are the heavyweight icons of Alaska wildlife and bear spotting.
“Mama Bear”: Coastal brown bears routinely weigh 600 to 1,200 pounds, with some exceptional males pushing beyond that. Standing upright, they can reach 8 to 10 feet tall. A pronounced shoulder hump — pure muscle used for digging and power — is their signature silhouette.
What's for dinner: While technically omnivores, coastal brown bears are protein-driven powerhouses. Salmon is the game-changer. During peak runs (late June through August), they consume staggering amounts — sometimes dozens of fish a day — prioritizing the fattiest parts to bulk up for hibernation. Earlier in the season, they graze on sedge grasses; later, they’ll add berries and carrion to the mix.
Wow: The fishing. Watching a thousand-pound bear stand in a rushing river and pluck a leaping salmon midair is one of North America’s great wildlife spectacles. Cruise excursions to places like Admiralty Island National Monument or Katmai National Park and Preserve deliver top opportunities to experience this natural theater.
Venture a little farther to get a chance to glimpse the only bear found nowhere else in the world except Alaska. Kodiak bears are a subspecies of brown bears isolated for thousands of years in the rich environment of the Kodiak archipelago, where they became super-sized versions of their cousins on the mainland.
“Papa Bear”: Among the largest bears on Earth, Kodiak bears often exceed mainland brown bears. Mature males commonly weigh 800 to 1,500 pounds, with rare individuals approaching 1,600 pounds. Standing height can exceed 10 feet. They are, quite simply, massive.
What's for dinner: Like other coastal brown bears, Kodiaks benefit from a nutrient-rich environment — abundant salmon, lush vegetation, and minimal competition. Their diet mirrors that of mainland coastal bears, but in an ecosystem that has allowed them to grow even larger over time, and breeding among the smaller, isolated population reinforces the gigantic genes.
Wow: Rarity and scale. Found only on the Kodiak Archipelago, they’re not part of most cruise itineraries. But for those on Gulf of Alaska routes, crossings via Kodiak to Asia — or willing to take a fly-out excursion — the reward is seeing one of the planet’s most powerful land mammals in a setting that feels truly remote.
What makes Alaska so compelling isn’t just that you can see three types of bears — it’s how naturally those encounters fit into a cruise. Ships provide access to remote coastlines and protected wilderness areas, while guided excursions handle the logistics and safety of getting you into bear habitat responsibly.
Timing matters. Salmon season dramatically improves your odds of seeing brown and Kodiak bears in action. But even outside those peak weeks, Alaska’s sheer abundance of wildlife means that bear sightings — especially black bears — are never out of the question.
Alaska is technically home to a fourth bear – one that’s on many soft adventure travelers’ bucket lists. But polar bears are truly Arctic bears, far beyond the reaches of Alaska cruises, which focus on the temperate coastal rainforest ecosystems of Alaska hundreds of miles south of polar bear country.
If polar bear sightings are your dream, an Arctic cruise - especially in Canada and Norway – offers some of the best chances to see the world’s largest bear and largest carnivore on Earth!
Video and story: Lynn Elmhirst, cruise/ travel journalist and expert.
Other images: Getty
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by Lynn on 04/23/2026
Do you travel for the food? Festivals? Or maybe family? Over a quarter of travelers these days are interested in heritage or ancestry-based trips. The surge in DNA testing has been accompanied by a corresponding rise in the popularity of genealogy-focused trips.
People are putting their traveling ‘genes’ on. And not going sightseeing, but searching for their roots. Motivations vary from family heritage to the story of migration from their ancestral homes.
Do any of these ideas strike a chord in you and beckon you to your ancestors’ distant shores?
Do these destinations call you home? Here are some of the more popular destinations for North Americans to trace their roots.
Family heritage travel is genealogy, part emotional archaeology. But how much information do you need to ‘start digging?’
Some travelers arrive armed with binders of family trees and DNA results. Others simply know that “Grandpa was from somewhere near Kraków.”
Ancestry travel gives all the questions new meaning: Who? Where? When? Why? How?
Before you book a ticket, spend time with records — immigration documents, ship manifests, census forms, church registries. Sites like FamilySearch are invaluable, and many towns will respond to polite archive requests.
But remember: villages change. Borders shift. Records disappear.
Go looking for discovery — and be open to whatever you find, or don’t find.
If you’re zeroing in on a specific town, hire a local genealogist or guide. They know which municipal office holds the birth records and who still remembers the families who left.
In small places, people — not paperwork — may be your best resource.
Don’t turn your trip into a full-time research project.
Yes, visit the ancestral village. But also experience the destination. If your roots are in southern Italy, explore Puglia. If they trace to Portugal, spend time in Porto to understand the country's rhythm. Today’s lifestyle is as valuable a lesson in your heritage as your history.
Walk into bakeries. Visit parish offices. Ask about your surname.
Bring documents. Smile. Be curious. And friendly.
A shared name can open doors you didn’t even know existed.
Sometimes you’ll find long-lost cousins. Sometimes you’ll find a locked archive and a shrug.
No matter what you discover, if you travel with an open mind and open heart, you’ll always come away richer than when you left.
Image: Getty
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by Lynn on 04/09/2026
It’s spring at last, and our thoughts turn to the outdoors and our gardens. What better inspiration for a trip than some of the most breathtaking flower shows on earth - that take nature’s horticultural gifts and maximalize the colors, the spectacle and the drama!
Keukenhof’s claim to fame is scale and control. More than seven million bulbs are planted by hand each year in layered sequences—early, mid, and late bloomers—so the park continuously evolves across its eight-week season each March and April.
WATCH VIDEO ABOVE: Our Tulip Time River Cruise on the Emerald Sky in the Netherlands
It’s also known for its indoor pavilions, where Dutch growers stage rotating displays of orchids, lilies, and cut flowers at exhibition quality—essentially a showcase of the country’s global flower industry. Add the classic windmill overlooking surrounding tulip fields, and you get both the postcard and the production line behind it.
Why go: The world’s largest spring flower garden, paired with a living showroom of Dutch floriculture.
The Royal Horticultural Society Chelsea Flower Show is a highlight of Britain’s royal, society, and gardening calendar. Only 5 days long, usually in the third week of May, it draws the who’s who of the Royal Family, celebrities, and flower lovers from around the world.
Defined by its Show Gardens—full-scale, meticulously judged landscapes installed from scratch and dismantled days later, the Chelsea Flower Show is horticultural theater – and big business. Winning “Best in Show” can launch a designer globally. Inside the Great Pavilion, growers compete for medals with near-perfect specimens, and the “Plant of the Year” regularly introduces varieties that go on to dominate garden centres worldwide.
Simultaneously, Chelsea in Bloom transforms the streets of London’s Chelsea—especially Sloane Square and King’s Road—into a free, whimsical open-air floral art trail created by local boutiques, hotels, and restaurants.
Why go: To see the exact gardens, plants, and ideas that will shape how the world gardens next.
Spring Down Under is in September and October, and that’s when Aussie gardens shine. Floriade is known for its mass plantings arranged in bold, almost graphic patterns—entire beds of tulips and annuals laid out like landscape-scale design pieces around Lake Burley Griffin.
Each year follows a theme, and the planting schemes are executed with striking precision, more akin to outdoor installation art than traditional bedding displays. Its signature NightFest adds a second layer, with light projections and illuminated sculptures transforming the gardens after dark.
Why go: Monumental tulip displays by day—and a fully reimagined, light-driven experience at night.
This northern Thailand festival, held for three short days in early February, is best known for its elaborate flower-float parade, where entire scenes—temples, animals, mythological figures—are constructed from orchids, marigolds, and chrysanthemums.
Chiang Mai is also a centre of orchid cultivation, and the displays highlight rare varieties alongside fields of locally grown damask roses used in regional perfumes and oils. Much of the action centres on Suan Buak Haad Park, where competitive displays and precision planting showcase the region’s horticultural expertise.
Why go: Intricately constructed floral floats and a rare window into Thailand’s orchid and rose-growing traditions.
Genzano’s Infiorata, held over a weekend in mid-June, is defined by precision petal mosaics. Artists use thousands of hand-placed petals—sorted by colour and texture—to create highly detailed images that resemble paintings more than floral displays. The carpets run down a steep street in the historic centre, creating a dramatic, gallery-like perspective.
By Sunday afternoon, a traditional procession deliberately walks across the designs, dismantling them in minutes and highlighting the ephemeral nature of flowers and the natural world.
Why go: Hyper-detailed floral “paintings” you can walk through—before they’re intentionally erased.
Video and Story: Lynn Elmhirst, Cruise/ Travel Journalist and Expert
Images: Getty
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by Lynn on 04/09/2026
You likely already know that’s a trick question. This tiny dot in the eastern South Pacific Ocean, but technically a territory of Chile, is actually properly called Rapa Nui.
The world over, Easter Island has been synonymous with exotic mysteries of an impossibly distant, long-lost civilization and mind-boggling human endeavor.
It may be the most remote inhabited island on the planet. Only a few thousand people live on this remnant of oceanic volcanoes sticking out of the sea, and that's the first miracle itself. The closest inhabited island is 1300 miles away (Pitcairn Island with only 50 people), and the nearest continental point is Chile, over 2000 miles away. Local tales say a 2-canoe Polynesian expedition around AD 700 was the start of Rapa Nui's extraordinary story.
Today, Easter Island is on the map as one of the corners of the millions of square miles of the Pacific Ocean known as Polynesia – the other corners for easy reference are Hawai’I and New Zealand. And it’s on the map of global travelers who want to come face to face with the island's nearly 1000 moai at its UNESCO World Heritage Site.
These stately, solemn statues were carved during a 500-year period in the island's history, beginning a thousand years ago. The moai share artistic characteristics with Polynesian carvings, confirming the origin tale of the Rapa Nui people. Chiseled with only stone tools out of volcanic rock in the 'quarry' of an extinct volcano, each statue took a team of half a dozen artisans about a year to complete. The largest is over 30 feet long and weighs 90 tons. They were an incredible feat of creativity, production, and organization.
You probably think of them as 'Easter Island heads'. But the moai actually have torsos, and some even have complete lower bodies; they were just buried up to their necks over the centuries by shifting sands.
These monumental statues represented deceased ancestors. And only about a quarter were originally installed; others were left in the quarry or remained en route to their intended locations. All but 7 faced inland, the spirits of the deceased 'watching over' the living and their lands. The 7 facing the sea stood as wayfinders for seafarers.
Many moai were toppled after the mysterious collapse of the Rapa Nui society in the 19th century. In recent decades, local and international efforts have restored and re-mounted a number of moai. This dot on a map in Chilean Polynesia still seems as awe-inspiring and as full of hidden secrets as when explorers first arrived.
Which brings us to: Why is it called Easter Island? The Dutch explorer who was the island's first-recorded European visitor arrived on Easter Sunday in 1722 – he came upon it while searching for another island. (He must have been pretty lost!) So 'Easter Island' it was dubbed, and its current official Spanish name in Chile is still Isla de Pascua, while its Polynesian name is Rapa Nui, in the local language: the 'naval of the world'.
There's more to Rapa Nui than the silent witness of the moai to the island's past. Visitors experience the local version of Polynesian culture, explore pink-sand beaches, caverns, and dive sites, cycle, hike, or ride horses across prairies and volcanic hillsides, and even surf on those waves so distant from other shores.
How to get there? You can fly from both Chile and Tahiti, participate in tour packages offered by expedition and exotic travel experts, arrive by small or expedition cruise ship, or by private yacht.
There may be nowhere else in the world where a traveler can feel the greatness of human achievement and small in the face of a culture so far across the waves.
By: Lynn Elmhirst, travel journalist and expert.
Images: Getty
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by Lynn on 03/26/2026
The hotly anticipated new river cruise line has shared how it’s planning to offer its guests a new way to experience the river communities of Europe when it debuts in 2027. Four curated categories of exclusive and included shore excursions reveal how guests will river cruise, Celebrity-style.
Local insiders lead the Storyteller Series and Skillmaster Series, while the Keys to the City Series gives guests the tech-driven power to explore on their own with insights curated to their own interests and passions. Available once per sailing, the Celebrity Takeover Series delivers one-of-a-kind, bespoke experiences.
The shore excursions are available across all 2027 and 2028 Celebrity River Cruises itineraries, and pre- and post-cruise stays in Prague, Budapest, and Amsterdam.
Celebrity River Cruises' Storyteller Series offers experiences guided by residents, artists, and cultural insiders who call each destination home. Guests can choose from multiple included experiences at each port, each balancing iconic landmarks with hosts’ personal favorites and hidden stories only locals know. Here are a couple of examples:
Amsterdam
A canal captain will share Amsterdam's centuries-long relationship with water, showing guests an unseen side of the city’s iconic waterways. Guests will cruise hidden passages, through the eyes of someone with deep family ties to the region, as they admire the city’s oldest building, Oude Kerk, board a legendary Dutch trading ship, and learn about modern canal engineering.
Prague
Guests who enjoy discovering a city through food and drink will be led through the city’s rich brewing traditions by a local brewer. From the brewer’s unique perspective, guests will explore historic breweries like the bustling U Vejvodu Tavern, as well as beer-infused artisanal shops. Taking a journey that blends history and hospitality into every pour, the brewer will show guests how centuries-old recipes shaped the city’s culture of connection and celebration.
Guests craft, cook, and create alongside the artisans and makers who shape each destination's cultural identity in shore excursions like these:
Budapest
A local Mamika (grandmother) will lead aspiring culinarians through generations-old Hungarian recipes from her own home kitchen. After selecting ingredients at the local Central Market Hall, guests will uncover dishes that bring Budapest’s soul to the table through Mamika’s treasured family recipes and cooking secrets.
Amsterdam
A local artist leads a painting class that immerses guests in Van Gogh's imagination. After exploring the famed painter’s works at the iconic Van Gogh Museum, guests will discover the settings that influenced some of his greatest pieces while learning some of the techniques he used to turn emotion into color and movement into meaning.
Through an innovative digital platform, guests access curated route maps tailored to specific interests such as art, history, food, and architecture.
Interactive maps, audio guides, and video content lead guests off the beaten tourist path to interest-led locations, where stationed local hosts provide behind-the-scenes access and exclusive experiences at working studios and craft sites, creating moments of surprise and delight. For example:
Bratislava
Architecture enthusiasts will follow their curiosity to St. Martin’s Cathedral, hearing from a local historian who brings its coronation past to life, before hiking to Bratislava Castle to see how the fortress has watched centuries of change, then pausing beneath the modern span of the UFO Bridge with an architect who explains its bold vision.
OR
Uncover the city’s authentic Slovak flavors from raising a glass in a traditional Slovak pub while a generational brewer pours his stories into every craft drop, to tasting delicate sweets in a family-run pastry shop where the baker shares recipes passed down through decades. Guests will curate their adventure, shaping their own path to uncover the stories of cities exactly as they choose.
Once per sailing, these exclusive, bespoke experiences transform must-see European attractions and unassuming plazas into elevated private events available only to Celebrity River Cruises guests. Celebrity says these are “indulgent bucket-list experiences” designed to be the defining memory of your river cruise
Celebrity River Cruises guests can extend their journey with multi-day pre- and post-cruise stays that carry the same locally-led, small-group discovery philosophy as every sailing.
Available in Prague and Budapest beginning in 2027, and also Amsterdam in 2028, each stay includes daily small-group tours with local hosts, premium hotel accommodations, dedicated concierge service for dining reservations and private experiences, daily breakfast, and airport transfers.
The result is a seamless, end-to-end journey from arrival to departure with no gap between the onboard Celebrity River Cruises experience and the destination discovery that defines it.
Bookings for 2027 and 2028 pre- and post-cruise stays in Summer 2026 open, and all other destination experiences will open for booking in 2027. Celebrity River Cruises sailings are on sale now.
Images: Celebrity River Cruises
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by Lynn on 03/26/2026
Recently in Sweden, I experienced ancient wellness practices intertwined with new science and artistic sensibilities. In many ways, Sweden wrote the book on wellness as a way of life and a travel destination. And my stays at two sister hotels in Stockholm proved the country is in the vanguard of redefining wellness travel again.
In case you missed it, in 2025, Sweden became the first country where doctors can prescribe travel for wellness. The global leader in quality of life, renowned for its thousands-year-old sauna culture, is an inspiration for wellness lifestyle – and a beacon for wellness travelers… and now this:
In a wellness ‘first,’ Sweden has become the first country where patients can download a medical referral form to take to their physician for wellness travel to the country!
The Swedish Prescription isn’t a marketing gimmick. The program is rooted in deeply-held Swedish beliefs and practices, like
all of which combine to create meaningful and scientifically supported health benefits.
All that said, why would anyone go to Sweden in the winter, far enough north that the sun rises after 8 am and sets mid-afternoon?
I went to spend a week immersed in the wellness experiences at 2 of Stockholm's Nobis Hospitality Group hotels: Hagastrand and Hotel J.
The company has set a new gold standard for wellness travel, following a three-year renovation program, masterminded by Alla Sokolova, its Head of Wellness.
“I think every human being has an innate wish to be in their best form,” she explained to me. Her vision for the wellness program at the hotels is for a stay there to be part of a “never-ending learning journey” to help create winning conditions for guests to achieve their maximum performance, their best selves.
When it re-opened in Fall, 2025 as part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection, Hagastrand Spa and Hotel was already billing itself as a “new social wellness destination” in Sweden’s capital. A post-modern building attached to a historic military barracks in the quiet, seaside location of Stockholm’s Royal Park, Hagastrand re-launched with a 27,000 square foot, cutting-edge wellness center with some practices that are the first of their kind.
If you’re imagining a clinical, white-jacketed, James Bond-style European health retreat, think again. Instead, Hagastrand offers warmth, along with a masterful and welcoming blend of ancient practices and advanced therapies, including modern technologies that deliver wellness experiences to guests in one-of-a-kind ways, all under one roof.
There’s also a focus on music, “a universal language” that “everyone can relate to,” Alla adds.
“Tuning our bodies and our minds,” as she puts it.
Hagastrand’s facilities incorporate both traditional Nordic and international wellness practices, as well as sensory design and the newer concept of ‘biohacking.’
Along with treatment rooms and private suites you expect to find in a spa or wellness center, Hagastrand’s includes:
A Thermal center, with multiple saunas, including herbal and hammam, and also:
Gongs, handmade in Italy, including a giant (as tall as a person) gong at the end of the pool played by hand by sauna masters, and
The state-of-the-art wellness experiences flow harmoniously with the new versions of familiar practices and are woven seamlessly into a hotel stay that includes warmly Nordic accommodations, stylish bars, and a fine dining restaurant (no restricted, seaweed smoothie diet here unless you wish!) that even drew a member of the Swedish Royal Family while we were dining one evening.
Sister property Hotel J draws inspiration from its location on the Stockholm archipelago in a Newport, Rhode Island-type neighborhood of illustrious and historic seaside homes.
The nautical and natural themes run deep, from stunning water views and terraces overlooking the sea, extensive gardens that are not just visual but also harvested for wellness herbs and botanicals, and, of course, its wellness offering.
Hotel J’s Sauna by the Sea is a ritual all the more memorable for its location in the Panorama Sauna perched on rocks rising from the waves. The sauna itself is on the second story, with floor-to-ceiling windows providing the perfect vantage point over the sea to become part of your herbal-infused sauna ritual. And a cold plunge into a wintery sea is just steps out the door to conclude your authentic Swedish sauna!
But we also got off property, accompanied by ‘nature therapist’ Lisen Sundgren, who took us on a Swedish interpretation of that famous Japanese wellness practice, ‘forest bathing.’ During a walk in a nature reserve next door in the twilight, where dimming sight helped sharpen our other senses as we were guided to literally feel, hear, and smell the woods. We ended up on a rocky lookout over the sea and the lights of Stockholm on the opposite side of the archipelago, sipping her homemade Swedish rosehip soup and communing by the mystical twinkles of lamp light.
From the primal forest… to a wellness rave!
In another ‘first,’ Hagastrand and Hotel J’s parent company has introduced ‘Sanctum’ to the Nordics as part of its wellness experience offering. We were invited to the launch party at the Nobis Hospitality Group’s event space at the Stockholm Opera House.
Sanctum hosts these ‘wellness raves’ around the world for a growing community drawn to the euphoric release of its hour-long, high-intensity, music-led 55-minute sessions that combine HIIT, Kundalini yoga, breathwork, and meditation. Ours in Stockholm was candle-lit in the awe-inspiring historic surroundings… in complete silence, with sound healing, music, and guidance delivered through headphones.
***
Embracing the widest interpretations of wellness lived through ancient traditions, Nature, technology, art, and the most welcoming Scandinavian culture and lifestyle… these Swedish hotels are setting the stage for a new global approach to wellness travel.
The Nobis Hospitality Group’s founder gives all the credit for the hotels’ pioneering wellness journeys to Head of Wellness Alla Sokolova – a risk, but a calculated one, with a simple foundation of beauty and hospitality.
“Everybody today is talking about longevity and all these things, and sometimes it's too much,” Alessandro Catenacci, owner and CEO of the family-owned Nobis Hospitality Group, told me.
“I hate the word ‘trend.’”
He acknowledges that the groundbreaking wellness offerings of the two hotels are “a new thing for us,” but “things are not so complicated usually if you do it in the right way.” He points out that wellness practices are a natural way of life for Swedes.
“We are a sauna family.
“And this is very important because you, you can't go on doing things if you don't like that. I love it, really.”
Hagastrand and Hotel J may be on the leading edge. But advanced wellness experiences for travel are no longer a novel trend.
As more travelers intentionally incorporate their wellness practices from home into their travels to new destinations, and expand their wellness horizons while traveling, wellness hospitality will take the lead from Hagastrand and Hotel J in helping us discover the destinations’ best experiences to hone our mental, physical, and spiritual health.
Images and story by: Lynn Elmhirst, travel journalist and expert
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by Lynn on 03/26/2026
World travel is easier than ever. But it seems world geography is not! Some destinations remain stubbornly — and even hilariously — confused by travelers, media, and even governments. The result is a mix of comedy, branding opportunity, and unsuspecting travelers finding themselves in the wrong place.
In some cases, people simply don’t know the difference, and it’s a case of mistaken identity and some embarrassing social media posts. Others are tiny spelling errors that have landed travelers on the opposite side of the world from where they expected to be. There are cities, countries, and regions that regularly get confused.
Admit it: even an intelligent and savvy traveler like you gets some of these destinations mixed up!
So what better time than April Fools to run through the hit parade of trickster travel destinations?
Australia and Austria are as different as two countries can be. And in different hemispheres!
Australia is a young, vast, sun-drenched country defined by distance—beaches, reef systems, and cities like Sydney that feel plugged into the Pacific. It’s long-haul, laid-back, and larger-than-life.
Old World Austria is compact, landlocked, and classically European—Alpine peaks, imperial history, and cultural heavyweights like Vienna and Salzburg.
Yet their confusion is so persistent that Austria’s tourism board leaned into it with the now-famous line: “No Kangaroos in Austria!”
This is possibly the most politely awkward confusion in global travel.
So common, in fact, that Visit Sweden launched an entire campaign to address it—complete with a straight-faced “negotiation” video proposing a formal division of national identities.
The messaging is brilliantly deadpan:
Switzerland has banks; Sweden has sandbanks
Switzerland has yodelling; Sweden has a silent nature
The Swiss keep the watches; the Swedes offer the luxury of forgetting about time
It’s funny because it’s true. The confusion shows up in headlines, speeches, and travel plans more often than any half-experienced traveler would like to admit.
“Tomayto”, “Tomahto.” Grenayda, Granahda. Two destinations thousands of miles apart, and cultural worlds apart.
Grenada is a Caribbean island nation where there’s nutmeg in the air, rainforest spilling into the sea, and long, languid afternoons on Grand Anse. It’s called the “Spice Island” for a reason.
Granada, on the other hand, is a city in Spain: Moorish palaces, tapas culture, and the architectural marvel of the Alhambra rising above the city like a mirage.
One is barefoot, the other is baroque.
This is less a mix-up and more a recurring travel identity crisis. They’re both countries, and both in the Caribbean. But that’s where the similarity ends.
Dominica (dom-in-EE-ka) is volcanic, rainforest-thick, and defiantly underdeveloped. You go here to hike, to soak in hot springs, to earn your cocktail off the beaten track. You have to work a little harder to vacation in Dominica. You won’t find direct flights from North America. Instead, you connect on Island Hopper Airlines through regional hubs like Barbados, San Juan, and St. Lucia.
The Dominican Republic is a hub. It’s one of the Caribbean’s largest countries and most popular beach resort destinations —built for sun-seeking travelers, with resort areas like Puerto Plata and Punta Cana, and a rich colonial history in Santo Domingo. All-inclusive resorts line the country’s beaches, and airlines and packaged tour operators serve the country well.
Here’s a quick test: can you place these two Central European countries on a map?
Slovakia and Slovenia don’t just sound similar—they both fly under the radar of popular European travel destinations, so they’ve gotten used to handling the non-stop cases of mistaken identity.
Embassies have long reported receiving each other’s diplomatic pouches. Invitations to official events have arrived in the wrong capital. Trade documents, cultural exchanges, even the occasional VIP correspondence—misaddressed, misrouted, and then, very politely, forwarded along. The postal services of the two countries meet regularly to exchange misaddressed mail!
Meanwhile, the destinations themselves couldn’t be more distinct. Slovakia leans into its Danube River culture, castles, and Carpathian drama; Slovenia into alpine lakes and storybook perfection—hello, Lake Bled.
This one is a classic travel-writer slip—and a reminder that “similar-sounding” regions are not all created equal.
The Baltics are the three countries on northeastern Europe’s Baltic Sea coast: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. They share a common history shaped by Northern and Eastern Europe and are today known for compact capitals, medieval old towns, and a blend of Nordic and Eastern European influences. Cool, composed, and increasingly design-forward. Think Tallinn’s medieval perfection, Riga’s Art Nouveau swagger.
The Balkans refer to a broader region in southeastern Europe that includes countries such as Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and North Macedonia. The region is culturally diverse, shaped by Ottoman and Austro-Hungarian histories, and ranges from Adriatic coastlines to inland mountains. Sunshine and history weave through a tangle of cultures that stretch across southeastern Europe, from Adriatic coastlines to inland capitals shaped by empires.
Same opening syllable. Entirely different narratives.
It always happens to someone else you can laugh at - until it’s you landing in the wrong country. Even the most seasoned travelers can be tripped up by a familiar-sounding place and a hastily confirmed booking.
Work with an expert travel advisor, and always double-check your travel documents.
Happy April Fool’s Day… and
By: Lynn Elmhirst, travel journalist and expert
Images: Getty
All rights reserved. You are welcome to share this material from this page, but it may not be copied, re-published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
by Lynn on 03/26/2026
On St. Patrick’s Day, the saying goes, there’s a ‘little bit of Irish’ in us all. For some of us, it’s true all year round. Today, Ireland has about 5 million people. But there are over 30 million Americans (10% of the entire population, the second-highest European ancestry in the USA!) and an even higher percentage of Canadians – nearly 15% of the population – who claim Irish roots.
No wonder so many North Americans feel drawn to visit the Emerald Isle on St. Patrick’s Day and throughout the year.
Many people fly into Dublin, have a grand time, and leave.
But to really get a feel for the country – and the people you may have an ancestral connection with – you need to get out of the capital – and into the countryside.
Of course, if you know the county where you may have family roots, you’ll want to start there.
And here are 5 more of the best places and experiences beyond Dublin to connect with the Irish people. So you can get a real sense, like I did when I first set foot in the Irish countryside, that “These people are my people.”
The Cliffs of Moher may draw you west, but it’s the village of Doolin that keeps you there.
After standing at the cliff’s edge, Atlantic wind in your hair, step into a low-ceilinged pub where the music begins almost casually — a fiddle tuning, a bodhrán tapped into rhythm. No stage. No spotlight. Just musicians playing because that’s what you do on a Tuesday night in County Clare.
Locals will ask where you’re from. Someone’s cousin likely lives there. By the end of the evening, you’re clapping along, perhaps attempting a chorus you don’t quite know.
Meet the people: Some tours connect you with a local farmer-guide in the nearby Burren who explains how his family has worked this limestone land for generations. The geology – and the family stories - are fascinating.
Galway feels like Ireland’s creative pulse. Buskers line the cobbled streets, poets argue amiably over pints, and Irish (Gaeilge) floats through the air as naturally as a sea breeze.
Head into Connemara National Park and you’ll find a different rhythm — sheep farmers leaning on gates, artisans weaving wool, guides who can trace their lineage back through the valleys.
At Kylemore Abbey, Benedictine nuns still maintain the Victorian walled gardens. The abbey’s romantic silhouette may be what you photograph, but it’s the quiet devotion of those who care for it that lingers.
Meet the people: On a food tour in Galway led by a local who introduces you not just to oysters and farmhouse cheeses, you’ll meet the producers themselves — people whose pride in place is as rich as the flavors.
County Kerry’s scenery is showstopping — lakes and mountains in Killarney National Park, Atlantic views along the Ring of Kerry — but Kerry people have a reputation for storytelling that rivals the views.
Take a jaunting car ride through the park, and your driver won’t simply point out landmarks; he’ll recount legends, local scandals, and family lore with theatrical timing.
Tour Muckross House with a guide who makes 19th-century aristocratic life feel immediate and human rather than distant and grand.
Meet the people: Stop in a rural pub off the main Ring route. The best conversations often happen where there’s no Wi-Fi and no rush.
The Rock of Cashel rises dramatically above County Tipperary, but it comes alive through the voices that interpret it.
Irish guides have a gift: history becomes theatre. St. Patrick, high kings, Viking raids — they’re delivered with humour and a twinkle that keeps things human.
Wander down to Hore Abbey, where you may find sheep grazing among the ruins and perhaps a local photographer happy to share the best angle for your shot.
Meet the people: On a private heritage walk with a local historian, you don’t just see ruins — you meet the descendants of those who built their stories around them.
In Northern Ireland, landscapes are dramatic, but conversations can be even more so.
At Titanic Belfast in Belfast, you’ll meet guides proud of their shipbuilding heritage — honest about history, resilient about the future.
Along the coast, at the Giant's Causeway, local storytellers still recount the legend of Finn McCool as if it might be true. At the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge, you’ll likely find yourself laughing nervously alongside strangers as the bridge sways.
Meet the people: Take a black cab tour in Belfast with a driver who shares personal perspectives on the city’s recent history — complex, candid, and deeply human.
Ireland’s landscapes are spectacular. But it’s the Irish people — their renowned easy humour, gift for storytelling, the sense that you’re not quite a stranger — that turns a trip into something lasting.
By: Lynn Elmhirst, travel journalist and expert
Images: Ireland.com
All rights reserved. You are welcome to share this material from this page, but it may not be copied, re-published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
by Lynn on 03/12/2026
Shawna Schrank
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