JET Travel Newsletter - September 2017

I'd like to start out by saying that my thoughts and prayers go out to Houston and all those who were in the path of Hurricane Harvey.   Having the 12th anniversary of Katrina just a couple days ago I can tell you that I certainly don't envy Texans.   We're doing what we can from here and I encourage everyone to volunteer and/or donate.   Unless you've been through it, it can be hard to wrap your mind around the enormity of what needs to be done once the water recedes.

Believe it or not, I have not traveled anywhere since July!   That might be a record for my family and me but August is a pretty busy month with school starting so I like to keep it close to home if I can.

Back in the August Newsletter I mentioned that we had been to London and Edinburgh and that I'd talk more about Scotland in September.   People told me that Scotland was beautiful and I thought it would be as I fell in love with the country through a historical book series that I read.   Here I am to tell you that Edinburgh and the Highlands far surpassed even my high expectations.   We came home and started looking for property to buy!   Of course then we found out that Pitty Mixes are banned in the UK (*gasp*) so that curtailed our searching for property.   My point is that it's a beautiful friendly country (except to certain dog breeds) and we'd go back tomorrow if we could.

I've got video footage from both trips but haven't had time to put them together and upload to our YouTube Channel yet.   It's on my list!

One of my favorite ways to travel in Europe is by train and so we arrived via train from London into Edinburgh late morning on a Saturday.   We belong to an international food and wine group called Chaine des Rotisseurs and as it happened they were having a Grande Chapitre meeting while we were there.  Our hotel was only a block and a half from the train station so we schlepped our bags to the hotel, checked in and headed to the Chaine hotel to let them know we arrived and then head an exclusive excursion to Broomhall House.  Broomhall house is the family home of Edward the Bruce and the tour guide was a great great .... grandson.  No photos were allowed sadly but we were greeted with a bagpiper.

After our excursion we headed back to our hotel to get ready for our formal Grande Chapitre dinner.  Kenny rented a formal kilt and he got more compliments on his kilt than I did on my dress.   *sigh*   We had a fabulous time and met some great new friends.   As a side note, we're heading to another in Chicago in Oct!

Sunday found us doing a city tour with Rabbies and honestly we weren't overly thrilled.   It was nice to get a good overview of the city but we'd have preferred a live tour guide rather than the voice on the headphone jack.

Monday was the day I had been waiting years for!   A tour of the Highlands!   Again, we chose Rabbies and a real life tour guide really does make all the difference.   I'd highly recommend Rabbies to anyone visiting Scotland.  Here are some of the highlights.

Doune Castle

Highland Cows

Loch Lomond

Tuesday we meandered and did some shopping as we were heading home the next day.   Five days is certainly not long enough to be in Edinburgh but we got a good feel for it and it will definitely be a place we go back to over and over.

We found a ferris wheel to ride and I didn't want to be the chicken still living after my people fell to their deaths so I rode it.   As you can see I enjoyed it immensely.    I'm told the video is funnier than this photo.







Goodbye Edinburgh!  We'll see you again some day!

Remember:  Price is what you pay.  Value is what you get.  

Where are we headed next?    In September I have two work trips scheduled.  We'll be in Atlanta for Delta Vacations Convention and then I'll be in Jacksonville for a Destination Wedding Seminar so I should have some interesting things to share in October!

Ready, JET...Go!

Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or YouTube to keep up and ask questions about any place we go. 
 

See you in October!

                                                   Jen

August 2017 Newsletter

London.  

Up until this trip, I would always say London was my favorite city when asked which surprised most people.   Honestly, while I still enjoy London, it has slipped out of the top slot.   More on that in the September Newsletter.  

Kenny and I have different favorites when it comes to preferred airlines and since I was making the reservations we flew American.   I much prefer the new American product to the older BA product.   He prefers the BA lounge which admittedly is better than the American lounges.   Really, it's a toss up.   




   



   Kenny and I getting settled in our seats.











Here is Zoey enjoying her time in the air.  

Upon arrival into Heathrow we generally grab the Heathrow Express as it is just so much faster getting into London.   Fifteen minutes and you're at Paddington Station.   We grab a taxi or Uber from there and head to our hotel.   Interestingly, on this particular trip, we zoomed throughthe airport.   From the time the plane landed to the time we got on the Express (including getting through customs and getting our luggage) was 25 mintues.   We were shocked as we've never been through that fast before!  

Next stop:   Apex Temple Court: 

Our room wasn't ready when we arrived so we walked around our​neighborhood to get acquainted and then headed to one of our favorite places to eat; Tapas Brindas which is in Borough Market.   








Kenny was working so Zoey and I did a bit of shopping and meandering as we usually do.  Of course we ate at some new restaurants and visited some old favorites as well.  Here is a photo of probably the one restaurant we eat at each trip.   It's THAT good.  Jose.    I'm not a dessert eater but I always have the chocolate pot (bottom right in photo below).  

One thing we did this trip that we hadn't done before is have afternoon tea on a double decker bus!   The weather was super hot while we were in London and the bus was like a sauna!   However, it is so rare for them to have this type of weather I'd still highly suggest it.   The food was tasty and it was a fun couple of hours.  

Another new one for us was Milk Train.

Yep.  That's ice cream with toppings surrounded by cotton candy or as they call it, candy floss.




We had some great visits with friends while we were in London that we've met while in our travels.  Apparently we're drawn towards Brits.   :)   

More details in our youtube videos so please head over and subscribe so you'll get the updates.  


Remember:  Price is what you pay.  Value is what you get.  

Where are we headed next?    As of now we're actually staying put for all of August!   The kids are starting school and it's a very busy month.   Sept looks to be busy so stay tuned!

Ready, JET...Go!

Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or YouTube to keep up and ask questions about any place we go. 

See you in September!

                                                   Jen

JET Travel July 2017 Newsletter

Welcome to my July 2017 newsletter! I'm still on a roll with sending these out. Hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoy putting them together.

Isn't that a beautiful view? I really enjoyed sailing down the Mississippi.

I hope this newsletter finds you having a great summer. The end of May and beginning of June were a very busy time for me so for once I was glad that I wasn't traveling. By mid June I was happy to be taking a break with friends on a cruise. As you all may or may not know, I'm a hotel snob and I'll be honest and say that a Carnival cruise wasn't high on my list. Our cruise experience to date had been on Celebrity once and Disney several times. I'm happy to report that we were pleasantly surprised in our experience on the Carnival Dream. >P> Here is a link to our video on youtube channel about this trip: (Be sure to click the 'subscribe' button if you want to be alerted when we post a new video)

One thing I have to say is that my whole family enjoyed sailing out of New Orleans. When we've sailed in the past, we've either driven to Galveston, Port Canaveral or flew to San Juan. For this cruise, we got in the car, drove to the port and got on the ship. That's it. Easy peasy.

Boarding took about a half hour and once we had lunch our cabin was ready and by the time we put our bags down and checked our cabins, our luggage had arrived. Of course then we had the dreaded muster drill and after that it was nothing but fun even though we were sailing through Tropical Storm Cindy.

One thing we did as soon as we boarded is make dining reservations at the Steakhouse and confirmed our reservations for the Chef's Table. Immediatly after we walked into this guy! LOL He's a towel animal that walks around the ship which is so cool. We had awesome towel animals in our cabins every night which we all had fun playing with. I talk a lot about groups and for this trip we were traveling with a small group of 11 and an extended group which was about 30 more. It was really nice to pretty much go anywhere and be able to sit and chat and get to know people better. Plus there was always someone telling me they'd seen one of my kids and thankfully they were behaving. Ha!

I highly recommend traveling with others that you get along with as it really was fun and we're now going to put an annual travel group together. Here is a photo of the group that we were traveling with:

That photo was taken on Roatan while we participated in an excursion with Christopher Tours. I've always wanted to hold a sloth but as I have a thing against captive animals, I never had the opportunity until Roatan. There is what amounts to an exotic pet rescue center and they take in exotic pets that are no longer wanted. If you watch the video you'll see me basically lose my mind when they put Granny into my arms. Holy Moly did I fall in love.

Our excursion consisted of a tour of the island, a photo stop, the sanctuary, lunch andsnorkling. I'm one of those people that actually likes staying on the ship when it's in port but this excursion was worth getting off the ship for. Here was the Serenity Area (Adults only) while the ship was in port. Seriously, why would you fight the crowds for the same old excursion? :)

We were back in plenty of time to get ready for our Chef's Table dinner. Overall it was a good experience and I'd highly recommend it. Unfortuately the food was mostly cold but the experience of eating in the galley and getting the tour and speaking to the chef was an experience that I'd gladly do again.

Speaking of food, the Steakhouse was fabulous and we ended up eating there twice. Olga was our server and if you sail please tell her we said hello.

The other place we spent a lot of our time was the Alchemy Bar. Anca took great care of us and we tried many of her concoctions. Really a fun happening place to meet before or after dinner.

Comedy shows were fun as were the shows in the main dining room. I won't give anything away here. Overall we had a really good time on the Carnival Dream and I'd definitely recommend it.

Remember: The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten.

GROUPS! (bears repeating)

One of the things that mention often is groups and I've got some fantastic tools to help my guests become group leaders. Each one of you can be a group leader and I have the tools to make it easy. Think of a trip you'd like to take and email me and we can talk about how to get you to that dream destination with super amenities or even at a reduced rate! The next time you are talking about travel and one of your friends says "I would love to do that": tell them they can! It's a win / win for everyone!

Where are we headed next? Currently, I'm sitting in an airport lounge in Dallas waiting on a delayed flight to London. We're headed to London for a week and then up to Eddinburgh, Scotland! It's going to be a fun summer!

Ready, JET...Go!

Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or YouTube to keep up and ask questions about any place we go.

See you in August!

Jen

June 2017 Newsletter!

Welcome to my June newsletter! I'm on a roll now with sending these out!

May was all about my favorite place: Jamaica! The music, the food the people. It's a trifecta if you ask me!

We decided to celebrate our 21st wedding anniversary at Sandals Royal Plantation. Nothing better than a Ting with a splash of vodka on a beach looking at turquoise water with your spouse of 21 years. There are people who say "eh...I don't need or want a butler". To them I say "you're a fool!". LOL Here is an example of how a butler can make your life a little better. I was drinking Ting (a Jamaican citrus beverage - see photo right) with a splash of vodka. Because it's a local Jamaican beverage the bars don't generally stock much of it. Our beach butler informed us that we were running out of Ting and as it happened our regular butler was in the vacinity to arrange an excursion for us. He called over to her and they chatted in their patois which I could listen to all day! A bit later she found us (not being hard as I hadn't left my beautiful beach spot) and handed me two Tings and told me there were a few also behind the bar on ice. These Tings were delivered in a black grocery bag that she had obviously gone off property to acquire for us. Hear the angels singing? Ha! We did too!

What a breathtaking view to experience when taking your vows! We were lucky enough to see two ceremonies while there! If we ever renew our vows I'm totally doing it like this. Did you know that vow renewals and weddings can be included at many all inclusive properties?

Being that Kingston and Montego Bay Airports are about equidistant from Ocho Rios I chose to fly into Kingston this trip to check it out. Our drive was interesting and we got to drive by the Red Stripe factory, see the hill where all the muckety mucks like Shaggy and Usain Bolt live and also sadly, the Kingston jail. I asked if we could stop to visit Vybz Kartel but our driver just laughed and politely declined my request. If you don't know who he is he's got some great reggae music that I highly recommend. If you're curious about New Reggae, I've got a playlist that I can share with you.

Of course while I was in Ocho Rios I did work a little. We were invited to visit Sandals Ochi Beach and Beaches Ocho Rios while we were there. Ochi Beach is a HUGE property and everyone looked like they were having a fabulous time. Beaches was interesting as well and I loved how there were so many little spaces for families to convene. Which one would be right for you? That's the beauty of using a Travel Advisor. Not only does it not cost you a dime but it allows you to have a vacation that is tailored to what you want and need and not based on price alone.

Remember: The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten.

GROUPS! (bears repeating)

One of the things that we discussed was groups and I've got some fantastic tools to help my guests become group leaders. Each one of you can be a group leader and I have the tools to make it easy. Think of a trip you'd like to take and email me and we can talk about how to get you to that dream destination with super amenities or even at a reduced rate! The next time you are talking about travel and one of your friends says "I would love to do that": tell them they can! It's a win / win for everyone!

Where are we headed next? June will find us on the Carnival ship Dream for a week and July will find us in the UK and Scotland. It's going to be a fun summer!

Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or YouTube to keep up and ask questions about any place we go.

See you in July!

Jen

PS: I'll leave you with this beautiful photo I took from the plane window of the Bahamas.

May 2017 Newsletter

May 2017 Newsletter Welcome to my May newsletter! Happy May Day!

Our Southern Caribbean Disney cruise departed San Juan and headed to the islands of Barbados, St. Lucia, Martinique, St. Kitts and Antigua.

Along with some very cool excursions I was able to sneak in a few site inspections in Antigua and St. Lucia.

While in San Juan we stayed at the Hotel El Convento which was a convent from 1646 until it was turned into a hotel in 1959. Our room was not available on the first night (yes, these things also happen to me) so we were upgraded to the Presidential Suite the first night and the second night we were moved to a Jr Suite. We all actually preferred the Jr Suite. You can see photos of both room categories by clicking ont he link above. Videos will also be on our YouTube Channel.

Unfortunately it was very rainy in St. Lucia while we were there so my pictures are a bit dreary. In St. Lucia we did a segway excursion thought the mountains. Zoey has never been heavy enough to ride a segway and it was on her list of must do's since she could ride one in St. Lucia. I highly recommend this excursion and I bet it's even more fun when it's not torrential rain!

While in St. Lucia I was able to sneak in a few site inspections at Sandals Halycon as well as Sandals La Toc. You can look through my photos by clicking the property names above. Halycon is quaint and intimate and La Toc is large and the views from the Butler Bluff suites were breathtaking!

In Antigua, Kenny and I spent the day at Sandals Grand Antigua. After seeing the private pool bungalow suite I'm sure we'll be back. I loved this suite and the property is gorgeous. We had lunch, relaxed in the sun and then went out sailing on a Hobie Cat. After sailing of course we were famished so we grabbed a couple of pizzas from Bella Napoli then headed back to the ship. Here are a few photos of the resort:

Can you picture youself here?

Enough fun stuff...Eh..who am I kidding? I love what I do so it is all fun. After the cruise I was home one day to unpack - do laundry - and repack for a continuing education seminar in Jacksonville. During the time I was there I was also able to make time to meet with many vendors. I can't tell you how helpful meeting with them in person is. It allows me to be updated on their products and also to build those personal relationships that in turn, help my guests when they travel.

GROUPS!

One of the things that we discussed was groups and I've got some fantastic tools to help my guests become group leaders. Each one of you can be a group leader and I have the tools to make it easy. Think of a trip you'd like to take and email me and we can talk about how to get you to that dream destination with super amenities or even at a reduced rate! The next time you are talking about travel and one of your friends says "I would love to do that": tell them they can! It's a win / win for everyone!

Kenny and I will be celebrating our 21st wedding anniversary in Jamaica in May. So stay tuned for info from Jamaica.

Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or YouTube to keep up and ask questions about any place we go.

See you in June! Jen

April 2017 Newsletter

April 2017 Newsletter Welcome to what I hope will be a monthly newsletter. It has been a very busy wave season which has kept me on my toes!

I started a YouTube channel back in January. You can see walk throughs of resorts and hotels, things to do in cities we've visited, food and general shenanigans. The videos will be uploading continuously in the next few weeks. Also on YouTube, check out my new commercial below and don't forget to click the subscribe button so you can be notified when new videos are uploaded.

We started off January with a quick trip to Houston for the three day weekend. Those were our first videos and they're pretty silly. Hopefully you'll find them as humerous as I do. I said "here we are" on every one so that's what we named our channel. Actually I think there is a blooper reel with a collection of all my "here we are's".

February found us in Rome for Mardi Gras break. Most people try to fit all of Italy in in one trip but we did a whole week in Rome and I'm really glad we did. Even being there a week, we still didn't get to see and do everything. As always, I made notes and have over 18 pages along with tips and tricks to pass on to you when you're ready to visit.

March brought us to Miami for a ship inspection of the beautiful Azamara Quest. This is boutique cruise ship sailing at its finest. Think of it as excursion immersion in a 5 star floating luxury hotel. Their focus is on helping people connect locally to the destinations they visit. Azamara stays in port later than other cruise lines and they even do overnights in many cities. Can you imagine seeing Venice at night because you are able to stay in port for 3 days? I'm hosting a group on the Azamara Quest the week of Thanksgiving heading to Cuba. Email me if you'd like more information or to reserve space. I'm so excited to offer this exciting opportunity. Now is the time to go and what better way to go than on a 5 star luxury floating hotel?

March brought us to Miami for a ship inspection of the beautiful Azamara Quest. This is boutique cruise ship sailing at its finest. Think of it as excursion immersion in a 5 star floating luxury hotel. Their focus is on helping people connect locally to the destinations they visit. Azamara stays in port later than other cruise lines and even do overnights in many cities. Can you imagine seeing Venice at night because you are able to stay in port for 3 days? I&39;m hosting a group on the Azamara Quest the week of Thanksgiving heading to Cuba. Email me if you&39;d like more information or to reserve space. I&39;m so excited to offer this exciting opportunity. Now is the time to go and what better way to go than on a 5 star luxury floating hotel?

April will find us crusing the Southern Caribbean and while there I&39;ll be doing some site inspections in St. Lucia and Antigua. Directly after that I&39;ve also got some continuing education in Jacksonville. In May we&39;ll be in Jamaica and in June you can find me hosting a group on board the Carnival Dream out of New Orleans. Having never sailed Carnival before I&39;m glad to be experiencing it with old and new friends.

With the upcoming travel opportunities I&39;m sure we&39;ll have some informative and funny videos.

See you in May!

Jen

Cancun - Zoetry Trip Report - 1st Day

After breakfast we meandered over to our lounge chairs that were ready and waiting for us.  They cover the lounge chair in two towels and leave an extra to use for drying off.  Kenny prefers to be in the shade while I prefer to be in the sun so Fredrico would align the umbrella just perfectly so that we had shade and sun.  Our whole day was about nothing other than catching up and hanging out just the two of us.  

As someone we met there said...In order to come to this resort, you really have to like your spouse.  There are things to do throughout the property like the spa, cigar making, ceramics, wine tasting etc but our goal was to just relax and reconnect. 

Fredrico!

My View

I wanted to participate in the Temazcal ceremony but the times it was offered were already full when we got there.  (more on that later)   We showed up and asked if they could fit two more and sure enough the Shaman welcomed us after we signed some forms.  Kenny's along for the ride so he came too not knowing what it was.  

We started by following the Shaman over to the spa area and put all our stuff away and were instructed to only keep our shoes and swim suits on.  After some explanations, which were mostly in Spanish, we ventured into what is basically in igloo and the ceremony started.  The Temazcal is an ancient Mayan healing ceremony which purifies the mind and the spirit.  The ceremony is much like a sweat lodge if you know what that is.

Beginning of the Temazcal ceremony in the lobby area

 After sweating buckets and having our spirits healed, we decided lunch was in order.  We ate at El Chiringuito and it was really tasty.

Beautiful!

Tortilla platter with hummus, refried beans and guacamole

Queso Casserole

Seafood Pizza

Lemon and Garlic Grilled Chicken

Bailey's Ice Cream

 After lunch we did a lot more of the laying by the pool thing.  Chatting and getting to know our neighbors who I hope will be friends for life!  

View from our Balcony

Don't we look relaxed on our balcony as the sun goes down?

Kenny was finally able to relax and got in the pool and had a nice time I think.  He's more of a go go go go go type of vacationer and I'm more of put me with a good view and a good book and I'll have had a fantastic vacation.  Maybe he's coming around to my way of thinking?    At least once every 17 years!   LOL