Thanksgiving week is one of the busiest travel weeks of the year with an estimated 43 million travelers.  If you are planning a vacation around Thanksgiving  you better book early to find the best deal and enjoy the best vacation.

The best flights and the best hotels will sell out first regardless of the price.  Experienced Turkey day travelers have learned to book early in order to get the flight and the hotel they want.   The non stop flights and the top hotels will sell out so if you know where you want to stay you need to book early and lock in your trip.  Your not going to find a last minute deal for Thanksgiving.  The top rated hotels will sell out fast and non stop flights will get more expensive the closer you get to your departure date.  The busiest airports are Ohare, LAX, Logan, LaGuardia and San Francisco so if you are flying out of one of these cities be sure to book early to get the best flights.

Buy Insurance.  Many of our packages will provide you with price protection.  Purchase the insurance if you are worried about your price going down.  If it does we can rebook it at the lower price.  This is not likely for this time of year but the insurance has other benefits and it might make you fell better about booking early.

Work with an experienced travel agent.  Call one of our agents so we can help you select the best hotel.  At this time all the hotels are more expensive so let us help you pick out the best hotel for you.  Sometimes an extra $100 will really improve your hotel choices.  We can help you pick the best hotel for your family.

If your thinking about Thanksgiving travel call now and get your trip locked in.  Beat the rush and book today!

On my Hawaii vacation, I had a chance to stay at the Sheraton Keauhou Bay Resort & Spa on the Big Island of Hawaii.  The Sheraton is an open air hotel located on the Kona coast.  It is surrounded by ancient lava flow and feature a 200 foot waterslide.  The hotel also has two championship golf courses next door at the Kona Country Club.

I stayed in the Ocean/Poolview room and it was very nice.  The Sheraton hotels have very comfortable beds and offer a nice fluffy robe and slippers in each room category.  I did see the oceanfront rooms and they were much larger with an unobstructed view of the ocean.  The hotel has a huge waterslide and a nice pool area but it does not have a beach.  You can not access the beach directly from the hotel due to the lava flow.

The food was excellent but the real highlight is The Manta Ray Bar.  You can get a view of an amazing Hawaii sunset and then wait for the Manta Rays to come in after dark.  The bar has a flood light out in the ocean and once the sun goes down the Manta Rays come in to feed. This is one of those things you have to see for yourself to really appreciate.

I took a scuba trip that I booked through the hotel and it was excellent.  The weather was a bit overcast but the rays and dolphins did not seem to mind.  Some of the people in my group played golf at the Kona Country club.  They have two courses within walking distance of the Sheraton.  The courses were amazing as with most of the golf courses in Hawaii.

I highly recommend this hotel for your Big Island Hawaii vacation.  The pool, rooms, view and location are super and no hotels on the Kona side will have a sandy beach.  If your ready to visit Kona, head to the Sheraton Keauhou.

The Grand Palladium Jamaica is located only 40 minutes from Montego Bay Airport.  Just far enough to escape but close enough to head to the “hip strip” for a night on the town.  Palladium hotels are known for their excellent value and this property has been one of the best deals in all of Travel.  The Grand Palladium Jamaica is a shared facility with the Grand Palladium Lady Hamilton.

The resort has 450 rooms and 7 ala carte restaurants, a casino and the largest pool in Jamaica.  The standard room is a Junior suite with a hydro massage tub and a sofa sleeper.  The rooms have a fresh clean design and they do have some very affordable room upgrades.

The Grand Palladium Resorts offer a wide variety of activities for all ages.  Adults will enjoy activities at the pool and beach, first class sports facilities and water sports such as kayaking, snorkeling, and deep sea fishing. The Boogie Woogie night club features shows and live music late into the evening.  The Palladium is family friendly and offers plenty of daily and evening programs for the kids and they even offer a Mini Disco in the early evening.

This hotel is great for families, couples, honeymooners, weddings and groups.  If your looking to get a real bang for your dollar, call us today and book a trip to The Grand Palladium Jamaica.

The Fairmont Orchid is located on the Kohala Coast, on the Big Island of Hawaii.  The hotel has a  white sand beach and a great snorkeling lagoon.  My wife and I stayed in the corner oceanview room.  It had a great view with a marble bathroom.  The service is what you would expect from a Fairmont Hotel, top notch!  The check in was a breeze and our bags actually made it to our room before we did.

The pool was huge and the hotel had a beautiful Jacuzzi area.  The Jacuzzi was big and was surrounded my mature landscaping.  In the evening the pools were busy and the hot tubs were full.

The beach is great and the lagoon has excellent snorkeling.  The beach side bar was a lot of fun and the bartender was super.  BEWARE of the coral on the outside edge of the lagoon.  We seen a fella come up from the beach all tore up from falling on the coral when the waves came in.  If you stay where you are supposed to be you will not have to worry about this.

The food was amazing at the hotel but it was a bit expensive.  We ate breakfast and lunch at the hotel but went out for most of our dinners.  The concierge offered some amazing tips on local restaurants and other area attractions.

The highlight of the big island was the fishing trip.  The hotel concierge booked us a 1/2 day deep sea fishing trip.  We left in the morning and the fish were really biting.  No trophies but we had a lot of action.  The sea was a little rough on the way in but we had a wonderful time.

Our stay at the Fairmont was amazing.  These are special hotels and the Big Island of Hawaii is one of a kind.  If your looking for  luxury accommodations on the Big Island come and see The Fairmont Orchid!

My wife and I had a chance to take her parents to The Royal in Cancun and The Royal Playa Del Carmen.  We stayed 3 nights at each hotel and it was awesome.

We started at the Royal in Playa Del Carmen right off 5th avenue, in Playa Del Carmen. Location, Location, Location !  We could walk to all the shopping and clubs located on  famous 5th Avenue.  The rooms were very nice, maybe not quite as new or fresh as some of the new adult only hotels but they were very nice!  The pool was huge and seemed to have a real buzz about it.  Their was a lot more activity and a bit more of a party feel with people coming and going from 5th avenue.  The beach was great and it was lined with beach cabanas but it was right next door to a road that lead down to the beach so it did have a lot of foot traffic from 5th avenue.  It is not as private as some may like and if your not in the Royal Service suites it is a little tough to find one.  The royal service suites have reserved beach cabanas.

My favorite restaurant was Asiana because of the location outside of the resort but every restaurant was very good!  This hotel is the best in Playa Del Carmen so if you want an adult only located on 5th Avenue you have to stay at the Royal Playa Del Carmen.

After 3 nights in Playa it was off the the The Royal in Cancun.  We stayed on the famed 10th floor in the Royal Service suites.  It is said to have the best view in Cancun and I would agree.  The rooms were much nicer and the view, WOW!  The pool had a huge swim up bar and it was really hopping!  The beach was super and you could see almost the entire skyline of Cancun.  The food was excellent at all of the restaurants and the room service menu seemed to have more options then the Royal in Playa.

I did prefer The Royal Cancun vs. the Royal in Playa Del Carmen.  The rooms were nicer and the views at the Royal Cancun are marvelous but the location of the Royal in Playa Del Carmen is just perfect for partying on 5th avenue.   This was one of my favorite trips and I will be returning to both of these properties.

A few years back I was fortunate to travel to the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua in Maui. My wife and I were looking to play some golf and soak up the sun.  The Ritz is a golfers paradise with two championship golf courses right on property.

The hotel also features an Environmental Program that teaches guests about Hawaiian culture and the native environment through fun-filled excursions led by expert naturalists.  The spa is world class or if your into a more active vacation take on a high-octane hike or water adventure at the Kapalua Adventure Center and Mountain Outpost.

We had a standard room with a pool view.  The 1 bedroom suites are amazing and feature a full kitchen.  The accommodations were immaculate and the service was even better.  They have three huge tiered swimming pools and had plenty of chairs.

The drinks and food were a little expensive but the food was unbelievable and the drinks were all top shelf.  The Lobby Bar, Alaloa Lounge-features  a new onyx bar with carved wood details, hand-blown glass pendants and a black lava stone wall to form the back-bar.  It was named Best Lobby Lounge on the island by the readers of Maui No Ka Oi Magazine.  They offer evening entertainment and breathtaking views.  Get there early and stay late!  The Banyan Tree is the hotel’s signature restaurant and features a bar and lounge with beautiful views of the Pacific Ocean and Moloka’i.  The menu showcases Hawaii’s abundant fruits and fresh catches for lunch and dinner.

The beach is incredible!  It is just a short walk from the pool.  The beach is private with sort of a  crescent shape and has soft, fluffy sand.  It was never crowded and most often you were sharing maybe  a few other couples or families.   The waves do come in with some force so do not turn your back on it.

I have stayed in over a dozen Ritz Carlton’s around the world and this was my favorite!  If your looking for a high end golf/Hawaiian vacation the Ritz Kapalua is truly special.