Travel

If you had told me that in 2020 I’d do Sitka Alaska whale watching in September, I would have said, “huh, where?” Prior to July, I had never even heard of Sitka. One night, my dear friend called me and told me she and her family were considering moving to Sitka Alaska. I pictured giant glaciers and her family living in an igloo. Ok, not quite, but I definitely didn’t know what to expect. The moment my friend decided to move to Sitka, I told her I was coming to visit.

Is flying safe during COVID? I don’t have a crystal clear answer for you – it’s more nuanced than that. But I can tell you that there are ways to be safer than not, so I wanted to share my experience with you.

If there is one thing I miss because of COVID, besides seeing my family, it is traveling. I had many trips planned for this past spring and summer that I canceled. Although travel is allowed, I’m trying to limit my travel because I think it is the best decision for public health and my family’s health. I have done a few local/regional trips around Southern California, however.

I’ve gotten super spoiled. Prior to 2019, I had only been to Disneyland 1 time when I was six. Then, I moved to LA and last and prior to COVID, I think I’ve been about 10 times. I LOVE Disneyland. It really is a magical place. I feel like a kid every time I get to go and experience the fun through my children’s eyes. Just one week before COVID quarantine started, I was able to attend the Disney Food and Wine Festival with my sister, who was visiting.

I’ve lived in Southern California for nearly 5 years, on and off. I’ve traveled up and down the coast from San Diego to Santa Barbara. Honestly, I thought I had been to all of the beaches in LA, San Diego, and Orange County. But last week, I found my new favorite beach. One of the major reasons I couldn’t wait to move back to California is because of the beaches. Given that I have experienced a lot of what Orange County has to offer, I thought I’d share the best Orange County beaches.

I’m a lifestyle blogger, who over the last few years, has morphed into a travel-centric blogger. For my last two jobs, I had many opportunities to travel nationally (Seattle, Miami, New York) and internationally (like South Africa, Buenos Aires, Italy, Turks & Caicos, Puerto Vallarta). This spring, I was supposed to visit Montreal, Slovenia, and a few other U.S. cities too.

Back in March, I had the chance to go to Huntington Beach with the Travel Mom for her first-weekend getaway. She had many fun activities on her weekend itinerary, including fancy dinners, parties, and some amazing speakers. One thing I never expected, was that I would learn how to surf.

Back in February, I had another opportunity to visit Miami. I’ve gone the last three years in February for work reasons, and it’s absolutely the best time to visit the city, in my opinion. Now that Florida and many other states have reopened after lifting their coronavirus stay home orders, I thought it was the right time to write this long-overdo story. Today, I want to share with you some fun things to do in Miami this weekend, or the next time you visit.

Well, when I wrote this post I didn’t assume that Disneyland and the Disneyland Grand Californian Hotel and Spa would be closed! In these unprecedented times, when everything is closed and most people’s travel plans have halted, it’s still a great time to reminisce and think about a better tomorrow. With optimism and future family travel adventures, I wanted to recap our recent stay at the Grand Californian.