Destination Review - Watamu, Kenya

Watamu is a beautiful coastal town that is located south of Malindi and north of Mombasa. It boasts of white sandy beaches and a warm climate perfect for your summer vacation. While there are plenty of good hotels in the area, this post will only cover five 5-star hotels that you can be rest assured are up to standard.

The Charming Lonno Lodge is one of the best in the hotel business. It has spacious rooms, superb hospitality, great service and delicious meals. The staff is attentive and dedicated to making your stay in the hotel as fulfilling as possible.

Chrystal Bay Resort is a hotel where you can only expect pampering and comfort. It is located next to the beach for easy access. It has luxurious suites that merge both the Kenyan and Italian culture. The hotel is simply beautiful, to say the least.

Mawe Resort makes it to this list as the serene and quiet facility. It has excellent host services and great food. For those who wish to escape the hustle and bustle of town, the resort is the best option in Watamu.

Garoda Resort is another resort with amazing hospitality and good access to the beach. It has spacious and luxurious rooms. The food here may be a let-down but those who enjoy Indian food will be thrilled.

Watamu Palm Beach is located near the Watamu National Marine Park. It only has eleven rooms that are fully equipped with private bathrooms. The quiet hotel allows an intimate stay in Watamu. It has spacious rooms and superb hospitality.

Watamu is a beautiful coastal town. Visited by many tourists yearly, it has gained a reputation of being a serene and calming environment for those who wish to escape the harsh city life. Visit any of the beautiful hotels above for a thrilling experience.


Wet And Wild Hamilton Island - Australia

Nestled amongst Queensland’s Whitsunday Islands, Hamilton Island encapsulates the best that Australia has to offer – perfect weather, azure waters on pristine beaches, coral reefs, exotic wildlife, fresh food and sumptuous wines as well as the Aussie sporting spirit of adventure at every turn. The Best Job in The World Campaign certainly got people across the globe talking, with more than 34,000 entries and an estimated $US70m worth of publicity worldwide.

Hollywood In Hamilton

Even Oprah Winfrey wanted to get in on the action. During her recent visit Down Under, the megastar flew her lucky audience winners to Hamilton Island for a feast cooked by hunky celebrity chef Curtis Stone. It’s not the first time that the idyllic island has been celebrity-studded. Hit Australian film Muriel’s Wedding filmed the honeymoon there (under the moniker of Hibiscus Island). Nicole Kidman and Sam Neill shot Dead Calm in Whitsunday passage. Hamilton Island’s marina has earned the nickname Hollywood, because of its film connections.

Wet and Wild!

It’s not surprising that Hamilton Island can attract A-listers. With crystal clear waters at the doorstep of the hotels and luxury bungalows lining the shore, the water-sports and activities are there for the taking. From windsurfing to sailing, jet skiing to snorkeling, Hamilton Island has a plethora of wet and wild fun for all ages.

Aye, Aye, Captain!

Imagine chartering a yacht to see the 74 Whitsunday Islands up close and personal. Snorkel off the side of the boat surrounded by tropical fish, luminescent coral and breathtaking sea-life. Hamilton Island offers accredited sailing courses for beginners, competent crew and captains so you can sail off into the sunset safely.

Landlubbers

If you’re more of a landlubber, then Hamilton Island’s world-class golf course, luxury spas, adventure tours or wildlife sightings are for you. The 18-hole golf course is just a five-minute ferry ride away at Dent Island and boasts a beautiful view over the ocean and Hamilton Island. If holiday rejuvenation is your mantra, then there are several spas offering full-body treatments from facials to massage, hair masques to foot rubs and everything in between. For those that can’t sit still and need to get the adrenaline pumping to fully unwind, then hit the go-kart track or quad bike trails through the bush. Or make like Oprah and cuddle a koala. Just watch out for those amorous ones! From July to September, Hamilton Island is a highway for migrating whales, so don’t forget to bring the binoculars.

Hamilton Island’s natural beauty, man-made adventures, rejuvenating views and expanses of pristine waterways make it the perfect tropical adventure. And the best thing is, you don’t even have to leave Australia. Flights to Hamilton Island are available from most Australian capital cities


Airport Transfers In London

Airport travel could be a very overwhelming and irksome journey, traveling across mazes of immigration and different checks. It could be a very tiring process if there are no plans in place for transfers. When you reach the city of London, there are many options to airport transfers other than the regular taxi services. One can opt for going by train or a public bus. In most buses and trains, there are options for securing your luggage safely without disturbing other fellow passengers. Also, most train stations that are disabled friendly, have lifts and easy commute options for travelers as well.

Reach On Time With Non-Stop Trains - Easy Alternative To Taxis

If you do not want to spend money on taxis, there are open options to choose trains that go non-stop from the Heathrow Airport to Reading or Victoria. Most often, these would cost you very little compared to using the taxi service. It could be daunting if you had a journey with more than 6 hours on the flight. Better not to opt for a train travel in that case. However, In case you want to reach soon, a train is the better option.

Tips To Choose The Right Taxi Provider:

If you decide that a taxi would be more suitable for you owing to traveling with kids or elders, keep in mind that a good taxi assistance can be booked in advance to avoid any annoyance in finding a good service. Here are basic pointers that help in making a choice:

1. Weight and passenger limitations - Always check for the limitations specified to avoid any last minute confusions.

2. Meet and Greet Service - Most service providers aim at a meet and greet service. Just submit your details in the online portal of the taxi service and they would greet you at the airport when you arrive and let you pay once your travel is completed.

3. Round the clock service - It is also best to find out if the service and customer desk is available around the clock to make sure you are in safe hands. It will greatly help especially if you are new to London.

Whether you get down at the Stanford or Gatwick Or the Heathrow, make sure you plan up a good possible way to travel back to your place before your flight starts. It will help you sort and weed out unwanted time delays getting your airport transfer done in a safe and quick manner.


Documenting Your Travels

An important part of travel that is far too often overlooked is documenting the memories you make.

It's instinctual for most of us to document our time traveling with photographs, but what happens to them once we're home? All too often mine sit on a memory card only to be forgotten until the next trip comes along.

Social media has helped, in the sense that we are now good and trained at uploading memories instantaneously. These aren't comprehensive memory safe's though, only showing a day or a moment where in years to come you'll wish you remembered more than a selfie and a smart caption.

My favourite way is journaling and I find it's a relatively easy habit to get yourself into when you're traveling, much easier than when at home. I make sure to take time each day to write, even just in list form, where we went and what we saw. For the wordsmiths amongst us you may like to write a more comprehensive account, but you'll be amazed at how much memory recall you can have from even just reading the name of a place or cafe you visited.

If printing out photos isn't your thing, I'd highly recommend picking your favourite photos as you go and then having them printed into a book when you get home. We only started doing this recently, and I'm trying to organise myself into doing the same for some old trips too - there are loads of companies online that will bind your memories together and send you a gorgeous coffee table book of your adventure. This is great for showing friends and family as well as being a precious keepsake for yourself.