220: African Safaris
Vacation Mavens
Tamara is hosting an all-women small group trip to Portugal this fall and she would love for you to join her! . Did you know that Kim has been on safaris in four African countries? Today she shares some great tips that will help you decide where you might want to go, understand the differences between various safari experiences, and provide some advice for planning an African safari trip. You can read more about a few of Kim's safari experiences here:
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219: German Christmas Markets Trip
Vacation Mavens
Tamara is hosting an all-women small group trip to Portugal this fall and she would love for you to join her! . In this episode, Tamara talks about her two-week German Christmas Markets road trip! If you have this magical holiday trip on your radar, make sure to give this episode a close listen and check out the following articles:
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Barge and River Cruising Through France
Vacation Mavens
Before we say goodbye to summer and pull on our flannels and break out the pumpkin spice, Tamara and Kim are back with a recap of Tamara's European summer travels including a month spent exploring France by river and barge cruise! Tamara first spent two weeks in the United Kingdom, on a road trip through both Scotland and Wales with two other travel writers. She then took the Eurostar down to France and spent one week cruising through the Canal Nivernais on the Hotel Barge Elisabeth. Next, she went to Bordeaux and her husband joined her for a weeklong river cruise with AmaWaterways. Tamara...
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217: Scottsdale and Japan (Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka)
Vacation Mavens
Well it has been a minute since we had a chance to catch up and record a podcast but in this episode Tamara shares her insights and experience from her recent family trip to Japan. Kim and Tamara also share their love for Scottsdale, Arizona and some of the things they did on a girls' trip together. Read more at: Tamara also talked about her time in Paso Robles, California. You can read her to get inspired to visit this wine region. Kim attended conferences in Walt Disney World (read her tips for using DVC points to ), Disney Land, and San Antonio. She also took a family cruise to...
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216: Ireland and Northern Ireland
Vacation Mavens
Kim took a last minute spring break trip to Ireland and Northern Ireland with her younger daughter and this week on the podcast, she tells us all about it! She flew into Dublin and then stay at a country estate hotel in Northern Ireland before visiting Belfast, the Causeway Coast, Derry/Londonderry, and Galway before looping back to Dublin. See Kim's articles on: Ireland Trip Highlights: in Northern Ireland Belfast - Titanic Belfast and city architecture - Carrick-a-Rede bridge, Giant's Causeway, Dunluce Castle in Derry - walk the walls around the city Galway - Kim...
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215 Oceanside Disneyland California
Vacation Mavens
Spring break is almost here and on this episode Kim and Tamara share their experience on a girls' trip in Oceanside, California and then their mother-daughter trip to Disneyland with their girls. If you want some inspiration for a SoCal getaway, be sure to listen in!
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214 Northern Italy + Big Announcement
Vacation Mavens
Happy New Year! We are back and apologize for taking so long to release a new episode. Moving forward, we will strive to have one episode a month to share our travels and tips, as we continue to each put more time into our respective websites. But first, Tamara has a big announcement and that is that she is hosting a women-only small group trip to Iceland in September 2023! You can get all the information on and she really hopes that some listeners will be able to join! Note that there is a discount of 15,000 ISK if you register by January 15, 2023. Next Tamara tells us all about her...
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213: Glacier Country, Montana
Vacation Mavens
This episode is sponsored by Glacier Country Tourism. All opinions are our own. This week, Tamara shares what it is like to visit Glacier Country, Montana on a girls' trip and Kim shares her thoughts on this scenic part of Northwestern Montana. From Missoula to Whitefish, Kalispell to Glacier National Park -- if Montana is on your bucket list, give this episode a listen! Read more: Things to do in Glacier Country, Montana Glacier Country is a tourism region of Northwestern Montana that covers eight counties To get to Glacier Country you can fly into Missoula or Glacier Airport in Kalispell,...
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212: Summer Travel Catch Up
Vacation Mavens
We are back from our summer travel and packed a whole lot into a one episode recap! We apologize in advance for some audio difficulties on this one, especially after taking so long to get it live. Thanks for hanging in there with us! On this episode we cover Tamara's summer trips to: Nantucket (read her ) New Brunswick, Canada (, , and ) Prince Edward Island, Canada () Sailing on the And Kim shares about her adventures: Mediterranean cruise on Costa Cruise Lines () Gorilla trekking in Uganda Alaskan cruise on Holland America Graduation trip to Disney World and Universal Orlando ()
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211: NYC to Bahamas Cruise
Vacation Mavens
We are still catching up about our spring break trips and this time Kim shares the ups and downs from a Norwegian Cruise Lines voyage from New York City to the Bahamas with stops in "Orlando" and Norwegian's private island. Listen in and see if you are ready to set sail. In NYC, Kim stayed in the Hyatt Centric in Times Square for 2 nights before her cruise. The hotel was part of the American Express Fine Hotels Collection and she was able to get a $200 statement credits on her Amex Platinum Card. The hotel has a good location, but slow elevators and the rooftop bar is not open to minors....
info_outlineAll of this family time has been great, but when this is all over, I think us moms are going to need a girlfriend getaway. This week, Kim and Tamara chime in with their picks for girlfriend getaway destinations and tips for planning a drama-free trip.
ON THE PODCAST
00:30 - Sponsor - Comrad Socks
01:30 - What we are doing to keep active
03:25 - East coast destinations
09:02 - West coast destinations
12:05 - Different kinds of girlfriend getaways
19:17 - Ski resorts in the summer
23:12 - Trips overseas
24:25 - Planning your trip
ABOUT OUR SPONSOR
This episode is sponsored by Comrad Socks. Comrad compression socks are an essential no serious traveler should board a flight without — at least on LA-NY or transoceanic segments — and makes a major difference in how your legs and feet feel during the flight, upon arrival, and the next day. Their aim is to make the best, most stylish, comfortable version of what’s traditionally been a boring but useful product—and that’s why travel customers that already know and wear compression are getting excited about. Receive 20% off your first using discount code VACATIONMAVENS.
GIRLFRIEND GETAWAY DESTINATIONS AND TIPS
- Some of our favorite east coast girlfriend getaway destinations:
- Saint Augustine, Florida; can be compared to Charleston, SC or Savannah, GA in its history. It has great food, warm weather and some great sites and shops.
- Gulf Shores or Orange Beach, Alabama; beautiful sunrises and beach walks, great food, fun beach bars, and plenty of things to do.
- Some of our favorite west coast destinations to have a girls trip.
- Wine Country; would probably make the top of the list for most girls trips. Napa, Sonoma, Santa Rosa to name a few. Going to these destinations does not mean that all you are doing is going to wine tastings. There are a lot of other opportunities there like zip lining, hiking and more.
- San Diego, CA; has some amazing food and some really great resort hotels.
- Hawaii is also a popular getaway since it is much easier to get to from the west coast, even for just a weekend getaway.
- Getting away to Arizona can give you a surprising mix of activities. You can go on some outdoor adventures then come back and have a relaxing spa visit. El Paso, Texas is another surprising girlfriend getaway destination. With its variety of different activities to relax and wind down or get out and try something new and adventurous.
- Ski resorts are not just for the winter. They try to have a lot of activities during the summer as well. Depending on the resort you go to they can offer a wide variety of outdoor activities. Including; ziplining, water parks, hiking trails, slides, adventure courses and much more.
- Depending on where you live in the USA, planning a trip to a different country can be faster and easier to get to than the other side of the US. Ireland, Portugal, and Iceland have all made great girls' trips.
- Planning a trip with multiple people can be hard but you have to make sure that one person is more of the lead on the trip. This person may have to push and make the hard decisions. Be honest with yourself and the people you are going with, especially when it comes to money. You don’t want to be the one that ends up spending more money because you lent it to someone to cover their part. You also don’t want to be the one that has to back out last minute because you actually can’t afford to go. This might leave everyone else having to pay more if you are splitting costs during the trip.
FOLLOW US AND SPREAD THE WORD!
If you liked this show, please be sure to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play and leave us a review! Have a question or comment? Send us an email at [email protected]. You can also follow our travels on Stuffed Suitcase and We3Travel, or follow the Vacation Mavens on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter. Thanks for listening!