Snapshot Chronicles Roadtrip

Family travel through a slightly twisted lens. Sense of humor required. Shoes optional.

Central Vermont: Quechee to Stowe

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Our local adventures this summer are nowhere near as exciting as the Cardwells’ trip west, as we are mostly revisiting favorite places and activities. However, on the theory that some of you will be coming this way for your summer holiday, here’s the rundown on some fun things to do in Central Vermont.

Woodstock

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A family favorite is Billings Farm in Woodstock. They do a special Independence Day Celebration, including sack races, which Douglas did, and an egg toss (with raw eggs), which he did not.

Be sure to check out Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Park while in town.

Where to eat: Bentleys Restaurant downtown. Family friendly, the restaurant just got a new chef who is doing some remarkable things, at reasonable prices.

Word to the wise: Woodstock takes its speed limits and parking regulations VERY SERIOUSLY. Do not exceed the 25 MPH zones on the way in/out of town and remember to feed the meter. If you are in one of the two-hour free spots along Elm Street, don’t exceed the time limit. Park in the free lot instead. A little walk is a lot better than the inevitable parking ticket.

Quechee

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A fun (and free) activity is Quechee Gorge on Route 4. Wear comfortable shoes, and hike down to the bottom or up to the viewing spot of the dam. Both are very short walks. The state park visitor’s center has public restrooms and there are plenty of options for snacks, sandwiches and ice cream.

Waterbury
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Waterbury is the home of Ben & Jerry’s. They give a  free ice cream cone on  your birthday, so we decided it was as good a destination as any for mine (the 5th). Turned out, my tour ticket was free as well, so keep that in mind if you are in the area on your birthday. Just tell the cashier when you are buying your tour tickets.

The production line does not run on the weekend, so if you can manage to go on a weekday, it’s worth it.  But they do a decent job on the weekend as well, and no matter when you go, the tour wraps up with a free sample of ice cream.

Mount Mansfield, Stowe

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Mount Mansfield is the highest peak in Vermont, and there are a number of ways to enjoy its wonders in the summer months. Last weekend, we drove the Auto Toll Road to the (nearly) top. Cost is $24 per car, hours 9am-4pm (last entry). Other options include an alpine slide and the gondola. Years ago, Dave and I took the gondola one way with two of our dogs and then walked down.

Where to eat: Stowe has some of the best restaurants north of Boston, but if you are looking for something quick and family friendly, try Charlie B’s at the Stoweflake. There’s a nice outdoor deck in the summer months, and board games by the fireplace for the kids if they get restless while you are enjoying your meal.

More pictures from the holiday weekend on Flickr.

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Question: Why do air travelers carry-on their luggage?

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Answer:

Apart from the added bag fees on so many airlines — some are even charging an extra fee if you check the bag at the airport instead of online, there’s the issue of just how careful is the airline with our property.

After all, it doesn’t seem likely that so many travelers check bags with a big rip in the side or popped open, does it? And even though it may be raining, it is hard to believe that the bag could get THAT wet.

There’s one West Coast airport to which I used to fly frequently that broke my hard plastic luggage tags EVERY TIME.  We’ve all heard the tales of petty pilfering; it’s one of the reasons you should never put jewelry and other valuables in checked luggage.

But I have to admit, I’ve never lost a bag permanently (knock wood) or experienced the kind of damage that this gentleman did.

Snapshot: Fourth of July

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My birthday is the 5th, so I’ve always felt that the Fourth of July is my holiday. As a child, in fact, I decided that the fireworks were for me.

I’ve spent the holiday in so many different places. One year, my husband and I climbed Mount Washington in New Hampshire, and watched the holiday fireworks from above. Another, we were in Scotland, and the day was just like any other. In my childhood, we were often at my father’s family camp in western Michigan.

Here are some of my favorite things to do on the Fourth.

Fireworks

I know many communities don’t do them any more, but I do love them so. If I were spending the holiday in a city, I’d be torn between Boston and the Pops and  New York’s display sponsored by Macy’s. We however will be in central Vermont, enjoying the display in Woodstock.

A Boat Cruise

Near a body of water? Get on a boat. Any sort of boat will do, but here are some of the trips we’ve done in the Northeast over the years. Some on the holiday weekend, some at other times of the year.

Boston: Normally, the USS Constitution does its turnaround cruise on the 4th, but it won’t be doing a public cruise this year due to refurbishment. You can however take a cruise of the harbor that ends at the ship and museum. You can disembark for the tour, and then get back on a later return voyage.

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Doug on the USS Constitution

New York: Manhattan never looks better than from a deck of a boat. A few years ago, we did a tour that went around the whole island. My  memory is a bit foggy, but  I think it was the Circle Line. Check out their various sightseeing options.

Burlington, VT: Last summer, we celebrated my birthday on a Lake Champlain dinner cruise. I just about lost it when my son worked a deal with the DJ to sing me happy birthday.

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Sunset on Lake Champlain

What we’ll be doing

We’ll probably check out the activities at Billings Farm in Woodstock, have a family cook-out and then go to the fireworks. A typical small town Fourth.

I’m hoping that the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Park will have the scheduled tour of the Fallout Shelter on Sunday morning before we drive home.


Snapshot Tip: Cruise Hawaii

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Susan & Douglas on Diamond Head, Oahu. More Hawaii pictures.

About four years ago, we went to Hawaii for two weeks. After much research, we decided to do Norwegian Cruise Lines’ week-long cruise of the Islands, bracketed by a few days in Waikiki at the beginning of the trip, and after the cruise, a few days on the western side of Oahu at Marriott’s Ko Olina resort.

Why the cruise?

We did both hotel stays on points, and probably could have exchanged a timeshare week for a week on one of the islands, but since we’d never been to Hawaii, we really wanted to see as much as we could. We are generally sightseeing vacationers; we like to go to places where there are lots of historical, cultural, nature and amusement options. An occasional morning or afternoon at the pool or sitting on the beach is fine, but we like to keep moving.

The cruise turned out to be the most cost efficient way to see all that Hawaii had to offer. We unpacked once, and every day, were able to explore a different aspect of the Islands. The cost of Island hopping by air would have been much more in the end, and if we moved the bags as well, a nuisance. Especially with a five-year old.

We booked well in advance, and that made the costs even more manageable as we were able to book one of NCL’s family cabins with balcony. As far as I can tell, the Hawaii cruise is the only one that offers this particular option, and it was a great deal. There aren’t many on the ship, so you do have to book well ahead, but you only pay full price for the first two guests. Everyone else pays a cabin-share supplement, so Dave and I were effectively full price, and we paid the supplement for my mom and Douglas. We had plenty of room and an awesome balcony, which effectively doubled the cabin living space.

One thing that is really nice about the cruise option, apart from not having to un- and re-pack multiple times, is that it offers something for both sightseers/adventure seekers, and destination tourists – those folks happy to land in one place, find a beach or deck chair and relax for the week.

If you are thinking about  your first trip to Hawaii,  I urge you to consider the cruise option.

Bonus Tip: The airline lounge may be worth the cost of membership.

If you’re making the long trek to Hawaii from the East Coast, or Europe from the West, you’ll probably have a stop-over on the alternate US coast before your final flight. When we went to Hawaii,  I had enough air miles for us to all travel in first (and was also still a member of the American airport lounge), so we were able to relax in the lounge between flights. This came in particularly handy on the return when our Los Angeles to Boston flight was delayed by a few hours. It’s a whole lot easier dealing with a five-year old in an airport lounge than out in the public areas, especially in a big airport like LAX. If you aren’t a member, you can purchase a day pass for most lounges. It’s a bit pricey on a day basis and depending on the size of your party (and how strict the lounge is), you may need more than one, but if you have a long layover, it really pays off.

For the upcoming trip to Africa, I am considering joining Priority Pass, a service that allows entry into more than 600 airport lounges. I haven’t really dug into it yet to be sure that all three of us (my mom, brother and I) will be able to use their lounges on one membership or if they are even convenient to the airlines we are travelling, but we’ve got some long waits on the way home, and it will be far more comfortable in a lounge than hanging round the airport terminal. It may make more sense to use miles to join United’s Club, as it has reciprocal privileges with South African Airways, and our international flight is a codeshare. I would definitely appreciate any feedback from readers on the best way to go on this, especially if you’ve used Priority Pass and its lounges at JFK in New York or OR Tambo in Johannesburg.

Africa

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In September, my mom, brother and I will be going to Southern Africa for 10 days. It’s not a place I ever imagined that I would travel to, but I am looking forward to it immensely.


Why are we going?
Long story short, a few years ago, my mom got really involved in watching the live activity on National Geographic’s webcam at Pete’s Pond. Pete’s Pond is a man-made reservoir in the Mashatu Game Reserve in Botswana that was created from an old irrigation system as an alternative to the Limpopo River and its poachers.

My brother Doug (not to be confused with my son Douglas) got the idea that we should go to Africa, and after crunching numbers, we decided to go for it. We also agreed that this was a trip for the three of us.  My son, at  nine years old, is really too young, and if he is to stay home, so must my husband. When we told Mum, she was flabbergasted, but quickly got into the planning.

We started with some very clear requirements:

  • Mashatu Game Reserve was a must
  • We couldn’t see going all that way and not seeing Victoria Falls
  • We expected some layovers in Johannesburg
  • Cape Town would be nice (but was eventually eliminated from itinerary due to both cost and time.)

My brother took on the job of sourcing travel and safari operators and I handled the airfare search.

First, the safari operators. Doug contact Rhino Africa, Go2Africa and Journeys of Distinction (the travel agency associated with Mashatu and Mala Mala in South Africa.) Everyone was responsive but we decided to go with Journeys of Distinction. Angela, the representative from Journeys, was very helpful in narrowing down the options for the trip and because she was the “house” agency for Mashatu and Mala Mala, was able to offer us a package deal for the two reserves.

We’ll be flying into Johannesburg, with a very small window of sightseeing time there. Our main destinations are Victoria Falls (staying in Zambia), and the two game reserves. The most likely time for Johannesburg sightseeing will be the Sunday we arrive, although we do have another afternoon there between Victoria Falls and the game reserves. We are bound to be tired… but I really don’t want to miss any MUST SEEs because odds of a return are slim. I don’t sleep much anyway.

So readers, please chime in with your thoughts for Johannesburg as well as any recommendations for Victoria Falls. We have two nights there, and one full day.

Airfare

Sometimes you need to be creative. When I searched Boston to Johannesburg, everything seemed to run through Europe, adding hours to the total trip. NY JFK however had direct flights to and from which were NOT available from Boston no matter how I sliced the am departure. I think it’s because the international flight requires a two-hour layover, and nothing from Boston on a Saturday morning qualified. Whatever.

So we’re flying down to JFK the day before our Johannesburg flight and staying in an airport hotel. On the return, we’re supposed to land in the morning, so I’ve booked an early afternoon flight from JFK to Boston. They are separate tickets, so we could always get screwed by time gods on the return, but we’ll deal with that if it happens.

Moral of the story: always look at alternate airports, other options for making the connection.

SAFARI

We’ll get into more detail about the nitty gritty of preparing for safari as the time draws nearer, but here are two books to whet your appetite:

Copyright 2009-2018. All Rights Reserved. Photos copyright Susan Getgood unless otherwise noted.