[trip style = all]
"Hah-llo from the other side" {2016 being other side} - Adele
Every new year I take an inventory of the prior year's travel triumphs. What inspired me. The places that gave me butterflies. Hotels I'd visit again {and again}.
Thinking back to 2015, I traveled a lot with the fam-jam—sans sacrificing style—visiting nearby locales and far-flung islands. Because I'm quite choosy with my travel, I'd do many of these trips again. Here are the best.
January 2015 // Tofino + Ucluelet
When I made the 5-hour ferry + car trip from Vancouver to Tofino {a.k.a. Canada's wildest version of its West Coast}, I was reminded what a 24/7 immersion in nature does for the soul. Hint: It soothes it. Couple this with a year-round surf scene and some of the world's most consistent waves plus a sandy bottom, and Tofino is a town one must taste at least once in their lifetime {or more often}!
March 2015 // Santa Barbara
I'm not sure how it took me so long to visit Santa Barbara, the coastal town 90 minutes from LA. Now, all I know is I'd like to winter there.
April 2016 // Maui + Lanai
What started as a week-long work trip to Maui morphed into a three-week tour of the Valley Isle, plus a two-night jaunt over to Lanai. Because, the tropics.
July 2016 // Italy
Discovering a land where the wine flows like water. Life is enchanting when you drink it in from a beach club carved into a cliff beside the Tyrrhenian Sea.
September 2016 // Sonora Resort
Only an hour by float plane from Vancouver, Sonora Resort is a Relais & Chateaux slice of Canadian paradise where wilderness commingles with award-winning cuisine and curated comforts {more on this coming soon}.
September 2016 // Disney Cruise
Think Disney, then think luxury edition. Of all my forays into Mickey-themed getaways, the voyage at sea is the most elegant. Think: A ton of fun activities for families plus a nursery for tots {or kids' clubs for 5-and-up} and adult-only areas {spa, bars, restaurants}.
October 2015 // Hawaii
On Hawaii Island, cascading waterfalls, rainbow-hued botanical gardens, roadside coconut stands and lava landscapes come standard with every stay. And you don’t need to travel far to find them—at any time, every one of these otherworldly sights is less than an hour away. Add in a fish- and farm-to-fork scene made possible by the sea-to-summit topography, and it’s plain to see why life in the Pacific is so palatable.
November 2015 // Mexico
We visited the Riviera Maya {I can reveal why soon} and fell in love with Grand Velas, our posh all-inclusive stay. From there, we crossed the country to the Pacific side to spend time with family in Punta Mita.
[All photos by @TripStyler unless otherwise specified]