Lantern Mania

[trip style = sun & camping]

{Happy 4th of July to our US readers. Enjoy the festivities and fireworks! After a fun weekend in Bellevue, today I'm celebrating in Seattle with some Canadian and US friends on a boat: trip style = cruising---well, sailing actually. Thank goodness we recently published our seafaring style guide, Buoy Oh Buoy for Fashion Friday.}

Lately, I've noticed a lot of lantern lip service: between friends, on twitter and blogs, and on the big screen. I'm wondering if it has something to do with evening summer parties, camping or the movie The Green Lantern? A combination of all three perhaps?

When I was a kid, a lantern was a craft we made in Brownies {like Girl Scouts} with scissors, a paper bag and a votive. We would cut out star and heart shapes in the bag, place the votive inside and voila: a lantern that could be used to light a dark path at night. These rudimentary lanterns were fun, and still are, but it seems in North America we are either ahead or behind the times {depending on how you look at it} in comparison to Thailand and Poland. They have flying lanterns, like mini versions of hot air ballons.

Summer Lantern Loving Camping Lanterns Thankfully, 99% of all modern camping lanterns no longer use a combination of glass and fire to light the way. Nowadays, cranks or batteries will do the trick. As one of my favourite camping necessities, lanterns do everything from the light the path to the potty at night, to gather people around the picnic table to play cards. Aside from beach bonfires, they are a summer essential for anyone who enjoys trip style = camping & glamping.

The Green Lantern Instead of releasing lanterns into the sky, BC native Ryan Renolds is the lantern in the sky. Playing a superhuman, he is bestowed with a mystical and glowing ring that gives him otherworldly powers in the summer blockbuster movie, The Green Lantern.

The Hangover II The Hangover II is pretty raunchy, but the last scene is serene and mystical. The release of flying fire balls surrounded by paper cylinders {sounds like a recipe for disaster, but looks gorgeous} into the dark of night leaves you longing to attend a destination wedding in Thailand.

Poland On June 21st the Polish people celebrated the shortest night of the year, with an impromptu, Facebook-organized gathering releasing over 11,000 glowing orbs into the night sky. See the twinkling video below. EMBED-11,000 Lanterns Floating Over Poland - Watch more free videos

[Image by @tripstyler of pictures sourced from the web]

Jetset Jingles :: Camping

[trip style = camping]

Summer just came a knocking at my door, and that means warm weather, long days, and my favorite kind of quick summer getaway: camping. There’s nothing like rounding up a group of friends or the fam, packing up the car and hitting the road to find the perfect campsite.

Along with a tent, a Coleman stove and bug spray, you can't go camping without music. Nothing beats sitting around the campfire relaxing to someone strumming your favorite lazy-day tunes on a guitar. But if you’re anything like me and can’t actually play the guitar, I’ve created the ultimate camping playlist for you to take with you on your next venture into the great outdoors.

I can almost smell the marshmallows roasting... Happy Listening.

Song List 1. Beautiful Day - All That You Can't Leave Behind 2. Soak Up the Sun - The Very Best of Sheryl Crow (Digital Version) 3. Sweet Home Alabama - The Essential Lynyrd Skynyrd 4. Something Like That - A Place In the Sun 5. Fishin' In the Dark - More Great Dirt: The Best of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Vol. 2 6. Three More Days - Till the Sun Turns Black (Bonus Track Version) 7. I Won't Back Down - Full Moon Fever 8.Free - Donavon Frankenreiter 9. I'm Yours - We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things 10. Better Together - In Between Dreams (Bonus Track Version)

Playlist

Related Travel Apps :: High-End & Easy Camp Cooking 6 Free Camping Apps

{Jetset Jingles publishes once monthly and is mixed and mastered by Nicole, amateur DJ by night and movie maven by day.}

[photo by nstoik]

Summer Vacation Ideas :: Budget

[trip style = budget]

Some people are really good at planning in advance, and others, not so much. I fall somewhere in the middle, though my friends would probably say I'm a planner. This post is for the late-blooming, or aspiring travel planners who want to go away this summer, but haven't gotten around to planning anything!

One of this month's 3-part features is Summer Vacation Ideas. Today we're looking at Trip Style = Budget ideas, next week we'll explore Trip Style = Luxury Summer Escapes, and the following week Trip Style = Weekending to extend your business or personal/family-related trip. Enjoy!

Budget Summer Vacation Ideas trip style = camping By now, serious campers have already reserved the A+ spots at campgrounds for a weekend or two in the 8-10 weeks we have the pleasure of calling summer {in many parts of North America and Europe}. The good news is, the first-come-first-serve or B+ spots are still available for online reservation! If you absolutely cannot handle putting up a tent, why not try a yurt? Some beautiful places to camp near Vancouver are Tofino {Bella Pacifica} and Washington {Deception Pass}. Cost: from $250 for a weekend, including camping fee, food and gas.

trip style = wine touring How could you not want to immerse yourself in cascading rows of fresh grapes and sip wine in an air conditioned tasting room? Venturing to the vines in summer is toasty but tastes so good. There are a multitude of wineries one could do as a day trip around Vancouver or Seattle, or a weekend trip to BC's Okanagan Valley, Washington's Walla Walla Valley, Oregon's Willamette Valley or California's Napa. Cost: from $50 for a day trip to $1000 for a 3-night tour including hotel, food, gas and tastings.

trip style = road trip Ahhh the summer road trip. So many memories---some I'd like to remember and others I'd like to forget {like the year we traveled sans air conditioning.} Nowadays cars have built-in DVDs, satellite radio, dual-zone a/c, cup holders and other doodads to ensure a peaceful journey. So take advantage of summer 2011, and hit the road Jack to uncover off-beat destinations {like the Old Country Market with goats on the roof---no joke---on Vancouver Island} you might miss when flying in and out of major cities. Cost: from $350 for a weekend including hotel, food and gas.

trip style = {desert} sun The desert is overwhelmingly hot in the summer, but if you like heat, frequent dips in the pool and misters, the prices are low!  The winter escape artists have left, leaving hotel and vacation rental availability that would be harder to get or cost-prohibitive in the high season. Case in point, the Colony in Palm Springs is on Jetsetter {travel flash sale website} this week for $115/night. Cost: from $1100 for flight, 3-night hotel, food rental car and gas.

*Where applicable, all cost estimations based on two people and $100/night hotels, modest car rentals and mid-range restaurants.

PS - Aside from our regularly scheduled content, don't miss next month's feature: Off The Beaten Path Escapes!

[images by @heatherlovesit and @tripstyler]

Travel Apps :: High-End & Easy Camp Cooking

[trip style = camping] Going camping or glamping this summer? I haven't booked a campsite yet, and have no idea where I want to go aside from "somewhere" on the West Coast, but really want to camp this summer.

One of my favourite parts about camping is the cooking and eating. Previously, my understanding of cooking at camp was roasted marshmallows, fire-roasted wieners and boxed cereal, but thanks to some of my foodie friends {whose camping menus would make you drool}, and the app revolution, I've learned it's easy and fun, to prepare and cook foodie-worthy fare at the campsite.

Foodie Camping Apps Coleman’s Camping Cookbook I featured this app last year as part of a round-up of 6 free camping apps, but it's so good, it's worth mentioning again. Think camptastic food like bocconcini and basil s'mores, beer can chicken and muffins in an orange shell. Find recipes by cook method {stove, foil, dutch oven, grill, on a stick, etc...}, meal or ingredients. +  free +  no wifi connection required +  available for iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad

Epicurious Unless you "camp" in a mobile mansion {ie - decked-out RV with more bells and whistles than a condo}, you'd think Epicurous is not for the campground. But, foodies take heart, some of the recipes can be easily tweaked for the wild. Specifically, Epicurious' 'picnic ideas’ and 'grilled mains' categories are the perfect stating point for going to town in your outdoor kitchen. Here's what's for dinner tonight: grilled lemon-oregano chicken drumsticks with orzo, green bean and fennel salad. + free + no wifi connection required +  available for iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Android

Food Network Canada Recipes Leave it to the hosts of the Food Network to inspire your camp's cooking adventures. Again, though this app isn't specifically camping-related, its recipes, especially in the 'grilling' and 'easy' sections, can be done at the campsite. Sit at your site's picnic table or in your fold-out camping chairs, and enjoy maple planked salmon with grilled lemon with apple, walnut, celery salad. + free + no wifi connection required +  available for iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad

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Other Travel Apps Every Tuesday we feature a new travel app. Don’t forget to peruse the other 75+ travel apps we’ve reviewed from travel first aid, to luxury and boutique hotel finders, to border waits and trip itinerary management. Here are the most recent:

• Vancouver Street Food
• livingsocial escapes
• Free Wifi Finders
• Hail a Taxi
• Groupon

Heavenly Huts

[trip style = glamping] {more pictures below}

Last month I found my heaven, which will forever be my earthly happy place. It's the type of locale you imagine when you're at the spa: you + deserted beach + sparkling water + waves lapping + lush greenery + birds chirping + wind in your hair. I went to this place, and not only extended my time there, but felt sick when I had to leave {but that could have had something to do with the small boat we took---the only way in and out of the island---and the 2-meter swells ravaging us from every direction}.

The Place This place is Wilson Island: a coral cay sitting directly on the southern tip of the Great Barrier Reef. Only six canvas huts dot the remote and tropical paradise found. The removed location lends itself to a body, mind and soul retreat, blending understated luxuries with eco-thoughtfulness. Each oceanview glamping retreat has dark hardwood floors, a simple area to store clothes, a plush king bed, comfy canvas pillow-topped chairs, a wide hammock and a large handmade bowl to remove sand from your shipwrecked feet. The central bathrooms are 50 steps away, but this only adds to the simplicity and low-impact footprint. And if nature calls at night, don't worry, you're in the midst of it.

A Very Important Date Beachcombing, napping, bird watching, reading and snorkeling with sharks and turtles are the day's big adventures. The evening begins with a beachside champagne toast paired with fine cheeses and crudites. This nightly tradition was my favourite time of day because that's when we witnessed fully grown turtles swim along the shoreline like they were 'late for a very important date', and baby turtles hatch just above the beach. Even though you're not supposed to mess with the circle of life, champagne in hand, I made it my mission to watch over the solo baby turtle struggling to make it to the ocean, and protect him or her from hungry, circling seagulls. Mission accomplished, I think...

The Fare Sitting together at a long wooden table with beach shells to keep our napkins in place, every meal was prepared in the central longhouse by Emilio, our enthusiastic Italian chef. Prior to serving, he would announce each course with the pride and intensity of a national leader. The announcements always started the same way: "Today I have created for you..." His selections were reminiscent of fine dining fare, yet he only had one burner, two barbecues, five propane fridges and a lean smattering of kitchen utensils. Some island delicacies that graced our plates were fresh-cut fruit, warm pain au chocolat, avocado terrine, macadamia nut-encrusted barramundi with whipped sweet potato, and watermelon granita. We had access to chocolate and wine whenever we wanted.

Next time I go to the spa, I won't need to piece together my paradise, I've now been.

What to Know

• Getting there: Fly to Brisbane, then to Gladstone via Quantas. Take a ferry {$100 per person, per way} or helicopter {$400 per person, per way} to Heron Island {owned by the same company}, then a final, 30-minute ride in a small boat where you descend a ladder into the shallow water and walk up the beach to your personal paradise.
• Prices from $671 per couple, per night.
• All meals and drinks included.
• Only two staff {who do the work of 10} tend to the island like it's their most treasured jewel. Emilio is mentioned above, calm and caring Gerry is his castaway counterpart.
• One central bathhouse includes three bathrooms and six assigned showers.
• Additional details can be found in my Trip Advisor review.

Photos {Beach arrival at Wilson Island.}

{Trip Style = Glamping.}

{Watching the day go by from the gleaming white hammock on the tent's porch.}

{The idyllic beach.}

{The longhouse.}

{The island's help yourself wine, spirits, water and chocolate storage.}

{Kitchen prep area.}

[images taken by @tripstyler on Wilson Island]