Traveling with Karen

Lido is a Green Getaway From Venice

Reachable in a few minutes by public sea bus from various points in Venice, the island of Lido is a quiet, green getaway from the hubbub of tourism in the city. A strip of beaches facing the Adriatic and tree-shaded parks are popular with daytrippers all summer, and visitors in the know stay in Lido hotels, zipping back and forth on the frequent water taxis, ferries (you can bring a car) and sea buses. Families opt for lodging on Lido, so that kids can run around, swim in the hotel pools and play on the beach--not possible in the city.
    The Westin Excelsior Resort is the top choice, a smashingly flamboyant, century-old resort with private cabanas on the beach, luxe designer boutiques, a sunny, beachside terrace for drinks and meals, and 5-star accommodations and service. The hotel offers complimentary private launch service to and from Venice all day and into the evening, connecting with sister Starwood hotels, the Danielli, the Westin Regina-Europa and the Gritti Palace.
    If you're on a budget, consider the Hotel Panorama, on the waterfront right at the ferry/sea bus stop. Also a hundred years old (completely updated now) the hotel is fresh and clean, and the people very friendly and helpful. We had a king room with 3 big windows overlooking the Venice skyline, with a tiny bathroom and a tiny shower, high ceilings, Murano glass sconces; breakfast on the terrace; bar but no restaurant––about 200 Euro. Restaurants in the village are a few steps away, the hotel has an arrangement for guests to enjoy a nearby beach, and you can take long walks or bike rides. Unlike most Lido hotels, the Panorama is open all year round.

How to get to Lido from the train station? It's either a $100 private water taxi (up to 6 people); or the public sea bus, with taxi to the hotel, about $50 altogether for two people. Because we were jetlagged and exhausted upon our arrival, we took the water taxi to Lido. Days later, we departed on the sea bus to the train station, which was fun, as the bus makes several stops and goes through the port area and along the waterfront; the water taxi jets along so fast that you don't get that nice tour.

Luxury Golf Magazine: 1 Year Anniversary

My online magazine focused on luxury golf resorts, BestGolfResortsofTheWorld.com is a year old now, and continues to change and expand. We have just launched the new blog, in time for this year's golf travel season, to keep readers up to date on what's hot, what's new, what's coming up in the world of golf resorts and golf travel around the world.

Check out the new blog:
BestGolf.typepad.com/blog

Current features at BestGolfResortsoftheWorld.com:
World Golf Village, Florida
Girls Getaway Palm Springs
The Greenbrier, West Virginia
Playground in Orlando
Cruises for Golfers

Hiking in San Diego County

Unlike the several other creek valleys that run to the sea out of the coastal mountains in San Diego County, Los Penasquitos Canyon Preserve is a rare patch of semi-wilderness where a year-round artesian spring has for about 6,000 years or so provided a ribbon of life. Native Americans were the first inhabitants--acorn-grinders, they huddled near the dense forest of California live oaks, trading with coastal and inland tribes. The vast canyon became the first Mexican land grant in the early 1800s and the site of one of the first adobes built in Alta California. Later in the century the first intercontinental mail route ran through, joining the western territories with the midwest and the east, and was followed by the Butterfield Stage coaches.
    Today, miles of idyllic hiking and mountain biking trails wind along the scrub-covered hillsides and across the canyon floor, meeting, as bobcats, coyotes, deer and Southern Californians have always done, at the bubbling stream of fresh water cascading downhill between a cacophony of giant boulders.
    The canyon is easily accessible, just east of Highway 5.

Tranquility in England

Renowned author and Anglophile, Bill Bryson, recently addressed the Society of American Travel Writers in Manchester, England, regaling us with jokes and tall tales. He said, "I have made a career out of being a terrible traveler." When asked what he likes about England, he said, "Just look around."
    Originally from Iowa, now a resident of Norfolk, England, Bryson is Chancellor of Durham University, and the recipient of an honorary OBE for services to literature. Beyond just looking around his beloved English countryside, he is president of the Council to Protect Rural England (CPRE). Among accomplishments over the last few years, CPRE has helped to prevent A303 becoming a dual carriageway road through the Blackdown Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Somerset.
    The organization launched "tranquillity maps" to show the range of tranquillity across England, and facilitated new legislation to save starry nights by making light pollution a Statutory Nuisance. CPRE Oxfordshire created the Oxford Green Belt Way, a 50-mile circular walk around Oxford, a route created using existing footpaths and bridleways. CPRE believes that a beautiful, tranquil, diverse and productive countryside is fundamental to people's quality of life(cpre.org.uk). 

Progress? for Women Traveling in Saudi

Women in Saudi Arabia can now stay in a hotel without a male guardian, according to a government decision that comes as the country faces increasing criticism for its severe restrictions on women. The ministry issued a circular to hotels asking them to accept lone women — as long as their information is sent to a local police station. The decision was adopted after a study conducted by the Interior Ministry, the Supreme Commission of Tourism and the religious police authority known as the Commission for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice. Ohhhh, thank you very much.