North America

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Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

Trip Report – 3 Days in Big Island, Hawaii

Day 1: We arrived at Kona International Airport from Los Angeles early afternoon. After picking up our rental car, we drove to our hotel for the first night, Courtyard by Marriott King Kamehameha’s Kona Beach Hotel. After checking in, we went wandering along the hotel grounds. The water being very cold for January, we spent a couple of hours by the hotel pool instead. We used our welcome drink vouchers from check-in at the pool bar and took it to our room to enjoy the view from our patio. After enjoying the drinks we left the hotel for dinner. After …

Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

Jan’ 23: Hawaii Big Island Trip – Introduction

We had been planning on going to the Big Island in Hawaii for a while. Back in 2018, we had a trip to the Big Island already booked but due to increasing volcanic activity we changed our trip and ended up in Oahu instead. When Hawaiian Airlines had a good airfare sale, I jumped on another chance to visit this island during the January long weekend (Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday). We ended up having a great time on the island along with once in a lifetime opportunity to view active volcanic activity from a distance. Hotel Review: Courtyard by …

Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

June 2019 – Chicago Trip Report

Day 1: We started the day by taking the Blue line from O’ Hare Airport to Clark/Lake station and then transferred to State/Lake station. We had purchased the $10 day pass for the CTA and it served us well throughout our trip. From the station its a close walk to the Riverwalk. There are a lot of picturesque spots along the Chicago Riverwalk. We saw quite a few interesting and notable buildings including the Trump Tower. A few minutes into the walk we came across the Vietnam Veternans Memorial. We walked the Riverwalk to Lower Michigan Avenue and then walked …

Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

May 2018: Oahu Trip Report

Day 1: We arrived at Honolulu International Airport around 10 AM on our flight from LAX. After collecting our rental car we drove to Nico’s Pier 38. My wife had watched a Guy Fieri’s DDD special (Diners, Drive-ins and Dives) featuring this restaurant so we wanted to give it a try.  I ordered the Pier 38 fish burger while she ordered the fish with caper sauce. Both were just meh and bit of a letdown. After lunch we drove to the Hilton Waikiki Village where we were staying for the first 2 nights. After check-in and some freshening up we …

Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

May 2018: Hawaii Trip – Introduction

For the Memorial Day 2018 long weekend we took some additional days off of work for a quick getaway to Hawaii (Oahu). We had originally booked 2 nights in Oahu and 2 nights on the Big Island. However, about 2 weeks before our trip the volcanic activity on Big Island was escalating and we were worried that we might not be able to go on our helicopter tour of the volcano (our primary reason to visit Big Island). Since Hawaiian Airlines was allowing fee-free changes to itineraries for the period, we changed our booking to stay in Oahu for the …

Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

September 2017 – Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks Trip Report

Day 1: During the Labor day weekend we planned to do a quick weekend getaway to the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks. Its only about a 5 hours drive from our home. We started the day fairly early and made our first stop for lunch at Three Rivers, California. There was about a 1 hour wait to enter the park and after paying the park fees we made our way through the Sequoia park. We had planned on covering the Sequoia Park on our first day so we drove towards the Giant Forest. It was fascinating to drive with …

Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

September 2016: Maui Trip Report

Day 1: We arrived on our flight from Kauai early morning. After picking up rental car, we drove from Kahului airport to Hyatt Regency on Ka’anapali Beach. After checking in, we drove to the Fish Market in Lahaina. Karen ordered some Shrimp Burrito while I had Pork Tacos. Both were very delicious. After lunch, we drove back to the resort and decided to spend rest of the afternoon on Kaanapali Beach. We walked along Ka’anapali Beach all the way to the end where Sheraton Maui Resort & Spa is located. I had read on various forums that just off the beach …

Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

September 2016: Kauai Trip Report

Day 1: We arrived at Lihue International Airport, Kauai around just before noon on our morning flight from Los Angeles. We took the Hertz airport shuttle to the car rental lot and were soon on our way to our hotel. We were staying at the Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa for 2 nights. After checking into the hotel and freshening up, we decided to go have lunch first. I had read great Tripadvisor reviews of Da Crack in Poipu area in Kauai (very close to the Grand Hyatt). So we decided to go there to grab some lunch-to-go and …

Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

September 2016: Hawaii Trip – Introduction

During the 2016 Labor Day weekend, Me and Karen took 2 extra days off from work and went to Hawaii for a mini-vacation. We visited 2 islands on this trip – Kauai and Maui. While this was my first time in Hawaii, Karen had already been to Oahu on her previous Hawaii Trip in 2014. In the following weeks, I will be posting these trip reports. Trip Report: Kauai, Hawaii Hotel Review: Grand Hyatt Kauai Resort & Spa Trip Report: Maui, Hawaii Hotel Review: Hyatt Regency Maui Resort & Spa Cost (Total for 2 travelers) : Transportation: $60 for gas in …

Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

November 2015 – Tampa Trip Report

Me and Karen just did a quick weekend getaway trip to Tampa. Earlier this year, Spirit Airlines ran a couple of “hating an airline” promotions such as “Hate Thousand Miles” promotions during which both of us netted over 16,000 miles each. Free Spirit miles expire relatively sooner than all other airlines, and so I used them up for a free one-way flight from Los Angeles to Tampa this November. Why Tampa? Well, its Florida (our favorite vacation destination state in the US) and we have never been here before. We have been to Miami in 2009 before a Caribbean Cruise as well …

Caribbean Destination Trip Reports North America

September 2015 – Curacao Trip Report

After visiting Aruba during September 2014 (exactly a year ago), we finally made our way to one of the other islands of the Netherlands Antilles – Curacao. Curacao has the same dry, desert climate as Aruba but is a larger island. Similar to Aruba, it is outside the hurricane belt in the Caribbean and therefore a good place to visit throughout the year. Our Itinerary: Flight: Ontario – Phoenix – Miami – Curacao on US Airways/American Airlines 4 Nights at Hilton Curacao Flight: Curacao – Miami on American Airlines and then Fort Lauderdale – Los Angeles on Southwest Airlines Day 1: After a red-eye …

Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

July 2015: Cancun Trip Report with Day Trip to Mayan Ruins in Tulum

Me and Karen have been wanting to go to Cancun for a long time. I had read about its white, sandy beaches for the longest time and finally decided to make it over there during the 2015 Independence day long weekend. Day 1: We flew the Delta red-eye flight from Los Angeles to Cancun and arrived at the Cancun International Airport early morning. I had booked a round-trip airport transfer through Canada Transfers (one of the highest rated airport transfer company in the Cancun Tripadvisor forum). A representative of Canada Transfers was waiting for us when we cleared immigration and …

Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

May 2015: Portland Trip Report

We spent the Memorial Day weekend over in Portland. We flew in early Saturday morning and were back home late Monday night. Me and Karen had been to Portland before in May 2013 and loved the natural surroundings as well as the large number of waterfalls in the area. This time we wanted to show my parents the area. Day 1:  We arrived late afternoon at Portland airport and picked up our rental car and drove to our hotel in east Portland. After checking in and freshening up we decided to visit the Portland Saturday Market. We had some trouble finding …

Caribbean Destination Trip Reports North America

May 2015: Port of Call – St. Maarten: Visiting Maho Beach and Mullet Bay

The last port of call for the Caribbean Cruise was the island of St. Maarten. The island holds the record of the smallest island governed by 2 countries (Netherlands and France). The cruise ship docks in the dutch side of the island, close to Philipsburg, St. Maarten. Karen and my parents decided to go shopping at this port so I went out on my own. After disembarking, I made my way to the ferry terminal by the cruise port and bought a day pass for $7 which allows unlimited trips by the ferry. The ferry trip from the cruise terminal to …

Caribbean Destination Trip Reports North America

May 2015: Port of Call – St. Kitts: Visiting South Friars Beach

Before the cruise while researching about St. Kitts, I found out from Tripadvisor forums that most previous cruise goers were recommending either Cockleshell Beach or South Friars Beach. Since Cockleshell Beach is much further south compared to South Friars and there did not seem to be that much quality of beach difference based on reviews we chose the latter. After disembarking from the ship and walking through the duty free area of the terminal at Port Zante we started negotiating fares from the terminal to the South Friars Beach. Finally we found a cab driver who would drive us for …

Caribbean Destination Trip Reports North America

May 2015: Port of Call – St. Lucia : Visiting Rodney Bay and Reduit Beach

St. Lucia is one of the two port of calls (the other being St. Kitts) in the 7-Day Caribbean Cruise itinary that does not have spectacular beaches compared to what people expect when they think of the Caribbean. After researching online at various websites, I had decided that we were going to go to Reduit Beach at Rodney Bay which is located in the northern part of the St. Lucia island. After disembarking from the ship, we walked through the duty free shopping area and outside the Cruise terminal. There were a lot of cabs outside the terminal but their …

Caribbean Destination Trip Reports North America

May 2015: Port of Call – Barbados : Visiting Carlisle Bay

We disembarked from the ship around 9 AM and made our way through the duty-free shopping area in the cruise terminal. Outside the cruise terminal there were a large number of cabs and vans waiting on passengers. We decided on a beach day in Barbados and after researching online about various beaches in Barbados, I had settled on Carlisle Bay. This beach is very close to the Cruise terminal and there are two options to get there. * 5$/person one-way by cab * 2$/person one-way by bus/van to town and then walk to the beach (about 10 minutes walk) Since there were …

Caribbean Destination Trip Reports North America

May 2015: Port of Call – St. Thomas : Visiting Trunk Bay, St. John

Our first port of call for the 7 day Southern Caribbean Cruise out of Puerto Rico was St. Thomas, USVI. There are a few very beautiful beaches in St. Thomas, namely Magens Bay and Coki Beach. However, I had read about the Trunk Bay (located in Virgin Islands National Park) in the neighboring island of St. John, USVI which has been listed among top 10 Caribbean beaches, and so I wanted to visit this one during our stop in St. Thomas. Even though Carnival Cruises offers shore excursions for trips to St. John, I did enough research to figure out that it was …

Caribbean Cruises Destination Trip Reports US, Canada, Mexico

May 2015: My Parents’ USA Trip – From Puerto Rico to Portland: Introduction

My parents are visiting us again in May and will be staying with us for just over a month. Since my parents really loved the 5 day Caribbean Cruise we took in 2012, I went ahead and booked a 7 day Southern Caribbean Cruise with Carnival. Also, for the Memorial Day long-weekend, I wanted to take them on a trip to Portland, which we loved during our long weekend trip in 2013. Here is a list of the upcoming Trip Reports and Hotel Reviews for the trips in May 2015: Hotel Review: Days Inn Jamaica – JFK Airport Puerto Rico Trip …

Destination Trip Reports North America US, Canada, Mexico

February 2015: Whale Watching Trip Report in Point Loma, San Diego

We had been thinking of going for a whale watching trip for a while. An opportunity presented itself when Karen’s niece wanted this for her 18th birthday present. After doing a lot of research on the internet, Karen finally chose the H&M Landing company based out of Point Loma, San Diego. We arrived at the pier on a sunday afternooon and after exchanging our internet purchase receipt with a ticket we arrived at the boat. Our boat captain was Scott McDaniels who also does multi-day sport-fishing trips down the coast of Mexico. He is a very good captain and it made …