Tag Archives: hotel

Over the years, I’ve lived in Playa del Carmen, Mexico several times. I love that city and I recommend it all the time for those looking for a great vacation and for those looking to live in a tropical, laid-back destination for a while.

It’s an easy place to reach, too. I arrive at the Cancun Airport, and if I’m traveling on my own, I hop into a Cancun Shuttle shared transportation for the 50 minute ride down to Playa del Carmen. They drop me off at my accommodation (Reef 28 Hotel or an Airbnb) and just like that, I’m ready to enjoy my time in this great town.

I know that getting from the airport to Playa del Carmen, or even to the Cancun hotel zone, is a major reason for concern for many travelers. The Cancun airport is well-known for being a hassle, with a confusing and intense set-up that makes it overwhelming to book transportation at the airport once you arrive.

It takes time, you don’t know if you’re getting a good deal (it’s very easy to pay too much if you book transfers at the airport) and you’re stuck amongst the crowds of people trying to get out of there.

That’s why I typically recommend organizing transportation in advance and if you’re a solo traveler, shared transportation is the best option. This way, you avoid all the hassle at the airport, your transportation service will be waiting for you by the exit when you arrive and for a very affordable price, you’ll be taken to your hotel or apartment.

The downside of course is that the van will have other travelers too and the driver will drop everyone off in the order that makes the most sense based on the route. But in my opinion, for prices as low as $12 per person to Cancun and $25 per person to Playa del Carmen (not bad for an almost 1 hour ride), it’s worth the extra ten minutes or so that it might take to drop others off before you.

It’s funny because when I was younger and traveling on the lowest budget possible, I would almost never book airport transportation in advance. I would arrive, figure out the local bus or train system and take whatever was the cheapest option, regardless of the hassle or time it took. The goal was simple – spending the least amount of money.

But now, those days are over and the goal has shifted. When I arrive in a destination, getting to my accommodation quickly and with complete ease is what’s important. And when that can happen without having to spend a fortune, such as the case with booking shared transportation from Cancun airport, it’s a bonus and I don’t hesitate to book it.

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Every now and then while traveling, there comes a week when everything magically falls into place, with one remarkable experience after another. Some moments might have been planned, others spontaneous and several completely unexpected, but together, the result is almost hard to believe, in the best way possible.

That was my past week, while on a spectacular Las Vegas Grand Canyon road trip.

It all began with…

The Las Vegas Experience

Despite the 118F (48C) temperatures, we roamed up and down The Strip each day, wandered in and out of the hotels and casinos and spent some time in the Arts District and at the Fremont Street Experience. We went to the wacky and trippy Meow Wolf Omega Mart art installation as well and paid a visit to Gorilla Sushi where we partook in their awesome all-you-can-eat sushi deal.

And we stayed at the renovated Flamingo Hotel & Casino, right in the center of the strip. The rooms were large, very comfortable and the location was perfect. During the week it was only $40 per night.

We also ended up in a helicopter thanks to Georgiana. One afternoon she had the random idea to take a sunset helicopter ride over the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area and over The Strip. I think it went from being an idea to us being in a helicopter flying over Vegas in about 4 hours. And it was absolutely one of the best decisions we made as the views are brilliant to say the least! (We went with 5 Star Helicopter Tours. They were great and they offer cheap deals through Groupon.)

 

Next up on the Las Vegas Grand Canyon road trip….

 

The Grand Canyon Experience

We rented a car, and left Vegas. First stop – the massive Hoover Dam. It was pretty interesting to walk across it but the heat was brutal and we didn’t stay long. A couple of hours later we took a fika break in the town of Kingman, Arizona. By sheer luck, we stumbled upon the absolute cutest little bakery (Cupcakes by Jan) run by the absolute cutest and most welcoming elderly woman, who happens to also bake some outstanding cupcakes. This was an excellent find.

Then we continued driving, eventually arriving at the wonderful Grand Hotel in the town of Tusayan, near the entrance to the one and only Grand Canyon National Park. The very next morning, off we went into the park…and I’m not sure what to say about it apart from ‘go there if you haven’t been!‘. The Grand Canyon is mesmerizingly beautiful to the point of absurdity.

We spent that night in the very pleasant little town of Williams, Arizona (there’s a wide range of accommodation here), located on famous Route 66. Here we walked along the main street, checking out the historic shops, saloons and eateries, many of which seem to be left unchanged from a hundred years ago.

 

After a solid sleep…

 

The Death Valley Experience

This day was surreal as well and not an original part of our Las Vegas Grand Canyon road trip. As we were driving through Bullhead City on our way back to Las Vegas, we suddenly decided to go full force and continue on to Death Valley National Park. So, from Arizona to Nevada to California we went, and despite the driving time, we managed to arrive in the early afternoon.

Inside the park we visited Zabriskie Point (unique mountains and mud formations), Artists Palette (mountains full of colorful mineral deposits), Badwater Basin (lowest point in North America) and the Mesquite Sand Dunes (huge, silky desert sand dunes) as well as driving through a ton of other gorgeous landscapes.

The temperature did reach a ridiculous 130F (55C) though, so it was somewhat impossible to be outside the car for more than a few minutes at a time. But it also seemed to keep people away as we only encountered a handful of others during our entire time in the park, making the experience even more special.

 

So yes, this park is AMAZING. I had been to part of this park before but I honestly forgot that the landscapes were so damn otherworldly and mind-blowing. Again, AMAZING!

Finally, late that night, we pulled back into Las Vegas, promptly passed out in our hotel room and woke up the next day ready to fly back to Florida. And back in Florida is where I am now after that crazy, insanely memorable, ‘this is why I travel’, too-good-to-be-true kind of travel week!

The post A Spectacular Las Vegas and Grand Canyon Road Trip appeared first on Wandering Earl.

The UK expands list of green light countries for non-essential travel. Dannyman / Wikimedia

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The lights of the Big Apple are shining a little brighter these days with the prospect of a lot of tourist night owls returning. It’s Ariel Palitz’s job to ensure New York remains a nightlife capital of the world. mehmet canli / Flickr

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