Dina Mishev
Dina Mishev's articles about travel, fitness, and lifestyle topics have appeared in Sunset, AAA Via, Outside, National Geographic Traveler, Shape, Health, and Hemispheres, among other publications. She is the author of Wyoming Curiosities, published by Globe Pequot, and Total Tetons, a guide to Grand Teton National Park and Jackson Hole, Wyoming available in the iTunes store. At its launch, Total Tetons was named one of 20 "New & Noteworthy" travel apps by iTunes. When not traveling, Dina is in Jackson, Wyoming.
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La Mamounia
Every hotel that undergoes a substantial remodeling or restoration has a vision of the end result and when it will reopen for business. But let’s just get one thing straight right here – how many of them take three years to complete and are worth the wait? La Mamounia is one of those.
Hard Rock Hotel San Diego
Making my reservations for the Hard Rock San Diego, I was a little scared I wasn’t cool enough for the property. My style is more relaxed than rock-n-roll. However, I was cheerfully welcomed to the property’s sleekly Spartan lobby – white marble floors, mirrors, modern leather sofas, a Technicolor light wall -- by an usherette in a uniform designed by the Black Eyed Peas’ will.i.am, I was no longer scared. I was sure. A playlist designed by the hotel’s resident Vibe Manager played in the background as I walked past one of Madonna’s bustiers. Without a doubt this place was much cooler than I.
Beyond the Zoo
Would you believe I was in San Diego twice this spring and didn’t hit Sea World once? And only spent an hour at it’s zoo? Legoland never even crossed my mind. So what did I do? Looked into why San Diego is nicknamed “America’s Finest City.” There was tacking and jibbing around the San Diego Harbor on a carbon fiber America’s Cup yacht, meeting anemones, octopi, and deadman’s fingers in tide pools at a national monument, whale (and sea lion, seal, and bird) watching, a culinary walking tour, paddleboarding lessons, and checking out the local art scene.
La Mamounia
Every hotel that undergoes a substantial remodeling or restoration has a vision of the end result and when it will reopen for business. But let’s just get one thing straight right here – how many of them take three years to complete and are worth the wait? La Mamounia is one of those.
Morocco's Mixed Bag
When American expat writer Paul Bowles wrote that travelers to Morocco “expect mystery and they find it,” he must have been thinking of Marrakech and the High Atlas Mountains that stand sentinel over it. Morocco is only seven miles across the Straight of Gibraltar from Europe but it might as well be another world. Its ethnic and cultural diversity - African, Arab, Berber, Oriental, and, more recently, Spanish and French - makes America look homogenous.
I didn’t realize it when I made my plans and still didn’t realize it a month later when I landed at Stockholm’s Arlanda airport. Rushing through customs and boarding the express train into central Stockholm, there were clues. “Hmm … the skies are really gray,” I said to myself, maybe there’s snow on the way.” It was just before two in the afternoon. Twenty minutes later as I pulled into the station in darkness, it dawned on me. It was winter in Scandinavia.
Seventy-five years ago, when Belize was still British Honduras, Aldous Huxley wrote about it. “If the world has any ends, British Honduras would certainly be one of them. It is not on the way from anywhere to anywhere else. It has no strategic value. It is all but uninhabited.”
Talk about trying to stand out! The new Mandarin Oriental Las Vegas is one of the few hotels on the Strip without a casino. The 47 story, 392 room property (opened in December 2009) doesn't have even a single slot machine. There isn't an all you can eat buffet or schmaltzy lounge act either. What is there? The luxury group's signature impeccable service, the first U.S. restaurant helmed by Michelin-starred chef Pierre Gagnaire, an afternoon high tea that'll have you pledging to eat nothing but scones and finger sandwiches for the rest of your life, a 27,000-square foot spa, and a LEED Gold rating. The Mandarin Oriental Las Vegas is the first of the 41 properties worldwide owned or operated by the group to receive LEED* certification.
Ulf Hinds - Stockholm Visitors Board:
Parts of Gamla Stan, the oldest part of Stockholm, date from the 13th century.
Winter Charms
I didn’t realize it when I made my plans and still didn’t realize it a month later when I landed at Stockholm’s Arlanda airport. Rushing through customs and boarding the express train into central Stockholm, there were clues. “Hmm … the skies are really gray,” I said to myself, maybe there’s snow on the way.” It was just before two in the afternoon. Twenty minutes later as I pulled into the station in darkness, it dawned on me. It was winter in Scandinavia.
