Sure, a ticket to see Aunt Gladys next spring would be a great way to spend your Aeroplan points. But maybe this Christmas you could try something a little sexier or exotic (no offence to Aunt Gladys). You’re in luck, because Aeroplan officials have unveiled a huge lineup of goodies that you can purchase to impress your loved ones, or those you’d like to make love you a little bit more. From glamorous Tissot watches to Bose electronics to Roots shaving kits to one-of-a-kind gifts you simply can’t find in a store (such as a guitar autographed by members of Read more
Australia/New Zealand/PAC
Golf. Beautiful deserts. Spas. Cactus. Pretty good Mexican food. Those are some of the standard cliches you hear about Arizona. And with good reason. The golf is excellent, the desert landscape haunting and lovely, the spas to-notch, the cactus ever-present and the Mexican food to die for. 53_Vineyard-Wine_Photo Credit AOT But there’s so much more to the Grand Canyon State than that. Such as olive oils. Fresh citrus and tons of other produce, including organic honey. Great shopping in cities such as Scottsdale. And very good wine. We here in Canada may think of low-lying cities like Phoenix and wonder Read more
AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND – We hear a lot about bungee jumping and hot springs in Rotorua and those oh-so wonderful pinot noir wines from Otago and the sauvignon blancs from Marlborough. But even a travel guy who should know better finds himself in this wonderful country and gets surprised at the sheer variety of the place. Auckland, for example, gets vastly overshadowed by the “usual” tourist spots in New Zealand, not to mention the attention that gets showered on cities such as Sydney by visitors such as Oprah Winfrey. It doesn’t have an opera house to rival Sydney or a Read more
Here’s a post from a great trip to New Zealand a few years back. Awesome golf, great food and unforgettable scenery… NORTH ISLAND, NEW ZEALAND—You drive down a dirt road a half hour outside Kerikeri, a town of maybe 6,000 permanent residents. Suddenly there’s a plain, wooden gate that looks for all the world as if it’s meant to keep sheep off the road, which it probably is. It’s a level of modesty that befits this country that one local described to me as “second-gear.” But the golf resort that lies behind the plain fence is sheer glory. Kauri Cliffs Read more
Here’s a post from one of my favourite cities in the late fall of 2010… SYDNEY – Still pretty rainy here in Sydney. Unusual for this time of year, but we can probably blame El Nina. Or El Nino. Or some kind of weird climactic situation. It was close to 30 degrees here a week ago, and it’s usually in the mid-20’s by now as Sydney approaches the summer. This would be the equivalent of early May for them, so it’s usually a brilliant time of year. Instead, it’s gone from beautiful to bizarre, with daytime temperatures in the teens Read more
