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Kauai

PRINCEVILLE, KAUAI – It’s dusk at the Princeville Makai golf course on the north shore of Kauai and I’m bouncing around the practice area on a golf board. It’s kind of a Segway meets snowboard affair, a mechanized bit that golfers can use to get around the course in a different, youthful kind of way. It takes some getting used to, but it’s clearly a step above the dowdy golf carts you see puttering around most courses or Florida subdivisions. Also different at Princeville Makai are the short, four-hole lessons you can take and the $10 Saturday clinics and sunset Read more

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I got news of a remarkable study the other day from Resonance Consultancy, which did a report on 121 U.S. cities and ranked them according to their “experiential quality.” It strikes me as a bit of an inexact science, but the idea behind the study is a very good one that involved analyzing consumer comments on various websites to determine not just actual numbers of who goes where but the level of engagement and happiness people feel when they go to a destination. In a press release they sent, Resonance officials said industry folks know about visitor county,, spending and Read more

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The other day I talked about my favourite Canadian destinations and travel bits for 2014. Here are some thoughts (okay, a LOT of thoughts) about the U.S. and a couple Caribbean and European spots I visited during the year. Most surprising U.S. destination: Apalachicola, Florida. A super-relaxed, fun town in a quiet section of the Florida panhandle with just the right mix of old-time charm and trendy, new shops. A very good brewpub, too. Most wonderful host: The delightful Anthony Hunte of Hunte’s Gardens in Barbados. A lovely man, great conversationalist and incredible gardener. His garden is always the highlight Read more

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Kauai’s Hanapepe is a quiet, wonderful town with a western flair and a laid-back, artsy atmosphere. Click here for my full story from the Toronto Star in November, 2014.

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The Hanalei Valley on north Kauai is a lush, tropical spot where they still grow taro and live close to the land. The north coast of the island of Kauai features gorgeous mountains and fabulous gardens. Try a hike along the coast to a lonely beach that will have you uttering words like “paradise” over and over. Princeville Golf Course is a spectacular layout near the town of Hanalei on the north part of Kauai. Tahiti Nui is a fun bar in Hanalei town, where part of the movie “The Descendants” was filmed. I did NOT spot George Clooney when Read more

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