It’s officially spring as of 11:06 p.m. Eastern Time today, a time for new beginnings and new travel destinations. With that in mind, here are some of my fave places from the last few years that would make for a nice spring visit. QUIET CARIBBEAN Bequia, pronounced Beckway, this is a fabulous, laid-back Caribbean island that’s part of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. It’s about a one-hour ferry ride from Kingstown, St. Vincent, and a pretty ride at that. The Bequia Beach Hotel is a superb place to rest your head. SINGAPORE SHINES This Asian city is a terrific destination, Read more
Tampa
TAMPA – The growing downtown skyline is impressive. The growth of the Tampa food scene is what really grabbed my attention. I recently enjoyed three full days in Tampa and sampled everything from Middle Eastern cuisine to Michelin-starred Italian, and from craft cocktails to maybe the best tuna poke nachos I’ve had outside Hawaii. And that was served up at a sports bar/brewhouse on Super Bowl Sunday, when you pretty much expect a diet of Budweiser and Buffalo chicken wings. I also checked out a fine art museum, took a ride on an electric boat on a brilliant sunny day, Read more
Canadians are looking for trips to Asia for March Break, but Florida also is high on the list. According to data from KAYAK, the world’s leading travel search engine, Asia continues to be the top trending spot for Canadians over spring break, with a 14 per cent increase in flight searches since last year. And with overall airfare costing less (down 12% in cost) in 2024 compared to 2023, now may be the time to take that trip. Their study found that Shanghai is the top trending March Break spot, but that the best deals are for Tampa. Read more
Canadians have a great new way to get to one of the top destinations in Florida. Porter Airlines today launched daily, roundtrip service between Toronto Pearson International Airport and Tampa. This is the first U.S. route operated by any airline with the state-of-the-art Embraer E195-E2. Porter is the North American launch customer for Embraer’s newest family of E2 jets. The 132-seat, all-economy aircraft has a two-by-two configuration, which means no middle seat on any Porter flight. Porter passengers also enjoy free WiFi, a selection of premium snacks, and free beer and wine served in glassware. Priority check-in, extra legroom seats, Read more
Hurricane Idalia is sending massive storm surges cascading into parts of Florida, and also wreaking havoc for travellers and airlines. Reuters reports that airlines in the United States canceled more than 850 flights today (Aug. 30) as the storm landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region as an “extremely dangerous” Category 3 storm. Southwest Airlines had canceled 222 flights as of noon Eastern Time, while Delta Air Lines and American Airlines canceled 158 and 132 flights, respectively, as of 8:17 a.m. ET, according to flight-tracking website Flightaware.com. The website reported 65% of incoming flights to Tampa International Airport had been cancelled, Read more
