Jeremy

Jeremy founded Living the Dream in 2008 to chronicle his long-term trip around Asia. Since then he has been on two long-term trips, visited 69 countries, and is just getting started. He is now on a Lifestyle Design quest to build businesses to pursue a life of travel.

Watkins Glen Harbor Hotel Review – A Great Stay in the Finger Lakes

I am a frequent traveler to the Finger Lakes- in recent years at least.

Part of this is because I now live within a manageable five hour drive, and the other part is that I’ve developed a love for many of the exceptional vineyards that call the region home (notably Boundary Breaks, Hermann J Wiemer, and Heron Hill to name a few- must visit Finger Lakes wineries in my opinion).

But one problem I’ve always had when visiting is figuring out where to stay.

The reason for this is because the area known as the Finger Lakes is large. It is so large, in fact, that to drive from the furthest west lake to the furthest east lake in one direction you’re looking at a two hour drive time (not to mention bypassing every lake in between). Or if you want to stay in larger cities like Rochester, Syracuse, or Corning (for the Corning Museum of Glass) you’re looking at 30-60 minutes of driving before you even begin to see water.

Going even further, if you pick any lake (especially larger ones like Seneca or Cayuga) you will have an hour driving just to go from tip to tip as well- all before stopping at all the vineyards, breweries, and distilleries along the way.

It is because of this that picking a good hotel location is so important when visiting. After my stay at Watkins Glen Harbor Hotel as a guest of the property, I can safely say that I’ve found my spot for the foreseeable future.

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Which Cruise Promotions Are Worth It? Finding the Best Perks

Almost anyone who has booked a cruise has been there- you research various different cruise lines and itineraries and in an effort to try and get your attention you are offered a promotion for a free perk.

There are a number of cruise perks out there ranging from on-board or excursion credit, to extra guests sail free, or even the coveted open bar package, and all are used for one particular reason- to get you make that booking today.

We recently sailed on the Norwegian Jewel where we received many promotions as part of our booking on Black Friday, and in this one we want to break down our thoughts on whether they (and others) are worth it when booking your next cruise!

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Should You Visit Denali or Take an Alaskan Cruise?

Alaska is the largest state in the USA and is roughly 2 1/2 times larger than the second largest state, Texas.

With it size comes a vast area for visitors to explore, and over the years two parts of the state have become the most frequently visited- southeastern Alaska (explored via a cruise) and central Alaska in Denali National Park (explored via packaged tours or DIY).

We recently visited both on a combination trip, and while we were there a thought occurred to us: not everyone can make it on both a cruise and to Denali.

After thinking about it for quite some time and experiencing both parts of the state on our journey, we realized that if we were poised to only do one of the two major trips we would have had a hard time picking one over the other.

In this guide, we want to highlight the differences between the two in case you find yourself in the position of only being able to do one!

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Shibuya Crossing – The Masses Are Amazing!

My favorite spot in all of Tokyo is not one that you would normally think of.  No, it is not a large shrine like at the Nikko Temple or one of the dozen of multistory electronic shopping centers; although the Sony store is quite amazing in its own right.  While it is considered a tourist attraction, the place is also practical for tens of thousands of people every day.  That is the world famous Shibuya scramble crossing, one of the world’s largest cross walks.

The district of Shibuya is one of Tokyo’s more famous regions, with the popular Meiji Shrine nearby as well as neon signs in just about every place imaginable.  With one of the busiest subway lines in Japan, the mass entrance and exit of people produce the biggest crossing I have ever, and probably will ever see.  Estimates for how many people cross during each exchange is disputed, but I would not be surprised if it broke 1,000 every crossing (~500/minute average).

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