Hawaii :: Outside The Resort Ribbons

[trip style = beach + sun]

Yesterday it was snowing in Vancouver. It's ironic that the white stuff had to be helicoptered to Vancouver's mountaintops for last year's Winter Olympics in February, and now we're getting snow at sea level in April. I hear the weather is odd in other parts of Canada and the US too.

To get your mind off the weather's fickle fumbling, here's a little sun 'n sand inspiration from a recent reader question:

The Question Can you suggest a tropical, seaside destination that's not too touristy or cheesy, where my husband can surf and I can stay in a beautiful room and sit poolside with my baby. No Hard Rock Cafes or malls allowed. We're willing to spend money but don't want to do the top-end Four Seasons thing. Any suggestions?

The Answer MAUI There is a town called Paia on the road to Hana, that's small and down to earth. It is very organic {it actually has an organic food store}, with local bakeries and unassuming boutiques. The people you see there are motor bikers, barefoot  hippies and others who've purposely chosen a slower pace of life. It's the antithesis of diamond-encrusted the island's other resort areas, but don't be fooled by its low-key vibe, in Paia, the wealthy people act and dress like everyone else.

One great feature of this small town is it's only a 5-minute ride from the airport and Kahului should you want to buy baby supplies, do a bigger grocery shop, etc....

Flanked between sugar cane fields and the North Shore, it's also close to Ho'okipa beach {famous surfing and kite-boarding area} and near Mama's Fish House, a destination restaurant and seaside hotel. The restaurant is a little pricey {lunch is cheaper than dinner}, but combine the aloha beach vibe with fish caught within about 12 - 18 hours, and you'll be sold. The umbrella drinks help too.

Staying in Paia - Mama's Fish House - VRBO vacation home & condo rental site - Hotels in town and around

Getting there - Hawaiian Airlines flies direct year-round from Seattle - As I've mentioned in my recent low season travel trend piece, flying to Maui from Vancouver is very reasonable in the spring. Case in point, this month a one-stop Air Canada flight is $404 return {taxes in} and a direct WestJet flight is $551 {taxes in}.

OTHER LOCATIONS

• Napili, Maui. Off the beaten track, more local than touristy and one hour from the airport.
• Kihei, Maui. Very local with a few snowbirds and vacationing families. I've stayed there a bunch and find it's a good balance point between doing Maui high/low with Wailea within five minutes away.
• North Shore, Oahu. Check out Turtle Bay Resort, where "Forgetting Sarah Marshall" was filmed. Though this hotel is resorty, it feels out of the way.
• The island of Lana'i. There are only three hotels on the island. Four Seasons owns two of them {one beachside and one in-land} and compared with other Four Seasons, both hotels have very good rates.

[photo by @tripstyler]

Travel Trends :: Your Extended Backyard

[trip style = weekend getaway]

During the economic slowdown, every travel publication was touting closer to home travel as a way to still enjoy getting away, without spending epic dollars for an epic trip. More recently, the go local trend has influenced everyone from foodies to travelers to embrace treasures within 100km {or so}, versus seek them out in the rest of the world first. As always, there's a time and place for local weekend getaways and international globetrotting, but this week's travel trend comes from close to home: it's a call to explore your own backyard, literally.

Recently a new site launched by a BC resident for BC residents, encouraging local travelers by way of discounts and inspiration to travel near versus far. backyardbc is its name and local travel is its game. Aside from Hotwire's go local search, I'm glad someone has brought this type of program specifically to BC. With hotel options spanning across the province and catering to different trip styles and budgets, it's fun to browse what's available and see what grabs you---just don't start with the website's "Vancouver, Coast & Mountains" region, the results are a little leaner than other areas.

As the site brings on new hotels, the offers will get more diverse, but for the time being I encourage you to start your backyard search with Vancouver Island, one of the site's 6 searchable regions. With just over 20 hotels spanning from Tofino to Victoria, the options are discerning. Here are a few gems I found:

• The rustically elegant Wickaninnish Inn {$40 off Best Available Rate (BAR)}
• The remote April Point Resort and Spa {15% off BAR}
• The woodsy seaside Tigh-Na-Mara Resort {10% off BAR}
• The mod & green Parkside Victoria Resort and Spa {10% off BAR}
• The quietly confident Inn at Laurel Point {10% off BAR}

Trip Styler Tip :: with all this talk of locals rates, don't be shy to ask hotels in BC or Washington if they have preferred rates for BC residents. Many do, but just down publicize it.

PS - Local blogger Miss604 and backyardbc are running a joint promotion giving away one hotel stay every Tuesday for the next 10 weeks. Don't miss it.

{Travel Trends are posted 3 times monthly on Thursdays. For other trends including low season travel deals and unique reward programs, subscribe by RSS or email, like us on facebook or follow us on twitter.}

[photo via backyardbc of April Point Resort & Spa]

Travel TV :: A Pilot About Pilots

A pilot about pilots?

Aside from The Amazing Race, the major networks haven't engaged much with travel-related TV during primetime. That's all about to change.

How Exciting is this? Playing on the retro travel trend, ABC has ordered a pilot {no pun intended} called Pan Am, that will potentially air this fall {update, it just got picked up and will air at 10pm on Sundays}. It's basically Mad Men meets the golden age of travel. Back in the day, I'm told stewardesses flight attendants were celebrities, trendsetters and jetsetters in their own right. The show lives up this lifestyle and centers around: "Maggie, who is leading a double life. When not all dolled up on her flights, she is living as a bohemian beatnik in New York's Greenwich Village. Kate is secretly an undercover CIA agent. Her gorgeous sister, Laura, is new to the stewardess world, having just ditched her fiancé at the altar." {via Jaunted}

The Scoop Though the show's status is still in the pilot stage, I don't suspect it will be relegated to the ABC TV dungeon given the big names that are rumored to be on-board {no pun intended}:

• Film actress Christina Ricci will take a lead role as Maggie
• Nancy Hult Ganis, executive producer, will auto pilot {no pun intended} the show's direction given her role as a flight attendant on the airline for 7 years
• Jonah Lotan has landed {no pun intended} the role of Dean, the recently promoted captain of the Pan Am luxury plane, the Majestic.
• Scrubs star Michael Mosley will also play an aviator-wearing pilot
• Australia actress Margot Robbie will be a sexy stewardess

Pan Am Started in 1927, Pam Am grew to one of the largest airlines in the world, with a famed logo'ed skyscraper position on New York City's Park Avenue. In 1991, the airline declared bankruptcy. Sadly, I never had the chance to fly Pan Am, but I hear it was the airline in the 60's and 70's. Check out this amazing Pan Am video from 1958, promoting the wonders of the new 707 plane, and innovative over-seat lighting...

PS  - Speaking of travel and TV, tell me you've seen this Richard Simmons Air New Zealand safety video? He is the gift that keeps on giving. I don't think he's aged in 20 years.

Related Shows That Make You Want To Go

[photo by Dreamworks, from Catch Me If You Can movie]

Travel App Tuesday :: Whistler Blackcomb Live

[trip style = ski] I know, it seems a bit weird to be talking about a ski mountain{s} app when the weather is warmer, days are longer and summer is more than just a distant dream. But, just in time for spring skiing bliss {& summer mountain biking}, Whistler Blackcomb has launched their first app, and it's tres cool.

This past weekend I took the app for a test driveski. Now, I'm not sure how I'll ever ski without it, here's why: it maps your movement via gps; tracks your vertical, distance, moving time, max speed, average speed; and records your ski days. Also see a map of where you've skied {below}, so no playing hooky eating waffles all day in the Crystal Hut.

Screenshots Here are a few screenshots of the app when I used it on Saturday. If you look closely, yes, I know it's lame I only did 5 runs; technically speaking, I think I did 6, but who's counting?

NOTE: Using this app is like running a TomTom GPS navigation system on your iPhone: it drains your batteries quickly, so make sure your phone is FULLY CHARGED before you hit the slopes. In case you forget and run the app anyway, it will automatically shut off if your phone battery gets down to 20%.

Details

• Free
• Works with iPhone, iPod Touch & iPad
• Available for Android, but for blackberry you'll have to use an older-school app or the mobile site
• Track: lift status, trail conditions
• Weather & snow report
• Maps
• Webcams
• GPS-enabled – track your vertical
• Share photos and events to twitter & facebook

— Get more travel tips & updates like this by subscribing to RSS or email, liking us on facebook or following us on twitter. —

Other Travel Apps Every Tuesday we feature a new travel app. Don’t forget to peruse the other 70+ travel apps we’ve reviewed from travel first aid, to luxury and boutique hotel finders, to border waits and trip itinerary management. Here are the most recent:

• Room77
• mileBlaster
• HipMunk
• Mad Libs
• Travel Etiquette

Jetset Jingles :: Coachella

[trip style = sun]

It’s April and that means two things: spring is here and so is the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. Nestled in the heart of the Coachella Valley near Palm Springs, California, the 3-day music festival is one of the most well known in North America. Held in mid-April {when the weather’s just right}, the festival is not only celebrated for its amazingly diverse and abundant music, but also for its interactive art installations and sculptures.

I traveled to Coachella for the first time last year and couldn’t believe that for just over $300, I got to see some of the best musical talents of 2010. All in one place. Not only was the music, setting and warm weather enough to make a Vancouver gal pretty happy, but the people watching was not to be believed. Everyone from college hipsters, to middle-aged hippies, to Hollywood celebrities {and everyone in between} were there for the same reason: to see of-the-moment artists performing their favorite tunes.

This year, I’ll be front and center watching and dancing to some of my favorite acts like Kings of Leon, The Black Keys, Arcade Fire, Empire of the Sun, Cee Lo Green, Broken Social Scene, Tinie Tempah, Chromeo, Wiz Khalifa, Brandon Flowers, Cut Copy, Mumford and Sons, Robyn and Kanye West. ...Ok, so I named more than a few. But I can’t help it, I’m that excited.

I've put together a small Coachella playlist of my current favorite songs from some of the artists I'm most looking forward to seeing. Happy Listening.

1/ The Cave - Sigh No More - mumford & sons 2/ We Used to Wait - The Suburbs - Arcade Fire 3/ Howlin' for You - Null - The Black Keys 4/ Radioactive - Come Around Sundown (Extended Version) - KINGS of Leon 5/ Walking On a Dream - Walking on a Dream - Empire of the Sun 6/ Take Me Over - Zonoscope - Cut Copy 7/ Dancing On My Own - null - robyn 8/ Fancy Footwork - Fancy Footwork - Chromeo 9/ Only the Young - Flamingo - Brandon Flowers 10/ Sweetest Kill - Forgiveness Rock Record - Broken Social Scene

Listen to the Coachella Playlist here.

{Jetset Jingles publishes once monthly and is mixed and mastered by Nicole, amateur DJ by night and movie maven by day.}

[photos by nicole & coachella]