Healthy On The Road :: Finding Time To Work Out When Traveling With Kids

[trip style = any]

Editor's Note :: Today's post is a hybrid between Healthy On The Road and KinderHop.

Fitting in that daily workout while on vacation {with or without kids} always requires some planning and forethought---talents we tend to leave at home when we’re footloose and fancy free. Yet when traveling with our kiddies in tow, organisation becomes the name of the game.

A Plan I think our munchkins need breathers from the hustle and bustle of daily life as much as we do, however, there are parts of their daily routine that must remain, or, let’s be honest, no one’s relaxing! My son’s need for routine has turned out to be a real gift to me, the non-planner. Case in point, when it comes to keeping our children happy and occupied, even the most relaxed parent has some sort of family vacation plan.

A Challenge Parents: I challenge you to treat your trip's parenting plan as a scaffolding of sorts, and on your next trip, build on it to construct your health and fitness routine. Ever since I started building my exercise into my son's routine---versus compartmentalizing the two (which is more doable at home)---I have a much easier time staying on top of my travel fitness than I did pre-parenthood.

An Example Plan: Family pool time // Daily Fitness Routine: Your 30-min Workout Pools are perfect places to meet everyone’s needs {provided the water comes higher than your ankle}. 1/ Be intentional about fitting in a cumulative 30 minutes---ideally in 10 min bouts---of heart-pumping exercise {you should be able to talk, but in breathy sentences}. 2/ Do a mini water circuit and get the kids involved. For example, one of your stations might be treading water while towing a tot on their floatie x4 widths of the pool, or running/racing in the shallow end with your older kids.

When she’s not training clients or being trained by her dog Zuzu, Leah writes Healthy On The Road, published the first Wednesday of every month.

More Healthy On The Road Toned In Transit Every Day Is A New Day Eat In Technicolor The 15 Minute 54321 Workout {you can do anywhere!} Keeping Fit In Hotel Hallways The 20-min Exercise Itinerary Healthy DIY Plane Snacks Hotel Room Exercises {You can do in your underwear}

[photo by @tripstyler taken in Acapulco, Mexico]

Va-Va-Vroom With Virgin

[trip style = luxe]

Simply put, because Trip Styler is a fan of traveling in style---whether budget or luxe---we heart Virgin. Living glam from top-to-toe and nose-to-tail, they are THE MOST swish airline, proving it doesn't have to be 1960 to fly in style.

Trip Styler Tip :: As we mentioned late in 2011, Virgin's birds are flying west this summer. Starting May 14th, a seasonal service takes flight from Vancouver to London {return}. Yay!

If you follow Trip Styler on social media, it was probably ridiculously obvious I was just in London attending Virgin Atlantic's Grooming School at the airline's training centre, aka "the base". More on the red-hot tips I picked up in the coming weeks, but until then, I wanted to lift the veil on Virgin to give you a look into their airport Clubhouses and Upper Class.

Virgin Atlantic's San Francisco Clubhouse {Welcome to the Clubhouse. From the moment I walked in, every staff member welcomed me to their swish space; I was sold in seconds.}

{A woodsy-chic work area.}

{Dressed in the airline's signature red and purple, the SFO Clubhouse features multicolored panels that slide along the window to shade the space from the SF sun.}

{The business centre sports custom Virgin Atlantic stationary and red letter-writing wares.}

{Every guest is offered a bowl of 'crisps' before ordering their meal. After two bowls---yikes (they're petite, ok?!)---I opted for a fruit smoothie and a walnut pear salad.}

Virgin Atlantic's London Heathrow Clubhouse {The size of a football field---yet still somehow intimate---the Virgin Atlantic flagship Clubhouse at Heathrow trumped any other lounge I'd visited both in design and services. Where else can you sit in a hanging chair, walk 10 steps to the spa, another 10 steps to the bakery/boulangerie/cheese shop and a final 10 steps to the bar?}

{Where I lounged and spent most of my time working before my flight.}

{The swanky bar.}

{Every guest in the flagship Virgin Clubhouse has access to a complimentary mini-treatment: mani, facial or massage. Here I'm about to get a 10-minute manicure before my flight.}

{The steamy-dreamy spa featuring this co-ed jacuzzi, relaxation area and sauna. For the record, I'm bringing my bathing suit next time.}

{My breakfast choice in the Clubhouse: eggs benny, which just so happened to match my surroundings.}

Sky-High Aboard Virgin Atlantic {Seat 25K, aka my fully lie-flat perch at 30,000ft, was equipped with a down pillow and duvet, as well as a custom foam mattress. I don't sleep well on planes, but I slept very well---to the point of dreaming---on this 747.}

{At the end of North America-bound flights, afternoon tea is served. This time-treasured Brit tradition was enhanced by an in-flight copy of Wallpaper* Magazine.}

[photos by @tripstyler]

Fashion Friday :: Surfer Style

[trip style = beach]

Fashion Friday posts are published on the last Friday of every month by fashion and lifestyle blogger Heather.

Puka shell necklaces are back, y'all! Just kidding---thank goodness---but surfer style is alive and well and living on Oahu. Last month, I took my first trip to Hawaii, where I rediscovered my high school love for all things surf. Once you get past the Tommy Bahama shirts and the wear-it-30-different-ways sarongs of Waikiki, there's a whole island of beach style to embrace---lest you look like a Haole.

Now What To Pack? Women (clockwise from top left) Reef creamy leather sandals, Quiksilver lamrocks butler shorts, Quiksilver stavi hat, Spell cambodian tribal bag, Free People big dipper oversized tee, Billabong only good vibes blanket towel, Billabong sunset ryder hat, Free People sunkissed flora racerback tank

Men (clockwise from middle right) Quiksilver railed long sleeve shirt, Quiksilver malone sweatshirt, Reef warrior stripe, Reef suicides chino, Reef kitchi kah mi win shoes

More Fashion Friday Life's a Beach Romantic Caribbean Cabin Fever

[top photos via reef.com, collage by @heatherlovesit]

Jetset Jingles :: Après-Ski

[trip style = ski]

Jetset Jingles publishes once monthly. The ‘soundtrack’ is written, mixed and mastered by Nicole, amateur DJ by night and movie maven by day.

Along with the good fortune of living in the nature-y city that I do {Vancouver BC}, comes the privilege of being surrounded by ski hills. Minutes from the city you’ll find three local mountains {Cypress, Seymour and Grouse}, and an hour and half drive away there are two of the best slopes in North America, Whistler and Blackcomb.

I’ve been skiing for as long as I can remember, and one of my favorite things about a ski day is the infamous après-ski, or simply, après to enthusiasts. Gathering with friends on a patio, eating nachos and throwing back a cold beer is almost as good as shredding on the slopes!

But there’s a second kind of après, one that I like to call the après-après-ski. It takes place once you get back to your cabin. You peel off your bulky layers of cold-weather clothes, pour yourself a glass of Cabernet and relax on a bearskin rug, fireside of course. Ok, so this may seem like a scene out of a cheesy romance novel, but I think you get the picture, the goal of the après-après-ski is to relax and unwind after your long day navigating the mountain. And with this in mind, I’ve created the ultimate playlist for your next après-après-ski.

Happy listening….

Song List 1/ Champion Sound - Star of Love 2/ I Follow Rivers - Wounded Rhymes (Deluxe Version) 3/ High And Dry - Pointless Nostalgic 4/ Fiction - Coexist

Playlist {Can’t view the playlist?}

More Jetset Jingles TS Music Musts Pause And Reflect Gals’ Getaway Portlandia – The Mecca Of Indie Rock Palm Springs Rat Packin’

[photo by @tripstyler]

Roam+Board :: Alcazar Palm Springs

[trip style = sun + budget conscious]

What Serving up serenity, style and the desert's it foodie address-come-hotel, the Alcazar is a recently restored Spanish-style hideaway bursting with calliandra vines and bright pink bougainvillea.

Originally build in the 1950s, the hotel was reborn in 2011 by after undergoing a thoughtful facelift bringing out its whitewashed, pool house-chic. Minimalist rooms---some with petite patios---mirror the outside's pulled-together design. Black and white geometric-print pillows, silver-toned vintage palm tree lamps and bright Kelly Tunstall original art add pop against the gallery-white canvas. Imported Italian Mascioni linens wrap the bed.

Surrounded by restaurants, the Alcazar is a haven for foodies conceived by part owners Tara Lazar and Marco Rossetti, the savvy restauranteurs behind Palm Springs dining institutions Cheeky's, Birba and Jiao---each with a different dining concept, all featuring 100-mile menus. Hit Cheeky’s in the morning to brunch on huevos rancheros, melt-in-your mouth buttermilk waffles or a bacon flight; in the afternoon sample Jiao’s Asian street food and at night, dine alfresco over handmade pizzas and cups of vino at Birba.

Coupled with a tucked-away salt water pool and hot tub anchored by sky-high palms and views of the snow-capped San Jacinto mountains, this 34-room boutique property makes you want to stay in---every night.

Where Palm Springs, California in the hippest block around; the Uptown Design District. Ten minutes from the Palm Springs Airport {PSP}.

When Palm Springs is a year-round destination, though desert temperatures can reach 40-degrees C+ in the summer, so most visitors prefer a lighter dose of Vitamin D between September and June.

Who/Why You read Bon Appetit---preferably in the city or by a pool. You wear glasses {even if you don't need them}. You believe there's a time and a place for brightly-hued cocktail-wear. You're a very part-time scenester who knows you can get your fill at the Parker's bar, or the Ace's Amigo Room.

Cost Rates start at $120 per night. A $9 daily resort fee includes Wifi, use of Electra cruiser bikes, parking and morning pastries from Cheeky's as well as Intelligentsia coffee. Kids are allowed, though the hotel is generally adult-oriented.

More R+B Jumeirah Zabeel Saray - Dubai Makena Resort - Maui Nita Lake Lodge - Whistler Hester Creek Winery – Oliver, BC Fairmont Banff Springs – Banff  Thompson – Beverly Hills The Sorrento Hotel – Seattle The LIT! Bangkok – Thailand Hotel De La Paix – Thailand From ice hotels to Anna Wintour’s steal-of-a-deal holiday escape, find all featured R+B properties here.

[photos taken by @tripstyler while staying as a guest of the hotel]