[trip style = steal + luxury + beach]
Aloha from Hawaii.
After three years away, I'm back on the Big Island for a wedding, as well as some "mandatory" trip styling at a steal-of-a-deal condo in Kona and the luxe and sprawling Fairmont Orchid on the Kohala Coast.
I'm tagging cool spots as I go, so check out #TSBigIsland or @TripStyler // @TStrish on Instagram for snaps of shave ice, sand and sunsets.
PS - check out our Big Island Spotlight.
[photo by @tripstyler]
[trip style = luxury + urban + spa + food & wine + active]
Eat, exercise, repeat. This is Vancouver. Steeped in nature with a cosmo flair befitting its Pacific Rim location, Vancouver is a city where Louboutins and hiking boots are equally welcome. For a well-rounded view of the Glass City I've included activities for both shoe types to your mountain-meets-metropolitan itinerary. Happy trails...
When I was asked to write about how to do a Saturday in my home city for Luxury Retreats Magazine, I went in this direction: The local's way, because that's the best way to taste a town's flavors, mais oui?
A Saturday in Vancouver {reader's digest version}
9am: Take your first bite du jour at Temper Pastry {just outside the city center} for a dose of coffee and croissants to fuel your urban adventure. Thankfully the rest of the day involves exercise, so order a few Charlie Bites—the shop's cult-following, lightly sweetened, cinnamon pull-aparts—and sit for a bit in the marble-clad and brioche-scented space.
10:30am: Bike the Stanley Park Seawall. As part of the world's longest uninterrupted waterfront path, the seawall showcases the ocean city’s assets up close, taking cyclists and pedestrians on a tour around town past the park's 1,000 acres, beaches, seaside restaurants, marinas, and gourmet markets.
2pm: Laze the afternoon away at the Fairmont Pacific Rim Willow Stream Spa. At once contemporary and cool, the 8,500-square foot, glass-enclosed space goes beyond Canada-inspired treatments of the Maple-sugar scrub variety, offering a woodsy West Coast aesthetic, the crown jewel of which is the outdoor terrace with views over the waterfront, private Jacuzzis, an infrared sauna, and meditation pods.
7pm: Dinner at L’Abattoir (where you'll find me sitting at the bar in the photo gallery), Gastown's poshest address for dinner, blending an industrial-French physique with sexy cocktails and Euro-coastal dishes that look as though they are intended for a photoshoot.
[photo via @luxuryretreats]
[trip style = any]
"Even if it's just 10 minutes a day, it's WORTH IT" celeb bodyworker Lauren Roxburgh told me as we chatted about an everyday fitness routine that goes from home to hotel with ease.
Author of upcoming book Taller, Slimmer, Younger, Roxburgh is the spokesperson for Walk the World a Fitbit-powered wellbeing initiative I attended imagined by Element Hotels—Starwood Hotels and Resorts' "main stay" for the active traveler including unique-to-North-America extras such as saltwater pools, health-conscious breakfast and rooms each with a kitchenette.
The health effort encourages travelers to log their strides with Fitbit and collectively amass 24 million steps—the amount required to walk between between Element Hotels in Vancouver and their first property in Asia Pacific.
Partnering with the initiative makes sense for Lauren {above, center}, who credits walking, as well as her "Taller, Slimmer, Younger" regime with keeping her fit, refreshed and productive {think: authoring GOOP.com fitness how-tos, training A-list clients, wrangling a tot, etc..}.
"It's about establishing patterns, and once you do, you'll see and feel results even with 10 minutes a day" she explained. SOLD. I can {and will} find 10 minutes—whether I'm at home or in a hotel.
10 minutes to Taller, Slimmer, Younger
1/ Invert to stimulate the lymphatic system, flush toxins and decompress the spine.
2/ Side-bend to reduce the muffin top-effect, bring in the body's hourglass and relieve anxiety.
3/ Breathe deep to jump-start stress relief.
4/ Twist to ring out organs and reduce inflammation.
For examples of HOW TO do each of the above body boosters, check out Lauren's GOOP.com demos.
[photos via Element Hotels/Phillip Chin]
[trip style = sun + beach + spa]
I'm not going to lie. You know those people who retire, give up their houses and live on cruise ships? Mr. Trip Styler and I are tempted to do the same thing at this point in our life with Baby Styler. Cruise Styler, anyone?
Seriously though, at sea, Disney Cruise Line channels the throwback grandeur of cruising and the wonder of Walt to create decks and decks of pixie-dusted hideaways. Cue the adult-only spa, bevy of bars, misted pools, private beach or intimate dining that feel "nautical miles" away from the full-throttle kids activities. At the opposite end of the spectrum, the nursery and kids clubs, interactive dining with appearances from Nemo and friends, loop-de-loop water coaster and Disney-class entertainment keep the little ones captivated and wishing upon a star for future family sailings.
In my first look at our voyage aboard the Disney Dream I focused on photos. Today, it's a video! Coming soon: Batten down the hatches for a tidal wave of tips and tricks.
A Trip Styler tour of the Disney Dream and Castaway Cay, Disney's private island in the Bahamas.
{Can't view this video?}
Related
First Look: Cruising with Disney
Walt Disney World for GrownUPs
[Photo via Disney provided while I was a guest of Disney Cruise Line. As always, see my strict editorial policy, here.]
If you find yourself yearning for a life of simplicity, beauty and deeper harmony with nature, you might already be a fan of the popular website Cabin Porn. This curated collection of cabin images features everything from modern, minimalist abodes to dilapidated—but no less beautiful—shacks.
It's fitting that a website celebrating cabins built by hand, away from lives lived in the digital world, would transition to the physical world and birth a coffee table book filled with stories and images of cabins across the globe. These aren't your all-the-comforts-of-home-and-two-jet-skis vacation properties; these are simple, Scandinavian-style shelters for modern, would-be homesteaders.
"The story behind the book is worth repeating because it captures the essence of the movement, which mingles a hunger for the primitive with fashionable, Silicon-era savvy." — The New York Times
After purchasing 50 acres of forested land in upstate New York, tech entrepreneur Zach Klein {DIY.org, Vimeo, College Humor} began collecting images of cabins in a Tumblr blog while building on his property, Beaver Brook. That blog, Cabin Porn, caught on with like-minded dreamers. In the book's introduction, he writes: "I’d spent six years in the city building online communities, and now I wanted to build one offline. Specifically, a place for a bunch of friends to be outdoors, somewhere we could be less preoccupied by our professions and more reliant on each other.’"
Like a beautiful cookbook or $12 magazine, Cabin Porn begs to be browsed repeatedly on rainy afternoons, and may inspire mild flirtations with realtor websites, weekend drives down lakeside roads and an Airbnb wish list a mile long. Because if you can't build it yourself, you can still find beauty and simplicity on a weekend retreat in what others have created.
Germany
British Columbia
Switzerland & Sweden
Idaho
Finland
Norway
New York
New Zealand & Sweden
Iceland
This post is written by Trip Styler's Assistant Wayfarer/Editor Heather.
Related
Roam+Board :: Modern Cottage
West Coast Escapes
Roam+Board :: Cama Beach Cabins
Roam+Board :: Glen Oaks Big Sur
[images via cabin porn]
