Recently in iExplore Staff Travels Category

Rapa Nui: The Navel of the Earth

By Eleni A. on December 16, 2010 1:06 PM | 1 Comment | No TrackBacks

Anne Fairlie, Manager of travel sales for iExplore, is spending a week in Chile--including a trip to Easter Island. Check out her latest Easter Island blog post!

Image via Wikipedia

At Anakena beach, before you go swimming at the best place on the island, remember to go around to the back of Moai. In the foundation of the ahu, below the statues, there is a huge face carved into the stone lying on its side. There is also a petroglyph of a man and another stone that has 2 birds etched in them. Quite incredible!

Up until 1994, there was no mechanized transport on Rapa Nui for people to use in order to get around. Horses were the best way. Then Kevin Costner (with Hollywood in his wake) arrived to make what is reported to be a very bad movie called Rapa Nui. The film crews were here for almost a year! The occupation of the island gets mixed reactions from locals but one thing is for sure - cars became the thing to have and nowadays everyone drives everywhere.

Easter Island: Where Superstitions are Good Excuses

By Eleni A. on December 16, 2010 12:25 PM | 1 Comment | No TrackBacks

Anne Fairlie, Manager of travel sales for iExplore, is spending a week in Chile--including a trip to Easter Island. Check out her latest Easter Island blog post!

Touring today with Marcelo who is also the owner of the small inn where we are staying. I guess this is one way to supplement the family income: leave the wife to tend to the housework and he takes the tourists for a drive.

Photo taken by Ian Sewell, July, 2006. Ahu Ton...

Image via Wikipedia

One of the many superstitions that we learned about is this: the MOAI have fallen down for a reason, so do not attempt to bring them back on their feet.

This seemed quite reasonable until we moved on to another part of the island where, we were told, the Japanese donated a huge pile of money to rebuild an AHU (platform) and place the MOAI upright again.

So I guess, in Easter Island like many places, superstitions are good excuses sometimes.

iExplore Costa Rica Tours Explored

By Marlyn K. on December 13, 2010 1:38 PM | 1 Comment | No TrackBacks

I wanted to visit Costa Rica before winter came to Chicago. The thought of lush greenery, incredible flora and warm sunshine was my thought to help get through the gray and cold of the Midwest winter. And, so far, it has worked!

I traveled our Costa Rica Experience program and must say that it was just as incredible in person as the photos clients have sent back for years.

It's a destination close enough to most of us living in the US that the flight connections aren't a problem and the time change is minimal so jet lag isn't a problem. That became really important the day after arrival when hiking up the mountain to view the Arenal area from the hanging bridges or even the following day to zipline (see video below) through Monteverde Rainforest.

The hotels on the program are exceptional. Several of them are destinations onto themselves and I really do recommend spending more time in each area to take advantage of the wonderful amenities (including spa facilities) offered at most of them. And the food was delicious at each one.

Hurricane Tomas, which devastated the Caribbean, became Tropical Storm Tomas in Costa Rica. It created mudslides and wrecked several villages, also washing out the road leading to Manual Antonio National Park which was to be my last stop. The itinerary was changed while I was there to substitute the Guanacaste region. The weather there is considerably different and the beach was a lovely diversion from the mountains.

The proud people of Costa Rica are welcoming and hospitable in each area I traveled. While not all speak English, it's not a problem to get a point across. Of course, it definitely helps to have a driver/guide! I was lucky to have an exceptional person guiding me who has traveled with our clients in the past.

This is a wonderful destination, a great getaway, and a memory to carry for a long time after.

Maui: The Road to Hana

By Eleni A. on December 10, 2010 11:22 AM | 2 Comments | No TrackBacks

Planning on taking a vacation in 2011? Then do yourself a favor and consider traveling to Maui. I promise you won't regret it. I traveled there on vacation recently, and can say with the utmost confidence that if there ever was paradise on Earth, it's definitely located on the island of Maui. While Maui is exquisitely beautiful and diverse in terrain, driving the full circumference allows one to experience just how unique in landscape, geology and climate the island really is.

We started off our trip by traveling north up to Lahaina and the neighboring beach town of Ka'anapali. Both Lahaina and Ka'anapali have gorgeous white sand beaches, up-scale art galleries, delicious and affordable restaurants, and fabulous shopping! Leaving Lahaina, we traveled around the northern part (or "the head") of the island which has natural scenic views of the northwest & north coast of Maui. The Road to Hana is a curvy coastal road with views of high-peak cliffs, beaches, waterfalls, and miles and miles of rainforest. You'll definitely need to pay attention while driving due to the many sharp curves, one-lane road/bridges and on-coming traffic.

As we finished our drive around the northern tip of the island, we land on the next leg of our trip: Hana. If you're unfamiliar with Hana, it's a small village on the east side of the island that has yet to be invaded by mass tourism (if you can believe it). You'll need to get an early start to avoid traffic and take in all of the lush scenery along the way. Make plans to stay a night or two at one of the spa retreats. I made sure we had enough time to get massages at our spa. Outdoor massages, warm breezes, our own secluded hale... what more could one ask for?? You don't want to miss out on the black sand beach at Wainapanapa State Park. It's by far one of the most beautiful black sand beaches in all of Hawaii.

Image via Wikipedia

Things to keep in mind when traveling to Hana:

- No cell phone reception

- No restaurants (only local food huts)

- Gas up before you leave because once you start this road trip, there are no gas stations along it.

- Leave early! There are NO road lights, so driving at night can be scary!

The journey along the Road to Hana ends near the Seven Sacred Ponds, a natural wonder that's part of Haleakala National Park. Many travelers return home on the road to Hana after visiting the ponds, but we decided to continue our drive down the south coast to experience yet another side of Maui. The scenery changed from lush, green vegetation to scorched earth and jagged cliffs. No rest stops, no eateries, no nothing! But it is worth going down SLOWLY because it is absolutely nothing like what you see in Hana.