North America Vacations

When it comes to North America vacations, there’s no shortage of United States vacation ideas, even leaving aside the major tourist sites of New York, LA, Washington, and San Francisco; but, North America is so much more.  If you’re looking for great things to do and see in North America, don’t forget Canada, Mexico, the rest of Central America and the Caribbean.  These places all have way more to offer than most of us have been led to expect.

• Belize Family Vacation Often overlooked in favor of better known neighbors like Mexico and Costa Rica, or Caribbean hot spots like Jamaica and Puerto Rico: A Belize Family Vacation could be just the thing that your family is looking for this year. Despite being a tiny country ...
• Vieques, Puerto Rico: Kayaking Mangrove Canals and Glow-In-The-Dark Bay Vieques, also known as Isla Nena is one of the two 'major' islands off the coast of Puerto Rico, and while you could do it as a day trip from the main island, it's really very worthwhile to give yourself at least a couple of days to explore the place. E...
• Learn It There: Scuba Diving If you were born in the 80's and were living in America,  then you might have been as obsessed as I was with 3-2-1 Contact.  Scuba Diving featured prominently in this science program for kids, and I became determined to learn how.  This fascination wit...
• Remedios: Stories of Earth and Iron from the History of Puertorriqueñas This book is one of the finest histories of Puerto Rico that I have ever read.  An absolute must read for tourists, visitors, and Boricuas alike.  Levins-Morales paints a fascinating picture of the interconnectedness of the people of Puerto Ri...
• Sample Travel Itinerary: West Virginia Road Trip This sample travel itinerary is based on a roadtrip that Yoshi and I took to West Virginia. It was my first visit to the state, and I can honestly say that despite many biases and preconceptions that many people have about the state, it may be the most b...
• Sample Travel Itinerary: Quebec City and Hôtel de Glace Below you will find the Sample Travel Itinerary for a week long vacation that Yoshi and I will be taking to Quebec City, including and overnight visit at the Hotel de Glace just outside Quebec city.  I am really excited to have the opportunity to pract...
• American Gods by Neil Gaiman American Gods by Neil Gaiman was the first book of his that I had ever read, and following the advice of the friend that suggested it to me, I read it while driving across the United States and Canada while making my way to Alaska.  I don't want to g...
• La Ruta Panoramica Trailer The trailer for our Ruta Panoramica webcast is now available on youtube, and of course here as well.  You'll be able to get a quick glimpse of some the highlights from our recent Puerto Rico road trip along the Ruta Panoramica which crosses the island fr...
• Costa Rica Adventure Activities Are you looking for adventure activities in Costa Rica? Well, then you're in luck.  When it comes to active travel Costa Rica i...
• Gozalandia was Awesome! After a series of fairly disappointing waterfalls, we finally made our way to Gozalandia falls, a fairly secluded waterfall just outside the town of San Sebastian, on the way to Hatillo, in Puerto Rico.  It was a slippery climb down to the river, and I'm...
• Father Son Fishing: Hatchet Lake Lodge The summer after my first year in college, my dad and I finally took the father son fishing trip that we'd been planning for several years.  We bot...
• Why Fly Halfway Around the World for Diwali? Trinidad & Tobago Has it All! When you think Diwali, like any other major Hindu festival, your first thought is likely India.  It makes sense, as the birthplace of Hin...
• Ice Hotel Quebec: Not Your Grandma's Igloo The Ice Hotel Quebec (or as it is known there, Hotel de Glace) is an ab...
• 3-Day Roadtrip: Ithaca, NY & Pittsburgh, PA Itinerary for 3-day vacation: (This vacati...
• Montreal and Toronto Roadtrip By Leann Zotis In an effort to strike out on our own, on a vacation of our choosing, my husband and I packed the car, ...
• A Weekend at the University of Chicago As an alum of the University of Chicago, I always love to tell people why they should visit the south side of Chicago, even for just a weekend.  Hyde Park and the surrounding areas are only a 20-minute drive from downtown, so you can easily stay in a do...
• Worst Camping Trip Ever: Northeast Kingdom 1 Before the Worst Camping Trip Ever, my family used to go camping all the time.  We'd been all over New England, and really loved it.  I remember how much fun I had going with my family and exploring woods, lakes and streams. One year we decided that ...
• Worst Camping Trip Ever: Northeast Kingdom 2 We were already well on our way to the worst camping trip ever.  We'd had our dog decide to destroy the campsite by digging enormous hole after enormous hole.  We'd gotten stuck in a non-stop downpour that left us miserable and cranky.  We'd managed t...
• Kona Coffee Festival—Celebrate the Big Island Brew The Kona coffee festival is one of the most unique november vacations, as locals and tourists alike gather annually to cel...
• Whale Watching and More Seattle in the Spring Contributed by Laura Lee Winger I clicked the shutter button, but the shot took too late. The baby orca had completed its flip and disappeared back into the deep blue waters before my camera could capture the moment. While we had been observing a famil...