Cape Winelands Destinations Overview

Cape Winelands Destinations Overview

Cape Winelands: The fertile green valleys of the Cape Winelands are surrounded by proud mountain ranges. Towns and villages have many historic homesteads and monuments, and every so often fruit orchards are to be seen, whose produce may be found in all corners of the world. It is the Mediterranean climate and winter rainfall of the south-western Cape that produces some of the best wines in the country.

http://www.saholidays.co.za/img/Western_Cape/Winelands/Franschoek.jpg

Once past the city, and the adjacent Cape Flats, the topography changes again, and the land rises up to form a majestic collection of hills and mountains, all part of the Cape Fold Mountains. This has also allowed for the formation of a number of verdant valleys, which are now liberally dotted with orchards, vineyards, and pasture land.

The expansion from the city started in the late 1600’s, and has led to the development of what is now one of South Africa’s better known industries – the production of wine, including many labels which are internationally renowned. In addition, large areas are given over to apple and pear orchards, and berry farms.

What is generally known as the Winelands spreads over a surprisingly diverse area, and includes the towns and villages of Franschhoek, Stellenbosch, Paarl, Wellington, Robertson and Swellendam, each area hosting a combination of large and small vineyards, and catering to all palates. Most vineyards offer both wine tasting (frequently combined with cheese, or even chocolate tasting!) and informative tours. Even if one is not a wine lover, many of the vineyards are historically interesting, and a number offer lunches, and picnics.

In addition, during the summer months, visitors can enjoy picking berries, cherries, and a variety of other fruits. The area is also rich in history, with a number of excellent and well-run museums to visit. There are also cultural festivals, including music, books, and cuisine. Visitors can also enjoy a number of more active pursuits, such as canoeing, horse riding, hiking, mountain biking, golf, abseiling, and kloofing.

Cape Town Honeymoon Destination

Cape Town Honeymoon Destination

Affectionately known as the ‘Mother City’, Cape Town is both South Africa’s oldest, and, for tourists, most popular city. Although it is small by international standards (some dozen or so blocks, framed by the grandeur of Table Mountain), it is without doubt incredibly scenic, diverse, vibrant, and boasts a Mediterranean climate – therefore there is something for every visitor.

Both in the city, and its surrounds (which include the Winelands, Cape Point Nature Reserve, the V&A Waterfront, and incredible scenic drives), visitors can enjoy a vast array of activities from wine tasting, to diving, surfing, sailing, mountaineering, hiking, bird- and whale-watching, shopping, and historical tours.

Due to the combination of the Southern Hemisphere summer, and the low rainfall in the Cape, the most popular time to visit Cape Town is from October to March, with December and January being the hottest months. This is also when the city is as its busiest, so pre-booking of accommodation is essential. The most popular tourist attractions are, in order of popularity: The Victoria & Alfred waterfront – with its myriad shops, fine hotels, a world-class marina and the excellent Two Oceans Aquarium, and working harbour; Table Mountain – accessed either by walking or a cable car; Signal Hill with the Noon gun; Cape Point – with its breathtaking views; Boulders Beach – the northern-most home to a colony of penguins. The Cape Peninsula and the region around Cape Town offer wonderful walking and hiking opportunities from the city centre, where the mountains can be accessed very easily (such as Lion’s Head and Devil’s Peak) to further a field in the surrounding mountain ranges.

Visitors can also enjoy a variety of boat trips from the V&A (Victoria and Alfred) marina, including a visit to Robben Island. Other boat trips can be undertaken from Simonstown (the main South African naval base) on the False Bay coast to Seal Island and Cape Point and from Hout Bay, a fishing harbour on the Atlantic coast, to Duiker Island which has a population of some 6 000 Cape Fur seals in breeding season dropping to 1 500 seals in the off season.

A seasonal attraction (generally August to November) is the magnificent Southern Right whale – as they come to calf, and breed off the coast. Although Hermanus is the perhaps the most well-known town for land-based whale watching, there are a number of excellent vantage points along the Cape Peninsula. As the whales come in very close to shore, the sightings are exceptional. In addition, there are Bryde’s whale, and a number of endemic dolphin species, such as Heaviside’s, Dusky, and Bottlenosed, which are seen frequently.

For those who enjoy incredible vistas, take the cable car (for the more active, there are a variety of walks) to the top of Table Mountain. Cape Town also has a surprising number of excellent beaches, and due to the coastal geography, it is possible to visit a number of these on the same day, with each offering something different.

Apart from its undeniable scenic splendour, Cape Town also offers a number of cultural attractions, including theArtscape Theatre complex, the Baxter and Labia Theatres, and there are regular concerts in the City Hall. Cape Town is home to a number of Cape Dutch style buildings – combining as it does architectural traditions of the Netherlands, Germany and France. This is most visible in Constantia, and the old government buildings in the Central Business District, as well as in parts of Long Street. The annual Cape Town Minstrel Carnival, also known by its Afrikaans name of Kaapse Klopse, is a large minstrel festival held annually on January 2 or “Tweede Nuwe Jaar” (Afrikaans: Second New Year). Competing teams of minstrels parade in brightly coloured costumes, either carrying colourful umbrellas or playing an array of musical instruments.

Night life in the city caters for all tastes and preferences, with a range of restaurants, and cafes that are generally recognised as including some of finest dining that South Africa has to offer. In addition, night clubs and bars abound, and popular areas include the top end of Long Street and its immediate surrounds, as well as the redeveloped Cape Malay quarter, De Waterkant.

Visitors will also find an excellent selection of accommodation in and around the city, from charming guest houses to exquisite boutique hotels, and a world-class collection of hotels.

Cape Winelands Destinations Overview

Cape Winelands Destinations Overview

Cape Winelands: The fertile green valleys of the Cape Winelands are surrounded by proud mountain ranges. Towns and villages have many historic homesteads and monuments, and every so often fruit orchards are to be seen, whose produce may be found in all corners of the world. It is the Mediterranean climate and winter rainfall of the south-western Cape that produces some of the best wines in the country.

http://www.saholidays.co.za/img/Western_Cape/Winelands/Franschoek.jpg

Once past the city, and the adjacent Cape Flats, the topography changes again, and the land rises up to form a majestic collection of hills and mountains, all part of the Cape Fold Mountains. This has also allowed for the formation of a number of verdant valleys, which are now liberally dotted with orchards, vineyards, and pasture land.

The expansion from the city started in the late 1600’s, and has led to the development of what is now one of South Africa’s better known industries – the production of wine, including many labels which are internationally renowned. In addition, large areas are given over to apple and pear orchards, and berry farms.

What is generally known as the Winelands spreads over a surprisingly diverse area, and includes the towns and villages of Franschhoek, Stellenbosch, Paarl, Wellington, Robertson and Swellendam, each area hosting a combination of large and small vineyards, and catering to all palates. Most vineyards offer both wine tasting (frequently combined with cheese, or even chocolate tasting!) and informative tours. Even if one is not a wine lover, many of the vineyards are historically interesting, and a number offer lunches, and picnics.

In addition, during the summer months, visitors can enjoy picking berries, cherries, and a variety of other fruits. The area is also rich in history, with a number of excellent and well-run museums to visit. There are also cultural festivals, including music, books, and cuisine. Visitors can also enjoy a number of more active pursuits, such as canoeing, horse riding, hiking, mountain biking, golf, abseiling, and kloofing.

Each town and area of the Winelands has an excellent selection of accommodation establishments, and although many are within easy reach of Cape Town, a couple of nights in the country, in the midst of magnificent scenery, is an excellent way to either start, or finish your trip to the Cape. Not only are there are number of award winning restaurants, there is also an extensive selection of Spas and Wellness Centres to choose from.

Garden Route Destination Overview

Garden Route Destination Overview

The Garden Route includes one of the most beautiful stretches of coastline, whose starting point is constantly contested as towns such as Witsand, Stilbaai and Albertinia join the route that winds its way for some 200 km via George, Wilderness, Sedgefield and Knysna on to Plettenberg Bay and culminating in the Tstisikamma Forest – a fairyland of giant trees, ferns and bird life.

Mountains crowd close to a shoreline dotted with beaches and bays, and vividly coloured wild flowers delight the eye. Between Heidelberg and Storms River, the Garden Route runs parallel to a coastline featuring lakes, mountains, tall indigenous forests, amber -coloured rivers and golden beaches. Meandering trails are followed by hikers, the forests invite long, leisurely drives, and the lakes and rivers lend themselves to swimming boating and fishing. A wide range of leisure options, spectacular scenery and a mild climate guarantee an unforgettable holiday experience when visiting the Garden Route in South Africa.

The region provides a stirring study in contrasts. The delightful town of George, known as “The Gateway to the Garden Route”, graces a coastal plateau in a fertile area of lush greenery at the foot of the Outeniqua Mountains. Oudtshoorn, “Capital of the Klein Karoo”, is set in a semi-arid valley, providing the ideal habitat for ostriches which are farmed here on a grand scale.

The Garden Route stretches on the southern coast from Heidelberg to the Tsitsikamma Forest and Storms River. It’s a nook of the country that offers inspiration to writers and artists whose presence gives the Garden Route a trendy flavour. It is also a top priority of many a foreign visitor.

The coastal drive links a series of charming towns interspersed with natural beauty. Along the way, every kind of adventure activity is possible; scuba diving, abseiling, fishing and more. The Tsitsikamma National Park, perched on a tumultuous Indian Ocean shore is one of South Africa’s most dramatic protected areas, combining marine and land attractions. Its indigenous forests are a haven for birdlife. One of the most geologically interesting parts of South Africa is the Klein Karoo, with its towering mountains and sheer gorges.

An important geological feature is the Cango Caves, a series of caverns and chambers naturally hewn out of limestone, situated outside the city of Oudtshoorn.

The Cango Caves are among the top ten most visited South African attractions. Oudtshoorn itself, the heart of the ostrich feather industry when it was in its hey day the late 1800s and early 1900s, is well worth a visit. The grandiose, old feather palaces are still to be seen, while ostrich farms, now involved in the commercial production of meat, leather, eggs and feathers, can be toured, with the possibility of riding an ostrich.

Bahamas honeymoon destinations

Bahamas honeymoon

Location:
When you travel to the bahamas on your all inclusive honeymoon you might be located just fifty miles south of Florida (USA) on one of the 700 Bahama islands.

Attractions:
On your Bahamas vacation you will find that that Bahamas islands are playgrounds for snorkelers, sailors, anglers, divers, nature and adventure lovers, eco-tourists and holidaymakers in search of environmental beauty and excitement, or just life’s simplest pleasures. The Bahama Islands are visited by more than three million people each year. In either your Bahamas resort or a city as Freeport you will find great enthusiasm for American culture, combined with a strong colonial flavour.

Just 30 of the Bahmas islands are populated and they are among the most favoured destinations for cruise ship passengers. Nassau/Paradise Island, the nation’s capital city, has almost 60 per cent of the population. While on your Bahamas Honeymoon you can ride on a horse-drawn carriage tour of a vibrant city in a tropical setting, filled with 500 years of history – Victorian buildings, museums & art galleries, churches & fortresses, restaurants and a library that used to be a prison.

If your Bahamas honeymoon involves adventure, cross a bridge and you are on Paradise Island, a modern dream resort tailor-made for fun-seekers, featuring a huge casino, a marina for large yachts, the world’s biggest aquarium and palatial hotels – or you might prefer the casinos of Cable Beach. And that’s just the beginning of your Bahmas honeymoon package!

Shop in one of our duty-free stores or in the Straw Market, downtown Bay Street – one of the largest in the Caribbean. Travel the Bahamas Islands by island hopping just 30 minutes away on aplane to Grand Bahamas Island, where you can try your luck at the slot machines or on the gaming tables in Freeport/Lucaya, the second largest city in The Bahamas, and spend your vacation winnings in the International Bazaar. Visit the Lucaya Marketplace and Marina and enjoy your Bahamas vacation with dinner after browsing our duty-free stores.

Bahamas vacationers can fish for the biggest and best marlin and tuna in Hemingway’s haunts off Bimini; admire the cliffs on Cat Island; surf in the giant waves of Eleuthera; take a ferry to Harbour Island and enjoy the pink sand beaches. Take advantage of your Bahamas vacation package by exploring The Exumas by sail or with a snorkel; swim in the clear waters of Long Island, and catch the spectacular view from Dixon Hill lighthouse on San Salvador, known as the Island of Discovery. Bahamas Honeymooners will need many more trips just to scratch the surface of the possible activities and sights on The Bahamas islands.

Atlantis Resort – Bahamas

Atlantis Resort – Bahamas

Escape reality at the all inclusive resort Atlantis Paradise Island Bahamas where you are surrounded by lagoons abundant with exotic marine animals in an awesome underwater eco-system. Relax on the spacious beach, play in the crystal blue ocean or just enjoy the water sports in one of the eleven pools as you honeymoon in the Bahamas at this mega all inclusive resort.

Pamper yourself at Mandara Spa at Atlantis Paradise Island where you’ll find an array of fitness and spa services in the most luxurious spa in the Bahamas. For never ending fun on your Atlantis Bahamas honeymoon there are endless water activities awaiting you.

Besides the exhibit lagoons and 11 pools there are thrilling water slides for any age or you can just float on a tube aound the 1/4 mile loop guided by a gentle current. While on your all inclusive honeymoon you’ll be tantalized by the 18 restaurants and even more lounges. From extremely casual to upscale elegance, from fresh seafood to exotic Pacific cuisine Atlantis Bahamas has something for everyone. After dinner try your luck in the largest casino inthe Caribbean. Spin the reels on one of 1100 slot machines or play at one of the 80 gaming tables. Whatever your tastes the all inclusive Atlantis resort will be sure to make any honeymoon in the Bahamas a memory of a lifetime.

Fiji Honeymoon Destinations

Fiji Honeymoon Destinations

The Fiji Islands in the South Pacific are an archipelago of over 330 islands packed with attractions that can be found no where else. A nature lover’s delight, Fiji has an unspoiled, unique environment of extreme beauty and tranquility.

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Come and discover why Fijians are the world’s best hosts and dive into Fiji for a honeymoon that you’ll never forget.
In Fiji, everything has its very own pace with a relaxed, unhurried philosophy behind everything. Don’t get annoyed…chill out and go with the flow.

These are just a selection of properties, designed to give you a taste of what Fiji has to offer. For more details and holiday ideas just ask your travel consultant.

Malolo Island
Castaway Island
Tokoriki Island Resort

HONEYMOON HOTLINE 0871 2266 150

Jamaica Honeymoon Travel Overview

Jamaica Honeymoon Travel Overview

Wedding is one of the most scared and pure social institutions. It marks the unification of two individuals in one bond. Both the bride and groom promise each other for sharing happiness, joy and sorrow. Wedding is followed by much-awaited honeymoon. Honeymoon is an ideal occasion to know each other. In order to make your honeymoon memorable, you must perform an offline as well as online search. Determine your budget and hire a travel agent. He will make things easier to you.

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Enjoy the cool comforts of Jamaica with your beloved. Jamaica is a great honeymoon destination. You will get enough space and beautiful environment to spend certain romantic moments with your beloved. There are a few major honeymoon resorts for newly wedded couple, such as couples Ocho Rios, Couples Swept Away Negril, Couples Negril and Couples Sans Souci.

Major attractions of Jamaica are soft beaches, blue waters, lush green mountains and waterfalls. The mountainous and green interior of Jamaica is covered with beautiful rivers. Enjoy the beautiful beaches with lip-smacking food and cozy accommodations.

Jamaica is one of the most preferred honeymoon destinations by newlywed brides. With beaches and natural landscape, Jamaica provides the perfect ambience for a great honeymoon. This island is quite famous for its water sports, 10 championship golf courses and nightlife. Jamaica has plenty of all-inclusive honeymoon packages. This is a charming and diverse island paradise with coastal lowlands, a limestone plateau and the Blue Mountains which is a group of volcanic hills in the east. This will make your honeymoon extremely economical and convenient. Negril has beautiful beaches and the Duns River Falls tours in Ocho Rios to shopping in Montego Bay.

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There are several water sports such as Fishing, scuba diving, wind surfing, river rafting and horse back riding.

The Kiss and Wish at Lovers’ Lane is a beautiful place. Take a ride down Rio Grande River on a cute bamboo raft and halt at Lovers’ Lane which is a narrow section of the river formed by two large rocks.

The Jacuzzi at Mayfield Falls has lovely waterfalls, natural pools, and dense flora and fauna. Couples can experience a natural “Jacuzzi” created by the waterfalls hitting rocks. Give yourself and a soothing massage.

The Blue Lagoon Romance has amazing blue waters and is a 170-foot deep hole called the Blue Hole. The colors change throughout the day and leaves the visitors stunned.

Source: mydearvalentine.com

Come to China for Honeymoon holiday: Yangshuo Me the Money

So gross, yet so cool
So gross, yet so cool
Take one of the largest places on the planet, with almost one fifth of its population, probably the most varied landscape of any one country, a history of power and culture that goes back 4000 years and try experience it all in two weeks. THEN, try to reduce that down into 1000 words of commentary to be consumed by the masses back at home (I may be overstating my audience a little with “masses”) The task is impossible. China is too much, we’ve been grinding nonstop for the last 2 weeks and have hardly touched this place. China is so epic that when travelers all get together and talk about where they’ve been, it turns into an exercise in faked knods of understanding. No one in the room will have ever heard of the place this guy just mentioned, but traveller machismo forbids ignorance about the world. So the whole room just goes “Cooooool” and then immediately changes the subject to something familiar- Like squatting to poop (a talent that apparently eludes me). So with an apology to Chairman Mao, I’ll give this rushed and grossly incomplete account of the beast that is China.

China was totally cool.

Chinese Solldier Geurilla style
Chinese Solldier Geurilla style
Forbidden City
(Ok, maybe not that incomplete)
We hopped a quick flight from Seoul to Beijing. Saying goodbye to the comfort of our friendly guides in Korea only to walk off the plane and into the loving arms of Joe’s assistant Sally. She’s a young, spunky, adorable little Chinese girl who posesses a lifetime of knowledge about China, a thirst for all things American and that warm fuzzy blanket that is the native language. Sally and her college friend Robert, a native of Beijing with a doctorate in Chinese history (a set of knowledge that may have been of some use to us) took us by the hand (not literally, the Chinese don’t do physical affection as displayed by Robert’s panic attack when Jenny gave him a hug goodbye).

We toured Beijing (their new official slogan: We had the Olympics! Did you see the olympics? Hey, Olympics. Look at me! OLYMPICS! WOOOO FUCKIN’ OLYMPICS! It’s much more subtle in Mandarin). During our three days in Beijing we managed to squeeze in three of the most incredible architectural sites on the planet. We toured the Forbidden City, a massive palace that housed emperors from several dynasties. The whole compund has 999 rooms (there are a thousand rooms in heaven-one doesn’t to be too opulant).

Scarfin on Scorpions
Scarfin on Scorpions
Mike ate one too, but his face and the idea of eating scorpion combined would make you short your keyboard with vomit
The city is adjacent to Tianamen Square, former site of landmark events in Chinese history like Mao’s regime change speech and the student riots of 1989, current giant cement area with the world’s highest conncentration of tourists standing around and asking eachother “Is this it?” China has some amaizing places within it’s borders, this square just aint one of em. It’s the world’s biggest concrete rectangle!!! Apparently they’ve never seen a Wal-Mart parking lot. Nice try China, call me when i can get an Icee and some Martha Stewart living solutions. I also got a to tour the Imperial Summer Palace (I say “I” because Jenny was too busy doing an impression of a near-empty shampoo bottle over the toilet after eating some bad Peking duck.) The palace was huge and sprawling. Sally, Bob and I (Robert is his English name, most Chinese select a western name because stupid americans can’t pronounce their true name. Robert, unfamiliar with the english tradition of name shortening would always shoot me an intenesly puzzled look as for three days i insisted on calling him Bob. Robert is far to rigid.) You have no idea how much hiking it took to get this shot got so lost, that we had to walk for a solid hour from where we stood just to get to the exit.
Just me and the wall
Just me and the wall
Finally on our last day in Beijing all four of us (Jenny managed to cork it for about 3 hours) hopped on a bus to visit one of the undisputed wonders of the world (our fourth, skadoosh) The Great Wall of China. Now many monuments of the world are a touch disappointing because they look exactly how they do in photos and the mass of publicity and people make you feel like a travel whore and really suck the joy away from the site as everyone there begrudingly makes a check mark on their life “seen it” list (I’m looking at you Pyramids of Egypt). For a brief period, this was the case for me with the Great Wall. I should step back. Unbeknownst to us when we bought our tickets, we had chosen our time in China during the National Independence holiday. It’s the biggest holiday of the year and the Chinese all get a week off to celebrate. That means 1.3 billion people with the week off. Needless to say, quite a few of them came Summer Palace to see the Wall.
Bridge of Overwhelming Metaphor
Bridge of Overwhelming Metaphor
At times the hike up the steps of the wall felt like walking through a carpet of black hair. Everywhere I’d turn there’s be a blanket of Chinese scalp (5′10″ is really tall in China). The trails up the face of the Wall were so dense with people that getting the space to take a free breath was a task, forget having that life affirming moment where you were able to stop and soak in the breadth and scale of one of mankind’s greatest acheivments without a Chinese grandma sticking a cigerette in your ass. This trend continued until Jenny’s lingering sickness forced us to turn around (Jeff Lewis says “She’s so selfish”). Not wanting to see one of the Seven Greatest Chunders of the world, we headed back to the entrance. It was as we were begining to exit that i noticed something. As they entered, everyone just turned right up the wall. Crwd mentality forced them all to head the same direction. To the left was a nearly identical section that was almost devoid of people. As they were all tired, I left the group behind and sprinted up this section. It only took 15 minutes of intense vertical ascent until i was there, alone with the wall.
Forbidden City Gates
Forbidden City Gates
I had gotten the beauty and scope of this incredible structure presented to me under new eyes. Finally i was able to soak in the incredible peace one finds when tracing the Wall’s snakelike path as it slithers across the horizon. My faith renewed and my discontent with modern exploitation quelled for a few minutes, i hiked downard back to my waiting friends, proud that i had gotten an experience that 99% of the visitors that day weren’t adventurous enough to get. After that we left Beijing, Bob too and hopped a flight south to Hong Kong.

If my travels here in China (and Italy last trip) have taught me anything, it’s this: Joe Childers is a good man to know. Not only did we get the delightfully helpful company of Sally in Beijing, but the man himself decided to take a break from his six week business trip in China for a rendevous in Hong Kong. Since Joe don’t do hostels, we stayed at an amazing hotel on Kowloon island for three nights of laziness and great meals. Our first day in town, Joe’s business associate KC, a Hong Kong native, gave us a whirlwind tour of the city.

Obligitory Hong Kong skyline pic
Obligitory Hong Kong skyline pic
We shopped, dined on great food (I loved SOME chinese food, marinated jellyfish? no thanks), and finished the day with that mandatory life travel accomplishment veiwing the Hong Kong skyline from Victoria peak. What the Great Wall of China is to anchient warfare, Hong Kong at night is to the new economic battlegrounds of the 21st century. This skyline is the modern version of a victory tower. It’s a pulsing, florescent monument to triumph in financial warfare.

After our time in Hong Kong, the coddling had to come to an end. We had been babysat all through Korea, Beijing and Hong Kong by incredibly gracious hosts. We knew that this time would come to an end eventually, but that didn’t mean we’d take it like adults. We hopped, kicking and screaming, onto a plane out of the comfort and care of the familiar and into the world of the unknown. As our plane touched down in Guilin, Jenny and i shared a look that said “I’m not sure we remember how to do this on our own anymore.” Sure enough there were some growing pains as we kicked the dust off the our travel skills and tried to get things taken care of solo.

Summer Palace
Summer Palace
Nevertheless, like riding a bike (a bike who’s gears you don’t comprehend and who’s intructions are in a language you can’t begin to fathom) we were hailing buses and corraling hostel like the pros we’d become while slogging through South America and Africa. We had forgotten the satisfaction of completing a job by oneself. Not to take anything away from the hospitality that we’d received throughout the trip so far, but an experience is just a little bit more fulfilling when you make it happen yourself. Also, after hopping from the major urban centers of Asia (Tokyo to Seoul to Beijing to Hong Kong), which comprise some of the biggest cities in the world, we were dieing for some good old fashioned high quality nature. Boy Howdy did Yangshuo deliver. Once we hit the sprawling green peaks of Yangshou, took a deep breath of fresh air (as fresh as you can get in China at least) and got dirty for the first time on this trip, we felt like travelers again. This is the type of stuff we’ve grown to love.
Bob
Bob
Summer Palace
Sweaty, smelly trek through the world’s most beautiful landscapes, crashing at hostels that have a great sense of community and are home to a dizzying aray of well seasoned-travellers who’ve gotten past the childishness of the “I saw this” “Oh yeah, I saw this” that goes on at most places. We made some great friends in Yangshou as including Kelly and Damien, a Irish/English couple doing there SECOND year long round the world trip, Karen and Ariel, Canuks from Toronto who’s bike fixing knowledge saved our lives a couple times on our long rides, and Ed, a firey Brit who somehow found a way to match my spark plug energy level. These are real travellers, the type of people that we haven’t really run across yet staying in hotels. During our time in Yangshuo, we tried our best to dodge the throngs of Chinese (fucking national holiday) while taking bamboo ride river cruises, picturesque bike rides, and spelunking through one of the coolest caves in the world (suck it Carlsbad!) complete with swimming pools and a mudpit.

Sadly our time in Yangshuo was fleeting. Next up backpacker’s meccah Thailand. Though it was only three days, Yangshuo will always

Where's the tanks?
Where’s the tanks?
This place is so squarehold a special distinction for us. It was a return to a stretch in time that will mark OUR style of travel. It’s the spot where this trip really began.

Occidental Grande, Cozumel

Source: Honeymoon Destinations

Occidental Grand Xcaret All-Inclusive Hotel in the Riviera Maya, Playa Del Carmen, Mexico’s Mayan Riviera: Occidental Grand Resorts:
Occidental Grand Cozumel – Occidental Grand Xcaret – Occidental Grand Aruba – Occidental Grand Papagayo. Occidental Grand All Inclusive Resorts In – Dominican Republic – Mexico – Aruba – Costa Rica

Welcome to the all- inclusive Occidental Grand Cozumel!

Nestled in a secluded nature preserve on the southern side of Mexico’s famed Cozumel Island, the All-Inclusive Occidental Grand Cozumel will make you feel like you’ve stepped into your own private hacienda by the ocean. With only 251 rooms, this exclusive all-inclusive luxury resort is located on a private section of Cozumel’s finest beach, Playa San Francisco.

The All-Inclusive Occidental Grand Cozumel caters to families and honeymooners alike, with six restaurants, four bars and a nightclub, along with three pools and a Kids Club with a host of entertaining supervised activities.

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Accommodations

Deluxe accommodations at the all-inclusive Occidental Grand Cozumel are spacious and bright and are equipped with a selection of modern conveniences to make your stay comfortable. Each room features either one king or two double beds, along with the following:

  • Air conditioning
  • Ceiling fans
  • Private bathroom with tub
  • Balcony
  • Satellite TV
  • Telephone
  • Hair dryer
  • Stocked mini-fridge
  • Safety deposit box
  • Iron and ironing board
  • Cribs & extra beds available upon request

To check room rates and availability based on your travel dates, Click Here .
For complete travel packages, including airfare and accommodations, Click Here

Activities

Stroll along boardwalks amidst lush, green mangroves as you make your way to the private beach or sit poolside at one of three specialty pools designed to ensure the perfect atmosphere. The striking kidney-shaped Relaxation Pool surrounded by a circle of lounge chairs and umbrellas means you’ll find quiet and privacy, while the Activities Pool offers room to play and exercise. The kids have their own pool where they can splash and play their days away and enjoy supervised kids activities at the Kids Club (ages 4 – 12).

For the active traveler, the all-inclusive Occidental Grand Cozumel also offers a fitness center and whirlpool, two lighted tennis courts, kayaking, snorkeling, windsurfing, volleyball, water aerobics, water polo, windsurfing and SCUBA clinics at the pool.

Restaurants & Bars

6 Restaurants/4 Bars

La Posada/International buffet-style dining. Breakfast 7 – 10:30am; Lunch 12:30 – 3pm; Dinner 6:30 – 9:30pm.

Sonora Grill/A la carte steak house dining. Dinner 6:30 – 9:30pm. Reservations required. Long trousers and closed shoes required for gentlemen.

Los Olivos/ Mediterranean-style a la carte dining. Dinner 6:30 – 9:30pm. Reservations required. Long trousers and closed shoes required for gentlemen.

La Piazza/Pizzeria. Open 6:30pm – 1:30am.

Beach Club/Light lunch and snacks and bar. Bar open 10am – 5:00pm. Snacks available Noon – 4:30pm.

Lobby Bar/Open 12:30 – 11pm.

Relax Bar/Open 10:00 a.m. -5:00 p.m.

La Misión Bar & Disco/Open from 7pm – 1:30am. Disco (adults only) open 10:30pm – 1:30am.