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Canadian Travel Bucket List Roundup: Travel To The Maritime Provinces

6/6/2018

 

Planning a Canadian road trip? Here's a roundup of our top travel recommendations for New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland.

Please note that some links within this blog post are affiliate links, which means we are paid a small commission should you make a purchase through said link. This post also contains a paid link from one of our supporters.

Canadian travel bucket list: fishing boat in Newfoundland Picture
The period when late spring turns into early summer is one of my favourite times of year and it's not only because of the great weather and the chance to dig in the garden after a long, cold winter. It's also the time when people ask me a lot of questions about traveling to the Canadian Maritime provinces. Longtime readers know that I grew up in Nova Scotia and that Ryan and I make frequent trips to Canada's east coast to visit family and sneak in a little travel of our own. It's always exciting to see that other people are planning their own trips and we're only too happy to help with the process. 

While I hope you peruse all of our Maritime posts at a leisurely pace, I thought it would help you fine folks if I did a round up of some of our favourite destinations, routes, foodie experiences, and Maritime roadtrip tips and tricks. And I've also included links to some inspiring pieces written by other bloggers to help fuel your great Canadian travel adventure!

Whether you're in Halifax for a weekend conference or taking the trip of a lifetime and spending an entire season on the road, I hope you'll come back to dip into this post again and again! 

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Whipping Up Memories: Choosing Cooking Classes Around The World

23/4/2018

 

Bon Appetit! Cooking classes around the world offer great meals and great memories. Here's what we look for to make sure we get great value as well.

choosing cooking classes around the world: Ryan and Vanessa cook in Prague Picture
We were sticky, sweaty, and we smelled distinctly of onions. Our feet were coated in a layer of fine dust and we had mysterious red splotches all over our shirts. We needed showers, we needed rest, and -truth be told - we probably needed to drink something other than wine. But we had the best morning imaginable!

We weren't participating in some kind of strange obstacle course or adventure excursion. No, Ryan and I were fresh from spending the morning at an incredible cooking class in Prague. The onion odor and red stains were the result of carefully (... or not so carefully....) stirring the base for a goulash and the dusty feet were courtesy of a market tour. And the wine, well...All in a day's work!

Cooking classes around the world are our new favourite travel activity and we're not alone. Classes for non-chefs and travelers are popping up everywhere. We've never had a class we didn't absolutely love nor a meal that didn't leave us groaning with happy, overfull bellies. To ensure that your experience is just as great as ours, here's what you should look for in an overseas cooking class.

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Readers Want To Know: Can You Take Bath Bombs On An Airplane?

11/4/2018

 

Can you take bath bombs on an airplane? What about packing bath bombs in carry on luggage? Our readers ask the BEST questions about TSA carry on rules and we can't wait to help!

​​​This post contains affiliate links, which means if you make a purchase, we may be paid a small commission.

Selfie with a bath bomb
Posing with my Harry Potter-inspired bath bomb.
I absolutely love it when readers send in their travel questions - and often those questions focus on packing, specifically packing and carry on luggage. And this month's question is an especially good one: Can you take a bath bomb on an airplane? The answer is yes. But I know you don't come to me for short answers! You want details! You demand explanations! 

​As a lover of relaxing baths AND easy to pack luggage, I am only too happy to dig a bit deeper into this particular query regarding toiletries and TSA carry on rules.

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Penguins or No Penguins? What the Cutest Bird Taught Me About Money and Travel

24/3/2018

 

I love to chat about money and travel... but penguins usually aren't included in the conversation! 

Money and Travel: Souvenir pic of penguins. Picture
How cute are these penguins? We posed for a fun souvenir photo at Sea Life in Sydney.
Have you ever traveled to see penguins? And, if so, did they teach you any financial lessons? It's a strange question! You see, a recent conversation about these cute birds unexpectedly shed some light on money and my travel decision making process. Let me explain....

I was chatting with friends about how there are some things I'll happily pay a lot of money for when I travel, yet I get really annoyed at some minor travel expenses. Why was it so easy to assign value to one activity yet be so aggravated with another? That's when a friend piped up and said that in her circle of friends, they summarize this quandary with one quirky phrase: "penguins or no penguins".

She told me about some acquaintances - known for being rather frugal - who had saved up for the trip of a lifetime. They cruised to Antarctica, truly an incredible voyage, and a trip that easily cost thousands of dollars. And while they were there, they had the chance to pay an extra $20 each to leave the cruise ship and board a Zodiac boat that would take them closer to the penguins. But they refused! They must have spent over $10,000 on their trip - but they drew the line at an extra $40 in travel expenses. And thus, the phrase "penguins or no penguins" was born. 

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15 Flights for $500: Inside Our Star Alliance Around the World Rewards Trip

18/1/2018

 

In 2013, we created the most incredible reward trip with Aeroplan, circling the globe with Star Alliance.  And in 2018 we're doing it again!

2021 Update: Remember, rules change and Aeroplan has tweaked some of theirs since we wrote this post. So please use it as inspiration and a guide, but double check the fine print on FlyerTalk, our go-to online forum for all things Aeroplan.

Aeroplan rewards round the world flights on points. Picture
Sailing the Irrawaddy River in Myanmar.
Aeroplan rewards round the world flights on points.
Hot air balloon ride in Bagan.
Aeroplan rewards round the world flights on points. Picture
Landing back home in Ottawa.
Aeroplan rewards round the world flights on points. Picture
Heading to New York.
Aeroplan rewards round the world flights on points. Picture
In Mandalay.
Aeroplan rewards round the world flights on points. Picture
In Bruges.
TurnipseedTravel debuted nearly six years ago (and does anyone else remember our very first green and grey template?). Nearly 18 months later, that debut became a fully fledged launch when Ryan and I took our readers along for the journey of a lifetime.

We cashed in all our points for what was technically a trip to Australia but instead embarked on an amazing round-the-world trip fueled entirely by Aeroplan.  See, we had learned about all the reward flight loopholes needed to "hack" our travel plans and create a mini round the world trip with Star Alliance partners. With stops in Europe, Asia, North America (and, of course, Australia), we had 9 flight segments on Star Alliance flights (and visited about 15 different locations) and paid about $300 each for taxes and fees. As you can tell from our nostalgic photos, thanks to Aeroplan, it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

​Or so we thought.... 

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Where To Stay In Bagan: Hotels, Guesthouses, and Hostels

23/10/2017

 

Looking for the best hotels in Bagan? We asked top travel writers for their recommendations for the best hotels, guesthouses, inns, and hostels that Bagan has to offer. 

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Bagan is synonymous with magic. This small community in Myanmar was once the capital of a mighty kingdom. Between the 11th and 13th centuries, over 10,000 pagodas, temples, and monasteries were built. Today, some 2,200 structures remain, the greatest concentration of religious sites in the world. It is an absolutely essential stop for all travelers in Myanmar and you'll never regret adding an extra day or two onto your Bagan itinerary. 

Since our visit in 2013, the travel industry has grown exponentially in Bagan, with hostels, hotels, and guesthouses springing up seemingly overnight. Eager for my readers to have the best possible experience in Bagan, I asked my fellow travel writers to weigh in. Here you'll find their reviews of different properties - from $20 to $200 + a night - to help you make the best possible decision based on your travel style. It's time to pack your bags!

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Readers Want To Know: What Do I Do When My Flight Is Delayed?

14/9/2017

 

UPDATED in 2022! This is our airport delay playbook... just in case! If your flight is delayed, we hope this will help.

Note: This blog post contains ads and affiliate links.

What to do when your flight is delayed. Picture shows wing of a plane at sunset.
If your flight is delayed, we hope our advice can help!
Delays are an inevitable part of the travel experience and, believe it or not, not all delays are bad. After all, they're often caused by safety concerns or are the result of an earlier accident - both circumstances that will make you grateful you're only aggravated, not injured. But an optimistic attitude can only go so far, especially when you're in an airport and your flight is delayed.

Airport delays are the frustration of all frustrations. Maybe it's the pressure and panic of how a delayed departure will influence the rest of your travel plans. Or perhaps it's being surrounded by the general anxiety and grumpiness of hundreds of other passengers. Or maybe it has to do with the fact that airports and airlines still have a ways to go when it comes to customer service. Or maybe it's a little bit of everything, rolled in with jet lag, bad coffee, and scratchy toilet paper. No matter the cause, a little planning, preparation, and research can go a long way to help with delays.

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Layover Luxury: The Free Hotel Trick We Just Discovered.

16/5/2017

 

It's not a hoax or a hack. It's a helpful hint that will change all my future travel plans.

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Who doesn't like a sweet treat when they travel?
I've said it a hundred times: The great thing about travel is how you're always learning. But today I'm not talking about learning history or geography or languages. Nope, I've been schooled in a whole new way and it changes EVERYTHING!

It all started with my friend Andrea, who blogs at WanderingiPhone. She's an all round lovely gal who appreciates a savvy bargain as much as the next person. Andrea was telling me about an amazing trip she took to South Africa, "hacking" her points to get free layovers and stopovers in Ethiopia, Israel, and Poland along the way (much like we did in 2013 - seriously, we flew around the world for $350.) 

And then Andrea told me that Ethiopian Airlines gave her a free night's accommodation at a Hilton in Addis Ababa, plus meal vouchers and ground transportation. Uh, WHAT?!?!

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Smooth Skies: Review of Turkish Airlines Business Class

25/10/2016

 

Flying with Turkish Airlines has opened our eyes to a different style of travel.

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Lemonade, mint soda, or fruit punch? Step inside the most colorful, coziest, loveliest way we've ever gone from point A to point B! Traveling from Montreal to Istanbul with Turkish Airlines business class was an unforgettable experience and a wonderful lesson in travel elegance. We will never look at travel the same way again!

This trip marked the one and only time we've ever flown in business class (well, okay, there was that time Ryan managed to weasel his way to first class while on route to Las Vegas but that's a sore point). And, just like you'd imagine, it was absolutely divine! But it comes as no surprise that flying in business class is "nice." We wanted to bring you behind the scenes to see just what our experience was like so you can decide for yourself if the upgrade from economy to business is a smart move for you. 

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