Design Your Vacation by Amie

09/19/2024

In April 2024, the MICHELIN Guide debuted a brand new distinction: the MICHELIN Key. While the MICHELIN Star recognizes the most outstanding restaurants in the world, the MICHELIN Key does the same for outstanding hotels.

There are five universal criteria when selecting hotels: excellence in architecture and interior design, quality and consistency of service, overall personality and character, value for the price, and a significant contribution to the neighborhood or setting.

Just like a MICHELIN-rated restaurant, a MICHELIN-rated hotel can earn One, Two, or Three Keys.

One Key: a very special stay.
Two Keys: an exceptional stay.
Three Keys: an extraordinary stay.

In the Riviera Maya, here are the resorts that have earned keys:

3 Keys:
-Hotel Esencia

2 Keys:
-Banyan Tree Mayakoba
-Etero
-Palmaia
-Rosewood Mayakoba
-Maroma, a Belmond Hotel
-Casa Chable

1 Key:
-Waldorf Astoria Cancun
-Nomade Holbox
-St. Regis Kanai
-Viceroy Riviera Maya
-Chable Maroma
-Be Tulum
-Milam
-Wakax Hacienda

Have you ever stayed in a MICHELIN-rated resort/hotel?

09/13/2024

Repeat clients recently booked this amazing resort in the Riviera Maya…. No better way to beat those post-holiday winter blues than having a beach vacation to look forward to 🏖️☀️🧉

09/07/2024

A lesson some have had to learn the expensive way… While we may think it is a bit ridiculous, we need to remember that when visiting another country, we must abide by their rules.

Traveling With A Laptop And An iPad To Mexico? Prepare To Pay Hundreds

Travelers bringing electronic devices to Mexico are getting hit with hefty fines at Cancun airport. Here's what to know about visiting Mexico with laptops and iPads.

08/18/2024

Do you enjoy traveling with your girlfriends or as couples? Allow me to take the stress out of the coordinating and planning for you. You pick the destination, I’ll do the research, make the bookings and take care of the details.

08/07/2024

Did you know that Disney has a resort in Hawaii? There is not a theme park, but there are character interactions and dining. I recently assisted with a friend and her son’s first trip to Aulani and they loved every minute of it… Spend days on property or get out and explore the island, I can assist with all of it!

07/29/2024

Is Costa Rica on your radar? If not, you should consider adding it! Great for families, couples and groups alike. There are a few all-inclusive options, but spending time in the jungle either on excursions or tours is key. You can even do a split stay!

I just had a sweet family spend time in the Arneal area and split their time between two resorts with different vibes and they loved it!

This is definitely a top location contender for our family vacation next year… 😍🇨🇷🌋🦥

07/25/2024

For the Southwest fliers out there… what do you think? Will this change who you fly with?

Southwest Airlines is shifting to assigned seats for the first time in its history, a change that will allow the low-fare carrier to charge a premium for some of the seats on its planes.

07/19/2024

Aloha! When your friends (and clients) head to Kauai to officiate a wedding; a helicopter tour is a must! Many parts of the island are remote and not accessible, so a birds eye view is the best view.

07/11/2024

Kansas City travelers - beginning in 2025, Alaska Airlines will begin offering seasonal non-stop service to Cancun and Puerto Vallarta! This will make three non-stop options to Cancun from KCI. Reach out to me and let’s get those winter beach vacations booked! 🏖️✈️🍹🧉

Alaska Airlines says the new nonstop options are in response to “increased leisure demand to warm weather destinations during winter.” See where you can go and when.

06/25/2024

4️⃣0️⃣ years of marriage deserves a little (or a LOT) of celebrating…. A couple of weeks ago, I planned a last-minute getaway to Cancun for my Dad and Step-mom! They are habitual cruise people, but I was able to get them out of their comfort zone and into an all-inclusive (with air and transfers) for less than what four days at Big Cedar Lodge costs.

What do you want to celebrate?!? ❤️🥂🏖️👰🏻🤰🏻👨🏻‍🎓

06/22/2024

The week after re-entry from a long vacation is always tough. However, as l sit down to read a book on this warm Friday night, I am reminded of the beautiful Livraria Lello in Porto. It is said this bookstore inspired the Hogwarts Library in Harry Potter. JK Rowling lived in Porto while writing the first book of the series.

Tickets were required and I highly recommend buying the upgraded ticket for the earliest entry. I was the fifth person in and was able to take a few pictures without anyone around!

It was a must see for this book loving, book nerd… 📚🤓

📷 credit: Mark Murphy

06/17/2024

Happy Father’s Day! May you continue to make memories with those you love the most.

06/14/2024

When traveling between Lisbon and Porto, we hired a private driver so we would have the opportunity to visit a couple of additional towns on the way. One of the towns we selected was Nazaré.

Nazare is known for having the tallest (and most dangerous) waves in the world between October and February each year. It was an American surfer 🏄 which pushed for Guiness to evaluate/measure the waves and he has remained here all of these years. It was interesting to learn why the waves are so large here and how surfing has positively changed this community!

06/11/2024

Pena Palace in Sintra, Portugal. A great day trip from Lisbon to see King Ferdinand’s summer home prior to the fall of the monarchy in Portugal. It has a long history before entering the hands of the monarchy and survived the earthquake of 1755.

Pro tip: take the rain jacket and/or umbrella even when they say no rain and it’s just cloudy. 🙄🌂

06/08/2024

Our first day in Lisbon had us aimlessly wandering the neighborhood (Chiado), making pit stops for cocktails and a Sardine Festival street party!

On every trip, I have my “must sees” and the rest is spent being spontaneous and finding gems along the way…

06/06/2024

Hanging out in the airport before a trip is a lot different than it used it be… we are on our way to Portugal and will be sharing my highlights along the way!!

06/02/2024

Happy 3️⃣0️⃣th Anniversary to my sister and brother-in law! I am so happy your week in Mexico was everything you were hoping for. Looking forward to planning your return trip! 🏖️🍹☀️

05/26/2024

Italy has been the country of choice for so many of my travelers this spring… the food and drink pictures have me like 😍🇮🇹

If Italy is on your list to check off, I would love to help you plan. 💚🤍❤️

05/19/2024

Over the past week and into this next, I have clients taking their bucket list trip to the original Icehotel in Sweden and then over to Iceland. This was a special one for me as my first travel abroad experience was to Sweden- almost 20 years ago…

I have loved working with them, listening to what they hoped to see, achieve and then curating an itinerary to make their travel dreams a reality!

Want to cross a bucket list trip off your list, let’s chat…

05/10/2024

7️⃣7️⃣7️⃣- Sandals Deal Alert!

7-Day Offer with an Additional 7% off at 7 Select Rooms:

Booking Window: May 8 - 14th 2024
Travel Dates: August 18th - 24th 2024

🦩Sandals Royal Curaçao - Kurason Island Poolside Butler Bungalow with Patio Tranquility Soaking Tub - $11,635

🩴Sandals Dunn's River - Tufa Terrace One Bedroom Skypool Butler Suite w/ Balcony Tranquility Soaking Tub - $8,827

🌺Sandals South Coast - Longbeach Beachfront Swim-up Club Level Suite w/ Patio Tranquility Soaking Tub - $5,758

🍹Sandals Ochi - One Bedroom Poolside Butler Villa Suite - $4,281

🐠Sandals Grande Antigua - Mediterranean Club Level Suite - $3,809

🍍Sandals Emerald Bay - Beachfront Honeymoon Walkout Butler Villa Suite - $9,566

🌴Sandals Saint Vincent - Lady Palm Club Suite with Media Room and Balcony Tranquility Soaking Tub - $5,688

I will be posting more of these 777 deals on Wednesdays! I have been to Ocho and Dunn’s River, so can give firsthand information. My agency has two advisors going to the brand new Saint Vincent next week!

05/05/2024

Cinco de Mayo, or the fifth of May, is a holiday that celebrates the date of the Mexican army’s May 5, 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War. Cinco de Mayo is not Mexican Independence Day, a popular misconception.

While it is a relatively minor holiday in Mexico (only really celebrated in Puebla, if at all!), in the United States and Canada, Cinco de Mayo has evolved into a commemoration of Mexican culture and heritage, particularly in areas with large Mexican-American populations.

Let’s all raise a margarita… 🍹🇲🇽

05/02/2024

Happy Global Travel Advisors Day! This week I was invited to visit Beaches Turks and Caicos to learn about the island and this amazing resort.

In the spirit of travel and using a knowledgeable advisor, we have a great incentive to offer!

If you’re thinking of heading to ANY Sandals or Beaches between now and DECEMBER 2026- now is the time…. *some black out dates apply

Pay only a $400 deposit and up to three years to pay!! PLUS if we book this week I can add on one of the incentives in the attached document!

📅Booking Window: May 1st - May 7th, 2024

04/28/2024

Tomorrow morning, I’m heading to Turks & Caicos to check out Beaches Resort for all my family travelers! It is located on one of the best beaches in the world and I’m thrilled to tour it and learn all about what it has to offer.

I will definitely share my findings here…

04/24/2024

Like all things, good vacations, must also come to an end. We decided that one more day would’ve been perfect- we had three full days and two “travel days”. This will not be our last family vacation to the area, it’s too easy and fun to not plan another, those non-stop flights from KCI are 🤌🏼…

04/22/2024

When determining which family resort to choose for our trip, there were two things that helped me decide:

- a fantastic kids club that had a load of activities for when she was tired of hanging out with us - which was a lot…
- the jungle feel and wildlife. Our daughter loves animals and we knew she would love seeing them in their natural habitat.

This is the type of information I can assist you with to make sure you have a wonderful family vacation!

04/20/2024

Initial thoughts from a family all-inclusive vacation versus a couples getaway to an adult all-inclusive resort:

☀️Rise and grind versus rest and relax
🏖️ So many kiddos and multigenerational families.
👩🏻‍🦰 Speaking of kiddos, the resort definitely caters to them and it is appreciated for this type of vacation
🍦Ice cream every day
🍹Momma needs a marg, okay, I always need a marg on vacation…

I will have more to share on the kids club and resort activities as the days continue!