Alexis with Wishful Wanderings Travel

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Windermere, FL
Alexis with Wishful Wanderings Travel

Travel planner specializing in cruises, Disney destinations, Universal, custom/group trips to Europe
(25)

06/17/2024

Today, we drove down to Lecce from Alberobello. We had a great lunch at Volo Restaurant, an AIC (Italian Celiac Association) certified restaurant when we arrived in Lecce, then we visited their most well known churches. Tomorrow, we leave Puglia to head to Calabria, the region of Italy our ancestors are from.

06/16/2024

Today, we drove to Ostuni, a city in the Puglia region of Italy. We had a great lunch at Osteria Ostuni Bistrot, walked around, then drove down to see the Adriatic Sea.

06/15/2024

We flew from London to Brindisi this morning for our 8-night stay in Southern Italy. After checking in to our trullo, we had lunch at Casa Nova. Alberobello is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Puglia known for its trulli, limestone dwellings with conical roofs.

06/14/2024

Next stop, London! We are flying premium with Norse Atlantic, a low cost, long haul airline.

06/12/2024

Continuing my Europe recommendations from Delta Vacations, here are their top spots for classic Europe. I have visited all three of these cities multiple times and they are some of my favorite cities in the world for their history and gluten free options. The photos are from our trip to Barcelona in 2022. I eat so well when I am there and I am obsessed with everything Gaudi in the city.

London
A diverse and exciting city with some of the world’s best sights and attractions, London is an international capital of culture, music, education and fashion. Home to a bevy of English bobbies, avant-garde fashion, double-decker buses and pubs filled with “football” fans, England’s capital is teeming with noteworthy sights, from the Tower of London to Abbey Road.

Rome
Every year, millions of tourists from around the globe come to the Eternal City to admire the treasures and masterpieces of Roman art and architecture. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and it is a city that is best enjoyed leisurely, like a full-bodied glass of wine. Iconic sites like The Vatican, Trevi Fountain, Spanish Steps, Roman Forum and St. Peter’s Square will both astonish and inspire.

Barcelona
Flanked by the Mediterranean Sea, Barcelona is a 2,000-year-old city, steeped in cultural heritage, vibrant art and impressive architecture. From the scenic Barceloneta district to the Gothic Quarter, Barcelona is sure to bring joy to travelers of every age.

06/11/2024

Yesterday, I focused on recommendations from Delta Vacations for history lovers in Europe. Delta Vacations also has some great recommendations for nature lovers who want to go to Europe. We had a chance to visit Iceland last year on our cruise on the Norwegian Prima. We will be visiting Switzerland for the first time next year.

Switzerland
Ride a gondola up Geneva’s backyard mountain to enjoy the most breathtaking views of the surrounding Alps and the city below, or relax in one of the city’s waterfront parks. Geneva is an ideal base for exploring the surrounding countryside, including the popular nearby towns of Lausanne, Vevey and Montreux.

Iceland
With lava fields, geothermal pools, sweeping sea views and massive volcanoes all within easy reach, Reykjavik is a gateway of possibilities. The world’s northern-most capital has nearly 24-hours of daylight in the summertime, which is the perfect time to get a a glimpse of Icelandic life.
Favorite destinations include the Golden Circle, Mount Esja and Úlfarsfell Mountain. Laugavegur, Iceland's popular 88-mile hiking trail, connects the nature reserves Landmannalaugar and Thorsmork.

06/10/2024

If you are a history buff like me, Delta Vacations has some suggestions for countries to visit in Europe. I have traveled extensively in England and Italy and both are great choices. I am excited to experience Ireland next year on my first gluten free grouo tour with clients. All three countries are great destinations if you need to eat gluten free like I do. Delta Vacations is one of my preferred vendors for my clients who are looking for flight and hotel packages in Europe.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England
From the Tower of London to cathedrals and Stonehenge, England’s thousands-year history is truly enchanting. Visit the British Museum, Churchill War Rooms, the Roman Baths, Shakespeare’s Globe and Hadrian’s Wall, plus hundreds of castles along the countryside to step back in time.

🇮🇹 Italy
Surround yourself with beauty, history and the greatest collection of art the world has ever seen, not to mention medieval hilltop towns and awe-inspiring cathedrals and ancient ruins. From the Colosseum to Pompeii, the Doge’s Palace to the Tower of Pisa, ancient history is waiting around every corner.

🇮🇪 Ireland
Gaze over The Cliffs of Moher & walk the streets of Ireland to feel the energy of more than 1,000 years of history, as echoes of the Vikings mix with quaint boutiques, cobbled streets reverberate with the sounds of musicians, & 18th-century parks play host to festivals & food markets.

06/10/2024

I highly recommend Dreams That Soar at Disney Springs. It was a super hot night but we really enjoyed the new drone show. We had dessert at Sprinkles and my daughters had BBQ pork buns at the quick service at Morimoto Asia.

06/08/2024

It can be hard to plan a vacation with extended family when you don’t have the same vacation styles. My family sent me the first five photos from their vacation in Maui this week. My husband and I have not been there since our honeymoon, and have no plans to go back. We much prefer to travel to Europe for the history, culture, and food. Last summer, we visited nine countries during our summer vacation and took a Danube river cruise with Viking and a Norway & Iceland cruise on the NCL Prima. This summer, we chose to go to Europe again instead of Hawaii with my family. We are not beach people and my ideal vacation involves amazing food and walks around beautiful European towns and cities at dusk. I also loved the natural beauty of Norway and Iceland last summer. We will be joining my extended family for a summer vacation next year in Rome before we do the Tuscan Women Cook experience my mom wanted to do.
Just a reminder that the Norwegian fjords will be closing to cruise ships that are not emissions free in 2026, so now is the time to plan those 2025 northern European cruises.
What is your vacation style?

06/07/2024

New Disney Cruise Line promotion!
✨ Book a select Disney cruise by August 9, 2024, and pay only half of the required deposit the day the reservation is made
✨ This limited-time promotion is valid on new bookings aboard the Disney Magic, Disney Wonder, Disney Dream, and Disney Wish

Eligible departure dates:
✨Disney Wonder: October 20, 2024, through February 24, 2025
✨Disney Dream: January 4, 2025, through March 29, 2025
✨Disney Magic: January 6, 2025, through March 20, 2025
✨Disney Wish: January 3, 2025, through March 31, 2025

06/06/2024

I bought some new Rick Steves books for our trip to Europe next week. Our cruise on the Norwegian Viva has stops in Messina, Siracusa, Split, and Dubrovnik. We booked a private driver in Messina but plan to do Rick Steves’ walks to get to know the other cities.

06/05/2024

Did you know that the Royal Caribbean Group owns Silversea, a luxury cruise line? Silversea features all suite accommodations, unique destinations, and shore excursions are included. You can status match your Crown & Anchor or Captain’s Club status with Silversea in the Royal Caribbean or Celebrity Cruises app.

06/04/2024

I love this infogrqphic from Royal Caribbean. I was not surprised that my ideal cruises would be to Alaska, Norway, the Mediterranean and Asia. We have cruised to Alaska and Norway and loved both destinations, and are taking our 4th Mediterranean cruise this summer. I am hoping to cruise in Asia before my daughters graduate from college in 2 years.
What kind of vactioner are you?

06/03/2024

With Norway closing its fjords to ships that are not emissions free in 2026, I have been doing a lot of research on cruises for clients next summer and have been discussing shore excursions as well. We booked almost all our shore excursions for Norway and Iceland last summer through GetYourGuide and I have been using them for our cruise on the Norwegian Viva this summer as well. These photos are from our scenic fjord cruise to Mostraumen from Bergen. Using third party vendors like GetYourGuide is a great way to save money on shore excursions. I will post my booking link in the comments.

06/03/2024

Royal Caribbean’s new promo for June!
✨ Up to $650 onboard credit when you book between June 1-3, 2024.
✨ Up to $600 onboard credit when you book between June 4-6, 2024.
✨ Up to $550 onboard credit when you book between June 7-10, 2024.
✨ Plus 60% off your second guest and kids 12 and under sail free on select voyages
✨Reach our for more details

06/01/2024

Rosa Mexicano, a table service restaurant at the Disney Dolphin, has been one of my favorite restaurants at Walt Disney World for breakfast since I tried their amazing churro waffles with Mexican chocolate sauce last year.
After having dinner there last night, Rosa Mexicano now holds my top spot for Mexican food for dinner, toppling former favorites like Maya Grill, La Hacienda de San Angel, and Frontera Cocina.
What is your favorite Mexican restaurant at Walt Disney World?

05/31/2024

New Disneyland summer promotions have been released!

✨ For a limited time, you can visit the Disneyland Resort theme parks for as little as $50 per child per day (ages 3-9) or $83 per day (ages 10+) with the purchase of a special 3-day, 1-park per day ticket valid Monday through Thursday.

✨ Get tickets soon to take advantage of this special offer. Then, visit 3 times from June 10 through September 26, 2024—subject to theme park reservation availability, which is not guaranteed. Select tickets are valid for use Monday through Thursday and are subject to blockout dates

✨ Save up to 25% on select stays of 4 or more nights at a Disneyland Resort hotel on most nights from June 10th through September 26, 2024. Subject to availability and restrictions.
Save up to 25% on select stays of 4 or more nights (weekdays or weekends)
Save up to 20% on select stays (Sunday through Thursday)
This offer is valid for Standard and Premium room types at these Disneyland Resort hotels:
Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa
Disneyland Hotel
The Villas at Disneyland Hotel

✨ Book now through September 12, 2024. Travel must be completed by September 27, 2024.

If you already booked a Disneyland package with me for this summer, I checked to see if the promotions could be applied to you stay at the Happiest Place on Earth!

05/30/2024

What’s in your passport case? We leave for our annual summer trip to Europe two weeks from today, and I was getting my passport case ready now that I am home from my cruise on the Disney Wish. Essentials for me:
✨ My passport - I usually quadruple check that it is in my passport case and in the right bag before I leave the house
✨ Foreign currency and dollars - we have already ordered Euros from our bank and I usually travel with $10 and $20 bills to use for tips on tours and extra gratuities on cruises if I run out of Euros
✨ My Global Entry card - I have never needed it when going through customs but I always carry it just in case
✨ An old cruise card to use on cruises to put in the slot to turn on the power in my stateroom
✨ I keep my DCL coffee card in my passport case so I remember to take it on my next Disney cruise
✨ I leave one of my credit cards in my passport case, keeping it separate from my purse, just in case
✨I always take at least two different credit cards to Europe that do not have foreign transaction fees, like my Chase Sapphire Preferred. I will probably leave my Amex at home because a lot of merchants did not take Amex when I was in Europe earlier this year.

05/29/2024

The Atrium on the Disney Wish is such a beautiful venue for a wedding. All Disney Cruise Line ships have several wedding venues and you can also get married on Castaway Cay. I had my first wedding group onboard the Disney Wish earlier this month and was excited to see a wedding on my cruise this past weekend.

05/28/2024

All Disney Cruise Line ships do a great job with special diets, but only the Disney Wish has allergy-friendly menus. All options on these menus are gluten free, but you can often find other gluten free options marked on the regular menus too. The first night of our cruise this past weekend, we dined at Arendelle.

05/27/2024

Last night, we had dinner at World of Marvel, one of the main dining rooms onboard the Disney Wish. The experience is always fun and we all enjoyed the food.

05/26/2024

We have had a great day on the Disney Wish, which is visiting Castaway Cay today, Disney’s private island in the Bahamas. We had breakfast at Marceline Market, then headed out to Serenity Bay, the adults only beach, for some ocean time. We had lunch back on the ship then spent the afternoon in the spa. We also visited the adults only area of the ship to get iced coffee.

05/25/2024

My colleagues and I decided to buy length of cruise Rainforest passes for Senses Spa on the Disney Wish. It has been a great way to spend our afternoon while in Nassau.

05/24/2024

My third cruise on the Disney Wish starts today! This is my 16th cruise with Disney Cruise Line, so I felt comfortable packing this morning before I drive to Port Canaveral. Two key essentials are several pairs of Minnie ears and my passport. Passports are not always required for cruises, but I suggest that all my clients have one and that it does not expire within 6 months of the end of their trip.

05/23/2024

A month from today we will be back in Rome, one of my favorite cities in the world. We are only there for one night before our cruise on the Norwegian Viva, but we already have plans to visit again in 2025. I love walking around the Eternal City at dusk, and I plan on having dinner at Voglia di Pizza and gelato at Fatamorgana, my favorite gelateria. Before Rome, we will be spending 8 nights exploring Puglia, Basilicata, and Calabria in southern Italy. We will also be spending some time in Trieste at the end of our Mediterranean cruise. What are your favorite places to visit in Italy?

05/22/2024

Virgin Voyages Brilliant Lady Caribbean Voyages are on sale starting May 23rd!

🐙 Available tomorrow — Brilliant Lady’s epic journey across the United States is stopping in Miami for her first Winter 2025 - Spring 2026 Caribbean season.
🚢 From longer 7-12 night itineraries to new destinations like Jamaica, Bonaire, Colombia, and Aruba, plus a historic 16-night across the Panama Canal

05/21/2024

On Virgin Voyages ships, there are so many a activities to keep you occupied on a sea day. My girls enjoyed spending time on our balcony in our hammock and hunting for ducks and octopi. I tried to talk them into karaoke in one of the private karaoke rooms on the ship and going to the spa, but I ended up going by myself. I love that Virgin has games and video games, lots of entertainment options, pickleball, and plenty of other things to do. On my last cruise, I ended up getting a tattoo at Squid Ink on our last sea day. What are your favorite sea day activities?

05/20/2024

We had brunch yesterday at Summer House on the Lake, one of our favorite table service restaurants at Disney Springs. My daughters go for the iced coffee, kale salad, and cookies.

05/18/2024

As I mentioned earlier this week, starting in 2026, Norway will be closing its fjords to cruise ships that are not emission-free. If a cruise of the Norwegian Fjords has been on your bucket list, now is the time to get one booked for 2024 or 2025. The Celebrity Apex has 7 and 8-night Norwegian Fjords cruises and longer Norwegian Fjords & Arctic Circle sailings for next summer, and there are options on the Eclipse as well. There is also still availability for 2024. We have great group rates available for double occupancy staterooms with Celebrity Cruises because of our relationship with Travel Leaders and our clients have access to onboard credit or even a complimentary shore excursion on some cruises. Reach out for more information.

05/18/2024

After a crazy 48 hours catching up on work after our cruise, I treated myself to my favorite queso and chips at Maya Grill, a table service restaurant at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort. I also shared chicken quesadillas and chocolate cake with my husband.

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Windermere, FL

Website

http://www.alexisgfadventures.com/

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Videos

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from my family to yours!🎄”It’s a small world” Holiday is one of the main reasons spending Christmas at Disneyland is so magical!

New Year’s Eve in New York City

Eight years ago, we started the tradition of taking a trip over Christmas Break. We have taken 3 amazing trips to New York City, 3 to Disneyland with 2 being combo trips to Las Vegas, 1 to Walt Disney World when we lived in California, and 1 trip to Asheville, NC and Colonial Williamsburg. When our daughters were little, I felt like we had to be home on Christmas Day, but now we love the excitement of being away for the holidays. One of our best holiday trip memories was seeing the ball drop on New Year’s Eve in Times Square. I am thankful that we were watching from my aunt and uncle’s hotel room and not in the middle of the crowds. We also saw some incredible shows on that trip. Do you like to travel at the holidays or stay home?

Starting January 9th, guests with an annual pass or tickets with park hopper benefits no longer need to wait until 2:00 PM to park hop at Walt Disney World! #waltdisneyworld #disneyworld #magickingdom #epcot #hollywoodstudios #animalkingdom #passholder #passholderlife

One of my favorite parts of Disneyland is Pixar Pier at Disney California Adventure Park. I love the old school amusement park vibe and rides like the Incredicoaster, Toy Story Midway Mania, and Pixar Pal-A-Round, which is one of two ferris wheels in the United States that has swinging and fixed gondolas. The other one is at Coney Island in New York. Are you team swinging gondola like me or do you want a fixed gondola?

While waiting for our hotel room to be ready, we walked over to Buckingham Palace. I am so glad we decided to stay In Westminster.

I will be staying at the Disneyland Hotel when I head back to California in July. I love their magical musical headboards! I often get asked if I book Disneyland, and the answer is yes, I book all Disney properties.

I am going to be listening to The Beach Boys music for a long time after this cruise. They put on an incredible performance last night with John Stamos and Mark McGrath.

I have been waiting 4 long years to ride the Walt Disney World Railroad!

Last night, Pack Your Pixie Dust and I got to see testing of TRON Lightcycle Run from the PeopleMover. Disney has announced that TRON will open in Sping 2023 In Tomorrowland at the Magic Kingdom. I posted a 2nd video in the comments.

Beacons of Magic at EPCOT might be my favorite part of Disney World’s 50th Anniversary Celebration and it just got better for EPCOT’s 40th Anniversary.

Last night, I attended Disney Vacation Club’s Moonlight Magic at Animal Kingdom. One of the highlights of my evening was riding Expedition Everest twice with my friend Michael from MaDly Charming Co. I always thought riding in the back was my preference, but we rode in the last car and the first car, and the front was way more fun, especially when the coaster goes backwards. Do you prefer the front or the back when you ride roller coasters?

The Disney Magic was given a water salute in La Coruña, Spain as we departed in celebration of its first visit to the port. Travel tip of the day - always pack some warm comfortable clothes for a cruise. For my family, they come in handy on sea days, and at night when we shower and change between dinner and the evening shows.

The Disney Magic looked so small compared to the other ships in port yesterday in Barcelona, but her horn is mighty!

I have taken 14 cruises with three different cruise lines and Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas definitely beats them all for entertainment. Last night, we saw inTENse in the AquaTheater. It was incredible! So many elements of the show reminded me of Cirque du Soleil.