Hot Tips for Preparing for International Travel (Revisited)

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Hot Tips for Preparing for International Travel (Revisited)

The travel industry is definitely booming and many travelers, tired of local haunts, are heading to far-flung destinations post-pandemic. At Curated Travel, our clients are headed to St. Lucia, Bora Bora, Cancun, South Africa, Germany, European River Cruises, the British Isles, Slovenia, France, and the always-popular Italy in the next several months. With 3 trips to Europe last year and Italy on my horizon later this month, I will attest that travel is back and more exciting than ever!

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Creating a Milestone Anniversary Celebration When Bora Bora is Postponed to 2021

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Creating a Milestone Anniversary Celebration When Bora Bora is Postponed to 2021

As I shared on Instagram, my husband and I made the difficult decision to postpone our long-awaited ‘wanderlist’ trip to French Polynesia for our 20th wedding anniversary. We had plans to arrive today to enjoy the beauty of Moorea and Bora Bora, experience those aqua waters in overwater bungalows for the first time as we toasted our anniversary. As you can probably relate, the delayed gratification is not easy, especially when you are looking forward to the change of pace, ease of stress, a new adventure, and reconnecting with nature, yourself, or someone you love.

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Curated Travel: Stylish & Savvy Travel Tips from a Travel Advisor

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Curated Travel: Stylish & Savvy Travel Tips from a Travel Advisor

There’s nothing like arriving at your destination and feeling like a hot mess to lessen your enjoyment of a much anticipated trip. I know this from personal experience when my luggage was delayed for 6 LONG days on a luxury travel event in Italy last year. Just imagine wearing sneakers to a posh dinner at Villa d’Este and using the rosegold makeup bag in your purse as a clutch. Yes, it happened to me. Here are a few savvy tricks I’ve learned along the way to keep things more stylish than hot mess while traveling.

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Savour: The Anticipation of Travel

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Savour: The Anticipation of Travel

I’m in that lovely space where I’m looking forward to a much anticipated trip to Tuscany but I’m not in the final frenzy of packing just yet. I’m in the phase of researching, exploring, daydreaming about my travel plans. Let’s face it, part of the joy of travel is savouring the anticipation. With travel we look forward to changing up our day to day experience, enjoying new adventures, meeting new people and treating ourselves especially well. Combined with the sensory experience of regional flavors, a cacaphony of languages, a myriad of scents and smells blending into the vibrant color palette that is travel.

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Tips for Preparing for International Travel - What You Need to Know

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Tips for Preparing for International Travel - What You Need to Know

Planning for your dream vacation can be so exciting — you are already daydreaming of where you’re going to stay, what you’ll see, the shows you’ll take in, and all the amazing food you’ll eat. But what about prepping, packing and organizing all your travel documents? Are they all in order? It can be overwhelming.  Here’s a list of everything you need, plus practical tips on how to keep everything organized, safe, and accessible.

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How I Survived Without My Luggage for 6 Days on a Luxury trip to Italy

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How I Survived Without My Luggage for 6 Days on a Luxury trip to Italy

After carefully curating my packing list, constructing outfits and meticulously organizing my accessories for the most import trip of my travel advisor career, a luxury travel event in Italy, the unthinkable happened. My luggage filled with 9 days of outfits, shoes, accessories, makeup and hair tools, did not arrive with me in Nice, France. It didn't arrive while I was traveling on the Italian Riviera, and it didn't arrive until my last few moments at Lake Como!

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Launching My CURATED TRAVEL Website

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Launching My CURATED TRAVEL Website

There have been some exciting developments behind the scenes lately and I'm happy to announce that I have just launched my new CURATED TRAVEL website.  If you have followed Style*Mind*Chic Life blog you know that my Curated Travel/Travel Designer business has been based on the same website. I've had the blog for 6 years and added my Curated Travel business 1 1/2 years ago.  I think it's time for my CURATED TRAVEL to finally have its own space, a modern, visual destination on the web.

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How to Make Your Dream Bucket List Trip a Reality

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How to Make Your Dream Bucket List Trip a Reality

This image was taken at the romantic and luxurious Ladera Resort while Scott and I were traveling in St. Lucia several years ago. For me, this island was definitely on my list of dream bucket list destinations and it did not disappoint. For some people, a dream destination pops easily into mind and they know exactly where they would go in a heartbeat if there were no obstacles.  For others, it’s a bit more ambiguous. You might have an idea about what you’d like, but you might not be entirely certain where you’d have your passport stamped if the opportunity came up tomorrow.

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Ocean Vs. River Cruising: Which One is for You?

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Ocean Vs. River Cruising: Which One is for You?

When it comes to taking a cruise on river or ocean, it’s pretty tough to go wrong. Both offer incredible views, luxurious amenities, and the opportunity to explore interesting ports.But each one comes with its own unique perks, and depending on your specific needs for your next trip, you might find that one is a slightly better fit than the other. So what are the major differences?
One big difference can be summed up in one word: intimacy. River cruises tend to be much smaller (190 max vs. up to 6,200 on the largest ocean cruises), and as a result, you’re much more likely to be interacting with other passengers and crew members.

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Curated Travel: Packing Tips - Edited Accessories + New Favorites from grayc glass

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Curated Travel: Packing Tips - Edited Accessories + New Favorites from grayc glass

I've learned to minimize and refine my packing style through trial and error. I believe it was that three-week vacation to Italy and France in 2011, lugging an overweight suitcase on and off train platforms, up tiny staircases of hotels, and out of taxi cabs, that finally made me a believer in the less is more approach to packing and traveling. I was also grateful that neither Scott or I developed a hernia hoisting that bag up and down for three weeks.

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How to Survive Those 'Last Day of Vacation' Blues

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How to Survive Those 'Last Day of Vacation' Blues

All good things must come to an end and my least favorite phrase to hear on vacation, “Tomorrow is our last day” was spoken.

UGH!

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a nester and I love being at home, but once we settled into our luxurious suite, adjusted to the pace of resort life and getting spoiled — by gourmet food, fruity drinks, and pampering spa services — as well as being catered to at our every whim, it is hard to say goodbye to our new friends at Secrets Papagayo.

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Curated Travel: Tips on Prepping for an International Getaway

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Curated Travel: Tips on Prepping for an International Getaway

I've spent the weekend packing for our first getaway to Central America--Costa Rica--to be exact. I'm expecting a lush, tropical jungle, bold adventures, and a bit of luxury pictured above--and I'm excited. After 11 days home with the flu, I am feeling good as new and ready for a getaway to Secrets Papagayo with my favorite guy. Over the years, I've found that packing requires different strategies for different types of vacations. International travel has a few additional requirements.

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