Rob Taylor's Blog, page 42

Best Places To Kayak In Arizona – Small Towns & Beautiful Canyons

Arizona offers rivers and lakes in the low deserts, as well as the high deserts and the mountains, for a variety of kayaking and paddling experiences year-round. These are some of the best places to kayak in Arizona, no matter your skill level, from kayaking spots near Sedona to rafting adventures just outside of Phoenix.

Whether you’re venturing far into the wilderness or staying close to your kayak launch site, always be prepared. Kayaking in Arizona is amazing, but it can also be fierce wi...

Ruby Beach, Olympic National Park: everything you need to know

Does anybody think of Washington State as a beach destination?  Not hardly, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t have the most beautiful beaches around.  True, Olympic National Park is missing the palm trees, but we make up for it in other ways.  Of all the beaches in the Pacific Northwest, the most beautiful beach in Washington is without a doubt Ruby Beach in Olympic National Park.

What makes Ruby Beach so beautiful and dramatic?  It’s the sea stacks, the weathered wood, the wildlife, the pe...

Best Manatee Encounters at Florida’s Fantastic Blue Spring State Park

Blue Spring State Park is our most common activity with friends visiting Florida, and it’s the best place to see manatees near Orlando or Daytona Beach.  Florida has over 1000 natural springs and they’re all a little different.  Some are in high traffic areas like on the Crystal River and others are so strange to pronounce that you might not have ever heard of them… like Ichetucknee Springs. This is everything you need to know about visiting Blue Spring State Park, including the best time for ma...

Best of Saint Augustine: Unique Things to Do, Eat, Explore

Being a St Augustine local is such a treat. The oldest city in the United States, Saint Augustine has endless things to do. With unique tours, activities, pristine beaches and wonderful things to eat, you’ll love visiting St Augustine. These are our top picks, the best things to do in Saint Augustine, and should keep you busy for four days in the Ancient City.

Check out where to stay in Saint Augustine for our top hotel and vacation rental picks. Before we lived here we visited many times so ...

Cabo or Cancun?: choosing between the best Mexico vacation spots

Quite often people ask us if we prefer Cancun over Cabo San Lucas. That’s a tough question and depending on what the goal is with a Mexico vacation, we might answer with either one. We’re going to help you decide if a trip to Cabo or Cancun is the better option for you and your family.

I think you will see that the two areas are extremely different and in many ways are not comparable. But since people ask us, clearly there is either some confusion or people just want to take a trip to tropica...

COVID & Universal Orlando: Stay Protected, Big Fun with Fewer People

After visiting Disney World during COVID-19 and seeing how amazingly they handled things, from sanitation to social distancing, we decided to see how well Universal Orlando Resort did. Truth be told, Universal during COVID is not managed as well as Disney did, but we’ve got all the details so you can be well prepared if you choose to visit.

This is our complete review and know-before-you-go for visiting Universal Orlando while Coronavirus mitigation is in place. If you have any specific q...

Bioluminescent Kayaking: Florida’s best kept (odd) thrilling magical secret

One of the magical phenomena of the earth is bioluminescence. It’s found in the deepest parts of the ocean and it’s found in caves. And in Florida you can actually kayak in bioluminescent waters at the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge in Titusville, very near Cocoa Beach. Bioluminescent kayaking is remarkable and you have to see it to believe it’s real.

We were welcomed onto the water by Get Up and Go Kayaking. They have a fleet of clear kayaks that are perfect for paddli...

15+ Proven Ways to Boost Immune System and Stay Healthy

No doubt that everybody wants to stay healthy while traveling, particularly while COVID-19 is such a large concern in many parts of the world. Staying healthy on the road actually starts at home. I interviewed Kelly Blanchard, a longtime certified LMP and healthcare worker regarding her own practices and what she does to boost the immune system, both for travel and daily life.

From vitamins to beneficial foods, essential oils to self-care routines, there are countless ways that we can all giv...

Best St Augustine Hotels, Interesting Inns and Fantastic Vacation Rentals

We have visited St Augustine quite a few times and each time we’ve stayed someplace different. There are many hotels in Saint Augustine as well as other options, such as camping, and we’re covering them all! After you read this article you should be able to make a solid choice in choosing a hotel in St Augustine and the surrounding area.

We’ve work with Best Western Hotels & Resorts in the past and have lots of experience with the brand, so we do recommend them for sure, and they sponsored ou...

Best SF Bay Area National Parks For A Special Visit

When you’re traveling a lot for work, chances are that you don’t get to do too much exploring beyond the office. We’re really fortunate in that we get to travel for fun as a part of our work, but sometimes we also tag along when Chris (papa) has his own work trips. We recently got to take advantage of one such trip to explore the San Francisco Bay Area National Parks sites.

San Francisco is cool on it’s own, with some beautiful neighborhoods and crazy good food, but beyond the cable cars and ...