Search results for

Fort Pierce is located on the Treasure Coast of Florida. The city has seen a surge in popularity and has renewed both the historic city itself and its causeways, parks, inlet, lagoon, and beaches. Over the causeway the newly paved A-1-A is lined with stately palms and wide sidewalks. The inlet has a few great spots for a meal, burger, or a brew. In 1838, the U.S. Army built a fort in the area during the second Seminole Indian War. Lt. Colonel Benjamin Pierce was the commanding officer. During World War II, the beaches of the lagoon area were the training grounds for the Navy Frogmen ( today’s Navy Seals). About 140,000 were trained and practiced there at the Fort Pierce Inlet State Park. The South Causeway has a great peaceful park with a beach and boat ramp. The 1/4 mile beach along the Indian River Lagoon empties into the Atlantic Ocean. The aqua waters are busy with kayakers, sailors, and pleasure boaters. Picnic tables are placed along the shore. Fishing poles line the beach as people sit in their chairs reading or daydreaming as they wait for a bite. Pelicans, egret, and herons are some of the many birds near Fort Pierce on the Indian River Lagoon. Especially off-season you can find a parking spot. Spend a couple of peaceful hours at this beautiful spot on the Indian River Lagoon near the Fort Pierce Inlet. I enjoy my time spent there and I know you will too. Check out this area and park. You might want to go over the bridge into Fort Pierce and have dinner.

The boat basin Bassin de la Villette is berth to Marin d’Eau Douce, a service that rents out easy-to-steer electric boats by the hour. Captaining your own boat is an unforgettable way to see Paris and beyond. Cruise through the industrial countryside, watch graffiti artists working on city-sponsored projects, pass shipping barges, bob alongside the swans, and putter past the city limits on your self-guided visit. The trips are perfect for couples, families with young kids, or small groups of friends. (The youngest sailors will love the mini-boat rides available for 10-minute spins around the basin.)

We weren’t quite lucky to see the snowcapped covered mountains in the lovely lakeside village of Pokhara since we visited during monsoon season. But it was a perfect way to start our introduction to the area and cross over to the trail leading up to the Peace Pagoda. Pay a few ruppees, pack a picnic lunch and guide yourself around the serene Lake Phewa.

Hop on a small barge-ferry to be whisked out to a larger boat for an unusual dinner on the water. Dine on the covered top deck, if you can snag a table, for an alfresco meal with a glittering night view of Montego Bay’s coast and the Caribbean. The menu is for seafood lovers but has options for everyone. The cozy, warmly lit nautical interior lends a relaxed and intimate vibe. Your fellow diners will most likely be locals, so you can feel like a Jamaica insider—previous passengers on the House Boat have included Steve McQueen, the Duchess of York, and the Beach Boys.

For those wanting an active adventure on the water, Captain Alan’s Boat Charters offers snorkeling as well as clothing-optional boat trips. Their Snorkel and Beach excursion allows you to experience four hours of snorkeling and swimming around St. Maarten, Pinel Island, and the uninhabited Tintamarren while riding in one of their 30- to 38-foot off-shore power boats. Enjoy a swim with tropical fish and sea turtles, and then head back onto the boat for snacks, an open bar, and music. Captain Alan’s Boat Charters also offers a 6-hour adventure, trips to nearby Anguilla and St. Barth’s, and a clothing-optional nude cruise.

Boat-building as an industry has existed on Bequia as far back as the 1800s. At one point, the island was even known as the “boat-building capital of the West Indies,” having produced the largest wooden vessel in the region. While construction has slowed over time, it still occurs—albeit on a much smaller scale—at places like Sargeant Brothers Model Boat Shop, just up the road from the ferry landing in Port Elizabeth, where Benson Phillips and other craftsmen make and sell their models. Handcrafted using hand planes, chisels, and carving knives, their boats are incredibly detailed and realistic. Choose from whale boats, sailboats, power boats, and wooden schooners, or commission Phillips to build a custom model of your own yacht. The simplest models take about a week to make, but there are always a few boats available for immediate sale, ranging in price from around $250 all the way up to $7,000.

Bypass the roadside watering holes and take a boat ride to Floyd’s Pelican Bar, instead. This thatched hut stands on stilts out in the water, making it a dreamy spot for an afternoon of swimming and shooting the breeze, solo or with friends. It’s 30 minutes from Treasure Beach (arrange a boat ride through your guesthouse or resort), and you can arrive for lunch and stay until after sundown for the just-caught fish, rum, and chilled Red Stripe on the menu. Inside the tiny shack, the flags of various countries hang and previous customers have left messages scrawled on planks and benches. Sit outside and watch the pelicans flying in formation across the horizon.

Get up, up, and away with Lake Tahoe Balloons. The company launches its colorful hot air balloons not from land but from the surface of the lake via the Tahoe Flyer, the world’s only certified balloon launch-and-recovery boat. Trips begin with a 5:30 a.m. boat ride to the mid-lake launch site. Once the balloon is in the air, passengers and pilot float up to 3,000 feet above the water’s surface for bird’s-eye views of the entire Tahoe basin. On the clearest days, views extend southward all the way to Yosemite National Park. After the flight, everybody celebrates with a champagne toast—then heads back to their hotel for a nap.

It always feels like a different world anywhere in the beautiful Point Reyes National Seashore area, and an evening at the hidden Nick’s Cove in Marshall, will have you in love with Tomales Bay. The property was recently overhauled by a group of silent investors that purchased the cottages and the restaurant and they’ve made some phenomenal improvements. Austin Perkins is the new head chef and the genius behind the BBQ oysters. After you’ve been checked in and escorted to your cottage, a delivery of complimentary oysters arrive at your doorstep. I kept hoping the staff at reception would change so that I could check in again. The rooms are cozy and spacious and the fireplace will always be a hit on the foggy and cool evenings. Be sure to either have dinner in the restaurant/bar, or ask for take out and have the meal delivered at the end of the pier, in the famous Boathouse. I’d also recommend making arrangements to start the next morning off right, with a paddle in Tomales Bay in a kayak. Local outfitter Blue Waters Kayaking will literally meet you on the deck of your cottage (if you’re lucky enough to secure one of the rooms on the water) and show you the magic of the area, the true way it needs to be seen. You’ll need to save up (and reserve far in advance) for a room at Nick’s Cove, but the experience is worth the pretty penny.

Each time I visit this beach, I am enchanted anew. These beautiful sands, sea, and cliffs are exotic. I sit on the sand watching swimmers, surfers, boaters, and fishermen. I watch the birds happily flying around. I stare at the brilliant blue sky with its puffy clouds gliding by. And I gape at the huge cliffs that tower over all of us.I collect the rare rocks with white stripes running through the stone that are unique to the area. This is Castelejo Beach on the western coast of Portugal where there are many rugged, wild beaches. From Lagos, you go west to Vila do Bispo and follow the signs to this beach. The road is rugged and narrow and ends just above the beach with a parking lot. Get a good map of the area at your hotel. Hungry? The Castelejo Restaurant is at the top of the path to the beach. This restaurant serves octopus dishes and other fresh seafood. If you are there at sunset you will be lucky enough to see this gorgeous beach bathed in glowing light. Try to visit this beach when in the western Algarve.

A signature experience in Negril is to go on a two-hour glass-bottom boat snorkel trip, toward the cliffside or to the nearby reef around Booby Cay. Truth be told, snorkeling isn’t a must if you’re not up for it—but floating on a small boat amid deep jade and turquoise waters and being able to see marine life 20 feet or more below through the glass is a memorable experience. If you do want to snorkel, the cliffside has stunning limestone formations and underwater caves, while the reef is filled with all sorts of marine life, from stingrays to barracuda. A glass-bottom boat ride shouldn’t cost you more than US$20 per person. Look out for Famous Vincent‘s boat—the best pick—or approach one you see resting along Seven Mile Beach, across any reputable resort. The boats—including Famous Vincent—occasionally ride along the cliffside resorts in the mornings or afternoons, looking for anyone interested in an impromptu adventure.

Book a sunset charter on Atebeyra, a boat that comes with a rum-running history (she ran booze during prohibition) for a unique evening excursion. The boat can also be chartered for day trips to the outer islands where you can spend the day lazing on deck and snorkeling in the gin clear sea.

If you’d like the space and privacy of a vacation apartment but still want the service and amenities of a hotel, the Cottages & Lofts at the Nantucket Boat Basin are ideal. You’ll be whisked away from the Hy-Line ferry and taken to the wharves of Nantucket’s harbor, about as close you can get to the water without staying on a boat. Cottages and loft rooms range from studio-size to three bedrooms, all with full kitchens and private patios. A complimentary shuttle bus can take you to the beach, and bicycles can take you wherever you can’t walk from the cottages. There’s no restaurant on-site, but plenty of options are at the marina, and guests get a discount at the White Elephant’s Brant Point Grill. Children and pets are VIP guests as well: Kids get fishing and beach gear to use during their Nantucket stay, and a pet concierge will assist with stays at the “Woof Cottages.”

Take a two-hour dinner cruise along the Rhône River aboard the charming Mireio, the largest panoramic restaurant boat in the region. On the Saint Bénézet Cruise, you’ll pass the most beautiful sites in Avignon—from the famous Pont d’Avignon and the quays along the Rhône to the Palais des Papes, the clock tower, and the Rocher des Doms—all while enjoying delicious dishes like duck with Provençale herbs and seasonal vegetables, and fillet of beef with jus au Châteauneuf-du-Pape. For something even more lively, you can opt for the Dinner Entertainment Cruise, which includes dancing on board until 1 a.m., or the Dinner Show Cruise, complete with a candlelit dinner and Brazilian entertainment. There are also lunch cruises, though they’re often more crowded than the dinner options.

The tiny Abbey of San Fruttuoso is nestled in a cove between Camogli and Portofino, and accessible solely by foot or boat. If you want to hike it, find the trail at the far end of Camogli, and be ready for a steep, but gorgeous, two hour hike up and over the mountain. If you would prefer a quick 15 minute boat ride, catch the boat for a few euro in the harbor of Camogli and ride to San Fruttuoso in style. The abbey itself is beautiful, but it is also nice to simply sit and have a cocktail at the beachside restaurant (look closely - their kitchen is upstairs, so they send the food down in a small wicker basket when it’s ready!).