The New York Times can make endless predictions of why Chile, Egypt etc. etc. will be the hottest destinations of 2012 but I generally take any publication's crystal ball with a pinch of salt. After all, travel is a very personal decision. Your bucket list may not be the same as mine for many reasons. As a travel blogger and journalist, traveling to places where I feel as though I have learned something new and different is key. I don't really subscribe to the "visit sexy places" theory, although there's nothing wrong with visiting St. Barts or the Bahamas to sip a mint julep on a hammock. If you're into adventurous travel, then "off the beaten path" –to use a cliched phrase –is more appealing. So, where are my adventurous tweeps dying to visit in 2012? Find out: Travel Bloggers Spill their 2012 Destination Yearnings (in alphabetical order) BackPackForever: Personal picks include 1. Nepal. Been wanting to go since Matt Dillon said in Something About Mary, "All I have are these damn Nepalese coins."  2. Myanmar/Burma: we want to party [...]

There are some places that I am hesitant to visit initially, but end up falling in love with. Travel is like a kaleidoscope in that aspect — you don't really know what you'll get until you get there. Detroit is one visit I will always remember from 2011. There's so much to Motor City beyond the silver GM Building, the indefatigable assembly line pioneered by Ford, and the dreary thought of worker layoffs and stringent Unions. Detroit is for the foodie, the adventurer, the architect lover in all of us. Beyond the Willy Wonka Car Production Factory: Detroit, a City for Serious Foodies I visited Detroit in April, 2011 and drank in everything: from the developed, ethnic fabric in Dearborn, Michigan to the more run down outskirts like Corktown. Corktown is not pretty, by any stretch of the overactive imagination, but the area is a cultural melting pot and a fabric of Irish immigrant settlers and a now more hip, young urban crowd. Detroit is a place for foodies, and one iconic dining option –Slow's BBQ on Michigan Avenue — [...]

Our "Behind the Scenes" Series continues with a Q&A with Chuck Mardiks, Managing Director of MMGY Global's New York Office. Chuck provides us with his valuable insight on working with travel bloggers, his do's and dont's and more.      Q: I've seen Peter Yesawich speak before and feel I have an understanding of the pulse of MMGY Global, but would love your candid take on how your agency views travel bloggers. Do you embrace them? Are they an important part of the travel media landscape? Why or why not? Chuck Mardiks: There's no doubt that the emergence of digital media has changed the travel media landscape and has created a wealth of new opportunities including the proliferation of travel bloggers. We closely follow key travel and lifestyle blogs and have forged solid relationships with many of them. We certainly embrace those that reach and influence key markets for our clients. We have created some exciting travel blogger-focused campaigns recently that have generated powerful results.      For example, for the German National Tourist Office we partnered with #TNI to host niche-focused [...]

Each New Year, I fully believe in having an experience. It's a plus if that experience is non local, since the travel bug always encourages me to seek some new tradition for celebration. Last year, I celebrated New Year's Eve by doing a chilly but energizing 5K Midnight Run in Central Park. What better way to start off the New Year on a healthy foot? You get delicious mugs of hot chocolate at the end of the race, as well as sparkling cider at about the half mile mark, and fireworks as a background. Unusual? A bit. It certainly is different from watching the Times Square Ball drop or enjoying drinks at a bar, although there's nothing wrong with those options either. This year, I was curious to see if Americans celebrate New Year's Eve in unusual ways; if you're looking for some inspiration, try these on for size: MEDITATION OR YOGA CLASSES: While most people wouldn't enjoy doing the "downward facing dog" at the stroke of midnight, there's something peaceful and powerful about meditating to usher in the New [...]

It's impossible to truly experience the spirit of New York City without taking in a good window display or two –preferably several. Each stores vies for attention and it's always a surprise as to what the general theme of the displays will be. In the case of Bergdorf Goodman (my hands down favorite this year), the window displays are typically unveiled mid November, closer to Thanksgiving. The theme of Bergdorf Goodman is usually sophisticated yet quirky and unexpected. In contrast are the winning, yet less opulent displays from Macy's and Saks Fifth Avenue. While Saks Fifth Avenue definitely merits a walk by this year (the hand painted white and black barrels and pulleys are stuff the Metropolitan Opera is made of), Macy's left me a tad disappointed. Clock gear? Really?  Missing from the below photo series are Lord & Taylor, Bloomingdale's and Barneys New York and I'm hoping to add them later on. Take a look and leave me a comment: which one of these is your favorite?  MACY'S HOLIDAY WINDOW DISPLAY AT 34TH STREET, HERALD SQUARE, NEW YORK CITY [...]

The very last place I expected to find a Japanese tea ceremony was in Macau.  While the English can wax on about their royal "High Tea" and the fancy assortment of scones, watercress sandwiches and what not, the concept of tea as a beverage that is freshly brewed, prepared and served is a Chinese concept that spread to other countries. In as early as 727 A.D., The Chinese Tang Court presented tea as a gift to Emperor Shomu of Japan. Tea then was planted in the Imperial Garden of Kyoto in 794 A.D. So, I should not have been surprised to see the various ways the Macanese take their tea during my recent visit. The Chinese and Japanese have profited from centuries to make their tea just right (tea was discovered in 2772 B.C. by the Chinese emperor and inventor Shennong, and initially planted in the Chengdou province in China). Wherever we went, the place settings and the attention to detail seemed so other wordly. "Only in Asia," I thought, thinking of the crazy mess in my dining room. I [...]

For the second time in two years, I've been invited to attend TravelGuard's "World's Unluckiest Traveler" contest results, and listen to the plight of some really unfortunate globetrotters. Last year, Dr. Gary Feldman won for what I thought was a genuinely funny yet unfortunate story: he was standing on the edge of a cliff to answer Nature's Call in Vietnam, and slipped and tumbled 30 feet, and broke both his legs.  I've been in a pretty pickle here and there but some of the stories submitted to the Insurance Company deserve to be on the Travel Channel (file under "Travel Nightmares").    We interviewed the winner of TravelGuard's 2011 "World's Unluckiest Traveler" contest, a do-gooder who saved her husband's life. Rebecca Fisher was on her last minute honeymoon to New Zealand when she discovered that she'd have to give emergency surgery to her husband, and ended up saving his life.  We caught up with Rebecca in a Q&A, and were curious to know if she enjoyed any part of her trip at all, and how she plans to spend that [...]

For many travelers, Macau is the Asian version of Vegas. And while I won't deny that during my recent visit there, I did encounter more marble lobbies, fountains and upscale shopping venues than I have in a while, I was pleasantly surprised to discover the "other" side of Macau. The Ruins of St. Paul was formerly St. Paul's College, and is now a much loved, much visited landmark by several tourists. It's refreshing to see the watermark of the Portuguese influence in Macau, and I experienced quite a magical walk from the Ruins, down the steps, and through the narrow cobblestone streets that reminded me of Sicilian towns. Arguable the most famous cultural landmark in Macau, the Ruins of St. Paul were made a part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Historic Center of Macau in 2005. The Ruins of St. Paul actually refer to a site that featured two prominent buildings in Macau: the first was the Cathedral of St. Paul, which was built by the Jesuits and completed in 1602. You won't find traces of the cathedral on [...]

My two visits to Santa Fe did not disappoint, and I have to be honest, I'm really taken by the state and the history. From its art (not just Georgia O' Keefe) to the iron-red mountains, a visit to Santa Fe is uplifting to mind, body and spirit. So, I'm thrilled to present my next "Blogger Spotlight" on Billie Frank, from SantaFeTravelers. Technically speaking, Billie is not a blogger, although she has a lovely blog section on her site. She is a Santa Fe authority and expert, and she and her husband plan and lead tours in the area. Want to get to know Billie better? Read on below. A dwelling on the mesa top at the Puye Cliffs. (Photographer: Steve Collins) 1.You were a New Yorker not so long ago–what brought on the move to the West Coast, and Santa Fe in particular? I left NYC in my early 20s and left NY in 1996. We had wanted to move to the southwest since 1986- here's the story from the blog. 2. Do you feel really at home in [...]

If you missed out on Black Friday –the biggest shopping day of the year -I can't blame you. The idea of waking up at midnight or 5:00 am and shlepping towards stores that are packed with eager shoppers does not appeal to me. Being a digital girl, I like to shop Cyberspace, and while there are naysayers who will say "you can't experiment with the gadgets, or feel the fabric etc. etc." you can always return your purchase later (and most come with envelopes and are highly convenient to mail).  1. BROOKSTONE DASH 20" UPRIGHT WHEELED LUGGAGE My luggage this year has been beaten and worn, and it's time to fix that, so I've been on the lookout for something fun yet lightweight, and affordable. The Brookestone 20" Dash Upright Wheeled Luggage comes in several shades and costs $100 a pop. On Cyber Monday, look for free shipping and ways to save on this item. It comes with four multi-directional wheels and is a good carry on. It also expands three inches. 2. HOTELS Hotels like Starwood Hotels and Resorts are [...]