My 5 Favorite Travel Items

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As some of you know who have been around or even had the chance to read my bio, I’m a wanderer by birth. I currently have moved 22 times and have lived in 10 different states. Though I am still working on visiting all 50. No, I was not an “Army Brat”, but rather the product of corporate America at the time. When dad did well, we moved. When my ex-husband did well, we moved. All of this well before my interest in becoming a travel professional.

This year now celebrates 10 years of being in travel and a big 5th anniversary this spring for having my own agency. With my love of moving, and my love of travel, I have learned a few things over the years and constantly improving my own travel process. This week I’d like to share with you my current top products/items to take on the road.

First, I’m a big fan of Airborne, generic or brand name. Currently in my cupboard and kit bag is the CVS brand gummie version. Working from home the majority of the time, I am not exposed to germs the way I used to be, so I like to arm myself since airplanes and airports are notorious for picking up an illness. I actually make a daily practice of arming myself with this immunity booster. (Mind you I am not a doctor. Please consult with a doctor before adding anything to your current regime.)

Second, I love my eBags. I used to be like the run of the mill traveler packing my largest suitcase to the brim. Often at the airport having them label it with the heavy tag. Today, I am in the carry-on with a tote. The eBag system makes it so easy to pack efficiently and get so much into a little space. I also love them for the return because I can sort out the dirty clothes into their own bags. It’s perfect when you get home to unzip and drop in the laundry basket.

Third, a journal is a must for me. I love to be able to write down fun facts, places I’ve been, my impressions. It’s great for labeling photos and doing any sort of memorabilia scrapbooking or such. In my case, it has also come in handy for the current book/s I am working on. I personally love pen and paper still, but when short on room or for you techies out there the notes app on your phone or tablet works great too!

Fourth, always keep a pen on you. Having a pen is very important for flying internationally. International arrivals require filling out custom paperwork and the plane is always short or has no pens at all. If your one of my clients, no worries, as I include at least one pen in your documents.

Lastly, I love my apps. I keep the airline app on my phone to receive notifications of any changes to my flights. I keep my meditation on my phone as well to not skip a beat. Same with my workouts. And, for me I can access work should I need too. Have Wi-Fi will work as I say!

Times and experiences are always changing, so what works today may not work tomorrow, but these are my current go to items as we cruise through 2018.

Happy Travels!

 


Lisa Rossmeissl is the owner of Boomerang Escapes, a home-based agency located in Old Bridge, New Jersey with agents in TN, MS, and WI. 

She has been a professional travel consultant since 2008 and specializes in Australia and the South Pacific. Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, Fiji, and Cook Islands are among the specialist certificates she holds.  Her agency’s focus is on creating custom itineraries with their client’s wants, desires, and budgets in mind.  She and her planners believe in getting to know the traveler to ensure they have a vacation to remember.  With each planner specializing in a different market area, Boomerang Escapes can offer a wide variety of leisure vacation planning.

Lisa RossmeisslMy 5 Favorite Travel Items
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Packing Tips for Your Caribbean Escape

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A New year means new opportunities. Now is the time to let me help you escape to a new destination or maybe visit one of your old favorites in 2018. In this month’s newsletter I want to give you some tips on packing for your Caribbean Escape. Leaving to go on vacation doesn’t need to be overwhelming or extremely time consuming. All you need to do is have a little organization and then relax. Make yourself a list and then check it twice. You don’t need a lot when vacationing in the Caribbean. The five most important things to remember when traveling are as follows:

Make sure you have all your Travel Documents together and that they are organized in a safe but accessible place. This will include your passport, airline tickets or boarding passes. Any special vouchers that you may have for your transfers or resorts that you will be staying at. If you happen to be on prescription medication, you will want to pack copies of your prescriptions and make sure you take medication with you, that it is always in the original containers.

Having a well packed carry-on is essential. Not that you want to plan for things to go wrong, but being prepared will make things much easier should a problem occur. Things you will want in your carry-on bag will be your toiletry bag, a change of clothes, swimming suit, cash (small bills for paying tips or cab), medications, and a small snack. Essentially you will want to have everything you would need for your first night. On the occasions when I travel with a checked bag, I usually pack at least a lite pair of pajamas, a cotton sundress, extra undies and a pair of flip flops in addition to my toiletries in the 3-1-1 format.

Heed the 3-1-1 format for your toiletries when carrying them on. It will make your trip through security a lot less stressful. What is 3-1-1 you ask. You can bring on liquid toiletries that are under 3oz. Everything must fit in a 1-quart, clear, zip-top bag per person. If you have samples those are always a great option. You can also find travel size of all your needs at most stores.

Invest in a TSA approved lock for you checked luggage. This will prevent any chances of your personal belongings from going MIA. I suggest that you go with the combination locks over the ones with keys so that you have one less thing to keep track of. It would be horrible to get to the island and not have the keys

Don’t overpack. You won’t need much. Remember what the weather in the Caribbean is like, an average temperature is 82F. You will want to pack lightweight clothing, as there is some humidity in the Caribbean. Choose items that don’t wrinkle and items that you can intermix with one another. You never end up wearing everything you bring. Multiple swim-suits I think are a must, along with a cover up. Don’t forget a good pair of comfortable shoes. I also like to have a light jacket to go over my evening outfit as most of the restaurants are air-conditioned and after a day in the sun I find myself catching a chill. Other essential items are sunblock, Aloe Vera, lip balm with SPF, some sunglasses and a hat.

One other thing I suggest you do, and that I think is very important so that you don’t have any surprises, is to call your cell phone service. Call them and check on international charges and make sure you have your data and roaming set up the right way so that you don’t come back to a large cellular bill. Make sure you pack your charger as well and I recommend that you bring an adaptor plug as too. Happy traveling…now let’s get you booked for your next Caribbean Escape!


Andrea Ward is an independent travel consultant of Boomerang Escapes, who is based in Wisconsin.

She has been planning vacation escapes for the company since 2013 and specializes in Caribbean Destinations. Her primary focus is on the all-inclusive vacation experience for adult or family getaways for individuals and small groups. Sandals and AMResorts are among the specialist certificates she holds.


Lisa Rossmeissl is the owner of Boomerang Escapes, a home-based agency located in Old Bridge, New Jersey with agents in TN, MS, and WI. 

She has been a professional travel consultant since 2008 and specializes in Australia and the South Pacific. Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, Fiji, and Cook Islands are among the specialist certificates she holds.  Her agency’s focus is on creating custom itineraries with their client’s wants, desires, and budgets in mind.  She and her planners believe in getting to know the traveler to ensure they have a vacation to remember.  With each planner specializing in a different market area, Boomerang Escapes can offer a wide variety of leisure vacation planning.

Andrea WardPacking Tips for Your Caribbean Escape
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Passport for Your Palate-Ladurée French Macarons

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Have you heard of Ladurée? It is a French luxury bakery and sweets maker house in Paris. Established in 1862, it is one of the world’s best-known premier sellers of the double decker macaron. Over 150 years in business, this French delight has expanded. The bakery now has locations world wide in Europe and in the United States. One of those locations happens to be in New York City on Madison Avenue.

Personally, I was not familiar with this French bakery until my daughter and her friend decided we needed to put together a city tour of Gossip Girl Hotspots. One of the places on the stop was on Madison Ave. The girls of course wanted pictures for their Instagram and Snapchat stories, but we were not going to resist the temptation to go inside and order a treat or two.


The store had such a variety of colors and flavors of macarons to choose from. It was so hard to decide between the variety of macaron flavors and all of the other amazing sweets in the glass casings. But seeing we were following the likes of ‘Blair Waldorf’ we had to go with the macarons. I ended up going with two flavors I knew would not fail to give a tasting — vanilla and chocolate.

Retreating to the sidewalk, we dug into our afternoon snack. Pure delight! And as luck would have it, this winter as I was making my travels back and forth to Vermont, I so happened to come across recipes for making your own French macaroons in my mother’s cooking magazine, “Cuisine At Home”. Seeing the magazine prompted me to seek out an easy recipe.

So give it a whirl with this Macaron (French Macaroon) recipe by Elle. Be sure to share your finished creations with us over at Boomerang Escapes.


Lisa Rossmeissl is the owner of Boomerang Escapes, a home-based agency located in Old Bridge, New Jersey with agents in TN, MS, and WI. 

She has been a professional travel consultant since 2008 and specializes in Australia and the South Pacific. Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, Fiji, and Cook Islands are among the specialist certificates she holds.  Her agency’s focus is on creating custom itineraries with their client’s wants, desires, and budgets in mind.  She and her planners believe in getting to know the traveler to ensure they have a vacation to remember.  With each planner specializing in a different market area, Boomerang Escapes can offer a wide variety of leisure vacation planning.

Lisa RossmeisslPassport for Your Palate-Ladurée French Macarons
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The Hills Are Alive with the Sound of Music-Salzburg-Austria

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When arriving into Salzburg, your eye will first be caught by the brilliant color of the Salzhach. It is the main river running through this Austrian state. The river which in English means Salt River, was a very important part of the local economy. However, it truly is it’s blue sea color that will make you stop for a photo op. As you continue your journey into Salzburg, you will see it is a city of beautiful architect nestled amongst the Alpine surroundings.


Salzburg and Austria for that matter has plenty to offer for your vacation experience. I would suggest planning a couple or night or more stay with daily activities to explore the area. And if you are a fan of Sound of Music and fell in love with the beauty of Austria from years of watching Julia Andrews sing “The Hills are Alive with the Sound of Music..” then you’ll want to include on one of the day trips to explore all the famous film spots used in creating this heart warming story of the family Von Trapp. Several operators offer “The Sound of Music Tour” that lets you relive your favorite scenes from the movie. Typical adventures are about 4 hours in length and while you visit the film’s iconic landmarks your guide will also fill you in on the historical background of Salzburg pointing out top attractions with their stories.

So sit back, relax, and even sing along as you visit these highlights:

Mirabell Gardens- The garden where Maria and the children are seen singing ‘Do-Re-Mi’
Leopoldskron Palace- A stop here at the lake where the famous boat scene happens and all tumble into the water.
Hellbrun Palace, Gazebo-“I’m 16 going on 17…” and where Maria and Captain von Trapp have their first kiss.
Nonnberg Abbey-The oldest convent in German speaking Europe and famous for the opening sing with nuns singing when Maria runs in late to the Abbey.
St. Michael’s Church in Mondsee-The church where Maria and Baron vonTrapp marry
Frohnburg Palace-This palace was used for opening scenes as Maria first stumbles in with her clothes that nobody wanted as she arrives at the house gates.

As well as other scenic highlights and attractions of Salzburg.

For the fan, the tour is a dream come true, as like myself, you will be reliving childhood memories of years gone by.

For more information on visiting Austria, Salzburg, or adding a “Sound of Music” tour to your itinerary, contact us!

 


Lisa Rossmeissl is the owner of Boomerang Escapes, a home-based agency located in Old Bridge, New Jersey with agents in TN, MS, and WI. 

She has been a professional travel consultant since 2008 and specializes in Australia and the South Pacific. Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, Fiji, and Cook Islands are among the specialist certificates she holds.  Her agency’s focus is on creating custom itineraries with their client’s wants, desires, and budgets in mind.  She and her planners believe in getting to know the traveler to ensure they have a vacation to remember.  With each planner specializing in a different market area, Boomerang Escapes can offer a wide variety of leisure vacation planning.

Lisa RossmeisslThe Hills Are Alive with the Sound of Music-Salzburg-Austria
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