An Early September Weekend in Copenhagen, Denmark!

03/03/202302/03/2023wareontheglobe Leave a comment

Dan and I spent a long weekend in Copenhagen, Denmark last Labor Day, which fell on the first weekend of September. We flew direct from New York and spent four days in the city. This ended up being a bit far travel for such a short time, but we still had fun. This post highlights what we did over those four days in Copenhagen!

Made it to Copenhagen, Denmark!

DAY ONE: A LONG DELAY AT JFK, A DECENT LOUNGE, & SMØRREBRØD.

Our Labor Day long weekend began with a looong delay at JFK. Major bummer. All started well, and we were lounge hopping between the American Express Centurion Lounge and the Virgin Atlantic Lounge, but then our flight was delayed by hours. We finally departed several hours late and arrived in Copenhagen around 2:00 PM, rather than the planned 11:00 AM…. It was after 4:00 PM by the time we arrived at our hotel, the Marriott Copenhagen. In any case, we were able to immediately check in, take a short nap, and still make happy hour at the Marriott Executive Lounge before heading out to dinner in Nørreport. The delay certainly could have been worse, but it was a stressful start to our weekend getaway. In any case, the happy hour was pretty decent, especially for pricey Copenhagen – soft drinks, beer, wine, cheese and other cold appetizers and a few warm appetizers each evening.

This cute water park was just outside of our hotel. Locals were using this daily – it would have been far too cold for us!. It is cool that the Nyhavn River is clean enough to swim in! Imagine that in NYC!

Complimentary Carlsberg at the Marriott Executive Lounge! A great perk in pricey Copenhagen!

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A Fun Weekend in Abu Dhabi en route to the Seychelles!

31/01/202330/01/2023wareontheglobe Leave a comment

En route to the Seychelles last November, Dan and I spent the weekend in Abu Dhabi! This was mostly due to the fact that we needed to connect in the Middle East and had already visited Dubai (en route to the Maldives). In any case, I had been wanting to visit Abu Dhabi and the flights worked out. There is plenty to do in Abu Dhabi to fill a weekend and even longer, but we only had the weekend. Here’s what we managed to do during that weekend, which we highly suggest to other visitors, whether in transit or on vacation in Abu Dhabi.

FIRST DAY IN DUBAI – 12.5 HOUR FLIGHT & ARRIVAL IN ABU DHABI!

We flew direct from JFK (New York) to Abu Dhabi on Etihad’s 10:00 PM flight, which arrived the following evening in Abu Dhabi (losing almost a whole day). We arrived a few minutes early and made it to our hotel, the Marriott Hotel Downtown Abu Dhabi, without much fuss. Abu Dhabi lifted all Covid restrictions just before our trip, so we didn’t have to deal with anything relating thereto. Due to our Marriott Platinum status, we received access to the Marriott’s Executive Club Lounge, which was open for complimentary drinks for almost an hour after we arrived (a fun surprise in Abu Dhabi where alcohol is $$$). As such, we quickly checked into our room and immediately proceeded to the Executive Club Lounge.

F1 chocolates waiting in our room. This was particularly fun, as we didn’t even know it was F1!

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Resort Review: Mango House, a Hilton LXR Property In The Seychelles

20/01/202320/01/2023wareontheglobe 4 Comments

If you read my first blog post this year, you know that Dan and I spent US Thanksgiving in the Seychelles, an island nation off the coast of East Africa! During our trip, we stayed at Hilton’s new LXR property, the Mango House (its featured on some Hilton IG ads). Our stay was great and we could have stayed longer. This article reviews the hotel and its amenities.

The Mango in the Seychelles.

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A Wonderful Week In The Seychelles (East Africa)!

11/01/202311/01/2023wareontheglobe Leave a comment

Dan and I travel every US Thanksgiving, mainly because its quiet and we get two days off of work without taking any vacation. This year we traveled to the Seychelles (after 3 nights in Abu Dhabi) to explore more of the Indian Ocean (after going to the Maldives two Thanksgivings ago). We loved our time in the Seychelles, but due to the time it takes to get to the Seychelles, would probably reserve another visit for when we have longer to explore the surrounding area. This is my review of what we did and where we stayed during our week on the Seychelles!

Rainbow in the Seychelles.

THE SEYCHELLES ISLANDS

The Seychelles (pronounced like the plural of a “seashell” found on the beach) are are group of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean off the coast of East Africa, directly east of Tanzania and north of Reunion and Mauritius (and along with Comoros, Madagascar, and Mayotte, referred to as the Vanilla Islands). The Seychelles is its own country that is a part of the continent of Africa. Prior to gaining its independence, the Seychelles were occupied by both the French and the British. As a result, most people speak English, French, and the local Seychellois language. Here is a map of the Seychelles’ location – kind of in the middle of nowhere in the best way possible.

The Seychelles on a map.

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How I Spent Four Days In Rhodes, Greece in Summer 2021

19/10/2022wareontheglobe Leave a comment

Dan and I made our triumphant return to Europe in 2021, heading to Rhodes, Milos, and Athens, Greece. After a significant delay at Newark, we FINALLY made it to Rhodes – six hours later than expected (and missing our flight to Athens….). This article shares my experience in 2021 and offers some recommendations and tips for visiting Rhodes, Greece!

Final approach into Rhodes, Greece.

RHODES, GREECE

Rhodes, Greece is a large Greek island located very close to the Turkish coast. Rhodes is one of Greece’s largest islands and one of the furthest from Athens. Unlike the “blue and white” Greek islands that most Americans think of when they think Greek (i.e. the Cyclades), Rhodes has a lot of Ottoman influence, very rich history with influences from many cultures, much related to the Knights Period, medieval things, and very little “blue and white” architecture. Today, while absolutely gorgeous in certain parts, Rhodes is super touristy, receiving big box tours from Europe, as well as its fair share of cruise ships. You’ll find stunning old walls and flowers in the Old Town, as well as weird toy and candy shops and tourist trinket stores targeted to cruisers. In my opinion, Rhodes Town was best early or late, when most of the cruisers and day trippers leave the island.