http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog Pages of travel tales gathered from visits to hotels, hammams, beaches, boutiques, bars and everything luxurious in between Fri, 10 Feb 2012 19:00:54 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/check-in-sparkling-hill-resort-and-wellness-hotel/18303 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/check-in-sparkling-hill-resort-and-wellness-hotel/18303#comments Thu, 15 Dec 2011 16:00:01 +0000 Joy Pecknold /blog/?p=18303 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/check-in-sparkling-hill-resort-and-wellness-hotel/18303/feed 0 En route to Silver Star Mountain in Vernon, B.C., for some skiing, I stopped in at Sparkling Hill to see firsthand just how many Swarovski crystals are contained within the one-of-a-kind resort and wellness hotel. I’m told there’s 3.5 million, but there could be more, they just stopped counting at 3.5 million. In the entry-way, [...] 007435-25-entrance-night http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/destination-dispatches-7-festive-favourites-at-victorias-fairmont-empress/18220 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/destination-dispatches-7-festive-favourites-at-victorias-fairmont-empress/18220#comments Thu, 08 Dec 2011 16:30:47 +0000 Joy Pecknold /blog/?p=18220 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/destination-dispatches-7-festive-favourites-at-victorias-fairmont-empress/18220/feed 0 Some special cities and towns become especially special during Christmastime. Victoria, B.C. is one such sparkling dot on the map. The place is something between a city and town, in fact. Victoria’s downtown core possesses the quaintness of a small historic town, with brick buildings and walkability, alongside the perks and particulars of a city, [...] VictoriaBC_harbor http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/check-in-the-fairmont-empress/18086 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/check-in-the-fairmont-empress/18086#comments Mon, 28 Nov 2011 19:23:20 +0000 Joy Pecknold /blog/?p=18086 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/check-in-the-fairmont-empress/18086/feed 0 The world loves new things (hello iPad 2, iPhone 4S, et. al.), but sometimes old is just as good, if not better. I got that feeling when I checked into The Fairmont Empress, a 103-year-old grand dame on Vancouver Island. Situated right on the harbour in Victoria, B.C., next to the provincial capital’s pretty parliament [...] 000762-08-exterior-daytime http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/destination-dispatches-surf-and-suds-both-served-cold/17738 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/destination-dispatches-surf-and-suds-both-served-cold/17738#comments Mon, 24 Oct 2011 19:50:14 +0000 Joy Pecknold /blog/?p=17738 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/destination-dispatches-surf-and-suds-both-served-cold/17738/feed 2 When most folks think of surfing, they think warm turquoise barrels and tanned bare-chested boys. I didn’t find most of those things in Tofino, B.C., Canada, but I did still find surf and other splendors. Such as, good beer and some of those barrels. These waves were more slate blue though and, like the beer, [...] 000058-07-ocean-big-waves http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/destination-dispatches-east-meets-western-in-cariboo-country/14795 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/destination-dispatches-east-meets-western-in-cariboo-country/14795#comments Thu, 09 Jun 2011 20:22:27 +0000 Joy Pecknold /blog/?p=14795 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/destination-dispatches-east-meets-western-in-cariboo-country/14795/feed 1 Tom Robbins would say even cowgirls get the blues. I say that’s unlikely when there’s a Thai spa around the corner from the corral. The place is Echo Valley Ranch in British Columbia, Canada’s Cariboo Country. And the plot is part City Slickers, part Planes, Trains and Automobiles, minus high jinks, but with plenty of [...] 000706-05-exterior-sunset http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/peace-adventure-and-solitude-in-sonora/9871 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/peace-adventure-and-solitude-in-sonora/9871#comments Mon, 20 Sep 2010 19:00:55 +0000 Nicole Humphries /blog/?p=9871 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/peace-adventure-and-solitude-in-sonora/9871/feed 6 When you’re seven months pregnant and your husband has been away all summer, there’s only one thing to do when he returns: head to a remote destination where luxury, wilderness, and romance abound. For us, that meant Sonora Resort, a place where West Coast wilderness and rustic luxury blend seamlessly. As soon as we stepped [...] peace, adventure, an#41FFAC http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/canada%e2%80%99s-gorgeous-west-coast-sailing-the-gulf-islands/8654 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/canada%e2%80%99s-gorgeous-west-coast-sailing-the-gulf-islands/8654#comments Mon, 05 Jul 2010 23:03:26 +0000 Nicole Humphries /blog/?p=8654 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/canada%e2%80%99s-gorgeous-west-coast-sailing-the-gulf-islands/8654/feed 0 After a few nights of sleeping on a sailboat, Kristina and I (as the two females on the trip) decided it was time to get off the boat and into comfortable beds. So we headed to Hastings House Country Estate on Salt Spring Island and Poets Cove Resort and Spa on Pender Island. One of [...] NPC HH trail - blog http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/sonora-resort-go-fishing-in-canadas-wilderness/1151 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/sonora-resort-go-fishing-in-canadas-wilderness/1151#comments Tue, 21 Apr 2009 09:00:30 +0000 Karen Mumby http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/?p=1151 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/sonora-resort-go-fishing-in-canadas-wilderness/1151/feed 8 One of Relais & Chateaux’s newest members, Sonora Resort, is an absolute jewel amid the wild beauty and pristine waters of Canada’s West Coast. You’ll enjoy this British Columbia hotel if you’re looking for a great hotel for fishing or spa hotel. Check Availability Sonora Resort, on Canada’s west coast is located in one of [...] http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/journey-autumn-in-british-columbia-canada-14-nights/133 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/journey-autumn-in-british-columbia-canada-14-nights/133#comments Wed, 03 Sep 2008 17:39:03 +0000 Erik Haugen http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/?p=133 http://www.kiwicollection.com/blog/journey-autumn-in-british-columbia-canada-14-nights/133/feed 0 Kiwi Collection CEO Erik Haugen offers journey suggestions to travellers based upon his own personal experiences travelling around the globe. Canada’s British Columbia is one of my favourite places to travel during the autumn season, as the golden coast of Canada still has plenty of warm days and beautiful sunsets, and as the leaves begin to [...]