Today is National Plan For Vacation Day, and it could not come at a better time! As the polar vortex brings temperatures deeply below zero in the upper Midwest, Gildshire is here to warm your toes with some vacation ideas. After all, nothing makes you miss a vacation like the thermometer resting at 30-below. Does an island vacation sound like a plan? We thought it might, so here’s what we found. Round-trip airfares from expedia.com are accurate at press time, with two-months lead time, a midweek departure and return.
Guana Island, British Virgin Isles:
Guana means “iguana” in Italian (not to be confused with guano, which…doesn’t). This island vacation getaway about 400 miles east of the Dominican Republic includes a wildlife sanctuary covering almost 900 acres. Cottages and villas of every size abound for your vacation lodging pleasure. Stroll the seven sandy beaches, snorkel with the fish and see more flamingos than you thought possible. Flights from Miami for just over $1000 per person.
Nantucket Island, Massachusetts, USA:
The Wauwinet Inn (established in 1875, which makes it a youngster in this part of the United States) on the Island has some excellent island vacation offerings for those in search of this kind of getaway. Guests can traverse Nantucket overland in a 1948 Chevy Fleetmaster station wagon, or by the sea aboard the Wauwinet Lady. Adults-only, please, at this resort. It’s 103 miles from Boston to Nantucket, but that includes a 29-mile ferry ride that is part of your vacationing fun. Round-trip flights from Chicago to Boston can be found for $140 for those who plan ahead.
Madagascar:
Ah, you’re looking for something more exotic in an island vacation than Nantucket. Gildshire understands. How about Madagascar? They say that there are hundreds of animal species and flora that thrive only on this island. Hundreds of them and one of you. We call that exclusivity. But where else will you find lemurs (did you know a group of lemur is called a conspiracy?) and manta rays on the same hiking trip? Flights from JFK for $2,000 per person.Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada:
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada:
If you aren’t married to your island drenched in endless sun, consider a Vancouver Island vacation off the west coast of British Columbia. Truth told, a winter Vancouver Island vacation may mean seeing it drenched in rain. But, the rain keeps it green and lush. You might need to look carefully to find your lodging as the architects up north build to blend into the surroundings. A room between the forest and the sea may leave you wondering if you want to go home at all. Flights from LAX for $324 per person.
Solitude is the name of the game on most of Vancouver Island.
Fregate Island, Seychelles:
They call it “Mini-Galapagos” and so it is. This tiny island (just 500 miles NNE of Madagascar) is home to more than 100 species of birds, many thousands of giant tortoises, multiple dozens of nesting turtles…and just 16 hotel rooms. Be lucky enough (or an avid enough reader of Gildshire) to snag a room, and you will enjoy more than a half dozen white sand beaches. But that’s not all. You will also be backdropped by a totally restored forest that was brought back from the dead by local conservationists and the government that helped fund them. Flights from NYC for $932.
