Snorkel up and dive in with Tahiti’s gentle giants
Stout South Pacific trade winds rocked our boat as we drifted out of Opunohu Bay, a tropical inlet flanked by lush jungle, volcanic leftovers, and Jurassic Park geology on Moorea’s north shore. Off the port side, a pod of spinner dolphins did their thing, flipping and flopping in an impromptu aerial display. Not to be one-upped, a glide of flying fish took flight to starboard, defying the laws of accepted aerodynamics as our ten-passenger vessel broke for the open sea.

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Here’s how to make the most of a visit to this remote, winery-filled Italian valley
Every day, someone asks me where they should travel in Italy, from friends of friends planning a once-in-a-lifetime trip to repeat visitors looking for a new area to discover. As a longtime expat who’s spent 14 years exploring every corner of the country, I find myself whispering one destination’s name over and over: Val d’Orcia. A pastoral region south of Siena, this is the valley that, to me, epitomizes Tuscany: the gently rolling hills, the snaking country roads lined with slender cypress trees, silvery olive groves, abundant vineyards, and stone farmhouses.

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The new ship is the first from Avalon Waterways to set sail on Portugal’s village- and vineyard-lined “River of Gold.”From the top deck of the Avalon Alegria on the Douro – the “River of Gold,” which wends its way through northern Portugal before joining the Atlantic near Porto – the Douro Valley’s grapevine-terraced hillsides rise on either side like gatekeepers. The green mantle of the country’s lush landscapes is occasionally hemmed by hand-built granite walls, white stucco homes with red-tiled roofs, and the stately ruins of centuries-old villas.