From the iPhone® of Harry Dalgaard

It’s been about a month, since you heard from me here. The last time I wrote to you, I was in the region of Galicia, Spain! I’m traveling again as always, on the lookout for new and interesting destinations and hotel properties you can recommend to your clients. See "Where in the World." Hope to see you in the next place I'm visiting.

If you have any comments or questions, please e-mail them to mystory@avantidestinations.com.

Featured Destinations

Imagine Italy

Back in the day, Italy reigned supreme in travel value, especially as a destination to see some of the most important historic sites in the Western World, eat great food, enjoy great wines, and bask in beautiful scenery. And, if you haven't noticed lately, those value days are coming back again!

Where else can you see the Forum one day and visit Pompeii the next, all while enjoying La Dolce Vita? And we’re not talking about the movie here, but literally ‘the sweet life,’ stripped of irony and wordplay. It doesn’t get much better than Italy, as those who’ve visited it time and again can attest.

Just imagine yourself at a cafe on a piazza, watching people and enjoying some regional delicacies. Or wandering the streets after perusing the weekly market in a small village in Tuscany or Umbria, only to find a restaurant with no signage, no menu and some of the best food you’ve had in your life. Or having breakfast with a person that’s dear to you on a patio overlooking the Mediterranean and a full day of nothing to do ahead of you. That’s Italy.

Year after year, Italy’s withstood the test of time as the most popular destination in Europe and 2009 is no different. Add on the facts of the dollar’s strength, the hoteliers’ hunger, the price drop in air fares, the Italians warmth, and you’ve got a recipe ripe with travel value.

As you can probably tell, we here at the Independent Traveler have a hankering for an Italian vacation. So let's all pack our bags and get another vacation to Italy started!

Rome, Florence and Venice
10 days/9 nights from $2,115 per person
The art masterpieces and historical heritage of Italy's three greatest cities await, featuring some of our favorite hotels, sightseeing tours and great meals.

Current Europe Hotel Specials
Go to this area of our website often as it's constantly being updated and has the best hotel deals in Europe for instant savings when booking an FIT or one of Avanti's Recommended Vacation Packages (RVP).

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Pura Vida in My Costa Rica

by Alex P. of Avanti Destinations

The name might mean ‘rich coast’, but Costa Rica has far more to offer than just warm beaches. In fact, most of my fondest memories of the country are of the people, wildlife, and cuisine. The general attitude of most ticos (the nickname for residents of the country) can be summed up in the country’s motto: ‘Pura Vida,’ which literally means ‘pure life.’ The meaning is closer to that of ‘hakuna matata,’ though, minus the singing warthog and meerkat (or perhaps replaced by an anteater and an agouti). It’s a refreshing and welcome change of pace from the hustle and bustle of American city life, and the perfect setting for an idyllic vacation.

I also found that the relaxing tone of the populous allowed me to better concentrate on the two things I’d come to Costa Rica for: to see all the animals I’d read about in books since I was a child, and to expand my palette. I wasn’t disappointed on either front, although some of my animal encounters of the six and eight-legged variety were a little too close for comfort! By far, my favorite area for wildlife viewing was Tortuguero, on the northern Caribbean coast. I’ve never seen so many different species of animals in one place! I truly felt like I was in a nature documentary when I was there. Between all of the sea birds, lizards, monkeys, bats, and other exotic creatures, I was in heaven. Seeing a toucan that wasn’t on a cereal box and standing close enough to a wild caiman that I could count its teeth were two things I never thought I’d get to do in my life.

For some reason tico cuisine gets a bad rep, but I think the people who complain had probably eaten in the wrong places. Although I’m a vegetarian, I still have a ‘see-food’ diet, as in, when I see food (that’s not meat) I eat it. I relish any opportunity to try local specialties that I can’t find here in Portland. My favorite culinary discovery in Costa Rica was maracuyá, or passionfruit. I’d order a maracuyá agua fresca, a fresh juice drink, everywhere I could. I also came to love all of the comida típica (typical food), but especially gallo pinto, a beans and rice dish eaten for breakfast.

All this talk of Costa Rica and comida típica is making me hungry for dinner and adventure! Although I’ve been to the country twice, I hope to go back again to visit all of my amigos, to bask in the beauty of nature at its wildest, and of course to eat the delicious food.

Rainforest, Volcano & Beach from $1,149 per person
Combining three of our most popular destinations in Costa Rica: Tortuguero National Park, Arenal Volcano and Guanacaste beach area. One of our more well rounded and popular Costa Rican vacations.

Extended Green Season Rates-Up to 35% off
Some of the newest and best hotels in Central America have significant and extended green season savings this year. Be sure to visit our Latin America specials page often to stay up to date on our current specials.

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A Bit of Eco-Tourism

Here at the Independent Traveler we are reading more and more about eco-tourism in the news and hearing it more in conversations. There’s an ever-increasing amount of information available on what constitutes eco-tourism and what exactly it means. Sometimes it's referred to as sustainable tourism or green tourism or even responsible tourism. Whichever term you want to use, many travelers are interested in reducing their impact on the land, supporting the local communities they are visiting and almost everyone seems to be responding to that demand.

So what’s an eco-tourist to do? Just pack their bags and head off to Costa Rica? That’s an option, certainly. With over 25% of its land dedicated to national parks and protecting 6% of the world's biodiversity, there’s plenty for the eco-tourist to experience in Costa Rica. You’ve already read a bit about Tortuguero National Park with its turtles, manatees, and other wildlife. Another great feature is the majority of the day tours happen on the water, reducing the impact of tourism on land.

There’s also Monteverde Cloud Forest. The variety of birds and orchids alone make this a pretty spectacular place to visit. One of the impressive things about Monteverde is that it’s privately held by a non-profit organization and is not as susceptible to the flux in funding available for protection and conservation as the National Parks are. Much like the Nature Conservancy here in the US, its controlled by a non-profit who safeguards the land and the ecology.

Perhaps Costa Rica’s already been done and you are looking for something a bit more adventurous. We’ve got one word for you: Manu. It’s in Peru, so it would be simple to add this on to a trip to Cuzco and Machu Picchu.

The Manu National Park contains 1,000 species of birds, or one out of every nine on Earth. Approximately 550 bird species occur within a few square miles of lowland forest. But it’s not just the birds that are amazing; this densely populated area is home to some of the greatest biodiversity on the planet, including 10 species of monkeys along with some pretty awe-inspiring tree ferns and other plant life. All in all, this is probably the most adventurous type of eco-tourism for most travelers.

As we all move ahead, the landscape of traveling is changing, and eco-travel and responsible tourism options for travelers and vacationers will only grow. Hopefully, we all believe it's good to see more people thinking about how and where they travel.

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Our Customer’s Tips from Near and Far

Here are some tips supplied by travelers from their experiences on an Avanti vacation. We hope you find them helpful! If you have any tips you think others would benefit from, please e-mail them to mystory@avantidestinations.com.

Europe

Italy

“The staff and view at Hotel Villa Garden in Sorrento were amazing. Rail in Italy was very easy and the Pompeii tour was awesome. Our meal on our last night at Donna Sophia in Sorrento (on our last night) was wonderful. ” –Chelsea H.

France

“The Shrine at Lourdes was a spiritual tonic for my wife and I. Beautiful surroundings. ” –William U.

Latin America

Costa Rica

“Enjoyed the coffee tour out of Monteverde and the Gold Museum in San Jose were both memorable. The Kioro at Arenal was great, high on mountain, with a great view and many extras! ” –Ellena M.

Peru

“All of our tours and guides throughout Peru were outstanding, and our private dinner at Caplina Restaurant in Lima was definitely another highlight of our trip. ” – Debbie B.

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Where in the world is Harry Dalgaard?

Answer from the last issue: The region that was controlled by a Germanic tribe from 410-584AD and was first colonized by the ancient Celts in the 6th century BC was Galicia. Also, the famous Crooner was Julio Inglesias, and while he was born in Madrid, his heritage is Galician. This region of Spain's quality of life and unique geography make it a must see for those in love with Spain and wanting to experience more of its culture, cuisine, and way of life. With its distinct blend of regional pride and Celtic heritage, Galicia shines as a destination with a lot of potential and, as yet, is relatively undiscovered by the American traveler.

Carolyn Klawitter from Willington, DE is the lucky winner from our last drawing, and will soon be enjoying her selection of Harry’s favorite Oregon wines!

Do you know where he is? Submit your answer to mystory@avantidestinations.com. From all the correct guesses, we’ll pull a name of one lucky travel agent, who will win a selection of Harry’s favorite Oregon wines. Stay tuned for the answer and the name of our next winner!

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