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Travel stories

Do you like travel and have no idea who to trust for travel advice?

Travel is Beautiful is a travel site written by real real people and not anonymous reviewers. We are road trip junkies, boat lovers and travel addicts who love to spend as much time as possible getting to know the people in different places around the world.

Boat Living on Lake Lugano

The water is clear, clean and warm (summer and fall). High mountains and cliffs cradle the blue water, sculpted from glaciers during the last ice age. Stone villages with names like Cima, Osteno, and Castello are scattered between the cliffs along the shore. These villages continue to be home to fisherman and farmers as they have for centuries.

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A Different State of Mind - San Miguel de Allende

North of Mexico City, in between the coastal towns of Veracruz and Puerto Vallarta, around 6,000 feet in the Guanajuato Region is the most charming city of San Miguel de Allende. Sometime in the 14th century, silver and other precious metals were discovered. The area also had water, essential for life, travel and commerce so the Spanish colonized this hilly area and called it San Miguel el Grande.

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Gualala - Edge of the World

Crank up the tunes as you cruise over the Golden Gate Bridge and continue north for a couple hours. Slowly and without fanfare, you enter an altered reality dominated by rolling hills, split rail fences and few people.

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The Mountains of Greece

There is much more to Greece than the islands dotting the Aegean Sea, the Parthenon and the mysterious monasteries of Meteora. And, let’s not forget that Athens is the birthplace of western civilization. But high in the mountains of Greece bordering Albania there is the wild mountain region of Zagori. Ancient trails traverse through stone villages and stone bridges cross clear streams and rivers.

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Beach Life in Portugal

We hunkered down in Santa Cruz, a small beach town, and split our stay at two sister resorts. Like most siblings, each has a unique personality but the family resemblance is undeniable. The younger sister is extroverted, carefree and adventurous, the other tranquil, modern, introverted and sophisticated. Both sisters are stunning and embraced us like family when we arrived.

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Meteora - Columns in the Sky

Most visitors to Greece see Athens. It is a must see. But there is so much more to Greece than Athens.

Meteora is one of the most unique and breathtaking places we have ever visited. Meteora means, in the sky. The name is fitting. Huge stones of granite rise into the sky creating a landscape of wonder. On top of these stones are monasteries that have protected the treasured texts of western civilization for centuries.

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Greece - Athens Photography Tour

Exploring Athens through Photography

Athens is the birthplace of democracy and western culture. Home to Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Euclid, Archimedes and Alexander the Great. Many travelers to Greece start or end in Athens. But with 5 million locals the question is What is the best way to see the highlights? The answer - Explore Athens with a professional photographer.

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Costa Rica is Pura Vida!

Legend has it that Costa Rica got its name from Columbus who believed he discovered the land of gold and silver. The “Rich Coast” stuck even though Columbus was wrong about the gold. This land is rich with beautiful beaches along the Pacific and Caribbean coastlines, mountains, active volcanoes, lush rain forests and astounding biodiversity.

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Winter Wonderland in Yellowstone

Yellowstone National Park or “Wonderland” as it was called a hundred years ago, was a popular tourist destination for many city dwellers on the East coast. Today, the stagecoaches are long gone but getting there in winter still takes time and effort.

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Budapest

One unexpected pleasure of creating Travel is Beautiful is the opportunity to make new friends in foreign lands. Tamas is one such friend who kindly met us at the airport and shared his beautiful city, Budapest.

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Floating 200 miles through the Grand Canyon - 12 Timeless Days - Part 2

During the Summer of 2018, I joined an OARS expedition spending 12 unforgettable days to float almost 200 miles down the Colorado River through the bottom of the Grand Canyon.   This is Part 2 of the journey - the remaining 100 miles from Phantom Ranch to Whitmore Wash.  You can read the first part here.

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Floating 200 miles through the Grand Canyon - 12 Timeless Days - Part 1

During the Summer of 2018, I joined a group of strangers to float 188 miles down the Colorado River along the bottom of the Grand Canyon. This trip turned into one of the best trips of my life.

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