Conde Nast Traveler has named its top 100 restaurants in the world, and Nuema in Quito is number 61. It's nestled in the Illa Experience Hotel & Spa, and I had the extraordinary opportunity to experience this restaurant firsthand. Run by Chef Alejandro Chamorro...
The 5-star Illa Experience Hotel & Spa opened its doors in December 2017 by Latin Trails in the historic part of Quito just a few blocks from the Plaza Grande and surrounded by artists’ workshops. In 2023, it won the Gold Travvy Award for Best Luxury Hotel in...
Beef is a cornerstone of traditional Argentine cuisine. The ideal land and climate to raise cattle made Argentina a leading producer of top quality, lean yet amazingly flavorful grass-fed beef. The cattle graze on las pampas, which gives Argentine steak a nice texture...
The day I had to leave Rapa Nui, I teared up. I so wanted more time there. While the island is part of the country of Chile, it’s actually in Polynesia and is similar to Hawaii in that it’s tropical, very green, and filled with volcanos. Read also about the resort...
The 5-star resort property of Nayara Hangaroa on Easter Island, which I will call Rapa Nui for the rest of this article, is an exceptional experience that I can’t possibly recommend enough. Also read my article on visiting Rapa Nui in general. A portion of the...
I visited Iguassu Falls in the late 1990s, and I have wanted to go back ever since. I finally got my chance. As someone who has traveled the world and seen many awe-inspiring places, I have to say that Iguassu is still one of the most spectacular of them all....
In the late 1990s, I visited Iguassu Falls in Brazil for the first time, and I stayed at Hotel das Cataratas – a sprawling, bright pink, 1950s hacienda-style property right across the street from the Falls. I got a deal back then and paid about $100 a night. Hotel das...
It was a dizzying way to start our trip – especially after a late night landing in Quito and only four hours of sleep. But here we were standing on a mountain more than two miles high. We were on a slope of the Pinchincha Volcano, part of the Yanacocha Reserve in the...
I did the "trifecta" in Ecuador, visiting the Galapagos Islands, the Amazon, and the Andes. It was my second time in the Andes region (the first time was about 13 years before), and it didn’t disappoint. As you can see, the bird life in particular is special in the...
Ever since my early school days and fascination with the groundbreaking scientific discoveries of Charles Darwin, I've always harbored a strong desire to embark upon travel to the Galapagos Islands, located six hundred miles off the coast of Ecuador. These remote...
I was excited to learn that the Illa Experience Hotel in Quito, Ecuador won a 2023 Gold Travvy Award for Best Luxury Hotel in South America. In December 2017, I was the very first guest at this wonderful 5-star hotel opened by Latin Trails in the historic part of...
It can be said that it is a fortunate artist that is born during times of great tribulations. Artists are defined by, and define their times, through their emotional response expressed in bold strokes and violent colors. So it is with Oswaldo Guayasamin, the native...
Ushuaia is just a dot on the map at the bottom of Argentina. It is the town from which we were to board our Antarctic Cruise ship Ultramarine, the latest state–of-the-art expedition ship in Quark Expeditions luxurious ship line-up. Photo by Barbara and Manos...
Discovering abundant biodiversity in Ecuador's tropical rain forest can be an exhilarating undertaking with so much varied vegetation and wildlife. This small diverse South American country includes the towering Andes, Galapagos, and many...
One more time the master winemaker Enrique Tirado enchants us with a new vintage of Don Melchor, the iconic flagship wine of Chile’s Concha y Toro. For 34 years, Concha y Toro has been making as close to perfect wines in the Puente Alto winery as possible and the 2020...
Anyone who has been to the Galapagos will tell you that it’s the trip of a lifetime. But cruising the Galapagos on a luxury yacht is the trip of a lifetime times ten. For five nights and six days, I had the opportunity to experience the Latin Trails Sea Star yacht,...