By Linda Ballou, NABBW’s Adventure Travel Associate Costa Rica, the poster child of eco-tourism, has so many fun, outdoor adventures options it’s hard to choose. Twenty-five percent of the country is preserved habitat to ensure the continuation of the unique flora and fauna found in species-rich forests.  Multiple changes in altitude and temperature create many micro-climates that are responsible for Costa Rica’s diversity. Extending and gracious people, Ticos, as locals call themselves, offer guided outdoor adventures throughout their emerald-green country. Rafting the Class III to... Read More

By Adriane Berg, NABBW’s Associate for Successful Aging I am sitting in the Silvio Pettirossi International Airport in Asuncion, Paraguay, having a transformational moment. After having visited 90 countries, all 50 states and almost all of the major US national parks — many of these places more than once (London 22 times!) — I am tearing up my Bucket List. This is a big deal. I made my first bucket list at age six when I saw the Disney Jungle River Cruise on TV. As I recall, it went down seven rivers in 20 minutes and ended in a visit with Trader Sam, who sold shrunken heads.... Read More

By Adriane Berg, NABBW’s Associate for Successful Aging In anticipation of the upcoming podcast The Ageless Traveler: Lifelong Travel Made Easy, I discovered essential resources for traveling with an older adult. Happy travels. The idea of inter-generational travel conjures up thoughts of warm family closeness, laughing together, and newly created shared memories. But the pitfalls and dangers of traveling with an older adult are rarely considered until a problem arises. Fortunately, new and exciting resources make it easy to preplan and travel with your parents or older loved ones, even... Read More

By Linda Ballou, NABBW’s Adventure Travel Associate Readers, I am working on a new book, which is very close to publication, to be called Lost Angel Unleashed: Stories From the Heart, as well as my Lost Angel Adventure Series. Today I’d like to share some of my very favorite places to visit in one of my favorite cities, Santa Barbara. I hope you will enjoy my list and will consider visiting this charming city soon. Please check out the links for more information… State Street Promenade — A Taste of Europe The heart of Downtown Santa Barbara’s entertainment and retail district... Read More

By Linda Ballou, NABBW’s Adventure Travel Associate I’ve just returned from the Adventure Travel Show, and am delighted to report that the travel industry is roaring back with a vengeance.  Airlines are ramping up flights, training and hiring pilots, and upgrading infrastructure to keep up with the demand. Twenty-five new ships for leisure travelers will set sail this year. But, with this frenzy to meet the pent-up demand for travel experiences comes higher prices and over-burdened service workers. How do we best navigate the age of disruption? Here are a few of my best tips. Buy... Read More

By Phyllis Stoller, NABBW’s Group Travel Associate Who do you think were the first to begin to travel post-Pandemic? Based on our experience as tour operators, is was Boomer Women. Why? Older folks were the first with access to the Covid vaccine. We were also the most enthusiastic to get it. Not to forget that we were the most obedient abut safety protocols. And finally, who amongst the 70+ crowd didn’t have a ‘now or never’ gut feel when travel opened? As travel slowly started again, this is what we tour operators experienced. Women wanted to go, more enthusiastically than... Read More

By Carolee Duckworth, NABBW’s Independent Travel Associate This year, let’s plan to set off in early May on an independent, but expertly planned, trip to Normandy on the northern coast of France. Our travel will carry us across the Atlantic to Paris, then west to the Normandy coast, for four nights in charming little Bayeux, where stories of conquest and liberation span from the 11th to the 20th century—from William the Conqueror to the D-Day landings. In Bayeux, we’ll luxuriate in comfort at Villa Lara, and feast nearby on local seafood, fresh from the frigid waters of the English Channel.... Read More

By Trina O’Quinn for the NABBW I spoke often about grief and loss in 2022. I also covered journaling and the different types of journaling as the way I chose to listen to my inner self. I used it to figure out what was bothering me and what to do about it. This year I will continue to use my journal for that purpose, while adding gratitude and joy as this year’s focus. Why did I choose gratitude? I chose it because it is my pathway to joy. Joy is going to be my word of the year. For me, the year 2022 was one of deep loss. January 2, 2022, I was with my mother when she passed, and my husband... Read More

By Anne L. Holmes, NABBW’s Boomer in Chief Periodically, as we Boomers age through the various stages of our lives, there come times when we face a major crossroad and we have to make huge, life-altering decisions. These days, instead of those decisions being related to school, work, marriage or the birth of our children or grandchildren, many of our crossroads  experiences begin with the letter “D.” As in “Disease,” “Divorce,” “Death” — and that other one, much less less serious, but still daunting — “Downsizing.” Today,... Read More

By Trina O’Quinn for the NABBW In my last post I explained how an ordinary course of events – like traveling and not immediately being able to find something – can create much anxiety, even a panic attack – actually, a “Dyslexic Spin,” is how I label it.  It is part of my lifelong learning disability, with which I’ve learned to cope over the years. Journal writing is one effective tool in this process of coping. In my earlier discussions of journaling technique, I have been promoting unstructured, or free form, journaling. When using this type of journaling, I... Read More