Wellness when traveling now more than a trip to the gym

by Chris Owen on

When we think of wellness when traveling, thoughts turn to the exercise facility at a hotel. Maybe a walk on a beach comes to mind or the extra exercise we might get naturally at a destination we visit. That’s a good place to start but hotels are taking that idea a step or two further, defining wellness as just one part of a healthier lifestyle.

“Wellness is about more than exercising and living a healthier lifestyle, it’s about a completely changed attitude toward the way most people live their daily lives – especially when they travel,” says Dan Marcec, managing editor of Hotel Interactive.

Pointing out that wellness involves a balance of mind, body and spirit that will deliver a better, richer quality of life, Kristi Bonsack, director of wellness at Longboat Key Club & Resort, notes that “the medical field is about helping to cure disease, where as wellness is about preventing it, and there’s a distinction. Being well is not about limiting life, but enhancing it.”

Hotels, resorts, cruise lines and other lodging options are doing more to encourage a healthy lifestyle. Wellness programs are easy to access for travelers and are timed to meet their needs. The focus is on encouraging and empowering guests to find a balance of fitness, nutrition, education and relaxation, far more than merely providing directions to where the on-site fitness center is located.”Wellness encompasses everything – your dining, leisure activities, sleeping habits, and even finding joyful things in your day,” says Bonsack.

Wellness when traveling is becoming more popular all the time. Now, in addition to checking room rates, directions to the hotel and availability on dates we want to travel, those planning a hotel stay are looking for wellness options. Questions like “Is there healthy food available on-site or close-by?” and “What programming is available that contributes to my wellness and will fit into my schedule?” are being asked and the answers are often hard to find. Still, there are resources available that can help.

  • Spafinder is dedicated to helping people find establishments, experiences and information that promote the well-being of body, mind and spirit and to inspire them to lead a healthy lifestyle.
  • The HealthyTravelNetwork has a mission to build a community of business travelers who are united by a common commitment to fitness and by a desire to be role models in helping America build a culture based on health and well-being.
  • Travel To Wellness is an online resource catering specifically to the growing number of wellness-minded travelers and the expanding spa and wellness travel niche.

Responding to an increasing demand, even cruise lines are focusing on wellness. Once the land of never-ending buffets and an almost guaranteed ten-pound weight gain after sailing, cruise lines are now offering more healthy lifestyle choices. Capitalizing on the all-inclusive nature of a cruise vacation, accessing healthy lifestyle choices is just as easy as bellying up to the Chocolate buffet.

In addition to the standard complement of exercise equipment found on most ships, now world-class rock-climbing walls, ice skating rinks, and full-size basketball courts are available at sea. Recently, Royal Caribbean invited guests to participate in the line’s first “Royal 5K St Maarten run”, Carnival Cruise Lines introduced SkyCourse, the cruise industry’s first-ever ropes course aboard Carnival Magic, and Princess Cruises got in the swing of things with the world’s first-ever marathon at sea. Aboard Celebrity Cruises ships, a rabidly popular Celebrity Life program features life-enhancing programs that provide a hands-on, active participation role for passengers as well as something to take back home that contributes to overall wellness.

“Wellness Travel is about traveling for the primary purpose of achieving, promoting or maintaining maximum health and a sense of well-being,” says TravelToWellness, encouraging us to be “proactive in discovering new ways to promote a healthier, less stressful lifestyle. It’s about finding balance in one’s life. It begins with intent.”


Flickr photo by mark sebastian

10 best natural spas around the world

by Jessica Festa on

Who doesn’t love a great spa experience? While a traditional Swedish massage or hot stone treatment is always relaxing, why not try something different and 100% natural?

All over the world, there are regions featuring geothermal pools, hot springs, and water heated by volcanic activity that also contain healing and curative properties. And this isn’t something new; even the Incas and the Romans enjoyed taking a dip in these natural spas. Minerals in the water help to alleviate ailments and diseases like asthma, psoriasis, muscle pain, acne, arthritis, neuralgia, and more. And not only is it healthy, its relaxing too.

For a closer look at some of the world’s most amazing natural spas check out the gallery below.

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Gadling gear review: Clever Travel Companion secret-pocket tank top and underwear

by Jessica Festa on

When going abroad, one of the biggest concerns for travelers is keeping their valuables safe from pick-pocketers. While fanny packs may be a decent option, they’re also a dead giveaway that you’re a tourist, making you an even easier target for getting ripped off. Then there are money belts, which are great fashion-wise, however, tend to get itchy and leave sweat marks when it’s hot out. That’s why I was excited when I found out about The Clever Travel Companion‘s line of “100% pick-pocket proof” clothing.

I tried a solid black tank top with hidden pockets, as well as a pair of underwear with pockets. To be honest, with or without the pockets I would definitely buy this tank top. It’s not too tight, not too loose, made of 100% cotton, and actually feels like a second skin it’s so comfortable. Even after walking around in it for an entire day it didn’t stretch out or chafe my skin. The pockets make it that much better, as the zipper is literally right above your stomach, allowing for easy access to all of your important documents while still keeping them safe from thieves. You can wear it as an undershirt or as a shirt on its own.

The underwear, which are actually more like boy-short bathing suit bottoms, are also extremely comfortable and made of 94% rayon and 6% spandex. When I first saw them I was a little worried they’d tug, slide up, or show through my pants; however, I was pleasantly surprised to find that they did none of these things. In fact, I forgot I was even wearing them. What I really like about this product is there are two zipper-pockets right in front, making it really easy to quickly get to your things while also eliminating the nervousness back-pockets cause of never really knowing if your stuff is still there.

The Clever Travel Companion has created an extremely useful yet comfortable set of clothing options for travelers, especially when you also think about the extra accessories you now won’t have to pack. Secret-pocket tank tops and t-shirts cost $39.90, while the women’s underwear costs $29.90. There are also products for men, including long johns ($39.90) and men’s underwear ($29.90).

Passengers sick again, cruise line cancels sailing

by Chris Owen on

Last weekend nearly 700 passengers, on three different ships, contracted the flu-like Norovirus causing Princess and Royal Caribbean cruise lines to delay departure of this week’s sailing for extensive cleaning. Now, another outbreak on one of the same ships has caused its cancellation, mid-sailing, and an early return to port for even more cleaning.

Princess Cruises Crown Princess was on a seven-night Caribbean cruise when the outbreak occurred and will skip calling at the ports of Curacao and Aruba to come back two days early.

“In consultation with the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC), who has informed us that there are widespread outbreaks of Norovirus occurring in the US, it was agreed that the best course of action to stop the spread of the illness is for the ship to undergo a two-day extensive sanitization,” said Princess Cruises in a statement on their website.

To make that happen, Crown Princess, scheduled to return to Fort Lauderdale on Saturday, February 11 will come back two days early, ending the current sailing on Thursday, February 9th.

Passengers on the current sailing will receive a full refund, assistance re-booking flights if they had been booked through the cruise line as well as hotel accommodations if necessary and 25% of what they paid as a credit to use on a future cruise.”On the current sailing 114 passengers (3.70% out of 3,078) and 59 crew (5.01% of 1,178) have reported gastrointestinal illness,” said Princess. On the previous cruise, 364 passengers (11.73% of 3,103) and 30 crew (2.57% of 1,168) were affected.

The move by Princess is unusual but not unprecedented. Norovirus, which causes vomiting and diarrhea, is a common illness that is easily transmitted in closed environments like nursing homes, schools and cruise ships.


Photo: Princess Cruises

Cruise ships bring nearly 700 sick passengers to shore

by Chris Owen on

Between two cruise ships arriving in Florida and one in New Orleans, nearly 700 sick passengers were brought to shore over the weekend. Norovirus, which causes vomiting and diarrhea, hit passengers and crew causing hundreds to become ill, many to be quarantined and sailings to be delayed. Its a common ailment, magnified by the closed environment of a cruise ship, but avoidable for the most part with some basic precautions and help is on the way in the form of a new vaccine.

Investigators with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) went on board Ruby Princess and Crown Princess to monitor cleaning procedures said Princess spokesperson Julie Benson. “We’re working in close cooperation with the CDC to identify the cause,” Benson told CNN after 499 cases occurred between the two ships, both based out of Fort Lauderdale.

In New Orleans, WDSU-TV reported Royal Caribbean‘s Voyager of the Seas returned with 200 cases of the flu-like illness.

“At Royal Caribbean International we have high health standards for all our guests and crew,” said Royal Caribbean in a statement. “During the sailing, we conduct enhanced cleaning on-board the ship, to help prevent the spread of the illness. Additionally, when Voyager of the Seas arrived in New Orleans, Louisiana, this past Saturday, February 4, we conducted an extensive and thorough sanitizing on-board the ship and within the cruise terminal, to help prevent any illness from affecting the subsequent sailing.”

The CDC notified officials in Louisiana Friday that a cruise ship might be coming in with a Norovirus outbreak, state epidemiologist Raoult Ratard said Sunday, reported CBS News. Putting the illness into perspective, Ratard said that on any given day about 10,000 people in the New Orleans area are likely to have diarrhea and about 30 percent of them because of the Norovirus.

“In a closed space like a cruise ship, in a nursing home, in a hospital, you want to be extra careful,” Ratard said.

On the horizon, new a new medical breakthrough might have the answer to cruise passenger concerns over Norovirus incidents.

“It is possible to prevent infection and illness with a vaccine for Norovirus,” Dr. Robert Atmar, a professor of medicine and molecular virology at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston told Medicine Plus. But many questions remain unanswered, he said. For example, “we have to figure out the best way to give it and how long protection lasts.”

Tested on 98 people who received the vaccine or an inactive placebo, all of the participants tested positive for a gene that makes them more susceptible to the Norovirus. But those who received the new vaccine were less likely to develop the illness than their counterparts who received the placebo, the study showed.

Administered as two doses three weeks apart via a nasal spray, there were no safety issues seen in the study and side effects were minimal.

“Further study is needed to answer questions such as who should get the vaccine and how long the protection lasts,” said Dr. Thomas Hooton, a professor of infectious disease at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine noting the Norovirus is “a mess and spreads like wildfire.”

When will this new treatment be available?

No timetable has been set but Atmar suggested the likely initial candidates would be people in nursing homes, health-care workers, the military and segments of the food industry.

How to avoid Norovirus while we wait for the new miracle medicine? Here are some tips to maximize your chances of not getting the Norovirus bug while on your cruise:

  • Wash your hands- Like on land, our hands contact all sorts of things and people, many of which may have horrible sicko germs, waiting to attack us. Do you know how to wash your hands? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the people that police these things, have instructions on how to do it.
  • Don’t count on the hand sanitizers– Those hand sanitizer dispensers all over the ship are mostly for show in the grand scheme of things. They help but there is no substitution for a good hand washing.
  • Avoid touching things– Hand rails on stairs, elevator buttons, walls are all things that some sick person might have touched before you.
  • Don’t pick your nose– I know, gross, but a really good way to get germs on your fingers into your body.
  • Avoid closed spaces– Cruise ships themselves provide the closed environment that the Norovirus needs to multiply and thrive. Elevators then, are almost like a closed environment within a closed environment and should be avoided. It won’t kill most people to take the stairs and get some extra exercise either.


Flickr photo by SCA Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget