Tag Archives: Travel

JetBlue is expected to begin nonstop service between Boston and New York City to London in their third quarter between July 1 and September 30, 2021. When those flights begin, JetBlue’s Mint Service (the airline’s business class service) will take to the air featuring one of the largest beds available to customers.

The airline’s A321neos new “Mint Studio” (shown below) will consist of two mini-rooms at the front of its newest planes, each with a comfortable seat that turns into its own fully flat bed behind a privacy door with an adjoining sofa that, with the seat, converts to one of the largest beds in the air. Behind those come 22 “Mint Suites”, minus the adjoining sofa.

Reviews of the new Mint Studio are enough to make anyone who has taken long night flights drool with envy. The company put a lot of thought behind the comfort and design with details like wireless charging, multiple power points, space to work while eating, a tuft & needle mattress, and other thoughtful touches that other U.S. airlines don’t come close to offering.

For those of you patiently (or not so patiently) waiting until it is safe to travel again, this may be a tempting treat for your next flight to London. While the seats will certainly be costly (I couldn’t find any information on pricing), JetBlue traditionally offers more competitive pricing than traditional carriers. Check out the Mint Service and as JetBlue calls it the “Suite Life” video below.

At last we can talk about 2020 in the past tense! Sadly, more infections, hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19 are certain, but in the coming months I cannot help but feel that real progress will be made in combatting this virus. With a new administration in the US and broader distribution of the coronavirus vaccine globally, I have a sense of hope and optimism that I haven’t felt in a long time. Which makes me start to think about…

…how much I am looking forward to returning to life as we knew it pre-COVID. Part of that includes entertaining thoughts about places Sergio and I might be able to go and explore later in 2021. Prior to our lockdown in 2020, work had sent me to Florida and Arizona, and Sergio and I were lucky enough to spend the end of 2019 in South America, but that seems like a lifetime ago now.

Destinations on my radar include potentially returning to Cayman, Puerto Rico, Puerto Vallarta, Punta del Este, or Lisbon. I assume that we will go back to Brazil for the Christmas holiday as well, but we will see. Will you travel once it is safe? If so, where are you planning to visit this year?

Airline passenger traffic has dropped significantly due to the pandemic, but Jet Blue is betting that many of us in Boston will be looking to get away from the cold and will be adding new nonstop flights between Boston and Florida starting February 11, 2021.

Starting February 11th, Jet Blue will have up to four daily nonstop flights between Boston and Miami.

Starting February 11th, Jet Blue will have up to four weekly nonstop flights between Boston and Key West, flying on Thursday, Friday, Sunday and Monday. The flight times appear to be very convenient, allowing you to arrive early enough to enjoy a late lunch and getting you home to Boston at a decent hour.

JB Flight #2063 departs Boston at 8:27 a.m. and arrive in Key West at 12:14 p.m.
JB Flight #2064 departs Key West at 1:02 p.m. and arrive in Boston at 4:26 p.m.

You can read the full media release issued last week here.

One year ago, Sergio and I were starting the second week of a five week adventure, traveling through Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay. We flew out of Boston the Saturday after Thanksgiving and in retrospect, I’m so thankful that we took this amazing trip last year and didn’t defer it.

Initially, we flew to Brazil to drop off holiday gifts at Sergio’s Mom’s home then hopped on a plane the next day to fly to Mendoza, Argentina to explore wine country. I’ve only visited wine country in Napa and Sonoma Valleys in California and Hepburn Springs and Daylesford just outside of Melbourne, Australia. Mendoza struck me as more refined than Australia but less busy than Napa and Sonoma. The city of Mendoza is the jumping off point for wine enthusiasts and it is where we stayed, making daytrips to Ucco Valley and Lujan de Cuyo. It’s a cute and clean town but it isn’t until you get out of Mendoza that you can really appreciate the natural beauty of the Andes Mountain range and wine country.

After a decadent few days in Mendoza, we flew to Córdoba, Argentina which has the distinction of being Argentina’s second largest city and home to the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Jesuit Block. We stayed at the Azure Hotel near the Plaza de San Martin and explored the city as well as the surrounding area, making a day trip to La Cumbrecita and Belgrano. For those unfamiliar with Córdoba, it is depicted in the 2019 film, The Two Popes when they flash back to Pope Francis’ life as a Bishop in Argentina during the anti-Communist military dictatorship from 1976-1983 that cozied up with the Roman Catholic Church.

From there we flew to Buenos Aires, Argentina. This beautiful city is filled with great restaurants, beautiful architecture, gorgeous parks and a pulse that makes going out always fun. Sergio and I had visitied B.A. previously but not for many years so we used the week here to explore. For those unfamiliar with the city, it is the largest city in Argentina and of huge political, historical and cultural importance. A third of the entire country’s population lives in the metropolitan area. If you plan to travel to Buenos Aires and need tips, feel free to reach out. I can share what we did, where we stayed and places we enjoyed visiting.

After spending more than two weeks in Argentina, Sergio and I hopped a ferry to Uruguay, staying one night in the UNESCO World Heritage Site, Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay. The following day we rented a car and drove out to Undarius. Owned by Fran and Mario, this small property caters to gay travelers and is a 5 minute walk to the gay beach and a 15 minute drive to Punta del Este.

I had never heard of Punta del Este prior to planning this trip and think it caters more to affluent South Americans than Americans and Europeans, but this is a place you’ll hear of more in the future – mark my words. Despite my lack of familiarity, I did recognize the city’s most famous and photographed statue, “La Mano” or in English “The Hand”, which shows a large human hand emerging from the sand on Brava Beach.

Our final leg of this amazing adventure brought us back to Sergio’s hometown in Brazil, Belo Horizonte, spending 10 days with his Mom to celebrate the Christmas holiday. We spent our final three nights in to Sao Paulo, celebrating New Years Eve and starting 2020 poolside at the Renaissance Sao Paulo enjoying one last day of summer in South America before flying back to Boston.

This was an amazing trip, and I can’t help but reminisce. Thinking about what we were doing a year ago has been a healthy and happy distraction and is just one more reason I love to travel. Even if the trips must come to an end, the memories can last a lifetime.

One of my fondest and most memorable trips was backpacking through Europe after I graduated from college in the early 1990s. The trip was my first time traveling abroad, and I remember thinking of it as a grand adventure. I had no idea what to expect but the trip exceeded my wildest dreams and gave me the travel bug.

My parents took this photo of me at Boston’s Logan Airport just before I boarded my flight. When I look at this photo of 22 year old me, I can’t help but smile and think about how amazing that trip was and how much I learned. Although I absolutely fell in love with Europe and traveling, I wouldn’t travel abroad again until I met Sergio in my late 20s. Sergio’s love of travel was one of the reasons we initially connected. When I met him he worked for United Airlines which allowed us to travel frequently.

Sadly, we’ve not been back to Europe since 2016 when we visited Portugal but hopefully we can rectify that soon after this pandemic.