What is the relationship between Cliveden House and the American Revolution? Answer: a change in the course of history, the ramifications of which are interesting to contemplate. Frederick, Prince of Wales, and his family made this Italianate mansion their home in the mid-18th century. During a game of cricket on the estate’s grounds, Frederick was dealt an injury that ultimately proved to be fatal, so he never ascended to the throne. Instead, the crown went to his son, Georg

For many people, Tahiti conjures up images of a tropical paradise. And while that is certainly understandable, the island of Tahiti itself (specifically, the island’s capital of Papeete) is often not what people are expecting in terms of its natural beaches. It is amazing, however, what talented landscape architects can do to create the feeling of the real thing on resort properties. Because Papeete is the location of the only international airport in the area, many visitors

Four Seasons Bora Bora! I couldn’t help thinking of it as Paradise Found. How could it not be the ScheckTrek Pick for French Polynesia? For

Named by the New York Times and Britain’s Daily Telegraph in 2014 as the best place in the world to visit, you definitely want to see Cape Town on your visit to South Africa. This waterfront city is vibrant, lively and lovely. The backdrop to the city is the ever-present Table Mountain, which in 2012 was named one of the New7Wonders of Nature. Visitors can take a cable car to the top of the mountain, about 2/3 of a mile high. At the summit are hiking trails, a gift shop, café

If you trust Princes William and Harry, Oprah Winfrey, and former President Bill Clinton to know which is the best hotel in Johannesburg, then you may want to choose the Saxon. We couldn’t agree more. To put into perspective how good this hotel is, the city's Four Seasons would be forced to come in second (we’ve stayed at both). Even though Johannesburg itself may not intentionally be on the bucket list of most world travelers, it’s the rare visitor to South Africa who does n

“I never knew of a morning in Africa when I woke up that I was not happy,” said Ernest Hemingway. It was easy to understand why when we went on safari in South Africa. The safari adventure started on a plane like this, flying from Johannesburg to Madikwe. There were no flight attendants; and refreshments were in a cooler in the back, where we were invited to help ourselves. It was a really fun experience! The view of the topography below demonstrated to us that, in more ways

It was only about a year earlier, when staying at a world-class hotel in Paris, that I'd said, "Where hotels are concerned, it will never in this life get better." But then, I had not yet been to La Residence in the Franschhoek Valley, part of the Winelands region near Cape Town. Wow! The gate opened. Lining the right side of the long, winding driveway, scores of iceberg rose bushes were in full bloom in the October springtime. On the left side, a family of springbok frolicke

We get it that not everyone makes it to Durban on their first visit to South Africa. But as ours was a four-week journey, it made sense to schedule a few days of down time—and what better place to do it than on the shores of the beautiful (and warm) Indian Ocean? Besides, I wanted to see The Oyster Box! Yesterday my husband and I were at Starbucks discussing what were our favorite hotels ever in our travels. We’ve had the privilege of staying at some of the world's best, incl