Private water taxi is the glamourous way to arrive at Venice hotel that was formerly a doge's palace. Channelling our inner George and Amal Clooney, my wife and I glide over Venice's lagoon in a sleek private water taxi. As we pass the mouth of the Grand Canal, the domes of the resplendent Basilica in the pigeon-filled, cafe-lined San Marco Piazza ...

Following Liza the dog to uncover the tastiest, and most expensive, mushrooms in the world. "Isci, isci," ring out the shouts in the hills above Koper, Slovenia. Translated the command is, "search, search." The verbal encouragement comes from Sara Kocjancic and is directed at two-year-old yellow Labrador retriever Liza, a truffle-hunting dog extrao...

​ Viking has perfected the ocean cruise with a spectacular infinity pool and more. Tucked aft on deck seven is the most fabulously well-located infinitypool. The clear pool water, delightfully and deceitfully, melds seamlessly with the azure of the Mediterranean Sea and the blue of the sky on the horizon. As such, it immediately and naturally becom...

Father and son's ineptitude leads to a magical beach and sandbar discovery in the Bahamas. In the clearest of Bahamian waters, my son slows the boat and trims up the motor. The bow meets the white sand with the slightest resistance and we come to a gentle stop. Our eyes scan the perfect crescent of beach, the adjacent glistening sandbar and we cong...

A catamaran with captain to indulge in the U.S. Virgin Islands The main sail and jib are up. The drizzle ceases, blue sky appears and the sun peeks out. We catch a northeast wind and immediately start whipping across the Caribbean Sea at nine-and-a-half knots. It's as if all the stars have aligned and captain Dunbar St. Cyr, flashing his brilliant ...

Playing with monkeys in Honduras is a highlight excursion during a Western Caribbean cruise on the Norwegian Getaway. As the saying goes, he's a cheeky monkey. Poncha, a white-faced Capuchin, is flitting between my wife and I and our 14-year-old daughter, wrapping his tail around our necks as he perches on our shoulders and stares longingly into ou...