By now you know that I am a HUGE fan of cruising but frankly my experience has been limited to the shores of the United States and the Caribbean and we're sailing in mostly warm waters and tropical breezes. However there is a whole other world of cruising that I haven't yet been able to explore but can’t wait to do so at some point in the future - Once in a Lifetime Adventures.

Most of you probably remember Jewel from the mid/late 90s - yeah, that’s Alaskan folk singer-songwriter and many of you probably even still are aware of her for some of her later music but what I didn't realize until this week was how utterly amazing she is in concert. Jewel is a true artist and that means you are going to see and hear things you weren't expecting such as yodeling, opera, and requests by the audience that were so obscure (even to her) that she had to flip through a book the size of an encyclopedia to get the lyrics.

Picking a hotel in Europe is tough for many Americans because the landscape is dominated by smaller boutique hotels instead of the mega chain brands you are all familiar with and frankly not everything is up to the same standards that most Americans expect. However, there are some absolute gems to be found if you do your research, suck as the Marble Arch Hotel by Montcalm.

Hawaiian Airlines has been flying to Hawaii for 85 years this year and so who better to talk with to get insight into what and why should you plan your next mancation to these sun drenched and wave swept islands! From Luaus to surfing there are plenty of things to do but there's a lot more to it than that. Kaipo Kauka, a flight attendant from Hawaiian Airlines took the time to answer some of our questions.

He was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii and has been a flight attendant with Hawaiian Airlines for nearly seven years. When he’s not flying, he enjoys surfing, DJ-ing at parties, and spending time with his girlfriend and two kids.

Holy Cow! Christmas is just around the corner but instead of shopping for the same old crap from a mass retailer, why not take a trip to London and explore some amazing shops stocked to the rafters with awesome gift ideas for guys. Heck - this would make a great excuse to stock up on some swag for yourself too!

Let's face it - air travel sucks these days. That's true on all the major carriers. They are forced to offer prices at ridiculously low rates compared to costs and as a result have engineered the most complicated system of boarding the aircraft possible, a convoluted system of redeeming air miles that almost makes you question your loyalty, baggage policies and fees that defy logic, and seats jammed together so tightly that they must have a relationship with a knee surgeon.  Frankly, that stress makes it way into the psyche of the staff who have to deal with frustrated customers on a daily basis.

American Airlines is no different. If you look at my Twitter stream over the past month you'll see that they have caused significant levels of stress due to canceled flights, extended delays due to mechanical problems, and overcrowded flights etc. but overall the one reason I continue flying with them is that their staff tend to always go above and beyond what is asked to make things just a bit better.

Washington DC is a special town - it's where I grew up and later after I returned, it's where I met my wife. The city has no shortage of awesome hotels, expensive hotels, cheap hotels, and hotels that are just "good enough". One thing though that I always love is checking into a W Hotel. They aren't always the biggest rooms or the fanciest rooms but Starwood Hotels has always done something special with these properties to make them hip, fun, and welcoming when you enter the door. That's absolutely true for the W Hotel Washington DC as well. What's interesting here is how Starwood has taken a nearly 100 year old hotel (opened in 1918 as Hotel Washington) and added ultra modern styling to it in a way that works well.

I had the chance to visit here as part of the Dodge Charger press trip but I can't wait to come back again for a longer stay!

A few weeks ago at the San Diego Travel Festival, I had the opportunity to meet a bunch of great people, but one person in particular stood out for his awesome tales of adventure, entrepreneurism, and frankly he's just a cool fellow blogger. Allan Karl - better known as WorldRider set off on a journey around the world... inspired by Marco Polo, Ferdinand Magellan and Phileas Fogg but he did so on the back of his motorcycle - a single cylinder BMW F650GS Dakar.

In a market that is nearly saturated but at the same time working feverishly to expand its reach, the cruise lines are in a fight to find a way to fill their ships and bring in new cruisers. While other lines are building ever bigger boats with features unheard of at sea, Carnival decided to focus on entertainment and creating once-in-a-lifetime experiences that are surprisingly affordable. Earlier this month we had the opportunity to spend a week on the brand new Carnival Breeze and experience it for ourselves.

Unlike "themed cruises" the band isn't actually on the ship during the voyage, so that means that you can still have a "normal" cruise experience but on concert night things turn up a notch. On this cruise, we started in Miami followed by stops in Ocho Rios, Jamaica, Georgetown, Grand Cayman, and then during our stop at Cozumel, Mexico the band loaded their equipment on the ship and we stayed in port till about 1 a.m.

When planning a mancation, most guys think that all they have to do is to pick a location and time to go there. But you can transform an ordinary mancation or guys weekend into a perfect vacation with the guys by spending a little time thinking, planning, and preparing for the adventure.

When met with the proposition of an all-male vacation, most guys go to Las Vegas, or maybe Cooperstown, New York for a visit to the baseball hall of fame. Me? When met with the idea that me and my three best friends from college could get away from our daily lives for five days, we decided to explore our own backyard here in Oklahoma. While we don't live in what anyone would mistake for a tourist hotbed, there are indeed some pretty awesome things to do in our neck of the woods. So, after kicking around a few ideas, we decided to maximize our time and get the most out of our money by loading up the car, and hitting the open road right here in our home state.  What we did next was actually some of the best vacationing I've ever been a part of.

Dreaming of a Caribbean cruise but don't want to be bothered having to step around the "regular people" littered across the deck of a cruise ship? Maybe it's time to check out a private yacht rental such as the Ohana - the "star" of Bravo's reality TV series "Below Deck"!

The economy might suck for some but if you want to live like a rockstar then times have never been better! Check out this amazing suite at the Hilton Bentley in Miami's South Beach neighborhood that goes for between $2,700- $7500/ night!

Summer is over but that doesn't mean your dreams of escaping the hustle and bustle of the city for the wide open range has passed you by. Thanks to the Dude Ranchers' Association we have five reasons why the fall is a great time to plan a dude ranch mancation!

Extreme experiences like these we found, allow you to escape from your daily grind and be something awesome - even for just a few days.

They are also perfect as a father's day or birthday gift and of course - any of these would make an incredible bachelor party idea too!

Don't worry if you drive a minivan to work and you sip your light beer during the week, every so often it's time to take that next step and grab the wheel of something bad ass that you can brag to your friends about. That's what this list is all about!

Are you ready?

If you aren't familiar with Carmel California, I bet you are familiar with it's cousins of Pebble Beach and Monterey. Don't worry though, there's a lot to offer in Carmel itself including a great beach, great food, unparalleled driving experiences in Big Sur, sports, and of course it is one of the most dog friendly cities in America. Oh yeah and many celebrities call Carmel home so don't be surprised if you see them walking around town including Brad Pitt and former mayor of Carmel, Clint Eastwood. 

Last month, Heather and I set forth to escape the summer heat in San Diego and head north to Carmel-by-the-Sea, located just south of San Francisco. Our host on this trip was the absolutely beautiful Carmel Country Inn, a bed and breakfast that offered us a 2 bedroom suite.

You've been to beer fests and wine festivals but there aren't that many spirits festivals that are open to the public unfortunately. If you are a fan of spirits and craft cocktails it seems that you're passion is best explored at a bar buying expensive cocktails and new liquors only to find out that you made an expensive mistake and are forced to either finish or let it go to waste.

The San Diego Spirits Festival on the other hand offers new as well as seasoned fans a chance to explore spirits brand new to the market as well as celebrate with friends over tasters of familiar friends like Don Julio, Stoli, and Woodford Reserve. 

Who said that taking a cruise is the only way to enjoy the coastline of Alaska? For the ultimate adventure, we highly recommend looking into an Alaskan salmon fishing expedition!

From rustic camping to luxury lodges there is something for almost every budget in Alaska. One of the most popular lodges is the Waterfall Resort, which was original founded as a cannery in 1912. Today, that historic cannery has been fully renovated into an all-inclusive resort that has hosted more than 50,000 guests! It is located on Prince of Wales Island, adjacent to the Alaskan Inside Passage, a spot know to generations of native american fishermen.

Of course, if your idea of a fishing adventure is to be able to come back to the lodge and get a massage and five-star dinner there are those options in Alaska too. If that's more your style, check out the Alyeska Resort where amenities include a full spa, business center, even a sushi bar!

Typically, the best time to visit Alaska for a fishing adventure is May through October, but different types of salmon have different peaks throughout that time period.

Yellowstone National Park has some of the most awe-inspiring landscape in the entire world. From geysers that shoot water hundreds of feet into the air as well as rainbow hued pools of boiling water and even cold mountain streams that run through lush grasslands where elk, bison, and other animals feed. While there are plenty of lodges such as the grand Yellowstone lodge, to get the full back to nature experience we recommend checking into one of the park's 12 campgrounds. 

Be aware though, we aren't the only ones that think this is a great summer camping idea, so make sure to make reservations early. This is especially true if you are looking to make reservations during the summer.

Of the 12 campgrounds in Yellowstone, 5 are operated by Xanterra Parks and REsorts with 1,700+ sites and take reservations. However the National Park Service operates 7 that are first-come, first-served basis those spots are often filled by 11 a.m., so plan to arrive early to get a good spot!

If lodges are more your style, there are more than 2,000 rooms available in the park as well.