michelle gross

As cities and states across the country start to reopen, many people are eager to make their summer travel plans. In light of the novel coronavirus, things have changed since your last hotel visit. Read on to see a few of the ways hotels are adapting and how your next hotel stay could look a little different.
Set in the quaint town of Charlottesville, Virginia, Quirk Hotel officially opened their doors on March 5th. Two weeks later, on March 23rd, as the novel coronavirus began to take its un...

After months of isolation, self-quarantine, and canceling travel plans, many people are starting to think about vacations again and future trips. The possibility of hitting the road with nothing but open fields and endless trails sounds especially good right about now.

Welcome to the new normal, which, it's important to note, will vary from city to city and hotel to hotel. Here is a look at the new policies being implemented at each major hotel brand to safeguard your stay. Just don't be surprised if you find a face mask on your pillow instead of mints on your next visit.

Shakyo, an ancient form of Buddhist meditation, is used to help cope with everything from grief to aiding depression and anxiety.
It’s hard to imagine that just weeks before we learned of the novel coronavirus reaching our shores here in the U.S., my friend Emily and I were getting ready to take a long anticipated trip to Japan. It was late January, and whispers of coronavirus were in the air, but seemed so distant and far removed from us then. ‘Are you nervous?’ I texted Emily the night befo...

Tuscany, even if you’ve never been there, is one of those places that conjures up images of sweeping valleys and sun drenched countrysides so beautiful they can’t help but take your breath away.
Home of all things prosciutto and parmigiano-reggiano and of course the fabled white truffle, Italy has always served as a beacon of culinary inspiration, which is exactly why it’s a fitting location to end this year’s Top Chef All Star season with a bang.
“Oh my god I was so excited,” Top Chef finali...

The third season of ‘Somebody Feed Phil’ premieres on Netflix this Friday.
Even in a global pandemic, Phil Rosenthal can’t help but put a smile on your face.
“I’ve been doing a lot of these lately and so I thought for every interview I do if I can walk then maybe I won’t be so fat,” Rosenthal said with a smile that belies his witty sense of humor via zoom last week.
As he traverses the streets of his neighborhood in sunny southern California in a white hoodie and a scruffy beard, the creator ...

Since long before the words “social distancing” and “self-isolating” entered our daily lexicon, there’s been something special about checking in to a remote hotel. Whether it’s the adventure of making the trek to a far-flung destination, the serenity attained by going off-the-grid, or the bragging rights that come with staying somewhere inherently exclusive, there are countless reasons why a hard-to-access getaway is worth the effort. These aren’t necessarily places where you would go to isol...

Have you ever stayed at a hotel so glorious you wished you could stay there indefinitely, Royal Tenenbaums style? I know I certainly have. It's hard to resist falling into a deep sleep on crisp ironed linens or lounging in fresh towels and plush robes. Nightly turndown service and room service aren't bad either.

Whether you fancy yourself an aspiring chef, are an apprentice in the kitchen, want to reminisce over travel memories, or simply inspire a post-quarantine vacation, these hotel chef recipes are all worth trying out. Complete the mood by throwing on a travel-themed Zoom background or by giving your space a hotel-inspired refresh. Buon Appetito!

An hour east of San Diego in Southern California's burgeoning Temecula Valley, The Ponte Vineyard Inn is a charming 90-key Spanish-mission style boutique hotel. Set on 300-rolling acres of farmland and vineyards all overlooking the Palomar Mountain Range, Temecula has seen an uptick in visitors over the years, all in search of an affordable and unpretentious wine-infused getaway worthy of rivaling its neighbors to the north.

During this uncertain time, we have learned that people may not be traveling right now, but will be desperate to do so in the future – with gusto. While we’re committed to continue providing you with content that will help you dream about being abroad from the comfort of your own sofa, what about past travel experiences? The trips we once remembered from slideshows or family photo albums that have now become one of a thousand on our iPhone. This is a family trip that you took to the Grand Can...

I’d never never heard the term “comfort wine” before but in a lot of ways that phrase makes a lot of sense. There were a lot of things I’d never heard of pre-global pandemic so like many people, I’m taking the time in quarantine to learn a thing or two, and wine happens to be at the forefront of that list. Simply put, comfort wine is exactly what it sounds like. It’s the bottle of New Zealand Sauv Blanc you turn to on a hot...

A review of the newly opened Sowaka Hotel in Kyoto, Japan

For seventeen generations across a more than 400-year history, the family-owned Stanglwirt hotel in the foothills of the Austrian Alps has served as a cozy respite for in-the-know travelers in search of a low-key luxury getaway, including a fair number of royals and celebrities (from Gwyneth Paltrow to Arnold Schwarzenegger). While the hotel, and its surrounding town of Kitzbühel, may not have the name recognition of Switzerland’s St. Moritz or Gstaad, the remote location within the pine cove...

Virgin Voyages has postponed a preview of its ship, Scarlet Lady, which was scheduled to make its New York City debut later this week.
In a surprising announcement made by the cruise line, a spokesperson for Virgin said:
“In light of the current news headlines, we want to ensure everyone feels it is the right time to celebrate with us. We understand people may want to focus on other things at the moment, so we have made the decision to reschedule our upcoming Showcase Tour stop and events in ...