Letter From The Editor: Special Travels

DO YOU TRAVEL TO CELEBRATE SPECIAL OCCASIONS?

As summer ends and fall approaches, this question comes to mind because September is my birth month. Last year I traveled for my birthday, celebrating in Lviv, Ukraine. As you can see from this month’s photo, I was still able to blow out candles and make a wish, even on a different continent. This year, however, I’ll enjoy the day a little closer to home, opting instead to save my special-occasion travel for the holidays. I'll embark on a river cruise with U bay Uniworld on Dec. 27 and "dash through the Danube" to Christmas markets in Germany, Austria, Slovakia and Hungary, ringing in 2019 along the way. What do you have planned to commemorate any special moments left in 2018 or those upcoming in 2019?

And speaking of cruising, guests and winners set sail with GT at our Leisure Lifestyle Awards event in May; see the highlights from the nautical night in this issue, beginning on page 32. Another special section of this issue starts on page 46. Learn more about whereverfamily.com, one of our sister web publications and the trusted travel source for the modern family. This month marks the one-year anniversary of the web publication, and we are excited to share with you some content from the site as well as announce the winners of the first-ever Wherever Awards. I’d be remiss not to mention our other sister publication, trazeetravel.com, also celebrates an anniversary this month (just like me, ha!), and we’re celebrating with a modern new look for the website, debuting soon.

Perhaps it isn’t a celebration that spurs our travel but rather an event. Such was the case for me last summer when I planned a trip to London to see Adele perform at Wembley Stadium. Alas, the songstress ended up canceling the show — news I found out upon switching my phone back on when I landed — but as you’ll see on page 69, I made use of my time in London to discover a new neighborhood.

We don’t visit just London in this issue but also Bangalore, Kyoto, Santa Fe, Shanghai, Medellín, Scotland, the Tahitian Islands, Greece and Key West. It’s a jam-packed issue — enjoy! Next month, join us for an in-depth look at Jumeirah International and Turkish Airlines.

KIMBERLY KROL, EDITOR IN CHIEF