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8 tips for group travel (save & share this post):

8 tips for group travel (save & share this post):

1. Set clear budgets upfront so everyone knows if this trip is for them. There’s nothing like planning an entire trip based on X amount of people to find out it’s out of someone’s budget & now everyone else is paying more when they ultimately drop out or get to the destination & say they can’t cover something 🥴.

2. Have 1-2 group leaders. Too many people trying to be in charge is never a good idea. Plus everyone isn’t a planner and organization is key when planning a group trip. Leaders can delegate tasks if there’s someone that’s really good at one thing like nightlife activities.

3. Set up a central place where everyone can access the trip plans. I personally love Google Docs for this as it updates automatically. I have a trip itinerary template I use for all my trips.

4. Communication is key. During the planning process make sure everyone’s voice is heard. Either ask everyone to provide a list of things they want to do while in the destination, provide options & vote on them.

5. Pssst…. it’s okay if you don’t do everything on together. Even on a group trip it’s still your trip, you paid to be there. If there’s something you really want to do but no one else does do it alone! I was the only one in our group that scuba dives & the diving in Antalya is amazing, I knew I’d regret not doing it so I skipped one day with the group and went. We all met up for dinner that night & we were all happy with how we spent our day!

6. Flexibility is key! Believe me I’m type A, love itineraries & having a plan but when traveling with a group you have to be flexible. Things come up and if there is a change of plans due to a cancellation or something else out of the groups control when trying to come up with a plan b in a group setting everyone needs to be flexible.

7. Easily split bills with apps like Splitwise that way everyone knows who owes who later when one person grabs the tab.

8. Let’s be honest you can’t travel with every friend you have and that’s okay, some people you just have to be friends with at home only!

What are your tips for planning group trips? Any crazy group trip stories you want to share?

Things to do in Istanbul (save and share this post

Things to do in Istanbul (save and share this post):

1. Visit the various houses of worship like Hagia Sofia, the Blue Mosque. Suleymaniye Camii, Ortakoy Mosque, Chora Church and the Camlica Mosque.

2. Tour palaces like Topkapi Palace, Dolmabahce Palace, Beylerbeyi Palace.

3. Climb the Galata Tower for amazing views of Istanbul. You can even enjoy a meal here at the restaurant on the top floor.

4. Take a cruise of the Bosphorus to see both the European and Asia side of Istanbul.

5. Visit the cities Bazaars, the Grand Bazaar where you can shop your heart out and the Spice Bazaar where you can eat your heart out. Don’t leave without trying a Turkish delight!

6. If you want to go shopping Istiklal is the place to do so. They have a wide range of stores including international chains like Zara.

7. See a Dervish show at Hodjapasha.

8. Walk across the Galata Bridge to see fisherman at work and then walk under it to taste their fresh catches.

9. Take a day trip to the Princes’ Islands.

10. Experience a Turkish Hammam.

11. Explore the neighborhood of Balet, enjoying the colorful building and have some traditional Turkish tea or my favorite Apple Tea.

12. Turkey has some amazing food so go on a food tour or take a cooking class you can find lots on Airbnb Experiences. If you don’t do either just make sure not to leave without having a traditional Turkish breakfast!

I recommend staying at least 5 days in Istanbul but know you could easily spend a week or more exploring the city. Overall I spent 14 days in Turkey and I feel like I only scratched the surface. I cannot wait to visit again. I hope you enjoyed following my journey as much as I enjoyed experiencing it all. What country would you like to see us we explore next?

#turkeytrip #istanbul #hagiasophia

📸: @caparaw also at @naturgen

Hello Istanbul! Did you know Istanbul is a city bu

Hello Istanbul! Did you know Istanbul is a city built on two continents, Asia and Europe? It’s divided by the Bosphorus Strait (you should 100% do a Bosporus day cruise here). SAVE AND SHARE THIS POST!

Istanbul is the largest city in Turkey (and 5th largest in the world) and has a population of over 16 million people. The city is a huge melting pot and you’ll be exploring a modern western city combined with a traditional eastern city.

You can fly direct to Istanbul on Turkish Airlines from NY, LA, Miami, Chicago, Houston, San Francisco, DC, Boston and that’s exactly what I did when I first arrived to Turkey. First business of order

Have you been to Istanbul? If not is it on your list? For those that have been what was your favorite thing to do?

#istanbulturkey #bluemosque #hagiasophia #sevenhills

📸: @caparaw also at @naturgen

Fall is here even if we have to drive a few hours

Fall is here even if we have to drive a few hours away from home to actually experience it! To prepare ourselves for the change in temperature from hot Miami to real Fall we went to @kohls and grabbed some @nike gear.

How fun are these Court sneakers? Perfect for traveling to experience seeing the leaves change. What are your favorite Fall activities?

#sponsored #kohlsfinds #nikesportswear

Would you take a flight for a day trip to see one

Would you take a flight for a day trip to see one site? Well me and @farah_og did just that when we flew from Antalya to Izmir just to see go on a tour of Ephesus. Here’s everything you need to know about visiting the Ephesus Archaeological Site (save and share this post):

1. Ephesus is located in Selcuk which is a district of Izmir, 1 hour from the airport. Our flight from Antalya was $52 on Sun Express and that’s because we bought it 2 days before. It included checked bags and a meal, US airlines could never!

2. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site that averages 1 million tourists annually.

3. Ephesus is an ancient port city and is said to be the most important Greek cities. It was a huge trading center in the Mediterranean region and one of the most advanced ancient cities to ever exist.

4. This first image is of the Celsus Library in Ephesus was actually built as the grave site of Tiberius Julius Celsus Polemaenus who is buried in the crypt below the library. His son Gaius Julius Aquila commissioned it for him. It was the 3rd largest library in the Roman world and one of the few remaining ones in tact.

5. The city had public bathrooms where you’d use the bathroom you know just sitting next to your friends, no privacy at all!

6. There is also the Ephesus Theater where gladiators fought (swipe for me and Farah’s foolish rendition on fight days) and now festivals and performances are held with artists such as Sting, Elton John and Marc Anthony performing.

7. We booked a tour guide to go over the extensive history of the site and highly recommend doing so. I linked our guide in my stories, you can check out my Ephesus Story Highlights for the link.

8. Our tour was at 8:30am so we flew in the night before, slept at @celsushotel (cute boutique hotel) and went straight to the airport after the tour, it was so worth the detour! I wish we had more time to explore Izmir and will def do so on my next trip to Turkey.

Have you been to Ephesus? Have you heard of it before? Do you like visiting ancient ruins? What’s been your favorite city of this Turkey tour so far?

#ephesus #izmirturkey

Things to do in Antalya, Turkey (save and share th

Things to do in Antalya, Turkey (save and share this post):

We spent 3 nights in Antalya and it wasn’t nearly enough time but it’s what we had. Ideally having at least 5 days to explore the area is best.

1. Explore the Old City and go on the cable car for epic views. The old city is gorgeous, rustic and off the water. Honestly you don’t need a tour guide for this you can just roam the streets getting lost at all the turns and have a great time. Be sure to stop at Marco for lunch. We learned the hard way the cable car doesn’t run on Monday’s 😫 so we didn’t get to go up but the pictures of the view we saw online looked amazing.

2. Waterfall Tour: Antalya has lots of waterfalls, some more easily accessible that others. You can combine this on the day you visit the Old City. Duden Falls is in the city in a park, literally right off the road. It’s free to visit and the one in this post. Then there’s Kursunlu Falls and Manavgat Falls.

3. Rent a yacht for the day and sail the Mediterranean Sea. If you missed our video sailing head to my last post to see the amazing time we had. It was 600€ for a private sail including unlimited drinks and lunch! We booked it through our hotels concierge desk.

4. Go diving or snorkeling! The water here is so gorgeous and clear and even if you’ve never been diving before you can do a discovery dive. I dived with @derindivingcenter and was happy with my experience.

5. Have an adventure day going White Water Rafting and Zip-Lining or Canyoning in Koprulu Canyon. They also offer Jeep safari tours here. We didn’t get to do this and I was super bummed but next time for sure!

6. Enjoy a beach day! Antalya is a gorgeous coastal city and there are so many beaches to enjoy, from my research Olympus beach seems to be one of the top ones.

What activity would you most want to do? If you’ve been to Antalya what would you add to this list?

P.S. Turkey is a Muslim country but it’s not a very conservative one. You will see women covered up but you’ll also see a lot of women wearing clothes that show skin. This is okay in the country unless you’re going into a mosque, then you’ll need to cover up and you may need to wear a headscarf.

Tips for traveling with kids (save and share this

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Hey, I’m Monet!

A full time working woman, wife and mama of two. I use every last one of my vacation days traveling with my kids, hubby, friends or solo. Join me as I share my travel experiences and tips to make travel affordable and easier with the little ones. You can read more about me here.

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