2023 was a big year for me! From moving overseas to traveling around several continents and then finally starting this blog and becoming an independent travel agent. I can’t believe the year is over! Thinking about all I have accomplished this year makes me even more excited for the year to come.

This blog post is going to be a bit more of a personal one than usual, but I’d like to share a recap of how my 2023 went. Hopefully you’ll gain some insight into how the life of a travel agent and a travel blogger works and will inspire you to do the same!

Moving to Curacao

January 14th marks one year since my partner, two dogs, and I moved from Boston to Curacao. We had been researching and planning this move for months. Many late nights were spent filling out paperwork, sending emails, and packing up boxes. We spent the last few months in Massachusetts hanging out with our friends, enjoying the New England fall activities, and playing Magic the Gathering.

I remember feeling exceptionally nervous and excited the morning of our flight to Curacao. We were traveling with our two dogs who were small enough to travel in the cabin with us (thank you United!) and it was their very first time on an airplane. Thankfully, they did really well and acclimated to the tropical climate quickly. For the first time in their lives, they had a fenced in yard to run around in instead of cold walks from the apartment to the dog park. They were happy!

We drove a junky rental car for the first few months while we shopped around for a used car (that was an adventure – I’ll write a blog on it eventually!). Figuring out how to turn on and pay for our utilities in a new country whose primary language isn’t English was another adventure. We slept on a springy convertible sofa in the living room for two months until our shipping container with our furniture arrived. The move was stressful but fun and exciting, and I wouldn’t change a thing!

Exploring the Island

When my partner and I had discussed moving to the Caribbean, a large part of our motivation was being able to live a slower-paced life. In just the year we’ve lived in Curacao, we’ve been able to do just that. Living on an island means foregoing some of the luxuries we would find in the US, like Amazon, Doordash, and Uber. We don’t have a Taco Bell or a Chick-fil-a but we do have tons of barbeque restaurants serving fresh whole grilled foods. At least once a month the electricity seems to go off for hours on the island, and we take the opportunity to soak up the abundant sunshine and read a book until the power comes back on.

There is so much to do on this little island that we find ourselves often torn between doing a new activity or hanging out at the beach. Here’s a little synopsis of the activities we’ve done on the island so far this year:

• Visited Klein Curacao
• Sung karaoke at Shelterrock Paradise
• Took a drive through Shete Boka
• Snorkeled at Blue Bay Beach
• Watched many, many movies (tickets are so cheap here!)
• Participated in our gym’s outdoor sports tournament
• Saw the sun set with our feet in the sand more times than I can count
• Chopped up coconuts from our yard and made coconut milk out of them
• Ate lots of great food

A Week in Bogota

Back in May I had the chance to go to Bogota, my first time ever on the South American continent, joined by my parents. I fell in love with the city! There are two Four Seasons properties in Bogota that I stayed at, which I’ll write a review on the blog about shortly. My initial impression was how vibrant the city and culture was, and the food (especially the ajiaco) was flavorful and comforting.

Travel Conference in Miami

In June I flew to Miami to take part in LE Miami, a well-known annual travel conference, to meet with vendors and expand my network. While there I enjoyed some beach time at Faena’s trendy beach club, and met with a colleague at the Miami Beach EDITION to do a site inspection and finally see the property in person. One of my favorite things to do when in Miami is take a walk along the BeachWalk and take in the ocean breeze while people watching.

A Weekend at Sandals Curacao

Believe it or not, we live about a 15 minutes drive from the new Sandals Curacao. We had been to Sandals South Coast in Jamaica twice before and enjoyed ourselves thoroughly. What I love about all-inclusives as a travel planner is that I don’t have to plan anything. Seriously! I just book it, show up, and play everything by ear. It’s so refreshing to stay somewhere and have nothing to do!

I’ll write a separate post about Sandals Curacao, but very briefly: I loved it. The resort brings an innovative layer of all-inclusive luxury that other resorts on the island don’t compare to. The restaurants and food were great, the main pool was a blast, and the grounds were beautiful. The only thing that I would say is a disadvantage is the lack of a nice beach. There is a small beach on property, but it’s not impressive, and the water sports aren’t as expansive as other Sandals resorts. Stay tuned for a detailed blog post!

A Busy FAM Trip in Paris and Amsterdam

In August, my partner and I flew from Curacao to Amsterdam to start a two-week trip in Europe. I had planned a FAM trip (this is a familiarization trip for travel agents) bouncing around to several luxury hotels in Paris and Amsterdam so it was both work and leisure for me. The trip was a major success, and we got to experience Paris in a new light that made us appreciate the City of Lights even more.

I essentially stayed in 9 different luxury hotels within 10 days, changing hotels every day. There are so many amazing properties in Paris that it would be difficult for me to stay in one place and tour them all during the day – they would all seem like the same hotel to me! Instead, I preferred to stay a night at each hotel to experience first-hand the check-in process, the initial impression walking into the lobby, the staff showing me the room, service levels throughout the day, room service/turn down service, and breakfast in the morning. These are all things that are difficult to experience when you just spend an hour at the hotel touring, in my opinion.

The Start of the Blog

After our big Europe trip, I thought it was finally time for me to start my travel blog. I had it in mind for years that I should be sharing my travel experiences as I always get asked about them, but for many reasons I could never bring myself to do it. When in Amsterdam, I became inspired to name my blog after a fateful encounter with a luxury canal cruise vendor I typically work with who told me about the meaning of his boat’s name, Farahilde. From there, a fire lit under me to plan, design, and research how to create and maintain this travel blog.

Becoming an Independent Travel Agent

Later in the year, tides were turning in my life. I was constantly driven to work on my travel blog and share my experiences while still working with a travel company. While I learned so much from working there and honed my passion and knowledge for luxury travel, it was time to do my own thing. Earlier this month, I became a certified travel advisor with Fora, giving me the independence to run my own travel business with exceptional support.

To be completely honest, this type of change is scary for me. I have always been the type of person to play it safe and do the realistic thing instead of the dream thing. For some reason I have yet to put my finger on, it just felt right this time and I haven’t looked back since.

Wedding Planning in Boston

While I was starting this new independent venture, my partner and I had a long planned trip to Boston in December to take care of wedding planning items. Despite living on a beautiful Caribbean island, we will be getting married in the Berkshires next year. Believe me, it’s difficult to plan a wedding from overseas!

We came to Boston with a comically long list of wedding-related tasks we needed to take care of, such as: seeing the venue in person for the first time, arranging a catering tasting, meeting our wedding planning team, buying a wedding dress, and getting fitted for a tuxedo. I was so hell-bent on getting as much done as possible that I bought my wedding dress off the rack and flew back with it to Curacao because I didn’t want to fly back to the US for multiple fittings. Talk about getting it done!

Christmas on the Island

Directly after returning from Boston, we came back to an island completely transformed for Christmas. We bought our real Christmas tree, went to the Christmas Markets, and joined the Santa Run. Also, we took time to wind down after months of travel and changes and enjoy our first Christmas on the island. Finally, we drank eggnog, cooked a holiday feast for two, and went to the beach on Christmas day.

Blog Accomplishments

I have had a whirlwind of a year, and as it’s coming to an end shortly I look back and feel grateful for everything I was able to experience. I am most proud of the progress I’ve been able to make in the few short months of having this blog. It’s daunting coming into an overcrowded blogspace and comparing my blog to other successful blogs with years of posts and community.

In just two months, I hit my first 1,000 views on the blog. Just last week Jetpack pinged my phone that I hit 50 likes on my blog – that’s huge for me! I’m excited to keep this momentum going. There is so much travel content I have to share and I hope to keep inspiring readers to travel more!

Questions for you

How was your 2023? Are there any standout moments of the year you’d like to share? What are your resolutions for 2024? Let me know in the comments below!