Rome: Hotel Fortyseven

Our next stop was Rome!  This was my 3rd time in Rome and certainly not my last.  I absolutely love this city, and our hotel was in the perfect location for exploring.

Hotel Fortyseven is the lit up building on the right

We stayed at Hotel Fortyseven which was great!  It was just a short walk to the sights of Rome.  Plus we could easily walk over to Trastevere at night for amazing little restaurants and bars.

Standard Room

The suite that opens up to a private terrace- look at those views!!!

The hotel is really clean and modern, and has really generous room sizes for European standards.

The rooftop restaurant

One of my favorite features of the hotel is the rooftop balcony.  It has amazing views and is the perfect place to relax with a glass of wine after a long day of walking around the city.

Everyone at the hotel is so friendly and anxious to help in any way that they can.  I will definitely keep recommending this hotel to my clients after our wonderful stay here!

Next up- my favorite food finds in Rome!

Secrets Sanctuary Resort in Cap Cana, Dominican Republic

The next resort we stayed at was Secrets Sanctuary Resort in Cap Cana, Dominican Republic.  This resort is located about 15 minutes south of Punta Cana Airport.  It is an adults only resort and all inclusive.

Infinity pool overlooking the ocean

 The Casino

Seating in the bar area where they had live music almost every night

We LOVED our stay at this resort.  There are about 175 rooms and suites at this resort, but it is really spread out so it feels quiet and private.  If you are facing the ocean, there is a private beach on the far right of the resort (pictured below!).  During our whole stay we never saw anyone on this beach!

The water was really clear and beautiful, and really warm.  There were barely any waves, so we really enjoyed swimming.  The main pool has a swim up bar (love those!), there is a casino, and many other activities available.

We spent our first night in a Ocean View Junior Suite which was very nice.  But when asked if we wanted to move to the 3,100 square foot Royalty Villa, we were ecstatic!  Take a peek inside...

Here is the outside

And here is the entrance when you first walk in!  An outside dining area, the all glass living room to the left, and the huge balcony and ocean straight ahead!

This was our balcony...

with steps that went right into the ocean!

This was our view to the left

This was our view to the right

See the glass on the left? That was our bathtub! 

Here is the view from the bathtub from the inside!

Unbelievable right???  They practically had to drag us out of there when it was time to leave!

At least once a week since then, Dave has asked when we can go back there.  Which I find hilarious because I had to majorly talk him into Dominican Republic because he had heard it wasn't very nice.  Happy to say that I quickly changed his mind on that!

Main pool

I highly recommend this resort to couples that want to relax, do some water activities and have great food and drinks.  We didn't leave the resort at all during our stay, but the concierge at the resort can set up all kind of activities or tours for you.  There are some very nice golf courses nearby as well.

Check back tomorrow for an amazing offer to this resort for one lucky couple!

Zoetry Agua in Punta Cana

I recently visited Dominican Republic with my boyfriend and we stayed at Zoetry Agua in Punta Cana and Secrets Sanctuary in Cap Cana.  We had a wonderful stay at both resorts!  I am going to be sharing our trip all week, starting with our stay at Zoetry Agua Resort.

Zoetry Agua is a really unique, special resort.  It is located about an hour north of the airport in Punta Cana.  It is a really peaceful drive to the resort, and the resort's drivers love to share information about their wonderful country.

The resort has just 51 suites, and is located right on the beach.  It feels really private and luxurious, and the service is amazing.  Everyone learns your name right away, and everyone really goes out of their way to make sure you are having a nice stay.

The resort is all inclusive, but goes far beyond what most resorts offer their guests.  The rate includes gourmet food, premium brand drinks, complimentary room service, a 20 minute spa treatment per guest, horseback riding on the beach, complimentary laundry service, and complimentary worldwide calling.

We LOVED the food at the resort!  It is organic, healthy, and most of all, delicious!  There is a lot of seafood, fresh fruits, and local Dominican food.  The deserts and cocktails were incredible as well.  Our favorite restaurant was Indigo which was located right on the beach.

We stayed in a Suite Caribe which was amazingly luxurious.  There was a living room, gorgeous bedroom, a partially outdoor shower, and the best part- a private garden courtyard with our own pool!  There are also rooms with direct access to the hotel's main pool, and suites directly on the beach.

During our stay we relaxed at the pool and beach, went on a few long walks along the beach, went horseback riding on the beach, took a dune buggy tour (we got so muddy!), and enjoyed lots of amazing food and drinks!

We had a truly amazing stay at Zoetry Agua!  All of that being said, the resort is really quiet.  If you are looking for a lot of activities or nightlife, this resort isn't the best fit.  If you want to relax in quiet luxury, then I highly recommend this resort.

Zoetry Agua provides special, complimentary amenities for honeymoon couples.  And all of my clients receive complimentary room upgrades based on availability when you arrive.  For more information about this resort contact Ever After Honeymoons!

See John Legend, The Roots & Joss Stone in Cabo!

On my recent vacation to Cabo San Lucas, I was able to visit the gorgeous resort Capella Pedregal.  I was blown away by the resort- incredible rooms, unbelievable ocean views, and fabulous service, food and drinks.  I will be doing a more detailed post about the resort soon, but for now I wanted to share a special event the resort is having.

John Legend, The Roots, and Joss Stone are going to be performing at the resort the night of December 11th!

The resort is offering a special 3 night concert package which includes:

-3 night resort accommodations in one of their gorgeous rooms
-Full breakfast daily
-2 concert tickets per room
-Welcome cocktail reception on Friday night with Flamenco dancers
-Grand Finale event reception on Sunday night featuring a Traditional Dressage Horse Show

Great beach, poolside cocktails, and a live concert?  So fun right ?!?!

Contact Ever After Honeymoons for more details about this package and rates.

Honeymoon Hotel: Esperanza in Cabo!

Hotel Esperanza is a villa-style hotel four miles away from Cabo San Lucas.

This intimate resort is above private beaches, includes swim-up bars, an infinify pool, ocean kayaks and hammocks. This five star hotel features 50 casita suites, 36 residential villas and six luxury suites. 

Room amenities can be found here.

Breakfast is included daily in the oceanfront restaurant and the resort also includes a full-service salon. Esperanza features four restaurants each with unique dining selections. (And do you see that incredible night view? Talk about a romantic dinner for two!)

The hotel was voted no. 1 Spa in Latin America by Travel and Leisure 2007, no. 2 in Mexico and one of Mexico's Most Romantic Resorts in Destination Weddings and Honeymoons 2007.

Children under the age of 16 have limited access in the hotel, so there is a good chance that children will not be around during your romantic getaway.

On site, or near the hotel you can find bike rentals, a driving range, hiking trails, parasailing, snorkeling, tennis, windsurfing and many other activities, some of which have fees attached.

This resort is not one to overlook as you venture out on your honeymoon.  Contact Ever After Honeymoon if you are interested in rates for your honeymoon!

Riviera Maya

Riviera Maya, Mexico is one of my favorite honeymoon destinations.  Riviera Maya is the area between Cancun and Playa del Carmen.

Here are some of my favorite things about this destination:

-Quick Flight- It is a short flight from almost everywhere in the United States, and flights are pretty inexpensive.  This means less of your time and budget is spent on a long flight, and more is spent at the beach of a gorgeous resort!

-Beautiful Beaches- I will let the pictures do the talking for this one!

-Close to both Cancun and Playa del Carmen- If you want some nightlife or shopping, both Cancun and Playa del Carmen are very close.  I love downtown Playa del Carmen- 5th Avenue is filled with little shops, bars and restaurants, and there are fun bars right down on the beach.

-Incredible Resorts- Whatever type of resort you are looking for, you will find it here.  There are all inclusive resorts ranging in price and size, smaller boutique style resorts, and high end luxury resorts.

-Fun activities- You can do as much or as little as you want.  Most resorts offer complimentary water activities, or you can sign up for tours such as horseback riding, fishing, snorkeling, or a jungle tour.  You can also visit the Mayan Ruins at Chichen Itza.

My favorite resorts in this area are Zoetry Paraiso de la Bonita, The Royal in Playa del Carmen, Excellence Riviera Cancun, El Dorado Maroma, and Banyan Tree Mayakoba.

Contact me for the best rates.

All pictures are my own.

Hotel in 9 by Design

No one does reality television like Bravo.  The Rachel Zoe Project, Kell on Earth, Millionaire Matchmaker and all of the Real Housewives series- anyone with me???  And Bravo nailed it again with 9 By Design which follows Robert and Cortney Novogratz, their 7 (SEVEN!!!) kids and their business Sixx Design.

On last night's season finale they celebrated the opening of Bungalow Hotel in Long Branch, New Jersey that Robert and Cortney designed.  I absolutely loved what they did with the hotel- so hip, unique and fresh.  Here is a peek inside the gorgeous boutique hotel:

Incredible right?  If you are interested in staying here email me for the best rates.

*Photos from Bungalow Hotel