Steve Leland

Have you ever visited a destination time and time again, never getting enough? I’ve been fortunate to travel to some of the most awe inspiring locations of the world, cruised …

If you were asked to name the three U.S. Virgin Islands, St. Thomas would immediately roll off the tip of your tongue, with St. John coming a split second later. …

I’ll admit it. I have a problem. I’ve been involved in a love affair with Italian food for most of my adult life. With the gastronomic trinity of Rome, Florence …

One look at me and you can accurately deduce that I don’t spend a great deal of time in a spa. However, you’ll find it amazing that one of the …

You all know my MO by now.  I’m in a foreign city, hungry and have a hankering for some local food. This time it’s in Athens, Greece. Of course it’s …

You won’t find St. John, USVI on any cruise itinerary and that’s both good and bad. It’s good because you’ll never have to share the island with platoons of cruise …

Starting with a mere 12 vessels participating in the inaugural race in 1980, the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta has quickly grown in stature, with a record 284 boats racing for …

For what seems like an eternity, pandemic related restrictions have reined in the flourishing popularity of cruising and worldwide travel. Regulations may have challenged the possibility of arrivals and departures …

They say that good things come to those who wait and after a year of pandemic patience GREAT things are happening for lovers of ultra-luxury cruising. Starting in July, Seabourn Cruise Line is resuming …

The question of the day; You’re in Mexico and hungry. What’s the one quick bite you think of? It’s a taco of course! As a vicarious foodie follower, you know …

Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The stories of generously flowing champagne, chic hotels and hedonistic nightlife dominate travel headlines about this jetsetting playground in the sun. Perhaps it’s the lure of …

St. Thomas had a deep-rooted seafaring heritage long before I plied its waters.As a cruise director for many years, I visited the small, quaint island every Tuesday. Twenty-five years later, …

Serendipity has provided a new take on the old adage, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. On the US Virgin Island of St. Croix it’s become when life gives …

Would I be alone in sharing that over the past ten months of travel isolation, I’m tired of the ritualistic trip to the supermarket, the daily perusal of Netflix for …

It’s inconceivable how the vibe of two neighboring regions could be more disparate than the tequila-induced debauchery of Cancún and the upscale chic of the Riviera Maya. But there is …

Once a sprawling textile factory before converting into a hybrid museum gallery, shopping, and cafe complex, Fabrica La Aurora is one of the most popular attractions in San Miguel. The …

After nine months of travel lockdown, 2020 hindsight takes on new relevance as we grapple with how things could have been done differently, but then again who could have imagined …

In my 10 years of weekly visits to St. Thomas by cruise ship, it had never entered my mind that a food tour would be an excursion of any consequence.  …

Cruising has always fueled the imagination with dreams of far-flung destinations, and 2020’s unimaginable pause in cruising has amplified those dreams tenfold. It is very likely that we took this …

As friends cried out to me “are you crazy?”, I briefly contemplated that they might be onto something. With a pandemic raging throughout the world, why would anyone take flight …