Travel by Stephanie
  • home
  • vegan travel
    • vegan cruises
    • vegan resort vacations
    • vegan @ Walt Disney World
  • plan
    • destination showcase
    • weddings >
      • general information
      • timeline
      • blog
      • AMResorts Weddings
    • all-inclusive resorts
    • cruises
    • international/domestic tours
    • Disney Vacations >
      • Disney Planning Info
      • Disney Cruise Line
    • honeymoons/anniversaries
  • blog
    • IG Blog Links
  • about
    • about me
    • about my services
  • testimonials
  • contact me
  • general FAQs
  • vacation reading

Vacation Reading

My Vacation Reads - A Collaboration of Various Vacations

10/29/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
photo by Joseph Robertson - Reads by the Sea
If you're a bibliophile like me, packing books for vacation can be a daunting task - particularly if you prefer traveling with print books instead of one of those flashy, newfangled e-readers. (I own one, and love it, but don't take it on resort vacations.) I have taken to posting my options online so my book group can help me decide or spreading the books out on the bed and letting my husband voice his opinion on my intended reading material. Weight, size of books, number of books, and content are all things to consider, especially if you're a packing hero traveling with a carry-on only. (This is something I will contend with on our upcoming vacation, and I am already stressed out about it.)

My vacation reading primarily happens while en route to our vacation destination and on the return trip home - my husband and I are not ones to lie on the beach or next to a pool, and I am usually too sleepy on vacation evenings to read before bed. (Although at home I usually read each night before bed!) We prefer to be active, particularly on cruise ships where so many fun activities happen all day, but have recently discovered the bliss of relaxing poolside at an all-inclusive resort.
I have learned lots about the vacation book selection process since my first trip with my husband in July 2008 (our honeymoon on a Royal Caribbean cruise). I packed The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett, which proved a giant (literally) fail on multiple counts. This is one large book, people. It took up quite a bit of space in my bag, and I could have packed two smaller (enjoyable) paperbacks rather than this giant doorstop. It was too big, too heavy, too slow, the content didn't work for me on that particular vacation, and once I finally read the book a couple of years later (gasp!) I didn't enjoy it then either. Lesson learned: start a book before vacation to make sure you're really enjoying it. Lesson learned: don't pack a book that weighs more than all of your shoes, and your spouse's shoes combined.
Picture
Picture
During our December 2012 cruise on the Celebrity Summit, I was quarantined in our stateroom for 24 hours as a result of a stomach bug...thank goodness Celebrity provided me with free movies and I had a copy of Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn on my e-reader. I cried because I felt so terrible that my illness ruined our day of hiking St. Lucia, but at least I had a thriller to keep me entertained for a few hours. Gone Girl was a great vacation read, but I think the other works of this author might just be too dark for a fun-filled vacation. I just finished Sharp Objects, and immediately wanted to watch Sesame Street or some sort of children's sing-a-long program to counteract the effects of literary darkness.
For our November 2013 cruise on Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas, I knew we would be relaxing by the pool quite a bit, so I tossed two library books into my suitcase. I plowed through Where'd You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple (lots of fun) and then started The Hour I First Believed by Wally Lamb (too depressing to read while listening to steel drums). Wally Lamb tells good stories, but after a couple of his books on vacation, I know I won't be packing another one in the future.
Picture
Picture
Picture
Reading at sea is so relaxing...
On our recent visit to an all-inclusive in Riviera Maya, Mexico I packed the first book in the Game of Thrones series, thinking I would become completely engulfed by the fantasy world of George R.R. Martin before beginning the critically-acclaimed HBO television series with my husband. Nope. While the book is incredibly well written, I spent most of that vacation staring at the Caribbean Sea trying to decompress from months of working long hours. This was our first vacation together with substantial time spent relaxing, and I probably would have read much more if I had packed something a tad lighter. I plan on finishing this one at home...eventually. Okay, what I mean is that I plan on watching the tv series soon.
Picture
A Game of Thrones #1 - Secrets Silversands resort, Mexico
My husband reads only occasionally but had his nose buried in a book for most of this vacation, so consider this is an honest-to-goodness endorsement, readers. A couple of years ago, I wrote out a list of books for my husband that I thought he would enjoy, so he has been working his way through both fiction and nonfiction slowly but surely. On this trip, he went completely rogue and packed a book my mom had purchased for him as a Christmas gift - Lone Survivor by Marcus Luttrell. He could not wait to get to the pool to read each morning, and he spent most of our rainy resort day burrowed in the Dreams Riviera Cancun lobby, alternating between beers and coffee drinks from the CoCo Cafe. 
Picture
We loved our balcony at Dreams Riviera Cancun and used it quite a bit once the sun had passed overhead.
Picture
Picture
For those of you who pack print books on vacation, how do you decide what you will take with you? What sorts of books do you like to read on vacation? What are some of your favorite vacation reads? Share your comments below or on the Facebook page, and let's get a discussion going and help bookworms experience literary joy while out and about in the world.
0 Comments

Vacation Reading - July 2014 Iberostar Paraiso Lindo/Iberostar Grand Paraiso Beach

10/16/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
Nook or paperbacks? Nook or paperbacks? Nook! And one paperback, just in case, for the beach!

Selecting books to pack for vacation is my most time-consuming task, and it usually involves quite a bit of time spent on Goodreads and a few consultations with my most trusted of reading friends. Usually, I am the one many seek out for book recommendations, but planning reading material for vacation really sends me into a tizzy. Thankfully, my great reading friend Lisa surprised me with several books for my eReader a couple of days before departure; she really knows my taste and I knew that I would have some great novels in store.

Picture
Picture
Click on the book covers above for details and reviews.
Picture
I have read Chevy Stevens in the past, and her books are usually fun page-turners so I thought I would start this one on the flight to Cancun. It wasn't as good as the first book I read by her, Still Missing, but it made the time pass quickly en route to Mexico. I finished it shortly before landing, and selected The Vacationers as my next read, which proved to be a perfect novel for hanging out on the beach or at the pool. I Am Having So Much Fun Here Without You was smart and well-written; it's a shame so many are writing negative reviews because they didn't care for the main character.
Picture
Iced tea and beach reading - Iberostar Grand Paraiso Beach, Mexico
0 Comments

    Vacation Reading

    Next to travel, reading is my greatest pleasure. When I can combine the two...even better.

    Check out my reading recommendations, curated book lists, and book&travel pairings here. 
     

    Archives

    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2018
    July 2017
    May 2016
    October 2015
    May 2015

    Categories

    All
    Book Lists
    Book Reviews
    Mystery/Thriller
    My Vacation Reads
    On Reading
    Recommendations
    Summer Reading

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • home
  • vegan travel
    • vegan cruises
    • vegan resort vacations
    • vegan @ Walt Disney World
  • plan
    • destination showcase
    • weddings >
      • general information
      • timeline
      • blog
      • AMResorts Weddings
    • all-inclusive resorts
    • cruises
    • international/domestic tours
    • Disney Vacations >
      • Disney Planning Info
      • Disney Cruise Line
    • honeymoons/anniversaries
  • blog
    • IG Blog Links
  • about
    • about me
    • about my services
  • testimonials
  • contact me
  • general FAQs
  • vacation reading