There’s something kind chic about going back to the places you love.

You all know I love planning trips to new places, sure, but I keep ending up in the same handful of spots, year after year… Hilton Head, Vail, SoCal. But before you judge, this mundane idea of travel may be a modern trend. Research shows 1 in 3 Americans return to the same vacation destination annually. Kind of boring? For some yes. But for 30% of us, it’s kind chic. So why keep going back when there’s a whole world left unexplored? For me, it comes down to a few things… and they’re more sentimental than strategic.

Nostalgia and tradition

Growing up, our family of seven took an annual trip to northern Michigan… a self-catering cottage at a resort near a lake. We did this for about ten years straight, and since it was our only real vacation of the year, we counted down to it all summer. I still have vivid memories of those weeks: running around the resort, meeting other kids, getting into harmless trouble, all of us carefree, checking in with the adults only when we were hungry. A week felt like it would last forever. It was the old-school, quintessential American summer trip, and it’s a core memory for me.

Decades later, I find myself wanting to build that same nostalgia for my own family. HHI, Vail, and SoCal have become our modern-day northern Michigan…places that fill our days with laughter and our hearts with the kind of memories that, someday, I hope get passed down to my kids’ own families.

Ease of planning

When you keep returning to the same places, there are fewer unknowns to plan around. When we go to HHI, we already know what we like and don’t when it comes to restaurants, shopping, beaches, and rentals. That makes the whole trip easier to plan – less time spent researching and second-guessing, more time actually relaxing.

Feeling like a local

Go back to a place enough times and you start to feel less like a tourist and more like visiting family. Over the years you learn where the locals actually eat, shop, and spend their time – the tucked-away spots most tourists never find. We don’t live in any of these places full-time, but there’s something fun about seeing familiar faces at our favorite resorts and cafés that makes my heart smile.

You return for a reason

Every one of our repeat destinations has one thing in common: they deliver, trip after trip. We keep going back because we know exactly what we’re going to get- a great vacation, period.

So no, I’m not heading to a new destination in Europe every summer. Some years, going back to our family favorites beats going new….and northern Michigan taught me that a long time before HHI, Vail, or SoCal ever did.

The post Same Time, Next Year: Repeat Vacations Are Kinda Chic appeared first on Bistro Chic.

I’ve traveled enough at this point to know what works for me — and what doesn’t — when it comes to getting through check-in and settling into my seat once I’ve boarded. Here are a few pro travel tips and tricks I’ve picked up along the way, in case they’re useful for you too.

The Clothes: Comfort and Style

Bottoms–  I usually reach for something stretchy or roomy, like Vuori or Athleta pants, or a flowy wide-leg pant. I rarely wear jeans – unless they are stretchy – for flying, especially on long-haul flights…they can feel heavy and constricting after a few hours.

Tops – I like layers…a short-sleeve or sleeveless top with a cashmere zip-up or a fitted athletic jacket with pockets (more on that later). Planes run cold and then hot again, so having something to add or take off matters.

The Shoes

Flat, slip-on shoes are the move. I love my Olukai Huias…I can walk fast or run if my gate suddenly changes (yes, this has happened), and they still feel stylish rather than purely functional.

The Bag

A backpack with a zippered front or side pocket – I love the Away Active backpack …this gives me somewhere easily accessible to keep my ID, phone, AirPods, lip gloss (planes are notoriously dry) and something for a headache, in case one shows up mid-flight.

The Pocket Trick

A zippered pocket in my jacket or pants comes in handy once I’m on the plane …it’s a place to transfer my AirPods and lip gloss, the smaller items I’ll use throughout the flight but don’t want keep reaching for in my bag. This helps to prevent the dreaded AirPod escape. I don’t want AirPods dropping on the (let’s be honest, not-so-clean) plane floor, popping open, and bouncing away. If that’s ever happened to you, you know exactly the feeling I mean.

The Water Bottle

I bring a refillable bottle…a fancy metal one or a simple recyclable plastic one. I keep it empty through security, then fill it before boarding at one of the terminal water stations. It saves money and means I have a drink ready on the plane without waiting.

The Wrap

A wrap or large scarf earns its spot every time. It gets cold on planes, and it doubles as a pillow, a throw blanket in a chilly hotel room, and a cover up for the walk back from dinner in the evening. I’ve written before about how I pick mine, if you want a few recommendations.

None of this is complicated…it’s really just the handful of things I’ve come back to trip after trip, and they’ve made a real difference in how I feel once I land.

For more on how I pack before I even get to the airport, here’s my full carry-on system and the packing cubes and apps I travel with.

Ciao!

Jennifer

Travel Often. Travel well.

The post Frequent Traveler Tips to Navigate the Airport Like a Pro appeared first on Bistro Chic.

Nine years ago my husband and I took the kids to Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party at the Magic Kingdom and it rained for most of it. We stood under ponchos watching the parade and going on wet rides and I remember thinking, oh well, maybe we’ll try again next year. 

Nearly a decade later, my husband and I decided to give the party a second chance, sans kids, and it turns out the party is a very different experience when you’re not walking around in soggy clothes. We had a great time and the experience already makes me want to return again. 

Here’s what I loved about the event: 

1. Decorations to Die For

Disney does theming better than almost anyone, and it shows. Pumpkin displays, harvest garland wound through railings, orange and black wreaths on doors, characters in Halloween costumes – Fall had fallen on the Magic Kingdom. Main Street especially gets the full treatment…it’s the kind of over-the-top fall styling that makes you forget it’s still ninety degrees outside and August.

2. Halloween Treats

I’ve never been impressed by the regular food options at Magic Kingdom. But Halloween is where the kitchens clearly get to have some fun. The devilish chicken sandwich at The Plaza was a solid festive option, but the real star is dessert — pumpkin churros, pumpkin tarts, pumpkin ice cream, plus a rotating cast of spooky cakes, cake pops, and other ghoulish goodies. Treats are their own food group at Disney – when you know, you know. 

3. Spooky Souvenirs

I went in telling myself I didn’t really need a souvenir from Disney. I left with a popcorn bucket, specifically the light-up Headless Horseman one that will now proudly be displayed in my house during October. Beyond the buckets, there were Halloween ears and apparel featuring characters you genuinely don’t see merchandised often, Ichabod Crane among them. Something for every taste and, nearly every budget.

4. Villains Rule

On most days, heroes rules the Magic Kingdom. Not this one. On this day – the Sanderson Sisters, Cruella, Captain Hook, Maleficent – the villains all get their moment. While I love when the good guys win….there’s a different energy, almost mischievous, to the whole park when the bad guys are running the show. 

5. A Legend Comes to Life

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow was one of my favorite spooky stories growing up, right alongside Disney’s own Ichabod and Mr. Toad. So when I found out the Headless Horseman leads off the parade, that settled it — I had to be there. Watching that story gallop past in person, horse and all, was worth the whole trip on its own. The only thing better would have been to see old Ichabod crouching behind a food cart. 

A Few Tips If You’re Going

Get there early. The party technically runs 7pm to midnight, but ticket holders can enter the park as early as 4pm for extra magic time before things officially start.

Skip the early trick-or-treat lines. Grab candy too soon and you’re carrying a melting, sticky bag around the park for hours. We held off until about 10:30pm and the cast members seemed almost eager to unload it on us — multiple handfuls per stop, no rationing in sight.

Leave the Genie app alone. No Lightning Lane needed during the party. We never waited more than twenty-five minutes for a single ride, which, if you’ve done Disney on a regular day, you know is basically unheard of.

Nine years and one very soggy poncho later, I’m glad we gave it a second chance.

The post Five Little Things: What I Loved About Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party (and a Few Tips) appeared first on Bistro Chic.

If you’ve been reading Bistro Chic for a while, you know how much I love all things British — the stone walls, the church bells, the way a village called Bibury looks like someone built it specifically to be photographed. 

What you may not know is that most weeks, my actual connection to Britain happens on my couch, in the form of a cozy mystery or a baking show. 

For anyone new to the genre: a cozy mystery is the gentlest possible murder, if there is such a thing. Death happens in a subtle way – no gruesome photos shown. Instead you get a charming amateur sleuth, a small close-knit town where everyone has a motive and a secret, a bit of romance simmering in the background, and an ending that wraps up nicely enough to still let you sleep. Throw in some quintessential dry British humor and I’m hooked. 

All three of my mystery and baking favorites have new seasons coming this fall, which is really the whole reason for this post. Let’s take a look at the Brit-based shows I’m currently loving and one that is on my shortlist to watch.

Madame Blanc Mysteries

Set in a small French village, this one follows a British antiques dealer who ends up solving murders while running her shop. It’s a British production at heart, so the humor and pacing feel familiar even though the setting is France. I love it for the fun cast of characters, subtle humor and entertaining plots. 

Marlow Murder Club

Three women in the real English town of Marlow team up to solve murders the police can’t crack. The dialogue is dry and clever in that specifically British way, and the setting has that same honey-colored stone and lush landscape-filled charm I fell for in Bibury and Blockley. It’s a cozy watch that still makes you feel like you’re in on something clever.

The Great British Bake Off (or Baking Show, if you’re reading this from the US like me)

A rotating cast of home bakers are put to the test by two well-known British judges who are also chefs, all while being ever-so politely harassed by two hosts with large personalities – what’s not to love? What keeps me coming back isn’t the competition so much as the friendships that are formed over time. The contestants genuinely cheer for and help one another, which in turn, has you cheering for all of them by the end. While I will miss the lovely and sassy Prue Leith, I look forward to seeing what new judge Nigella Lawson brings to the table….or I should say, tent.

The Other Bennet Sister (On My List!!)

I fully admit that I have not yet started this series, but it’s been on my list for months! While not a baking show or cozy mystery, I’ve read nothing but glowing things about this series, including my sister. It follows Mary Bennet, the overlooked, bookish middle sister from Pride and Prejudice, getting her own story after everyone else has married. I think this is exactly what Jane Austen fans have been waiting for. This is going straight to the top of my binge list and is a must watch before the holidays, given fans of the show are now anticipating a three-part Christmas special that continues Mary’s story.

While I prefer to visit Britain in person, for now, I will have to rely on cringey baking humor and a few judgy fictional villagers with questionable alibis to get me by until my next trip across the pond. 

The post A Few Small Things: My British TV Habit appeared first on Bistro Chic.

The trend of spending Sundays slow and low is often associated with the French way of life. The French know how to relax and do things on their own time, all while savoring the love for life. So it makes sense that the practice of the French Sunday is the ultimate way to create space for you and the things that make you happy. This could be spent completely on your own or with those you love. Or, if you’re like me, that’s a little of both.

So how do you practice a French Sunday? 

Don’t set an alarm – Wake up when you want to and allow yourself to linger a little longer in your favorite pajamas as you ponder life….or simply what you’ll have for breakfast.

Let the Light In – Open blinds and windows, even if just a sliver. No matter what season you’re in, it’s good to let a little fresh air and natural light in the house to wake you up and get the stale air out of the house.

Make Coffee an Event – Even before getting ready for the day, take time to prepare your favorite morning coffee or tea in your signature cup and sip it slow as you think about the wonderful day ahead, or think about nothing at all….it’s your day after all. 

Leave the Laundry – As tempting as it may be to fold your clothes or clean your floors, just relax!! The cleaning will be there tomorrow. Better yet, if you plan ahead, you can get those “to-dos” checked off your list on Friday or Saturday, because, everyone knows it’s much easier to relax in a clean house.

Get Back to Nature – Try forest bathing, work in your garden, or pop over to the local farmer’s market. The point is, get outside the house and enjoy Mother Nature.

Create a Wellness Routine – I love a good spa day, but they get expensive. Creating your own spa or wellness routine at home can help you relax your mind while also minding your budget. Light a candle, put on your favorite music, then get started. Try a home facial, take a long hot bubble bath, give yourself a pedicure – whatever makes you feel warm and fuzzy and feeling beautiful is worth it… because you are worth it.

Go Tech Free – I admit, this will be hard. Doomscrolling has become major past time for many of us, and I get why. But giving yourself even 2-3 hours of tech-free time can improve your mood and reduce your stress, not to mention it gives you more time to do everything else.

Take a Nap – Napping doesn’t have to be a luxury reserved for the rich or retirees. Having a proper nap on a Sunday is such an underrated way to recharge and reset before Monday hits. Grab a blanket, a pillow and set yourself up on your favorite couch or lounge chair. Just be sure your nap is earlier in the day to avoid being wide awake at bedtime. 

Try Something New – Whether it’s that book you’ve been meaning to read, a new exhibit at a local museum, a yoga class, or an online tutorial on latte art – now is the time to broaden your mind, your skills and your cultural awareness. 

Savor a Meal – Spend a little time in advance prepping your favorite meal or a new recipe you’ve been wanting to try. Embrace the process of creating your meal from scratch, then set the table with your best dinnerware and allow yourself to take extra long to enjoy your creation.

These are just a few ways to live like the French and create a Sunday full of your favorite things. No need to do all of these in one day either – you can spread these ideas over several Sundays and add new ideas as you go.  And if Sunday is not your traditional day off, no worries. This practice can be applied anytime you have a full day or even a few consecutive hours at your disposal. 

Enjoy!

Jennifer

Travel Often, Travel Well

The post The Art of the French Sunday appeared first on Bistro Chic.

I almost always have a trip on the calendar. Scratch that. I usually have multiple trips on the calendar – two or three short ones stacked across the year, each running three or four days, none of them taking a full week of vacation. Excessive? Perhaps. Fun? Absolutely!

I know this isn’t how everyone travels, and I recognize why. A single big trip feels like the reward, you save up the days, the money, and you go big or stay home. But if you’re working with the standard two weeks of PTO most of us get in the U.S., I’d argue you can get more out of those ten days by breaking them up than by spending them all at once.

Here’s why. 

Vacation Maxxing Adds Up

Vacation or PTO maxxing – not to be confused with trip stacking – is the practice of pairing your PTO days with a federal holiday, where you can strategically (or magically) turn one day off into a four-day trip. Memorial Day or Labor Day: take the Friday before, and voila, a two-day weekend becomes four. Thanksgiving: take the Wednesday, and you’ve got Thursday through Sunday for one PTO day. You get the idea.

This isn’t simply “girl math” either. It’s a realistic way to turn ten vacation days into three or four separate trips instead of one seven-day one. Same vacation balance, more trips on the calendar.

The Cost Spreads Out

One large trip usually means one large charge….flights, hotel, all of it, hitting your budget in a single month. Four smaller trips spread that same total spend (or less, since shorter trips are naturally cheaper) across the year instead of concentrating it. It’s easier to plan for $600 in September and $600 in November than $2,400 all at once in July.

Less Planning, More Focus

A four-day trip forces a shortlist. You pick the two restaurants you actually want, the one museum, the neighborhood you want to wander, and you skip the rest without guilt, because you were never trying to do everything in the first place. A week-long trip tempts you into overbuilding the itinerary, and then you spend the actual vacation trying to keep up with it. I know, I’ve been on that vacation a few times

This is also where repeat destinations shine. If you’ve got a place you love to return to – for me, that’s often Hilton Head, Vail or SoCal – a short trip means you go straight to your favorites which nearly guarantees a good time.

The Happiness Doesn’t Last as Long as You’d Think, and There’s Proof

Here’s where it gets interesting. Vacation researchers have looked pretty closely at how long the good feelings from a trip last, and the results are not great for long vacations. A study in the Journal of Happiness Studies found that the boost to health and well-being from a vacation had essentially disappeared by the first day back at work, regardless of how long the trip was. A separate study tracking Dutch travelers over eight years found that the frequency of vacationing, not the length of any single trip, predicts higher life satisfaction and lower negative mood over time.

There’s also a 2025 review in the journal Cureus making the case that frequent short vacations sustain well-being and energy better than one long annual break, partly because regular breaks interrupt stress before it builds back up, rather than trying to undo months of it in one week. 

This does not mean you won’t enjoy a long vacation. It means the happiness payoff of vacationing seems to reset fast, so spacing trips out may get you more total “good mood” days per year than banking them all in one week. Let’s face it, we could all use more of those days.

Anticipation is the Motivation

This part isn’t just research to me, it’s basically my whole personality. I like having something booked. Researchers who study savoring and anticipation have argued that looking forward to a trip is a source of sustained happiness, sometimes longer-lasting than the trip itself. More trips on the calendar means more windows of “I get to look forward to this” throughout the year, instead of one long stretch of anticipation followed by eleven months of longing.

The Return Is Easier, Too

When I take a full week off, I come back to a week’s worth of backed-up work, and I’ll admit I spend a good portion of the trip thinking about it. A short trip doesn’t let work pile up nearly as much, and there’s less of that nagging feeling that everyone else kept moving without you (you know I’m out of office, why are you sending me emails!). That translates pretty directly into a shorter, milder version of the post-vacation fog…less catch-up and less of the Sunday scaries leading into your first Monday back that undoes half the relaxation you just paid for.

When a Longer Trip May be Better

Short trips don’t always work out – here are those instances where a longer trip may be better.

• More trips can mean more flights, and flights are getting more expensive each year. If your quick getaways all require air travel, the math from the “cost spreads out” section can backfire. This works best when at least some of your short trips are drivable.

• You will not see everything. A three-day trip to a city with a long list means you’re choosing, not completing. If you’re the type who wants to fully “do” a destination in one visit, mini-trips will leave you disappointed.

• Distance has to make sense. A long-haul trip like Europe usually takes a full day each way in transit. Spend two of your four days getting there and back, and you’re minibreak just became a very expensive layover, not a vacation. This approach works best for destinations within a few hours of home, and long-haul trips are best saved for when you actually have the week.

— Travel Often, Travel Well —

Jennifer

The post Why Minibreaks May Be Better Than One Long Vacation appeared first on Bistro Chic.

First Impressions

The road into Palmetto Dunes is one of those drives that makes you loosen your grip on the steering wheel a little. Winding, quiet, Spanish moss dripping off the trees on both sides…by the time we pulled up to the Omni Hilton Head Oceanfront Resort, I’d already decided I liked it, and we hadn’t even parked yet.

That’s the thing about this property. It doesn’t try hard. Palm trees, wooden walkways, water features trickling near the lobby….it’s a low-key beach vibe that somehow reads as both high-end and completely unfussy, which is a harder trick to pull off than it sounds. Onsite parking was close and easy (a small thing, but with a car full of tired travelers, not a small thing at all), and the running and biking paths throughout the area are a huge benefit for active travelers like me.

The Room

The resort splits into two towers, North and South, facing each other across the lobby. Both are open-air at the exits, which does something clever: you get that breezy, salt-air feeling the second you step outside, but you’re still covered walking to your room, so nobody’s getting rained on hauling a suitcase. 

We stayed in the North Tower in one of the all-suite rooms with two comfortable queen beds, a loveseat, and a lanai and a partial view of the ocean. The bathroom area had two two sinks — one in the actual bathroom, one outside it with its own little getting-ready station, real pump soap instead of those sad hotel bar soaps — plus a mini kitchen with a fridge, microwave, and its own sink, and a small island with extra seating. Coffee and complimentary water were already in the room when we arrived.

Here’s the detail that actually matters for a family doing multiple beach showers a day: there were enough towels for ALL of us. I know that sounds like a small detail, but anyone who’s rationed hotel towels for four people mid-vacation knows exactly what I mean.

And then there were the luggage racks — two of them. This was my husband’s favorite small detail about the room and here’s why. We’ve both packed for enough trips to know exactly what earns a spot in the suitcase and what should have stayed home, and having somewhere to actually put it all made unpacking feel less like a chore and more like settling in.

Where We Ate

The property has a real spread of dining options….a fine dining restaurant, a sports-style bar, two outdoor tiki bars, and a marketplace with a full-service coffee shop for something quick. We ended up at the pool for lunch more than once, and my chicken sandwich earned a repeat order. The tiki bar drinks were dangerously smooth and easy to keep ordering — vacation-standard, exactly what you want poolside and nothing you need to think too hard about.

Breakfast at HH Prime, though, was the real standout. A proper buffet, hot and cold options, drinks included, filling enough that we really didn’t need much until dinner. 

The Fun Part

The beach itself is the headline: wide, clean, two access points right behind the pools, and at low tide you can actually bike along it. There are beach chairs to rent from the resort or from a third-party vendor on the sand — more on those chairs in a minute, because I have thoughts.

Two pools, adult and kids, both with chair-side food and drink service, and we never once fought for a spot. Some of the loungers are tucked away from the main crowd, which gave the whole thing a quieter, more exclusive feel without anyone charging extra for it. Beyond the pools, there’s a genuinely nice array of outdoor lounge areas — Adirondack chairs, fire pits, a giant chess board, cornhole — plus bike and beach equipment rentals, a beachwear shop, and a separate marketplace for gifts and souvenirs. The complimentary shuttle to Palmetto Dunes and Shelter Cove can be an easy way to see more of the island without moving the car. 

There is a spa onsite, although we did not use it during our stay. There is a decent gym, although the machines have clearly seen some use, which makes walking, running or biking on the pathways that much better. 

The Little Things

The Little Things…this is where a resort either earns my recommendation or does not, and the Omni mostly does. Live music was everywhere… a DJ by the pool one afternoon, an acoustic guitar player working through fan favorites the next, but a gently enforced quiet hour meant we never dealt with anyone else’s after-hours party interrupting our sleep.

Fresh fruit-infused water, tea, and apples were out in the lobby daily. Frozen fruit made the rounds poolside at random, welcome moments. Friday brought a chef-inspired tasting — two small bites and two drinks, one with alcohol and one without — that felt like a genuine perk rather than an upsell, and one I don’t think they advertise nearly enough. Finally, as Omni Icon members (the highest membership tier), we had fruit and wine waiting in the room at check-in, and housekeeping came through twice a day. 

The Fine Print

Service at the pool and bars was excellent, and the breakfast staff in particular deserves a mention — genuinely warm, on top of everything.

The miss: as Icon members, one perk includes early check-in as early as 9am, based on availability. We messaged the hotel the day before multiple times to confirm a noon arrival but our room wasn’t ready until after 2pm. Not a dealbreaker, but a gap between what we expected and what’s delivered, and worth knowing going in so you can plan a pool day instead of a room day. Also, those rentable beach chairs are old-school wood, and they are not comfortable. If comfort matters to you more than nostalgia, you may want to bring your own chairs (if you can).

One practical note for anyone staying multiple days: there’s only one pool towel station, and it sits at the edge of the kids’ pool — a genuine trek if you’re set up at the adult pool on the opposite end. Small thing, but the kind of small thing that’s nice to know before you’re standing there dripping.

My Tips

Sign up for Omni Select Guest before you go — it’s free, and even new members get a welcome drink at check-in. Ask for a high floor and request a view if one’s available. And if you land on a top floor, skip the elevator and take the stairs down to the beach — the ocean view along the way is worth the extra flight.

Would I Go Back?

Without hesitating. This is a resort that manages to feel like a genuine escape and a place you could actually live in for a few days — comfortable, unpretentious, well-run in nearly every way that counts. It’s not the boutique kind of luxury I fell for in Sorrento or in Barcelona’s Hotel Neri….it’s something else, a big, breezy, family-first kind of high-end. If you want beachfront resort with a kind of low-key polish that doesn’t ask you to dress the part, the Omni on HHI is for you.

The post In Review – The Omni Hilton Head Oceanfront Resort: Why I’d Book It Again  appeared first on Bistro Chic.

I’ve been home from Italy for a few weeks now, and I can feel the melancholy slipping into my day to day. You know the feeling: for the first few days back you’re still floating around on Sorrento time, telling anyone who will listen about your adventures. And then somewhere around week two your overloaded inbox takes over and the Amalfi Coast glow fades until it just disappears. 

And I’m not just being dramatic (ok, maybe a little). There’s actual research showing that whatever happiness boost a vacation gives you tends to fade within about a week of getting back to your routine, no matter how long you were gone or how far you flew. How sad is that?

But let’s not dwell on the sadness. If Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast taught me anything, it’s that La Dolce Vita isn’t something you experience two weeks out of the year and then long for the other fifty weeks. It’s a mindset and handful of habits that you can build in to your daily life. 

So, here’s what I’m stealing to create that La Dolce Vita feeling right at home.

Take the walk.

Every night in Sorrento, right around sunset, the whole town would pour out onto the streets: couples, grandparents, teenagers, everybody just… walking. No destination, no agenda, just the passeggiata. I wrote about falling in love with this ritual a couple years ago, and my husband and I still take a walk on most nights before or after dinner. It’s not the same as the stone streets of Positano. But it’s free, it takes fifteen minutes, and it works every single time.

Make the pasta.

Remember the boat day out of Sorrento? Our captain took us to a beach in Nerano for spaghetti alla Nerano, the zucchini pasta that a woman invented on that exact stretch of sand in 1952. But it doesn’t have to be a decades old recipe to put you in the right mindset…making even a simple pasta dish with fresh ingredients will do the trick. Even better, try your hand at making your own pasta, it’s really not as hard as you would think. Then….pour some wine, throw on an Italian playlist that will surely include Volare, and turn a random Tuesday into something worth remembering.

Let there be lemons.

The Amalfi Coast does not do subtle when it comes to lemons, so why not embrace the lemon love? Put a bowl of lemons on the counter. Zest one into everything you cook this week. Light a citrus candle. This sounds like a small, silly thing, but smell is apparently the fastest route we have to memory, more direct than sight or sound, because it skips straight to the emotional part of the brain instead of the analytical part. A few minutes of breathing in the lemons and you’ll be back on the balcony if only in your mind.

Wear the souvenir.

If you came home with a gorgeous scarf or a pair of handmade Italian sandals, or anything else somebody actually made for you while you stood there and watched, wear it. A souvenir sitting in a drawer is just clutter with a nice backstory. One you actually put on your feet becomes a built-in excuse to tell someone about the trip all over again.

Give yourself an aperitivo hour.

Before dinner in Italy, there’s always this pause: a small drink, something salty on the side, and no rush toward the meal. You don’t need to be on Capri for this. Pour something prosecco around six, put out a little cheese or a bowl of olives and nuts, and give yourself fifteen minutes before you start cooking or answering that one last email. Think of it as a lovely transition between work-you and home-you.

Slow the whole meal down.

In Italy, dinner is the event, not a box to check before mindlessly scrolling Instagram in bed. Multiple courses, nobody rushes, conversations that run long past dessert and limoncello. You don’t need to cook three courses on a Monday when you can barely hold it together after along day at work. But you can pick one night a week to stretch dinner past the usual twenty minutes. Set the table like you mean it – buy the flowers, use real napkins, bring out the good china. Leave your phone in the other room and Voila! 

I fully recognize that none of this is Sorrento. And I think we can all agree that we’d much rather be in the far off places we long for. Nothing replaces the real boat, the real cliffs, the real lemon groves, or the actual Italian family making you a decades old pasta on the beach. But what you can do is borrow a little of the mindset now, keep the anticipation alive, and let it carry you to your next trip and your next adventure. 

Ciao,

Jennifer

The post How to Savor Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast at Home appeared first on Bistro Chic.

I’m not much of a souvenir shopper. But when something does come home with me, it has to earn its spot in my suitcase: it must be …usable, match my style and made locally when possible.

Sorrento, Positano, Amalfi, and Capri will happily sell you every trinket imaginable. Soaps, candies, candles, the cobblestone streets are lined with shop after shop of pretty, mass-produced things. Fun to browse, easy to forget.

But keep walking past the window displays, and if you look up from your phone for a moment, you’ll find the real treasure: a tiny, unassuming shop (like Safari in Positano) where artisans are making custom sandals, right there in front of you.

Here’s the thing about a custom sandal shop: it is not for the indecisive. The choices start with your footbed (flat, a slight heel, a low wedge, take your pick) and just keep going from there. Next comes the strap style, anywhere from a lace-up gladiator to a delicate flip-flop silhouette. Then you choose your leather color, and if you’re feeling fancy, an embellishment like a jeweled accent. The combinations are nearly endless, which is half the fun.

And if all that decision-making sounds like it could eat your whole afternoon, don’t worry, the making itself moves fast. My daughter and I (who bought the sandals 11 years apart at the same shop!) actually spent more time debating our styles than the shoemakers spent building them. Start to finish, the whole process took about half an hour. So whether you’re based in Positano for a week or just passing through on a day trip, this is one stop that easily fits into even the tightest itinerary.

The speed in making the sandal doesn’t mean the quality is rushed. The craftsmen I used in both Rome and Positano worked with genuinely good materials, sturdy soles, real leather straps, and the kind of careful fitting that would make Cinderella jealous. I’ve had one pair for eleven years and another for seven. I wear them a handful of times a year, and they still look nearly new. My daughter loves hers as well.

There’s also something special about wearing a pair of shoes that exists nowhere else in the world. Every choice you make is yours alone, so you walk out with a completely bespoke piece that fits your style, your life, and honestly, your feet, perfectly. Be prepared for compliments, too. They make for a great excuse to talk about the trip and why you fell for Italy in the first place.

Best of all, you know exactly what you’re getting. Souvenir shopping abroad can be a guessing game, and it’s not always easy to tell what’s authentically local versus what got shipped in from somewhere else. A custom sandal shop leaves no doubt: it’s handmade in Italy, often by a family that has been doing this for generations, right before your eyes.

It was one of my favorite experiences from the whole trip, made even sweeter because I got to share it with my daughter just before she headed off to university. One small note if you’re shopping for a growing kid or teen: these sandals aren’t cheap, so it’s worth keeping in mind that little feet don’t stay little for long.

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We fell hard for every single part of our Amalfi Coast trip. But if I had to pick a favorite? Easy. It was the day we had our very own yacht.

Here’s how it happened. Friends and family raved about a local tour company called Mamma Mia Sorrento that offered private yacht tours around the Amalfi Coast. So we booked the exact same tour with the exact same company and it turned out to be one of the best decisions of the whole trip.

Eight hours. Private yacht. Just our family of four, the open water, and a captain named Antonio who not only drove and navigated like a pro but shaped the whole day around what we actually wanted to see.

So let me walk you through why this will be a core memory for all of us.

The boat itself was a stunner. A well-kept mini-yacht just over 30 feet, with the perfect amount of room for the four of us. There was a roomy sitting area in the back, a lounge deck up front for soaking in the sun, and a lower deck with extra seating and a little bathroom. And because the Italians understand hospitality on a spiritual level, we were set up with fresh fruit, cold water, beer, soft drinks, and yes, prosecco.

Then came the stuff you simply cannot do from dry land. We drifted right up to a tiny waterfall spilling straight into the sea. We floated into a cave and watched fish swarm to the surface for bits of food.

We swam too…and quite a bit. Antonio kept taking us to these gorgeous swimming spots, adjacent to quiet little beaches that felt like a locals-only secret. He even had pool noodles, which sent my family into full lazy-river mode.

Around midday he pulled up to Maria Grazia, a restaurant sitting right on the beach, where we enjoyed the legendary spaghetti alla Nerano – another recommendation from our captain. Perfectly full and perfectly happy, we hopped back on for round two.

And can we talk about the timing of it all? While Sorrento was baking in that summer heat, we were out on the water with a breeze in our hair. The boat wasn’t just a better view of the coast. It was our escape.

Now, the part that really won me over: the service. The owner, Mario, answered my many questions with patience, then showed up at the marina in person to walk us to the yacht and introduce us to Antonio. And Antonio? What a fantastic guy. Professional but fun, calm but full of personality, and somehow he turned an entire day on the water into the most stress-free afternoon we had all trip.

If the Amalfi Coast is on your list, do yourself a favor and see it from the sea. You won’t regret it.

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