A red-winged blackbird and a green jay eye each other at the National Butterfly Center. Photo credit Barbara Redding

Adventures

A Road Trip Through South Texas: Birds, Butterflies and Beaches

August 11, 2026

Steaks and fine wine pair perfectly at Stillwell's in Hotel Swexan

Inside Hôtel Swexan: Cowboy hats, Afternoon Tea, And Samurai Armor

Entertainment, Food & Drink, Hotels, Luxury

The library at Hotel Emma. Photo courtesy of Hotel Emma

The Best Room in San Antonio’s Hotel Emma May be the Library

Food & Drink, History, Hotels, Luxury

Mimosas welcome guests on a Cirrus Aviation flight to Dallas from Austin.

Private Jet from Austin to Kickoff: A Luxe FIFA World Cup 2026 Experience in Dallas

Entertainment, Food & Drink, Hotels, Luxury, Sports

A Road Trip Through South Texas: Birds, Butterflies and Beaches

Adventures, Family, Nature
by Barbara Redding
A red-winged blackbird and a green jay eye each other at the National Butterfly Center. Photo credit Barbara Redding

For years, I drove through South Texas on my way from Austin to the sandy beaches of South Padre Island. The Lower Rio Grande Valley was just a place to stop for gas.   Then a trip to Mexico changed everything. Watching millions of monarch butterflies clinging to oyamel fir trees in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve made me wonder what natural wonders I’m missing in my own state.   A lot, actually. My South Texas nature road trip took me from the wild reaches...

Read More

Inside Hôtel Swexan: Cowboy hats, Afternoon Tea, And Samurai Armor

Entertainment, Food & Drink, Hotels, Luxury
by Barbara Redding
Steaks and fine wine pair perfectly at Stillwell's in Hotel Swexan

From the outside, Hôtel Swexan could be mistaken for another sleek glass-and-steel tower rising above the streets north of downtown Dallas. But the moment a doorman tipped his bowler hat and opened the door, I knew my stay would be anything but ordinary.   Inside, European sophistication mixes naturally with Texas charm. Fresh flowers spill from oversized arrangements in the lobby, while thoughtful design details reveal themselves at every turn.   Hôtel Swexan’s name reflects its dual heritage, blending “Swiss” and “Texan.” What first seemed...

Read More

The Best Room in San Antonio’s Hotel Emma May be the Library

Food & Drink, History, Hotels, Luxury
by Barbara Redding
The library at Hotel Emma. Photo courtesy of Hotel Emma

Luxury hotels often impress with sleek design and impeccable service. But the moment I walked into Hotel Emma, I realized this hotel at the north end of San Antonio’s River Walk offers something rarer: a sense of place embodied by an extraordinary library. The bones of the 19th-century Pearl Brewery still hum beneath the surface, giving San Antonio’s only Michelin Two-Key hotel a rustic texture and authenticity that new-build luxury hotels can’t replicate. A cathedral-like brick tower beckons visitors inside, where steel beams frame soaring ceilings....

Read More

Private Jet from Austin to Kickoff: A Luxe FIFA World Cup 2026 Experience in Dallas

Entertainment, Food & Drink, Hotels, Luxury, Sports
by Barbara Redding
Mimosas welcome guests on a Cirrus Aviation flight to Dallas from Austin.

  Traveling from Austin to Dallas usually means either a grueling drive on I-35 or a tedious wait in the security lines at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. As someone who often makes the trip to visit family, I know the routine well.   With FIFA World Cup 2026 soccer matches expected to strain transportation in both Texas cities this summer, one luxury package offers Austin soccer fans a much smoother alternative.   Private aviation company Cirrus Aviation and Hôtel Swexan have created the “Runway to Rivalry...

Read More

Amerikalinjen Hotel in Oslo: A Bridge Between Continents

Family, Hotels, Travel
by Barbara Redding
Pedestrian walking the roof of Oslo's National Opera house.

Oslo’s revitalized waterfront shines with modern architectural drama. The National Opera house beckons visitors to stroll across its sloping marble roof. Brooding masterpieces evoke contemplation inside the angular Munch Museum. Electric tour boats glide across the azure water of the Oslofjord.   Yet just steps from the harbor stands a quieter landmark, a century-old building with a tile roof that links Norway and North America.   Thousands of emigrants once began their transatlantic journeys here, departing from the headquarters of the Norwegian America Line. Clutching...

Read More

Monarch Butterflies & Meaningful Travel in Central Mexico

Adventures, Nature, Travel
by Barbara Redding
El Rosario is one of several sanctuaries operated by local people within the Monarch Butterfly Reserve.

Traveling to Morelia to see monarch butterflies overwintering in Mexico’s volcanic mountains was a bucket-list experience. My small-group tour with Troy and Rene of Camiba Cultural Tours introduced me to the work local people are doing to preserve and protect the habitat of these important pollinators.   To learn more about my monarch butterfly experience, please watch my Earth Day podcast on YouTube. I joined Rene and Troy to talk with Big Blend Radio’s Lisa Smith about the importance of meaningful travel that protects nature...

Read More

Morelia and Monarchs: A Journey into Mexico’s Rose-Colored Colonial Heartland

Adventures, History, Nature
by Barbara Redding
Looking up at the twin towers of the Morelia Cathedral.

Mexico’s allure for many visitors begins at the beach where white sand and turquoise water meet. But inland, a different kind of magic unfolds in the country’s Spanish colonial cities.   One colonial beauty often overlooked is Morelia, the capital of Michoacán in north-central Mexico. Built largely of rose-colored Cantera stone, the city of about 750,000 is more visually unified than many colonial cities. That architectural cohesion isn’t boring; it gives the city a sense of refined elegance.   I arrived in Morelia on a small-group...

Read More

Chasing Monarchs to Mexico: Visiting the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve

Adventures, Nature, Stories
by Barbara Redding
Monarch butterflies flood a meadow in mountains of Mexico.

Every autumn, monarch butterflies drift through my backyard in Austin, Texas. Their luminous orange-and-black wings spurred me to trace their migratory trail to the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve in the volcanic mountains of central Mexico.   With two girlfriends, I gazed in awe at millions of butterflies clustering in trees in their winter home in the monarch butterfly reserve.   Our small-group journey with Camiba Cultural Tours paired a monarch encounter with time in the colonial city of Morelia and visits to artisan towns in...

Read More

Thun, Switzerland: Where to Slow Down in Shadow of the Bernese Alps

Adventures, History, Nature
by Barbara Redding
Walkway along the River Aare offers views of the Old City and the church.

A clear blue lake, a towering medieval castle, and creaking covered bridges—set against a ring of snowcapped Alps. That’s Thun, a small Swiss city between Bern and Interlaken, where you can savor slow travel yet remain close to the alpine attractions that draw millions to central Switzerland.   Like many travelers, I assumed touristy Interlaken was the obvious base for exploring the Bernese Alps last spring.   After a closer look at the map, I noticed Thun (pronounced toon), folded into a corner of crescent-shaped...

Read More

Justice and Comedy: A Surprising Dual Legacy in Jamestown, New York

Entertainment, History, Travel
by Barbara Redding

Comedy takes center stage in Jamestown, the small western New York city best known as Lucille Ball’s hometown. Visitors celebrate the legacy of laughter and entertainment at the Lucille Ball–Desi Arnaz Museum and the National Comedy Center.   This city of 28,000 residents in pastoral Chautauqua County also has a serious side that often goes unnoticed.   A new film, Nuremberg, is shining a spotlight on Jamestown and the Robert H. Jackson Center. The center commemorates the respected jurist who served as the chief U.S....

Read More

To receive new posts on Barbararedding.com, please enter your email address.

totop