Summer Savings on Holiday Homes & Vacation Rentals

1. Southern Arizona Day Trips.

2. Most Romantic Green Vacations.

3. Save up to 50% percent off vacation rentals. Sedona, Arizona healthy living vacation rental, $699 the last week of July. St. Augustine, Florida $85 a night in June. Some restrictions may apply.

4. Best place to host your blog or website about your healthy vacation home.

5. Big Green Lies. New TV show exploring common myths about eco-friendly practices such as cloth versus disposable diapers, hybrid versus traditional cars.

This blog is for bottom-up dispensers of cool who enjoy eco-travel deals and healthy living. We feel that "the small, the slow, the local, and the personal" will build the new economy. Your comments will help enrich this information for all of us. Please share your tips and experience.

Snake in the Florida Grass

Guest blogger, Fran Palmeri writes about her recent photography session with a rattlesnake.

“The gentle Ben” of the snake world is how D. Bruce Means characterizes the eastern diamondback rattlesnake. Means is the co-author of Priceless Florida: Natural Ecosystems and Native Species--an essential tome for people who like Florida.

As an ecologist, he’s a worldclass authority on the rattler, the largest venomous snake in North America which sometimes reaches 8 feet in length and weighs 10 pounds and has a lightning swift strike.

I admit to being shaken when I encountered it a few weeks ago. It was the first I’d seen. Declining populations make them a rare find. They fill most people with dread and have been persecuted over centuries. Often to see a snake is to kill it. At “rattlesnake roundups” they are captured, killed and eaten. In parts of New England estern diamondbacks have been extirpated; on other states they’re an endangered species. They’ve become rare even in Florida.

All the naturalists I spoke with agreed the Eastern Diamondback is not an aggressive creature. Western Diamondbacks are often described as more irascible, defensive and stubborn. But don’t go chasing one. Practice field etiquette: never corner an animal, move towards it aggressively, get too close, stare it in the eyes, or make sudden movements.

I was confident I’d be able to take a few pictures without disturbing this rattler. It looked me over and then moved away.

Swine Flu Effects Travel to Vacation Rentals

In recent weeks, most of us have become familiar with the strain of flu found in pigs that has mutated to be able to infect humans. Swine Flu cases have been confirmed in the US, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, the UK, and Spain. For travelers concerned with health, it is a time to be alert and informed, but not to panic or spread fear.

So far, cases elsewhere in the US have been mild. The reported deaths are in Mexico. CDC officials recommend Americans avoid all nonessential travel to Mexico.

Travelers to the US have expressed concerns to me about exposure to the reported outbreaks. Vacation rental guests want to know if Arizona or Florida have reported cases. The answer as of today is "No, none." Arizona health department officials report having a good supply of Tamiflu and other drugs to treat an outbreak.

If you plan to travel to other US states with reported cases of Swine Flu , boost your immune system and take precautions to avoid contracting this illness with these practices:

• Wash your hands often. Dr. Oz said today on Oprah, "Be assertive, speak up about washing hands." Better to be embarrassed about washing up than to get sick.
• Avoid touching your nose, mouth, and eyes.
• Cover your mouth or nose when sneezing or coughing.
• Don't share towels or clothes, and take care in gyms and health clubs not to touch robes, slippers, or towels of other guests.
• On flights, open the air conditioning vent to allow more oxygen to flow near your seat, even if it means you have to put on a sweater. Airlines save money on fuel costs by cutting back oxygen. Breathing the recirculated air from other passengers is not as healthy as breathing the oxygen replenished air from the valve in the ceiling over your seat.
  
  If you have concerns about an upcoming trip:
• Talk with your doctor, natropath, or nurse practitioner
• Talk with the vacation rental owners to get information about outbreaks and health care facilities in their area.
• Check the cancellation policies of you rental as vacation rental policies differ from one to another.
• Do not book a vacation rental unless the owners provide written agreements and cancellation policies. You can check out my vacation rental policies on the EcoLux website.
• If you have already planned a trip into a risk area and want to cancel, I recommend contacting the owners to discuss it even if the cancellation policy does not allow it. Owners may be willing to work something out under these unusual conditions.

Websites for monitoring the progression of swine influenza, http://www.blogger.com/www.travel.state.gov, http://www.cdc.gov/, and http://www.who.int/.

Later this week I will post on health tips for vacationers. Let me know what you do to boost your immune system and protect your health while travelling.

This blog is for bottom-up dispensers of cool who enjoy conscious travel and healthy living--conscious of our spending and our impact on our bodies and the world. We feel that "the small, the slow, the local, and the personal" will build the new economy. Your comments will help enrich this information for all of us. Please share your tips and experience.

Five Tips for Nurturing Trips

Travel practices tested enough to hold up to a deep greenie’s scrutiny and nurturing enough to hold up to a comfort-seeker’s good taste need to go beyond superficial suggestions. For me, they better keep green on the planet and in my wallet.

Travel represents one of the biggest ticket items in your annual spending and also offers the opportunity protect the planet and your loved ones. You vote with your dollars every day—supporting businesses that share your values—and you can do the same on vacation. More than ever before, it is possible to take a green vacation without compromising your lifestyle or your values.

If the idea of green travel gives you greenfatigue, take a vacation that supports your health and the health of the planet without all the guilt and marketing hype. The world of green travel is no longer limited to “eco” safaris, camping, and yurts. There’s an array of options from eco-cheap to deluxe, combining modern amenities and principles for social responsibility. World-class standards now come without the loss of local character and care. And here's how to spot them:

1. Avoid the Bird's Eye View. Take Staycations
2. Look for Truth in Travel
3. Small is the New Big
4. Expect a Sense of Place
5. Get Breathing Room

1. Avoid the Bird’s-Eye View. On a staycation you can drive, take a bus or rail - not fly. One flight can produce as much carbon as an entire year of driving a Toyota Camry. This is one reason many travelers choose to vacation close to home, as opposed to jetting off to exotic destinations.

If you're driving from California, Utah, and Arizona--the Candlewood Bed and Breakfast Retreat in Clarkdale, AZ offers an ideal staycation with it's sweeping views of the Black Mountains and services to pamper--including massage and the opportunity to see, first-hand how going green does not have to compromise your lifestyle. Owners Rennie and Andrea went further than a light green amenities—they show true eco consciousness by protecting the natural landscape with permaculture and operating their meeting and guest rooms completely off the grid. Twenty years of walking their talk in the healing arts and architecture makes them the ideal hosts for a family eco holiday.

Stoneman Lake Lodge in Flagstaff is also completely off the grid and nestled away in a wilderness setting next to the national forest with a lake that draws wildlife for miles. With giant decks and spacious rooms, the lodge offers plenty of privacy. You may feel you have the run of the place yourself. Make sure to ask if the lake has water, some seasons in the desert it can dry up.

One has to look no further than the directory of Small Luxury Hotels or Andrew Harper’s Top Hideaways to find nurturing accommodations going green within driving distance of many major cities. Dr. Michael G. Matthews recently visited Paws Up, a ranch resort in Montana–posh enough to make both SLH and Harper’s lists and concerned about protecting the local economy and environment. “Kyle and I are cowboy types who do rugged, outdoor things but at the same time we're also all about luxury and being spoiled too. Paws Up offered the best of both worlds."

2. Truth in Travel. “Eco” destinations often do more harm to the local economy and environment than the good they do educating us about nature. And many hotels have jumped on the green bandwagon simply by posting signs for guest towel and water use programs. While compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) can cut energy use, they alone do not a green lodging make. Plus the bulbs contain mercury, more of which we don’t need leaching out of landfills into the water supply.

The practices of many companies fall short of the images and claims and ultimately, are more about greenwashing than they are about responsibility. Truth seekers may need to look a little deeper to see what shade of green the travel vendor wears--the almighty dollar or true responsibility.

Ask what makes the lodging green. Responsible accommodations can usually demonstrate five or more ways that they reuse and recycle waste and reduce energy use and consumption. This is often called the “three Rs,” Reuse, Recycle, Reduce. An establishment that is serious about health and responsibility will have written policies, see a good example on my website or use the checklist from the National Geographic Society Office of Sustainable Tourism to pick out what’s important to you.

3. Small Is The New Big. Smaller footprints mean bigger savings, sometimes for you and definitely for Mother Earth. Think boutique hotel instead of a chain. Think vacation home instead of resort. Using the Internet to find an eco-friendly vacation rental turns up private home owners and vacation rental sites, including VRBO and Vacation Rentals 411. HomeAway offers guarantees for the properties listed—protecting renters from disreputable home owners, allowing you to go green with peace of mind.

4. Sense of Place. Deluxe can be predictably cookie-cutter, could-be-anywhere, with corporate furnishings and marble bathrooms. Look for lodging that offers genuine atmosphere without losing its connection to the environment and community— in the post-modern world, luxury goes local.

Los Poblanos Inn, in Albuquerque, New Mexico with its 25 acres of lavender and organic vegetable gardens, ponds, stone walkways, and flawless comforts is just one of many travel companies revising the standards of excellence upwards by including responsible practices.

The policy at Poblanos lists 12 practices demonstrating their commitment to “ecological consciousness,” including hosting a CSA (community supported agriculture). No surprise this destination tops many lists for the best B&B in Albuquerque and took Sunset Magazine’s Best of the West award and is one of my top five places to sleep, other than my own bed.

5. Breathing Room. Go green by staying in healthy homes and hotels that use green cleaning practices, provide RO (reverse osmosis) filtered water, and are designed with natural finishes and furnishings. One of the hottest amenities in hotels is “pure” rooms that are hypoallergenic. But you don’t have to have allergies to benefit. Indoor air is two times more polluted than outdoor air. It lurks in flame retardants in mattresses, upholstery, and electronics, and in carcinogenic and respiratory irritating VOCs (volatile organic compounds). It oozes formaldehyde out of drywall, plywood, and carpeting, and emits phthalates from products including shower curtains. These pollutants can cause nausea and dizziness or harm the liver and kidneys.

Even if you don’t have allergies, avoiding this stuff can only be a good idea. You can sleep soundly knowing the air and bedding is pure at places committed to health environments like Joie de Vivre hotels in California and EcoLuxury Lodging in Florida. Or check listings on the website Smoke Free Hotels.

This blog is for bottom-up dispensers of cool who enjoy eco-travel deals and healthy living. We feel that "the small, the slow, the local, and the personal" will build the new economy. Your comments will help enrich this information for all of us.

Vacation Rental Travel Deals

1/1 Beach front, Delray Beach, FL $799 March 14-21. Email us for details.

Vacation Home Owners: Want to see your rate specials here? We post deals on healthy vacation homes for FREE. Email us the details and we'll include them in the monthly postings OR just add your discount as a comment. Subject to approval, of course. This is a free service we offer our guests and healthy travel fans.

Casita Colibri Special Spring Spa Promo--Free Yoga and Pool, July - Sept 2009. Book by Feb 28 and get two passes to Los Abrigados Spa and Gym. Located on the banks of the OAk Creek, the resort offers daily yoga, pilates, and aerobics classes and has a state-of-the-art weight/workout gym, heated pool and jacuzzi, steamroom, sauna. Spa treatments additional. May not be used in combination with other promotional offers. Use code FEBSPA when making your reservation.

Red Hot Rate Lovers: February Vacation Rental Deals

SEDONA Studio for $250 a week in March! Special, in -own location. No pets, no smoking. Rare opportunity. Email Dana for details.

Win a Free Weekend in Sunny Florida if you quit smoking. Be our guest on the waterfront in St. Augustine, FL just minutes from the beaches and historic district. Win a three day stay if you quit smoking in 2009. Don't smoke? Tell a friend who does and get them to take you on the vacation to celebrate their new health.To enter, just write to Dana about two things: 1. What you plan to do to replace the cigarettes and 2. Why you want to quit. Taxes and cleaning not included, based on availability.

Photo by Fran Palmeri

U.S Eco Travel

When people think of traveling in the United States, images of the Vegas strip, Hollywood glitz, and castles of Disneyland, and NY City come to mind. But there is more to offer than Rodeo Drive and Mickey Mouse and even more ways to save money and the planet while you see authentic America.

Florida – Forget Walt Disney World and all its gaudy glitz and glamour and check out Mother Nature. Florida is rich with crystal-clear springs for swimming and paddling, parks for bird watching, and sub-tropical wilderness to discover on the hiking trails. The “Real Florida” offers charming history in the “Oldest City,” St. Augustine—the oldest European settlement in the US. Forget the fake animals and check out the pink spoonbills, manatees and playful dolphins. Stay in a healthy vacation home like “The Riverview,” centrally located just minutes from all the sites, including parks and the beaches. The owners have a passion for art, community and the environment, a trio of passions that reveal themselves over and over again in this treehouse like two bedroom home set in a nature preserve on the Matanzas River.

Then head south to Palm Beach County where you can skip the bling and enjoy the real Florida at Peanut Island Park in the Lake Worth Lagoon of West Palm Beach. This site covers 86 acres and is accessible only by boat. You can snorkel safely in the lagoon which is teeming with colorful fish. Then pitch a tent on the beach in one of the designated camping spots or stay in an authentic Seminole Indian-style chickee huts.

In the south part of the county, check out the Daggerwing Nature Center in Boca Raton which has a spring break camp for kids. The Nature Center is worth a visit anytime to see the rescued marine life, including endangered sea turtles.

Gamble with Vegas or head for Amazing Arizona. Stoneman Lake Eco Lodge, Arizona is set in five acres of pine woodland next to Stoneman Lake in the Coconino National Forest. The main room of the Lodge, The Great Hall is homey with comfy sofas and an old stone fireplace. The deck outside is the perfect setting for meals looking out over the lake. The lodge uses only solar and wind power for energy and was built using natural materials. Located near Flagstaff and Sedona, it makes an excellent retreat within driving distance of other sites.

Or have a spiritual awakening in the heart of the red rocks at Casita Colibri, Sedona, Arizona where you can walk to trails, vortexes and yoga studios. This healthy home is fragrance and smoke-free and greenovated with no VOC finishes and materials. The interior reflects the owners’ trio of passions for art, the environment and culture with many touches including sun-drenched colors and handmade furnishings.

Grand Canyon by Rail – Tour the southern rim of one of the Seven Wonders of the World by coach. Formed over millions of years by the Colorado River, the Grand Canyon’s beauty and grandeur is impossible to explain so you need to go see it for yourself. The best time for viewing is at dawn or dusk when the hues of the red earth are at their best.

WildSpring Guest Habitat, Oregon – Set in a pristine forest beneath 100ft trees, this small eco-friendly luxurious resort overlooks the southern Oregon coast where you’ll be able to view Californian grey whales from the decking. Enjoy a dip in the open-air spa after a walk through the National Wildlife Federation certified habitat which is packed with historical sites and hiking trails.

Devil’s Thumb Ranch, Colorado saved 5,000 acres from high-density development. 16 cabins with heating and cooling developing only 1 percent of the land leaving the rest wild. 1-800-933-4339.

Discover the Sights by Rail - USA by Rail is a dedicated website for rail travel through the states. It’s a cheap and easy way to travel where you want to go and is kind to the environment too.

Kayaking in Florida

Are you a baby boomer who wants to connect with nature? Nothing beats a glide down the crystal clear waters of the Ichetucknee River located in north-central Florida. Click here to read more.

Our Top Tips of 2008

The top articles on this blog last year (other than the rate specials which get lots of readers)...

Hike West Fork in Sedona

Secret Florida: Laid Back Romance

Guilt and Greenwashing

Top Ten Things Vacation Home Owners (and Managers) Won't Tell You

The Most Read Article was Tips for Avoiding the Pitfalls of Renting a Vacation Home

Dancing With Sandhill Cranes

Photos and commentary by Guest Blogger, Fran Palmeri. Contact at fran palmeri at comcast dot net.

Everyday it’s a different show at the Celerty fields in Sarasota, Florida. The Sarasota Audubon Society is often out in force with spotting scopes and binoculars in hand they spread out across Fields to look for the more rare and elusive species than the dozens of ibis clamoring for attention.

It’s a place of contradictions--on the surface, wild and unspoiled but upon close examination, a disturbed landscape, the soil depleted by more than 100 years of human exploitation. In the 19th century, it was part of Mrs. Potter Palmer’s vast vegetable garden, spreading out over Sarasota and Manatee Counties in southwest Florida. In the 1940s engineers created a farm for the intensive cultivation of celery. In the mid-90s, engineers planned yet another role for this area—storm water management-- and for years, dredged out canals, culverts and retention ponds to create a flood mitigation area.

A surreal Dali-esque landscape of canals filled with Indonesian parrot grass, an invasive that arrived here via the drainage system. Cell towers loom like Martian invaders. Lions roar in the background against the omnipresent whine of traffic--a wildly improbable presence from the nearby Big Cat Sanctuary.

Over 188 different species have been recorded in the Fields to date. Historically, these wetlands are used by migrating flocks of waterfowl. Perhaps it is imprinted into their collective memories as four-star accommodation for migrants.

Twice this week I dropped in for the “early show” which is always a bit of a cliffhanger. Bird watchers perched on the gazebo and photographers along the banks, checking their watches. Will the Sandhills show or won’t they?

As the sun nears the horizon, the first pair of cranes arrive, landing gear down. Wave after wave of these beautiful birds follow--dancing, preening, grooming, jockeying for their favorite spots. About sixty birds arrive over the space of an hour. Then, all is still. No encores or reprises. The birds are all asleep.

The "Ick Factor"

One of the hottest amenities in travel is hypoallergenic rooms. We've been offering them for years to guests with sensitivities, but also to people who don't want to be exposed to whatever bacteria and bugs came with the guy who slept there the night before.

In addition to being super-clean and free of dirt-holding carpeting and upholstered furniture, our self-catering holiday homes and vacation rentals are purified by steam-cleaning the floors and tile at 120 degrees, changing the anti-microbial HEPA air filters, no use of aerosol spray cleaners or fresheners, disinfecting with hydrogen peroxide, sun light and fresh air, and fragrance free cleaning. Mattresses and pillows have dust-mite covers and no VOC paints and finishes keep toxins out of the air. These methods also cut down on dust, pollen and other irritants.

As Practical Traveler, Michelle Higgens wrote in the NY Times, "This much cleanliness is a bit neurotic. But its not enough for hotels seeking health-conscious consumers to just offer organic food..." She also notes that most hotels offering these amenities charge a 5 to 10 percent premium.

Resources for pure vacationing:

Smoke-Free Hotels

Asthma and Allergy Foundation

Indoor Air Quality Association

Canadian Centre for Occupational and Health Safety

Special Offers at Smoke Free Hotels

Vacation Rental Travel Deals ~ Free Stuff, Super Bowl and More

2009 Red Hot Rate Specials for FREE stuff. Going toxin-free, plastic-free, oil-free, and smoke-free can get you rent free, jeep rides, workshops along with good health in 2009 when you enter our health promotions. Subscribe to this blog by email or RSS feed so you don't miss the offers like the ones below for smokers, women and Super Bowl fans.

Give Yourself the Gift of Health and be our guest. Win a 3-Day Weekend Sedona, Arizona or St. Augustine, Florida. If you quit smoking for New Years or plan to quit in 2009, you could stay for free in one of our healthy vacation homes. We're running promotions this year to encourage people to get healthier, starting with a promotion to support those kicking cigs or whatever you smoke.

Don't smoke? Forward this to a friend who does and get them to take you on the vacation when they quit.

To enter, just write to Dana and tell us two things, 1. What you plan to do to replace the cigarettes (chew gum, call your coach, take a walk) and 2. Why you want quit. If you make it smoke-free for 90 days, you can stay for free at the waterfront treehouse or Red Rocks Retreat in Sedona. Taxes and cleaning not included, based on availability. Entries will be posted on the blog, so let us know if you want your name included or not.

When you quit smoking:

• In 20 minutes your blood pressure will improve.


• In 8 hours the toxic gasses drop by half and oxygen levels return to normal.


• In 48 hours your risk of heart attack drops, nicotine will have left your body and your sense of taste and smell returns.


• In 72 hours your broncial tubes relax and your energy will increase.


• In three to nine months you can win a vacation and your coughing and wheezing problems will go away.

The Gift of Shift, FREE for two women. Two scholarships available to the Sedona Women in Transition Retreat, Jan 31-Feb 1. Scholarship not based on need but on willingness to "pay it forward." $899 fee paid by sponsor. Email Dana for details. $25 registration fee required.

Super Bowl Savings! St. Pete, FL vacation home rental, $333 a night. Smoke free, pet free cottage sleeps four. Email dedeskye at msn.com for details. Minimum stay required.

Blue Fire Scrub Jays

By Guest Blogger, Fran Palmeri

Known for their friendly and inquisitive nature and bright blue color, the scrub jay reminds me of fire. At Oscar Scherer State Park, they often “drop in” -I’ll be engrossed photographing a wildflower and a bird will land on my head. But that's not where the fire starts.

The jays risk being picked off by predators like hawks and only feel comfortable nesting in dense thickets of tiny scrub oaks that are only about eight feet tall. They live in cooperative family groups. Posted on top of a tree, one acts as a sentry warning of danger. Young birds help raise new members of the family. Scrub jays eat the small acorns of the oaks and cache them for future use. One bird can bury up to 1,500 acorns a season.

This is where fire comes in. Scrubby oak flatwoods depend on fire to renourish the soil and open the area to sunlight, which promotes new growth of grasses, wildflowers, shrubs --and scrub oaks from the acorns the jays buried. In the days before housing developments and office complexes, lightning did the job, but today land managers must start prescribed burns.

At first, burning horrified me but I learned that in times of fire, animals escape harm by taking shelter in underground burrows or flyomg to safety. When I saw the green explosion of growth in the days and months following a burn, I was convinced fire did more good than harm. No fire, no scrub oaks, no scrub jays.

Real Florida Springs

RAINBOW SPRINGS STATE PARK, Dunnellon, FL

Hot and cold running water. Millions and millions of gallons of it every day. Florida has over 700 springs, more than any other comparable area in the world. Thirty-three of them are first magnitude, which means that each produces more than 65 million gallons of water a day.

Over the ages, people have been drawn to Florida’s springs, mesmerized by the color and clarity of the water. For ten thousand years, they were gathering places for native peoples. When Europeans came, they became playgrounds for the well-to-do. Now they’re popular recreational areas for all of us.

You can be a kid again in these places. Cast-off in an inner tube. Let the water carry you through a lush green world. Put on goggles and tour a beautiful ecosystem. Be adventurous and scuba dive hundreds of feet into an underwater world.

At Rainbow Springs I sit by the water’s edge and imagine the wooly mammoth coming down to drink.

More of Fran's Favorite Photos will appear on this blog throughout 2009. Fran and her fab photos may be reached at FranPalmeri at comcast.net

Real Florida Wild Cats

Photo & Text by Guest Blogger, Fran Palmeri,
Wildlife Advocate & Nature Photographer

What I like most about this photo is that the bobcat is in habitat—scrubby flatwoods to be exact. It’s taken me three years to capture him on digital but not nearly as long to appreciate the Scrub, the “Plain Jane” of Florida’s natural communities. Early settlers despised the Scrub but coveted the sandy land because it was good for raising cattle and growing citrus so they chopped and burned their way through scruffy saw palmetto and little scrubby oaks to set up a homestead. Today less than five percent remains.

This cat lives in the Oscar Scherer State Park in Osprey, Florida. According to her daughter, Anna, Elsa Scherer Burroughs was a “real naturalist loving the land, the birds and all the animals” and was “adamant that her land be turned into a park to remain natural and unspoiled.” She bequeathed her 400-acre estate in Osprey to the state in the 1950s and asked that it be named after her father Oscar Scherer, a successful New York industrialist.

The evening I took this photo, I felt fortunate to be hiking there. Lucky me! Lucky bobcat!

Fran and her wondrous photos may be reached at FranPalmeri at comcast.net.

Red Hot Rates ~ Florida Vacation Rentals + More

FLORIDA RATE SPECIALS--BEACH GETAWAY

Delray Beach, the Village by the Sea. SAVE $460 Jan 3-10, 2009. One bedroom unit with kitchen for less than a hotel. Delray is rated a highly walkable town. Weekly resort rate is $1,400 plus tax, but you can take ours for just $990. Contact Dana for reservations/details.

St. Augustine, FL. Save $180 in November 2008. Stay one week for just $799. Smoke, fragrance free and check out the sunrise view from the balcony! REMINDER: Book early for March when the right whales swim through with their calves.

$100 AMEX gift card when you book with Wyndham Vacation Rentals. Not a green destination, but it is a good deal.

2-Nights Yellowstone from $125. Experience winter in the Rocky Mountains of Yellowstone National Park with a special deal from Xanterra Parks and Resorts. Enjoy discounted rates -- starting at $125 per person -- on a minimum two-night stay at the Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel in Wyoming, and receive a welcome gift, unlimited ice skating and skate rental, free breakfast, free hot tub rentals, and a Snow Card for 10 percent off selected gift shop items, meals, tours and rentals. Details at the Yellowstone National Park Web site.

Green Your Living Space With Style

Bau-Biologie,™ a term that originated in Germany, is used to describe a movement promoting the use of healthy building principles as a means to improve living and work spaces and the health of people who occupy them. We use principles like these to design, furnish, and greenovate the vacation rentals in Arizona and Florida.

25 Principles of Bau-Biologie, By Anton Schneider, PhD

1. A building site shall be geologically undisturbed.
2. Residential homes are best located away from industrial centers and main traffic routes.
3. Housing shall be developed in a decentralized and loose manner interlaced with sufficient green space.
4. Housing and developments shall be personalized, in harmony with nature, fit for human habitation and family oriented.
5. Natural and unadulterated building materials shall be used.
6. Walls, floors and ceilings shall be diffusible and hygroscopic.
7. Indoor air humidity shall be regulated naturally.
8. Air pollutants need to be filtered and neutralized.
9. An appropriate balance of thermal insulation and heat retention is needed.
10. The air and surface temperatures of a given room need to be optimized.
11. A heating system shall feature radiant heat using as much (passive) solar heat as possible.
12. The total moisture content of a new building shall be low and dry out quickly.
13. A building shall have a pleasant or neutral smell. No toxins shall outgas.
14. Light, lighting and color shall be in accord with natural conditions.
15. Protective measures against noise pollution as well as infrasonic and ultrasonic vibrations need to be human oriented.
16. Only building materials with little or preferably no radioactivity shall be used.
17. The natural balance of atmospheric electricity and ion concentration shall be maintained.
18. The Earth’s natural magnetic field shall not be altered or distorted.
19. Man-made electromagnetic radiation shall be eliminated (or reduced as much as possible).
20. Cosmic and terrestrial radiation is essential and shall be interfered with as little as possible.
21. Interior and furniture design shall be based on physiological findings.
22. Harmonic measures, proportions and shapes need to be taken into consideration.
23. The production, installation and disposal of building materials shall not contribute to environmental pollution and high energy costs.
24. Building activities shall not contribute to the exploitation of non-renewable and rare resources.
25. Building activities shall not cause a rise in social and medical costs.

Secret Florida: Laid Back Luxury and Romance

If you think Florida is all golf courses and palm trees, you haven’t explored St. Augustine. While I have been known to poke fun at Florida, I can’t get enough of “The Old City.” Whether you love romance or adventure, you need look no further than this playground. Just a short drive from Orlando or Jacksonville airports, it sits on a sound where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Matanzas at two inlets.

For the big picture view of how the city is laid out and a taste of the natural wonder, start off with a sunset cruise with sweeping city and harbor views from the Schooner--Freedom--a 72-foot tall ship. Departs from the City Marina next to the Bridge of Lions. Or for more exercise, walk up the 219 stairs at the St. Augustine Lighthouse for views you’ll never forget. Beats a Stairmaster any day.

St. Augustine was founded in 1565, long before Jamestown, the English colony in Virginia and 55 years before Pilgrims landed on Plymouth Rock. One of it’s many claims to fame is it is the oldest European settlement in North America. Of course the Hopis were here long before the Spanish. With no cars allowed on some of the historic streets, the town is a walker's dream, full of quaint nooks and crannies to explore, quirky museums, unique shops, and art galleries with everything from Dr. Suess to work by local artists.

You can paddle 20 different runs to Anastasia Park or Crescent Beach from the Matanzas River where you can kayak or canoe alongside dolphin and manatee while bird watching, fishing or just reconnecting with yourself and the natural beauty.

Bald eagles nest from October to March and wright whales can be seen blowing as mothers and calves migrate from colder waters. Or catch Sea Monsters, a new film from National Geographic at the World Golf Hall of Fame and IMAX Theater.

New restaurants mean even world-traveling foodies can make mouth-watering discoveries and lasting memories. One such spot opened this summer. Fifth generation Chef Jean Stephane Poinard moved from the famed culinary region of Lyon with his charming, wine-making wife, Valerie, their children, and their sous chef to open Bistro de Leon. The name is a clever nod to the culture-combo. And when you're ready to recover from indulging in their baked goods and sauces, the revitalizing food of Present Moment Café offers an creative counterpoint across the tracks on King Street.

95 Cordova is an elegant spot to hit for a late dessert and quiet jazz. Don’t be afraid to wander in dressed in your touring clothes. Located in the Casa Monica Hotel where guests stroll through in everything from wedding attire to shorts, the gracious servers treat you the same in a business suit as in your coverup and bathing suit.

For a few laughs and an entertaining spin on accurate history, end another evening with a trip on Ripley's Ghost Tour. While many guides offer ghost outings, Ripley's includes a camera, an EMF meter and a spooky trip into the Ripley Museum after hours. You'll also find professionally trained guides give more fact than mythology with Ripleys. Believe it or not.

The St. Augustine Wild Reserve offers tours for small groups to see their rescued exotic pets, mostly big cats that didn't make Siegfried and Roy or other Hollywood pussycats.
See the EcoLuxury website for links to all the sites mentioned, suggestions for when to go, and how to save money. Caution: you’ll find no listings for tourist joints where you might overpay for the view and mediocre food. We figure you can find those on billboards and in hotel lobby brochures. We don’t get paid for advertising, we do it as a courtesy to our vacation rental guests.

Red Hot Rate Specials

WINTER GETAWAY TO DELRAY BEACH, FL $990 USD Jan 3-10, 2009. The Dover House Resort on A-1A. One bedroom unit with kitchen and pool all for less than a hotel. Contact us for details, this is a rental not available through the resort.

Delray Beach is a walkable town, rated "Very walkable" by Walk Score. Park your car and you won't have to drive it again on your vacation. Clean beach with blonde sand, not developed, all buildings are across the street. This charming "Village By The Sea" has a New England feel, if you splashed New England with color and a little salsa.

SAVE ON AIRFARE. Airfare costs dropped in the Orlando and San Francisco markets, check major airlines. Cheaper than driving. Some fares as low as $89.

Safari Soiree

If you're in St. Augustine, join me Sunday, 5 PM at the Casa Monica Hotel to raise money for the local Wildlife Reserve.

Mufasa here enjoys playing with a pumpkin around this time of year. He's one of the many Hollywood pussycats and exotic pets who've found a home at the nonprofit reserve. He will not be at Casa Monica on Sunday. But you can see him on Saturdays, with a reservation and $25 donation.

Founder of the Reserve, Deborah Warrick began rescuing wolves in the 80s and now has her hands and cages full. Join us for a silent auction of golf packages, wildlife art and more. Tickets $55.

If you can't make it, donate online, check the wish list, or volunteer here.