“Sharks are beautiful animals, and if you’re lucky enough to see lots of them, that means that you’re in a healthy ocean. You should be afraid if you are in the ocean and don’t see sharks.” ~ Sylvia Earle Last month, I said I would tell you about scuba diving with tiger sharks. Named for their tiger-like, black vertical stripes running along its body, tiger sharks are frequently implicated in fatal attacks on humans. In fact, they are considered to be among the world’s most dangerous sharks, coming in second only to the great white shark. It’s a known fact that Tiger Sharks are not picky eaters. Often called the “garbage cans of the sea”, these solitary and aggressive hunters have earned a grisly reputation for devouring almost anything in their path. Their diet consists primarily of sea turtles, fish, sea birds, squid, venomous sea snakes, dolphins and smaller sharks. However, their stomach contents have also revealed non-edible objects such as paint cans, cow’s hoofs, plastic bags, rubber tires, and license plates. And yes, I scuba dive and photograph these apex ocean predators for shits and giggles and, of course, to dispel myths and misconceptions that sharks everywhere are out to attack and eat you as soon as you enter their wondrous ocean realm.

To read the full article by Jett and Kathryn Britnell visit luxebeatmag.com.

“The ocean is everything I want to be: beautiful, mysterious, wild and free.” ~ Anonymous Okay, this is our third column. How are we doing so far? We received a request for a scuba diving destination piece, so without further ado, I’ll share with you one of our favorite off the beaten path dive sites. In 2006, international marine scientists proclaimed the Philippines as being the center of marine biodiversity in the world, surpassing even the Great Barrier Reef of Australia. In an archipelago with more than 7,000 tropical islands, Sombrero Island is one tiny isle that definitely stands out in a crowd.

To read the full article by Jett and Kathyrn Britnell visit luxebeatmag.com.

Riviera Maya is a fanciful 20th century tourist slogan given to a rather scenic stretch of Caribbean coastline on Mexico’s northeastern Yucatán Peninsula. Famous for its beautiful sun-drenched beaches and all-inclusive resorts and hotels, Riviera Maya’s tourism district lies approximately 17-kilometres (10-miles) south of Cancun, Mexico beginning at the quiet fishing village of Puerto Morelos and stretching south to Playa del Carmen, Puerto Aventuras and Akumal before coming to an end at the Maya town of Felipe Carrillo Puerto. Two thousand years ago, long before they were conquered by Spanish Conquistadors in the 16th century, the Yucatán Peninsula was the ancestral home of the indigenous Maya civilization.

To read the full article by Jett and Kathryn Britnell visit luxebeatmag.com.

“For God’s sake, hurry. The water is coming into my room!” (One of the last dispatches from the telegraph operator aboard the Princess Sophia.) S.S. Princess Sophia The steamship SS Princess Sophia was a steel-built coastal passenger liner in the coastal service fleet of the Canadian Pacific Steamship Line. Built in 1911, the vessel was known as a coastal class “pocket liner.” Named after Princess Sophia, granddaughter of Queen Victoria and daughter of Emperor Frederick III of Germany, the ship entered service in 1912 and plied the coastline of British Columbia from Vancouver and Victoria up to Skagway, Alaska as a passenger, mail and freight carrier. Although deemed to be not quite as luxurious as an ocean liner, she was a smaller ship that could easily navigate coastal waterways while transporting its passengers in a reasonable level of comfort.

To read the full article by Jett and Kathryn Britnell visit luxebeatmag.com.

When we started our Third Age Expeditions column here on Luxe Beat, we promised to provide some photography tips and tricks from time to time. This month we are sharing some tips to help improve your underwater photography. If you’re seeking something more enlightening than just being told, “Get Close, Get Closer and Shoot at an Upward Angle,” then you’re in the right place. Since the dawn of the digital camera era, underwater photographers have developed some tried and true digital capture techniques. With the technical advances in digital photography it would almost seem the only difference between being an underwater photo pro and a novice today is the professional sells their work. However, the truth is every underwater photographer will occasionally hit a creative wall. Whenever this happens, that’s your cue to try something unconventional to rattle your brain and make that wall come tumbling down.

To read the full article by Jett and Kathryn Britnell visit luxebeatmag.com.

Where would you buy a Hawaiian shirt? Honolulu or from David Burrge at Honeycrock Farm, near London’s Gatwick airport? The tiny land-locked village of Salfords is the place to buy your stand-out resortwear or something outrageous for the summer. Be it barbecue, party or beach. Karmakula (“The gift of good luck”) is the British hub of Hawaiian shirt industry. Says Burrge: “It’s a long story. I started off buying friendship bracelets in Guatemala back in the 1980’s and selling them at rock concerts around the world. Walking around the car parks before and after Grateful Dead shows.

To read the full article by Kevin Pilley visit luxebeatmag.com.

In his poem ‘Home thoughts from abroad,’ Robert Browning wrote, ‘Oh to be in England Now that April’s there.’ The long light nights of the English summer are truly the best time to visit this special part of the UK. The City of Bath: Elegance meets history A jewel of English heritage, the city of Bath is famed for its Georgian beauty, Roman heritage, and literary legacy. A perfect place to stay here is the historic Gainsborough Bath Spa Hotel.

To read the full article by Elaine Wilson visit luxebeatmag.com.

“If you come to the top of this hill, you will see Bodrum. Don’t think that you will leave the same person as when you arrived. To all those who came before you, it happened that way: they lost their hearts in Bodrum.”  ~ Cevat Şakir, the Fisherman of Halicarnassus There’s a likely chance you may never have heard about a Blue Voyage before? A Blue Voyage, or Blue Cruise as it is also called, offers a truly unique and unusual recreational yacht charter adventure aboard a gulet which navigates along the ancient ruins-strewn coastlines of Greece’s beautiful Dodecanese islands and Turkey’s picturesque Turquoise Coast. The tourism phrase, Blue Voyage, has its origins in Turkish literature and is attributed to a writer, known as the Fisherman of Halicarnassus, who coined this phrase to express his love of the Southern Aegean’s vivid blue sea.

To read the full article by Jett and Kathryn Britnell visit luxebeatmag.com.

In this column we are transporting you to the Republic of Vanuatu, a South Pacific Ocean nation comprised of roughly 80 islands that stretch 8,000 miles across the cerulean blue sea. One island, Espiritu Santo, attracts scuba divers from around the globe to not only dive its coral reefs and walls, but primarily to explore a WWII-era American troopship called the SS President Coolidge, considered by many to be “one of the world’s greatest shipwreck dives!”

To read the full article by Jett and Kathryn Britnell visit luxebeatmag.com.

Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) recently released its 2024 State of the Cruise Industry report. This year’s report forecasts that cruising capacity is showing an increase of 10% from 2024 through 2028. Cruising is an easy way to travel and explore fascinating destinations around the world.

Recently while on the Viking Modi longship river cruise along the Danube River, I now realize why river cruising is so popular with travelers. The beauty of the sophisticated Scandinavian-design interiors, exquisite culinary fare, immersive activities and excursions along picturesque waterways is an easy, comfortable and convenient way to experience Europe and beyond.

To read the full article by Jill Weinlein visit Luxe Beat Magazine.