Ready to get off the beaten tourist track on your next Hawaiian adventure? Continental/United Airlines has just made it that much easier with a new non-stop flight to Hilo on the Big Island.

Instead of flying into Kona International Airport and driving 2.5 hours to Hilo, there will be daily direct flights from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and San Francisco International Airport (SFO). A huge timesaver!

It all begins June 9th, so start booking your tickets now.

What makes Hilo so appealing?

Instead of grand five-start resorts, you can expect quaint inns, bed & breakfasts, family-friendly hotels, cabins, and campgrounds. People love Hilo for its unique natural beauty. Just look at the photos:

Waipio Valley, from the Waipio Valley Overlook. Located about an hour north of Hilo, it’s one of the spectacular highlights on the Hilo-Hamakua Heritage Corridor. Credit: Bob Coello/BIVB

Kilauea volcano’s lava pouring into the ocean last year. Credit: Tor Johnson/HTA

Buckets of exotic tropical flowers at the Hilo Farmers Market. Credit: Bob Coello/BIVB.

Halemaumau Crater in Kilauea volcano…home to Hawaii’s volcano goddess Pele. As seen from Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Credit: www.bluewaterjon.com

The Big Island Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is only 40 minutes from Hilo International Airport, and one of five national parks on the island. Yes, the Big Island is that big.

This shot shows one of several waterfalls at Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens in Hilo. Credit: Bob Coello/BIVB

Now are you ready to visit Hilo?

Want to win a Sony Cyber-shot WX9? Here’s how:

1. Leave a comment and give us the name of your favorite travel destination!

2. Double Your Chances! Leave another comment dishing about your favorite international cuisine.

***Contest ends at 11:59pm PST on Wednesday, May 18, 2011. One winner will be randomly selected. Maximum 2 comments per person, please! We can only ship in the USA. Be sure to comment on the blog post for consideration.***

Read the TravelPlusWine Sony Cyber-shot WX9 review.

Twilight Setting!

Like us on Facebook: TravelPlusWine

Follow us on Twitter: TravelPlusWine

Nobody wants an out-of-town mishap to derail their vacation. These quick fixes from the editors of Women’s Health magazine will prevent any unexpected health hang-up from ruining your getaway.

1.  Treat a scorching sunburn

Thin skinned and easily forgotten spots like the ears and the tops of the feet often suffer the worst sunburn.  First take an ibuprofen to help curb any inflammation.  Next, hit the grocery store for some white vinegar; dilute one teaspoon of it into a pint of cold water and every few hours cover the burn for 10 minutes.

2. Manage motion sickness

It’s hard to enjoy sailing when your heads hanging over the side of the boat.  Taking slow deep breaths of fresh air and focusing on the horizon should help. So can nibbling on some ginger candy or placing a drop of peppermint oil under your tongue.

3.  Fix a chipped tooth

For a small chip, use an emery board to file down sharp edges, just as you do to fingernail. Since cracked tooth enamel can leave nerves exposed, if you feel pain you can temporarily seal the area with Krazy Glue. For bigger chips, put broken tooth pieces in a container filled with cold milk; the sugar compounds can keep tooth cells alive for 72 hours.

For more tips on how to deal with getaway disasters, pick up the May issue of Women’s Health, on newsstands now, or head to WomensHealthMag.com!

Wanted: Beautiful TravelPlusWine Photos!

Featuring Real Travelers, Real Experiences

Each Thursday, TravelPlusWine will be hosting a Travel & Wine Photo blog post featuring your creative travel and wine photos.

Upcoming Event — March 10

Snowy Mountains & Ski Vacations

How it works:

If you’d like to be featured, send us your:

• Photo (just one!)
  
• A title & brief description (3-4 sentences max.) including where… but be creative with the rest.
  
• Twitter name
  
• Link to your website or blog

Send submissions to: katie [at] travelpluswine [dot] com

***Weekly submissions are due by Wednesday at noon***

The Themes:

Each week we will be featuring a theme… pertaining to travel and/or wine.  Here’s a look at what’s coming up…

March 10: Snowy Mountains & Ski Vacations

March 17: Travels to Wine Country

March 24: Interesting Landmarks

March 31: Gadgets & Gear On the Road

April 7: Spring Break!

Search for Twitter Hashtag: #TWpics

(TravelPlusWine Pictures)

The Rules:

By sending us a photo, you are verifying..

• The photo is yours (you properly deserve credit)
• You give us permission to post the photo on TravelPlusWine

TravelPlusWine reserves final editorial decision, including the right to:

• Not post a photo
• Edit the photo title and description

TravelPlusWine will post a handful of the best pictures received.

Ideas?

Do you have a theme idea for travel or wine photos? Send it our way… katie [at] travelpluswine [dot] comN

This sounds like the ultimate TravelPlusWine adventure! Fortunately, for those of us who can’t be in wine country at the moment, there’s a way to live vicariously through others.

The Three Thieves is a new hour-long television show featuring three wine entrepreneurs on a quest to discover exciting new wines. It debuts tonight at 8pm on the Cooking Channel.

Winemaker and Three Thieves star Joel Gott ensures this isn’t your average sip-and-swirl television show. Joel and the other two thieves, Roger Scommenga and Charles Bieler, worked hard with the Food Network to create a show that mixes in what’s exciting like scenery, food, people, and wine.

The first episode of Three Thieves takes viewers to Chile. The idea, Gott explains, is to visit and explore, so people see and experience what’s out there in wine regions around the world.

Three Thieves sounds like a great show for travel and wine lovers, so check it out!