Hi! I am Shweta, the zest of this blog 🙂
Get to know me and my family –
I play several roles – corporate executive, parent, adventure enthusiast, travel blogger, generally open to trying out new things in life. Besides travel, I love books and theatre and art. I would like to believe I am NOT an adventure junkie. But have tried skydiving, rappelling, glacier climbing, trekking, paragliding, mountain biking, scuba diving, and skiing.
I am known to have my eccentricities, which my husband Rohit indulges in, sometimes with a smile, but mostly with a frown. Travel with him started with a trip way back in 2006 when we went to Havelock island in the Andaman sea. We haven’t stopped ever since. Together we have gone to more than 25 countries. Some far-off destinations as Peru, Brazil, Argentina, some off-the-beaten path ones as Reunion and Namibia. And done multiple short trips within India where we live.
Couples to family travel
In 2011, our daughter Kaavya got added to the equation. She accompanied us to the Maldives when she was 3-month old. And while I can remember several melt-down moments (of mine!) during trips with her between age 1-3, she is a great travel companion. We call her the ‘trooper’.
She falls in love with each new country she goes to and vows to make that place her home. In 2015, she tasted fish and chips for the first time at the Amalfi coast in Italy, and thought it was an Italian dish for the longest time! In 2016, she wanted to learn Vietnamese and buy a house in Con Dao, an island off the south coast of Vietnam. And then, she firmed up the belief that Hvar, Croatia is the destination for her to settle down. That belief is getting challenged after our trip to the USA 🙂 She enjoys beach holidays and Mauritius was no different.
Kaavya is now hurtling towards teen years, and as such, our family vacations have got more outdoor activities added to city sightseeing and beach time. In 2022, she tried ‘Discover Scuba’ with her first ever ocean dive in Jamaica last year. And thoroughly enjoyed all the hiking and activities – glacier hiking, ATV tour on a black sand beach, ice cave tour – in Iceland this summer.
Our style of family travel
I mostly travel with my family, and occasionally with friends. I believe that you don’t have to quit your day job to travel. A lot of research and planning goes in before any of my trips. As a family, we like to explore new countries and cities. Taking in top sights in a city, a bit of rest & relaxation, some adventure activities, and culture and food added to the mix is how we travel.
Comfort is important to us, but so is discovering new restaurants and quirky, off-beat places to stay. We mostly book comfort-to-luxury accommodation. At times, we find booking apartments in a city gives us the luxury of staying in the heart of the city and also more space. At other times, the corporate warrior husband drags us into a chain to redeem loyalty points! We like trying out street food and small cafes. But also end up eating occasionally at high priced restaurants.
What you will get from my blog:
Inspiration to travel, family travel tips, ideas on making family travel fun, recommendations on comfort-to-luxury accommodation, ideas on experiencing adventure activities, some mentions on restaurants & food tours.
Welcome to my world. I hope you enjoy it and we inspire each other with our tales. Connect with me on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook.
If you wish to collaborate with me – for destination and hotel reviews, press trips and digital marketing campaigns – please contact me at zestinatote@gmail.com.
Impact-Site-Verification: c1131da6-8977-45b9-8f8b-411a05e6ceef