Change is in the air this spring. It’s not just the flipping of calendar pages that lets us know that life is changing. Examine the group travel landscape around you, and you might notice that it looks remarkably different from the industry you remember of 10 or even five years ago. The passing of the World War II generation and the entry of baby boomers into the group travel market have brought a profound shift in the way we think about tourism.

Along with this new generation and new attitude have come new travel tastes and habits. Savvy tour operators and destination marketers are finding new ways to package trips, even to the cities, states and countries that have been strong players in the tourism market for years.

Group leaders would do well to bring some of this new energy and perspective into the way they plan travel as well. Last year’s itineraries won’t cut it in 2013. This year, it’s time to take some risks and try something new with your travel plans. Just because you’ve never done something before doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be done; it just means you have new adventures to discover.
In that spirit, we at The Group Travel Leader always try to highlight a number of new opportunities and new approaches to tourism that you can use to plan creative, enriching group experiences. For example, we recently included a round-up of outdoor music series and venues around the country where you can take your group to hear everything from symphonic performances to indie rock and electronica DJs. We’ve also shone a spotlight on shows around the country that go beyond standard musical revues to offer unique and memorable entertainment options for groups.

For a really groundbreaking experience for your group, consider taking a tour to Cuba. Since the U.S. government created provisions for certain types of group travel to Cuba in 2011, this country has become one of the most sought-after destinations in our industry. I was fortunate enough to visit with a group last summer, and wrote a feature article on my travel there.

We hope our articles inspire you to do something new with your group in 2013. Take a look at these ideas with an open mind, and let us know what you think.

I remember my first cruise well. It was a seven-day spin on a classic ship that was certainly stately but also somewhat stuffy. I left with a respect for the heritage of cruising, but also wondering if this form of travel was best suited for me.

This weekend's experience on the Norwgian Breakaway has allayed by concerns. I was invited to join a ship full of tour operators, travel agents, journalists and other industry VIPs for the inaugural of the Breakaway, the latest new ship to enter the Norwegian Cruise Line fleet. NCL showcased the new vessel with a pair of two-day sailings from New York, which will be its homeport thorughout the year.

My wife joined me for this weekend excurision, and we were almost immediately impressed with what we found upon boarding the Breakaway. A two-hour ship tour introduced us to many of the company's innovations. Perhaps most significant is the Waterfront, an outdoor thoroughfare that surrounds the exterior of deck eight. Many of the ship's restaurants and bars are located on this deck, and they feture outdoor sections that open up to the Waterfront. Guests can take a stroll to enjoy the open breeze and stop for an al fresco dinner or drink at one of eight restaurants and lounges that open up into this space. The Waterfront also features an a la carte gelato stand and bakery.

The Breakaway also represents Norwegian's next step in their "freestyle cruising" concept. Unlike my first cruise ship, which had one buffet, one dining room and one specialty restaurant, the Breakaway has a staggering 27 onboard dining options for passengers. Several — such as the primary buffet and three main dining rooms — are included in the price of the experience; many others are specialty restaurants that include an additional cover charge. The most notable of these establishments is Ocean Blue by Geoffrey Zarkarian. A popular New York restaurateur and Food Network personality, Zakarian oversaw the development of the high-end seafood restaurant himself, going so far as to create the menus and chose seafood purveyors from among the most trusted in New York. His wife worked with him to select the furnishings, decor and place settings.

The restaurant is a small space in high demand, so we weren't able to get a reservation on the short cruise. Zakarian was on board, however, and we enjoyed getting to know him and his approach to Ocean Blue his question-and-answer session with guests.

Ocean Blue is one of several initiatives that NCL undertook to bring elements of the New York experience onto the Breakaway. In addition to the hull artwork, whcih features images of the Statue of Liberty and the Manhattan skyline, the city's presence can be felt in the Manhattan Room (a dining room designed to resemble a New York supper club), and Carlo's Bakery, a New York family bakeshop made famous by the television series "Cake Boss." Onboard entertainment reflects New York traditions as well: Regular entertainment includes an adaptation of the Broadway hit "Rock of Ages," as well as shows by Cirque Dreams, Burn the Floor and New York blues musican Slam Allen.

I must admit, though, that what we enjoyed more the restaurants and shows was the menu of onboard activities. My wife and I played mini-golf on the top deck of the shock, and watched as daring passengers tackled the most extensive ropes course at sea. Were the weather a little warmer, we surely would have tried one of the five twisting waterslides in the pool area. Inside, we enjoyed pool tables and a miniature bowling alley at O'Sheehan's, the ships irish-inspired 24-hour bar, grill and arcade. We played enough games to make us feel like kids again.

Cruise enthusiasts who travel on Breakaway will still find some of the traditional stapels of cruising. But newcomers and independent spirits will also find plenty of options, activities and autonomy to make them feel at home on the high seas.

Breakaway salis year-round from New York, with trips to Bermuda; Florida and the Bahamas; and the Southern Caribbean.

Savor, one of three main dining rooms aboard the Breakaway

Ocean Blue by Geoffrey Zarakian is the ship's most intimate, in-demand restaurant.

Celebrity chef Geoffrey Zakarian

“I hate it when I ask for no pickles, and they give me pickles anyway.”

Lately, I’ve been fascinated by the concept of first-world problems; there are plenty of little annoyances and aggravations in life that get under our skin. But when you stop and think about them in the context of the wider human race, you realize that many “problems” — like unwanted pickles — happen only because of the enormous prosperity that we enjoy in the United States.

Perhaps pickles aren’t your pet peeve, but I’m sure you can think of a gripe or two of your own. Is the air conditioning in your office so cold that you have to wear a sweater? Do you hate it when your iPhone takes too long to download a video from the Internet? Have you ever grumbled when the morning line seemed too long at Starbucks?

I’m as guilty as the next guy. Many of the things I grouse about daily aren’t existential problems at all but mere inconveniences that blur the edges of my comfortable, connected and convenient life. When I travel outside the United States and see the harsh conditions many people face every day, I realize how much I take for granted and how many of my “issues” are just first-world problems.

I’ve also noticed that those of us who work in travel and tourism can develop our own brand of first-world problems. Whenever I’m around a group of tour operators, group leaders, travel agents or travel journalists, I see a creeping tendency to begin to complain to each other about the travails of our collective work.

“I had to fly 12 hours to get to China — in coach,” we say. “The hotel was out of king rooms, so I got stuck with two double beds.” “My lunch at the conference was cold.” “I had to sit in the back of the bus during our ride through Glacier National Park.”

Although everyone needs a chance to commiserate from time to time, I wonder sometimes if we’re missing the point. Sure, travel has its hassles, and the more you travel, the more vulnerable you become to them. But then I step back and think about the incredible industry we work in. We spend our lives in travel and tourism. We have jobs that our friends and neighbors dream about. We get to see some of the most amazing places on the planet, and very often, we do it at no personal expense.

The next time you feel swimming in travel stress, take a few moments and give thanks for all of the blessings that come with being able to travel.

Travelers get to see, do and experience more every year than most people do in their entire lifetimes. We are blessed indeed. Next time you get held up on the tarmac — or stuck with an unwanted pickle — thank heaven you should be so lucky.

Courtesy CMA

If I had to choose, here are my five favorite events that I would recommend to anyone.

Fiesta San Antonio
During Fiesta, several large parades take place in locations throughout the city. There are flower parades, pet parades, the Fiesta Flambeau and more. My favorite memory of Fiesta is attending the Texas Cavaliers River Parade, a grand evening event that takes place on the beautiful San Antonio River Walk.

CMA Music Festival
Casual music fans can enjoy any given night in Nashville, Tennessee, but serious music-lovers come to town during the Country Music Association (CMA) Music Festival, which takes place over three days each June.

More than 100 country artists come to Nashville for the CMA festival, where they perform more than 40 hours of concerts. Some 60,000 music fans come out every year to enjoy the music and to meet their favorite artists during the Fan Fair.

Mardi Gras
The South punctuates winter with the celebration of Mardi Gras. Special Mardi Gras “krewes” celebrate with elaborate costumes, formal galas and lavish parades where they throw millions of plastic beads. The festivities are accompanied by plenty of fresh seafood and king cake, the traditional Mardi Gras dessert.

Mardi Gras is too big to be constrained to any one city. Although New Orleans is traditionally known as the capital of Fat Tuesday celebrations, I’ve been to great Mardi Gras parades in Shreveport, Louisiana; Biloxi, Mississippi; and Mobile, Alabama.

100 Miles of Lights
Virginia welcomes winter in style with 100 Miles of Lights, a coordinated series of holiday events that stretch from the Capitol in Richmond all the way through the Hampton Roads area to the Atlantic Coast.

Groups will find drive-through and walk-through light displays in parks, gardens and other public places. In Williamsburg, the colonial center of town is decked out in period Christmas trim, and the Grand Illumination celebration brings in Christmas with candlelight and fireworks.

Indianapolis 500 Festival
The Indianapolis 500 is one of the most famous events in auto racing, and the community celebrates with the 500 Festival. Throughout May, a series of 50 smaller events and programs take place around Indianapolis.

Some 300,000 spectators fill the streets of Indianapolis for the 500 Festival Parade, which features floats, costumed characters, celebrities and giant helium balloons. The 33 starting drivers for the auto race serve as grand marshals of the parade. Among the other events are foot races, a community festival and “Breakfast at the Brickyard” at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

Forbidden fruit has always had a particular appeal to me. Tell me not to do something, and I have an irresistible urge to do just that thing. Ask me to close my eyes for a moment, and you’re practically begging me to peek. Prohibit me from going somewhere, and that place takes first priority on my travel wish list.

For more than 50 years, Cuba has been the ultimate forbidden fruit for American travelers. A wide-sweeping trade embargo against the country’s communist government has effectively prohibited American travelers from visiting the island nation, which lies just 90 miles south of Florida. Although Cuba was once a prime vacation destination of rich and powerful Yankees, it became a symbol of the Cold War, a gated paradise off-limits to American tourists.

It was this strict prohibition that made Cuba such an attractive destination for me. I’ve longed to visit the island for all of my adult life (although I passed up an opportunity to go illegally from Mexico once as a college student). And when we began to hear whispers last year that travel restrictions to Cuba might be loosening, I immediately put Cuba at the top of my tourism bucket list.

The rumors turned out to be true; the Obama administration instated a provision in federal Cuban policy that allowed American tour operators to take passengers on “People to People” tours of Cuba that create cultural exchanges between the citizens of the two nations. American tour operators began lining up for licenses last summer and took their first groups of American tourists to Cuba last fall.
In July, I was fortunate enough to secure a spot on one of those tours as a guest of Premier World Discovery. The weeklong adventure in Cuba took us all around Havana, as well as to farmland to the west and beautiful keys off the island’s northeast coast. I was thrilled to visit this long-forbidden destination and to do it legally. I found Cuba fascinating, beautiful, warm, engaging and challenging. It was everything a good trip should be.

I’m not the only person who has longed to visit Cuba. The pent-up demand for this destination exploded in record bookings for the tour operators who began offering trips last year. Today, many tour operators who are licensed to take these trips report waiting lists of groups that extend into 2014.

We found out firsthand just how excited Americans are about Cuba when we surveyed bank travel program directors about their destinations for 2012 and 2013. In its first year of availability, Cuba surged to number four in our survey, surpassing perennially popular international destinations like England, France, Spain and Australia.

There’s a lot to learn on a tour of Cuba, just like a visit to New York, Albuquerque, South Africa or anywhere else in the world. And although global politics sometimes divide us, travel has a powerful way of creating common ground among all sorts of people.

Here’s to more happy exchanges and less forbidden fruit.

The four hardest-working days of my year are coming up this month. But they don’t take place here at the office; in fact, they have nothing at all to do with my job.

I spend four hot, sweaty days each June on a farm in Wilmore, Kentucky, for the Ichthus Music Festival. This contemporary Christian music event is the oldest festival of its kind in the country, and it attracts up to 20,000 visitors from throughout the South and Midwest.

Ichthus is dear to my heart — I first went to Ichthus as a child with my brother and my father to see my favorite band perform. Throughout my teen years, the festival was the regular highlight of my summer. I would get excited just thinking about all of the music, the fun with my youth group, the junk food and the late-night camping. I always enjoyed the shows and appreciated the ministry that took place during the course of the weekend.

As an adult, I began to see Ichthus not just as a place to have fun, but also as a chance to volunteer and help make a difference in the lives of today’s youth. I’m now part of the festival’s steering committee and head up a team of volunteers who take care of the needs of the artists while they’re on the property.

The steering committee has been working since January to prepare for this year’s festival, but the real work starts when the gates open on Wednesday, June 20. The artists arrive early and leave late, which means that my team and I are on duty from 7 in the morning until whenever they leave, sometimes hours past midnight. The days are incredibly stressful and exhausting. And I love every minute of them.

I first went to Ichthus because I loved music; I began working with the organization because I love the ministry behind it. Each year, our work affects the lives of thousands of teenagers and young adults. It’s this combination of fun and ministry that makes the work so worthwhile and brings me back to the festival year after year.

I’m telling you all this because I see a lot of similarities between what I do at Ichthus and what you do as group travel leaders. Many people believe that traveling is all fun for you, but of course, you know better. Although it is fun, it’s also a ton of work. But the work is worthwhile, because you’re touching a lot of lives along the way.

So this travel season, when the stress mounts and the road gets long, remember the love of travel that got you started in the first place. And remember that the fruit of your group’s travels will long outlast the hard work it takes to make it happen.

The San Antonio River Walk is saving me from obesity.

I've been eating my way across the city for four days now, enjoying the best of San Antonio's food during the annual Culinaria celebration. The events have included elaborate lunch and dinner affairs, a Mexican tasting event and a fancy soiree that featured some of the area's leading chefs offering small bites of their very best dishes. Needless to say, I've consumed more calories than my body has required.

After all of this eating, my waistline would be expanding rapidly were it not of the San Antonio River Walk. I've been stayinig at the beauiful Westin hotel, located right on the River Walk in the heart of the scenic downtown district. The San Antonio River and the charming district built up around it may be the most iconic image of San Antonio (save for the Alamo itself), and it makes an ideal place for visitors to stay, eat, shop and explore.

It's also an ideal place to excercise. The river winds through the downtown and neighborhoods such as La Villita, which give it a distinctly Mexican ambiance. Along both sides of the water, the River Walk offers paved pedestrian access, where visitors can stroll alongside the river and well-landcaped gardens that run along either side. Though the weather is already heating up for the summer, the River Walk provides a welcome respite from the heat, so I've been taking advantage of the setting to run a few miles each morning before beginning my touring for the day. Along the way, I pass plenty of other walkers and runners.

The River Walk is San Antonio's best toursim asset, and the city has gone to great effort to expand it in recent years. An expession project currently underway has added several miles of walkable riverfront extending from the downtown area in either direction; when the project is finished, there will be more than 8 miles of walkable riverfront. The expansion projects allow pedestrians to walk north to the city's museum district, and south to the grand homes in the historic King William neighborhood.

Of course, running isn't for everyone, and the city offers other ways for visitors to experience the River Walk. Groups can take a boat tour of the downtown district, with guides who tell the history of the River Walk and point out some of the area's most interesting spots. River taxis also ply the waters through town, picking up visitors along the River Walk and ferrying them to wherever they want to go. There's even a lock system that allows the boats to ride up river to areas of higher elevation.

I think my morning runs along the River Walk are helping me stay in shape during this trip — or at least that's what I tell myself. Even if I'm not burning off all of the calories, though, I'm certainly enjoying the view.

A group explores the River Walk via boat.

The River Walk includes stone bridges, shade trees and great architecture.

Visitors can use the River Walk to access hotels and museums.

Today I donned an apron, toque and rubber gloves for an intense training session at the CIA. The mission: South American ceviche.

I'm not at Langley, but in San Antonio, at the "other" CIA — the Culinary Institute of America. The organization is recognized as one of the foremust culinary schools in the United States. In addition to its campuses in Hyde Park, New York, and Napa Valley, California, the school runs an outpost here in San Antonio, where students and professors specialize in food techniques from Central and South America.

In addition to training future chefs, the CIA offers a number of continuing education courses that are available to community members (visiting groups can arrange to take a class as well). Today, I joined a group of about a dozen other food enthusiasts for a hands-on class on South American ceviche. We entered the institute's brightly-colored Latin demonstration kitchen, where the staff had prepared aprons, toques (chef's hats) and recipe packets for us.

Chef Elizabeth Johnson-Kossick introduced herself as our instructor for the afternoon. A CIA professor, Chef Johnson-Kossick has spent large portions of time living in South America, and was intimately familiar with the details of the cuisine throughout the region. She spent a few minutes introducing us to the concept of ceviche — fresh fish flash-cured in lime juice — and teaching us about its different varieties in Columbia, Ecuador and Peru. She also gave us an introduction to some of the ingredients we would be using, such as striped bass, shrimp, Mexican limes and plantains.

After the overview, we split up into four smaller groups to prepare a variety of ceviches in the well-outfitted instructional kitchen. Each team got a specific recipe to work from, along with a tray full of all the ingredients and tools we would need.

My team was tasked with making two ceviches — an Ecuadorian-style shrimp ceviche and a Colombian-style ceviche with striped bass and coconut milk. Chef guided us through the steps of mashing garlic cloves into paste, cutting cubes of fish and combinging the multitude of ingredients to taste. It was amazing to watch as raw fish cured into a safe, edible food after just a few minutes of marinating in the lime juice.

After an hour or so of hard work, the teams reconvened to sample all of the different ceviches we had made. We topped the five different dishes with some traditional South American ingreidients, including chopped peanutes, fried plantains, toasted coconut shavings and popcorn. Each variety of ceviche brought its own blend of flavors and textures, but they were all cool, delicious and remarkably fresh.

One afternoon at the CIA didn't turn me into a world-renowned chef, but it did give me and my compatriots an introduction to a new favorite food, and the courage to try the recipes out at home.

Chef Johnson-Kossick gives an overview of South Ameican pepers.

Ahi tuna "tiradito" — a sashimi-style raw fish dish.

My plate of four ceviches and a fried plantain chip.

Sometimes a good meal can take you places. Today, brunch transported me from Texas into the colonial heart of Mexico.

I'm in San Antonio for a few days doing research for an upcoming magazine article. It just so happens that my trip coincides with Culinaria, a four-day foodie event that highlights some of the best flavors of San Antonio and the Texas Hill Country. So in addtion to visiting tourist spots like the River Walk and the Alamo, I'm taking advantage of some of the delicious opportunities that Culinaria offers.

The events at Culinaria range from large-scale gourmet tasting fairs to small, intimate winemakers dinners. Today's event might be my favorite of all. Called "Sabado at Casa Herman," this small brunch took place in an intimate new restaurant called Casa Hernan. The restaurant is owned by chef Johnny Hernandez, who has made a reputation as one of San Antonio's foremost purveyors of authentic Mexican cuisine. This new restaurant is located in the ground floor of Hernandez' personal home, and features architecture and artwork that you would find in many of Mexico's colonial towns.

Hernandez hosted this "Sabado" (or "Saturday") event to showcase one of his favorite styles of Mexican cuisine — traditional barbecue. Unlike American barbecue, which focuses on pork prepared in large smokers, Mexican barbecue features lamb and beef, which are smoked for hours in holes dug in the ground. A traditionalist, Hernandez dug pits in his own backyard to smoke the lamb and beef head that he served for brunch. As several dozen guests arrived at the event, Hernandez took them each out back to show them his barbecue pits and explain his traditional techniques.

Barbecue was the highlight of the brunch, but certainly not the only component. Our brunch buffet featured many other classic Mexican dishes, including tamales from Oaxaca and Veracruz, black-beans hand-made tourtillas and black beans with queso fresco. My favorite dish was the chilaquiles, a chicken and tortilla caserole traditionally served as a breakfast item in Mexico. The deep, complex and authentic flavors took me back 12 years and thousands of miles to my days as a student living in Morelia, a colonial Mexican city.

I ate as much as I could muster at brunch, washing it down with traditioanal "aguas" — Mexican fruit drinks made from coconut and guava — and finishing with colorful sweat bread pastries. For a blisfull noon hour on a May Saturday in San Antonio, I got to taste the best of Mexico all over again.

Traditional Mexian limes — a condiment for all occsions.

"Pan dulce" — Mexican sweet bread pastries

Authentic tamales wrapped in banana leaves

Silver Dollar City's greatest treasure may be lie 300 feet below its surface.

Branson's pre-eminent theme park is best known for its rides, entertainment and 100 artisans who demonstrate Ozark Mountain crafts for visitors. But the park got its start because of Marvel Cave, a limestone cave that was first discovered by Osage Indians around 1500 A.D. In 1894, a local man bought the property that the cave is located on and opened it as a tourist attraction; he and his daughters continued to operate tours of the cave for the next 50 years. In 1950, the Herschend family leased the land built a few buildings around the opening to the cave. Their small development has grown into Silver Dollar City, an attraction that vastly overwhelms the popularity of Marvel Cave itself.

The presence of a theme park doesn't make Marvel Cave any less marvelous, though. Silver Dollar City admission tickets entitle visitors to free tours of the cave, which take around 40 minutes. I joined a cave tour during my day visiting the park, and was amazed by what I saw.

We descended into Marvel Cave on foot, slowly making our way down the more than 450 steps that lead to the bottom. The descent was slow and easy, though, and we were treated with spectacular views along the way. One of the most memorable sights is the Cathedral Room, a 200-foot-high cavern that is the largest entry point of any cave in North America. This huge room is spectaclar is scope, large enough to house the Statue of Liberty, and makes a wonderful introduction to the sights to come.

After walking across the floor of the Cathedral Room, we continued along a half-mile path that took us past spectacular rock formations and waterfalls. Many of the rock formations were created by the slow drip of water over thousands of years. They have been lit in dramatic fashion to help highlight the stunning beauty of this secret underground world.

At the end of the tour, we ascended just a few stairs, and then boarded an incline railway that took us the rest of the way up to the surface. Though thousands of visitors were having a great time above ground, I think those of us that took the time to tour this fantastic cave got the best experience of all.

Descending into the Cathedral Room

Marvel Cave's spectacular waterfall

The cave tour highlights otherworldly rock formations.

Unique geological features