Florida’s sunny western coast has an ideal setting along the beautiful Gulf of Mexico, a beach-perfect subtropical climate, incredible sand and surf, and plenty of activities to keep every traveler happy. Check out these 5 great destinations on the peaceful and affordable Gulf Coast portion of western Florida for a perfect beach vacation.

Dear faithful readers of The Window Seat,

My time at Travelocity, and therefore The Window Seat, has come to an end. While I'm excited for the opportunities that lie ahead, I'm sad to go. The last four-plus years have been some of the happiest of my life. Travelocity is an outstanding place to work.

Over the next few months, you may see some changes on the blog. There will more guest writers and perhaps more from our dear friend the Roaming Gnome. You may see more company news and perhaps you'll read more from our resident destination experts, the Travelocity market managers. Soon my replacement will be named and I know he or she will have some big ideas to make The Window Seat better than it's ever been.

Thanks for reading all these years. It has been a trip!

Happy Travels,

Genevieve

The aptly named Big Island is the biggest, although not the most developed, of Hawaii’s islands. It offers spectacular natural beauty with 11 of the possible 13 weather climates represented on the island ---  you can see snow on Mauna Kea, feel rainforest drizzle in Hawi, and bask in hot sunshine in Kona in the same morning --- and plenty of opportunities for adventure activities. So book a Big Island hotel and get ready for some “big” island adventures.

It’s always sunny in San Diego, or so it seems, with an average temperature of 75 degrees. Maybe it’s the abundant sunshine, but San Diego seems to bring out the best in families and family activities. Book a Travelocity San Diego hotel and pack your bags for family fun!

(Photo courtesy of Hotel Del Coronado)

1. Check out the wild, wild life at San Diego Zoo, whose incredible conservation program includes caring for rare giant pandas and massive swimming polar bears. The exemplary natural settings include an incredible walk-through, multi-level monkey habitat.

Editor's Note: Periodically, we'll be featuring a Q&A with our resident destination experts at Travelocity, the Travelocity market managers. Market managers are locals to their destination and experts on everything and anything related to tourism in their markets. Please welcome them to The Window Seat.

Sara Fried is the Travelocity market manager for Jamaica. She has been with Travelocity for seven years and is based in Boston, MA. She enjoys rooting on the Boston sports teams and listening to Bob Marley as well as enjoying an ice cold Red Stripe while sitting on the cliffs of Negril, at Blue Beat in Montego Bay or at the top of Dunn’s River Falls in Ocho Rios. Her favorite part of the job is meeting so many phenomenal people that live in Jamaica as well as the discounts on hotels!