I have never been one to brave traveling during the holiday season. Just seeing the horror stories about delayed flights, bad weather and mass amounts of other travelers seems to scare me off. However, for this past Thanksgiving I traveled. I took a trip to the island of Moorea in French Polynesia, and I must say my travel plans went smoothly. Our flight on Air Tahiti Nui was set to depart at 11:30 p.m.; during my Thanksgiving dinner, I was freaked out about the traffic surrounding LAX. Luckily, traffic was pretty light for L.A., and we made it in plenty of time to relax and enjoy the business class lounge ATN and other airlines share.

We arrived in Tahiti at 6 a.m. Friday and took the local ferry to Moorea, just a 40-minute trip. Once we arrived at the Sofitel Ia Ora Beach Resort. I finally let out my breath and realized I made it to paradise. The hotel put up a very interesting Christmas tree and reminded us that yes, the holidays are here, but you are far from having to worry about getting gifts for, making small talk with and having to cook for family members.

We arranged for an overwater bungalow, and it was absolutely amazing. The clear blue waters, schools of fish and gentle lapping of the water was calming and almost decadent. The resort offered several different activities to fill up your day. During our stay, we did a Jet Ski water tour around the island, snorkeled with baby sharks and giant sting rays and ended our trip with a Tahitian body scrub and massage.

I am now back in L.A., where it’s raining steadily and I am about to sit in traffic for hours to attend a meeting across town. But at least I have the memories of my trip to Tahiti to last me through the hectic holidays.

— Carly Allen, vice president