Northern Michigan

As a girl who enjoys traveling so much, it always surprises me when some of my best weekends are spent playing tourist in Michigan. For some of the spots I continuously visit, I am going to try and come back and edit posts to include new spots I have tried. Hopefully, this will be a continuous edit of all the amazing times I have in Northern Michigan.

For my mom’s 50th birthday in April, she naturally wanted to go to… a water park, haha! She likes to say she is 18 with 32 years of experience and my goodness the woman has not slowed down yet so I believe her. The Great Wolf Lodge up in Traverse City seemed to be a good fit, however I wanted to still have adult time and sightseeing without always being surrounded by screaming wet children, those days will come for me eventually. We decided instead to do some touristing plus a half day evening pass at Avalanche Bay, Boyne’s waterpark.

As we are avid skiers/snowboarders, we are growing familiar with the town of Petoskey as it the halfway point between Boyne Mountain and Boyne Highlands. Usually, we spend a long day on the slopes and then my dad drives full speed straight to the Polish Kitchen which will never disappoint you or leave you hungry. Since that is a little further north, we decided instead to try out downtown Petoskey. 

We chose City Park Grill as it has live music on the weekends starting at 10pm. It was pretty good food, nothing extremely special, but having a table for when the music started was a good idea. We learned quick there’s not much action in downtown Petoskey so if you have a seat stay in it.

I much preferred our stop at Pour, my ideal place. A super trendy cocktail/wine bar with an Asian fusion menu and comfortable classy seating. (me+sushi+wine=bliss)

Other amazing stops were Petoskey Farms Vineyard and Brewery -view explains it all:

And my new hidden favorite gem, Barrel Back right on Walloon Lake. The food and location here was amazing with nearly every seat in the place having lake views.

Traverse City: 

My husband and I had the best time together on a December ski trip gone warm, which left us exploring wineries and Traverse City, and then just two weekends ago we did a couples weekend with our core group of 8 during cherry fest.

Hotel: The West Bay Beach Holiday Inn Resort was a ton of fun for our group to stay at. They have a really fun outdoor area right on the water where they had live music and the walk into downtown traverse is short and easy.

We enjoyed some great lunch on the rooftop patio of The Franklin right downtown which I would recommend:

Another light, upbeat option our group enjoyed was the Little Fleet Bar parking lot of food trucks. This was nice for everyone to split up and grab grub/drink of choice and relax on the picnic tables with everything from BBQ/pizza/grilled cheeses/sushi rolls (of course me)/specialty tacos

Keeping to the math I discussed earlier about me and sushi and wine… I obviously loved Red Ginger also right in downtown Traverse. This is a nice place for a more dressed up pan asian meal, and their 3 roll chef special sushi platter for $38 was delicious.

Continuing a more low key classy night, Low Bar is an intimate and dark speakeasy below 7 monks taproom that serves up excellent cocktails. Our husbands also enjoyed Nolan’s Cigar bar for some man time while us girls turned the hotel’s not so busy dance club into our own scene from Sex & the City.

My husband missed his seafood pick of Traverse, Apache Trout Grill, which we both enjoyed the last time we were in town. We found this to be a much better option in terms of price and quantity of food than the Boathouse restaurant up in the Peninsula. On Friday and Saturday nights Apache has crab and crab/prime rib specials that made my husband drool.

Wineries we have been to (all on old mission):

• Chateau Grand Traverse (amazing views of the entire peninsula)
• Brys Estate
• Bonobo Winery (love the inside of this place)
• Bowers Harbor (some of my favorite wine, such warm employees)
• 2 Lads Winery (great views, hip place, good sparkling wines)

Fun group activity:

We did a 3 hour tubing trip down the Platt River, which was about a 40 minute drive from Traverse. Since there are no ubers in the area, we opted for a private van rental for four hours to shuffle our group of 8 back and forth. The river is wide and beautiful, with an ending right into a bay of Lake Michigan. Price point wise this was about $30/person, with the van rental being an additional $400 plus tip total.

Phew! That is all for now, until next time Northern Michigan 🙂

*please leave me any good recommendations in the comments

❤ Sarah

 

Nashville, TN

So everyone who knows me personally knows I had the unique opportunity to head down to Nashville, TN for two weekends of insane fun with my beautiful best friends and brides to be, Kelsey and Danielle within 6 weeks! As this is a top spot right now, I thought some may benefit from our planning 🙂

Each group had about 10-15 girls with us, so airbnb or vrbo was the best option we thought to secure a house we could all fit in, while being only a 5-10 min uber ride from downtown Nashville. These sites are both really easy to search out a good spot depending on price and location. I would personally stay more towards downtown and away from Opryland if the bar scene is what you are after. One of our houses had a pool- and it was an amazing way to spend hot mornings and afternoons as we rested up to take on the nights. Feel free to message me personally if you want our booze/grocery list breakdowns, but about $30/person gets you a very solid selection of group alcohol, breakfasts, and snacks.

The bikes. Loved doing a pedal tour of Broadway for each one of these bachelorettes. We did a day trip on the Sprocket Rocket for one, and a night option on the Pedal Tavern for the other. I personally loved the Sprocket Rocket because we had our own personal bartender on board who danced and kept the drinks flowing. We didn’t stop except for one potty break on this one. The pedal tavern was good for groups who want to stop/get off and check out a low key bar or two. In our case, we skipped the bars and drank the booze we brought, still a ton of fun, but this bike’s mission is not as strong as the sprocket rocket.

Food. M Street is a Group of Restaurants in Nashville that I absolutely died over. With the first Nashlorette we had a private dining room at Virago– an asian inspired sushi restaurant that was amazing, and the second trip we tried out their Mexican restaurant next door, Saint Anejo. Both perfect locations that take reservations, are young and hip, moderately priced, and in good location. Saint Anejo was really nice out on the patio. Would definitely try more from this group.

Another good recommendation for groups who need reservations is City Fire in the Gulch, home of the $14 bottomless mimosa. Great brunch and overall lunch menu. There is an adorable clothing boutique next door that also makes for a cute stop, and an instagram photo op of the Nashville angel wings is also right here! Nice little escape from Broadway. Was not anything to write home about deliciousness, but fit the bill for the Maid of Honor resting easy knowing we had the reservation set.

A food stop that was delicious but definitely a wait was Biscuit Love in the Gulch. This is a bright, spacious offshoot of a food truck known for locally sourced Southern breakfast & lunch fare. It was jam packed, and you placed your order at a counter to then sit and wait a bit, but one bite of their fried chicken and gravy and it was all worth it.

Bars and Booze. Before I name my Broadway favorites, I have to give a shout out to Demonbreun St. This little street has a couple of super low key bars that have fun games such as outdoor massive jenga, cornhole, etc. A small group of us had so much fun on this little street waiting for others to arrive in on their flights. I am always up for activity drinking, so on any of my posts please feel free to share favorites that you can do that.

On Broadway, the bars rated for me are: (mind you, i’m not at all a smokey, dingy, tiny bar kind of gal)

1. CrazyTown
2. The Valentine
3. Rippy’s Rooftop
4. Honky Tonk Central
5. Tootsie’s upstairs/outside
6. Acme Feed & Seed

In my opinion, none of the others bars are really worth spending a ton of time at if you’re looking to get a group into a place and dancing/singing. Eliminate the constant moving, pick one or two of the above per night and get wild.

Since I am on the topic of Nashville, I might as well include a few favorites from my now husband and I’s mini trip there the previous October…

We are golfers, so we absolutely LOVED golfing at the Gaylord Springs Golf Links. The course is pretty difficult, but very fancy with GPS controlled golf carts. We spent right about $100 for the two of us to play 18 holes. We took an uber/lyft down and it is about 18-20 minutes each way.

Our favorite meal we had there was definitely at Merchant’s right on Broadway. The deviled eggs and southern comfort staples had us drooling just looking at the menu.

We stayed right downtown at the Hilton Nashville Downtown and even with all my travels, our king suite was one of the top rooms I have been in. They have a massive lobby with an evening pianist, and the location can not be beat, it just comes with a hefty price tag and no free breakfast.

One of our little lists we like to tick off is Stadiums, so we took the opportunity while there to visit LP field, home of the Titans. This field is amazing because it is just a quick walk over the bridge from downtown, and from the completely outdoor field you have an amazing river/city view.

We also took a day to tour the Vanderbilt/Parthenon which was cute couple’s trip as something to do outside of drinking on Broadway, but I wouldn’t recommend it unless you are really looking to kill some time. However, that journey did lead us to The Slider House restaurant in Midtown, which we both loved for their outdoor patio, drinks, and of course, delicious sliders.

Last but not least, one of our little favorite things we did was the Music City Rolling Jamboree bus. My husband groaned when he first heard we were doing this, but after cracking a few beers and settling in for the comedy/singing, he was belting out “Wagon Wheel” louder than most on the bus. It was a great way to make the most of a mini trip by learning about music city, some of the ghosts, neighborhoods, and of course relaxing with a beer while taking it all in. It took about 2 hours in total, but we were sad when it ended.

WOW, I did not realize I had lived so much life in that city until writing this post, and I am sure I will make it back as well, so please feel free to comment any MUSTS or opinions on any of my travels. 🙂

-Sarah

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mini Trip: Denver, CO

It has been a busy few months! Going to try and relive my trips from March-now… Here we go….

Denver, Colorado stole my heart back in 2011 when I was able to travel there with two of my best friends to help a friend move out there. I instantly fell in love with the views of the mountains peeking around the city, and the sunshine was full force nearly every single day. I also had a work conference out there last March but was stuck in central downtown/hotel land and just needed to get back out there. Still to this day writing this post, it is the only place I have been that I could pack up and move to instantly.

This past October my fiance’s sister moved out there permanently and bought the most stunning home ever. Now, there is nothing better than getting to travel with a free place to stay- que trip adviser and air fare watch dog price alerts…

The stars aligned and we were able to snag $156 roundtrip tickets from DTW to Denver through Spirit (major groan) but with that price we shared a suitcase and took off! Here is our little mini itinerary arriving Sat. night and staying through Tues night.

Sat Evening: As we arrived late in the evening we really only managed to head out for a late dinner, and my fiance after a day of travel demanded some wood/coal fired pizza. We hit up Larimer St in the Ballpark district (fun street with plenty of little bars) and settled on Racca’s Pizzeria Napoletana  you can see from the menu- delicious. Highly recommend if you are looking for a specialty pizza place with a slightly upscale feel to the environment. Skinny- opt for the Mele Fresca Salad, Splurge- EMILIA ROMAGNA Pizza:  Smoked Bufala Mozzarella, Walnut & Pine Nut Cream, Roasted Zucchini, Pecorino Romano, EVOO.

Sunday Funday: Our first stop was Viewhouse in the Ballpark district, and this may be one of my favorite bars ever. Give me a rooftop and some games to play while drinking and I am quite content. Just look at this place:

 

The downstairs is covered in grass with a huge volleyball court (they run a tournament on Sundays) corn hole, and tons of comfy furniture to sit around some fires. Perfection. We didn’t try any of their food, but the drinks were good and really you come here for the environment. If you want a rooftop without the games- The Tavern is right across the road, and features a huge rooftop with views of Coors Field. They have a solid happy hour too.

We decided to further explore the neighborhoods by checking out the newer neighborhoods as Denver is in an extreme state of expansion. For those that are first timers, strolling down 16th st is the best option to ride the free bus, get in some shopping and also eating/drinking along the way. For me, my goal was to find a sour brewery, and Heather delivered. Located inside The Source, River North Art Districts’s (RiNo) acclaimed artisan marketplace, Crooked Stave brewery had the best sour beer, and the entire marketplace is a sight to see:

 

After a long day of exploring and day drinking, we got back home and relaxed for a bit with some sushi before retiring early for our active day in the mountains…

 

Monday:

We started the day with the most amazing brunch I think I have ever had… Sassafras has two locations in Denver, and both offer comfort food influenced by Southern American cooking traditions.  They create dishes using locally-sourced and organic ingredients, and it is heaven.

After full happy bellies we rode 15 minutes to get to the amazing Red Rocks Amphitheater:

 

image courtesy of thousandwonders.net

We opted to take the 7 mile hike that led us down and around the entire park, and the hills were definitely  a great workout! I have heard that the concerts here are beyond amazing so I would also highly recommend that when you are planning a trip. Our next journey was supposed to be to find an amazing hot spring location and this was pretty much a fail… I have heard fantastic things about the hot springs out in Colorado but unfortunately many are quite a far distance from Denver, and not easy to add on as a quick activity… we found a small town hot spring (Indian Hot Springs) that still felt amazing on the body after the hike, but was not quite the mountain springs I had pictured… more of a really old family resort:

 

 

If anyone has a good recommendation on this let me know! We are planning to take a ski/snowboard trip next year and my mission is to find an amazing hot spring.

When we got back to the city, we were craving Italian food and hit the jackpot with Angelos, which on Mondays offered up $5 heaping bowls of mussels, made from scratch pasta dishes, and oysters- yum.

We ended the night with a trip to the Punch Bowl Social in Denver, and if you have a group of people who want to do a fun night of drinking that is not high heels and dancing, this is the spot. They have great food and drink, but also tons of games like bowling/darts/pool/shuffleboard, etc. all in an amazing hip bar setting:

We bowled and drank all night having the best time.

Tuesday:

Before heading off to the airport to go home, we got to stop at the new swanky neighborhood of LoHi, which offered up really cute boutiques and places to eat. We chose Linger for their happy hour and awesome environment.

 

Until next time, Denver! ❤

Couples Trip Itinerary: New Orleans!

The reason for finally getting this blog running is my recent trip to New Orleans. As a researcher and planner, I was mildly stressed about how to prepare for a 6 person (3 couples) weekend trip where we got to see a good chunk of what the city had to offer without spending a ton of money, or feeling like we were jam packed every minute of the day. I think we did a darn good job, so here is what our trip looked like for anyone else looking to gather up some ideas. Side note: we are a group in our mid/late twenties.

Flight & Hotel Planning: As one of my friends works in the hospitality industry, we were able to get a wonderful discounted rate on hotel rooms, however we did have to stay in two separate hotels. The Double Tree on Canal Street was one, and the Hampton Inn on St. Charles was the other. If you are considering one of those, the Hampton Inn was by far the better option. The decor and overall style is much more updated, and the location is prime for hopping on the streetcar to visit the sights. The Double Tree is also in a great location (really can’t go wrong with hotels in New Orleans on location), but the hotel could really use a facelift- the pictures online have some serious filtering I think because nothing was gleaming quite that way when we stayed there. The service was wonderful however, and they had complimentary warm cookies at arrival, and were very friendly with any assistance we needed.

For the flight we took Spirit, and it was a running joke as to what we could get charged for next, I honestly and openly hate Spirit airlines. Due to a storm in New Orleans, we were unable to land the plane and had to refuel in Houston and then head back… so we were about 4 hours late into New Orleans when we finally landed. During all this, I could not even get a bottle of water because they had to charge my credit card for it, and due to us flying low no purchases could be made. If given a $75-100 price difference on booking a plane ticket, I will definitely pay more to fly Southwest or another airline. Flight tips: About 10 months prior to your trip, set up flight alerts on every major site you can, paying attention to which airlines do not show up in searches on kayak/tripadvisor, and listen to them on their advice to wait or buy, this will definitely help get the best price.

Since we had 6 people, before the trip we researched some of the top restaurants and made “just in case” reservations for lunch and dinner each day. Opentable is a great website for this- and it is free. Our first night we had reservations at Emeril’s, however with the flight delay, we missed it, and had to fend for ourselves at about 11pm for dinner. We were directed to St. Lawrence, which is good to keep in mind as it is one of few places that serve a full menu until 2am. http://www.saintlawrencenola.com/documents/Food%20Menu.jpg

The softshell crab blt and fried chicken dinner were both delicious, and the spring greens salad was great as a light option- do NOT get the caeser salad- you will be disappointed. This place has good drink prices as well, we stopped by on a walk during the day for Sangrias and Bloody Mary’s.

That first night we attempted to go to Frenchmen Street, which is advertised as being the spot the locals go to hear good jazz music without the crazy spring break intensity of Bourbon Street. I had been there on a work trip the year prior, and loved it. Go on a Friday or Saturday though, as during the week many places are not open. On the weekend this is also the site of the Frenchman Art Market, which is really fun to walk through.

We had planned to hit up Sobou that next morning, since on Fridays from 11:30-3pm they have 25 cent martinis (limit 3 per person) but we missed our too early reservation so we decided to hit up the popular brunch spot, The Ruby Slipper Cafe. If you are putting together a list and you only take one place from me- take this one. You will need to get there anticipating at least a 45 minute wait, but go up to the bar and order their bloody mary or mimosa. The bartenders talk while their heavy hand never stops pouring the liquor- you get your money worth for sure. http://www.therubyslippercafe.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/RSCMenu11-29-14.pdf Everything was delicious- get out of your comfort zone and order from their specialties!

We took the rest of the day to be tourists and travel on the streetcar (the St. Charles line is the oldest continually running street car system in the U.S) up through the Garden District (amazing homes) and visit the Lafayette Cemetery. We decided to forgo the tour options and do this ourselves, and it was really quite easy, and costs $1.25! Have the hotel front desk give you a map as to where to get on/off the streetcar, and ride away. When we got to the Cemetery there was a lovely woman starting a tour and let us hop on for I think $15 total for our group, this was worth it because she was able to explain the above ground grave concept as well as show us some of the famous plots that would have been hard for us to find alone.

Since I can’t remember where we ended up doing dinner this evening- I will throw out a recommendation from my work trip- and that is Red Fish right on Bourbon Street. http://www.redfishgrill.com/menu_display.html?id=52 the Alligator Boudin Balls are so delicious, and I had the Red Fish on the wood fired grill and loved it. Great place for some seafood options, I joked that I could have eaten there every night.

Saturday morning we did a rushed brunch at Saint’s & Sinners, which is Channing Tatum’s restaurant, and the only reason we had to go. It was good, but nothing spectacular. They do however have a crawfish boil platter that looks very good if you are on a hunt for that, otherwise I think just stopping by at night while on Bourbon Street will fulfill your Magic Mike desires.

The reason we were rushed is to make it for our Airboat Swamp Tour. This was so much fun. The bus picks you up from your hotel and it’s about a 40 minute ride to get to the swamps. You can bring any food/beverage you wish, but it will be hard to manage on the actual air boat, these things go fast and they are very loud. During the 2.5 hour trip they will wind the boat into populated areas where gators actually come up to the boat after being baited with marshmallows and meat, and it is crazy how close you get!

We actually got caught in a horrible rain downpour shortly after this, so our trip ended very wet to say the least. They do bring on a baby alligator to pass around and take photos with, which is a fun touch that really makes the whole experience come to a close. This was such a nice way to get out of the eating/drinking routine that takes over in New Orleans, and I would definitely recommend it if you have the time.

For dinner the final night we chose to do it up big at G.W Finns, and it did not disappoint. You will need reservations a few weeks in advance here, but the food was so delicious and the entire atmosphere is lovely. http://gwfins.com/menus/daily-menu/ the menu changes a bit each day, however if the blackened swordfish is on there, you will not regret it. My boyfriend, who always picks the best dishes of course ordered it.

We decided to take on the Carousel Bar at the Hotel Monteleone this night, and we loved it. The bar itself is a large carousel that you sit at and it very slowly, spins in a circle. The atmosphere outside of the main bar is classy and relaxed, with a band usually playing. We were able to secure a nice spot on a sofa to have drinks and listen to the band, and then ended up dancing the night away to the music. Perfect ending to a great weekend in New Orleans.