Vacation Planning at the Last Minute

August 6, 2007· Filed under Travel, Uncategorized

Are you part of a family that plans out vacations well in advance? Do you research rates, hotel recommendations and map out your activities? That would just make too much sense for this family!

We are planning on taking a few days vacation this week, but up until a few hours ago, we didn’t know when we were leaving, where we were going, or where we were going to stay!! The lack of planning always stresses me out, but looking back on past trips that were formulated on the fly, we always have fun.

A few years ago we waited until the week before to plan our trip to Orlando and we lucked out BIG time. We were able to stay at the Hilton Grand Vacation Club near Disneyworld - a two bedroom suite that slept 6 (we had my cousin with us) was only $150 a night - a steal for what we got. The resort was gorgeous and we had a great time.

Then there was the year that we were supposed to go to Florida and they got a hurricane or three. Instead we headed aimlessly towards Hershey, PA and spent a day there enjoying Hershey Park then headed up toward Mystic, CT. That was a lot of fun until I broke my ankle, but hey, what’s a vacation without some drama?

Last year we decided to go to New York City at the last minute and ended up with a great rate at the Doubletree in Times Square. The girls and I lived it up at the American Girl Place while the boys took in fire stations, the Intrepid museum and Ground Zero. We stopped at the Borgata in Atlantic City for a night on the way home and then Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.

And what about this year? We finally decided we are going to Pittsburgh. We have family there but we are going to stay downtown this time so we have easy access to the zoo, the science center, and such. Who knows what other adventures we’ll find along the way? We always manage to have fun.

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Ireland Part 5 - On the Road to Inchydoney

March 16, 2007· Filed under Travel

This may be one of my favorite photos of all time. We were driving from Kinsale out to Inchydoney for lunch one day and just had to stop to take this photo.

This post is part of my St. Patrick’s Day series of photos from our travels.

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Ireland Part 4 - Cobh

March 15, 2007· Filed under Travel

Just a short drive or train ride from Cork, is the very famous port town of Cobh. Built on a hillside, the houses and buildings are colorful and full of character. Right in the middle of it all is the stunning St. Coleman’s Cathedral which is full of gorgeous stained glass and history.

Speaking of history, Cobh is a small town with a lot of history. The very first emigrant (Annie Moore) to sign in at Ellis Island in New York sailed out of Cobh. It is also the last port of call for the infamous Titanic on its maiden voyage. The Lusitania also sailed from Cobh prior to being sunk off the coast of Kinsale by the Germans - an event that contributed to the U.S. joining the war.

This is part 4 of my Ireland series in honor of St. Patrick’s Day. See Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

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Ireland Part 3 - Blarney Castle

March 14, 2007· Filed under Travel, Wordless Wednesdays

For Part 3 of my Ireland series, I give you the world famous Blarney Castle - home of the even more famous Blarney Stone and all of the legends that go with it. And yes, I have kissed it.

So you lay down on your back and arch backwards to kiss that. Those three bars and some one holding your feet are really all that keep you from falling through to the ground. I kissed the Blarney Stone when I was 13, but the day we went it was so wet and windy I wasn’t going to risk it again.

This post is also part of Wordless Wednesday.

Ireland Part 1 and Part 2

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Oysterhaven Centre, Kinsale, Ireland

March 13, 2007· Filed under Travel

Part 2 of my Ireland series in honor of St. Patrick’s Day. Here is a view of the bay at Oysterhaven taken from the front door of our cottage.

In the early 90’s my brother and I visited our Grandparents in Ireland for two weeks. I was 21 and my brother was 14. We rented bicycles and rode all over the country side. Each morning we got up and rode out to Oysterhaven Centre, where we took wind surfing lessons.

In 2006, the entire family met up at the Oysterhaven Centre for a week to celebrate my Grandparents’ 60th wedding anniversary. Oysterhaven has 8 self-catering cottages that were perfect for families. They are clean and basic, and each one sleeps 7 comfortably. You have access to all the Oysterhaven programs, the water, and plenty of open space for the kids to run.

And with a view like that, is it any wonder my kids didn’t want to come home?

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