USA

This fall, we spent a long weekend in Vermont to see the foliage. The Equinox Resort is the place to stay when visiting Manchester, the last stop on our itinerary. Here’s my review of the Equinox Resort Vermont. Booking the Equinox Resort with Points The Equinox Resort is a Luxury Collection property that can be…...

Living in Massachusetts, we haven’t always made the best use of our beautiful surroundings in New England. Since travel is not advisable during the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve started taking more quick trips in the area. Over Columbus Day Weekend, we drove up to Vermont to check out the foliage. Here’s the perfect three day Vermont…...

This fall, we spent a long weekend in Vermont to see the foliage. On our first full day in Vermont, we drove up to Burlington and stayed at the Hilton Burlington Waterfront. Here’s my review of the Hilton Burlington Waterfront. Booking the Hilton Burlington Lake Champlain with Points The Hilton Burlington Lake Champlain can be…...

Nantucket is one of the most charming places to visit. With its historic downtown, shingled houses with white trim, and miles of coastline, you can spend a whole summer exploring the island! Here’s the ultimate Nantucket travel guide with tips on what to do, see, and eat. How to Get to Nantucket You have two…...

Nantucket is the perfect place to escape for a quick getaway. During our four day stay, we quickly realized visiting Nantucket has more to offer than just relaxing at the beach. For those interested in more traditional sightseeing while on vacation, Nantucket boasts three lighthouses that are still in operation and are all worth a…...

Click for more posts from our Midwest road trip! South Dakota isn’t usually on the top of people’s bucket lists. Once I started researching Mount Rushmore for our Midwest road trip, I was excited by how much there is to do in South Dakota and the Black Hills. Here’s your perfect three day South Dakota…...

Click for more posts from our Midwest road trip! After visiting South Dakota on our Midwest road trip, we realized we’d be driving past Niagara Falls on our way home. I went when I was little, but don’t remember a thing! While the Canadian side is off-limit to Americans due to COVID-19, we figured we…...

Growing up in Massachusetts, I’ve always gone down to the Cape at least once a summer. However, I don’t make it out to Nantucket very often. With our trip to Ireland canceled due to COVID-19, we decided to spend the week in Nantucket. Here’s your perfect four day Nantucket itinerary. Day 1: Arrive and Hit…...

Click for more posts from our Midwest road trip! We visited Niagara Falls as the last stop on our road trip and ended up staying at the Holiday Inn Niagara Falls – Scenic Downtown. While the location was perfect, the rest of our stay left a lot to be desired. Here’s my review of the…...

Once you get outside the main town of Nantucket where the ferries dock, you may think the island is pretty isolated. If you want to take that a step further, Great Point Lighthouse is the perfect place to visit. Great Point is located on the island’s northernmost tip and it’s only accessible by 4×4 vehicle.…...

Click for more posts from our Midwest road trip! I hadn’t heard of Custer State Park until I started planning the itinerary for our Midwest road trip. I knew there had to be more to do in the Black Hills of South Dakota than Mount Rushmore. With over 71,000 acres of trails, scenic roads, and…...

Click for more posts from our Midwest road trip! Mount Rushmore is one of those iconic American landmarks you hear about growing up. The problem is, it isn’t easily accessible from most parts of the country. When we started planning our Midwest road trip, I initially thought maybe it wasn’t worth driving 27 hours just…...

Click for more posts from our Midwest road trip! Mount Rushmore was the farthest point on our Midwest road trip. With plenty to due to in the Black Hills of South Dakota, we decided to spend two nights in the area. I chose Keystone as our home base due to its proximity to Mount Rushmore,…...

Click for more posts from our Midwest road trip! Badlands National Park is like another world. The change in topography is especially drastic after driving through the flatness of the Great Plains for a majority of eastern South Dakota. After stopping at Fallingwater in Pennsylvania and visiting family in Indianapolis, Badlands National Park was the…...

Click for more posts from our Midwest road trip! I admittedly hadn’t heard of Fallingwater until this year. My husband and I had a week of vacation and decided to do a road trip since we didn’t feel safe flying during the pandemic. Our ultimate goal was Mount Rushmore but we made a few stops…...

I don’t stay in airport hotels often, but occasionally find the need after a late flight. Last fall, we spent one night at the Renaissance Chicago O’Hare, a suites only hotel. Located about 3.5 miles from O’Hare, the Renaissance is a great choice if you need to stay near the airport. Here’s my review of…...

This July, we planned to fly to California for a wedding in Napa. After the wedding, I had the perfect Highway 1 itinerary all ready to go with stops in Big Sur, Santa Barbara, and LA. Thanks to COVID-19, the wedding was moved to next year, Ventana Big Sur canceled our reservation, and we generally…...

Back in March right before COVID shutdowns, my husband and I spent three days in San Diego. A highlight of the trip was our hike to Potato Chip Rock. Potato Chip Rock is an aptly named natural rock formation at the summit of Mt. Woodson in nearby Poway. It’s more of a Pringle than a…...

Earlier this year, we visited Chicago for a night before heading to the suburbs to visit family. I chose the Hilton Chicago because I had a Hilton Spend the Night on Us voucher I needed to use from our timeshare presentation in Las Vegas. The voucher only covered $200 of the $270 nightly charge, but…...

After COVID-19 put a damper on most of 2020, we started going a little stir crazy. I’ve been working from home since March which means most days, I don’t see anything but the inside of my two-bedroom apartment. In June, we decided to drive from Boston to Lake George, New York for a weekend getaway.…...

This past March, my husband and I visited my sister for a few days in San Diego. There are a lot of points options in San Diego, and admittedly, I went with the cheapest choice. While the Hotel del Coronado was tempting, I knew we’d be out exploring and not spending much time in the…...

Back in March, my husband and I were lucky enough to visit my sister in San Diego the weekend before things with COVID-19 really hit the fan. We had no idea this would be our last air travel for the foreseeable future. If you’ve never visited San Diego, there’s a ton to do inside and…...

If you have an Instagram account, it’s likely you’ve seen photos of Antelope Canyon. This stunning slot Canyon is located on Navajo land in Page, Arizona. It’s not the easiest place to get to and since we were in Las Vegas for a Hilton Grand Vacations timeshare presentation, I figured why not take a day…...

Las Vegas is like Disney World for adults. I’ve done the club thing in the past and was looking forward to visiting Las Vegas with my husband for a different kind of trip. We were actually in town for a Hilton Grand Vacations timeshare presentation and decided to make good use of our time in…...

We travel to New York City about once per year so I’ve tried out a few of the points and miles hotel options. I wanted to stay at the Conrad New York Downtown this time to take advantage of the Diamond perks like free breakfast. Since this property used to be an Embassy Suites, all…...

Time is really getting away from me. I got back from my honeymoon in mid-December, and I’m just finding the time to start posting my reviews and travel tips from my honeymoon to Japan, Singapore, and the Maldives. I figured I might as well start at the very beginning. The night before our Japan Airlines…...

I live in Boston, but recently got married at the Ritz-Carlton Boston so I got to spend two nights in a Luxury Suite. The Ritz-Carlton Boston is located on Avery Street across the street from Boston Common. Boston is pretty walkable, but this is a great location for accessing downtown, Back Bay, and the South…...

This past October, I took a weekend trip to New York City to visit some friends. I normally stay uptown at hotels like the JW Marriott Essex House. While it’s nice being near Central Park, most of my friends actually live downtown so it’s a bit of pain to head downtown to see them and…...

This summer, I spent one night in Anchorage, Alaska after an amazing cruise of Alaska’s Inside Passage. We decided to spend the night and relax a little before flying out early the next morning. I decided on the Sheraton mainly because I get free lounge access as an Amex SPG Business credit cardholder. Here’s my…...

This summer I went on an Alaskan cruise with my dad and sister as a last hoorah before starting my new job. It was a little stressful getting back from Italy and leaving for Alaska the next day (so much laundry!), but the vacation was well worth it. There are a lot of options for…...

This past March I was in Atlanta for a wedding. We booked our trip kind of late and missed out at the block of rooms at the W, so we found ourselves at the Aloft Atlanta Downtown. I’m still pretty new to Starwood’s portfolio but I’ve heard Aloft described as the W’s little sister hotel.…...

In February, I went to New York City to celebrate my anniversary with my boyfriend. We got a great deal on a room at the JW Marriott Essex House located on the southern tip of Central Park. Since we planned to see a Broadway play (The Present starring Cate Blanchett!) this was the perfect location…...

At the beginning of November, I sat anxiously at my work computer waiting for the clock to hit 11:30am. I was trying to get tickets to the Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and I didn’t want to miss my shot since I wanted this to be part of my Christmas present to my mom. By…...

This is the third and final post about my trip to California in September. I love changes in scenery when I’m traveling and this vacation had three unique segments. The first two parts were hiking and camping in Yosemite National Park and wine tasting in Napa and Sonoma. The last leg brought us to San…...

I’ve slowly grown to like (read: become obsessed with) wine. The progression from Franzia Crisp White at frat parties to Two Buck Chuck Cabernet in grad school really shows the strides my palate has made. But in all seriousness, I have been drinking more wine over the years and am starting to figure out what…...

Last month, my boyfriend and I spent a week in California. We split the trip up into three very different types of vacations: hiking and camping in Yosemite National Park, wine tasting in Napa and Sonoma, and sightseeing in San Francisco. I like to stay active on vacations so this was the perfect mix of activities.…...

I traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico for a wedding with my boyfriend and decided to add Vieques, an island 8 miles off the coast, to our itinerary. Vieques is known for its breathtaking beaches, shallow blue waters, and bioluminescent bay. I didn’t take full advantage of points and miles with this trip, but I…...