It’s… summer, summer, summertime… so we’ve got vacations on the mind. Whether you are currently planning a trip, looking for ideas, or daydreaming about an already planned trip; you are going to enjoy this list.
We asked our moms to share the best vacation spot they’ve visited.
Read on for some major vacay inspo.
Holly’s current status: daydreaming about private villas in Indonesia!
Indonesia was a fantastic place to visit. They’re still working at rebuilding tourism due to a terrorist attack so visitors can go out to eat and get drinks for around $18. 5-Star private Villas ran around $97. A private driver for a week is $20 (total). The Ubud Monkey Forest is a must!
Julie can’t wait to take the kids back to Costa Rica!
We visited Costa Rica for my husband, Mike’s, 30th birthday. At the time, I was five months pregnant with our oldest son. We stayed at the Riu Palace. It was very nice but after seeing the sites, I wish we’d stayed somewhere less ‘touristy’. I much rather enjoy eating local cuisine as opposed to resort food.
There were so many things to do. We booked the trip before I was pregnant and had intended to do a canopy tour, zip lining, natural hot spring, horseback riding, and the works. When we found out I was pregnant, we had to scale back a bit (especially on the all-inclusive booze) but we still found tons to do. We went deep sea fishing, took a bus tour of Nicaragua, and had surf lessons. The surf company really went above and beyond to accommodate my uncomfortable pregnant self. I highly recommend them: Point Break Surf out of Playa Grande! We talk constantly about taking our kids back one day.
Kimberly’s Family Vacay to Myrtle Beach for the win!
Myrtle Beach, SC is our favorite place to vacation. We’ve made it a tradition to vacation there every year with our family. We love that it’s family friendly and has beautiful beaches. Visiting and dining at the Boardwalk At The Beach is one of our favorite things to do when we’re not seaside. We highly recommend renting a beach house or condo! Airbnb has great deals!
Check out the Santa Ynez Valley if you love wine as much as Claire does!
Believe it or not, Napa and Sonoma aren’t the only places in California known for wine. Santa Barbara County also has amazing wines. The Santa Ynez Valley area is where you’ll want to go for wine.
We booked a shuttle tour with Wine Edventures. Your tour guide will tell you about the history of wine in California and you get to experience a few different vineyards where you can go behind the scenes, taste wine, learn about winemaking and even meet some owners.
We stayed at the Hilton Santa Barbara Beachfront Resort (formerly the Doubletree Fess Parker Hotel) about 45 minutes south in Santa Barbara. Our room had glass doors opening up to an ocean view, and the beach is right across the street.
Stephanie loved her couple’s getaway near Lambertville & New Hope, PA!
For a couple’s getaway…my husband and I did a 2 day/1 night getaway to the Woolverton Inn, located in Stockton, NJ. You may think, where the heck is that?! It’s located right by Lambertville & New Hope, PA. We went around Christmas time and stayed in one of the cabins in Woolverton Inn…it’s a bed and breakfast so we would take a short walk to the main house for breakfast (which was delicious). The owners are so sweet and know so much about the area.
There are wineries nearby and many shops and antique stores. We decided to walk around Lambertville during the day, and head to Peddler’s Village at night. Since it was around Christmas, there was a beautiful display of lights everywhere. The next day we did some shopping. (we also took a nap our first day there!) It’s the perfect getaway to just relax. In the warmer weather, you could also do some hiking right on the property…it’s very beautiful.
New Orleans, more than just boozing… who knew? Chelsea didn’t!
Prior to celebrating anniversaries, we would go to Puerto Rico every year. Besides our honeymoon to Greece (Santorini & Athens), we have taken long weekends on our anniversary for a little getaway. Our last trip was to New Orleans & it did NOT disappoint. We drank, and ate, and drank, and drank some more. BUT, there’s so much more to New Orleans than drinking.
One of my favorite things we did while we were there was a plantation tour. I’m a sucker for old houses with character and Oak Alley was amazing! There is a cool story behind the house, the plantation, the Mississippi River, and pineapples, yes, pineapples. Apparently, way back in the time of traveling via horse and buggy, when guests would arrive at someone’s house (usually someone who was wealthy), they’d be greeted with cut and cold pineapple. It was refreshing after a long journey. However, when a guest overstayed their welcome, they would find a whole pineapple on their bed. {Time to go Phyllis!} You’ll see decorative pineapples on houses now, and it originated as a sign of wealth. We stayed at an awesome (and also historic) hotel, Omni Royal.
We didn’t stay on Bourbon Street but were only a few blocks away. We were close to the Mississippi River and didn’t have time while we were there, but wanted to do a steamboat ride. While in New Orleans, we ate good food, drank good drinks, danced, slept in, laid by the pool, and did the plantation tour. We did one night on Bourbon Street and that was good enough for me!
Where do you love to vacation? We can’t wait to know your favorite vacay spots. Let us know in the comments!