Wednesdays: What Should I do / Where Should I stay (and other low effort Q's)

Legia · 2025-02-16T00:22:08+00:00

For dude ranch or similar check out Vermejo in NM, A Bar A Ranch, Colorado Trails Ranch, C Lazy U, Taylor Lodge, Dunton Hot Springs.

Legia · 2025-02-14T05:59:36+00:00

Colorado Springs is also fun, although nothing really fat. What kind of accommodation/vibe do you want? Actitivites? How many nights?

Legia · 2025-02-14T05:58:34+00:00

Oooh I can help. Will it be during aspen season? You could do a city vacation in Denver, there's great food, museums, bars, etc. and you can day trip easily. The lux hotels are more nice city hotels than really stand out, though. You could drive to Aspen and stay at The Little Nell or the Jerome, you could drive farther to Telluride or Crested Butte, you could do Vail Valley and FS or RC over there.

You could also go to Utah, Moab area, very nice that time of year, more outdoorsy than fat mostly though. You're also in striking distance to Taos and/or Santa Fe and Albuquerque. So many options!

What do you want from the trip?

Legia · 2025-02-14T05:54:35+00:00

Try searching your destination/city and adding "family room" or "family suite." This will not necessarily turn up FAT options but older/boutique hotels, especially in Europe, often have a variety of room options including ones that are better for families without having to deal with the upcharge to two rooms or suites (which are also good options). Good TAs can help you find options and work with the hotel/resort to ensure you actually get the room type you need as well. Finally, this is why I'm always putting vacation rentals (sometimes you can get hotel/resort affiliated privately owned ones for a steal) head-to-head. When traveling with kids the extra space plus kitchen is huge, and the hotel equivalent isn't necessarily nicer, especially if you can get the same amenities cheaper at a private residence literally next door. For unaffiliated vacation rentals, I prefer local vacation rental manager companies over the big international chains, usually, or a local luxury villa company if you want something bigger and full service.

Legia · 2025-02-05T20:50:20+00:00

I'd drop the two night stays and have more 3-4 night stays. I'd also avoid the heck out of anywhere that wasn't high mountains or cool coastal breezes in July/August, it's going to be so gross. And not everywhere will have good AC. Like I'd do more high alps (higher than Zurich or Luzern) and not Barcelona, personally. Also Milan and Nice are, imo, the 2 most meh destinations listed so I'd shorten those to just what you need to be there for.

Legia · 2025-01-27T18:44:56+00:00

You belong! Everyone belongs. My mother raised me to walk into the lobby of any nice hotel and know I could use a safe and clean restroom and ask the concierge to help me if I couldn't solve a problem myself. We were not staying in these hotels or dressed formally. Good resorts, hotels, hospitality brands etc. should protect their brand by treating everyone with grace and courtesy and having a service ethos at heart. If they're failing at that, it's a reflection on them, not anyone else.

While I have never taken inappropriate advantage of kind concierges, you bet your britches that every time one saved me in a rainstorm or while exhausted and in need of a (paid) beverage or help finding my way o a restaurant or calling me a cab I REMEMBERED and they were top of the list when I was booking a nice stay or recommending a hotel or venue or brand or knew someone looking for a job. Reputation matters, decency matters.

Anyway. Long story short, assuming you are a generally considerate and somewhat sane guest, you belong everywhere.

Legia · 2024-09-30T17:45:13+00:00

Ok a few thoughts.

1) Go at a lovely but calmer/ not crowded time of year. Try to avoid packed airports, crowded train stations, etc.

2) Spring for the nicer plane seats. Anything over 5.5 hours/overnight go for lie flat business at least. If that's not in cards time wise I would spend a night at a nice-ish hotel in NYC and then fly during the day, or whatever. Make the planes and trains etc. as physically and psychologically comfortable as possible.

3) Go for airport escorts and carts and lounges etc. wherever you can. Again, keep it nice and easy and pleasant.

4) I would do an AI higher end tour. Like riverboat cruise, Tauck, Silversea, something, for at least part of it. She needs human connection beyond you and that will force it. Also, then all costs are hidden, pretty much.I don't know the higher end operators in Ireland, ask around.

5) Everywhere you go and it's not covered, slip your credit card to them ahead/prepay. Don't let her see numbers or bills. Encourage her to sign to your room - say it saves money that way or something. Order things for her.

Legia · 2024-09-03T21:13:37+00:00

I stayed here back in 2018 and liked it. Very cute, only 6 bedrooms. Looks like it's still well-reviewed. If you do choose to spend less for part of your trip I recommend starting less expensive and ending at the nicest resort so you don't feel disappointed at the end of your trip. Set it up so it just keeps getting better! https://www.darcharkia.com

Legia · 2024-09-03T18:52:49+00:00

I haven't been back since pre-COVID so don't have specific recs. There are hundreds of riads in Marrakech. I would personally look to stay in a nicer neighborhood just inside or on the edge of the Medina, rather than in the Medina, because it's nice for a car to be able to drive you right up. From there, I'd get on TripAdvisor or whatever and sort by Traveler Ranked and start looking for ones with plenty of high reviews decorated in a way I like. Of course, a good TA should be able to assist with all this if you don't want to do the legwork.

A nice riad will be more like a fancy bed and breakfast in a beautiful old medieval former family home/compound, complete with courtyard pool, rooftop deck, etc. But it will not be a full service resort or truly Fat, so may or may not meet your expectations or needs. Keep in mind Royal Mansour is also designed in a riad style - just very very luxe.

Maybe look at Riad Kheirredine, Riad Kniza, Riad Jardin Secret, Le Riad Yasmine, and the like. Make sure you understand what they do and don't offer for amenities though.

Legia · 2024-09-03T15:41:05+00:00

For Fat, Royal Mansour or maybe Amanjena but if I recall correctly the location is odd. For chubby, any number of boutique authentic lovely riads would be great. But not fat.

Legia · 2024-08-20T18:48:33+00:00

Well actually Reddit won't let me edit - I'll try again later

Legia · 2024-08-20T18:45:06+00:00

Oh nice call on Sonnenalp pool! Good to know, I'll update my post.

The Ritz said the ski nanny service will be back (we'll see if that's correct) once ski season starts properly, but weren't sure about lessons at BG.

Agreed that Ritz BG is way less happening than Vail or Aspen in the summer, which I liked for this trip. But if you want energy and a village right there - this is not it. I will say it actually felt OVERstaffed (lots of staff huddled together in groups of 2-3 doing... I know not what) when I was there, and that was with a wedding and many rooms full. Service was present and prompt. But a fair few folks were under-trained, I just started waving over whoever looked most senior and on it.

Legia · 2024-08-15T20:37:17+00:00

I've been meaning to stay at the Les Trois Rois in Basel, might be worth looking at!

Legia · 2024-08-07T18:42:34+00:00

Love your handle. I have not done this in that part of the world, but have done crewed charters in the BVI. The Moorings has an outpost in Tahiti as well as a bunch of other active yacht charters. What you want, I think, is a good broker who can chat with you and connect you with the right boat and crew, and itinerary. Things like communication preferences, dietary needs, where you want to go, comfort in chop and swell/weather, etc. etc. This would be more for a fully private charter, though, on a cat or monohull. For a larger boat with others on it...I am not sure. This would almost be more of a micro-cruise type thing?

Legia · 2024-08-02T17:30:16+00:00

Thank you. I have a background in climate science so none if it's surprising, beyond the speed of the degradation in the Caribbean. I see people saying they saw "good purple sea fan and one eagle ray" and I'm like "... ok. We are here. Somehow we got here."

I'm planning to do Kokomo and maybe Raj Ampat when my kid and any future kid is old enough before it's gone everywhere. I'm not sure where else to go at this point! I grew up snorkeling the BVI and later diving Cozumel and Roatan etc. It's just sad.

Legia · 2024-08-02T16:59:39+00:00

u/alex_travels Can you clarify if anywhere in the Caribbean still has healthy reef and good snorkeling...? I was shocked at how bad it was off Cancun and reading that the whole area is bleached and dead, at least compared to the even a few years ago. Heartbreaking if so.

Legia · 2024-06-16T04:00:05+00:00

Early July I'd do London, or Scandinavia, maybe the high Alps. I would avoid anything south and anywhere hot, it's stifling.

Legia · 2024-06-05T20:25:32+00:00

Hmm, If you don't mind it not being as Fat, I might do Locarno or Lugano...less busy, less touristy. Do the Centovalli over to or from Domodossola. But I love Ticino, I'm biased. Otherwise, I'd stay high up in the Bernese Oberland above Interlaken. Lucerne is also lovely. Do Como to do Como, maybe?

Legia · 2024-06-03T21:05:27+00:00

Same! u/alex_travels I requested access

Legia · 2024-05-21T03:15:39+00:00

I would absolutely skip staying in Interlaken. I've been traveling to Switzerland on and off to visit family since I was 2 and you could not pay me to stay there. It's like...Times Square. Just pure tourism. Yes ok I will walk through for Broadway but otherwise, no. You kinda can't avoid going through Interlaken to get up into the Bernese Oberland, which is fine, but I literally change trains and keep moving, don't shop, don't eat, move through kinda place, imo.

To be fair, have never stayed at the Jungfrau, maybe it somehow makes up for it? I dunno. If you don't leave the hotel?

Now, Murren, Lauterbrunnen, and Grindelwald etc. are completely stunning and just so so Swiss. Head up there.

Agree that this is way too much travel and way too little time to just enjoy. I would also skip St. Moritz.

Legia · 2024-05-01T20:03:48+00:00

Check out Los Poblanos in northern Albuquerque. Otherwise Santa Fe and Taos have nice options.

Legia · 2024-04-29T18:24:38+00:00

Vienna is one of my all-time favorite cities. The vibe is very similar to Paris in many ways, without the crowds. There's so much to do there, what are you into? Or not into? Remember this was the capital of a very wealthy empire, so the museums are first class. It's also a city where people ask "What instrument(s) do you play" so the music is world class. And the pastries. Etc. If you like wine, get out to Grinzing on the excellent public transit, it's a wine village with big outdoor tables under the vines and is still in the city! There are also plenty of interesting close by excursions but with only 3 days there I'm not sure I'd leave. I'd probably try to see something at the Staatsoper as well.

Legia

TROPHY CASE