I posted this on Facebook a while back but am posting this here as our plans are firming up.
My wife and I are going to Washington DC next week. We will be there for 3.5 days. We have already booked the following:
1. White House tour
2. Nighttime monuments tour
3. Air & Space Museum
I have never been to DC before. I know there is a ton to see there. What would you put on the “greatest hits’ tour of DC if you were to visit for the first time?
Thanks!
One night I'd head down the new DC Wharf area to kick your feet up. I went here for a meal and a few drinks and it was a nice spot to be outside.
https://www.masonslobster.com/locations/washington-dc-wharf
https://whiskeycharliewharf.com/#!/cocktails
The whole area down there is nice though for a walkabout.
We are also planning a Hawaiian vacation for next year to replace to vacation we cancelled for Dec2020.Pearl Harbor USS Arizona Memorial such a stunning place to go. The Arizona still leaks oil today, when you go on the memorial you can see the oil floating in the water
Something tells me this would be hard to squeeze into a 3.5 day trip to Washington DC. 😉
we hope to get to Pearl Harbor next year as part of the vacation we missed due to 2020.
Someone opens door mid flight, lucky no one hurt
Aloha!
Just booked a flight on Sun Country in August (yeah I know... what can possibly go wrong?). I haven't flown them since they became a budget airline. Had no intention of ever flying SC, but it was about $1,000 cheaper than Delta for a family of 4, even with the nickel and dime baggage fees they charge. With the ridiculous cost of flights this summer, it was either this or skip the vacation entirely.
Anyone fly SC recently? Please tell me we have at least a 75% chance of getting to and from our destination.
Anyone fly SC recently? Please tell me we have at least a 75% chance of getting to and from our destination.
We flew them to Tampa and back for the FF back in April. We had zero issues.
Do not like how this board is run?
Get your own board!
♃
Aloha!
We've been planning a trip to Giza but then I came upon the following review:
* * * * *
I was so excited to see the pyramids but upon arriving I was shocked to see so much sand covering the ground and surrounding area. Now I was under the impression they would clear this sand to make way for us but they did no such thing!!!! Instead we had to walk through the hot sand and it got all over me, ruining my new dress!!! Horrible customer service. Don't recommend!!
Don't wear a dress!We've been planning a trip to Giza but then I came upon the following review:
* * * * *
I was so excited to see the pyramids but upon arriving I was shocked to see so much sand covering the ground and surrounding area. Now I was under the impression they would clear this sand to make way for us but they did no such thing!!!! Instead we had to walk through the hot sand and it got all over me, ruining my new dress!!! Horrible customer service. Don't recommend!!We're for sure not going now. Thank goodness I did my research.
July of 2020 took my wife to the cabin and Glacier Nat'l Park... Same as July 2021... July of 2023 took the wife, 3 kids in my in-laws... This summer I'm taking my wife, 3 kids, in-laws, my wife's older brother (his wife and 3 boys) and my wife's younger brother (his wife and 4 kids). After last summer, my father-in-law asked to change the family reunion on my wife's side form Florida/Georgia to Glacier and my cabin. It was fun taking my wife for her first to to GNP in 2020 and last year for my kids and in-laws for their first time. It'll be all the rest of the families first time this July as well. Luckily I've wheeled and dealed with friends to use their cabins to sleep all 18 us comfortably over the reunion. Should be fun to have all of my wife's families together while all the kids are still at home. Though I've told my wife I'm looking forward to the reunion, but also we'll be glad when it's over. I'm feeling somewhat responsible that everything goes smoothly and everyone stays safe.
Keep your stick on the ice...
We've been planning a trip to Giza but then I came upon the following review:
* * * * *
I was so excited to see the pyramids but upon arriving I was shocked to see so much sand covering the ground and surrounding area. Now I was under the impression they would clear this sand to make way for us but they did no such thing!!!! Instead we had to walk through the hot sand and it got all over me, ruining my new dress!!! Horrible customer service. Don't recommend!!We're for sure not going now. Thank goodness I did my research.
I bet it's the same person who complained about the recent US solar eclipse happening during a school day. Won't anyone think of the poor children when they schedule these?
“When your best friend is the son of God, you get tired of losing every argument.”
― Christopher Moore, Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal
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We've been planning a trip to Giza but then I came upon the following review:
* * * * *
I was so excited to see the pyramids but upon arriving I was shocked to see so much sand covering the ground and surrounding area. Now I was under the impression they would clear this sand to make way for us but they did no such thing!!!! Instead we had to walk through the hot sand and it got all over me, ruining my new dress!!! Horrible customer service. Don't recommend!!We're for sure not going now. Thank goodness I did my research.I bet it's the same person who complained about the recent US solar eclipse happening during a school day. Won't anyone think of the poor children when they schedule these?
They would love to go skiing were it not for all the snow.
We were planning to go on a summer vacation, but decided the airfare was too much. We looked at several places, but airfare hovered around $750 per seat for each city we looked at. For a while Toronto was looking good, but I just didn't want to spend $3000 on airfare for relatively middle of the road type of trip.Just booked a flight on Sun Country in August (yeah I know... what can possibly go wrong?). I haven't flown them since they became a budget airline. Had no intention of ever flying SC, but it was about $1,000 cheaper than Delta for a family of 4, even with the nickel and dime baggage fees they charge. With the ridiculous cost of flights this summer, it was either this or skip the vacation entirely.
Anyone fly SC recently? Please tell me we have at least a 75% chance of getting to and from our destination.
We're hoping to do a family trip to Hawaii in March and didn't think the cost of a long trip this summer would allow us to also afford the big trip in the spring.
We're still doing a driving trip to Chicago and it looks like it'll run about $5-6k for the four of us for 6 days. Travel is getting expensive.
Hell, I am looking at a shitty room at Treasure Island Casino next month and it's about $300 per night. FML.
I was listening to this today in the morning James Cameron had some pretty scary information that he had viewed with Titan
https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/23/us/james-cameron-titan-submersible-ac360-interview/index.html
Aloha!
A terrible accident
https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/25/us/san-antonio-airport-worker-death/index.html
Aloha!
Just booked a flight on Sun Country in August (yeah I know... what can possibly go wrong?). I haven't flown them since they became a budget airline. Had no intention of ever flying SC, but it was about $1,000 cheaper than Delta for a family of 4, even with the nickel and dime baggage fees they charge. With the ridiculous cost of flights this summer, it was either this or skip the vacation entirely.
Anyone fly SC recently? Please tell me we have at least a 75% chance of getting to and from our destination.
I flew it back from NoLa...it was fine but I works rather avoid it.
Aloha!
Looking for a hotel in Boston and don't really know where to start. I know a lot of GPL'ers traveled there in 2022 for the Frozen Four. Does anyone have any recommendations I can check out? I'm hoping to not have to rent a car while there, so somewhere walkable or within easy distance of public transportation would be a bonus. It's a family vacation with teenagers, so I want something clean and in a safe area.
We stayed at the Double Tree near the Tuft's U hospital for the FF and it was not a bad walk to various areas. The Orange Line (IIRC) was 1-2 blocks from the hotel so getting anywhere was easy.
Several years ago my wife and I stayed at the Back Bay Hilton. Also easy walking to a fun area & Fenway but I don't recall taking the train as much when we stayed there. We took Uber/Lyfts or a cab to the airport on both trips, seemed like a lot of transfers to get to Logan and the ride was not super expensive.
The Boston Cream donuts at Bova's Bakery in the North End....OMG....I still dream about these. Have fun and enjoy, great place to visit!
“When your best friend is the son of God, you get tired of losing every argument.”
― Christopher Moore, Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal
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Last time in Boston, I stayed at Bricco. Decent restaurant that added a small hotel in back, down in the north end, about 3 blocks from Haymarket station (the big MTBA station in that part of town). Nothing too special (and no elevator to get up to the rooms, just a narrow stairwell) but it's in a location I like.
And, of course, Mike's Pastry in the North End.
B1G refs... corrupt, or just incompetent?
We stayed at the Wyndham in the Beacon Hill area and walked to most of the places, including the arena and faneuil hall. We also used the trolley tours as our taxi. When we were there for the FF, they had a special in which the 2nd day was free. ( not sure if they have that special going on in the summer ). The trolley hits most of the hot spots in Boston and you can exit and re-board at any time. We felt extremely safe the whole time when we walked from our hotel to various spots. The area around Fenway is also a neat area with a bar that is built into the outfield wall. I would list Boston as our 2nd favorite FF destination only behind Tampa.
I'm 50% factual and 50% sarcastic. When you get to know me, you will know which is which.
We were planning to go on a summer vacation, but decided the airfare was too much. We looked at several places, but airfare hovered around $750 per seat for each city we looked at. For a while Toronto was looking good, but I just didn't want to spend $3000 on airfare for relatively middle of the road type of trip.Just booked a flight on Sun Country in August (yeah I know... what can possibly go wrong?). I haven't flown them since they became a budget airline. Had no intention of ever flying SC, but it was about $1,000 cheaper than Delta for a family of 4, even with the nickel and dime baggage fees they charge. With the ridiculous cost of flights this summer, it was either this or skip the vacation entirely.
Anyone fly SC recently? Please tell me we have at least a 75% chance of getting to and from our destination.
We're hoping to do a family trip to Hawaii in March and didn't think the cost of a long trip this summer would allow us to also afford the big trip in the spring.
We're still doing a driving trip to Chicago and it looks like it'll run about $5-6k for the four of us for 6 days. Travel is getting expensive.
Hell, I am looking at a shitty room at Treasure Island Casino next month and it's about $300 per night. FML.
We found out a couple days before we traveled to Chicago that they were hosting a NASCAR road course downtown while we were there.... WTF. It made getting around the city a bit of a nuisance and added 100k extra people.
Meals were very expensive downtown. Breakfast ran about $130 for 4 people. Lunches (sandwiches or appetizers) were generally $150-$175 before tip.
added 100k extra people.
I have listened to several Nascar podcasts over the last week and they all said that 80% of the fans that attended have never attended a Nascar race. Also, that good chuck of those were considered "local" in that they lived within an hour driving distance to the race course.
It had to be a mess since this was the first of its kind race for Nascar and Chicago. It sounds like Nascar did an amazing job on their end but the City of Chicago mishandled a large part of their responsibilities. So once you made it into the racecourse you were fine but outside of that is where the problems lay I guess.
I am the official Iowa Hawkeye football fan of GPL!
That sounds awful.
I listen to the podcasts so I don't have to watch the actual races. I enjoy hearing about the racing but I couldn't sit and watch a 300-400 mile race anymore.
I am the official Iowa Hawkeye football fan of GPL!
A scary way to pass away
Aloha!
A scary way to pass away
My Jr. year in high school a classmate of mine died in a snowmobile/avalanche accident. Still 30 plus years later it still somewhat haunts me.
Keep your stick on the ice...
I’m pretty sure I’ve mentioned it before… Driving between Wolf Point, Mt. to Hungry Horse, Mt. on Hwy 2. After Montana, Minnesota is easily the second most license plates seeing traveling both ways.
Keep your stick on the ice...
Looking for a hotel in Boston and don't really know where to start. I know a lot of GPL'ers traveled there in 2022 for the Frozen Four. Does anyone have any recommendations I can check out? I'm hoping to not have to rent a car while there, so somewhere walkable or within easy distance of public transportation would be a bonus. It's a family vacation with teenagers, so I want something clean and in a safe area.
A few years ago we went to Boston and couldn't find anything under $500 downtown due to a huge convention going on at the time. We ended up staying in Needham (there are 3 hotels there right off I-95 - a Sheraton, Homewood, and Residence Inn). The hotel had a shuttle to the nearest train station (maybe a 5 minute drive) in Newton Highlands. We hopped on the train there and after a 20-minute train ride we were at the Park Street Station right in the heart of Boston (near the Granary Burying Ground). We walked everything from there, other than one day we took the train to Harvard and back. Then on the way back we'd just call the hotel when we were a couple minutes from the train station and the shuttle would come pick us up. It ended up being a great way to do it and I would imagine you could save a decent amount of money on the hotel. The Residence Inn and Homewood Suites also have bigger rooms, which can be nice for families.
My preference would still be to stay downtown, but if you don't want to stay downtown and/or want a cheaper hotel, what we did on that trip worked out great. The trains were all clean and full of "normal" people too (in case you have a fear of public transit).
Looking for a hotel in Boston and don't really know where to start. I know a lot of GPL'ers traveled there in 2022 for the Frozen Four. Does anyone have any recommendations I can check out? I'm hoping to not have to rent a car while there, so somewhere walkable or within easy distance of public transportation would be a bonus. It's a family vacation with teenagers, so I want something clean and in a safe area.
google Boston downtown hotels. An area will come up where you can plug in your dates. Location map and prices will come up. If it’s this summer, prices will be high. But yes, the trains are very easy. You can also stay further out and Uber in for the days of sightseeing. Boston is safe, I’ve never had an issue even traveling alone. It’s a HUGE popular tourist city, they don’t tolerate nonsense hurting that $$.
What have I got? I got no snacks and I got no respect.
Travis-age 6
Looking for a hotel in Boston and don't really know where to start. I know a lot of GPL'ers traveled there in 2022 for the Frozen Four. Does anyone have any recommendations I can check out? I'm hoping to not have to rent a car while there, so somewhere walkable or within easy distance of public transportation would be a bonus. It's a family vacation with teenagers, so I want something clean and in a safe area.
google Boston downtown hotels. An area will come up where you can plug in your dates. Location map and prices will come up. If it’s this summer, prices will be high. But yes, the trains are very easy. You can also stay further out and Uber in for the days of sightseeing. Boston is safe, I’ve never had an issue even traveling alone. It’s a HUGE popular tourist city, they don’t tolerate nonsense hurting that $$.
https://letmegooglethat.com/?q=downtown+boston+hotels
Thank you to all that responded. We booked a hotel this weekend. I'm still getting over the sticker shock. For hotels in Boston (and probably any big city, TBH), the "fees" on top of the published prices are absolutely insane. Almost as much as the room itself. We haven't even left yet, and I'm already bitter.
“When your best friend is the son of God, you get tired of losing every argument.”
― Christopher Moore, Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal
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That's just awful. I'm guessing that the only way for people to get to Kahului and the rest of the island is via the road past Kapalua. We drove that last year, it was not an easy drive.
Wow. Just sad. A beautiful, fun, historic town just gone.
Still cannot believe it.
went there on our honeymoon and had hoped to go back someday, Maui will never be the same. Such a tragedy, especially for the people who lost their homes and livelihoods, and just devastating for the cultural history of the area. I hope the big banyan tree survives.
this just came through in my email, a fundraiser for the island from bring hockey back, if any of you are familiar.
The latest update lists at least 36 people now dead on Maui. ?
36 people gone. That’s truly hard to believe. Devastating fire.
Cowgirl, the banyan tree is gone too. Everything is gone.
Ugh ?
That's just awful. I'm guessing that the only way for people to get to Kahului and the rest of the island is via the road past Kapalua. We drove that last year, it was not an easy drive.
I would imagine it's the only way unless they allow people leaving areas north (Kaanapali, Kapalula, etc) to leave on the highway the turns inland. No idea.
Apparently they had the initial fire contained (and maybe out) when a small area flared and by then the winds had gone wicked crazy and the rest was history. I heard one person being interviewed mention they knew it was really bad when a gas station blew up. Holy....36 people....
Mrs. GE and I were there this past March, it was an amazing city.....I can't imagine.
“When your best friend is the son of God, you get tired of losing every argument.”
― Christopher Moore, Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal
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I don’t think it’s been determined how it started, but I sure hope it wasn’t by some careless person.
I heard they were bussing people out from the Sheraton Blackrock. So that would mean everyone is going south on the main road. No way a bus is going around the north side.
Same street (From Twitter)
“When your best friend is the son of God, you get tired of losing every argument.”
― Christopher Moore, Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal
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The fires in Maui are devastating. Feel bad for all involved.
There's a forest fire 2 ridges over from our cabin. My folks are put on notice, but no real serious threat. There are other communities and structures that are at more at risk. It is the #1 fire of concern right now and there is 4 hotshot crews fighting the fire.
Keep your stick on the ice...
Coming back from Montana last month... bypass Bismarck, ND. if all possible. Not only is the interstate torn up, it seems like every city street in under construction as well. We made the mistake of pulling off to get dinner for the kids at McDonalds. What should've taken 15 minutes, turned into a 45 minute ordeal with all the construction... lol!!!
And I swear 94 has been under construction for the last 20 years across ND. It's always in bits and pieces. Though I can't recall the last time I crossed ND w/o parts of I94 being torn up.
Keep your stick on the ice...
Going to Kuaui next spring.
Anyone have any recommendations on must do places to eat, hikes, attractions, activities?
Any handy tidbits of info?
We will find our way to the breweries, distillery, meadery I’m sure. 😂
yea we know it’s a quieter island, that’s what we were looking for! 😁
Chickens everywhere.
Going to Kuaui next spring.
Anyone have any recommendations on must do places to eat, hikes, attractions, activities?
Any handy tidbits of info?
We will find our way to the breweries, distillery, meadery I’m sure. 😂
yea we know it’s a quieter island, that’s what we were looking for! 😁
We did this mountain tubing adventure thing and had a lot of fun:
https://kauaibackcountry.com/tubing/
Did a boat tour through Captain Andy’s and saw the Na Pali Coast. It was a good time:
Not sure if you’re a golfer, but here’s (in my opinion) the best course on the island:
Kind of fun to see Waimea Canyon also, it’s where a lot of Jurassic Park was filmed I believe.
Going to Kuaui next spring.
Anyone have any recommendations on must do places to eat, hikes, attractions, activities?
Any handy tidbits of info?
We will find our way to the breweries, distillery, meadery I’m sure. 😂
yea we know it’s a quieter island, that’s what we were looking for! 😁
We did this mountain tubing adventure thing and had a lot of fun:
https://kauaibackcountry.com/tubing/
Did a boat tour through Captain Andy’s and saw the Na Pali Coast. It was a good time:
Not sure if you’re a golfer, but here’s (in my opinion) the best course on the island:
Kind of fun to see Waimea Canyon also, it’s where a lot of Jurassic Park was filmed I believe.
thank you! Great ideas!
I love the Jurassic park movies so that would be fun!