OT: WIll you please help me find a quickie trip?

[kwormann]

I am soooo NON decisive that I cant figure this one out. I think DH and I are going to go away for a few days over Thanksgiving. WE plan to leave Tuesday night or Wednesday morn and get back Saturday night. I have changed my mind a bazillion times where we should go.....Puerta Villarta, South Padre, San Francisco, Santa Fe....There are too many places I want to go. Does anyone have any ideas for a great trip in NOvember that wont cost both and arm AND a leg???

TIA

[cchhbb]

I've had some great November vacations in the past. One thing that I would recommend is if you don't mind traveling on Thanksgiving day, you can get some great bargins. The time you are talking about is some of the highest airfare that is out there.

I have been to Puerto Vallarta (one of my favorite places), Puerto Rico, Mexico City, Europe, and several US states during this time period. I also know a couple that flew to Hawaii on Thanksgiving day and stayed for a week.

[kwormann]

I guess I should have specified that we can only take a short trip because I am a teacher and those are the days I have off. Oh, and we live on Houston, so cooler weather might actually be a welcome change:) We live in so many different parts of the country and have been to so many places, I figure someone will have a brilliant idea!

:D :D :D

[aggie94]

One of my favorite cities is Seattle, and you'd definitely get some cooler weather there in November! There was a recent thread on great things to do/see in Seattle.

[funnybone]

Sometimes there are great last minute deals with the airlines, but I am not sure if that is the case over Thanksgiving.

Are you looking to fly or drive? Since that is an extremely busy time for airlines, if I were you, I would limit my destination to direct flight locations ONLY. That way, I wouldn't worry about missed connections, etc. Since you are in Houston, I am sure there are numerous places you can go to on a direct flight. A nice 3 or 4 day Bahamas cruise out of Miami is usually good (on NCL or Royal Carribean).

[mandarin2j]

Kim-

What a fun dilemma!

DH and I went to Vegas last Thanksgiving--we flew out the day after and returned on Sunday--and we had the time of our lives! The cheese factor is, of course, extreme, but the weather was nice. Not too hot, but clear and sunny, which is a very nice change from Oregon in November most years! The average temperature was in the 60s, and there are usually lots of cheap packages available, believe it or not. We were able to get a room at the Luxor & our flight for $325 per person.

San Francisco would be another nice trip--the weather was cool (50s and 60s) and clear when we visited my FIL there 2 years ago. On the day after Thanksgiving, we sat sipping champagne at Nieman Marcus as they lit up the Christmas tree in Union Square. Very fun! And there are tons of adorable boutique-style hotels in North Beach, near downtown, if you want to stay in the city.

Puerto Vallarta would be nice as well--I imagine the humidity would have decreased since it's not the rainy season in November. Flights would probably be pretty cheap from Houston, and accomodations can be as ritzy or low-key as you want them to be. There are lots of private condo owners in one of the nicer neighborhoods, Conchas Chinas, who rent to vacationers at a better rate (and without the hard sell timeshare baloney) than most all-inclusives. DH and I will be there in August & I'd be happy to grab a few pamphlets for you if you'ld like! :D

[ama47369]

Kim-

How fun! I love those spontanious, flexible type of vacations! I would suggest checking around on your preferred airlines websites to find which locations are being highlighted for special fares. I just purchased our tickets from Brisbane to Dallas for Christmas. We are flying to/from LAX because it was cheaper. And, got a great fare($135 RT flying American) to Dallas from LAX on Priceline, which seems good considering it's the holiday season.

Also, you might check out expedia.com. I liked it because it seemed to show the lowest fares and if one airline was offering a low price, you could usually find around the same fare for your preferred airline on this site. The only thing I did notice, is that the prices can vary dramatically based on what time of day you select. It doesn't just search for the cheapest time of day. So, you have to manually click on each time frame to see what the cheapest fare will be.

Oh, and the Sunday paper usually has cheap deals on all-inclusive vacations. And, the yahoo travel site is nifty cause it lets you see which dates are still available for the fare instead of just guessing.

Good Luck-

[Julia1Pin]

Vegas sounds like the way to go. The rooms are fairly inexpensive, as are most of the restaurants.

But I may be biased, I love vegas!!!!

[foodiedelite]

KWorkmann,

Wanting to keep the cost down, you may consider Santa Fe. It's one of my favorite quickie extended weekend getaways. With the architecture, it's reminds one of being in Spain and the food is always a pleasant adventure. I believe there's an archive on CL with recommended restaurants.

With such a short time you'll probably be concentrating more on R&R, so I won't mention some of my favorite places in Mexico.

Another trip, which will involve a little more travel time and $ is Napa Valley. It will be a little cooler and off season. You may be able to get a good deal on a delightful Bed and Breakfast. Again, a food lover's paradise!

I don't know which is more fun, the planning or the actual destination? Have fun! :)

[Mandy]

I would have to agree with mandarin2j. San Francisco would be wonderful. My hubby and I went there on our Honeymoon three years ago. We stayed at a hotel called Hotel Boheme in North Beach. That area was wonderful to stay in, we loved it! Check them out at: www.hotelboheme.com

Another thing you may want to do is go to a travel agent and have them price out several things for you. I found that people will have tons of ideas, but when it gets down to it the price is what will help them decide. You may want to book something soon if you're going to fly. Many flights are already selling out for that time.

[lanie]

Come here - our dollar works wonders for USofA'ers! Toronto is a great city and YOU CAN STAY WITH ME!!!!!!!!!!!

Elaine ;)

Seriously, Toronto is great, beautiful city, fantastic food, and it's CHEAP!

[mandarin2j]

Originally posted by Mandy
I would have to agree with mandarin2j. San Francisco would be wonderful. My hubby and I went there on our Honeymoon three years ago. We stayed at a hotel called Hotel Boheme in North Beach. That area was wonderful to stay in, we loved it! Check them out at: www.hotelboheme.com



That's so funny! My mom & I stayed there 4 or 5 years ago on a visit to SF. Kim, Mandy's right, Hotel Boheme is fantastic! It's cute, reasonably priced, and has a lot more personality than a chain hotel would. It has the added advantage of being right upstairs from the Stella Bakery, which has wonderful tiramisu & sacripantina (Italian wedding cake). Mom & I split a yummy snack from there every evening during that visit. You can load up on "garlic flavored with food" at the Stinking Rose (I love the name & the motto!), and if you feel like exercise, there's nothing like a ton of hill walking to keep you in shape, even with all the fantastic food options in the city. :D

[greysangel]

I love and am totally biased to New Orleans :D

The air fare always seems to be cheap, you don't need to rent a car, the food is fantastic and the weather in November will be beautiful!!!

Hubby and I have been there twice and we keep going back for more...it's got everything you could ask for in a vacation..beauty, sight seeing, relaxation, partying if you want it and FOOD GLORIOUS FOOD!!

JeAnne

[funnybone]

Originally posted by lanie
Come here - our dollar works wonders for USofA'ers! Toronto is a great city and YOU CAN STAY WITH ME!!!!!!!!!!!

Elaine ;)

Seriously, Toronto is great, beautiful city, fantastic food, and it's CHEAP!

Toronto is a great city, and because of the low CDN $, Americans sure get more for their buck. Plus, with it not being Thanksgiving in Canada, you would not find yourself in the same holiday rush as elsewhere. However, November can be cold.

Did you know that Toronto is #2 in Theater in the world, behind NYC!? Not too many Americans know that.

P.S. I am Canadian and grew up in the suburbs of Toronto, so I may be biased here.

[Kristi]

Kim, since you live in Houston and are looking for something affordable, have you thought about Austin or the Hill Country? This may be something you've done numerous times, but if not, that area is GREAT! There are so many wonderful outdoors-y things to do (hiking, biking, boating, running/kayaking on Town Lake, etc., etc.) and November would be fairly mild weather. Also, if you enjoy music, Austin's the place to be... not to mention great restaurants, bars, hotels/BBs. If you drove, you could spend more on hotel/restaurants. Just another idea...

Good luck! (We're trying to decide on a vacation spot for the first of September.)

[Beth H]

I would put another vote in for Vegas. Although holiday weekends often are busy and the strip hotels expensive, Thanksgiving is a major exception -- I think you can get pretty good deals on hotels and supposedly it is not as crowded. Vegas has great food and a lot of fun things to do. Plus, since you live in Houston you might be able to get decent airfare on Southwest Airlines.

[kwormann]

Wow...fabulous ideas! Can I go to all of them (this is my problem, BTW...)

Lanie, DH was in Toronto for a biz trip a few years ago and he LOVED it!

Kristi, I LOVE Austin! Just thought someplace we cant normally go to for a day trip might be in order!

Greysangel, N.O. would be a choice except he PROMISED me he'd take a biz trip there in the next few weeks and take me, so Ill be there then:)

Any thoughts on FLA? Scott loves the FT Lauderdale area. I was in FLA several times as a child to visit gradnparents and thought it was a BORING place, but he says its lots of fun when you're not staying in a retirement park!

[KValley]

Hi Kim,

Travelling as much as I do for business, I've gotten pretty saavy about looking for travel discounts. Here are some websites I use regularly. One thing I would suggest is to do your research on-line first, then book your air tickets with a travel agent (NOT on-line). This way you can scope out all the possible connections and travel times and not be dependent upon the travel agent (they don't always search all of the possibilities); also, once you find a fare on line, double-check with the airline website itself; book your lodging directly with the hotel- call the hotel, not an 800 reservation service and ask them point blank what the best deal is they can give you- often it's better than what is posted.

Sounds like a lot of work, but a couple of hours on-line can save you a bundle!

www.expedia.com
www.travelocity.com

both for airfares, hotels, rental cars

www.hoteldiscount.com

self explanatory!

www.stretcher.com/stories/970525a.cfm

this lists free or almost free attractions in each state

Finally, two recommendations: either the Oregon or Washington coasts- wild, empty, cheap and beautiful in the winter season, but of course I am biased- the Northwest is wonderful any time of year!; or Montreal and Quebec City. I was there last November. Quebec is enchanting- it's the next best thing to being in Europe. Montreal has excellent shopping and restaurants- the best classic French restaurant I've ever eaten in was indeed NOT in Paris, but Montreal! Quebec City is a world treasure.

[Kristi]

Another thought I just had--

We went to Cape Cod a couple of years ago in November (although it was the beginning of Nov.) for a four day trip. It wasn't crowded in the least... the weather was cool, but mild and the leaves on the trees were stunning... stayed in a couple of different B&Bs in different parts which were absolutely lovely... went horseback riding, whale watching, ate some marvelous dinners :cool:

Very relaxing and enjoyable!!

[kwormann]

ooohhhh, Cape Cod....I do get homesick for the fall color!

KValley...thanks for the websites. Im home today taking life easy.....I will check them out!

[funnybone]

One thought for Florida would be Key West. We stopped there with a cruise in March and it was wonderful. I would like to go back there again some day.

[cjm]

kwormann-just thought I might throw into the pot-a trip to San Antonio...you said you needed something close. DH & I have been there several times and enjoyed each and every trip. One year we went on Thanksgiving and saw the Thanksgiving/Christmas parade on The River. There is an amazing variety of things to see and do. We sayed at The Menger Hotel (fun). The weather was great and we always had good food (along the river and also found some great "locals" restaruants. If you are interested I'd be glad to share names.

[kwormann]

cjm, just got back from San Antonio for a weekend trip:)

We didnt have any money to travel when we were children so I havent been to many places and I want to go to all of them. The answer was almost HANDED to me! I went to bid4vacations.com and found a 3 night stay at ST.Petes Beach for 199 and SW had special rates to FLa for 79.00...so it looks like FL it is. Wwe are so excited to get away that we are going during my fall break the last weekend of Sep.

Thanks for all the ideas. They are actuall all places Ive been dying to go! :D

[Julie O]

If you have your mind set on Florida, I would consider Amelia Island. It's a village of bed and breakfasts. They also have some 5 star hotels.

You might want to check flight costs to Florida. Thanksgiving weekend is the beginning of their tourist season, so rates can go up a lot, depending on where you're going. I wouldn't go to Orlando. That's one of the busiest weekends for Mickeyland. You might be able to get some good condo rates for some of the costal cities. Naples would be another city to check out. (See earlier thread about Naples.)

Let me know if you'd like more information.:)

[kwormann]

We decided to go in Sep and SW air is offering special rates thru Sep 30 to FL. We are interested in looking at condos for maybe next year....do you have info on some? This trip we are going to St Pete Beach, but since we are planning on going to FL next year, Id be interested in info you have on other areas....especially in the Gulf Coast!

I may have asked you this before (forgive me if I have), but where in Indy? DH is from Carmel and I am from Muncie. We lived in Indy when we first got married.

Has Trader Joes come there yet? Ive been trying to get info to my mom.

:D:D:D

[gabbyh]

Kim,
Just so you know...your "in-decisiveness" inspired me! We just planned a trip to go to Florida for a w/e in August...who would want to do that??...anyway, now I will be spending my 50th b'day with my parents, sister, and my son and his fiancee...we also got great air fare to FL the day after Thanksgiving...we'll be going for a week then...don't know if this has been posted yet...but got our tickets here:
www.orbitz.com (I normally shop at www.lowestfare.com)
Thanks again...I think we'll be doing more of this!

[kwormann]

Gabbyh,
Im glad I inspired you. Even though this is a cooking board, we live in so many different places that its a good place for travel tips too!


ps..if you've never been to FL in August, it rains nearly everyday at 3pm for a short shower! (At least it used to when I used to visit G'parents as a child!!!)