I am looking for suggestions for a long weekend (Thursday-Sunday) getaway in October (the weekend before Halloween). This is without kids (first time in 9 years!!) for a 10th anniversary gift to ourselves. We both love the beach, but I know it could be storm season in a lot of southern/Carribean locations at that time of year - we only have a few days, so I'd like to choose somewhere that good weather is a probability. We'd be willing to go international, but not too far because I don't want travel time to seriously cut into my lounging time. We'd also be interested in thinking about a southwestern location - we used to live in Phoenix and loved it - but seem stuck for ideas. We're not big sports people, but some activities/entertainment would be great. We have some money to use for this, but not a huge amount. Maybe an all-inclusive resort would be our best bet? I know this seems like I've never traveled before, which is not the case, but we have family all over the world and always go to visit them so we never have to work out these details. This time we're purposely not going to go to see family - this is just for us! :)
Any insight or ideas would be so appreciated. Can you recommend a specific place/resort? Where would you go for a 4-day vacation?
This isn't the beach, but my husband and I have gone to the wine country in California (Napa/Sonoma) and it was awesome! The wineries are beautiful and the food there is phenominal. We also drove to the redwood forests and went hiking for a day and then to the coast for dinner on the water. It is a wonderful, romantic trip that can be done in a long weekend without feeling rushed. Wherever you go, I hope you have fun! I'm jealous! ;-)
Hi K.---For me, I think I would stay a bit closer to home for a 4 day weekend. Otherwise, you will spend nearly 2 of those days travelling.
Start looking around your area for great b&b's, somewhere near something fun like vineyards. I live in Michigan and my husband and I have decided to take weekend getaways exploring harbor towns and lighthouses, first in Michigan and then we'll expand to the rest of the great lakes.
There is probably no end of ideas...just let your imagination run wild. Good luck and have lots of fun. D.
If you like wine, the wineries in VA are awesome, and there are great romance packages with bed and breakfasts - the colors that time of year would be great and you could drive if you wanted to. Check out www.virginiawine.org.
Cheers,
C.
In Florida If your looking for water Florida keys are great. Also Ft. Lauderdale Bch. You can stay at the marriot that has a walkway tothe beach but a nice pool on the otherside. Great shops and great places to eat. The west coast of Florida Tampa treasure Island is great. You can actually sit on the dock eat dinner and watch the porpouses(sp, to early to spell rightlol) swim by. How far do you want to go from home. Rhode Island and Main have lovely seaside places that are really nice. NYC of course is amazing from the broadway shows to the parks. One year I went to Chicago and stayed right over the river. It was a Days Inn I believe. I know you think cheap but it really wasnt. Just make sure you make your dinner reservations early.
Aruba. Weather is always perfect and they do not get hurricanes. They are too far south (I think that's what I remembered as to why they do not get them). The Island is beautiful. The weather is always the same, sunny and warm. The people are very friendly. We live in Chicago and we flew out in the morning and we were there by the afternoon (before check-in). Look in to Apple Vacations for a package deal. They have great all-inclusive hotels and will bundle air and hotel for you. We did not rent a car, except for one day. Didn't need to have one except for one day because we wanted to go to the other side of the Island. When you book with Apple they take care of transportation to and from your hotel as well as everything else. We stayed at the Tamarjin (sp?) it is a Divi Resort that includes another hotel and all of it's ammenities. Since we had two hotels in our package, we had several restaurants and bars to choose from that were all included in one price. It's a smaller resort, but that is what we like. Right on the beach. So nice. Whatever you pick, have a great time.
Take a short cruise. New York has plenty. Go to cheapcaribbean.com. The have lots of 4-day getaways that include airfare. I would recommend their 99 hour weekend sales (99 hours is how long the sale lasts).
Good luck to you and yours.
San Diego. The weather is usually beautiful in October, you are close to the beach, plenty of shopping and entertainment, museums, walk around the zoo and balboa park to enjoy the nice weather. The gaslamp quarter is fun, Horton Plaza has shops and some good restaurants, and check out a place called Extraordinary Desserts.
If I had four solo days with my husband in late October, I would head straight to the Epcot Food and Wine Festival in Orlando. We went last year and had a great time. Very non-crowded Disney time, the food was phenomenal! I'm jealous:)
Last year we visited Santa Fe, New Mexico. It's a beautiful little romantic town with many things to see. I love the St. Francis Cathedral and Loretto Chapel. There are many nice restaurants, art galleries, local artist of all sorts, clothing stores. Whether you are a shopper or not, It's a good place to just walk around. I suggest going to the visitors bureau if you would like to go on a hike outside the city. I think Santa Fe would be perfect for a mini holiday.
Happy 10th Anniversary and many more!
Blessings.....
not in any particular order:
Chicago
New Orleans
New York
Napa Valley
Destin (might be too cool at the end of October) but beautiful beaches and water.
Miami
Newport, RI
Check out their tourism website... we went for 5 days and it was AMAZING!
There are a lot of great all inclusive resorts in Cabo San Lucas. Although check to see if you are able to get in the ocean. There are only certain places you are allowed to because of the strong undertow. We didn't know that when we vacationed there. Scottsdale or Palm Springs was always one of my favorite places to go. Sanibel or Marco Island in Florida are beautiful places. And Mackinac Island (in Wisconsin I think??) looks like a fun and romantic little place to go. I have also heard Belize is a really great tropical place to visit. Good luck! Sounds like a lot of fun!!
A.
Personally, at that time of year I would go either to Williamsburg, VA or Disney. I know that might seem crazy, but my husband & I went to Disney by ourselves several years ago & it was the most fun week ever! Williamsburg is close enough that you guys could drive & not lose a chunk of your time travelling, but the fall colors will be amazing. There's Busch Gardens right there, a TON of B&B's, and Colonial Williamsburg is amazing.
