Yes, “vanilla hotels” may not be the “sexiest” use of points in the travel-hacking universe, but they can often provide massive outsized value, especially when you just need a place to crash …
California
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After my prior stay at the upscale and trendy Kimpton Hotel Palomar San Diego, I opted to try another IHG hotel located in downtown San Diego. This time, I chose the Holiday …
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During my stay at the Hyatt Regency La Jolla At Aventine in San Diego, I chose to cash in one of my Club Access Award passes for access to the Regency Club. …
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Earlier, we took a look at several Category 4 (or below) “vanilla” Hyatt properties in the San Diego area, including Hyatt Place San Diego/Vista-Carlsbad and the Hyatt House San Diego/Carlsbad. We’ll keep …
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After my previous review on the Hyatt House San Diego/Carlsbad, I’m keeping the “vanilla” Hyatt hotel theme going with the Hyatt Place San Diego/Vista-Carlsbad. Let me be clear, “vanilla” hotels are not …
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On a recent weekend road-trip to San Diego to visit the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, we needed a quick place to stay for the night that wouldn’t eat a ton of …
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ECOTRAVELWORLD TRAVELS
Visiting And Hiking The Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve During A Super Bloom (Lancaster, CA)
The word “heavenly” isn’t quite adequate as description for a California Poppy Super Bloom. This rare event happens only about once every 10 years, so when it happens it’s a major event. …
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EVERYTHING ELSELANDTRIP REPORTSTRIPS & EXPERIENCES
Visiting The Wrigley Memorial & Botanical Garden (Avalon, Catalina Island, CA)
At the conclusion of an epic 5 day/4 night backpacking trip hiking the Trans-Catalina Trail, we were beat. We found ourselves standing at the Hermit Gulch Campground in Avalon trying to decide …
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ECOTRAVELEVERYTHING ELSELANDMAPSTRIP REPORTSTRIPS & EXPERIENCESWORLD TRAVELS
Hiking The Trans-Catalina Trail (TCT): Part 5 – Black Jack Campground To Avalon (Catalina Island, CA)
Our fourth day on the TCT marked a restful return to form on the Trans-Catalina Trail (TCT). Although several bison rumbled through Black Jack Campground periodically through the night, we awoke before …
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ECOTRAVELEVERYTHING ELSELANDMAPSTRIP REPORTSTRIPS & EXPERIENCESWORLD TRAVELS
Hiking The Trans-Catalina Trail (TCT): Part 4 – Little Harbor to Black Jack Campground (Catalina Island, CA)
When we last left off (Day 3 on the TCT), we had made great time hiking to Little Harbor so we decided to push on through and try and make it to …
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ECOTRAVELEVERYTHING ELSELANDMAPSTRIP REPORTSTRIPS & EXPERIENCESWORLD TRAVELS
Hiking The Trans-Catalina Trail (TCT): Part 3 – Two Harbors To Little Harbor Campground (Catalina Island, CA)
At just 5.9 miles, day 3 on the Trans-Catalina was supposed to be our “easy” day. As such, we slept in a bit, before hitting the showers and then grabbing some proper …
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ECOTRAVELEVERYTHING ELSELANDMAPSTRIP REPORTSTRIPS & EXPERIENCESWORLD TRAVELS
Hiking The Trans-Catalina Trail (TCT): Part 2 – Parsons Landing To Two Harbors With Starlight Beach (Catalina Island, CA)
After a nearly perfect first day on the Trans-Catalina Trail (TCT), we were ready to tackle our second day. The plan was to start off “Day 2” with an early morning side-trip …
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ECOTRAVELEVERYTHING ELSEMAPSTRIP REPORTSTRIPS & EXPERIENCESWORLD TRAVELS
Hiking The Trans-Catalina Trail (TCT): Part 1 – Two Harbors To Parsons Landing (Catalina Island, CA)
The Trans-Catalina Trail, otherwise known as simply the “TCT”, is an epic California backpacking adventure that treks from one end of Santa Catalina Island to the other. During this gorgeous but challenging …
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In 2019, I finally made my way out to Orlando, Florida, to do what I should have done long ago – visit Walt Disney World. Here are some interesting photos I was …
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ECOTRAVELEVERYTHING ELSELANDMAPSTRIP REPORTSTRIPS & EXPERIENCES
Hiking The Heart Rock Trail To The Waterfall (Lake Arrowhead Area, CA)
After the previous night’s stay at The Lake Arrowhead Resort and Spa, it was time to head out and explore one of the more popular trails in the Lake Arrowhead area, the …
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CARDS, POINTS, & MILESLANDREWARDS, DEALS, OFFERSTRAVEL-HACKINGTRIP REPORTS
Review: Lake Arrowhead Resort And Spa, Autograph Collection (Lake Arrowhead, CA)
So there I was, trying to figure out how best to use up my free annual night certificate courtesy of the Marriott Bonvoy Business credit card from American Express when I stumbled …
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ECOTRAVELEVERYTHING ELSELANDMAPSTRIP REPORTSTRIPS & EXPERIENCESWORLD TRAVELS
Hiking The Mirror Lake Loop Trail (Yosemite National Park, CA)
Well-rested from the night at the famed Wawona Hotel, and still on a high from hiking the Mariposa Grove Trail to Wawona Point the afternoon before, it was finally time to check …
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Just like we did in 2018, here’s a look back at the year in aerial photos. The FHOP Top 20 Aerial Photos Of 2019 #20: The Islands Of Krabi #19: Tampa Bay …
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ECOTRAVELLANDTRIP REPORTSTRIPS & EXPERIENCESWORLD TRAVELS
Review: The Wawona Hotel (Yosemite National Park, CA)
Having just hiked the magical (and freshly redeveloped) Mariposa Grove Trail to Wawona Point, I set off to my abode for the night, the Wawona Hotel. Review: The Wawona Hotel (Yosemite National …
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ECOTRAVELEVERYTHING ELSELANDTRIP REPORTSTRIPS & EXPERIENCESWORLD TRAVELS
Hiking The Mariposa Grove Trail To Wawona Point (Yosemite National Park, CA)
Although I had been to the Mariposa Grove in Yosemite National Park several times before, I hadn’t been there since the National Park Service completed its restoration project of the grove in …