Tag Archives: romantic travel

The World Outside Our Window- Vegas Penthouse Style!

The view is breathtaking and surreal. From where I sit peering through a modern picture window fitted with electronic graphic shades, I see the Eiffel Tower, a French Chateau, and a Pallazo (Italian-styled palace).

There are also Villas lining an emerald green lake featuring dancing fountains, lush and manicured pool gardens, and an enormous Ferris wheel.

That’s right! We’re in Vegas, baby!

Handsome hubby and I love to vacation. When not vacationing with our boys, we treat ourselves to little “getaways” to recharge our batteries and kindle our love.

Every married couple should take time to get away (or even have a stay-cation) to reboot and let loose like you did when you first met. Don’t neglect that time. It’s important.

My husband has the unique knack of combining frugality and luxury, a gift set that I love, and enjoy the benefits of throughout the year.

So, on this extended date night we spent two nights and one day in a fabulous suite at the Vdara hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.

The Vdara is an all-suite, non-gaming, non-smoking “boutique” hotel specializing in service to the corporate conference crowd. I’m not sure if the term “boutique” applies here because our suite is located on the 54th floor. Nevertheless, the staff have a very friendly, smaller hotel manner that helped us feel right at home.

The 100 (or so) yard driveway leading up to the Vdara sets a tone which communicates, “you are heading towards a special experience.” As we walked through the doors, I noticed the beautiful scent wafting throughout the lobby. My first thought was, “I need to make a trip to the gift store to see if they sell that scent.” My second thought was “how much did we pay for this?”

The stylish lobby was completely contemporary yet comfortable. The art, furniture and floral arrangements were understated, and did not scream “Vegas”. We checked in and headed up to our Penthouse suite which amplified my question, “how much did we pay for this?” The one bedroom, two bathroom, suite featured a beautiful living room, dining area and kitchenette with modern amenities of which we planned on taking full advantage.

How does a Pastor of a small church, with a wife who works 32 hours per week at a University afford such luxury?

We stopped at Trader Joe’s on our way in and purchased groceries which covered all of our meals for the trip. Meals which included, great cuts of steak, chicken marsala, pan roasted sweet potatoes and asparagus in our private dining room overlooking the city!

My hubby really appreciated my home cooked meal (along with the basketball game, and wifi).

On-site amenities include a lovely spa for your pampering pleasure, a salon, a gourmet market (which offers delicious take out or eat in meals and tantalizing deserts), a small pool area with private cabanas, beautiful restaurants (which looked good from the outside ) and a fitness center.

Here’s the kicker, the Vdara is part of the City Center Complex, a collection of luxury hotels and residences, astonishing dining and outrageous designer shopping. If you like to window shop and see what the designers are up to, view great art while strolling arm-in-arm with your sweetie, this temperature-controlled window shoppers’ paradise was created for you!

Look what I found…Handbag Heaven!!!!

If designer goods and fabulous handbags are not your bag, there are many other free experiences in Vegas. There is a wonderful conservatory and botanical garden at the Bellagio, a stroll to the iconic Welcome to Vegas sign, the wacky kitschy Freemont District, the Downtown Art District’s First Fridays’ (lots of art, vendors, and people watching). Not to mention the fun you and your husband can have in your room. We turned on the in room music and danced and laughed and…

Bellagio Botanical Garden & Conservatory

By now you are asking, “how much did you pay for this?”

Drum roll please:

Penthouse Suite: $250.77 per night (for two nights)

Groceries: $89.87

Jean Philippe Patisserie: $6.22 (two scoops of gourmet ice cream and two spoons!)

Tips: $35

Transportation: $90 (we drove from Santa Barbara in our Honda Accord)

Victoria Secret: $49 and some change

Total: $771.63

Time with my handsome hubby: PRICELESS!!!

We have done similar trips for less. We’ve stayed in rooms or suites in the Wynn, Bellagio and Trump hotels for similar prices. This weekend happened to be a three day holiday so the rates were a bit higher.

Of course you don’t have to go for a suite and your total bill will be even lower. We save our pennies, live modestly throughout the year and splurge a bit as an investment in our marriage.

But the best aspect of this particular little getaway is, what happens in Vegas does not stay in Vegas. The romantic fires keep burning long after we return home!

Question: What’s Your Favorite Weekend Get Away?

How to Plan an (Im)Perfect Romantic Weekend

15 Replies

For our 6^th wedding anniversary we planned a mini-getaway driving from Miami to Boca Raton, Florida for a little Anniversary Romance. Here is how we did it:

We both have big projects going on at work and didn’t want to take a whole week off. We decided to do a short weekend away to make it easy to celebrate without embarking on a complicated trip.

Checking in isn’t just for airlines! Check in with each other – especially when planning a trip. What’s going on outside of home? Is there a big work project on his mind? Do you have a deadline coming up. Trips are no fun if you are worried about other stuff.

We looked at several luxury hotels and then looked for specials – we knew we wanted to feel pampered and special and could spend a little more since we were only booking for one night. We found a great deal at the Boca Resort – late checkout, 15% off spa services, breakfast buffet all included in the room price.

Breakfast for two could easily have been $70.00. Having it included in the room rate is a huge deal and well worth the extra minutes on checking the hotel website to see what is available. *Always* check the actual hotel website for last minute deals and weekend packages.

As we were planning this particular weekend the new Star Trek movie was just coming out. On our way to Boca there was a huge Imax 3D Theater which was the perfect place for these two Sci-Fi Sweethearts to start the day.

Look around – what is close by that could add fun or adventure to your trip? Don’t we all just miss what is in our own backyard sometimes?

Do not over-schedule. I repeat – do not over-schedule. I can spot an over-scheduler a mile away because I totally used to be one! Eat breakfast at 9am, Massages at 11, lunch at 1pm, Tour at 2:30….whenever you get tired just *reading* the plan for the day – it is a huge red flag, You have over-scheduled and if you are going to have a good time, you are going to have to stop that. On Saturday the only scheduled item was the movie, on Sunday a couples massage everything else we did organically and followed our moods and inspirations. Twice we went on walks through the grounds of the hotel – they were not only visually beautiful, but sweet moments of just us, talking and sharing and smiling and laughing. Personally, those are my favorite kind!

Vacations, even mini-ones should include a feeling of calm – whenever you are feeling rushed, stop, delete something from the plan, schedule free time, and let the place where you are and the moment you are experiencing surprise you.

Pack lingerie or something equally scandalous that will surprise your husband. It’s a romantic weekend which means we up the romance quotient in whatever way is romantic *to you* and *to him.* It could be surprising him with his favorite candy bar or in my case, with a little science fiction movie magic but regardless, pack lingerie – especially if you don’t usually wear it at home.

Romance is whatever we make it. For some it’s waking up late, for others it is starting early. Whatever romance means to you, think about how to include it. Then prepare, pack, and surprise.

What is your favorite memory from a weekend getaway? Please share in the comments.

The Heart of Travel – Lake Tahoe

1 Reply

I was recently at a Conference near Sacramento so the Hubs and I added a day to the trip and spent a very romantic night in Lake Tahoe. I had never been there before and had no idea how peaceful and beautiful it could be.

We love hotels and always try to stay in the best hotel we can afford. This time, we were able to get a great rate at the Hyatt Regency on the North side of Lake Tahoe. The rates were so cheap we upgraded to a Suite. We stayed there one night and we felt like Rock Stars.

Travel Tip – if there is a hotel you dream of staying at, always check their rates in the “off season.” You might score a 600 dollar room for less than half that price.

South Tahoe has all the casinos, nightlife and partying, North Tahoe is for the peaceful, relaxing vibe we were looking for on this trip.

One of the benefits of staying at the Hyatt Regency was that it has its own private beach and pier. Once we unpacked the first thing we did was go explore. It was dusk and they had just hosted a wedding at the hotel so we got to enjoy many couples all dressed up taking romantic walks and pictures on the pier.

We drove to Lake Tahoe from Sacramento and the drive was about 2 hours long and absolutely spectacular. If you come from the flatlands of Florida like I do, being surrounded by mountains and trees automatically puts you in a different state of mind.

Besides being surrounded by beautiful Mountains, the best part of the drive into Tahoe was stopping at “Cake Tahoe” in Truckee. They have the most heavenly cupcakes you have ever tasted and would be worth a detour if you are ever anywhere near the area. Fortunately for us, they were right on our path to our hotel so we stopped, got a Red Velvet Cupcake for me and a Double Chocolate cupcake for the Hubster. We exercised maximum self control and waited to get to the hotel to have them as dessert with our room service.

Travel Tip – if you are on a road trip, check if there are any major (or minor) landmarks you might want to visit along the way. Sometimes a 20 minute detour can bring you one of the best memories from the trip.

Frommer’s calls Lake Tahoe “the most awesome summer camp for adults ever.” We were there in the spring and could see all the possibilities for water sports, biking, horseback riding, etc. Although there is a Casino right inside the hotel, you could walk right past it and never know it was there if that’s not your thing.

The variety of activities and experiences available in Tahoe are wonderful, however the heart of Lake Tahoe is the Lake itself. Viewed from any angle it is breathtaking.

Until next time, love & light from Maggie @ www.modernmarried.com

Have you been to Lake Tahoe? Do you have an insider’s tip or a favorite memory there? Please share in the comments.