The travel season is upon us and as you know I’ve taken my show on the road! We are currently in Houston, TX and we will be heading to New Orleans for a quick stop at the end of the week. And this got me thinking, Eric and I definitely have our own travel style.
When we went on our honeymoon we happily realized that our travel styles are very similar. We like to have a loose outline of dates and places, and then just wing it from there. We hardly ever book a hotel room in advance or buy advance tickets. That would require more planning than either of us can really wrap our brains around.
I love using travel guides and websites to find places to eat, shop and play. And I’m always open to recommendations.
I thought I’d share some of my favorite travel resources with you, in the hopes that you will share some of yours with me!
1. I ADORE the Design Sponge travel guides. They have them for tons of cities, both major and not so major, stateside and abroad. They are curated by hip artsy people who know all the best little dives and boutiques. I’ve used them all over the country with GREAT success. I also find it helpful to read the comments section to make sure things are up to date. They are super thorough.
2. For traveling abroad (I’ve been to China, Guatemala, Belize and beyond) I recommend the Lonely Planet guide books. They are geared towards a hipper crowd, and the book is very easy to navigate. In China we used ours like a bible.
3. I love Yelp. Do you Yelp? Their new app is very helpful. You can use your phone GPS to show where you are, and then you can search for food places and stores near you. Like when were in LA for Eric’s movie premiere, we found a restaurant near the theater this way.
4. Eric swears by Priceline.com for booking hotel rooms. Not only do you get to sing the little jingle to yourself while you wait for your deals to load, “Priceline negotiator!” But we’ve found a lot of awesome hotel rooms for cheap.
So there you have it! My travel style. Tell me about yours?! And while you think about it, here is an overload of pictures from the past week or so!
Cousins in the sand in San Diego.
The craft supplies I brought with me for our road trip! I also have my sewing machine and my giant self-healing cutting mat. I left my giant mat at the last hotel, and when I went to get it they had to go dumpster diving to retrieve it. Yeah.
And then we got super touristy at the Houston Aquarium. But Ginger loved it.
After the aquarium I used the Design Sponge city guide for Houston to find this great cheap fried chicken place. It says Beyonce loves it, and well if it’s good enough for her jelly it’s good enough for mine!
Ginger has been a model traveler. Sleeping in the handicap bathroom (in a pac n’ play) and watching her movies in the van like a champ. She’s also pretty good at making friends with the hotel staff.
If you have any recommendations for Houston or New Orleans, or Chattanooga or Omaha…send them my way!
Bon voyage!
Alison
One of my favorite places near Houston is Kemah. It’s fun to eat and watch the boats go by. It’s fun to walk along the board walk. And of course while in Houston, one must go to Nasa space center. Have fun! http://www.kemahboardwalk.com/
What a fun recommendation! Thank you! Maybe we can go there tomorrow morning. I had been wondering if we should go to the space center, if only so I can say, Houston we have a problem.
gah…i live in houston. you came at the most tollerable time. give it about another week and we will be in the high 90s with 100% humidity. im headed to New Orleans next week myself, for the first time, for Jazz Fest and cant wait. There are so many delish places to go but i keep hearing to go to Cafe du Monde for coffee and beneigts (sp?). have fun!!
oh good! THank you, I have been hoping to get a good beignet recommendation! it’s sweet, it’s fried, I’m there! Gigi and i have been loving the houston pool weather!
I love the Lonely Planet guide books! I’m building quite the collection.
) Beyond that – I don’t tend to set certain days for certain activities unless it’s the only reason we’re going to a particular place.
I’m a planner – so I spent a lot of time thinking about travel time between places and always book a place to stay in advance.Generally, I’ll put together an itinerary that describes where we are which day and where we’ll be staying that day. (Type A much?
I love it! I would LOVE for someone to plan things for me! But I think this way would be fun so you can look forward to things!
Chattanooga has a wonderful aquarium. There’s also Rock City & Ruby Falls, touristy but fun. They also have a fun children’s museum very near the aquarium.
So glad you are soaking up the Houston son! LUCKY! You and Ginger might love the Houston Zoo. We went there a lot especially the hermann park next to it, when Nate was in the hospital. I miss Texas! Glad you are documenting your ON the ROAD adventures!
It’s super fun! Thanks for the rec! Gigi loves nanimals!
I have a recommendation…keep going…all the way to DC!!! Miss you and your gorgeous family!