USA Archives

Checking In: The Radisson Red in Downtown Minneapolis

I recently went on the trip of a lifetime with Radisson Hotels to Glacier National Park in Montana and to Minneapolis, all booked using 1 million Radisson Rewards. While planning this epic trip, I opted for Minneapolis for several reasons: 1) the State Fair would be in town, and Minnesota has the 2nd largest State Fair in the country after Texas!; 2) I’ve been to Minneapolis before, but had never explored properly; 3) I have always wanted to visit the Mall of America; 4) Radisson has some of their best property redemptions in Minneapolis, including the Radisson Blu Downtown, the Radisson Blu at the Mall of America, and the Radisson RED Downtown; and 5) Minneapolis is one of the few non-stop flight options from Kalispell, Montana. Initially, I had planned to spend more time in Minneapolis exploring all three luxury Radisson properties, but my travel schedule unfortunately did not allow it. So, after some research, I picked the Radisson RED for my time in Minneapolis for a unique and modern hotel stay experience.

September 17, 2018

The 14 Best NYC Rooftop Bars with a Skyline View

New York City has so many amazing choices for rooftop bars with a view, but there are some that stand above the rest. Whether it’s a view over Times Square, right in front of the Empire State Building, or overlooking Central Park, these are some of the best rooftop bars in NYC.

September 17, 2018

Ultimate Alaska: Cruising Glaciers and Fjords Onboard the Seabourn Sojourn

Cruising Alaska has always been on my bucket list, so when I was given the opportunity to sail in luxury on the Seabourn Sojourn for the 14-Day Ultimate Alaska Glacier and Fjord Adventure in late June, I snatched it up. The itinerary took us on a two week journey out of Anchorage (Seward) to Vancouver through some of the best spots in Southeast Alaska and the Inside Passage, like Tracy Arm and the Misty Fjords. We were able to do excursions such as a helicopter flight up to a dogsledding camp, kayaking up to a glacier with the Ventures by Seabourn team, and taking my very first seaplane flight over the Misty Fjords. I found that choosing the 14-day Alaska cruise option made for the best itinerary over most 7-day cruise options, and my experience with the weather while sailing in late June and early July was wonderful. I think during the entire time cruising Alaska and Canada, we only had two days of rain, so we were very lucky that the good weather followed us all the way to Vancouver.

August 3, 2018

The Ultimate Photo Guide to South Congress in Austin

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to host an Austin, Texas Instameet with other local bloggers and Chase Sapphire in celebration of their new Sapphire Six Guide to Austin. The Sapphire Six Guide takes cues from where Sapphire Reserve cardmembers are visiting, grabbing a bite, enjoying a drink or just having fun to determine what the top places to visit in Austin are. For the Instameet, our goal was to work our way down South Congress, hitting up some of the most Instagrammable spots and finishing at Cafe No Se (one of the recommended restaurants on the Sapphire Six Guide). It was so much fun to get out and be a tourist in my city with other local bloggers! I don’t get to go out and explore my hometown nearly as much as I’d like to, so I loved having this opportunity to experience SoCo, which I consider to be one of the best things to do in Austin, for locals and tourists alike. South Congress definitely has some of the best Instagram worthy spots in Austin. Without further ado, here’s 7 photo spots to visit on South Congress!

July 29, 2018

A Quick Guide to North Lake Tahoe & Reno in the Spring

I recently had the opportunity to take Frontier Airline’s new non-stop service from Austin to Reno for a quick getaway trip to North Lake Tahoe and Reno. If you’re based in Austin, the new flight runs a few times a week, and is a fantastic cheap way to hop directly over to Reno. From Reno, it’s an easy hour drive to Lake Tahoe, or you can stay and check out all that Reno has to offer. It’s not difficult to do both locations in one quick trip.

May 2, 2018

3 Days in the Finger Lakes: A Wine Trail Itinerary

I recently had the opportunity to spend a lovely weekend exploring the Finger Lakes, a region of upstate New York, and to follow their wine trail. If you’re based on the East Coast, the Finger Lakes are a perfect weekend getaway within short flying distance. And even for me based in Texas, it was not a difficult trek to fly up for there just the weekend. Once we arrived in Rochester, NY, we made our way to Belhurst Castle in Geneva, NY, the first stop on our itinerary.

April 24, 2018

7 Photo Spots for the Best Chicago Skyline Views

The Chicago skyline is easily one of the most iconic cityscapes in the world. So if you’re going to take a trip to Chicago, it makes sense that you’d want to grab the perfect city shot while you’re there. If you love to get up high, the Skydeck at Willis Tower, 360 Chicago Observation Deck, and the Ferris Wheel at Navy Pier are all great options (as long as you don’t mind spending a bit of money). For the best free views, check out points such as in front of Adler Planetarium, the Nature Boardwalk at Lincoln Park Zoo, and Cindy’s Rooftop (though the drinks aren’t cheap while you’re there). Without further ado, here’s 7 spots you just can’t miss for the picture Chicago skyline photo.

April 13, 2018

Checking In: Archer Hotel (Austin, TX)

A little while back, I had the pleasure of spending a night at the Archer Hotel Austin at Domain Northside. The boutique hotel has eight floors with 171 rooms described as “rustic luxe” style, including several unique suites like the Archer Den that I stayed in. Some rooms of note have standout features such as private balconies and free-standing tubs. For dining, there is one restaurant on property, Second Bar + Kitchen, run by award-winning Chef David Bull.

November 16, 2017

Hotwire Has $50 5-Star Las Vegas HotRates Hotel Nights Available – But Act Fast!

Hotwire has an exciting new deal launching today that will get you to Las Vegas on the cheap! Through their HotRates program, Hotwire is offering $50 5-star hotel nights in Vegas, good for dates between December 8-28, 2017 for up to two consecutive nights per booking.

November 16, 2017

Your Weekend Getaway Guide to Santa Fe

I recently had the opportunity to visit Santa Fe with Tourism Santa Fe. It was a lovely weekend trip where we learned all the best food spots, shopping, places to stay, and other fun activities to do in the city. From their famous Margarita Trail to Meow Wolf, we got to explore everything the city of Santa Fe had to offer. Here’s my full itinerary from the weekend.

November 6, 2017