For the Love of Hyatt

Obviously, we love to travel and experience new places, but something that comes along with it is lodging accommodations. For the most part, we would not consider ourselves resort or all-inclusive travelers and tend to like small, unique properties whether it be hostels, a cabin or treehouse in the woods, or an agriturismo in Italy to name a few examples. However, unless we are using Barclay Arrival credits, the cost of staying in these places can add up quickly which is where hotel points come in handy. 

From experience, our favorite hospitality group is Hyatt. We earn points for Hyatt by regular spend on cards that earn Ultimate Reward points and then transfer them to Hyatt Gold Passport to redeem free nights. These cards include the Chase Ink (office stores and buying gift cards for places we normally shop at, cell phone bill), Chase Sapphire Preferred (travel expenses, eating out), and Chase Freedom (rotating quarterly categories so food, gas, and Amazon). For reference, M's intro posts on credit and travel rewards can be found here and here.

It doesn't matter which Hyatt category (1-7) it is. They outdo themselves in more ways than one including rooms, breakfast, and customer service. 

The Rooms

The properties and rooms at every category are nice in our opinion. On the lower end of the spectrum, this particular hotel is a Category 2 and requires 8,000 points per night (in contrast to the Category 7 properties that are 30,000 points per night). This room came with a kitchen that had plates, silverware, and anything else one could possibly need.

A living area.

A bedroom separate from the living and kitchen area for a comfortable night's rest.

And enough space to get ready for the day.

Breakfast

But our favorite thing about this Hyatt was the breakfast and the build-your-own omelette bar. Yes, we sure do love food, especially when it is good quality, and Hyatt takes the cake when it comes to continental breakfast.

The breakfast potatoes, fresh squeezed orange juice, and even the individual jars of honey were huge hits at the table.

Customer Service

Last, but definitely not least is the customer service that Hyatt provides. Sometimes this means a personal escort and tour of the room at the higher categories. At the Hyatt Place Waikiki Beach, it meant providing us with a food credit because our two bed room requested was not available for the night, and we had to take a king-sized bed with fold-out couch instead. These were all things they did not have to do, but Hyatt sure goes above and beyond to make you feel at home. 

They also have a good social media presence, interacting with their customers (@HyattTweets, @HyattConcierge) and hosting giveaways to build their customer rapport. One of their latest giveaways was to celebrate their 200th Hyatt Place opening by giving away 200 free Hyatt Place nights over the course of a week and a half. All you had to do was tweet or Instagram a picture of your stay at a Hyatt Place with #HyattPlace #HPEntry. 

Some of our friends think we are a little crazy because we tend to take pictures of the hotel and room each stay. Literally, the bags drop the minute we enter the room and the camera comes out! But now they are convinced, since we each won a free night at any Hyatt Place in the country. All it took was a couple of minutes of our time and a few pictures.

A's winning picture entry from the Hyatt Place Waikiki Beach.

M's winning picture entry of the hotel lobby.

Okay, enough on our love for Hyatt for now. We cannot be the only ones with an affinity for a certain hotel brand. ;) Or maybe we are just that crazy. What is your favorite hotel property, group, and/or hotel experience thus far?

Visit to the Buckeye State

Friday nights are family nights in our house. Usually, we are at home with no agenda other than to spend time together. Lately, it seems that as Friday nights roll around, we find ourselves on a plane rather than at home, at least the last three of five weeks. So whether we are at home or traveling, we relax together. Travel relaxing? You bet. It gives me the opportunity to get caught up on sleep or reading, with no place to go and no chance to cross off the million things on the to do list. Instead, I sit with husband on one side, delightful book in hand, and that's positively enjoyable for us.

Traveling has become a way of life and has also changed our lives. It has helped me to become more flexible. Instead of getting all up in arms about the house being clean, I have learned to relax a bit at least for the time being. The receipts float around, and M's piles of paper stack up, but I have realized that is okay to not have everything in its place. I may not wash our bedding every week anymore and stretch it to every other week (the horror, I know), but that's okay. We are living life in this season to the fullest, so the laundry and cleaning can wait for now. Or at least until M runs out of socks.

The more we travel, the easier, more efficient, and regular part of our routine it has become. Travel is relaxing, and Matt has helped it to be that way. He knows the easier it is for me, the more I enjoy it and the more energy I have when we are at home. This last week, we hopped on the bus, transferred to the light rail, and got to our gate just before boarding. From the time we arrived at the airport, got through security, and to our boarding gate in Terminal 2, it took three minutes total. There is no more wasting time on the front or back end of travel or in lines for a rental car. When we land, we walk out, go to the board, and grab our car. Simple. Sweet. And stress-free.

He also knows that if I do not get fed every couple of hours, I get cranky. And I am completely serious and not making that up. As soon as we hopped off the plane and grabbed the car, it was time for a quick dinner at one of our favorite places in Ohio.

So. much. cheese. The chili cheese coneys and three way chili covered with cheese make our Wisconsin and cheese-loving hearts happy. When Skyline is involved, it's worth the calories at least for the moment.

The U.S. Air Force Marathon and time with family and friends brought us to the Buckeye State again this year. The last two years, it has been a family activity, and I was supposed to run 26.2 again with Dad. However, with the crazy summer of traveling, time was short to train. Instead, with the urging of my husband, I decided it would not be the best idea, a very humbling decision indeed for this achiever. So this year, we came to support my dad, mom, sister, aunt, and cousin in their races.

The races are held at Wright-Patterson AFB with the start and finish lines near the National Air Force Museum. It was another beautiful calm morning for running events, especially as the sun came up over the airfield and hangars. 

Dad left my sister and cousin at mile 20 and finished strong. At age 53, he is amazing and so very patient. One of these times, I would love for him to run the marathon at his own pace, rather than ours. But it is so special to run with him, and we are grateful for the gift to run together, dad and daughters.

Then the girls came in, finishing their very first 26.2! They claim that they never want to do it again, but hopefully the aftermath and runner's high will catch up with them. For me, watching them run the final stretch under the fighter planes, gave me the itch and desire to do it all again.

Dad selected the plane for the family photo op of runners and non-runners this year.

Mom ran her very first 10k, and my aunt ran the half-marathon again. They both rocked it.

Marathon aside, we have two good friends, Adam and Taylor who live in the area. So in addition to the running festivities, we got to hang out and relax with them. From watching football, feeding the resident ducks, playing disc golf, taking a three hour afternoon nap, going out for an amazing breakfast, and worshipping at church together, it was such an enjoyable weekend to reconnect and catch up with these two.

As quick as we left, we were back, landing in our home city and catching the light rail. It was such a beautiful evening, so instead of the usual bus transfer, we strapped luggage on the city bikes and hopped on the Greenway, which is just as fast.

Thanks family and friends for lovely weekend adventure.

The DFW Centurion Lounge

Generally, we are simple travelers who fly in coach, carry-on bags, and enjoy the entire traveling process. We have been known to sleep in airports or in a one-person tent together too. One of my all-time favorite travel experiences was being in Belize with no electricity or running water for two weeks during college. But as much as I love simplicity, sometimes, a little luxury mixed in is fun too, whether it is staying at the Park Hyatt in Milan or visiting airport lounges using free access or guest passes. 

Airport lounges help us to reduce food expenses while traveling, and truth be told, we have been known to make meals of crackers, cheese, hand fruit, and trail mix. We have visited several lounges in the U.S. but none compare to the American Express Centurion Lounge. These lounges are relatively new, and right now there are three open in Dallas-Fort Worth, Las Vegas, and New York-LaGuardia, with two others set to open later this year in San Francisco and Miami.

Matt has a card that gives him and up to two guests complimentary access to this brand of lounges. Otherwise, it is a $50 fee per person to enter with any American Express card. We had read reviews and watched the video tours, but were excited to visit in-person. So much so, that we arrived to the airport around 11 a.m. to enjoy the lounge for the rest of the day before an evening flight.

Near the check-in desk, the lockers were spacious for carry-on backpacks. The staff even let us leave our bags in the lockers when we left for global entry interviews. It was much easier to go back through security without bags afterwards. Excellent customer service all around.

There were many seating options throughout the lounge from armchairs to chaise lounges. It was very comfortable, relaxing, and quiet. There were reading materials, screens with the World Cup game on, and plenty of space to find a quiet place to work or read too.

Although, we have no use for it yet, the family room is nice and has games/toys/movies to keep children occupied. There were a few older kids in the lounge at the time, but we did not see any young families using this room. 

The highlight though is the complimentary food and beverages, and unlike other lounges, I am not talking about crackers and cheese; this is real food. At each location, the menu is designed by a well-known chef and inspired by regional cuisine. 

In Dallas, the food and the beverages were delicious and filling. Breakfast is served from 6:30-11 a.m. Lunch and dinner are served from 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. We missed breakfast but had lunch and dinner here. With the price of airport food, this probably saved us at least $40 for the day.

There were a lot of options at the salad bar.

Smoked BBQ brisket tacos, rice, spinach and queso enchiladas, chips, and guacamole for lunch.

One of their signature cocktails, a White Mimosa.

Dinner was a repeat of lunch. I was hoping to try another signature cocktail called the Tex-Mex, but they were out of jalapenos, so I opted for a margarita instead.

The spa within the lounge offers complimentary massages, facials, and manicures. Upon arrival, we each scheduled a 15 minute massage, and I scheduled a manicure for the afternoon as well. Yes, shocking for those of you who know me! I do not particular enjoy these things, but when they are free (tip aside), I will give it a try. ;)

Matt always loves checking out the shower facilities at the lounges. The showers here were decent, but he prefers the ones at the American Admirals lounge better. However, I liked the travel size L'Occitane products. 

All in all, we loved our first experience at The DFW Centurion Lounge and now, when possible, we are trying to route all long flights through the airports that have them. It beats eating cheese and crackers for a meal that's for sure and to be able to relax while traveling is a nice perk.

North Cascades National Park

The last part of Labor Day weekend was spent in the North Cascades National Park and surrounding areas. I visited this place in the summer of 2006 for class, and it was exactly how I remembered it, including the General Store on Highway 20 that stocked Violet Crumble candy bars.

➳ Cascadian Organic Farms

There is a stand along the highway, so we got blueberry ice cream for a morning treat.

Further down the road, we entered the national park and stopped at the Visitor Center. After narrowing down hike options to Maple Pass, Cascade Pass to Sahale, Easy Pass, and Sourdough Mountain, we decided on the only very strenuous day hike option.

➳ Sourdough Mountain (10.4 miles round trip with 5,100 feet elevation gain)

It was a sick hike, and we basically had it to ourselves. On the way up, we counted nine people coming down, but only five of them had made it all the way to the top. 

The trail starts just off the highway in the town of Diablo. True to the description, it switchbacks relentlessly through the forest and up the mountain. Eventually, there is a creek, followed by a steep meadow of wildflowers with switchbacks back and forth up the mountainside until the historic lookout.  Oh the views... The higher we climbed, the better they got. 

Isaiah 54:10
"Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed," says the Lord who has compassion on you.

Higher than the mountains that I face
Stronger than the power of the grave
Constant in the trail and the change
One thing remains
Your love never fails
It never gives up
It never runs out on me
On and on and on it goes
It overwhelms and satisfies my soul...
In death in life I'm confident
And covered by the power of Your great love
My debt is paid there's nothing that
Can separate my heart from Your great love.

The views were spectacular on all sides, but we especially enjoyed turquoise-blue Diablo Lake, the snow-capped mountains and the blooming wildflowers.

Psalm 103:15-18
As for man, his days are like grass;
he flourishes like a flower of the field;
for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,
and its place knows it no more.
BUT the steadfast love of the Lord
is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him,
and His righteousness to children's children,
to those who keep His covenant
and remember to do His commandments.

Isaiah 40:8
The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.

➳ Diablo Lake

The pictures do not do it justice; it was a brillant blue. Pretty sure we are obsessed with glacial lakes now and starting a lake bucket list for the next time we are out in the northwest. 

➳ Washington Pass

➳ Winthrop, WA

is an old west themed town located east of the national park. We stayed the night here and spent the next morning exploring.

➳ North Cascades Mountain Hostel
Just off the main street, we rented a small cabin for the night. It reminded us of being in a tree house, and we look forward to visiting again sometime to cross-country ski in the winter.

➳ Rocking Horse Bakery
We loved this little coffee shop in town. It was an adorable place to get warm drinks (espresso for the boys, chai for me).

➳ Sheri's
Adam and I had homemade ice cream while Matt opted for the chocolate covered bacon for breakfast. First pumpkin ice cream of the fall season!

The rest of the morning was spent walking the small town. It was just as I remember it, cute and quaint, but quiet this time.

The brewery and nordic ski shops were our favorite buildings.

To get home, we flew Frontier out of Bellingham. Our friend Nick had found 10,000 point tickets back, so we met him and Kristina there and flew together (they had spent the previous week in Canada and the Cascades as well). 

First Frontier flight ✓