Hotel Archives - Boots Bows & Beaches

Weekend Staycation at North Beach Plantation

November 21, 2018

One of the great things about living in Myrtle Beach is that there is definitely no shortage in the number of hotels and resorts you can take advantage of if you need a staycation.

A staycation is just what it sounds like: you take your vacation while staying in your hometown. Forget about shelling out money on plane tickets and a rental car, treat your own hometown like a tourist attraction!

After work on Friday we did just that, the four of us packed a small bag and drove the short 15 minutes to North Beach Plantation.

North Beach Plantation

This past weekend, we took advantage of having so many beautiful resorts in our backyard. We stayed in a beautiful luxurious 2 bedroom condo at North Beach Plantation.

Located on a 7 1/2 acre island between the Atlantic Ocean and Whitepoint Swash, North Beach Plantation provides a magnificent oceanfront presence.

North Beach Plantation is the perfect place for a weekend Myrtle Beach staycation. Relax on the beach, enjoy some fine dining and spend some time in or on the water. The wide variety of accommodations at the resort mean you can choose from a luxury view from a high-rise oceanfront resort to a more relaxed stay in a spacious cottage. No matter which you choose you will not be disappointed.

NORTH BEACH TOWERS

The North Beach Towers are definitely luxury living which houses 18 floors of oceanfront condos.

We stayed in a spacious, oceanfront two bedroom, two bathroom condo. It came with a fully equipped kitchen, a washer and dryer, glass enclosed showers, a whirlpool tub in the master bathroom, a large private balcony, three flat screen TV’s and wireless Internet access. The sleeping arrangements included one king and two queen beds.

Amenities

The pools y’all! Oh how I wish it was a bit warmer out so we could truly experience this beautiful oceanfront paradise! There is almost three acres of Caribbean-themed pool amenities featuring multiple pools, a swim-up bar, large sun deck space, fountains, personal cabanas and hot tubs.

The girls’ took full advantage of the indoor pool complex. Although they did have to take a dip in the heated pool, perfect for a Fall day at the beach!

The lazy river was the perfect way for us to sit back and allow our worries to drift away.

Sea Captain’s House

Fresh southern seafood on the oceanfront!

Saturday evening we went to dinner at Sea Captain’s House (one of my favorite restaurants for breakfast.) I was so excited to try the dinner menu and of course it was delicious.

Ensure you’ve made a reservation, especially during the summer months. Try everything on the menu that you can. You won’t regret it!

Relax

Taking a staycation is different from simply spending a relaxing weekend at home.

How many times do you say to yourself, “this weekend I’m just going to relax and not do anything,” but before you know it, you’re probably picking up the kids room, washing the dishes, and doing laundry. Believe me, you will always find things to keep yourself busy at home. Do yourself a favor and switch it up one weekend! After-all who doesn’t want to wake up to this view?

Staycations are the perfect way to take a break from the daily routine as you relax, unwind and recharge your batteries

Refresh your soul and make yourself feel better about returning to work on Monday morning. A staycation is just what you need! Book yours now at North Beach Plantation. Treat yourself!

Tons Of Chocolate, A Little Country Music & A Whole Lot of Crazy | Part 1

September 5, 2018

Hershey-Harrisburg

Hershey and Harrisburg PA are the perfect cities for a long weekend getaway. Before we moved to the beach, we lived in Maryland, from there Hershey Park was just a quick car ride. I have so many childhood memories from Hershey Park and it makes me sad I can’t take our kids more. I took my oldest daughter one year before we moved, when I actually drove the bus for a school field trip! We spent the whole day riding rides and exploring the park, just her and I.

Brynna (my youngest) had seen that one of our favorite country singers was going to be performing in Hershey Park, that’s when I realized she has never experienced the amusement park now that she’s older. We went a few times when she was a baby but obviously she doesn’t remember and couldn’t do much anyway.

So, with a long weekend off for Labor Day, we knew it was the perfect opportunity to make the trip!

Chocolate and Country Music

I’m convinced that chocolate and country music can solve all of life’s problems. With a rough start to the school year after losing our 10 month old Great Dane suddenly on the first day of school, this little escape couldn’t have came at a better time!

Hershey, Pennsylvania

The town, smack dab in the center of the state, has been dubbed the Sweetest Place on Earth thanks to the region’s namesake chocolate factory and iconic candy bar. This small town is where Milton S. Hershey began his chocolate empire over a hundred years ago, and today his legacy lives on. Just 15 miles away, Pennsylvania’s capitol, Harrisburg provides the comforts of a small city with a historic, turn-of-the-century newsboy vibe.

Here’s the low-down on where we stayed, what we did and where we ate, with a few helpful tips along the way, all in three days! Hershey-Harrisburg made the perfect weekend getaway!

Friday Night:

I had to work unfortunately and since school had just started the chance of me getting off was slim to none. After work I got our stuff together and packed our 2018 Toyota Camry that we were using for the trip! I had asked Mackenzie to join us multiple times but she said she wanted to stay home and relax, Jeff was off all weekend except Monday (Labor Day) so he couldn’t come either. So Brynna and I took on the 8 hour drive to Maryland. We were stopping at my friend Kelly’s house for the night and all of us were driving to PA together Saturday morning.

We arrived at her house at 3am, talk about a long night! Thankfully, we didn’t have to stop much and surprisingly I only spent $18 in gas because the Camry we were driving is also a Hybrid and it averaged about 48mpg! That in itself is amazing if you ask me! Much needed sleep was the only thing on the agenda for the night…or morning?

Saturday:

After we all got some rest and Dunkin’ we were ready to hit the road. Thank goodness the drive was only an hour and a half from her house! We headed to our hotel which was Hotel Indigo Harrisburg-Hershey, it is absolutely gorgeous and in a great location.

It is a brand new upscale boutique hotel, that just opened in April of 2018. The hotel has the feel of a historic property with modern luxury and the warmth of a small town. What I love the most about all Hotel Indigo properties is that they take inspiration from the neighborhood around them. This hotel is full of local touches, like images of the famous Walnut Street Bridge, which dates to 1890.

We were told we got upgraded to a King Suite which made our day! After we checked in, we headed up to our room to check it out! There were 4 of us, 2 kids and 2 adults, the room had a bedroom with a king bed, a living area with a pull out sofa, kitchen area and a huge bathroom! The perfect size for the 4 of us.

Everything was so modern and clean. The kids said it was “the best hotel ever!” They of course loved the outdoor pool and patio especially in the evenings! The cabanas and fire pits were such a perfect touch!

The River Run Restaurant and Social Lounge serves breakfast and dinner, unfortunately we didn’t get a chance to try it because we were so busy! But it looked amazing!

All four of us were very pleased with our stay at this hotel. From the modern decor to the amazing hospitality. The location was perfect, just a short drive to downtown Harrisburg and only a 20 minute drive to Hershey Park. And another perk is there is a Target conveniently located 3 minutes away. Who wouldn’t love that? I know we did!

Harsco Science Center

After we got settled into our room we decided to go explore Harrisburg. Our first stop was The Whitaker Center for Science and the Arts where we explored the Harsco Science Center!

This museum is a beautiful science center with 3 floors of exhibits, most of which are highly interactive. The kids were really impressed with the amount of cool exhibits they had!

There are three floors of fun. We started out on the top floor. The first level had a KidsPlace which is for kids 5 and under. Our kids were too old to go in but it looked very fun for the little ones and very clean!

Heading down a flight, brought us to the “Move It” area with car races, die cut machines, and tons of play experiences.

The kids got to creating their own cars and race them. There was also an area to create a paper airplane and see how far it would go.

Followed by the circus themed “Carnival of Health”, that was filled with interactive exercise games as far as the eye could see.

Heading down another flight brought us to “Forces of Nature” where we learned about weather (including a hurricane simulation machine) electricity and gravity. The kids loved lifting thousands of pounds with pulleys and having very fast wind-blown in their faces!

The kids loved it and said it was awesome! I also loved they got to learn some things along the way!

To learn more about the Science Center, including its hours and ticket prices, visit their website, http://www.whitakercenter.org/harsco-science-center.

Looking for more? Don’t miss part two, coming up soon! See what we did with the next half of our weekend getaway to Hershey and Harrisburg!

We were the guests of the Hershey-Harrisburg Regional Visitors Bureau. As always, all opinions are our own.

Hotel Indigo – Southern Charm Meets Modern Luxury

August 20, 2018

Experiencing the Southern hospitality and charm of historic Charleston has been on my personal bucket list for years. I decided to put together a very last-minute but very much-needed mini family trip before school starts for us. It was filled with lots of extra bonding time that I think we all needed to cure the end-of-summer-blues.

I had no idea where to start when it came to where to stay but I had just booked an IHG® hotel for our upcoming Hershey Park trip next month so I decided to see what they had to offer in Charleston. I came across a brand new IHG® hotel in Mount Pleasant, SC. It is located just a few minutes from downtown Charleston! I was so excited when Hotel Indigo® Mount Pleasant hosted us for two nights at their newest boutique hotel in the area.

Southern Charm Meets Modern Luxury

We needed only to step foot in the lobby of the swanky new property to know we were going to like it…a lot. It combines historic charm with modern luxury that you can see from the moment you walk through the doors. After we checked in we had to go take a peek at our room. We were welcomed with a basket of goodies and both girls had a beach/pool towel waiting on them on the bed. Talk about southern hospitality!

Accommodations

Our room was gorgeous and outfitted with modern essentials, as expected in a classy place like this. We didn’t spend a whole lot of time in our room because we were busy exploring through the city. There was so much to do which I will write about in separate posts but our room was a nice retreat at the end of the day. The colors were just perfect, I mean who doesn’t want to sleep in a pink bed??

Details

After checking out our room we were given a tour of the hotel. Everywhere you look, you can see how much thought was put into the furniture and decor. The boutique hotel has 158 distinctively styled guestrooms and suites. Each Hotel Indigo® property provides authentic local experiences, both inside and outside of the hotels. They actually pull inspiration from the neighborhoods around them to design authentic spaces that reflect the neighborhood story in every texture and pattern that is used to decorate. I was in awe of the beautiful designs and the details that went into decorating. Hotel Indigo Mount Pleasant just opened in July and is the first in the state of South Carolina.

Pool & Amenities

Hotel Indigo has the most gorgeous resort-style oasis pool, with an indoor/outdoor bar, cabanas and sun chairs and even in-pool loungers. We could’ve easily spent our entire time just hanging at the pool and we would’ve been perfectly content. The girls definitely wouldn’t have argued with that idea either!

This hotel has so much to offer that we didn’t really even have the time to experience everything. We did get to enjoy breakfast at Eliza’s Bar and Kitchen which is full-service restaurant with a delicious menu to start our day on the right foot. The hotel also offers 6,000-square-feet of gathering space and a state-of-the-art fitness facility.

It was definitely a short but very sweet trip! We had the best time and were blessed with the most beautiful weather. Our stay at the Hotel Indigo in Mount Pleasant was wonderful and I’d definitely recommend visiting whether it’s for a couples getaway, girl’s trip or family vacation. It’s rare to find gems that are so thoughtfully designed and run, you can’t wait to go back. More to come with the rest of the details of our weekend but this hotel clearly needed its own post.

Big thank you to the Hotel Indigo Mount Pleasant for the stay! As always all opinions are my own.