Tag: Walt Disney World

An All-American Glamping Trip

When the popular travel blog, discoverer.com listed travel destinations that embodied the All-American Summer Vacation we got a bit excited since so many of them were near our glamping locations! We’ve spotlighted a few of their list-makers below and our corresponding glamping spots. 

National Parks:

Yosemite National Park

A visit to any one of our national parks is a great way to celebrate our beautiful country and with 63 officially designated around the country, you can guarantee we’ve got some great glamping spots near many of them. Yosemite National Park in California is home to Yosemite Falls, the astonishing 3,000-foot vertical rock formation known as El Capitan, Half Dome, Bridalveil Fall and so much more. Glamp in a yurt at Thousand Trails Yosemite Lakes which is just down the road from the national park. A glamping cabin at Maine’s Mt. Desert Narrows Camping Resort or Narrows Too Camping Resort will provide perfect proximity to Acadia National Park whose highlights include Cadillac Mountain, the natural phenomena known as Thunder Hole, Jordan Pond and miles upon miles of carriage roads to bike.   

Narrows Too Camping Resort
Thousand Trails Yosemite Lakes

Disney/Space Coast:

Kennedy Space Center in  in Cape Canaveral Florida

Calling a trip to Florida’s Walt Disney World, “a rite of passage” for American children, the discoverer.com goes on to note that for some adult fun consider Florida’s Space Coast as well for an all-American vacation. Book a colorful glamping cabin at Encore Tropical Palms to enjoy all things Disney. From there, you can easily take a day trip to Florida’s Space Coast, which is about 60 miles, to experience the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge and surfing at Cocoa Beach! 

Tiny House Village at Encore Tropical Palms
Walt Disney World

Lighthouses:

Lighthouse off the Oregon Coast

Noting America’s lighthouses for their cultural and historical significance, discoverer.com suggests visiting some of the country’s most iconic and scenic lighthouses. Standing roughly 200 feet above the waters of the Pacific Ocean, Heceta Head Light House projects the strongest light on the Oregon Coast. Book a glamping cabin, cottage or yurt at nearby Thousand Trails South Jetty and explore the lighthouse which is open to the public March through October. On the Atlantic side, Portland Head Light in Cape Elizabeth, Maine was commissioned by George Washington, and while the lighthouse is only open to visitors one day per year, you can still walk the beautiful grounds of Fort Williams Park and take plenty of pictures. Book a glamping cottage at Thousand Trails Moody Beach to be near this Maine wonder.

Cabin at Thousand Trails South Jetty
Cottage at Thousand Trails Moody Beach

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Happy Birthday, Florida!

The Sunshine State celebrates 177 years of statehood this March 3rd, so come celebrate the state that provides miles of coastline and sandy beaches, the subtropical wilderness known as the Everglades, and of course an abundance of sunshine.

With so many great places to stay with us in Florida, you can celebrate the whole state. Sunny getaways abound all around the state from cottages at Bulow, Sherwood Forest, Sunshine Holiday Daytona, Pioneer Village, and Fiesta Key; cabins at Miami Everglades and Peace River; and adorable tiny homes at the Sunshine Key Tiny House Village (to see all the great Florida locations visit petiteretreats.com and book now). Spend time on the Gulf Coast, drive over to the Atlantic coast, discover Central Florida, and explore the Keys – whatever you choose, celebrate the Sunshine State this March.

Florida Festivals: Thanks to the great weather, there’s always something being feted, and March has plenty of events! There’s the Strawberry Festival in Plant City (March 3-13); Daytona Bike Week (March 4-13); the Fort Myers Beach Shrimp Festival (March 12-13); the Marathon Seafood Festival (March 12-13); and Carnaval Miami, which celebrates all things Miami, and runs from February 26 through March 13.

St. Augustine, FL Skyline
St. Augustine, FL Skyline

History Lessons: Why not visit Florida’s (and the nation’s) oldest city, St. Augustine, to learn the history of Florida and life way back in the 1500s? Castillo de San Marcos, Fort Mose Historic State Park, and perhaps the Pirate & Treasure Museum are a good place to start. The Ah-Tah-Thi-Ki Museum in Clewiston provides visitors insight into the history and culture of the Seminole, who are an integral part of Florida’s history. Other options for history trips can include the Mel Fisher Maritime Museum in Key West or the Museum of Florida History in Tallahassee.

Funky Florida: Get a little off the beaten path of the typical tourist and celebrate Florida’s wild side. Up-close-and-personal experiences can include swimming with the manatees in Crystal River, learning all about sea sponges at Sponge-o-rama in Tarpon Springs or an iconic airboat ride through the Everglades. Spook Hill in Lake Wales supposedly defies gravity and is haunted while Robert the Doll, who can be found at Key West’s Fort East Martello Museum, is guaranteed to give you the willies. Funky underwater experiences can include Neptune Memorial Reef in Key Biscayne, the underwater statue of Christ, known as Christ of the Abyss, which can be found in the waters off Key Largo, or the one-of-a-kind swimming mermaids in Weeki Watchee Springs State Park.

Top Attractions: Florida’s long-standing highlights include Walt Disney World, the Kennedy Space Center, Busch Gardens Tampa, and the beautiful beaches. Top-rated beaches include South Beach, Cocoa Beach, St. Pete’s Beach and Fort Myers Beach.

Cottage at Peace River Camping Resort

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Dad Fun

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio • Guitars

What does every Dad want on Father’s Day? Most likely, the opportunity to spend time with family, get a pass on chores, and enjoy some grilling time (he’ll probably want to take control with that activity). We’ve got a few more ideas to help celebrate Dad – whether it be on Father’s Day or plans for an upcoming trip that may take him back to the days when his responsibilities were few and his free time was all about fun!

Amusement Parks: Bring back the thrills and chills Dad felt as a child and take him to an iconic amusement park. California’s Disneyland (disneyland.disney.go.com) is the granddaddy of the big theme parks. Opened in 1951, original rides still in operation include the Disneyland Railroad, the Jungle Cruise and Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride. With the success of Disneyland, Walt Disney turned to Florida to open Walt Disney World (disneyworld.disney.go.com) near Orlando in 1965. Pirates of the Caribbean and It’s a Small World, two of the most popular original rides, are still in operation here. While Disney was busy building magical kingdoms on both coasts, Six Flags was busy opening their Texas-sized amusement park near the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Six Flags Over Texas opened in 1961 and remains in operation today. Six Flags expanded and now has parks in California (outside Los Angeles), Illinois (outside Chicago), Massachusetts (near Sturbridge, MA), New Jersey (and hour from Cape May) and New York (near Lake George). Each park offers something a little bit different. Before heading out, make sure to check if the closest park to you is open for the season, as many are delaying openings this summer.

Good Guys and Bad Guys: If your Dad was into gangster lore and legend, he may enjoy the Mob Museum (themobmuseum.org) in Las Vegas, Nevada. Showcasing the beginnings of the mob through current day, exhibits include The Underground, which replicates a Prohibition-era world as well as a Crime Lab that details how forensic evidence is studied and used to build cases against crime bosses.

The Mob Museum in Las Vegas, Nevada

If anything to do with the Old West is your Dad’s favorite pastime, consider a trip to the Autry Museum of the American West in Los Angeles, or the Scottsdale Museum of the West in Arizona. The Autry (theautry.org) is dedicated to “exploring an inclusive history of the Old West” and was co-founded by Gene Autry, Hollywood’s Singing Cowboy. The Scottsdale Museum of the West has 1,400 pieces of old cowboy gear, Hopi pottery dating back thousands of years, and a large collection of paintings, sculpture, and other artifacts representing the Old West (scottsdalemuseumwest.org).

Autry Museum of the American West in Los Angeles

Music, Music, Music: Of course, you may not agree with your Dad’s musical taste, but a visit to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (rockhall.com) in Cleveland, Ohio should be a trip that everyone can enjoy as it showcases the history of rock and roll from Chuck Berry to Green Day. If country music is his thing, Dad will enjoy a Nashville trip that could include a tour of the Ryman Auditorium that has featured artists from Johnny Cash to Kings of Leon and a visit to the Grand Ole Opry. Travel further in Tennessee to Memphis, which is a mecca for anybody who enjoyed the music and films of Elvis Presley and tour his home, Graceland (graceland.com). See the Jungle Room, the Lisa Marie, Elvis’ private jet, and his collection of cars.