My Travels

I've been slacking this year on travels and decided to head out to Boston for a long weekend. Checked into the Westin Los Angeles Airport the night before for a park and fly package. The lobby area was nice and the bar was packed. I was actually surprised how much activity there was at the Westin. The bar was nice and a Daily Grill restaurant is inside. The pork chop at Daily Grill is excellent and they give you 10% discount if you are a SPG member regardless if you are staying at the hotel. The hotel also offers a decent parking package for airport parking - $30 for three days. Flew on United Airlines to Boston with a brief layover in Denver. Even with the delayed takeoff, the flight arrived on time and I was able to grab some McDonalds in the food court. Although there were plenty of people ordering, I felt the food had been out for a bit and the staff seemed out of sorts. Jumped back on the same plane and landed into Logan International Airport.  Since it was such a l...

Drove up to Palo Alto for a football game at Stanford. Stanford Stadium is a fairly new stadium and the facilities are fairly nice. The last time I was at the stadium, I had tickets on the upper level. This time, I tried to get tickets on the lower level to get away from the obnoxious speakers that ring on the outside. I didn't eat too much at the stadium but I did try having a sundae at Marianne's Ice Cream . I found the ice cream very good and will keep my eyes out next time I'm in NorCal. On the way to Four Points San Jose Silicon Valley , I stopped at Falafel Drive In to try the gyros. The eatery was featured in Diners Dives and Drive Ins  for their falafel. I'm usually not a fan of falafel, so I tried the gyro sandwich and banana shake. Both were good but nothing I would go out of my way for. The Four Points has the faux modern Euro look. The hotel met my expectations and I'm not sure why the reviews of the hotel was so bad. It is slightly dated with the ma...

Sheraton Gateway King Room Heading to Sin City on this trip for a wedding. I opted to stay at Sheraton Gateway Los Angeles hotel. I was pleasantly surprised how nice the Sheraton, some of the other hotels in the LAX area is a little dated. It looks as if the Sheraton had a recent facelift and the rooms are large and roomy. I had dinner at Paparazzi . I had the Garginelli pasta. I'm usually not a fan of lemony dishes but I really liked this particular dish even with the lemon infused cream sauce. The Italian sausage was excellent. Finished off dinner with a whiskey crème brulee and chocolate soufflé cake. The cake came with a large scoop of pistachio ice cream which I think is the highlight of the dessert. The whisky crème brulee was nice as I don't generally have liquor flavored crème brulee. Westin Las Vegas King Room  The Westin Duck United Airlines upgraded me on my flight to Las Vegas. On the way, I usually do not like the orange cranberry scones they...

In the area for a friend's wedding and checked into the Hampton Inn & Suites San Luis Obispo . Appears to be a relatively new hotel for the area, the hotel is easily accessible from the freeway but still a five to ten minute drive to downtown SLO. On the weekends, this area must get really busy. After coming back from the wedding, the front desk staff was busy with people trying to find rooms and I overhead the staff telling someone that normal rates for a one night stay was 30% more than my reservation. Yikes! I already thought what I had booked was outrageous for a Hampton Inn. I spent more in the Hampton Inn on this trip than the Westin in Chicago on a one night comparison! Hampton Inn San Luis Obispo Went to Jack House and Garden for the wedding venue. It isn't a staffed venue so the wedding was more like a house party where everyone helped with the serving and cleaning. The next morning, had breakfast at the Madonna Inn Copper Café . I had stopped by this Ca...

For this week, I'm staying at the Hampton Inn LAX Hawthorne . It is conveniently located off the freeway but it isn't necessarily close to LAX. With the shuttle service, it could take about 30 to 45 minutes to get to the hotel. If you have a car, it is a fairly convenient location that isn't AT the airport. A relatively new hotel, the rooms are fairly spacious and the bathrooms are roomy. I am not sure if it was more economical but the bathrooms in this hotel are shower only. No tubs. They also offer snacks (popcorn and cookies) and coffee in the afternoon in addition to the morning breakfast buffet. Since the rooms here come with microwave and fridge, I brought a roast to keep in the fridge and it was dinner for most of the week. After the third day of eating leftovers, I grabbed dinner at Al-Noor . Featured on the Food Network's The Best Thing I Ever Ate for its garlic naan, I found the Indian food comparable to other Indian restaurants. For the price, the quanti...

I stayed at the Four Points Sheraton LAX for a night before transitioning to the Sheraton Cerritos. At the Four Points, I ended up having to switch rooms when my initial room had too strong of a  marijuana smell. Leary of the smell attaching itself to my work clothes, I went back and switched my double room for a king room. Surprisingly, the rooms are not the same size. I'm never sure with hotels if the King rooms are smaller than the Doubles but it appears so with the Four Points. The airport shuttle is shared between the Westin and the Four Points. Even though they say that the shuttle runs every 20, it is more like every 30 given the two stopping points. Sheraton Cerritos Double Room The next day, checked into the Sheraton Cerritos Hotel. This is the first hotel that has asked for my government ID because of the rate I used. So there is someone that checks eventually! Either that or the hotel is looking to maximize revenue by routing out the imposters. I was pleasantly s...

Went from Chicago straight to Sonoma and flew into San Francisco International Airport  via United Airlines . On this leg, my luggage was delayed by the baggage handlers in SFO. While waiting for the luggage at baggage claim, the carousel stopped and no more luggage came out. After talking to the representatives, the luggage was still in Chicago O'Hare since the luggage was not "scanned." Picked up my Kia Seoul from Thrifty and took off for the hotel. It was a nice change from the Yukon. Since it was really early in the morning or really late in the evening (depending on how you want to see this), checked into the Hilton Garden Inn San Francisco Airport North  for five hours to rest up before driving up to Sonoma. Once settled, started a load of laundry with all of the dirty clothes I had because the luggage that did arrive was the one with dirty clothes. I decided to check online on my luggage on www.united.com/baggagecheck and saw that the luggage was at the airp...

Out in Chicago with family in this trip. The logistics involved in moving a large group of people for an event is a little mind blowing. People having different needs and timing can certainly lead to confusion. I flew on United Airlines but I also booked flights on American Airlines directly and indirectly with British Airways via points. Full planes throughout the trip but was able to get upgraded last minute to first on United Airlines to Chicago. Luckily, my companion did as well when someone declined the upgrade and it was given to the next person. Only one of my family members had issues with their flight itinerary which required a complete rebooking. That experience gave me an introduction to the policies of award travel redemption on British Airways and American Airlines. British Airways does not allow redeposit of miles on no show tickets and flights must be booked at least 4 hours in advance when using the travel on a partner airline. I assume partner since I have never ...

I'm staying in Carson at the Doubletree Carson  on and off for the next few months. This Doubletree is the exact opposite of the San Pedro location. The hotel is situated next to the civic center and not much in the immediate area for walking expeditions. The hotel has upgraded its facilities inside with carpet and furnishings. The hotel bar and restaurant is full service and appears fairly active in the evenings. There is a nice outdoor lounge attached to the restaurant/bar that would make you think you are not in Carson and the pool is fairly large. The breakfast here is also full American buffet with a cook to order omelet station. I was surprised to see the number of Indian clientele this hotel attracts. The restaurant carried a number of Indian specific foods in the morning. I don't know if TVs have changed recently but I am using the flat panel screens in hotels to view my laptop and watch Netflix and such. I am finding that the TVs are able to switch inputs easily and...

Staying in San Pedro for a week and checked into the Doubletree San Pedro - Port of Los Angeles . One of the few full service hotels in the South Bay that doesn't charge parking is a great thing especially since this Doubletree sits on the marina. The hotel is a little dated and could benefit by upgrading the interior. Overall, I like the location and the facility. As a Diamond member, I am able to have breakfast and this particular Doubletree allows for the full American buffet rather than just continental. I appreciate that since it is nice to have something hot in the morning. The hotel also offers complimentary shuttle service within the local area but it is also very easy to walk around San Pedro itself. Compared to Long Beach, San Pedro is quieter but prettier. In general, I don't make many housekeeping comments but this particular hotel actually tries to conserve the toiletries in the bathroom. You always see the signs in the rooms to "be green" and reuse to...

I'm about to begin a cycle of hotel stays in the upcoming months due to some personal home construction. Coming back from Baltimore, I opted to stay by the LAX area and made a one night stay in Hawthorne. After waiting for almost an hour, I was able to get on the airport shuttle for the Hampton Inn Los Angeles International Airport/Hawthorne . The hotel shares the shuttle with other hotels in the immediate area so you have to look for a shuttle with an assortment of hotels ranging from Choice to Holiday Inn. In the future, if you are in the Terminal 7 at LAX you want to be under the Hotel Courtesy stop that is closest to Terminal 6. The shuttles don't drive past the entire stop and will leave you if you are at the wrong end of the stop. The hotel is relatively new and the interior greatly contrasts with the neighborhood. I was surprised to see that there were no tubs in the bathroom, it was a full shower with seating. The parking is secure but you have to get the code first ...

Headed out to charm city for a conference on this trip. I took a red eye flight on United Airlines and landed into Baltimore International Airport (BWI). I did do a pit stop at George Bush Intercontinental Houston Airport  and grabbed a breakfast taco from Pappasito's Cantina . Normal taco but I was surprised to see that pico de gallo and jalapenos are not considered condiments and is an additional charge. On this trip, I decided to get a rental car and found a great deal through Priceline and ended up at Avis with a Kia Rio. I think my daily parking charge is more expensive than the rental rate. Headed to downtown Baltimore and decided that I wanted to visit Dangerously Delicious Pies for lunch. So I detoured from the hotel to the Pie shop first and ordered a slice of chicken pot pie and mobtown brown a la mode. The mobtown brown is your basic pecan pie drizzled with chocolate and caramel sauces. The pies were pretty good, there was a salty aftertaste to...

I seem to be making up for lost time and made another visit to Phoenix. Left with some friends over the holiday weekend to Phoenix. It was an uneventful road trip to Phoenix with some easy pit stops at Carl's Jr and truck stops along the way. Checked into the Westin Phoenix Downtown hotel. I haven't stayed at a Westin but it looked fairly new from the website. The location in downtown is super convenient to Chase Field. Unfortunately, the Arizona Diamondbacks were not in town. The rooms are huge and very comfortable. The pool was a little small for my taste but I was not here in this hotel because of the pool. The parking is a bit steep at almost $30 but expected given the location. Westin Phoenix Downtown Guest Room After checking in, made a visit to some relatives and stopped by Urban Cookies Bakeshop for some treats to bring. They did sell cupcakes but the theme was peach and it isn't a flavor I usually like in baked goods. The cookies were delicious, I had the...

I haven't been to Phoenix in awhile. Took a road trip for a quick overnight trip to Phoenix. Headed out early morning and discovered a great Mexican restaurant in Banning, California. Consuelo's Home Style Mexican Food at 1046 E Ramsey Street off the 10 Interstate at the Hargrave Street exit. You wouldn't see it right away but I had a great Chile Verde breakfast burrito. Something to keep in mind if you go to Morongo Casino or Palm Springs. Hampton Inn King Room Checked into the Hampton Inn Phoenix Midtown Downtown Area. I haven't been to this particular Hampton Inn in a few years and they implemented a few new changes since my last visit. There are designated Diamond parking spaces by the front of the hotel, cookies in the afternoon, and the welcome amenity is a choice of snacks. I especially like the power outlet/USB station on the night desk next to the bed. Overall, a very nice stay. Charging station on night stand at Hampton Inn The burrito earlier sti...