Miami, Florida: InterContinental

January 2025, two nights, weekend

Beautiful sculpture in the lobby at InterContinental Miami.

Reservations, arrival, platinum perks

InterContinantal has an ambassador program, and elite level IHG members do not usually receive perks if not also an ambassador member. I am not a member of the ambassador program, because there is a cost to join, and the program is only good at IC hotels. I received the platinum on-site 600 bonus points at check-in, and I opted to pay for club access. I had booked this stay with points, and the only points room available when booking was a basic guestroom. The club upgrade was a bit pricey, so we only added this for one night of our stay.

Floor 28 in InterContinental Miami hotel

Guestroom on floor 28

This guestroom is one of the corner rooms with a partial view, so I suppose we also received a slight room upgrade. The guestroom did not seem particularly large, although the corner rooms do look larger in the guestroom diagram (see photo above).

Guestroom on floor 28 in InterContinental Miami hotel

Alpena, Michigan: Holiday Inn Express and more

December 2024, week night, one night

View from king suite 407 in Holiday Inn Express Alpena, Michigan
Sitting area in king suite 407 below

Holiday Inn Express, king suite 407

I reserved a basic king guestroom in this hotel.  As a platinum member, we received an upgrade to a suite. Although we did not have a river view, the extra sitting area in the room was great. I also received the opportunity to pick a gift from the Christmas tree in the lobby, and received an extra 250 points. Some of the gifts were worth 5,000 points, so I guess I was not so lucky on that draw. 😁

King suite 407 in Holiday Inn Express Alpena, Michigan

This Holiday Inn Express still had Keurig coffee machines in the guestroom. They did not have a fresh brew machine in the lobby, like the location in East Lansing. The guestroom was spacious, comfortable, and very clean. The bathroom shower had glass doors, and a safe was provided in the entry closet.

Breakfast in Holiday Inn Express Alpena, Michigan

Lansing, Michigan: Holiday Inn Express, Visitor Bureau and area

November 2024, weekend, one night 

View from guestroom 326 in Holiday Inn Express & Suites East Lansing

I am sharing a few photos and some basic information from our Lansing visit last month.

Guestroom 326 in Holiday Inn Express & Suites East Lansing

Holiday Inn Express East Lansing, king suite guestroom 326

I reserved a basic king guestroom in this hotel. As a platinum member, I received an upgrade to a king suite. The guestroom was clean and comfortable. 

Guestroom 326 in Holiday Inn Express & Suites East Lansing

Grand Rapids, Michigan: City Flats Hotel with Expedia through AARP

October 2024, one night, weekday

Guestroom diagram in CityFlats hotel Grand Rapids, Michigan

Reservation process

This is the first time I have used Expedia, and based on this experience, I will never book through them again. The only reason I booked this way, is because I had a $100 credit from AARP. I saved a little money in the end; however, the process was not worth it. The biggest headache occurred when the $100 credit did not process correctly. First I spoke with AARP, who could not help, and then it took me an hour on the telephone with Expedia to get this corrected! The first person I spoke with was going to have the hotel cancel the reservation and have me re-book (I was on hold while he attempted this). Lucky for me, hotel staff did not answer, because the same thing probably would have happened during re-booking. After a supervisor got on the telephone, this person was also unable to correct the error. The supervisor eventually ended up crediting me back the $100. Whew! Another reason not to book through a third party, is that if you have a membership, the hotel will not credit any earned points for the stay.

View from guestroom 502 in CityFlats hotel Grand Rapids, Michigan

Arrival and guestroom 502

Our room was ready when we arrived, and the check-in process was quick. The guestroom was very small, and the view was lousy.

Guestroom 502 in CityFlats hotel Grand Rapids, Michigan

Great Smoky Mountains National Park: Cades Cove Campground, Hiking, Biking, and more

 May 2024, 6 nights

Cades Cove loop in Smoky Mountains National Park

We had originally thought we would stay in Look Rock Campground to visit the Smoky Mountains because it is the only National Park campground with electricity, and we wanted to stay for about a week. After more research, we decided to go with Cades Cove Campground instead. One reason we changed our minds is because there is more hiking directly from the campground in Cades Cove, and we had read there is a lot of vehicle noise by Look Rock from Foothills Parkway.

Above: Abrams Creek across from campsite
Below: campsite 68 in Cades Cove Campground

Cades Cove Campground, campsite 68 and more

I had about six campsites as top choices in Cades Cove. Campsite 68 was on this list, although it was not near the top of the list. Some of the other sites on our list were 21, 42, 69, 70, and 79. Lucky for us, most of the other sites had been reserved by the time we could make our reservation (6 months in advance). After we got to the campground, we decided campsite 68 is one of the best sites in loop B! 😄

Above: view of campsite 68 from road in Cades Cove Campground
Below: looking toward campsite 69 from campsite 68 

Petoskey, Michigan: Stafford's Perry Hotel, downtown, shopping, winery, brewery

March 2024, weekday, one night

We had a wonderful stay in Stafford's Perry Hotel in 2021, so we decided to book the spring getaway package for this stay. The weeknight Classic King room rate of $159 included: a $25 breakfast voucher, $40 in Noggin Bucks, and $50 in downtown shopping dollars. We thought this was a fabulous rate!

Views from guestroom 426 in Stafford's Perry Hotel

Stafford's Perry Hotel classic king guestroom #426

This guestroom is located on the top floor in the northwest corner of the hotel. We had a partial view of downtown and of the bay. Although it was not as spacious as the bay view guestroom we had in 2021, and it did not have a balcony, this was still a great room. It was clean, and we appreciated the views. 

Guestroom 426 in Stafford's Perry Hotel in Petoskey, Michigan

The comfortable bed was topped with good quality sheets and pillows. The room was well soundproofed, and the sleep quality was excellent.

Guestroom diagram on back of door in guestroom 426 in Stafford's Perry Hotel
Below: entrance to library across the hall from guestroom 426

Holland, Michigan: Marriott Courtyard, hiking, downtown

February 2024, weekday, one-night

View from guestroom 509 in Holland Marriott Courtyard
Above: sunset           Below: sunrise

Double queen guestroom 509 in Marriott Courtyard

Using points, I reserved a two queen bed guestroom with a balcony. We did not need two beds; however, a king bed guestroom with a balcony was not available. I was glad that we were able to reserve a balcony guestroom using points.

Guestroom 509 in Holland Marriott Courtyard

This guestroom is on the top floor, and overlooks downtown. It was clean, comfortable, quiet, and spacious. Refreshment amenities in the guestroom included a Keurig coffeemaker with supplies, ice bucket, and small fridge.

Guestroom 509 in Holland Marriott Courtyard

New York: DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel New York Times Square West

January 2023, weekday, one night, two double beds city view

View from guestroom 3110 DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel
New York Times Square West (photo credit goes to our son) 

Arrival and diamond perks

We reserved a basic double bed guestroom for three adults, and received an upgrade to a city view guestroom three days before arrival. This hotel was an easy half mile walk from Moynihan Train Hall. We exited the train hall on 9th Street, and headed north. 

I had the mobile key, and stopped at the front desk to get waters and cookies before going to the guestroom. This took almost five minutes, even though there were five or six agents behind the front desk and no guests in the area. The agent who assisted me did not smile, request my name, or look up my reservation. The reason it took so long is because staff members were looking at their computers or otherwise pre-occupied, rather than paying attention to lobby activity.

Guestroom 3110 and diagram in DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel 
New York Times Square West

Two double beds city view 3110

This is a basic tiny guestroom in New York City. There was barely enough room for our luggage and three guests. The only seat in the guestroom was a chair at the desk next to the TV. It would be difficult, if not impossible, for a large person to sit in the desk chair at the foot of the bed and work. The guestroom was satisfactory, at best. The bed was not very comfy, although it was not awful, either. 

Guestroom 3110 in DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel New York Times Square West

New York City: Moynihan Hall lounge and Amtrak to Toledo

February 2023

View of New York from Manhattan cruise terminal

Our cruise ship arrived at the Manhattan terminal and was ready for passengers to disembark before 8:00 AM. Our Amtrak ride was not until 3:40 PM, so we took our time disembarking, and then walked to Moynihan Train Hall. The walk was 1½ miles, which was not difficult even with our luggage. 

I am sharing info about the train station, and just a bit about the train ride in this post. You can find additional information about the train ride in my previous post about our train ride from Toledo to New York City.

Moynihan Train Hall in New York City

Metropolitan lounge, baggage check, and boarding in Moynihan Train Hall

The following passengers have access to the lounge in New York City: Amtrak Guest Rewards members with Select Plus or Select Executive status, Amtrak Guest Rewards station lounge pass holders, and passengers with first class or private room tickets. A roomette is a private room, so we had access to the lounge. Fortunately, there was not a time limit for how long we could be in the lounge, because we arrived before noon. 

Metropolitan Lounge in Moynihan Train Hall 

Once we checked in at the lounge, we were able to come and go, if we did not want to remain in the lounge the entire time. We had entered Moynihan Hall from 9th Street, so we saw Metropolitan Lounge before the baggage check area. Once inside the lounge, we observed an escalator from the lounge to the boarding area, which is also where the checked baggage counter is located. We were able to use the lounge escalator to access baggage check, and check our bags several hours before our trip. The agent in the lounge told us we could check our bags 24 hours ahead of time, if we wanted. When we first purchased our coach seats (before upgrading to a roomette), I had tried to find this information on Amtrak's website without success. I even called the train station to ask how far in advance we could check our bags, and I never reached a person. I left two messages, and no one ever called me back. It is great to know that bag check is available early, for passengers who want to explore the city until departure. 

We were a bit concerned about the weight of our larger bag, since it had weighed 49 lbs. on our trip out. There is a scale on the customer side of the counter to check bag weight and size (like the photo I shared in the Toledo station); however, it was not working. The person who took our bag did not seem to care; he merely hoisted the bag right over the working scale without weighing it, and then provided tags.

Looking toward balcony seating and boarding area from Metropolitan Lounge in Moynihan Train Hall

San Antonio, Texas: Hampton Inn & Suites Riverwalk, Dining, Attractions

October 2023, weekdays, two nights, king suite 727

Reservations, arrival, diamond perks

I had two reservations for this stay, because one night was a paid stay, and the other night was a points redemption. The same guestroom type was not available both nights, so I had to reserve two different room types. I wanted to reserve a [king] balcony room; however, since a balcony room was not available, I reserved a Jr. suite with a king bed, and a Queen double. I called the hotel a few days ahead of time to make sure the stays were linked together, and to check the availability of a balcony guestroom. Although there were no balcony guestrooms available, the agent told me she could assign us the same Jr. suite for both nights, so we would not need to change rooms. She said this would probably be on floor 3. 

Hampton Inn San Antonio Riverwalk guestroom diagram;
star is location of guestroom 727

When I checked in on the app the next day, the only available guestroom choices were as the agent had stated; guestrooms 320 and 321. On floor 3, guestroom 320 overlooks the roof of the building next door, and 321 sets back in the building corner. I chose guestroom 320 to complete the check-in process. We had to go to the front desk when we arrived to complete check-in, because we needed an elevator key. The agent did not say anything about my guestroom location or type, although she did say something about it being the room I had chosen when I checked in on the app. Imagine my delight when she handed me a key for guestroom 727! We had been upgraded to a one-bedroom suite in a much better location. I also received bottled water and snacks.

Hampton Inn and Home2Suites San Antonio Riverwalk
Above, view from Hampton Inn guestroom 727 

I had a difficult time choosing a hotel and guestroom, so I am sharing a couple photos of the hotel and guestroom diagrams with labeled details. The Hampton Inn is located in the same building as Home2Suites. I originally chose Home2Suites, because we like the roominess and full kitchen that brand offers; however, I changed to the Hampton Inn, because it did not look like the Home2Suites guestrooms had balconies. Both hotels do have balcony rooms, although there are more balcony guestrooms in the Hampton Inn, and these rooms are also closer to the river.

King one-bedroom suite #727 in Hampton Inn San Antonio Riverwalk

Kalamazoo, Michigan: Markin Glen County Park

September 2023, 3 nights, weeknights, campsite 27

Overlooking playground and beach area in Markin Glen Campground

Reservations and arrival

It is easy to make a reservation at this campground via phone, and the cost to camp for a full hook-up site is fair. Our arrival experience was a bit unpleasant, as we arrived shortly before the 3:00 PM check-in time, and were told we had to wait in the parking lot, or return after 3:00. Since we arrived on a Tuesday, and the campsites had all been vacated and cleared, this seemed ridiculous. Another camper arrived at 2:55 PM, and also pulled into the parking area to wait 5 minutes. 😳 At least the staff member had processed our paperwork when we arrived, so we did not have to go back out and enter the check-in line at 3:00 PM. Apparently, a lot of people thought Tuesday was a good day to arrive, as we observed a couple of campers in line, when we drove from the picnic area parking lot to our campsite. 

Campsite 27 in Markin Glen Campground

Campsite 27

Campsite 27 is the very last site on the outer loop. It is a grassy, private, and beautiful site. We got some rain during our stay, and this site floods a bit on the cement pad. 

Campsite 27 in Markin Glen Campground