Traverse City, Michigan: Visiting on a Budget!

January 2020, Weekday-weekend

Traverse City is not always an expensive place to visit, if you pick an off-peak date and watch for deals. We made most of our choices this trip based on discounts we found from places such as, the Visitors Center, WHATSUP, and the Michigan Brewvine Passport that we had purchased before our trip. The passport cost is $31 with tax and shipping, and there is often a passport BOGO purchase special around the holidays. The AAA rate at Hotel Indigo where we stayed, was less than $150 before taxes.

Pulled pork sandwich from Dickey's BBQ Pit in Traverse City

Dining

We had lunch one day at Dickey's Barbecue Pit because we had a coupon for BOGO pulled pork sandwich. We got the no-cost coupon from the local deals section on the AARP rewards site, and you do not need to be a member to join this site. This was probably not one of our better dining choices in Traverse City, although it was acceptable and inexpensive.

Breakfast at Green House Cafe in Traverse City

We were very pleased with our accidental breakfast choice at Green House Cafe. We had planned to have breakfast at Blue Heron with a coupon from the Visitor Center; however, this restaurant has closed. None of the restaurants we passed in town as we walked by looking for another breakfast place had menus posted, and we chose Green House Cafe totally by chance. We had been hoping to find a place that would not cost $10+ per person, and as luck would have it, Green House Cafe fit the bill! The food was delicious, and the cost for both meals was less than $10 total before tip.

Wolverine Flatbread at The Filling Station

We enjoyed a beer and a half-priced flatbread at The Filling Station--the discount came from the Michigan Brewvine Passport. The beer, service, and food were all excellent!

Beverages: breweries, wineries, distilleries, Happy Hour...

On Mission Peninsula, we visited Peninsula Cellars, Chateau Grand Traverse Winery, Bowers Harbor, and Jolly Pumpkin. The Brewvine Passport contains coupons for all of these locations. There was no charge for the tastings at any of the wineries we visited, and the Jolly Pumpkin coupons we used were for half off.

Jolly Pumpkin in Traverse City; Brewvine Passports on counter

Traverse City, Michigan: Hotel Indigo

January 2020, weekend, 1-night, king guestroom warehouse district #407

We stayed in this hotel shortly after it first opened in June 2016, and this is the first time we have been back since then.

View from Hotel Indigo guestroom 407

Platinum perks and check-in

I did not receive a room upgrade or status recognition, other than the front desk associate asking if I wanted points or drink coupons for my on-property benefit. I chose points, and they posted to my account that evening. The valet parking charge has increased to $15 since our last stay. Information I found online for Traverse City parking said that there is no overnight parking in town, so we valet parked our car. The next morning, we noticed cars that had been parked in a lot overnight kiddy corner from the hotel (across the street on the right in the photo above). We checked out that parking lot before we left town, and there were no signs that said no overnight parking, nor were there any fees posted to park there. If we had seen this when we first arrived, we would have parked in that lot. If anyone has done this, please share your experience!

Another view from guestroom 407

Guestroom 407

This hotel has five floors; our guestroom was on the second floor from the top. It is near the end of the hall and overlooks the hotel entrance. This guestroom is considerably smaller than guestroom 432, which we had in June 2016. If you follow the link above to that post, you can see photos of that guestroom and the guestroom diagram.

Shower in guestroom 407

Chicago, Illinois: transportation, attractions, dining, Happy Hours

December 2019, Weekdays-weekend between Christmas and New Years

We spent three days around Chicago during our two-night stay. Following is information about some of the transportation we used and places we visited.

Sun rising in St. Joe; taken from Pere Marquette Amtrak ride en route from GRR.

Transportation

We took the Amtrak Pere Marquette route roundtrip from GRR. If you make a reservation in advance, the adult Smart Fare cost is usually $28 one-way, or 1,208 points. We were able to redeem points for part of the trip. The Christmas light decorations along the way were beautiful on the return trip. Both trips were uneventful, and we arrived on time. The train was 100% full on the way to Chicago, and it was not very full on the way back to Grand Rapids. This is the perfect situation for this trip. Grand Rapids in the first place to board the train when departing, so it was not a problem finding seats together. There are always many trains leaving Chicago, and it is nice when this route is not full, because Union Station is chaotic when it is. Click on the Amtrak label at the end of this post, if you are interested in more information from previous trips.

In Chicago, we took Uber from Sheraton Grand Chicago to Garfield Park Conservatory. There was a sign for Uber pickup in front of the hotel and Shula's Steakhouse (which is in the hotel). After I scheduled the ride, I sent a text stating our exact location in front of Shula's, because there are different street levels in Chicago, and GPS does not recognize that. The hotel concierge had mentioned rides and the different street levels during one of our conversations, and then I realized that was why my map app had been confused during some of our walks! 😁 We did not wait long, and the ride took less than 20 minutes. The cost was $12.71 pre-tip. We rode the Green Line train back to Chicago, which took about the same amount of time. You can purchase tickets from a machine at the station. The cost was $3 each for a single ticket (the website says $2.50; not sure why the price difference). The security person working in the station told us the ticket could be reused for the next two hours. There is a shelter and heating lamps in the platform waiting area. Trains run about every 10 minutes on weekdays.

My favorite room at Garfield Park Conservatory!

Garfield Park Conservatory, parks, attractions

Garfield Park Conservatory opens at 9AM, and we arrived about seven minutes early. Fortunately, the weather was nice, because there was not a covered waiting area. Others were waiting before we arrived, and they opened the doors a couple of minutes early.

Chicago, Illinois: Sheraton Grand Chicago

December 2019, Weekdays (holiday week), 2-nights, King club lounge guestroom 3433

Arrival, check-in, platinum perks

A guestroom was ready when we arrived late morning, although I had not received a text notification via the app. When we stayed at the Westin down the road last year, I had received a notification at 7:30 AM! We received an upgrade to a top floor guestroom with club access, and late checkout.

View from guestroom 3433 by desk area.
View to the left was a rooftop and taller building (not visible in this photo).

Guestroom 3433

This guestroom is at the end of the hall on the SE corner, with a partial view of the river and lake. The view was partially obstructed because many buildings around the hotel are taller than this building. There is a hallway door outside this guestroom that can also be closed to reduce hallway noise. We appreciated this, because the hotel was very full during our stay.

Guestroom 3433 from bathroom entrance.
Desk area and mini-bar (not visible) located to the right.

Houston, Texas: Courtyard Houston Intercontinental Airport

December 2019, Weekdays, 2-nights, King guestroom 433

I fell a bit behind with my blog posts over the holidays, so this post does not contain as much information as usual.

Platinum perks and check-in

A room was ready for me when I arrived, although I had not received a notification via the app. I did not receive a room upgrade or breakfast. I asked about breakfast, because I had received it when I stayed at the Austin airport Courtyard a few months earlier. This is not a guaranteed perk for Platinum members when points are chosen; however, sometimes a property goes above and beyond the norm.

View from guestroom 433 at Courtyard Houston Intercontinental Airport

King guestroom 433

This is  a standard king guestroom on the top floor near the end of the hall. If the guestroom diagram is correct, this is the smallest room type in this hotel. The view overlooks the outside courtyard and airport parking. I heard occasional airplane noise; however, it was not bothersome. 

Guestroom diagram from back of door

I liked the walk-in shower, and Keurig coffeemaker. A small fridge and microwave were located behind the door to the right of the coffeemaker.

Berea, Kentucky: Fairfield Inn & Suites Lexington Berea

December 2019, Weekend, 1-night, King guestroom 219

Arrival and platinum perks

The hotel seemed quite empty when we arrived after 5:00 PM. The front desk agent did not mention my status, or say anything about a room upgrade. In fact, I did not receive my welcome amenity points for this stay until after I contacted the hotel over two weeks later.

Guestroom diagram on back of door at Fairfield Inn Berea room 219

King guestroom 219

This guestroom may have been an extended king upgrade from what I had originally booked, because the room is longer on the guestroom diagram than some of the guestrooms. It is not on the top floor, as I had requested in my reservation notes, and I did not ask about this during check-in. Since the hotel appeared to be mostly empty, I was not as concerned about overhead noise. Also, I thought maybe this would be a nicer room and upgrade, as that sometimes happens when I end up on a lower floor. In hindsight, I should have asked during check-in.

The guestroom was spacious, and the bed was comfortable. The layout was a bit odd, as the bathroom is located by the entrance door, rather than next to the sleeping area or between the sleeping and sitting area.

Bathroom in guestroom 219

Refreshment area between bathroom and living area

The spacious bathroom contained a tub/shower combination, and bathing amenities. A small fridge, microwave, and coffeemaker were located outside the bathroom. There was no closet at the entrance.