make the most of it
Only have a few days to get away?
The most seemingly logical thing is to find one place to stay, check into a comfy hotel, and recharge. Very reasonable.
My advice on this one might seem counterintuitive but hear me out. Moving hotels, even cities, on a short trip can make three days away feel like a week.
We took a 3-night trip (no kids) and stayed in two cities and three very different hotels. It felt like we did and saw SO MUCH. We ate out, hiked, and explored both cities a little. Sounds exhausting, I know, but we somehow still managed to get a lot of rest too: we lounged in two different pools, sat by a fire (in the hotel room!), had long morning coffees on the balcony in our robes, went out for cocktails, etc.
Much to our surprise, moving hotels each of the nights made the trip feel longer and more worthwhile.
Who doesn’t love a long vacation? Two weeks away sounds ideal. Of course, that’s not always practical or possible. Two cities in one trip is probably not very practical either. That part was unplanned and happened because we had a flight get canceled. Dare I use the adage…when life gives you lemons. We were forced into the two cities in a three-night situation, but we made the very best of it. When it was all said and done, I’m glad our original plans got messed up!
We started the trip with the kids in Chicago and we flew them up to Minneapolis to meet my parents who live half of the year in Northern Minnesota. My parents picked the kids up from the airport, and we headed to our gate to fly to Albuquerque. We’d planned to spend 3 nights in Santa Fe, NM.
Welp, that didn’t happen, as mentioned, but a few hours later we were here:
Our night in Minneapolis was super fun. We had lunch at a brew hall that felt straight out of Germany. The service was great, and it filled up with people headed to the Twins game so it had great vibes too. We spent the afternoon in the rooftop pool and then took a long walk to a delicious and very impressive dinner. We woke up refreshed and headed back to the airport in the morning. It was nice to do only one leg of the trip that first day; honestly it was kind of perfect.
We’d planned to do two different hotels in Santa Fe, only because they were very different as far as location/vibe/size/décor. We were curious to see both and without kids in tow it sounded fun to move hotels. We had planned for two nights at the Four Seasons, which was a little outside of town. One night was enough - we were able to cover the entire resort in a day (restaurant/pool/hiking). We then drove into the city of Santa Fe and checked into the third and final hotel of the trip, The Inn of Five Graces. It is one of the coolest places we have ever stayed. It has a very unique style that feels both cozy and luxurious, each room has a different layout and private entrance – this is a must stay if you visit Santa Fe. It’s a really special hotel. Conde Nast named it #17 top hotels in the world, #4 in top ten overall hotels in USA, and #1 hotel in the Southwest and West USA in 2019. Travel and Leisure named it #2 top city hotel in the USA in 2021.
Santa Fe is a great weekend getaway - lots of options to hike in a beautiful part of the country, explore the adorable town with a rich history, and plenty of great spots for food - hello hatch green chili.
Here are a few pics from the trip:
MINNEAPOLIS
Where to stay:
Where to eat:
Eat a “Juicy Lucy” Not this trip but we’ve eaten at these places in the past:
What to do:
Walk in the park along the river – Didn’t have time on this trip, but I’ve done in the past
Sea Life at Mall of America – We did this with kids a few years ago and it was great
SANTA FE
Where to stay:
Ten Thousand Waves – Didn’t stay here but our good friends have a few times and highly recommend. Want to try it next time - friends say the food at the Izakaya on the resort is incredible
Where to eat:
Geronimo – Fine dining, great service, great people watching, get reservation in advance
Coyote Cantina – outside dining, good salad and tacos
To Do:
