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Vacation/Travel Thread.


justBLAZE
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I've been meaning to start a similar thread here for a while, just because I have 2 weeks of vacation to use before thanksgiving when it really picks up at work.

 

Has anyone done the all-inclusive resort type of deal? Stay away from Mexico? I'm personally looking for beach/resort type of deal with plenty of nightlife for socializing with females :) Suggestions?

 

I'm 25+ so probably too old for Cancun.. Miami? Vegas just seems way too expensive.

 

Feel free to post your best vacation spots whether it's a family weekend getaway, or Hangover style vacation in Bangkok. Let's see if this thread picks up.

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Not sure why you think Vegas seems way too expensive.

 

Southwest flies there from Midway so airfare won't be too much.

 

Use Priceline and you can get 4* hotels for $50-60/night and 5*/resorts for $100/night.

 

Buffets there are pretty cheap as well.

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QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ Aug 3, 2012 -> 08:01 AM)
Not sure why you think Vegas seems way too expensive.

 

Southwest flies there from Midway so airfare won't be too much.

 

Use Priceline and you can get 4* hotels for $50-60/night and 5*/resorts for $100/night.

 

Buffets there are pretty cheap as well.

 

Yeah Vegas is wicked cheap. When I went we stayed in a suite at the Monte Carlo for like 89/night.

 

Vegas is only expensive if you make it that way with gambling/drinking/etc...

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Yeah Vegas is wicked cheap. When I went we stayed in a suite at the Monte Carlo for like 89/night.

 

Vegas is only expensive if you make it that way with gambling/drinking/etc...

 

If you do gamble locally, I recommend doing it at Horseshoe Hammond or Harrah's Joliet--they are both owned by the same company (Ceasar's) that owns Ceasar's Palace, the Rio, Paris, Bally's, Planet Hollywood, Harrah's, and IP in Vegas, and being a frequent player can get you even cheaper rates when you do go to Vegas.

 

Last time my wife and I went to Vegas we got rooms at Harrah's for $30/night.

 

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QUOTE (ChiSox_Sonix @ Aug 3, 2012 -> 06:31 AM)
Yeah Vegas is wicked cheap. When I went we stayed in a suite at the Monte Carlo for like 89/night.

 

Vegas is only expensive if you make it that way with gambling/drinking/etc...

Well why the hell would you go to Vegas if not to gamble and drink?

 

Vegas is just different.

 

Most vacations you go on, you have an idea of what it's going to cost you, what you'll spend from night to night...

 

With Vegas, I always had an uneasy feeling because I just never knew what the hell might happen...

 

 

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Mexico is safe, and incredible unsafe, in spots. The vacation destinations seem to be spared from the cartel violence. Most of the people I know who have family there or who vacation there just hold their breath getting away from the border. Wealthy Mexicans are flying the couple hundred miles from interior cities into the US. Private plane ownership has jumped up as well. They will even buy an extra car, something small and cheap instead of taking their Suburbans and Armadas into the border region.

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I'm a travel agent, just so ya know.

 

There are plenty of safe places to vacation in Mexico, and Cozumel and Cancun can be an incredibly great value at times. You can also find some great values in Jamaica and Dominican Republic for all inclusives. The best time of year for a great bargain is coming up. Post labor day and pre Thanksgiving affords some amazing deals, but you do have some risk of tropical storms/hurricanes. The good news is, if there's no Tropical Storm, the weather is usually some of the best many Caribbean islands have all year. There's even one all-inclusive in the US, Club Med has one in Florida, near Port St Lucie.

 

Vegas can be great fun, but if you're going to go for the first time - do it right. Don't cheap out and stay at a generic off strip hotel, especially now because there are deals EVERYWHERE for Vegas. There's a big difference in your experience if you stay some place like the Cosmopolitan as opposed to say Circus Circus or the Hilton Garden Inn. Vegas can be very cheap to get to, but expensive to stay in. Personally, I'm ambivalent to the area.

 

My favorite cheap destination was Nicaragua. $5/night hotels a block from a gorgeous beach, riding chicken buses across the country for $1.25, drinking Tona beer and chilling out for a week was great. I wasn't even paying attention to what I was spending, had a great time, and never spent more than $70 in a day.

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QUOTE (Rex Kicka** @ Aug 4, 2012 -> 10:23 AM)
I'm a travel agent, just so ya know.

 

 

My favorite cheap destination was Nicaragua. $5/night hotels a block from a gorgeous beach, riding chicken buses across the country for $1.25, drinking Tona beer and chilling out for a week was great. I wasn't even paying attention to what I was spending, had a great time, and never spent more than $70 in a day.

 

When will there be a Rex-lead soxtalk vacation?

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I usually go to Mexico but this year, I went to Panama City, Florida. I rented a 4 bedroom condo on the beach and my wife and 2 kids loved it. I used my credit card points for gift cards to Wal mart, and purchased groceries for the week. While the condo cost me a bit more, the food savings was huge. We went to the beach everyday and everyone was happy.

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QUOTE (justBLAZE @ Aug 3, 2012 -> 02:24 AM)
I've been meaning to start a similar thread here for a while, just because I have 2 weeks of vacation to use before thanksgiving when it really picks up at work.

 

Has anyone done the all-inclusive resort type of deal? Stay away from Mexico? I'm personally looking for beach/resort type of deal with plenty of nightlife for socializing with females :) Suggestions?

 

I'm 25+ so probably too old for Cancun.. Miami? Vegas just seems way too expensive.

 

Feel free to post your best vacation spots whether it's a family weekend getaway, or Hangover style vacation in Bangkok. Let's see if this thread picks up.

Why not Costa Rica or the Domincan Republic?

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I've been going to the Riviera Maya area over the past 6 years every May and have alot of input on all of the All-inclusives if you have any questions. There are TONS so you can always great a great deal. IMO the best all inclusive brand in mexico in the Secrets/Dreams/Now chains.

 

This year we went to Jamaica and the resort may not have been as "nice" as the ones we stayed at in Mexico I thought the overall atmosphere was better.

 

I've also done the DR, but thats the type of place if you have any aspirations of going off resort you simply cannot do it.

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QUOTE (RockRaines @ Aug 6, 2012 -> 12:51 PM)
I've been going to the Riviera Maya area over the past 6 years every May and have alot of input on all of the All-inclusives if you have any questions. There are TONS so you can always great a great deal. IMO the best all inclusive brand in mexico in the Secrets/Dreams/Now chains.

 

This year we went to Jamaica and the resort may not have been as "nice" as the ones we stayed at in Mexico I thought the overall atmosphere was better.

 

I've also done the DR, but thats the type of place if you have any aspirations of going off resort you simply cannot do it.

 

We did that when we docked for a cruise in Samana and in hindsight we definitely should have done a cruise sponsored excursion. We were fine but almost immediately after we took off from the dock I became uneasy

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QUOTE (RockRaines @ Aug 6, 2012 -> 11:51 AM)
I've been going to the Riviera Maya area over the past 6 years every May and have alot of input on all of the All-inclusives if you have any questions. There are TONS so you can always great a great deal. IMO the best all inclusive brand in mexico in the Secrets/Dreams/Now chains.

 

This year we went to Jamaica and the resort may not have been as "nice" as the ones we stayed at in Mexico I thought the overall atmosphere was better.

 

I've also done the DR, but thats the type of place if you have any aspirations of going off resort you simply cannot do it.

 

Awesome Rock, I guess RIU brand resorts are also up there from what I'm reading. Question everyone asks, but best month to go? In my line of work I can forget about any vacation between Thanksgiving and New Years, so I'm thinking first week of November. Should be cold enough here and hot enough there to catch a tan.

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QUOTE (justBLAZE @ Aug 6, 2012 -> 10:47 PM)
Awesome Rock, I guess RIU brand resorts are also up there from what I'm reading. Question everyone asks, but best month to go? In my line of work I can forget about any vacation between Thanksgiving and New Years, so I'm thinking first week of November. Should be cold enough here and hot enough there to catch a tan.

I always go in May because its hot, cheap, and the resort is half full.

 

The Riu's are sometimes pretty good, I know they differ between them because of the levels of their actual resorts. For example the palace is nice than the tequilia in Riviera Maya. I realyl rely alot on tripadvisor to give me feedback on them. I really found that the Mexican Riviera hotels that I've been to or seen seem to be a little more on the tamer side than lets say Jamaica. For whatever reason people vacationing down there have a different level of expectations of the resort, the service and the atmosphere.

 

I also have yet to stay at one in Playa (the city) but have seen them and they are nice, I also like the town. For a more party atmosphere there are quite a few nice hotels in Cancun that arent s***ty college spring break type places and yet are very lively.

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RIU is a chain you should be a bit careful about. They have 5 star accommodations and 3 star as well. There's a decent service difference between a 3, 4 and 5 star accommodation.

 

Early November is a great time to go. Prices are depressed because its between Labor Day and Thanksgiving and the places are pretty empty. Also, you catch a break because its technically hurricane season as well - although by November, that threat is much much lower.

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QUOTE (RockRaines @ Aug 7, 2012 -> 04:48 PM)
I also have yet to stay at one in Playa (the city) but have seen them and they are nice, I also like the town. For a more party atmosphere there are quite a few nice hotels in Cancun that arent s***ty college spring break type places and yet are very lively.

 

This is exactly what I'm looking for!

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Dont let Bulls fans that have never been to Miami fool you. Miami is an awesome vacation spot. Last call at 1:30am is unheard of, most of the places dont close till 4am. Youre allowed to bring your drinks outside and into the next bar you hop to. Awesome restaurant choices. European babes sunbathing topless.

 

I never did the all-inclusive resort thing because half my family still lives down there and I can borrow a room whenever, but ive had friends do the resort thing and they loved it so long as the place was within reasonable walking distance from Ocean Drive.

 

The Cons about partying in SoBe is 90% of the restaurants on Ocean Drive are uber gimmicky and if you walk on the restaurant side of Ocean drive (as opposed to the beach side), you WILL be bombarded with Hot hostesses shoving menus in your face almost begging you to try some gimmick like endless crab legs or some stuff like that. Its a much better idea to go outside of Ocean drive when it comes to dining options.

Also as with any city with a killer nightlife, you might just run into a club or bar thats super hyped with a huge line that is huge for absolutely no reason. The place purposely keeps a line going so passerby's can say "oh hey! that place looks packed! must be awesome!" but its probably nothing and you will still have a blast in most of the "regular" looking spots.

 

If youve got an extra 300 dollars to throw out the window you can rent a lamborghini for a night and show up fashionably late in your best Miami Vice-type outfit to all the spots like a boss. :)

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