Month: July 2017

Five restaurants in Savannah that will keep you coming back for more.

Five restaurants in Savannah that will keep you coming back for more.
Savannah is “foodie” town with heavy creole influence. If you are visiting Savannah for leisure, food will play a huge part in your trip. You can’t come to this city without having lunch at Mrs. Wilkes boarding house, but your food adventure should not stop there.
I have listed my top 5 places to eat in Savannah that will keep you coming back for more. We have been to the first three restaurants multiple times and frequent them several times during each trip. The last two on the list are new for us and we can’t wait to go back!
1). The Crab Shack: 40 Estill Hammock Rd, Tybee, Ga.
The seafood sampler, key lime pie and key lime margarita are favorite’s. The crab shack also serves BBQ.
2). Vinny Van Go Go’s: 317 West Bryant Street, Savannah.
New York Style Pizzeria with outside seating or take out available. This place is cash only and they will also deliver to your hotel room.
3). Huey’s on the River: 115 East River Street, Savannah.
This place has better beignets that any you have ever had in New Orleans. Get them with the caramel praline sauce. My favorite dish here is the shrimp and Parmesan grits.
They don’t accept reservations, but you can put your name on the list to be seated with the “no wait” app.
4). Belford’s of Savannah: 315 West St. Julian Street, Savannah.
The fried green tomatoes and bacon infused bourbon are favorites.
5). Rise Savannah Bakery: 10 W. Broughton Street, Savannah.
Be prepared for the line that extends down the sidewalk, but I promise you, it will be worth the wait. The maple bacon bars and fried chicken sandwich with a fried egg and cheese on a potato roll are favorites.

A weekend guide to Savannah, Ga

I have visited Savannah on a regular basis since 2009 and it never gets old. There is so much to do and there are a few things that I still have not gotten around to doing. If you have never been to Savannah, this blog post will serve as your guide.

*See my previous post on where to take some amazing photos.

1). Mrs. Wilkes Boarding House: Mrs. Wilkes is the best place to get Southern Soul Food in Savannah. The restaurant is open Monday – Friday from 11am until 2pm and closed for the month of January. It is best to get in line for the restaurant by 9am and they only accept cash. Visit Mrs. Wilkes to see what is on the menu!

2). Savannah Slow Ride: 15 person bicycle tour that is 100% pedal powered. Choose from 6 tours that include a pub crawl, ghost tour and church crawl. For more information, visit: Savannah Slow Ride

3). Savannah Trolly Tour: Old Town Trolley Tours provides a hop on, hop off service that guides you through all of the historical sites in downtown Savannah. The trolley pass is good for 24 hours and comes with a gps service that lets you know how far away each bus is from every stop. Visit: Old Town Trolley

4). Forsyth Park: The fountain in Forsyth Park is a popular tourist destination. Forsyth Park is the largest park in the historic district of Savannah Georgia. The Park covers 30 acres of land just south of Gaston Street and north of Park Avenue. The east border of Forsyth Park is Drayton Street and on the west is Whitaker. Visit Forsyth Park for more information.

5). Bonaventure Cemetery: Bonaventure is considered one of the world’s most beautiful cemeteries. The cemetery has been around since 1846. The cemetery became famous when it was featured in the 1994 novel Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt, and in the movie, directed by Clint Eastwood, based on the book. Visit: Bonaventure Cemetery for more information.

6). River Street: River Street is home to a number of pubs, restaurants, bars, shops and nightlife. River Street

I have enjoyed each place on this list, but I still have not done the popular Savannah “ghost tour” or taken a ride on the Georgia Queen down the river. This gives me an excuse to go back!

8 most “instagramable” places in Savannah, Ga

8 most “instagramable” places in Savannah, Ga
Savannah is one of the most historic and beautiful cities in the South. It is also a travel bloggers dream. My family and I recently spent about 5 days in Savannah for a family reunion. We got in town a few days early, put on our waking shoes and enjoyed the scenery.
I have compiled a list of the 8 most “instagramable” places in Savannah for your enjoyment. Head out to each location before noon. It will be much cooler if you are visiting during the Summer and you won’t have a crowd of people in the background of your photos.
1). Rainbow Row on Washington Square: Historic Row Home, built in 1892 in Savannah.
Located at the intersection of Price and E. Bryant Street.
2). The Olde Pink House: 23 Abercorn Street.
Adjacent to the Planters Inn, a historic Savannah hotel is The Olde Pink House, one of Savannah’s most popular restaurants. The Olde Pink House was built in the 18th century.
3). The Gardens at the Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum: 41 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd.
Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum housed in the William Scarbrough House is home to the largest private gardens within the historic district of Savannah. The garden is free to enter.
4). The Owens- Thomas House: 124 Abercorn Street.
The house was designed by the young English architect William Jay (1792-1837), one of the first professionally-trained architects practicing in the United States. The elegant residence was built from 1816-1819  for cotton merchant and banker Richard Richardson and his wife Frances Bolton. The garden is open to the public and free to walk through and take photos.
5). Forsyth Park: Between Drayton and Whitaker Streets (east and west) and Gaston and Park Streets (north and south).
Forsyth Park was laid out in the 1840’s. It is the largest park in the historic district of Savannah Georgia. The Park covers 30 acres of land.
6). Wormsloe Plantation: 7601 Skidaway Road

Savannah, GA 31406 (you will need a car to get there). Wormsloe Plantation is the colonial estate of Noble Jones (1702–1775). Jones was a carpenter who arrived in Georgia in 1733 with James Oglethorpe and the first group of settlers from England. Wormsloe’s tabby ruin is the oldest standing structure in Savannah.

7). Historic Jones Street
Jones Street is known as the most beautiful Street in Savannah. Street parking is available. Don’t forget to have change for the meters.
8). Tybee Island: 20 minute drive from Historic Savannah.
The island is the easternmost point in Georgia. Fun fact, Tybee Island is home to the first of what would eventually become the Days Inn chain of hotels.
This list is just the start. Savannah has so much to offer. Beauty is on every corner and in each square. I would love to see your photos from my list when you visit Savannah!

States that will require a passport for travel

In 2017, there is millions of Americans that still do not have a passport. Starting in January 2018, 9 states will require a passport for travel, according to Travel and Leisure Magazine.

If you are a resident of Kentucky, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Washington, you will need a passport to fly domestically. If you don’t have a passport, you may travel with a permanent resident card, green card or with a military ID.

“Effective January 22, 2018, air travelers with identification that does not meet the REAL ID Act requirements and whose state does not have an extension must present an alternative form of identification in order to board a domestic flight. Examples of acceptable forms of identification include U.S. military or dependent ID, DHS trusted traveler cards, airline or airport-issued ID, passport book or passport card, or federally recognized tribal-issued photo ID.

We encourage you to check the REAL ID compliance status of your state on the DHS website and review TSA’s list of acceptable forms of identification. You should also check with your state’s licensing agency about how to acquire a REAL ID-compliant identification card.”

To everyone that does not already have a passport, the time is now. Avoid the rush and possible delay in getting yours in before the new year.

What are your thoughts on this new policy?

 

Alisha

Dining with a Disney Princess

What to expect when dining with a Disney Princess…

If there is a two year old in your party, expect the worst and hope for the best! The experience is definitely worth it and we all had a great time at the end of the day, but here is a quick planning guide to help make your experience everything that you want it to be and more.

1). Plan your dining experience at least 2-3 months in advance. This will help you to get your first choice of dates and desired dining times.

2). Travel with a small party. Party’s of 4 and under have a better chance of grabbing the best seats and desired times.

3). Set your budget and be prepared to pay for the experience in advance. Payment for your dining experience is due in full when you book your reservation. The cost is $59.99 for adults and $35.99 for kids.

4). Give yourself 1.5 hours to get from the parking lot to Cinderella’s castle. Our reservation was at 9:05 am and we were staying off property. We left our resort at 7:00 am and arrived at the castle at 8:30 am. This gave us time for a little traffic, time to park, make it through the gates, rent a stroller and walk to the castle without being in a rush.

5). Buy an autograph book for all of the Princesses to sign. Breakfast is not just with Cinderella. Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, Ariel and Princess Jazmine are all at the breakfast. They take their time, visit each table and take photos with each guest. They will also sign your photo/ autograph book.

6). Come hungry. The service is excellent and there is something for everyone on the menu. The kids had Mickey Mouse pancakes, bacon and eggs. We had steak and eggs, shrimp and grits, an assortment of pastries and juice.

     

7). Take plenty of pictures! The Disney photographers are on hand, but if you are not able to afford the digital downloads, they will allow you to take photo and video with your cell phone.

8).Traveling to Disney World in the low season will also help save on ticket prices. Make sure that you get your tickets to the park in advance and have them in hand. The box office does not open until after 9am but you can get into the park early for your dining reservations.

9). If you plan to dress your princess like a princess, please bring a change of clothes! I was so excited to dress Rian like her favorite princess, Cinderella. The day started off great and the outfit was cute. We got so many compliments! But at about 1:30pm, Rian began to cry, and rub her face, and scream, and cry! There was glitter all over the place and the tulle from the dress was itching her like crazy. To make matters worse, she refused to take the dress off. This led to us sitting on a bench trying to pry the dress off. We finally got it off and left it behind. We were able to get a shirt on and that was it. That pineapple dole whip saved our day after the meltdown!

We hope that your time at the park is as eventful and magical as our was!

A guide to beating the Disney Fast Pass System

Beating the Disney Fast Pass System…

Disney World Has a Fast Pass System in place for guests that purchase their park passes weeks in advance. Many amusement parks have fast pass packages available, that will help riders to get through the lines with little to no wait. I knew that Disney World had fast passes, but I didn’t know that they were free!

The key to getting a fast pass is to order your tickets to the park, a few weeks ahead of time. Download the Disney World App to your smart phone and purchase your park passes from there. After you complete your purchase, you will have the option to sign up for a fast pass. When you buy your tickets, have them mailed to you so that the fast pass logo shows up on your card. This will make it easier to get through the fast pass line when you get to the park.

You can sign each ticket holder up for 3 fast passes for the day. Get your fast passes for the most popular rides such as space mountain. We got fast passes for the tea cups, the dumbo ride and Aladdin’s magic carpet.

Here is where beating the fast pass system comes in. Your Disney World app shows you the wait times for each ride. Check to see what the wait time is for your fast pass ride, 30 minutes prior to your scheduled time. If your ride has less than a 20 minute wait, cancel the fast passes for everyone in your party, get in line and find another ride to use your fast pass on while you wait. We did this with our fast passes for the teacups and only waited 5 minutes to get on. While we waited, I scored 3 fast passes for “It’s a small world”.

Here is another trick that people don’t know about. Once you scan in to a ride using your fast pass, quickly go to your app and cancel the pass. At this point, you have made it in the fast lane and have freed up space before the system has time to know it. We did this once we got in the line for “It’s a small world” and got 2 fast passes for the “Cars” ride. The system caught my pass, but not my husband and son’s.

We did this the whole day, along with jumping on rides with short wait times and we didn’t stand in any line longer than 15 minutes. This method worked for us on a Saturday at the park during peak season in the middle of June.

Note*

1). This works best if you stay on one side of the park. We kept the rides that we got on, confined to Adventureland, Frontierland, Liberty Square, Fantasyland and the edge of Tomorrowland. We also had a fast pass in Town Square to see Mickey. This was not a bad walk.

2). Once your fast pass starts, you have the whole hour to use it. If there is a short ride line that is available near your fast pass ride, get on that one first, then head to your fast pass line appointment.

So, here is how we made out. The system gives you 3 fast passes. We ended up with fast passes for: It’s a small world, cars, Princess Tiana, Rapunzel, Mickey’s Town Hall, Aladdin’s magic carpet ride and the Barnstormer. We also rode the tea cups, dumbo, met Minnie Mouse, Daisy, Donald Duck and Goofy without the pass.

One more tip, Daisy and Minnie Mouse have separate lines and wait time from Goofy and Donald. Hop in the shortest line with the kids while another adult in your party stands in the longer line. When you get done in the short line, join your other party in the long line to reduce your wait time. We did this and we were able to see all 4 characters and take pictures within 30 minutes.

I hope this helps you in planning your trip!

Alisha