Like most people here in Canada – we all rushed out to the south for the warmth and better weather – and you can’t really blame us when it is freezing cold here. Last year, we had decided that we wanted to head to Jamaica and we wanted an all inclusive resort – so when the cousin reported that the Grand Palladium was darn good – we had to check it out.
The Grand Palladium has a grand lobby and you would love the resort as it is huge – so be prepared for some good walking exercises while you are there. The location is also not bad – but you do have to travel quite a bit to other places depending on its traffic that day.
The grounds are immaculately kept and the staff are pretty awesome – they made our stay a very enjoyable one. And what I loved about the resort most is that we weren’t hustled at all – like most all inclusive resort in Cuba or Mexico whereby they tell you all their sad stories and sometimes curse you for not buying their wares.
The beaches are wonderful – the little huts are great for children who don’t want to be in the sun for too long – we like the sunset cove beach very much. I could lived like this forever – hahah!
The pool was huge and the pool bar was just right there – very convenient for those who loved their drinks when they are swimming – as for us – we only had the punch and water for the spouse as we both don’t drink – the house wine was ok – but I prefer ice wine which they didn’t have.
Our suite room was huge and so were the friends who came with us – love the bathroom shower and the tub as well.
This is the sunset cove.
An awesome looking sunset that makes you think of all the wonderful things in life. The Grand Palladium also has a kid’s cove for the kids and many entertainment in the evening – definitely a great place to relax and recharge. Lots of restaurants to choose from Mexican and the international buffet – plus American food.
While some people say it’s a budget hotel – I didn’t really think it was – rooms were like $200 a night – so I don’t really think it’s budget hotel. But it sure was pretty sleek looking and almost geeky like inside.
The staff very pretty nice and the hotel lobby and general area were kept clean – and overall it’s alright – but don’t expect any frills even though you paid so much for the hotel. Now the plus – about Alma Barcelona is – it’s right in the middle of everything within walking distance – so the locality is great. It seems like a pretty safe neighborhood to stay in and getting a cab is pretty easy and it’s not expensive like most people say about 10 euros. The shops around the hotels are all high end stuff so if you want to shop for more reasonable price stuff head out to Plaza Catalunya.
Modern looking room – clean and comfy and a bit futuristic looking as you can see.
A basic looking bathroom – but adequate.
This is the bar in the hotel but since there are many restaurants and cafes around the hotel, we usually choose to eat out instead of paying lots for the food here. There is room service but I think they stop at 10pm if I am not wrong. There isn’t a real concierge in this hotel – and the staff recommendation for restaurants wasn’t the most accurate. Overall, it’s a great place to stay for a few days – and if you are a single geeky male – this place is awesome – and if you are in for the location – great – but for that price – I think I prefer a more feminine hotel and that’s just my perspective – not kid friendly either.
I loved traveling as you all know – but I`m also worried when I travel that I might fall sick or worst – if the kid gets sick and everytime we do stay in a hotel that is dusty I get a very bad headache or migraine. Chronic headache is actually my greatest enemy when I am traveling – therefore, I never leave home without my travel health kit – and I tell yer – I feel a lot safer when i have all my back up medication and anything that I might need in this travel health kit. I take a small portion of whatever I need, from tylenol to band aid with me when i travel and of course medication for my headaches/migraine is a must and if I don’t get an attack, it will not go to waste, I can always use it on my next trip. But of course, I do check for expiry dates and make sure I change them ever so often if I haven’t used them for the last 6 months. So if you are traveling for vacation or work – make sure you pack your health travel kit with you – for you never know when you might need it.
While many feel that the hotel’s lobby and restaurants are important when you pick a hotel – it’s the room and the recreation areas that are most important to me. When I get into the room and see such a big bed – I’m usually impressed already – I love a king size bed room – even if I was traveling alone. I don’t know why but I don’t like sleeping in small beds.
The Marriot hotels rarely disappoints – so I wasn’t too surprised that I liked the room and the inn as soon as I checked in. The price was right since I was traveling with kids – it was good to have a small kitchenette for us to do our little microwaving for milk and other snacks for the kid.
There was a little dining area – for us to eat in if we wanted to or put another laptop to work on. The Marriot Residence is near the entertainment center – and there are plenty of restaurants nearby. Every room I was told had wifi – and they are free and the TV are those flat screen ones. Overall, we find that the hotel is nice and new – the front desk staff were pleasant – but unlike the Hyatt of course, where they try very hard to please you and make everything as best as possible. But of course, you will see the price difference you pay at the Hyatt as compared to the Marriot Residence Inn – so I rate the hotel pretty good for the price I had paid for my business trip.
The outside of the Marriot Residence In.
The fitness center.
The stadium near the hotel.
For someone who travels as much as I did before – you would be surprised at how much pictures I had printed out during the last 20 yrs of traveling. 20 yrs ago – I wished for a printer that I could carry around with me and print out pictures I liked or had taken with a friend or family members and share it with them immediately but alas, there was none. As I looked at my Epson TM-T88V receipt printer today – I was thinking about how nice it would have been if I had a printer that was this small and prints as fast but in color. Of course, they now have portable printers that are small and affordable now – but with digital cameras – one don’t really need to print out all the photos that you’ve taken during a vacation to find out which one is the best. But it would still be very nice to have a small color printer like the Epson that I have for my store’s receipt printer to use for my holiday pictures. I really like my Epson printer – it’s small – cheap and definitely ink friendly – now if only some manufacturer or designer can design a portable printer as small and lightweight as my Epson – I’m sure folks like us would love to have one too.
We loved the Bellagio Fountain when we are in Vegas and our timing always seems to be pretty great when the show begins. and this time of the year – I bet they are playing Christmas songs to go with the show. The show is pretty magnificent – I’ve seen people cry when watching the water fountain go – it’s quite funny to be honest. But for those watching for the first time – I can fully understand why they can get so overwhelmed because it has gotta be the most beautiful show to enjoy with a loved one or yourself.
If you asked me I prefer the night shows a lot more. The shows are from 3pm – 7pm on weekdays for 30 mins and watch them in the evening from 7pm – 12am – shows lasting for only 15mins. I prefer the short shows. On weekends the show starts earlier but end at the same time. Free to watch – so when you are in Las Vegas, make sure you spend some time watching the Bellagio Fountains and if you are lucky – you can see some street performers as well.
So it’s that time of the year again – where everyone is rushing to go on vacation or getting out of the cold weather into the warm. Some of you might be going home for Christmas as well or visiting good friends in another continent. But before you leave home with your kids especially if you are traveling with your kids – make sure you check if there is a nearby doctor or hospital and if you are staying in a hotel if there is an in-house doctor. That’s what I do everytime I go on vacation with my kid – I remember how flustered I was when my kid had a temperature for days – and the nearest hospital was like an hour away. Luckily the hospital was well – equipped with medical computer cart and all the medical equipments needed for x-ray and needles else I would be really devastated. So before you go on your Christmas vacation, check if you can find medical help nearby where you are staying before leaving and take the number and address down – you never know what might come up during your vacation.
A friend who was heading up to Paris asked me where he should go eat – a must eat – in Paris and I recommended an outdoor cafe in Paris called the Au Petit Sud Quest – located at the Avenue de la Bourdonnais. If you can’t find your way there – check with your hotel concierge. The prices range from $50 – $90 per person but it will be one of the best meal you’ve eaten anywhere.
What so special about this little outdoor cafe? first you can sit indoors if you wished but I always choose to eat outside because of the beautiful scenery and all walks of people come by here. The service is awesome and they have a very well stocked cellar in the cafe. I loved the way they are so personable – while everyone says that in Paris – the french just don’t want to speak in other languages – but the owner of the cafe is very nice. I speak very little french – but they were very kind to us. The best part was that they took time to explain to us about the dish and how it was cooked. This place is about wine, duck and foie gras and because I loved mushroom so much – they made a nice crepe with mushroom for me. For dessert we had the creme brulee – what else! so if you are headed out to Paris – check out this little cafe/restaurant.
One can choose to take a scenic flight on this small planes or a helicopter ride if you don’t want to spend hours on a bus tour – which was what we did. We figured a helicopter ride would be more fun we were traveling with kids – but a planer ride was just as good – according to my cousins who went up in a 4 engine plane with Scenic.We chose the Grand Canyon Deluxe and it was worth every penny we paid for. They pick you from your hotel and there were quite a number of people waiting for the same tour but of course different planes and helicopter – then they showed us some safety video and we were on our way.The Scenic flew us over Hoover Dam, Lake Mead and finally the Grand Canyon – so if you are in Boulder – make sure you take book a tour to see the Grand Canyon.
Many years ago before I migrated to Canada – I used to do a lot of traveling for work – little did I know that when the spouse came to visit me in Asia – he too was not really having a vacation – he was traveling to find distributors and suppliers for his business. Looking for gadgets, bearings , games and any electronic suppliers in Asia wasn’t easy at all, but we did walked the factory streets and went to the more remote factory distributors looking for them – not with a lot of success though. I wasn’t prepared for all the walking that’s for sure – I was in heels, but if we were to travel for work now – it would be different altogether – for I would be wearing the best flats I can find. So if we ever go on vacation with the spouse, you can be sure his interest is only to find distributors and suppliers for his work and not for pleasure.
