Tag Archives: US/Southwest

Canyonlands Boat Tour at Sunset

  By Anne Patrone | September 13, 2011 - 9:00 am | , , , , , , , , , ,
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Colorado River at sunset

Sometimes when I plan our trips, I use a friend’s suggestion or a recommended tour in a travel guide. But sometimes I discover a tour or place completely by accident – a random click of my computer mouse.

Thank goodness for random luck because it was how I discovered Canyonlands By Night & Day as I clicked my way around “Things to Do in Moab, Utah.”

Tour headquarters

Offering a variety of tours (jet boat, Hummer, ATV, and horseback riding) that explore the beauty of southern Utah, Canyonlands By Night & Day was an unexpected surprise.

We chose their signature tour (and the one they’ve been offering since 1963) – an evening boat tour and old-fashioned light show along the Colorado River combined with a “cowboy” style dinner.

Relaxing on the Colorado River

Skip the dinner since the food was nothing special, but be sure to go on the relaxing and scenic boat tour which culminates in an awe-inspiring finale that, for us, was only marred by the clouds blocking the starry sky.

We started off near sunset with a gentle cruise on a pontoon-style boat down the Colorado River.

Our guide told us humorous stories about the Moab area and pointed out strange rock and shadow formations on the passing canyon walls.
Boat guide on the Canyonland By Night Tour

Then, as the sun dipped below the horizon, and night fell, we settled back into our seats to watch an “old-fashioned” light and sound show. 

Canyon walls lit by a spotlight on a moving truck

I wasn’t completely sure what an “old-fashioned” light show meant, but it turned out to mean a large spot light on a moving truck which lit up the canyon walls as we floated back down the river to where we had boarded. There was a narrated story which covered the geologic creation of the are, the Native American history of the area, and the settlement by the Mormons, before ending with an emotional rendition of “This is My Country” (a song that has always been my favorite amongst the patriotic ones).

We ended the cruise in darkness and silence with the boat gently spinning around. For some reason, our eyes naturally lifted to the skies and through the clouds we could just make out what would have a blanket of stars on a clear night.  

Arches National Park – Natural Wonders

  By Anne Patrone | September 8, 2011 - 9:45 am | , , , , , , , , , ,
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Arches National Park in Utah

When I planned our Western US road trip, Arches National Park made the list because: 1) it was on Frommer’s 500 Places to Take Your Kids Before They Grow Up and 2) I wanted to see arches – those weird rock formations formed by water, ice, erosion, and underground salt movement seen in so many movies from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade to the 2003 version of Hulk.

Home to the world’s largest concentration of stone arches, Arches National Park was, therefore, the best place to see arches.

The only thing I forgot??

Kids get cranky, hungry, and tired after a long hike and generally don’t want to see more arches after they had seen several on our morning Fiery Furnace hike.

After much pleading (and I admit, a small amount of bribery . . .), they finally agreed to . . . sigh . . . go see more arches – as long as it didn’t involve a lot of hiking/walking.

The terms agreed to, we headed over to Sand Dune Arch, which admittedly wasn’t as impressive as some of the ones seen earlier in the day.

Sand Dune Arch

However, the boys enjoyed playing in the sand like the kids they were.

Cool sand in a hot spot

As the complaining increased, we headed back to the entrance, making a small detour to look at one of the most photographed arches in Arches National Park – Delicate Arch.

Delicate Arch

To be honest, I had no desire to hike the rather rigorous (and completely unshaded) climb to Delicate Arch. BUT . . . I wanted a better view than we got at the Lower Delicate Arch Viewpoint. My youngest rebelled and chose to wait in the small amount of shade available at the bottom while my older son hiked the short (0.5 mile), but steep climb to the Upper Delicate Arch Viewpoint.

By this point in time, the rebellion spread, and I was lucky to get a drive-by photo of Balanced Rock.
Balanced Rock

To satisfy my “arches” obsession, I had to settle for sending myself a picture postcard of the last set of arches I wanted to see . . . the famous North and South Windows . . .

North and South Windows
Memo to self and other parents: One hike per day, then send the kids to the swimming pool!

Sixty-four places visited, 436 to go!

Photo of North and South Windows courtesy of Dave Boyer via Flickr.

The Roller Coaster at New York-New York Hotel: A Kid’s View

  By Anne Patrone | August 24, 2011 - 9:30 am | , , , , , , , , , ,
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Waving good-bye to my guys at The Roller Coaster

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Most of you may be aware that due to the nature of my blog, I don’t accept guest posts, but today I’m making an exception for The Roller Coaster at the New York-New York Hotel/Casino in Las Vegas. (As an aside, they used to call it The Manhattan Express but I don’t know why they changed it).

Why today of all days?

Because I am a complete and utter wimp who didn’t go on The Roller Coaster at the New York-New York Hotel – only my two boys did . . .

Hey, the way I figure it, the guide I use is called Frommer’s 500 Places to Take Your Kids Before They Grow Up - so as long as I take my kids to these places, I’m covered. And before you get huffy, no where does it actually say in the guidebook that I have to also participate in the activities.

This is where I safely stood . . .

So without further ado . . . my oldest son’s guest post . . .

Hi, I’m the infamous M. 

Our last morning in Vegas, we started off at a local diner restaurant near our hotel. My brother was already talking about the 67 mph rollercoaster that he wanted to go on that I honestly didn’t want to go on. I had just eaten huge pancakes and I just didn’t seem interested.

Of course when we go to the New York- New York Hotel……… I wanted to go. 

The Roller Coaster at New York-New York Hotel/Casino

The minimum height for the ride is 54 inches so I saw some kids get kicked out of the ride. The rollercoaster car was a very long taxi with seats in it. So when it was my turn I got on with my brother. It started slow for maybe 20 feet, then it was a steep climb to the start of the roller coaster. 

When launched down the other side of the steep rail we all screamed, and then it happened again except not so fast. Then came the loop and a lot of colorful words.

Mom comment: I figure it doesn’t count if I don’t hear it . . .  

After the gigantic loop came a series of bunny-hops which had your stomach lurching the entire way. Then you went upside down for about 15-20 very long seconds and you did some twisty turns and then before you know it you are back where you started. 

If you do choose to do this, which I recommend, your legs feel wobbly and unsupportive. It’s ok, it happens to everybody.

 Overall the ride was fun and everybody should ride it if visiting the fabulous Las Vegas.

Thanks to my wonderful son, M, for providing his input for my blog . . . Mom loves you . . .

Vegas thrill rides . . . 62 places down, 438 to go.

Walking the Vegas Strip

  By Anne Patrone | August 22, 2011 - 10:24 am | , , , , , , ,
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Outside the Mirage on the Vegas Strip

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Although walking (or cruising) the Las Vegas Strip was listed as one of Frommer’s 500 Places to Take Your Kids Before They Grow Up (first edition only, it didn’t make it into the second), I have to admit I wondered what was so special about seeing a bunch of neon lights. I mean, I live in New York and we’ve got Times Square, right?

I was wrong.

And while I wouldn’t advocate walking the entire Las Vegas strip at night (more about other options later), seeing the outlandish and over-the-top signs, structures, and hotels lit up in their gaudy best is definitely worth some of your time.

Since we had just finished watching Mystere at Treasure Island Hotel,I thought we would walk back to our hotel (the Four Seasons at the Mandalay Bay) catching some of the sights, since it didn’t look too far on the map and hey . . . we’re New Yorkers, we’re used to walking, right?

Unfortunately, those maps don’t take into account that most of the casinos/hotels are set REALLY far back from the sidewalks, so going in, looking around, then heading back out (like we did at the Mirage eats up about a 1/2 mile of walking). Another thing to consider when popping in and out of these hotels/casinos is that they keep the air-conditioning super-low in the casinos to keep gamblers hyper and awake AND they allow smoking, creating this weird light-headed feeling all the time – great if you’re a gambler, not so hot if you’re a tired kid who happens to be asthmatic.

By the time we got to the Bellagio, we took a small break to watch the dancing fountains – a nightly performance that occurs every 15 minutes after 8 pm. 

Dancing fountains at the Bellagio

On the night we watched, the fountains were dancing to Faith Hill’s “This Kiss.” It was a great performance and we loved the spectacle and craziness of watching millions of gallons of water spraying into the air in a desert.

The next block nearly did us in . . .

The Famous Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas

By the time we made it to the New York-New York Hotel/Casino to ride The Roller Coaster (formerly called the Manhattan Express), the kids were exhausted and/or feeling light-headed (see above about all the smoke/air conditioning) and just wanted to get back to the room and collapse.

A Arthurian castle in Las Vegas

We postponed the roller coaster ride and headed to the Excalibur hotel to catch the monorail back to Mandalay Bay.

Thank heavens for the monorail (free shuttles run between Treasure Island and the Mirage, the Bellagio and the Monte Carlo, and the Excalibur and Mandalay Bay).

Free monorail between Excalibur and Mandalay Bay

We staggered on the express at Excalibur, made our way back through the maze of Mandalay Bay, and collapsed in our room – hoping for a good night’s sleep before we had to leave the next day . . .

Sixty-one places visited, 439 to go.

Elvis Lives!

  By Anne Patrone | August 19, 2011 - 8:23 am | , , ,
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Elvis Lives!

One of my top “to-dos” when I visited Las Vegas was to see Elvis. And wouldn’t you know, the boys and I saw him standing outside the Bellagio – posing for photos!! Imagine that!

Okay, granted it’s a bit blurry . . . kind of like all those tabloid photos you spot of him standing next to some alien baby . . . but it’s Elvis.

Funny, though . . . I never knew he had such a distinct Latin accent when he told me he only posed for tips . . .

Ah well, Viva Las Vegas, Baby!

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