Last month, I wrote about Pauline Frommer’s session at the Atlanta Travel & Adventure Expo. Things have been busy here, so it’s taken me awhile to get to part – two, sorry about that!
In the last post, I covered what she had to say about scrimping or splurging on hotel and airfare. This one will cover activities, food, and cruises!
Activities – Scrimp or Splurge?
BOTH!
Activities help make the memories for your trip, sometimes it’s worth the extra money to experience things that you wouldn’t normally experience.
Sometimes, guided tours are good for when you’re in an area that you’re not familiar with, but they do come with Pros and Cons.
Pros:
- They’re social, you get to meet other people.
- The activities/stops are already planned, so you don’t have to do a lot of the legwork before a trip.
- And in most cases, group tours hit the popular “checklist” items in an area that everyone wants to see.
Cons:
- There are 40-50 people in an average sized tour group.
- All activities are determined by the tour bus, so if you want to stop and see something, you’re out of luck.
- When you’re staying with a tour group, you’re likely going to stay further away from the center of activity. This is because hotels that can accommodate large groups aren’t in the middle of everything – and finding places that will be able to allow 40-50 people to eat at once are usually on the outer skirts of town.
There are also small group tours that accommodate 10-12 travelers, which tend to be a bit more flexible and often times a little cheaper.
Some helpful sites for planning group travel are:
- Djoser
- G Adventures (formerly Gap Adventures)
- Intrepid Travel
Food – Scrimp or Splurge?
BOTH!
You can do a bit of both while you’re traveling. Scrimp here and there, but be sure to splurge if there’s a place you’re really interested in trying.
If you scrimp, you’ll likely end up dining with other tourists at the locations listed as ‘cheap eats’ in guide books.
If you take the time to splurge, you will likely end up in a restaurant where the locals frequent, and have the opportunity to take in a culinary treat!
Cruises – Scrimp or Splurge?
BOTH! But it really depends on what you’re looking for.
If you’re looking for an amusement park at sea, you can scrimp and find a cheaper cruise.
If you’re looking for something a little more formal, and less like an amusement park – splurging might be the way to go.
When booking a cruise, Pauline had some great tips to share:
- Don’t book through the cruise line directly. Either use a travel agent that has a relationship with a cruise line, as they can often get you additional add-ons for very little or for free.
- If you don’t use a travel agent, use one of these sites:
- Vacations To Go.com
- CruisesOnly.com
- CruiseStar.com
- CruiseBrothers.com
- OnlineVacationCenter.com
- Cruises.com
- Use a site like cruisecompete.com, to allow cruise agents to compete for your business. They will over various amenities and you can get the most bang for your buck.
- Repositioning cruises that are moving ships from one port to another, can allow you to enjoy a cruise for a lesser price. These are typically done in the fall or spring.
- To save money, consider getting an interior room instead of an outside room. For the most part, you’re only in your room to sleep – so why spend a tremendous amount of money for a bigger room? [Note: I’m not typically a balcony cruise room kind of gal, but I do appreciate an exterior room – mainly because they’re a little bigger and I hate feeling confined in a small space!]
- If you’re looking for shore excursions for your trip, check out these sites for deals:
And for news and reviews on cruises, USA today has a site called: vacationcruisesinfo.com, with valuable information that you can use in planning your next trip.
Do you have any sites that you use when booking cruises that weren’t mentioned on here? Do you a scrimp or splurge when it comes to the above? Share your thoughts!
[#28 of #52]
We’re less than a month away from our trip to Australia!
Here’s what’s been done since the last update:
- Confirm hotel reservation for Sydney
- Obtain Australian tourist visa
- Found a cute dress for NYE (though I’m not opposed to finding one in Sydney too – this is a back-up just in case)
Ooooh, it sparkles!!!
Here’s what’s left:
- Purchase trip insurance – still looking for the best option
- Research and purchase tickets a Blue Mountains day trip
- Book our Urban Adventures tour for Adelaide – we won a free one from YTravelBlog! Woo hoo!
- Find a place to stay on our last night on the road before Sydney. On Saturday, we made a last minute executive decision to go to Canberra instead of trying to find a place on the coast – there’s definitely more flexibility in terms of required lengths of stay in Canberra!
- Start working on a packing list
- Start washing summer clothes
- Start printing out all of our confirmation papers, to put them together in the trip folder!
- Try to convince myself that we’ll really be in Australia soon! I’ve been planning for so long, it still feels surreal!
How do you handle the excitement of an upcoming trip? Any suggestions for preparing to pack?
[#27 of #52]
Last year, I joined the crowd on Facebook and posted a daily status message for things that I’m thankful for. This year, I decided I wanted to make a blog post out of it. So here are thirty things that I’m thankful this year – one for each day of the month.
- My wonderful husband, Josh. I’m so lucky to have met him and have him in my life. His silly behavior makes me laugh (most of the time) and cheers me up if I’m down in the dumps.
- My supportive parents, who have my back on just about everything.
- My brother, who brings humor into a lot of situations, and my sister-in-law, who has somehow managed to keep him in line.
- My in-laws. Josh’s family is wonderful, and I’m glad we were able to have them, along with my family over for Thanksgiving this year.
Our family on Thanksgiving
- My fabulous friends, who are there whenever I need them. I love my gals and gals.
- The 409’ers. Who would have thought that I would have met such a great group of women on The Knot by chance, all planning our weddings for April 2009. The fact that we’re still a part of each other’s lives daily has been a great deal of fun.
- Our two gray cats, Runner and Birdie, who bring us entertainment daily!
- My job – I enjoy going to work every day, which is important!
- Josh’s job – He’s happy at work doing things that he loves.
- Financial stability. Not only do we love our jobs, they provide us the ability to have nice things and do things that we enjoy.
- Mercer University. I know I’ve said it on here before, but I really feel going to school at Mercer led me to a lot of wonderful things in my life. Not only did a get a great education, but I met a lot of great people and had some pretty fantastic experiences that I still carry with me today.
- The ability to travel. While we aren’t jetsetting every weekend, we’ve had the opportunity to go places that we’ve wanted to see and have plans for many more over the rest of our lives. And pretty soon, Josh and I will be heading to Australia for a couple weeks to explore and I’ll get to share with him a country that I love.
- I’m thankful for the internet. Without it, I wouldn’t really have a job, nor would I be able to keep in touch with friends and family as easily as I can now!
- Digital cameras – I have years and years worth of photos that can instantly take me back to a moment in time. Without them, I would have spent A LOT of money on film by now…
- Book Club – I never thought I’d join a book club, but I’m glad I did. Not only have I been introduced to some interesting reads (and some not so interesting ones too), but I’ve met a great group of girls that I enjoy hanging out with talking about books and life in general.
- Living in the South. Having travelled around the US, I’ve come to appreciate the little things about living in the south. Sweet tea, southern accents, and the more polite interactions with others.
- Lazy Saturdays/Sundays. So often Josh and I have something to do on the weekend, it’s days like today when I love staying in my PJ’s past noon, playing online, watching football, and just enjoying the time we have together – even if we’re not really doing anything at all.
- Music – It has the ability to change my mood instantaneously depending on the tunes. Like photos, music also has the ability to take me back to that night heading home from the club, blaring Cascada at the top of my lungs, or that time we were practicing our first dance for our wedding. Music frequently connects to moments or people in my life – past or present.
- Life lessons. While I might not have appreciated them in the moment, nor have I had the most difficult life experiences, they’ve helped me learn about myself, who I want to be, and who I don’t want to be, and helped shaped me to be the person I am now, and will help shape me to become the person I was meant to be.
- Freedom. Living in the land of the free and the home of the brave is something that I do cherish. I might not always agree with political moves that take place in our great nation, but I will always take pride in our freedom, and give thanks to those military men and women that protect it so fiercely and dutifully every day.
Photo taken at Pearl Harbor
- Modern day appliances. I’m sitting here listening to the washing machine and dryer run, and I’m thankful that we have tools that make washing clothes so much easier than doing it by hand. Call me lazy, but technology advancements that led to where we are today are something I’m very thankful for!
- Having a roof over our heads. Right now we’re renting, but we’re in the process of buying our first home (and will hopefully have the keys in January!). It’s an exciting and nerve-wracking time period, but more on that will be posted later!
- The four seasons. The different times of year bring different times of beauty. While I might prefer fall and spring, having summer and winter spices things up each year. I do appreciate it when fall lasts longer, and 70 degree temperatures exist in November! Wonder if that means winter will go further into 2012 than usual…
- My health. To date, I’ve never really had any major illnesses or injuries – and I’m thankful for that.
- That my parents raised me to be a good, responsible person. It’s disturbing to see how kids growing up act, and I’m grateful that my parents raised me to have some sense about myself and how to behave in public!
- My iPhone. I can call or text people if I have a question. I can play games (alone or with friends), I can listen to music, I can take pictures, I can find my way if I’m lost, etc. These powerful little gadgets make me wonder how we lived without them not too long ago!
- A dependable vehicle that gets me from Point A to Point B. Miss Molly may not be the fanciest car out there, and some people might make jokes about people who own Mustangs, but I love my little car and the memories made driving around in it.
- The past. Without the past, we wouldn’t be where we are today.
- The present. Thankful that I have the opportunity to make every day count, and make it count for something.
- The future. While it’s not guaranteed, the promise of it existing is powerful. 2011 has been a wonderful year, and I’m thankful for that, but I can’t help but look forward to what 2012 will bring us.
So those are some of the things that I’m thankful for this year, how about you? What have you been thankful for this year?
[#26 of #52]
Last weekend, I begged Josh to come with me to the Atlanta Travel & Adventure Expo at the Cobb Galleria Center. I hadn’t heard about it until I saw tickets on Groupon, so not only did I learn about it, but we were able to get a discount on tickets!
We got there around 11 am to check out the scene. There were plenty of booths set up from people representing locations all over the world. I was like a kid in a candy store! In addition to all of the great booths with people to talk to, they had some great speakers. I was mostly excited about seeing Pauline Frommer and Samantha Brown.
Pauline Frommer gave her thoughts on when you should scrimp on travel, and when you should splurge – plus a few tips and site recommendations. I’d seen and used a few that she’d mentioned, but there were some I’d never heard of that I’d thought I’d share! Since she gave a lot of information, I’m going to break it up into two posts – so look for the second one soon!
Accommodations – Scrimp or Splurge?
Scrimp!
For the most part, when you’re on vacation somewhere, you’re really only using your room as a place to sleep at night. That being said, you should scrimp wisely! Some great sites that you can use to find deals are:
- HotelsCombined – This site searches other travel websites like Priceline, Expedia, etc., and pulls the best deals.
- Hipmunk – This site will lay out all the hotels on a map, so you can find the best one for the location/area you want to stay. You can also filter by where the restaurants are, or where the nightlife section of town is.
Want to stay somewhere other than a hotel room? Why not rent a home? Rent directly from the owner, get a little more room to stretch out, and in many cases save more than you would if you were in a hotel. Helpful sites for finding home rentals:
Other option for saving some cash is to do a home exchange. Pauline’s best tip was to use a site that requires a membership fee, so you’re working with people that truly want to do an exchange. Often when you require people to pay, you weed out more of the seedy people that might not be as honest. One site mentioned for this type of accommodation is HomeExchange.
Airfare – Scrimp or splurge?
Scrimp!
Because airlines aren’t making profits like they used to, they’re decreasing the number of flights/planes in action, which is driving the cost of tickets up. In order to save along the way she suggests:
- Booking on Tuesdays or Wednesdays
- Never booking on the weekend
- Never book more than 4 months out (unless it’s during a peak season or big travel time period)
- Buying two one-way trips may be cheaper (via 2 different airlines)
- Follow airlines on Twitter and Facebook, they’re starting to give out promo codes for social media promotions
- And if you’re going somewhere you’re not really familiar with, use local agencies with special knowledge of the area you’re traveling to.
Helpful sites for saving money on airfare include:
To see the plane’s layout before your trip, check out SeatGuru.
And if you just want to find some place to go, within a certain flight budget, check out Kayak Explore. You put in a price, and it’ll tell you where you can fly!
Next post will include Pauline’s tips on purchasing activities, food, and cruises!
Do you have any tips or great sites that you use when booking accommodations or airfare that weren’t listed above? Please share!
[#25 of #52]
If you don’t live in the Atlanta area (or Nashville or Indianapolis), you probably haven’t heard of The Bert Show. They’re a local area morning radio show, and they’re attempting to do something that I feel is pretty awesome.
For Thanksgiving this year, they’re trying to collect 400,000 handwritten thank you letters to send to American troops that are stationed outside of the United States, to make sure every single one receives a piece of mail on the holiday. The last time they attempted this, they were able to get 375,000 letters – so this year, the goal has been increased!
What a fabulous way to give back, in such a simple way, to those that are out there fighting for and protecting our freedom!
If you’d like to participate, I’ve copied the pertinent information from their website below regarding the format of the letter (it must be handwritten) and where to send or drop off the letters. Please check out their site for more details and sound clips from them discussing it on air.
Growing up in an Air Force base town, I’ve had a lot of interaction with families and friends in the military. I’ve seen friends’ spouses post about their husband or wife’s deployment. Seen pictures of the kids when their parent has returned from being away for so long. I cannot imagine living that life, but I’m thankful for those that do (and those that have in the past). Those that unselfishly give of their time and energy to protect our great country.
That being said, I challenge you to write a letter, to get your office involved, to get your friends involved. If you’re in college, get the organizations you’re involved with to participate and write letters. This is definitely something that everyone can do! If you blog, post a blog about it. If you tweet, send a tweet. It’s easy to spread the word, so please do!
The deadline for letters is next Friday, October 28th – so get moving and say thank you to those important people who often don’t get credited for the amazing and tough work that they’ve been charged with!
LETTER FORMAT (taken from The Bert Show’s website)
Each letter should be heartfelt, handwritten, original, and free of any political statements. The purpose of the letter is to express thanks to the military personnel currently deployed outside the United States. We reserve the right to eliminate those messages that are political in nature and do not reflect a positive message in the spirit of Thanksgiving. Those letters will be destroyed.
All letters must be on 8.5” x 11” paper or smaller. Do not use glue, tape, staples, cardboard, glitter or otherwise attach anything to the paper. Decorate using crayons, pencil, etc. Use both sides if you like, but use one page per letter only. Do not send cards or photographs. Feel free to include your mailing and email address, and you may get a response. Individual letters should not be sealed in envelopes.
Do not send anything except letters. We cannot accept donations of any kind, and they should not be included or attached to letters.
Where to send the letters:
Mail or Drop Off at:
WWWQ-FM / Q100 Atlanta
780 Johnson Ferry Road NE
Fifth Floor
Atlanta, GA 30342
Atlanta Drop-Off:
A BIG thank you to all Atlanta Taco-Mac restaurants, which will (starting Wednesday, October 5), be serving as the drop off-points for The Big Thank You letters! View all Taco Mac drop-off locations (pdf).
Nashville Drop-Off:
i106 WNFN
10 Music Circle East
Nashville, TN 37203
Indianapolis Drop-Off:
i94 Indy’s Hit Music Station
6810 North Shadeland Ave.
Indianapolis, IN 46220
[#24 of #52]
We’re getting closer, just a little over 2 months until our trip to Australia! I wanted to update my to-do list, I’ve actually made some progress since my last one (go me)!
Here’s what’s been done:
- Book airfare from SYD to ADL – done!
- Book hotel for Adelaide – done!
- Purchase tickets to the NYE party we want to go to – We’re going to The Opera Bar!!!
- Purchase Beers & Beans’ eBook Getting Out of Auto – Downloaded it, it looks just as awesome as I thought it would. I can’t wait to put into practice what I’ve reviewed in the eBook.
Here’s what’s left (added a few things since the last one):
- Purchase trip insurance – still looking for the best option
- Confirm hotel reservation for Sydney
- Obtain Australian tourist visa
- Research and purchase tickets a Blue Mountains day trip
- Find a cute dress for NYE (though I’m leaning towards just buying one while I’m there!)
- Find a place to stay on our last night on the road before Sydney
- Start working on a packing list
- Try not to freak out that we’ll be in Australia soon!
[#23 of #52]
As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve always had a slight obsession with Australia. Growing up, I always wanted to go there. It was a unique country in my eyes, and I would spend many years figuring out how I would make a trip there.
In addition to that, I’ve always enjoyed New Years Eve. The fireworks, the celebration, etc., it’s beautiful! It’s about saying goodbye to the past, and hello to the future and what’s to come.
It’s no secret that if given the opportunity, I’d jump on a plane and head to Australia. If you’re reading this, you most likely know me, and know that ever since I spent a year abroad, I’ve been trying to get back. 🙂
When Josh and I got married, my one stipulation before we attempted to start trying having kids was that I wanted to go back to Australia, preferably for New Years Eve (Josh’s stipulation was that we own a home instead of renting). In talking with other parents, travel like that just doesn’t happen as often as you might like once you have children – at least for awhile. So I wanted to make sure it was something that was a priority. And it’s happening (the trip that is), it’s really happening! We are less than 80 days away from our departure and most everything is taken care of, whew!
I’ve been planning this trip for quite some time now and I’m pretty sure I’ve driven Josh crazy with my slightly ridiculous planning tendencies. Knowing it’s one of the peak seasons in Australia, I had to plan ahead, and needed to be on top of my game. The latest item was making sure we were at the perfect location for viewing the fireworks. From my weekend in Sydney while studying abroad, I knew I wanted to be right next to the Harbour to view the fireworks on New Years Eve, and the perfect place to do this would be at The Opera Bar.
Where we'll say hello to 2012!
I emailed them ages ago asking about plans, which had yet to be determined, but they added me to an email list for future notifications about tickets. In stalking their Facebook page, their statuses recently were around signing up for the opportunity to get tickets ahead of the public sale. This was it! I knew I had to get my tickets in the pre-sale to ensure I had them. I may or may not have begged other friends to sign up for the email as well, so if it came during the middle of the night and they were awake, they could text me. 😉
This morning at 12:30 am EST, my inbox received an email with a link to purchase tickets. At 12:49 am, I received a text from one of the fabulous 409’ers stating she’d received her email and that I needed to wake up and get my tickets! By 12:53 am, I’d successfully made the purchase and received a receipt at 12:54 am. Josh and I got tickets and we’ll be spending NYE in the beautiful Sydney Harbour! AH!!!! I’m incredibly stoked still. I could barely fall asleep last night with the adrenaline pumping due to my excitement. I may be a little sleepy today, but it was well worth it, because now I can sleep easy knowing that we’ll be experiencing 2012 from one of the most amazing vantage points in Sydney.
If this is what welcoming 2011 looked like, I can’t wait to see what’s in store for 2012!
[#22 of #52]
I’ve been a little behind in posting on here, and I definitely don’t want to miss posting about the last Braves game that Josh and I attended against the New York Mets. We try to go to as many games as possible during the season, and this year was no different.
Last month, a former co-worker sent Josh an email asking if we’d be interested in going to the last weekend home game of the year with his wife and twin boys. I adore their little boys, S and A, so I was very excited that we were available that weekend!
Leading up to the game, we were told the boys only had Chicago Cubs t-shirts, so I made sure to find some adorable Braves jerseys for them to wear. Once we got to the stadium, we checked their stroller and made our way to our seats. The boys were so well behaved the entire time.
The music, the crowd, there was so much going on and they were full of energy! We took them to Toon Town to let them run around and work some of it out. They had so much fun running around, it was a joy to watch them.
The newest Braves fans!
By the 7th inning the boys started getting tired and our friends made an escape to the car before any meltdowns could occur. It was a fun time though, and I was happy that I got to hang out with my little buddy, S. Josh and I stayed for the rest of the game, which unfortunately was not a winning one for the Braves. The Mets took the lead and that was that. But I won’t go into the demise of the Braves team this season, that’s a whole other topic that I’m not touching for awhile. Even though we experienced a loss, the day was a win!
D and R, if you’re reading this, any time you guys need a sitter, we’re available! 😉
My sleepy little buddy, S. 🙂
[#21 of #52]
Decisions that you make in life define where you go. Ten years ago today, I followed through on a decision I made – my decision on where to go to college. I left my parents’ house to move into my dorm room at Mercer University (Dowell 101) and start my college career. Granted, I was 20 minutes from home, my parents pushed me to live on campus for the experience. I’m glad that they did.
On August 18, 2001, Mercer’s upperclassmen rolled out the red carpet for the new students, helping the freshmen and their parents unload cars, carry boxes up and down stairs, provide directions, etc. It was their way of welcoming us into the Mercer family and it’s a tradition at the University that I look back on fondly. Knowing that it’s set to take place this Saturday for the incoming class brings a smile to my face. I would be living with my friend Rachel from high school, and someone we didn’t meet until move-in day, Emily who came from TN.
Dowell 101
Our parents left after we were all moved in (I may or may not have jumped up and down in the room after mine left) and the Orientation festivities started right away. We broke into our O-groups and the Orientation Assistants kept us busy from morning until night for the next three days. Ice breakers, songs, meetings, tours, you name it – we did it. We were free and we were excited to be in college. We didn’t know what life would hold for us for the next four years, but we grabbed it by the horns and went with it.
Some students branched out, some didn’t. I have to say that I was definitely a prude my freshman year and didn’t really lighten up until I went abroad. However, I stuck to my morals and beliefs and I feel like things worked out in the end.
Looking back at the decisions I made in my first year at Mercer I can draw some very definitive lines as to how I got to where I am now:
- I declared my major in Technical Communication.
Really, I made this decision before I selected Mercer as my choice school – it was the only school in the state with the degree. Growing up on a computer and the emerging online space, I was fascinated with the internet and web design. I didn’t know how I’d end up finding a job or what I’d do with this degree at the time, but I was convinced it would be an advantageous decision. The coursework was interesting and the professors were fantastic – it was exactly what I wanted. Because of the tight-knit group of alumni I was able to obtain an internship with an interactive marketing firm right out of college. With the experience gained, I’ve been able to accomplish some of my career goals. I wouldn’t have had this opportunity had I gone another route, and I wouldn’t have met my husband. 🙂 - I decided I would study abroad to Australia my junior year of college.
My mom wasn’t a fan of the idea, but I was determined. I learned that with hard work and determination I could do anything, including saving up enough money to buy a plane ticket to Australia (along with spending money for fun things). - I decided to go through Recruitment and join a sorority.
Right as classes started, so did Recruitment. I explored the four sororities on campus and fell in love with Alpha Delta Pi. Going through Recruitment was one of the best decisions I made at the age of 18. I met many of my new classmates and grew closer with the ones I already knew. I joined a sisterhood that lasts a lifetime. I made some of my best friends. And I’m still involved with the chapter in an advisory position.
We Live for Each Other.
- I joined the Special Events Team for the Admissions Office.
Having enjoyed every event I attended as a high school senior, I knew I wanted to participate on the other side. I had so much enthusiasm for Mercer that I wanted to share my love with potential students. We hosted events throughout the school year to bring high school seniors to Macon and gave them a snapshot of what campus life was like. This led to me being a part of the Student Admissions Team my sophomore and senior year, a job that shaped my experience like none other. I learned how to interact with students and parents from all walks of life. It was the most professional position I’d been in and with great mentors, it shaped how I viewed jobs and how you should act as an employee.
I really could go on and on, but this has gotten pretty long. I guess I get sentimental in thinking back over the past. I still can’t believe it’s been 10 years…
I really enjoyed my college years, and while I don’t wish I were back in school, it was a carefree time. I know that I got the most out of my experience and I’m positive that had I gone to college somewhere else, things wouldn’t have turned out the same way. I may have college loans until I’m 35, but it was worth every penny and if I had to make the decision I again, I’d do it in a heartbeat. No questions asked.
Hail to thee, the best school in the land.
[#20 of #52]
Thanks to a vendor that Josh works with, this weekend we were lucky enough to attend the PGA Championship at the Atlanta Athletic Club. Saying that Josh loves golf would be an understatement – he plays any chance that he gets (pretty much every Saturday morning when the weather is nice).
Earlier this year, Josh had the opportunity to go to The Masters in Augusta, GA but due to feeling violently ill the morning he was supposed to meet the bus to ride to the tournament, he opted not to go. Getting tickets to The Masters isn’t easy, so I knew he felt terrible when he crawled back into bed that morning. A few months later, he was invited by a good friend to go to THE PLAYERS tournament in Jacksonville, FL. After a couple hours out on the course, there was a weather delay so they left. It hadn’t been a good tournament year for him. Knowing the issues he’d faced in his last two tournament attempts, I definitely wanted him to have a chance to have a good day to look back on, so I agreed to attend. And if we’re friends on Facebook, you know I was particularly looking forward to seeing a specific cute, Aussie golfer (Adam Scott). 🙂
While Josh has been a golf follower for years, I have to admit that it’s taken me a good two years to appreciate the game. I won’t be playing anytime soon (because I’m downright terrible) but I’ll sit down and watch it on TV (if I don’t fall asleep). 🙂 Since I’d obviously never been to a professional tournament, I didn’t know what to expect, but was excited to find out when we arrived yesterday. I did learn a few things worth pointing out though, just in case any of you ever end up at a major tournament:
- Wear sunscreen. This is a given. I slathered my arms and legs with 45+ SPF, but somehow managed to forget my neck. How? I’m not quite sure. But I have a painful reminder that prevented me from sleeping well last night…
Ouch!
- Drink lots of water. It gets hot out on the course, especially in the summer. Concession prices were somewhat reasonable ($3 for a bottle of water), but there were water fountains around the course so you could refill for free (though it wasn’t ice cold). No sense in getting dehydrated while walking around!
- Golfers won’t spend much time with fans. Players want to focus before they tee off. While you can stand around and watch, they’re likely not going to pay much attention to their fans when in tournament mode. If that’s what you want, go to the practice round. They’ll let you take pictures and get autographs. Not so much during the actual tournament. [Note: I chanted “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!” when Adam Scott walked by where Josh and I were standing. He smiled at me. 🙂 Josh wished him luck and he said “Thanks.”]
- Don’t wear flip flops. They might make your outfit look cute, but after about 2.5 hours of walking around a golf course, blisters start to form, no matter how comfortable the shoes normally are. Your feet also get very, very dirty unless you stay on the cart path the entire time. Luckily, there are first aid tents where you can get bandages for your barking pups.
Double ouch!
- You get more info on TV than you do walking around. Unless you’re listening to audio while walking around [AmEx had cool ear pieces that they gave away allowing you to do so] it’s hard to follow what’s going on. Josh and I walked around without listening to ear pieces. We relied on other fans to tell us who was about what was going on around the course.
- When someone yells “FORE!” you really should duck. When we were standing on the 9th hole Ryan Palmer hit the ball, we heard someone yell and everyone in the area took cover. Luckily, he hit the tree directly behind us, and knocked a branch down onto some other spectators. Thankfully, no one was injured!
- When someone offers you free tickets, go! (Even if you don’t like golf.) I never would have paid to go to this tournament, unless Josh really, really, really wanted to go and asked for tickets for his birthday. We had a lot of fun walking around together and he had a chance to share something that he really loves with me. We had a great day hanging out and had a wonderful experience together.
I’m glad that we had this opportunity, because there’s been talk of planning a trip to Scotland for the 2013 British Open at Muirfield.
Anyone out there have any additional tips that should be shared for attending a major tournament? Do tell!
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