Saugatuck, Michigan
Quiet Beach Town Saugatuck
By: Cornelia Poku
This quaint community has deep pockets as my Uber driver from the airport blurted out during our ride, but he didn’t have to tell me that–I could tell from the homes. Despite the small-town vibe, this is definitely a tourist area because many of the homes are vacation properties. There are activities such as riding dunes, golfing, seeing a show at the theater or going to a gallery or museum. There are so many things to do.
The main downtown area has several shops and restaurants. The shops are a bit pricey, but the food was moderately priced–shockingly affordable compared to where I hail from in DC.
My best friend and I stayed at the Best Western on Blue Star Highway which was fine as far as hotels go, certainly nothing special! It was only a 7-minute drive and 30-minute walk from the downtown area. However, if you’re not interested in this hotel or one in a nearby town like Douglas or Holland, try looking for a vacation rental which they have plenty of.
It really is peaceful in Saugatuck. A near-complete escape. It felt like time moved slower. Partially because cell reception really isn’t great so you can’t burrow your head into the internet for hours, but also because there are no national chains. It feels untainted.
My strong recommendation for your trip is that you rent a car at the airport. When I visited there was nary an rideshare service. There are some local small taxi companies, but finding their numbers and nailing down their hours proved to be difficult.
Other than that, Saugatuck is a beautiful community in Michigan that I recommend escaping to!
Las Vegas, Nevada
The Las Vegas Strip
By: Cornelia Poku
When people think of Las Vegas in the movies, they’re usually thinking about the strip—the casinos, the restaurants, and the many clubs. I’ve been to The Strip twice, first by myself for a work conference some years ago and then more recently for an anniversary trip with my husband. Las Vegas is a good time! Here are five things you need to know before you go:
The strip is a little over four miles long. So be cute, but be comfy cute. And because there are so many people and so many cars, there are a lot of bridge walkways, so plan on going up and down a lot of steps. From my experience, Vegas definitely is not disability friendly. Car services were pretty cheap through. On my second trip, my husband and I ended up buying a bus pass because the bus goes up and down the strip, just have to have a little bit of patience.
Pretty much all of the attractions are part of hotels. The casinos, shopping, activities, restaurants, clubs, and shows and are all part of the hotel structures. For example, if you want to do ziplining, it’s part of the LINQ Hotel. If you want to ride to the top of the faux Empire State Building, that’s part of the New York-New York Hotel. Madam Tussauds is part of The Venetian and so on.
Each hotel has a FREE, unique activity or sight inside. You can take pictures in front of LOVE art installation at the Venetian or check out the Bellagio Conservatory & Botanical Gardens or catch the hourly fountain show outside the Bellagio, or look at the stunning chandelier inside of The Cosmopolitan. Almost every hotel has something so beautiful and cute for a picture inside.
It can get expensive. You can easily spend a few days in Vegas just exploring the hotels and spending barely anything—I did that the first time. But if you want to really experience the attractions, you’re going to have to shell out a few dollars. Food is expensive, the shows are expensive, the activities are expensive and if you plan on gambling, just bring a lot more money than you think you’ll need. While I wish you the best, few make it big in Vegas.
The nightlife is fun! Big DJs come to the strip to do sets. So, either plan your trip around their appearances, or just show up and pay attention to the promoters standing on the street. In my experience, they were really nice and happy to share information about what is going on that night. Women definitely have an easier time in Vegas, the clubs are cheaper or free and we get access to open bars for a good chunk of the night. So you will have plenty of fun!