hotel review
Random Pictures From Gaylord Opryland ( Get to know the place)
I do a ton of random walk features everywhere we travel to. Like I always say it’s a great way to get to know how a place looks and feels. Not just the stock media photos every travel blogger gets and tries to write an article around.
I took about 3000 pictures while we were in Nashville. A solid 2200 of them were inside the Gaylord. So much history. Glitz, music and just an unusual feel that I don’t find often . The pics in this post are just from all over the complex(truly one of the largest places I have ever wandered around. Go there, hang out and just see what you run into. No plan, no agenda just wander. Enjoy the pictures and then book a trip there.
There isn’t a reason to not stop by this place if you’re in Nashville. It’s like walking through a cool, glitzy museum with food and booze! Better yet, stay at Gaylord Opryland
Thoughts And Pictures From The Gorgeous Gaylord Opryland (pt1)
Most folks think of Nashville as country music. It is, which is awesome. It also has an incredible cosmopolitan feel and great history. You can see so many things, eat incredible food and drink great whisky.
Between the honky tonk dives and the world class restaurants, .you can find something to make anyone happy. The old Ryman and now the opry house. Legendary music. Legendary food. American history. It really doesn’t get better for a travel guy looking for unique experiences.
My wife and I recently spent a week at the Gaylord Opryland hotel. It is the complex where the current Grand Ole Opry house is located. If you don’t know what that is, LOOK IT UP!! Legend. There is a ton of activity here. Lots of stuff around, but i’ll focus on the hotel itself for this post. So many more posts coming but this is to give you a taste and a bit of review of the hotel. Good or not? Awesome!!! It is massive. It is so well run for something of this size, I really couldn’t believe it. It is the size of say the Caesars Palace complex in Vegas. I got lost multiple times.
It is a group of atriums(doesn’t properly describe it) with different
hotel areas around. You truly Can’t describe it so I will let pictures do it. Great restaurants. Shows. Killer bars.
The staff at everywhere we went here was amazing. Kept it clean. Helped you find things. Super friendly. Rare in this day. I travel all over in my job and am blessed to have stayed in most of the top ranked places. This place stunned me. Beautiful. Massive. Well run.
You can truly hang out in just the complex and never leave. Shops. Waterfalls. Boat rides. Something new everywhere you turn. I spent several nights out til 2am shooting pics from every angle. Still didn’t get it all. I’ll throw a lot here but look for more in different pieces. Each section of this gran place needs it’s own. For this I’ll give you a taste and room shots. Just take a look. History , music and nightlife.
In short, get to this hotel. I travel the world and love it. Short weekend with the kids. Corporate meeting. Romantic getaway. Has it all. Look for tons of posts from this area. More importantly, just go hang out here, Find and hire us to hang out at your place. Hit s up here. YOu know the routine.
Pictures in And Around Virginia Beach Hotel And Conference Center .
I’ve done a bit on this area but I just found a few more shots from this hotel itself. We were there for an event so I was not able to put together tons for a full review( relaxing after the event lol). The hotel was nice and not expensive. Nowhere near as luxurious as I often stay but great. In fact some things made it even better. The deck and deck bar were awesome. Seaboard cool with a touch of class. The week I was there I lost count of how many weddings were there.
It’s on the Chesapeake Bay where it meets the Atlantic so not the meat market beach. Serene but active at the same time. Gorgeous beach homes around. You could see the storms roll in and watch the gulls in the changing sky. Sit on the deck and have a cocktail. Night was especially perfect. Looking fro crabs and watching groups of people working nets for them. Camp fires on the beach. Sitting on the deck and getting a cocktail late into the night watching the waves and hearing the workers on tankers in the bay speak in various languages. Truly an experience. We also saw tons of dolphins just hanging out close to shore. Hopefully I will get a chance to do a full travel piece before long on this area and hotel, in the meantime enjoy the relaxing pictures.
This a great area. History and seafood. Relaxing and nightlife at the same time. It truly is one of my favorite areas of the world(that is saying a lot!!!!) I would like to give this hotel another shot for a full review, so look for it soon.
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Embassy Suites in Destin Florida ( From a Fighter Who Has Been Around The World)
I have to say that I’ve lost count of how many times and how many places I’ve stayed in an Embassy Suites. I know the first time was in the late 80s when I was young man. I was doing a kickboxing seminar in St Louis after fighting there a few weeks before. They booked me in to an Embassy in Laclede’s Landing. I was hooked! Yes like any hotel chain there are ups and downs but for the most part I never worry when a company or dojo book one for me.
So recently my wife, on a whim booked a week in Destin Florida at one for spring break. I was already going to be in the area for a day to do a private coaching session for a fighter, so my wife decided to make a trip of it with our youngest ( my 20 year old daughter ) as we won’t have many left with her at home. Embassy suites it was then.
I like to do my reviews of a hotel or resort as a rolling conversation, but with a core. The general, the meat and the area but mostly pictures! It gives you an idea of what its really like and as an old fighter, it’s simple!
So here is the general. Embassy suites is known for three things. Being all suites, having a breakfast buffet with some great cooked to order items and it’s evening happy hour. The evening reception is snacks and free drinks for two hours. Wine, beer and simple mixed drinks. It is a huge draw! Always served in a gorgeous atrium. This one happened to be under construction during our trip. They used one of their many nice meeting rooms for it, not great but they did a good job. The work was finished our last night so we go a good look and some pics( more later).
The room was very nice. Always good space. Clean and well designed. It has a good luxury feel at a less than luxury price. I always like them, and this location was no exception. Beach locations are hard to stay ahead of cleaning and maintenance but they did well here. I’ll let some room pictures speak for me.
It’s not in the top of luxe places we stay, but for family trips for many folks it is great. I’ve been all over and we are spoiled, yet this place didn’t disappoint us.
You get private access to strip of beach. It’s a quick walk across the street and it’s gorgeous. You have numbered access through a gate. All places along this strip are like that but keeps things quiet and subdued. Upside is its clean and no drunken stripper battles ( OK upside at my age lol). Downside is that you don’t have the cool cheap Beach food stands right there. If that’s you’re thing for Beach vacation, this isn’t your place. The beach is stunning, but I’ll cover that in other pieces.
Location wise it’s great for some things, not others. It’s a distance from some big things, harbor walk etc and clubs. If you want to party, arrange transportation or stay elsewhere. For the most part that isn’t who would be here. Harbor walk is great ( upcoming piece) but the party part is different. We stayed here and went there several times. It is very close to Destin Commons which is a cool shopping center with great views( another coming picture review. It’s also close to Silver Sands Premium Outlets if that’s your thing. They are both on 98 and within a couple of miles. Heck I walked up by Silver Sands one night. Ok full disclosure, we all got hungry late and there had been a bit of drinking. Solution, walk to Whataburger and bring food back. Easy walk, and not a bad area. I might not be a good judge as I get hit in the head often!
You can walk along scenic gulf drive, as the hotel sits on it. From Beach rental homes, gorgeous private complete es to kitschy shops it’s a cool place to walk. I’m going to post a few of that ( expect an article just on that street) along with the atrium and other amenities. Catch the final after the jump.
A quick summation. If you are want to yell and party naked on the beach, this isn’t you ( I’ll probably hit you ). If you need perfect luxe this isn’t you ( been to that place but still like this). Enjoy it. Enjoy the area. Enjoy your family.
If you want your place promoted or reviewed, contact us. Want a cheap link or ad with us? Hit us up. Full creative social campaign? Got it! Motivation for your company? Personal coaching or private sessions for fighting? Email tompkinscontent@gmail.com and follow @combatsportlife & @tompkinscontent on twitter. Extremely affordable, unbelievable as to how cheap ( except the fight sessions, those are expensive ♥). If I’m a few dollars and up.
Links and PR from today
http://embassysuites3.hilton.com/en/hotels/florida/embassy-suites-by-hilton-destin-miramar-beach-DSIESES/index.html
http://m.premiumoutlets.com/default.aspx?id=1348
http://www.destincommons.com/
http://whataburger.com/
Thoughts and Pictures From a Stay at Wynn Las Vegas
I’ve been fortunate to travel quite often and all over. From fights in my younger years and training and coaching now. Plus my time in trading as well as current promotional work. These things have allowed me to stay in all sorts of places. Rural to urban. Super cheap to very expensive. I enjoy it all. That said, I love the Wynn. Love it! I love Vegas, and I’m not really a gambler. I enjoy casino resorts in general as they are usually well run and often quite beautiful. In the case of Vegas you can find world class food, shopping and people watching! What little time I did gamble, I liked the casino in the Wynn and the accompanying Encore next door. Cool energy and view without the excess noise.
The Wynn is elegant and hip at the same time. Not Palace of Versailles type elegant just a more modern elegance. I like both of those, but this was nice. Spending my days working with fighters and nights going to eat and sight seeing with my wife, the quiet elegance of the place was nice. Vegas energy but nice and not over the top. One of the things I loved was all the artwork. I am a huge art and architecture fan. I’m not overly knowledgeable about either, but enjoy both immensely. Maybe it soothes getting hit in the head often! As you will see when you get to the pictures, the Wynn has great art pieces throughout the resort, and the Esplanade shops that are attached. When I was writing bits for promo pieces while I was there I could always find a nice area to sit with a coffee or cocktail in a secluded area. Beautiful art in an elegant space helps my creativity. Surprisingly for a casino resort, the Wynn had a great number of places just like this. I loved it.
I am going to drop some random pictures of the resort here. Read on after you look at the as I’ll hit on the restaurants and amenities a bit after that. I know I’m random, but I’m a blessed travelling fighter, not a robotic travel writer lol.
Before putting up a few more pictures, let’s talk about restaurants and amenities. The resort has a ton of food choices. From casual to elegant. Pizza to incredible seafood and steak. From Zoo Crackers deli to SW Steakhouse and of course a buffet. A great experience we had one night was at Costa di Mare in the attached Esplanade shops. The service was phenomenal and the place was beautiful. It was an unusual experience, the explanation of how the cooked and presented your dish was like going to a museum. Not cheap but an experience you can have in very few places. The next set of pictures has a bit of our destroyed plates lol (sadly missed a shot of the salt encrusted whole fish!)
The pool area is stunning. Multiple connected pools. An Italianate look for the cabanas and nice bar. Relaxing and beautiful. Yes there are even a few gaming tables by the bar. I actually enjoyed being out there in the morning. Sitting by the pool doing ad work and writing before heading out to work with fighters. Peaceful and beautiful.
While I was often headed out to different facilities to work out with fighters, I did check out the fitness center in the resort and used it. As someone who sweats for a living, it’s a good one for a hotel! Great staff as well. That is one thing I forgot to mention. The staff at the Wynn is world class. I really mean that. In decades of travel it is truly one of the best overall crews I’ve seen.
One last set of pictures starts with the Lake of Dreams. One of the coolest things I’ve seen. Multiple different shows each night, all through the evening. Between watching it from my room and the show terrace, I was amazed. One evening late after dinner, my wife and I went out on the show terrace and watched. Nice small bar cart there, the wind coming in as a storm moved in. Beautiful and romantic. I know, I’m a fighter so what do I know about romantic? A lot! It’s how I got my wife! Enjoy the random pictures of this place and a few others. Back with a few words after the jump.
Again, after being fortunate enough to stay all over the world, Wynn is high on my list. This whole trip was great, as you will see in future pieces. If you get a chance, stay at the Wynn. Not cheap, but awesome. The only real complaint I had was that the coffee was not at the level that the rest of the resort was. Small complaint ! If you want to know and see more go to the website http://www.wynnlasvegas.com/ or contact me at tompkinscontent@gmail.com and I’ll help you.
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