The Polite Traveler

Healdsburg Inn Hilton Tapestry Leaves Me Wanting More I hope you’re enjoying your summer, my polite travelers.  It’s been a scorcher, just about everywhere.  What’s not hot is the Healdsburg Inn, a Hilton property.  Yes, it has many of the amenities one would want in a summer getaway, like a pool and games—chess, checkers, cornhole, and Jenga.  But they don’t have a fitness room, and the self-serve laundry is in a different hotel.  Weird.  It’s also disappointing that this hotel is similar to the Tapestry in Sonoma: small rooms, the ADA room is lacking, and the reception room is…well, pretty much all there is.  It is where guests sign in, grab packaged food, and purchase overpriced beer and wine on tap.  It’s not Hilton quality.  Comparing this property to the Sacramento Tapestry leaves me shaking my head in disbelief.  The one bright spot is the people.  The staff is engaging, efficient, and pleasant. ADA Room 424—...

An Accessible Room with an Ocean View?  Really? My Dear Polite Travelers, At times, my hubby and I find ourselves regretting our need for an accessible room due to my husband’s mobility issues.  It’s not that the rooms are not comfortable, but often there is no view.  That’s not the issue with our luxurious room at the Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa. Room 307 Review Room 307 not only had a semi-ocean view, but also a lanai.  We had the sliding glass door open for the warm Hawaiian breezes all night—felt like heaven.  However, there’s more.  Since this hotel, er… resort , is on the higher end of the quality scale, our room showed it with its large flat-screen TV, sofa, quality hygiene products, Keurig coffee maker, and breathable cotton robes.  I nearly squealed with joy when I noticed Hyatt included an electric kettle in the room.   I do love my tea .  Don’t Miss Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa Review This Hyatt Place ...

Tropical Plants, Hilarious Tour Guide, Wooden Art, Oh My! My Dear Polite Travelers, Traveling around an island might lead to questioning the types of exotic vegetation one might see.  As an avid—and sometimes irritating—questioner, I always have tons of questions.  So, a visit to the Maui Tropical Plantation was a perfect fit for me.  The Maui Tropical Plantation is part farm, part shops/market, and offers unique activities and dining options.  The best part, in my opinion, is the tour.  The Plantation Tour The Tropical Express Tour is a 40-minute tram ride through the plantation grounds.  Throughout the tour, guests are introduced to the farm’s vegetation: trees, plants, fruit, and their uses.  We’re also treated to some great humor.  Our guide was hilarious and educational.  Along the ride, we stopped for a coconut husking demonstration.  It was particularly interesting.  Of course, our guide interjected humor at just t...

  Simple room with no view, but I’d choose it again. My Dear Polite Travelers, You know how it is when we're traveling and tired.  Sometimes, we just want simple—a simple room with ample amenities like a television, microwave, and fridge.  Fold in a comfy bed and a clean bathroom, and it’s a travel-day win.  Well, that’s what we found at a new favorite hotel, Hampton Inn & Suites Maui North Shore.  Room W309 Since my hubby is mobility challenged, we chose an accessible room.  This one didn’t disappoint: grab bars, toiletries at chair height, a shower wand, a pull-down shower seat, and a walk-in shower.  Additionally, there were no cabinets under the sink vanity for wheelchair users.  All good. The room was comfortable, with temperature control easy to manage and ample light.  Of course, the room included a coffee maker, coffee, and tea .  The large, smart, mounted television allowed for easy streaming—great for after-...

  You Can’t Get This in a Lower-Cost Maui Hotel…or can you? My Dear Polite Travelers, When many people think of a Maui vacation, they probably imagine lying on a sandy beach near a luxurious hotel—perhaps holding a tropical cocktail.  That’s a great vision, and one I share often.  Still, this is rarely our exact reality when staying in a lower-cost hotel .  Or so we thought. After a long day of traveling, we arrived at the Hampton Inn & Suites Maui North Shore.  From the front of the hotel—directly off a main, very busy road—the hotel doesn’t scream high-end or even comfy.  But that’s not why I chose this hotel.  I chose it for its proximity to the airport and considered it a good two-day resting place before moving on to the west side of the island for the remainder of our visit.  And perhaps we could also explore the area.  Don’t Miss! Hyatt Regency Maui Resort and Spa Review : Art, Excellent Service & Penguins...Oh My ...

Palm Springs Activities Hello, my Polite Travelers, As an older couple, we often just want to relax and enjoy our favorite places at a leisurely pace. This was the case during our recent revisit to Palm Springs. For the most part, we explored downtown, stopping for coffee and chatting with the locals. Additionally, we embarked on a few other excellent adventures. Agua Caliente Cultural Museum As a Smithsonian Affiliate, I found this museum to be outstanding.  This museum is a mixture of immersive video, sound, and visuals (including lifelike exhibits) to tell the story of America’s rich—and many times heart-wrenching—indigenous story.  The permanent gallery begins with the 360-degree immersive video of the Agua Caliente “Creation & Migration” story.  The quality of their digital animation and sound is impressive—there’s even a screen on the floor.  I found their creation story to be fascinating. Don’t Miss! For the Love of Art! Don’t Miss The Palm Springs Art M...

Hyatt Place Delano, CA, and Room #303 Hello, my Polite Travelers. Well, we’ve had a fantastic, fun-filled week in Palm Springs, and are now traveling home to Davis, CA.  To break up the long drive, we’re staying one night in the Hyatt Place in Delano, CA.  So far, so excellent. The Spacious Accessible Room #303 This room appears brand new, as if no one has stayed here yet.  Everything is clean, neat, and warm.  We’ve been assigned a lovely corner room away from the nearby freeway.  Across the street is a huge shopping center with restaurants and shopping opportunities.  Since this is an accessible room, there’s plenty of room between furniture and grab bars a’plenty in the bathroom—near the toilet and in the shower.  The sink is outside the toilet/shower room--love it.  The walk-in shower features an adjustable shower wand and pull-down seat.  Perfect!  There is no microwave, but one can be requested.  Alternatively, th...

Hilton Palm Springs Hotel & Room #191 Review Hello, my Polite Travelers. Well, we finally made it to Palm Springs, CA.  It’s great weather, even in early December.  Palm Springs is a unique place: quirky with a side of cinema history.  And even though it’s a tourist favorite, it feels homey and welcoming .  There are numerous lodging options, but we chose the Hilton Palm Springs Resort.  We stayed here four years ago and found it to be a mixed bag: a great layout, but in need of some remodeling.  Now, it’s a tad better…with caveats.  Accessible Room #191 For the most part, this room is accessible : a walk-in shower, plenty of grab bars, a fold-down shower seat, and a low-mounted shampoo bar.  Still, the toilet is at regular height.  Those with mobility issues require taller toilets.  The bathroom sink is excellent, with counter space and no cabinets underneath.  Although I didn’t measure the sink height, it appears to be a...

Hyatt Place Bakersfield and Room #312 Hello, my Polite Travelers. Well, we’re on the road traveling from Davis, CA to Palm Desert.  Midway, we’re staying at the Hyatt Place Bakersfield.  It’s not far from CA 99 and very near highway #58, which is exactly the road we need to jump onto tomorrow morning.  It’s also directly across the street from a shopping center with restaurants and…drumroll… Trader Joe’s .  The room is spacious and accessible.  The bathroom features numerous grab bars, and the space between furniture is ample.   This room has a bathtub, so those requiring a walk-in shower should request a different room.  The tub also didn’t have a shower wand or pull-down seat.  Many with mobility issues require these.  The shampoo and conditioner were ‘fairly’ low enough, but could have been lower. Don’t Miss! Choose This Comfort Suites When in Astoria, OR Why We’ll Skip Embassy Suites Napa in the Winter Look Closer at the ...

Hampton Inn & Suites Palm Desert, CA—Hotel & Room #330 Review Hello, my Polite Travelers. We are now in sunny Palm Desert, and it is a grand place.  Everything looks clean and new.  Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for the Hampton Inn.  It pains me to say it, but this hotel needs some love…and perhaps a good handyman.  Our room is an accessible room for hubby.  On first glance, it’s adequate, with space between furniture and grab bars in the bathroom.  That’s only the first glance.   Blink once more, and there are a few issues for both the mobile and mobility-challenged .  First, although the bathroom features plenty of grab bars, the toilet is too low, and accessible toilets require taller seats.   The shampoo bar is too high, and there’s no pull-down seat in the tub.  Those in wheelchairs would require a different room, and most mobility-challenged people can’t reach up to access the shampoo bar.   ...

One Night in Sonoma Valley Inn, a Tapestry Collection by Hilton My dear Polite Travelers, The beauty of hotel loyalty credit cards is the ability to earn free nights.   Since we live relatively near Sonoma, CA, and I’ve always wanted to spend more time perusing the unique downtown core, we chose the Sonoma Valley Inn, a Tapestry Collection by Hilton , for that free night.  After all, it’s right on Second Street, just steps from the core.    So, I couldn’t wait to check out this once-humble Best Western, now reborn under Hilton’s wing as a Tapestry butterfly. Now, I’ve stayed at Tapestry hotels before and know some of what to expect. But here is what I found that each of these hotels should offer.            Unique design reflecting the locale            Culinary offering inspired by the locale            Personalized service that offers a “boutique-like experie...

Ah Hawaii, warm breezes, friendly people, and many lodging opportunities. Some are elegant, some are shabby, and some are just so-so. For the most part, my dear hubby and I have found our stays comfortable, but not always…perfect. What is perfect anyway? In Hawaii, perfect could simply mean looking out a clean window.  For this trip, we traveled and stayed in Waikiki. We know Waikiki well. It’s easy to maneuver through town, and it’s comfortable for my hubby, who is now living with mobility issues. Yep, a complete bummer. Still, we have found ways to help him enjoy—or sometimes simply tolerate—travel. (More on traveling by air in another post) As for our hotel stays, well, that requires a bit of finesse.  The Room Across from a Jet Engine--Hilton Garden Inn Waikiki  We’ve stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn Waikiki multiple times but never in an accessible room. We chose this hotel based on its location and price. It’s not fancy or elegant. This Hilton is the typica...

Dear Polite Travelers, We had limited time during our last outing, so we chose to stay close to home and focused on the Santa Rosa area.  Lucky for us, Sebastopol is a close neighbor, and we were thrilled to visit, if only for a few hours.  Tucked away in an interesting set of what had been apple warehouses, is the Barlow, right off Highway 12.  We stopped in at the co-op style market, which sells only the freshest organic foods and natural products.  Besides the market, there are various other shops, breweries, and restaurants sprinkled around the property.  One exceptional example is Sarmentine , and just as its name implies, it’s all about French pastries and bread.  Yum.  Our choices were so scrumptious , that I scarfed up most of it before realizing I needed a picture.  They also serve excellent espresso beverages.  This is our new must-stop when traveling south.  I hope you do too! Happy Travels, my Polite Travelers...

My Dear Polite Travelers, Our first stay in a Hyatt was less than stellar.  In fact, it’s more of a mixed bag of frustration and comfort.  The hotel was beautiful, don’t get me wrong.  It was just … incomplete.  Really? Room #281 is considered accessible ? We booked an accessible room due to my hubby’s back issue—a typical old-person problem.  Typically, an accessible room would naturally have a shower with ease of entry.  In room #281?  Nope.  Getting into a tub requires some dexterity that a mobility-challenged person may not have.  This is a major problem that should be addressed.  I hope Hyatt is listening.  Other than that oversight, there were no towel bars in the bathroom — strange.  Plus, it would have been logical if there was at least one hook for clothing/robe in the bathroom as well.  And, speaking of robes, robes are an accessory in these rooms.  There were none.  In fact, I had to call down f...