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Mid winter get away….where???

Ottakee

By Ottakee,
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Ottakee

Ottakee

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A friend and I have Feb 9-12 (possibly a day before or after) for a get away.   We are in West Michigan.

Warm and sunny sounds really good but we are pretty open to ideas.  A short cruise, all inclusive,  a time share rental, or ????

We are not fancy, just need clean and safe and 2 beds.  We love hiking, nature, water, etc.   No skiing but winter hiking might be an option.

Are there any places you can fly Into where you don’t need a rental car but still have options of activities?   Or cheaper places to go we might not be thinking of?

unless we stay in Michigan and do the ice caves, etc, we would love temps at least in the 50s but warmer and sunny would feed our souls after months of not seeing the sun in west Michigan.

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Halftime Hope

Halftime Hope

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There is a lot to see and do, both nature and otherwise, in the Fort Walton Beach/Seaside, FL area. It's absolutely wonderful in the winter! I'm not sure if you could make do with Uber or if you'd need a car rental, but I don't think it's totally walkable. There is a lot to see in nature in that area...we didn't get to everything on our list in 5 days.

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Murphy101

Murphy101

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Sedona is supposedly awesome. Not been there myself yet.

Not sure how sunny it is likely to be but Vancouver Canada wouldn’t need a rental car and they tend to have mild winters there.

Have you looked at what direct flight options are from your nearest airport or nearest international airport? What’s the warmest closest option of those choices?

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Faith-manor

Faith-manor

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I think Savannah, GA would be nice. It should be in the 60's at that time during the day, beautiful historic districts to walk but not peak tourist season, on the water, and you should be able to shuttle, uber, or taxi to your hotel. I don't know if you can get anything direct out of G. Ford, in Grand Rapids. But I think you can fly direct out of Midway which is a pretty easy airport to use.

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Ottakee

Ottakee

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1 hour ago, Faith-manor said:

Ottakee, are you going to fly out of Grand Rapids or drive to O'Hare? I think DTW is just about as far away as Chicago for you. Knowing where you are originating will affect my recommendations.

I would prefer GR but could do Detroit or O’Hare but Detroit is a much easier drive traffic wise.

We could also do Muskegon , Kalamazoo or Lansing if they had a cheap direct flight.

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sassenach

sassenach

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2 hours ago, Halftime Hope said:

There is a lot to see and do, both nature and otherwise, in the Fort Walton Beach/Seaside, FL area. It's absolutely wonderful in the winter! I'm not sure if you could make do with Uber or if you'd need a car rental, but I don't think it's totally walkable. There is a lot to see in nature in that area...we didn't get to everything on our list in 5 days.

Destin popped to my mind, too. 

Do what the snowbird do- head to Florida!

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Ottakee

Ottakee

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57 minutes ago, KungFuPanda said:

I'd see where the cheap, direct flights to warm places go and just pick the place with the most affordable lodging.  Having a full kitchen will save you a ton.  You can cook some meals and fill in with inexpensive take-out and one or two splurge meals.  

I am trying to find direct flights but often they leave here late day and then the return flight is early morning so we lose so much time.   
 

my friend is a guru at this so hopefully she can find something.  Last year she got us 5 nights at an all inclusive for $250 total….$125 each, $25 per night.  It was an amazing place for that price

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Kassia

Kassia

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3 minutes ago, Ottakee said:


 

my friend is a guru at this so hopefully she can find something.  Last year she got us 5 nights at an all inclusive for $250 total….$125 each, $25 per night.  It was an amazing place for that price

Wow, I need a friend like that!  What an amazing deal!  I'm looking for a getaway too.

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ScoutTN

ScoutTN

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8 minutes ago, Ottakee said:

I am trying to find direct flights but often they leave here late day and then the return flight is early morning so we lose so much time.   
 

my friend is a guru at this so hopefully she can find something.  Last year she got us 5 nights at an all inclusive for $250 total….$125 each, $25 per night.  It was an amazing place for that price

That is fabulous!!

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prairiewindmomma

prairiewindmomma

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We're headed to Hawaii for our February sun break, but it's less expensive for us because we're on the west coast.  Our plan is literally just to be in the sun and outside without coats on because February is about 4 months into the gloomy season for us. In your area, I'd think about Destin or Clearwater (as everyone else has mentioned).  I prefer sun + beautiful sandy beaches > sun + desert.

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Ottakee

Ottakee

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5 minutes ago, ktgrok said:

Just FYI- beaches might be cold in Florida. February can be warm but also can be in the 40s which isn’t really beach weather. 

My one and only mid winter vacation was to Clearwater/Treasure Island area in 2019 and we hit the polar vortex.

This is my friend in back with the captain and his wife on our dolphin cruise.

IMG_20190126_165353148_HDR_Original.jpeg

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Toocrazy!!

Toocrazy!!

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Sedona is beautiful. So many hikes! I don’t think Uber is really a thing there though? so sort out your transportation in advance. There are car services, but not on call. The hiking is amazing. The whole city is a dark sky zone so the stars are really something. No idea on February weather. 

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Halftime Hope

Halftime Hope

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oof, just thinking about Sedona in February makes me shiver, although it may be just fine for Ottakee.  Here's what the Wildland Trekking website has to say, "The biggest drawback to visiting Sedona in February is the wintery weather. Since Sedona sits at an elevation of 4,350 feet, temperatures can hover around freezing; and if you’re in the mountains you may encounter snowy trails. If winter isn’t your thing, aim for visiting Sedona another season." However, average high for Sedona is 61 degrees F in February, so it feels to me like there's a bit of a disconnect there. She'd definitely need a car.

 

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Harriet Vane

Harriet Vane

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11 hours ago, Ottakee said:

A friend and I have Feb 9-12 (possibly a day before or after) for a get away.   We are in West Michigan.

Warm and sunny sounds really good but we are pretty open to ideas.  A short cruise, all inclusive,  a time share rental, or ????

We are not fancy, just need clean and safe and 2 beds.  We love hiking, nature, water, etc.   No skiing but winter hiking might be an option.

Are there any places you can fly Into where you don’t need a rental car but still have options of activities?   Or cheaper places to go we might not be thinking of?

unless we stay in Michigan and do the ice caves, etc, we would love temps at least in the 50s but warmer and sunny would feed our souls after months of not seeing the sun in west Michigan.

At that time of year, St. Augustine, Florida is lovely. It'll be too cold to swim, which means no crowds, but it'll feel warm and luxurious to a Northernor. I've been down in January or February many times and I relish walking on the beach or strolling through the historic town. There are two forts to tour (a big one and a tiny one) and museums and an alligator farm. There are also nearby nature preserves. 

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PeterPan

PeterPan

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The challenges with a cruise are the booze cruise potential with a short itinerary and the cost to fly to ports. If you can get a deal on allegiant or spirit , the MSC magnifica out of Miami on Nov 9 could work for you. Look at cruise line.com You need to fly in a day ahead and buy trip insurance. Otherwise see what direct flights you can get to Florida, Alabama, Texas , or of course anything exotic like Mexico, San Juan, Dominican Republic, Bermuda, basically where the cruises go. You might find some surprising deals using the flight maps for southwest , allegiant , etc. I know peeps who fly to Mexico . We just prefer to cruise. As long as you stay in a very tourist place you’re probably ok. 

Edited by PeterPan
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PeterPan

PeterPan

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I’m not saying you’ll love MSC but it will probably be fine for you. They go to their private island in that itinerary which will save you excursion costs. Oh that’s the only port? Yup booze cruise. See how the spa is on the Magnifica. MSC excels at spas and sometimes has INCREDIBLE ones in their ships. Like ice caves, multiple types of thermal pools, etc., something you could spend hours in if you like it. Varies by ship.here I found a YouTube tour so we can see. Just saying it would be a selling point.

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Grace Hopper

Grace Hopper

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I love the gulf coast but have to say winter can be unpredictable. If you get lucky it’s nice but if you get a wet winter day it can be miserable. For a winter trip to FL I’d set my sights on the middle or lower peninsula. Key West could be fun. Arizona or Southern California (Like San Diego) would be more reliably warm. And of course anywhere in the Caribbean but it would be high season for travel. 

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Toocrazy!!

Toocrazy!!

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You might be able to do Vegas on the cheap in February. It’s in the 60’s.  I was in Vegas in September and it was awful🙂 way too many people! But in February with the right plan, it could probably be a lot of fun. 
I was in San Diego in late March and we didn’t have great weather. Probably a fluke, but great weather might not be a given. South Florida- Naples, Marco island, the Keys would be consistently warmer for sunshine. Marco is ok without a car, but it’s about an hour from the airport. 

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