Hi, friends!
When we visited Vermont earlier this month, we stayed at the The Comfort Inn & Suites(R) hotel in South Burlington. We had a wonderful time exploring the city, but what we loved most about our trip was spending time with our friends who live nearby. We typically stay in touch via social media and text messages, so it was really nice connecting with them in person.
Our little family arrived in Burlington on Friday evening. We were warmly welcomed by the hotel staff and given a goodie bag with bottled water and snacks inside. You guys know how much I like snacks, so I was especially thankful to have a little something to eat after a lonnng drive.
We reserved a two-room suite, which was the best thing ever when traveling with a toddler. The space was huge with a full kitchen, living room, and bathroom and then a separate bedroom with a king bed and balcony. Having the separate rooms was key for making sure everyone got a good night’s sleep.
We reserved a crib online, so when Quinn went to bed, he slept in the bedroom. And having a crib already set up for us made traveling with a little one that much easier. No need to lug our Pack ‘N’ Play from home!
Having the two separate spaces also made it possible for the grown-ups to stay up and enjoy our vacation while our little peanut slept. In fact, once we realized the kitchen was fully stocked, including wine glasses, Mal ran out to buy us a bottle of wine. It was so nice kicking up our feet, enjoying a glass together, and not worrying about waking up Quinn.
And, in the morning, Quinn and I hung out in the living room while Mal slept in. Having the two rooms was just so perfect for our little family. I honestly don’t think we’ll ever go back to booking just a single room again. And with Choice Hotels, the option is really affordable. The brand covered the cost of our stay, but the suite we stayed in was just $150 per night, which is way less than reserving two adjoining rooms. Now that we know Choice hotels are so affordable (and located just about everywhere), we’ll probably travel even more now as a family!
We also loved that our hotel included a free continental breakfast, which, once again, was great for a (hungry) toddler.
Quinn wakes up pretty early, so it was easy to sneak downstairs and grab some milk and snacks for him.
Mal and I also enjoyed the complimentary breakfast.
And coffeeeeeee. (Quinn didn’t realize vacation is about sleeping late. Haha!)
The breakfast options were actually pretty good and much better than the usual hotel fare. There were eggs, sausage, fruit (bananas, apples, and oranges), yogurt, whole grain bread, bagels, donuts, muffins, hard-boiled eggs, cereal, oatmeal, peanut butter, biscuits, juice, coffee, and make-your-own waffles. We were pleasantly surprised!
And our hotel had an outdoor pool. The weather was cool during our visit, so we didn’t go in, but it was a nice bonus!
Once we got ourselves ready for the day, we headed downtown to buy some doughnuts to contribute to brunch with our friends.
We stopped by The Doughnut Dilemma, an adorable little shop on Main Street, which was a quick drive from our hotel.
We picked out a half dozen doughnuts– most of which were warm out of the oven and, my gosh, they smelled incredible.
With doughnuts in hand, we drove to our friends’ house for a tasty brunch.
Yum!
We had a wonderful time eating, chatting, and catching up.
Quinn especially enjoyed the bagels and new (to him) toys at their house. He carried around a bottle of salad dressing from the toy kitchen for a solid 20 minutes because he thought it was so cool. Haha!
Once we finished eating, we took our coffees out to the back porch and further caught up while our little ones played.
It was so great to see our friends (we already miss them), and we’re so thankful that Choice Hotels helped enable this connection.
When it comes to travel, especially with a toddler, it sometimes seems easier to just stay put. And with social media and video chatting helping us connect with our loved ones, you might not want to make the effort to travel at all. But you always have a choice. The choice to truly connect through real face time is always better than the other FaceTime. Choice Hotels are everywhere and totally affordable, so they help you make the right choice to connect to the special people in your life. I’m so glad that we were reintroduced to this brand. I have a feeling we’ll definitely use them in the future!
Giveaway time!
Here’s your chance to win a $100 Choice Hotels gift card to use at any of their properties!
To enter: Just click over to the Choice Hotels website, check out their locations, and leave a comment about WHO and WHERE you’d like to visit. I will randomly pick a winner next week. Good luck!
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Choice Hotels. The opinions and text are all mine.
i’d love to visit killington, vermont during SKI season for the new year with my family!!
I’d love to visit one of my best friends up in Portland, Maine!
I’d love to visit friends in NYC!
The comfort inn in Bloomington, MN to visit my hubby who just took a job there!
Nashville, TN for a long weekend!
I would love to visit one of my friends in Northern California who I don’t get to see very often and go to a football game while I am there.
I would use it to visit family in Denver for Thanksgiving!
I’d visit my little cousin in PA!
My brother and sister-in-law just moved to Chicago and I’ve been dying to visit since they moved — plus, I’ve never been there before and it’s on my bucket list!
I’d love to visit my hubby’s family in Ashland, OH 🙂
I’d want to go to Tampa or St. Petersburg, FL. I’ve never been, and I have a cousin down there whom I’ve not seen in a few years. He hasn’t met my son yet! Plus with #2 due in April, a nice little trip is in order!
I would love to go to Anaheim to visit some friends and see Disneyland all decked out for the holidays!
Friends in San Diego!
I have been wanting to go to Savannah for quite a while. The ECONO LODGE SAVANNAH SOUTH would be awesome because I could get two nights stay for $100.
There are a few overseas…how about Paris?
Would love to go visit my cousin in LA!
Opps, I posted in the wrong place earlier! Anyways, I’d also love to visit Burlington Vermont! I’ve lived in Massachusetts my whole life, so it’s not THAT far but just have never been! I want to try some independent cheese shops and Ben and Jerry’s! Good thing I’m not lactose intolerant!
Would love to visit my sister and her munchkins for Christmas! Looks like there is a Comfort Suites in their little town of Rolla, MO. Perfect location for my husband and I to spend a few days and reconnect with family!
I would love to see old friends in Dallas.
A good friend of mine is getting married in Charleston early next year. I have been a bridesmaid in 3 wedding out of 7 this year which led to a very expensive wedding season (nonetheless on a grad student salary!). I’d love to be able to attend this wedding and I’ve been dying to visit Charleston, but living in the Northeast it is quite expensive to get down there and stay.
I would love to visit my cousins in Portland Oregon!
I would love for my husband and I to be able to visit our friends from college that live in Miami.
Bar Harbor, Maine with my Husband
I’d love a getaway with my bf to St. Maaten or Puerto Rico! That would be so amazing and I had no idea Choice Hotels was abroad. How cool!
I would go with my best friend and we’d stay there for Dopey (orlando!)
I’d go to Tallahassee with my girlfriends from college to see a Florida State football game! 🙂
I would stay at the Clarion Inn in New Orleans for our honeymoon. New Orleans is where we got engaged and we would love to go back and visit the beautiful city and our friends from the surrounding area.
I’d love to visit Seattle, WA.. one of my best friends lives in Washington and I would love to spend time with her!
We’d stay in the Hawthorne NY location as it is close to our family and would be so convenient for visiting!
I would love to visit my old au pairs in Frankfurt, Germany! Two of them recently became Mommies and it would be great to see them with their little girls. More realistically though, I’d love to take my kids to go see Mesa Verde National Park. There’s a Choice Hotel near there in Cortez CO that would be perfect!
We live in Chicago and have talked about a fun weekend getaway to Milwaukee a zillion times but have never gone! I’d love to stay for a night or two at the Comfort Suites Park Place with my husband to explore a new city together.
My dream has always been to run the Disney World Marathon. I am FINALLY taking the plunge; it will be my first full marathon 🙂
Taking a few days to stay at a hotel near a beach following the race would be most welcome. We love New Smyrna Beach and Daytona Beach.
I would love to visit my brother in Traverse City, Michigan.
I would go to ny!
What a super FUN giveaway! Hope I’m entering in time!
I would choose the QUALITY INN & SUITES SEATTLE CENTER – we would visit the Seattle Science Center and go up the Space Needle for lunch! 🙂
I would love to visit Seattle with my family. We don’t know anyone out there, but I’ve always wanted to see that part of the country!
We would love to go to Austin, TX. We love Texas!
Thanks for the offer! I would love to visit my family in Austin! 🙂
I would go to San Francisco