Hotels

Mandarin Oriental Hotel
Manila, Philippines
February 1998

This is an exquisite hotel in the middle of the Makati business district in Manila. We stayed here when Tom was in the Philippines on business. This photo shows the pool area, where the sounds of busy downtown traffic could be heard all around.

Opryland Hotel
Nashville, Tennessee
November 1998

This hotel is huge, with giant atriums. The rooms to get are the ones that face the main atrium, which have balconies overlooking the gardens. The rooms are pretty standard, but the ambiance on the terrace is amazing.

Luxor Hotel
Las Vegas
November 1998

Of all the hotels on the Las Vegas Strip, this is the one to stay in for unusual rooms. We got one of the rooms in the pyramid, which meant we got to take the inclinators (elevators that move at a slant rather than up/down) to get to our room. We were especially lucky to be on the side of the hotel with the view of the Sphinx. The view from the hallway outside the room is straight down into the main pyramid of the hotel.

Hyatt Regency Maui
Maui, Hawaii
January 1999

This is a stunning resort just south of Lahaina in Maui. The grounds, pools, and common areas are quite lovely. Our room faced Lahaina and the ocean.

Hôtel Ritz Paris
Paris, France
November 1999

Yeah, baby, the Ritz Hotel in Paris! This gorgeous place is on the Place Vendôme and has been featured in many movies. We got cheap, last-minute tickets to Paris for the weekend, and blew all of the savings on a two-night stay here. It was ideally located and so very posh.

Hotel Edgewater
Seattle, Washington
April 2000

Traveling with our daughter Claire can be a challenge, so when we visited Seattle, we splurged on a two-room suite at the famous Edgewater Hotel and asked that friends and family came to visit us instead of vice versa. The hotel juts out over the Seattle waterfront and the location is a perfect base for sightseeing. The neon "E" at the top of the hotel is a Seattle landmark.

ANA Hotel
Sydney, Australia
May 2000

When we visited Australia, we knew we wanted to stay in the heart of downtown Sydney. We checked into our corner room at the ANA late at night and woke up to the most amazing view of the Sydney harbour and opera house before sunrise.

Peabody Hotel
Memphis, Tennessee
September 2000

We decided to retrace Marc Cohn's steps in the song "Walking in Memphis." We visited Sun Studio, Graceland, and Beale Street, and stayed at the famous Peabody Hotel on Union Street, home to the Peabody ducks.

Savoy Hotel
London, England
November 2000

After our successful trip to Paris and the Ritz, we knew that the Savoy was the only option for our stay in London. We paid a little extra for the view of the Thames, and indulged in the famous tea at the Savoy.

Heartbreak Hotel
Memphis, Tennessee
December 2001

When passing through Memphis on our way to New Orleans, we decided to stay at the Heartbreak Hotel at the Graceland complex. We rented the mini-Graceland suite, with rooms that resembled Graceland's dining room, TV room, pool room, and jungle room. This is the living room.

Marriott by the Falls
Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada
April 2002

This is the hotel closest to Niagara Falls, and this two story suite had the best possible view of the falls (visible through the window in this photo). Claire was able to spend hours going up and down the stairs with her toys, and we were able to enjoy the falls the entire time we were there.

Ice Hotel
Jukkasjärvi, Sweden
December 2003

From the moment we heard about a hotel made entirely of ice and snow, we knew we had to see it. Our dream came true on New Year's Eve 2003 when we spent the night in a deluxe suite at the Ice Hotel.

Prince of Wales Hotel
Waterton Lakes, Alberta, Canada
August 2004

This hotel has been special to Debbie since she first saw it as a child in 1974. She stayed here in 1985 and 2004. It is the ultimate place to stay when visiting the Canadian portion of the Glacier-Waterton Lakes International Peace Park.

Novotel Citygate Hotel
Hong Kong, China
April 2008

We happened across this hotel when we found ourselves stranded overnight in Hong Kong unexpectedly. Expedia listed this hotel and since we were just in need of a room near the airport, we booked it. It turned out to be one of the greatest rooms we've ever stayed in with an all-glass bathroom that was a part of the room.