Growing up in Michigan, I’ll never forget the irrepressible sense of awe when I first set my eyes upon Mackinac Island’s Grand Hotel.

The island is only approachable by ferry, no cars are allowed on the island, and the sound of horses clip-clopping around the paved streets is easily recalled in my memory.  But the jewel in the crown of the magnificent island is most certainly the Grand Hotel.

Opened in 1887, the Grand Hotel features the world’s longest front porch and has hosted a seemingly infinite list of the world’s dignitaries, rich, and famous.

But to top it all off, in 1980, the film Somewhere In Time was filmed at the Grand Hotel, starring Christopher Reeve, Jane Seymour, and Christopher Plummer, and the magic and allure of this place was forever etched into my soul.

When I left home for college, and started to do a bit of traveling, I quickly learned that there were other hotels that also possessed this same magical allure, but offered it in very different flavors.

Wham!  I’m hooked on historic hotels!

A few years ago, we learned of an organization called the Historic Hotels of America®.  A program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation^®, Historic Hotels of America^® identifies quality hotels that have faithfully maintained their historic integrity, architecture and ambiance.  Historic Hotels of America preserves the authenticity of America’s most prominent lodging addresses and offer visitors a remarkable travel experience to savor, celebrate and share.  Member hotels are promoted nationally and internationally to those who prefer historic settings for their leisure and business travel.

Sweet!  There’s over 600 hotels on this list for us to explore!

In no particular order, here are 10 historic hotels on our bucket list:

10 Historic Hotels of America on The Roaming Boomers® Bucket List

1. The Broadmoor – Colorado Springs, Colorado
2. The Plaza – New York, New York
3. The Greenbriar- White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia
4. The Queen Mary – Los Angeles, California
5. The Awahnee – Yosemite National Park
6. Jekyll Island Club Hotel -  Jekyll Island, Georgia
7. Omni Mount Washington Resort – Bretton Woods, New Hampshire
8. Oheka Castle – Huntington, New York
9. The Grove Park Inn and Spa – Asheville, North Carolina
10. The Buccaneer – St. Croix, Virgin Islands

Honestly, this list doesn’t begin to touch the historic hotels and resorts we’d love to visit.  However, it a great place to start.

How about you?  Do you have a favorite historic hotel?  Is there a historic hotel you’d love to visit?

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When traveling to Paso Robles, the AAA Four-Diamond La Bellasera Hotel and Suites makes for a wonderful home away from home.

During our visit, we enjoyed a Deluxe King Whirlpool Fireplace Room.  Our room featured a comfy fireplace, a wonderfully comfortable king-size bed with premium linens, and a very romantic whirlpool tub.

After a long day of exploring the award-winning wineries of the Paso Robles region, we found the Mediterranean-styling to be very welcoming and luxurious.

Furthermore, it was a wonderful benefit to simply head down the elevator to enjoy dining at the Enoteca Restaurant and Bar rather than traipsing back out into the night.

We enjoyed Executive Chef Brady Thomason’s signature Coconut Crusted Halibut (jasmine rice, soy glazed vegetables, pineapple curry cream),  Roasted Herbed Chicken Piccata (roasted garlic mashed potatoes, asparagus), and a beautiful bottle of Estancia Meritage produced from local Paso Robles fruit.  YUM!

Another benefit of staying at La Bellesera Hotel and Suites is its location at the junction of highways 101 and 46.

This means that regardless of where you might be, as you’re sampling one of the 200+ Paso Robles wineries, you can quickly have your shoes off, your feet propped up, and be enjoying your warm and cozy fireplace.

We spent three nights indulging in the luxuries of La Bellasera Hotel and can heartily recommend a stay.

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Santa Barbara, California has easily won its way into our hearts as one of our favorite destinations.  We recently returned from our second visit and thought an update to our Santa Barbara Top Ten List was in order.

Santa Barbara is located 92 miles north of Los Angeles and 332 miles south of San Francisco.  It is considered the northernmost part of Southern California and the southernmost part of Northern California.

It is also known as “The American Riviera” because of its dramatic mountains, sparkling seas, lush gardens, white-washed buildings, red tile roofs and abundant sunshine found in the Mediterranean Rivieras.

Furthermore, if you are planning a south to north drive of the world-famous central California coastline, then Santa Barbara is a great place to begin your journey.

Our Favorite Places to Stay in Santa Barbara

• San Ysidro Ranch –  check out our feature article from last year’s visit.  Travel + Leisure calls this the #1 resort in North America.
• Simpson House Inn – this was our home away from home in Santa Barbara this year.  This is the only AAA Five-Diamond Bed & Breakfast Inn in North America.

Our Favorite Places to Eat in Santa Barbara

• Downey’s Restaurant – consistently tops with Zagat.  We loved it!
• Bouchon – wondrous “Wine Country Cuisine”.

Top 10 Things to Do in Santa Barbara

Although these are in no particular order, we think that you’ll find some great experiences in our list:

1. Santa Barbara Red Tile Walking Tour - we spent half a day and enjoyed it greatly.
2. Santa Barbara Urban Wine Tour - if you don’t have time to drive out into the wine country, this is a wonderful way to sample some of the local wines.
3. Sideways (The Movie) Wine Tour - this will take a whole day, but the wine country with its accompanying small town are certain to be a delight.
4. Shopping on State Street - it’s lined with shops, cafés, museums, galleries, day spas and theaters.  We spent a whole afternoon strolling these quaint shops.
5. Arroyo Burro Beach Park - The locals call it Hendry’s Beach -a place to meet for breakfast or a cocktail at sunset, stroll or jog the sandy shore, watch for whales, surf fish, or ride the wild surf.
6. Steams Warf - this is Santa Barbara’s most visited landmark.  It is replete with shops, restaurants, and the area is a great place for people watching.
7. Montecito Home Tour - Montecito is the stomping grounds of Hollywood’s A-list.  Driving alongPark Lane and Bella Vista Drive will produce jaw-dropping views of palatial mansions with ocean views from mountain heights.
8. Explore Nearby Cities - Getting out to explore nearby cities is another must if you have time.  We highly recommend Solvang.  This Danish village is packed with quaint shops and on Wednesdays has a farmer’s market to die for.  We also loved Los Olivos.
9. Art & History - There are a great many art and historical spots to explore in Santa Barbara.  This 116-page on-line Santa Barbara Visitor’s Guide will help you choose which are most appealing to you.
10. 101 Free Things to Do – if the preceding 9 things don’t wet your whistle, then here are 101 more things to do.  Perhaps best of all, they’re free!

Well, there you go!

If you spend some time clicking around on these links, you are certain to find just the perfect experience for your visit to the great town of Santa Barbara.

As I mentioned above, we love Santa Barbara, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see us back again real soon.  We’re not done exploring the area ourselves.

Have fun, and please, come back and share your experiences with in the the comments section below.

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Hotel Cheval ~ Click for large view!

Here, we’ve roamed to the wine country of Paso Robles, California to spend a few nights at the Hotel Cheval.

You’ve heard us say it before,  The Roaming Boomers® love luxury boutique hotels.

The Hotel Cheval is a  sophisticated 16-room, European style boutique hotel located in the heart of downtown Paso Robles and offers well-traveled baby boomers an intimate and luxurious getaway.

Influenced by the surrounding equestrian countryside, guests can relax by one of the outdoor stone wood-burning fireplaces, in the Library, or with friends in the Pony Club, a Parisian-inspired zinc topped horseshoe-shaped wine bar.

Guests are welcomed with freshly baked cookies and will enjoy a complimentary breakfast each morning.

Elegant yet comfortable guestrooms boast California King beds with down comforters and 400 thread count cotton sheets, spa robes, luxurious bath products, in-room coffee and tea service featuring JoeBella Coffee and Tea Forté, complimentary bottled water, evening turndown, 37” LCD flat screen TVs, CD / mp3 players and complimentary internet access.

If you can’t see the video, click here.

We loved the fact that we could walk out the front door of Hotel Cheval and, in a short one-block walk, be right in the middle of town where we could enjoy an artisanal cheese shop, wine tasting rooms, art galleries, olive oil and balsamic vinegar tasting rooms, fabulous restaurants, the beautiful town square and even a quaint movie theater.

To us, Paso Robles is an idyllic small town with the unusual benefit of its countryside swarming with hundreds of wineries serving up very affordable, yet world-class, predominantly red varietals.

We recommend that you visit the town of Paso Robles, and when you do, we highly recommend that you make your stay at the Hotel Cheval.  We greatly enjoyed our stay, and we’re confident that you will too!

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Disclosure: this wonderful experience was provided by the kind folks at the Hotel Cheval.  Thanks!

We absolutely love it when we are able to share sumptuous and romantic hideaways with our readers.  Take a few moments and let your eyes dreamily wander around my impressionist photograph.

You’re about to be served an opulent breakfast on the veranda of a 19th century Victorian estate.  The air’s temperature is perfect.  Hummingbirds are busily gathering nectar.  The sun is magically casting its morning rays through century-old trees while the surrounding 30 foot hedge provides for your own secret garden just blocks from downtown Santa Barbara.

Sounds dream-like, don’t you think?

Santa Barbara’s Simpson House Inn: North America’s Only AAA Five-Diamond Bed and Breakfast Inn

This was just a small part of the enchanting experience we benefited from while staying at Santa Barbara’s Simpson House Inn.

If you can’t see the video, click here.

The Simpson House Inn is North America’s only AAA Five-Diamond Bed and Breakfast Inn and is nestled on an acre of English gardens.  The Inn features 15 guest rooms, suites and cottages all designed to pamper you with privacy, charm, with a good dash of world-class amenities and service.

We enjoyed the Pendle Cottage which was privately tucked away under mammoth oak trees and offered us a private fountain patio, a sitting room complete with love seat and wood-burning fireplace, a sunny bedroom in an upstairs loft with high ceilings, skylights and a king-size canopy bed.  Ours was also the only cottage that boasts a full kitchen; a wonderful amenity to enjoy fresh produce from the nearby Santa Barbara farmers’ market.

As you can see, the Simpson House Inn is a remarkable property.

We highly recommend that you plan a trip to Santa Barbara to enjoy the beautiful Pacific coastline, it’s restaurants, wineries, and perhaps best of all, a few nights at the Simpson House Inn.

We’ve enjoyed quite a number of remarkable properties in our travels; the Simpson House Inn is one of those intimate properties that will remain close to our hearts.

Also, here our link for what to do and where to eat when visiting Santa Barbara.

If you enjoyed this article, please follow us at our website, our Facebook page, or on Twitter.

Disclosure:  this wonderful experience was provided by the kind folks at the Simpson House Inn.  Thanks!

We have noticed this trend in our travels, and when the Tubac Golf Resort and Spa invited us to come spend a few nights and enjoy their upcoming five-course, tequila-pairing dinner, we decided to invite four of our boomer friends to join along in the fun.

What is now the town of Tubac first began in 1691 when Jesuit missionaries entered the Santa Cruz Valley and began to build missions, ranches, and farms.

In coming years, the area was engulfed in Apache Indian attacks, went from Spanish rule to Mexican rule, became a ghost town, became an Arizona territory, endured the civil war, became a  US state , and today is a well known artist commune set in a fertile valley which enjoys one of the largest stands of cottonwoods in the southwest.

Also interesting, the Tubac Golf Resort and Spa was started by Bing Crosby on what was once one of the largest cattle ranches in all of the southwest.

However, we were six baby boomers descending upon Tubac for a little luxury, pampering, shopping, and a spectacular five-course dinner with tequila paired from a fifth-generation Mexican tequila maker.

Here’s a short video highlighting our experience…

Note:  if you can’t see the video, click here.

When visiting the Tubac Golf Resort and Spa, you will certainly want to explore the town of Tubac. Here are a few things that we enjoyed:

• Tumacacori National Historical Park.  Located just a couple miles outside of town, you will want to visit this historic Jesuit mission which began in 1691.
• We enjoyed a wonderful lunch at Shelby’s Bistro in Tubac.
• While strolling about the town, we really enjoyed the artwork in the Cobalt Gallery.  Although, there are art galleries and unique boutiques at every turn of the head.
• And guys, if you don’t feel like strolling through art galleries with your wife, there’s even a “daddy day care” where you can sit on a porch, rock in a rocking chair, and enjoy a fine cigar from the cool guys at Grumpy Gringo Cigars!
• For dinner, we enjoyed a fabulous meal at Elvira’s Restaurant.  Authentic Mexican cuisine in a setting where the ceiling is absolutely covered in colorful blown-glass.  We highly recommend this dining experience!  Mr. Roaming Boomer, being ever the adventurous eater, enjoyed beef tongue in a very tasty mole sauce.  Don’t worry, if you aren’t adventurous with your cuisine, there are other fabulous, more traditional Mexican items to enjoy.  The restaurant is well known for their mole sauces.
• You should also know that each February, tens of thousands of people flock to Tubac for the Annual Tubac Festival of the Arts.  They’ve been doing this for 53 years, and we can highly recommend it from personal experience.

The Tubac Golf Resort and Spa is just 45-minutes south of Tucson, Arizona, and together with the delightful town of Tubac, makes for a perfect baby boomer friends’ getaway.

There were big thumbs up from all involved!

If we have one regret, it is that the Fortaleza Tequila is not yet available in Arizona.  We are greatly looking forward to it being available as we really did enjoy the Fortaleza Anejo.  Who dreamed we would become tequila aficionados?

Disclosure:  our wonderful experience was provided by the really nice folks at the Tubac Golf Resort & Spa.  Further, being the great people they are, they gave a fantastic getaway deal to our friends.  Thanks!  We had a great, great time!

The Boulders Resort and Golden Door Spa ~ Carefree, Arizona – The Sonoran Desert offers a landscape that is singularly unique in all of the southwest.  For it is here that the mighty saguaro cactus makes it home.  And it is also here, amidst towering 12-million-year-old granite boulders, that the award-winning Boulders Resort and Golden Door Spa welcomes its guests.

The Boulders Resort is part of the Waldorf Astoria collection, and for 25 years has offered baby boomer travelers legendary personalized service, a world-class golf destination with 36-holes of golf designed by Jay Morrish, and a 1,300 acre setting in the Sonoran Desert that is simply unparalleled.

In fact, we made a visit to The Boulders Resort a number of years ago, and loved the area so much that we now call the Sonoran Desert our home.  Furthermore, we can see those massive granite boulders (pictured above) from our back yard.

As we were contemplating how to share the magic that is The Boulders Resort, we figured that words just can’t express our experience.  Therefore, rather than attempting to describe our experience in text, we made this video to show you our experience.

Take a peek…

Have you ever seen a place so unique in its beauty?

With its incredible setting, and a hotel staff highly trained to create a luxurious resort experience, we are very pleased to share one of our favorite desert resorts with you and give it a high “Roaming Boomers” recommendation.

Disclosure:  our wonderful experience was provided by the folks at The Boulders Resort and Golden Door Spa.  Thanks!  It was fabulous!

Our first impressions meter was scaling very high as we drove up the beautiful tree-lined drive.

However, when we first cast our eyes upon the 2.7 acre water playground, reminiscent of ancient Roman baths, with its 10 separate pools with 28 fountains and 47 waterfalls, a three-story water-slide inside a clock tower, a pool complete with a sand bottom and sand beach; a water temple with four cold plunge pools, and a 16-foot wide jacuzzi-style spa; lit glass-brick pillars; two poolside bars; an overhead water aqueduct upon which guests can stroll; and the “Big Gun,” a thundering waterfall with 600 gallons of rushing water per minute, our first impression meter went into overload!

Our Fondest Memories

• Our stunning suite looking out over the resort property.  If you can swing the extra money, go for the Winfield Scott Signature Suite.  Wowza!  What luxury!  If a luxury suite doesn’t fit into your budget, their standard resort king rooms are certainly sweet as well.
• Afternoon Arizona Birds of Prey exhibition with a live eagle!
• Exploring peoples of the Sonoran desert with live, local Native American dancers/singers/drummers.
• The blind taste-test comparing Arizona wines to French wines.  Who knew?  The Arizona wines won — hands down!
• Our “Wine Me Dine Me” dinner was amazing!
• Our evening romantic gondola ride serenaded by classically trained opera singers.  Who knew you could time-warp to Venice right here in Scottsdale.  This experience is not to be missed!
• Strolling the beautifully lit landscape at night.
• The huge bonfire overlooking the lake.
• The live jazz in the lobby bar before retiring to our suite.
• Breakfast in the Regency Club with a private indoor-outdoor terrace, gazebo and lush gardens.  A very nice upgrade to consider!
• Carol enjoyed great relaxation while getting a massage at Spa Avania.
• The freshly cleaned windshield on my vehicle.  Small touches make big impacts!

The Hyatt Regency Scottsdale Resort and Spa at Gainey Ranch is a flagship resort for the Hyatt Corporation.  We greatly enjoyed our experience, and highly recommend it to our readers and subscribers.

Disclosure:  our experience was provided by the very cool folks at Hyatt Regency Scottsdale Resort and Spa at Gainey Ranch.  Thanks!  We had a blast!

Sanctuary on Camelback Mountain Resort and Spa ~ Paradise Valley, Arizona

The legendary history of Sanctuary on Camelback Mountain began in the early 1950s when Charlie Chaplin’s son (Sydney) and a group of prominent Hollywood investors and stars envisioned a prestigious racket club modeled after the elite Racquet Club in Palm Springs.

They hired Frank Lloyd Wright protégée Hiram Hudson Benedict to design the clubhouse, a prototype casita and the Paradise Valley Racquet Club was born.

The racquet club enjoyed great notoriety over the years and attracted the world’s rich and famous.

In 1992, the ownership of the resort changed hands and a hospitality management company was hired to consider the direction of this beautiful 53 acre property located on the north slope of Camelback Mountain overlooking Paradise Valley.

In May 2000, the property closed its doors for a complete renovation and transformation of the property and in March 2001 the highly lauded Sanctuary on Camelback Mountain rose like a phoenix from these historic roots.

Today the property features 81 luxury mountain casitas, 24 spa casitas, and 7 distinctive mountainside estates for their guests to enjoy.  All enjoy remarkable views from their perch on the slope of Camelback mountain, offer world-class amenities, and have a very special designer’s “funk” added to the 1950s Frank Lloyd Wright style architecture.

Not to be overlooked is celebrity executive Chef Beau MacMillan in the Kitchen.  Chef MacMillan is an “Iron Chef” winner, has cooked in the famous James Beard House, and is a frequent visitor to national shows like NBC’s Today Show.

Our Favorite Memories and Impressions

• From our very first interaction with the valet staff we could tell that this was a hospitality team resolved to offer a world-class experience.  And … they did!
• Our mountainside Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired casita offered beautiful views of Paradise Valley.  The interior décor was a complete blast and added great fun to the 1950s architecture.
• Our casita offered all of the amenities that a discriminating luxury traveler would expect.
• Our dining experience in the resort’s elements restaurant was sublime.  The cuisine was remarkable, the service impeccable, and the valley’s city lights shimmering below added a distinctly romantic setting to the experience.  Wow!
• Although our schedule didn’t allow any time in the spa, our brief tour revealed a remarkable space all centered around views of the valley’s famous “praying monk” rock formation.
• Drinks at edge, watching the sun set, and drinking concoctions from an award-winning mixologist was a special memory.

We absolutely loved our Sanctuary on Camelback Mountain Resort and Spa experience.  We look forward to becoming friends with the resort’s team, enjoying many more samplings of Chef Beau MacMillan’s cuisine, and have absolutely no hesitation in giving this resort four thumbs up and stretched to the sky!

Disclosure:  this wonderful experience was provided by the really cool people at Sanctuary on Camelback Mountain Resort & Spa.  Thanks!  A bunch!

The Westin Kierland Resort and Spa ~ Scottsdale, Arizona

The resort features:

• 732 rooms, 55 suites and 32 casitas.
• Eight different food and beverage venues from casual to upscale including the Resort’s signature restaurant, Deseo, inspired by James Beard Award-winning Chef Douglas Rodriquez.
• A full-service spa, 27-hole championship golf course, and 9,000 square-foot water park with lazy river and water slide.
• Is adjacent to Kierland Commons, one of the hottest shopping and dining districts in the Valley.

On-site Roaming Boomer Photo Journals

• The restaurant Deseo
• Brittlebush Bar & Grill

Here are the video highlights of our stay at the Westin Kierland Resort and Spa:

As you can see, this resort is stunningly beautiful and replete with all of the upscale amenities that today’s baby boomer travelers love to enjoy.

Here are a few things that really stick out in our memories from The Westin Kierland Resort and Spa:

• The service touches were unparalleled.  In fact, we can boldly proclaim that no large resort, including all of our visited Arizona AAA Five-Diamond resorts, matched the level of service we found at this resort.  Clearly this is a major focus of the Westin Kierland team and it shows!  Great job!  You made us feel very special.
• Donna, the hostess at Nellie Cashman’s, was a real jewel.  If she could bottle her charm she would be a multi-billionaire.
• Of course we loved the Westin’s signature Heavenly Bed and Heavenly Shower.
• The food that we had the opportunity to sample was outstanding.  Deseo and Brittlebush Bar & Grill have made it upon our favorites list.
• Michael McClanathan playing the bagpipes each night at sunset on a golf course knoll.
• The funny little hummingbird that insisted on being in our video piece. 
• Carol raved about her Rollersage in the Agave Spa.
• Making mojitos at the Muddle Bar.
• On-site resident artist Nelson Garcia-Miranda.  Eye-candy!
• The separate adult pool.  Although the main pool/water park is very cool, the tranquility enjoyed in our pool cabana at the adult pool was greatly enjoyed.
• Unbelievable Arizona sunsets and McDowell Mountain views from our balcony.
• I’ve got to say it again;  the food and experience at Deseo was awesome!

The Westin Kierland Resort and Spa has clearly mastered the one-two punch of product and process.  Our experience was most memorable and we want to go back.

Congratulations Westin Kierland Resort and Spa, you have new raving fans in The Roaming Boomers!

Disclosure:  this awesome experience was provided by the fine folks at The Westin Kierland Resort and Spa.  Thank you very much!