Travel Tips to Get the Most out of Your Vacation
I’m taking a break from regularly scheduled programming to appreciate a Memorial Day Weekend well spent with my husband, Ross. We spent 5 days in Colorado filling our cups with everything that Spring time in the Rockies has to offer. Traveling looks a lot different for us than it used to. We choose to prioritize healthy habits while also being present and making the best of our vacation. In this post you will find our favorite tips we use to ensure we come back rejuvenated without feeling like we need to detox afterwards.
Tip #1: Bring snacks! There is nothing worse than having to wait in line at an airport kiosk or stop at a gas station on your road trip to buy a mediocre snack to hold you over until you arrive. Avoid starting your trip on a hangry note. And avoid being forced to grab an over processed, sugar-filled snack.
We packed our carryons full of snacks (most of them from Thrive Market) to ensure we started off our trip on the right note. The plan was to fly to Denver and road trip from there to Aspen. If you have been to Colorado, you will find the gas stations are few and far between anyway once you are in the mountains. My favorite snacks to pack are Chomps grass-fed beef sticks, Blender Bomb Bars, honey sticks, and Skout Organic Bars.
Tip #2: When traveling (especially to a different time zone), prioritize getting outside. Exposing your eyes to early morning and late evening sunlight will help adjust your circadian rhythm to the new time zone. This red light can help with avoiding jet lag, fatigue, and altitude sickness. This works even better if you get your bare feet on the ground for just 10 minutes per day! We use this trick to ensure we spend our vacation seeing the sights as opposed to being sick from jet lag.
We flew into Denver on Wednesday and made the beautiful, scenic drive into the mountains. We were officially on mountain time and chose to stop for lunch in Vail. With no plans, aside from driving, we took our time. We even happened upon a beautiful botanical garden just down from the ski lifts. If you follow me on social media, you know Ross and I take grounding pretty seriously. He chose to get his grounding in on the first day by leaving his shoes when he went to grab something he left in the car once we arrived. This made for a very comical sight.
Tip #3: Choose to stay in a place with a kitchen, allowing you to cook some meals. I know, you’re on vacation. Who wants to cook? Well, we’ve decided that we do! Not only is this a money saving tip, but it’s also great to ensure you don’t get that bloated travel belly. It’s always fun to hit the grocery store in a new place to see what kinds of things the locals are eating.
Upon our arrival in Aspen, we headed to the grocery store to stock up on the essentials. On this trip we planned to make breakfast each morning, pack lunch/snacks for hiking, and dinner at home on the nights we didn’t have reservations.
Tip #4: Immerse yourself in the culture of your destination. Get the full experience and learn what the area is all about!
We spent most of Thursday exploring a nearby ghost town. The area has been inhabited by many people including the Utes, miners, and developers of a potential ski resort. We hiked for a couple hours along the gushing river and even setup our Eno hammock to take a nap and eat lunch. It was truly an incredible day spent taking in the history and views with no cell service.
Tip #5: Appreciate the local nature. Anywhere you are headed will likely be different from your home. Take time to appreciate what is growing around you and what makes the ecosystem different.
I would argue that Spring is one of the most beautiful times to visit the Rockies. Mountain flowers are blooming. The air is crisp, but it’s warm enough to wear shorts. The river is gushing from all of the snow melting, and the sun is out for almost 15 hours per day. It’s easy to see why people love living out west.
Tip #6: Try the local restaurant fare. Get out of your comfort zone and try food you wouldn’t normally eat. If you have dietary restrictions, but want to feel comfortable when eating out away from home, don’t be afraid to call ahead to see if the restaurant is willing to accommodate you. Likely they will, and it’s better to know ahead of time if they will not.
After a day of exploring, we showered and headed out to dinner in Carbondale. We made a reservation beforehand at a lovely local restaurant where we enjoyed the homiest dinner. My favorite was the duck rillette dish with local sourdough and lingonberry shallot jam.
Tip #7: Make movement a priority! Whether you’re sitting on the beach or headed to the mountains make sure to move your body. Adjusting to a new environment and avoiding travel fatigue and a bloated belly from eating out can be easily combatted with a beachside walk, a mountain hike, or an after dinner stroll in town.
Friday morning, we woke up very early to hike the Maroon Bells. This was a much more strenuous hike from the day before. Our hike consisted of almost 7 miles, 1,000 feet in elevation change, and a trail full of melting snow.
12 months ago, it’s no secret that I would not have been able to do this hike. On our previous trip in 2018, I was able to do this same hike with lots of encouraging words from Ross, but looking back the whole trip felt foggy. I have found peace in so many areas of my life that I didn’t have in 2018, it’s like everything came full circle.
We ate lunch on a log with the most beautiful view of the Maroon Bells, just before seeing a family of Moose in the wild. After hiking back, we rewarded ourselves with a much needed nap, a BBQ dinner, and an early bedtime. After such a strenuous day, it’s important to rest and recover.
Tip #8: Find something to do on vacation that you can’t do at home. This may seem obvious, but being humans we love to stay in our comfort zones. If you vacation in the same spot every year, try something new this year instead of hitting the same highlights.
Saturday may have been my favorite part of the trip. We had no concrete plans aside from looking for a roadside hot spring and a dinner reservation. Ironically, the spring was called Penny Hot Spring (definitely meant to be). We were blessed to find that one of the pools was still accessible despite the rapids in the river. Thankfully some locals helped us find the easiest way down.
Ross and I had never been to a hot spring, but this certainly won’t be our last. We were lucky to have the pool to ourselves. With geothermal bubbling 140 degree heat from the earth’s core, it’s pretty much the ultimate grounding experience in nature’s hot tub. You could move the rocks surrounding the pool around to allow some river water in and get the pool to be the ideal temperature. It was invigorating and refreshing.
Tip #9: Leave some time unplanned on your trip for exploring in whatever way you choose. This leaves some portion of the trip to have an element of surprise allowing everyone on the trip to experience something new together.
We continued on with our day driving through some other scenic areas, unintentionally stumbling on historic sites and beautiful waterfalls. With this being our last night in the mountains, we purposely scheduled a late dinner so that we could explore downtown Aspen and grab a drink before dinner. We wandered the John Denver Sanctuary and were lucky to get a high-top table at the bar in Hotel Jerome, one of the oldest buildings in the area. We spent a couple hours people watching and recapping every incredible thing we experienced. It can be easy to forget to express gratitude, but it’s something I like to make a habit of daily.
On Sunday, we made sure to take another scenic and slow drive back to Denver, ensuring we cherished every last minute of vacation. We took Independence Pass through the Continental Divide and grabbed lunch in Buena Vista. We turned a 3.5 hour drive into 5.5 hours by stopping to take in the views and watching locals hike up ski down the last snow left on the mountain.
Tip #10: Don’t forget to be thankful. Whether you are just going a couple hours away or traveling across the world, it’s important to be thankful for all you experienced while away from home.
These days, this one is easy for me. We took a similar trip in 2018, but the experiences could not be more different. I used to spend every moment of every day unable to slow down and live in the moment. I was always worried about the next thing, even while on vacation. And when I wasn’t worrying, I was gritting my teeth through the symptoms.
I put my life on hold to walk through some significant healing and now, I’m focused on living in each moment, appreciating what is right in front of me.
Don’t forget to be thankful for where you are now, and appreciate how far you’ve come.
