Road Warriors Live

I’ve had a little boat problem ever since we got our RV last August.

Every time we hit a campground that’s near water. I always wished that we had her boat along with us. In fact at times it’s gotten so bad that we’ve even rented boats to go out on the water. It just kills me since we have a perfectly good 15 foot jet boat and a jet ski sitting in the garage at home.

The only other option we’ve had up until this point is to bring an extra vehicle and tow the boat behind it, or to actually tow the boat behind the RV. I feel for the folks that have a fifth wheel. Since latter is not even an option. I have talked to a ton of people that own fifth wheels, and since their heavy duty towing vehicle is towing the fifth wheel. They really don’t have the option to bring their boat.

For me the idea of launching our boat, with the motor home brings up nightmares of RV floating slowly across the lake, due to loosing traction on one of those slippery boat ramps. Even if we bring the boat towed behind our SUV. There are lots of places that don’t have slips available, or restrict the use of gas motors and their size. So except for a few select campgrounds it was either take the RV or take the boat for the day.

Up until last week we broke down and rented paddle boats for the kids or a pontoon boat for a full day. Now days most of the places we go, want to charge you anywhere from a $100 all the way up to $300 a day to rent a boat.

I don’t even want to tell you what it cost to us to rent a boat at Fort Wilderness in Disney World just to see the fireworks. We also rented a couple canoes to go around the little river in the center of the campground.

I spent all winter trying to find a solution to this problem. I have been on dozens of web sites and must’ve looked at a hundred different boats, but was not able to find a solution and until two weeks ago.

I created a list of must haves, and unless I wanted to make some serious compromises. These were the things that I absolutely had to have if I was going to drop hard-earned cash on another water craft.

1. It had to be portable enough to fit in the storage under the RV, or at the very least able to stow inside still have room to move around while her on the road.

2. It had to be lightweight, since I was concerned about gas mileage, and the amount of weight in the RV. I did not want to reduce my towing ability if we decided to bring the car as a toad.

3. It had to be quick to assemble. So we can take advantage of some of the early morning fishing at campgrounds we were just passing through. I also want to make sure it gets used. If it’s going to take more than 15 minutes to put together I know I won’t bother unless I am spending a weekend or more somewhere.

4. It had to be big enough for four of us to fit in. Since I do not want to deal with the flights of bringing one of the kids without the other. I also do not want to leave the wife at the motor home while I was out having fun on the water.

5. It had to be comfortable to fish out of since kids were getting to the age where they liked fishing and wanted to spend the time with Jen and I.

6. It had to be small enough that I can launch it in fish out of it by myself if no one wanted to go with.

7. It absolutely had to be safe. I can take some risks on my own, but no matter what. I make sure the kids are safe.

8. It needs to be cost effective. I am always looking for the ROI on whatever I buy, especially when it comes to the RV. In other words, could it pay for itself in what I would save on rental fees for a season. After the first season it’s almost like it’s free.

9. It had to be able to be rowed and also be able to use a small electric trolling motor. On some campgrounds you can only row or use an electric motor. Plus I did not want to have to carry along gas for it in the RV storage.

As you can see the list was pretty extensive. I found boats that matched a few of the must haves from above, but nothing matched them all.

I found one company that was very close, but the only REAL option would be a two seater. So there was a real problem with leaving Jen behind with one of the kids.

I gave up and figured we were just going to have to make do with the situation.

A couple weeks ago I went to show someone the pontoon boat I had found, since they didn’t have any kids. It was perfect for them. To my surprise, they just released a four seater. It’s a perfect and match to all of my must haves from above.

I talked to Jen about it and we put in our order.

The boat arrived a few days ago and I will be posting videos of how easy it was to put together. You’ll also get to see videos of the kids, Jennifer, and I out fishing at a few of our favorite campgrounds.

I am extremely pleased with the quality, construction and price we paid for it. There are a few things that I have picked up for our RV trips that have made the experience much better. I would have to say that this purchase is at the very top of the list.

Here is a link for the boat so you can check it out yourself. Even if you’re not looking for a pontoon boat. All the boats that these guys have are perfect for anyone who uses an RV, fifth wheel, or just like us to hit the water while camping

Stay tuned for some new videos.

Steve

I really hope everyone’s having a great summer.

High gas prices have come with a mixed blessing for us. As most of you know, we had planned a trip down Route 66 that would take a couple months this summer. As it turns out $5.00 a gallon for gas put those plans on the back burner pre-quickly.

As we revise plans and scouting locations a couple of things have come up. If you are around last year you know on a not for driving long distances. I guess it comes from years of traveling with my grandparents and even as an adult I would make the trip to from Chicago to Florida in one.shot without stopping.

Our last trip took almost 3 days, but we took a couple detours to miss in bad weather. I still managed to drive 10-12 hours a day. When we got the RV we had originally planned to stop and smell the roses but old habits die hard and when I planned the driving parts of the trip we would leave early in the morning, get in after it was dark, set up watch a little TV, and go to bed. Then we get up early the next morning and start the routine all over again. it was definitely more about the destination than the journey getting there.

Over the past couple months, just like everyone else. We have been taking our trips and staying closer to home in order to save a little gas. Over the Fourth of July weekend we had actually planned to take a longer trip down south. With our schedules and the current price of gas we decided to take a shorter trips to spend a little bit more time at a campgrounds closer to home.

Instead of an 8-10 hour drive we decided to hit a campground that we’ve spent time at before. The best part was we are able to leave a day later than we’d planned and stay a day longer at the end of the trip. We pulled into our campsite Friday afternoon after everyone had already got there. We were set up within 20 minutes. There was an added bonus of staying the extra day. As you can imagine the campground was packed all weekend and I don’t think they had one extra spot available. By Sunday night almost everyone in the campground had gone home so we pretty much had the place to ourselves. It was the perfect end to a great weekend.

Over the Fourth of July weekend I had one of the biggest treats a dad could possibly have. Both my four year old girl and my five year old boy caught their first fish. They have these tiny rods and reels that they practice casting with on almost every trip. We never seem to find a easy fishing spot at our destination campgrounds, and we’re in and out so fast at campgrounds along the way that we were never able to really stop. Since we slowed everything down this trip we are actually able to fish for a couple days.

I let the kids go with their own pace and quit when they were tired so they didn’t get burned out. They also got to do a little swimming and some crafts so all in all we had a great weekend and spent a minimal amount on gas.

I know most of you that have RVs are already aware of the pluses when staying close to home it just took a little while to get through my thick skull.

I guess even if you can drive all over the country with your vacation home and all of your stuff you just don’t have to. Check out some of the places closer to home and you might be surprised.

Steve

Tips For A Great Summer Vacation!

Time seems to get even harder to find these days. Prices are going up, too much bills to pay and taxes keep on increasing nowadays. This is why sometimes getting a vacation seems more of a luxury nowadays. However, you should understand that getting a vacation is not a luxury at all!

No, of course not! There are methods on how you can have a fun vacation even on a budget. If you want to have one, here are some tips on how you can plan your Family Vacation Fun Spots.

Take Advantage Of Timing

Timing is critical if you really want to save money on your vacation. Interestingly, airline price wars typically start during Fridays, which is who fares are to be lowest during late Tuesday nights or early Wednesday mornings, thus you should make have hotel reservations by 4 p.m. during Sundays. If you do this, you would likely find a desk clerk that may give you a discount when you ask for one, rather than talk to those that typically set up room prices, thus saving you more money. You should also rent cars during Sunday] [spin]mornings, since this is when dealerships begin worrying about no-shows.

Off-season Travel

If you’ll be planning your vacation during off-season, this is the time that you can find and get great discounts. In fact, at times you can even get up to 50%, if you would be vacationing to the Caribbean| and the South. You can also get discounts for usual northern ski destinations such as Vermont and Colorado during summer months, when they have down peak in tourists.

Do Your Online Research

It would also be valuable if you do your research. You can try searching the Internet for ticket offers and deals that can give you greater discounts. Try using your vacationtravel destination as your research’s focus point to have more viable search results. After doing research, see and evaluate on which of the offers can give you the most savings and which can fit your budget.

A lot of people underestimate what the world wide web deals out there, just one click away!

It’s not called one of the happiest places on earth for nothing! We’re talking of course about Disney World, one of the largest and most popular theme parks on the planet.

Though there are many vacation locations and activities from which to choose all over the world, there is nothing quite like a memorable Disney vacation. They have attractions, rides, hotels galore, and so many things to see and do that you would have to take 10 trips to Disney World to see it all.

Before you go though, you do need to keep some tips in mind. Sure, it can be a great adventure for your whole family, but if you do not come prepared you might end up ruining your entire vacation.

The best time of the year to travel to Disney World is during their off season. This is usually around January to early February and also the summer. There will be less people, shorter lines to wait in, and fewer hassles in general, as well as the ability to see and experience more since there will be fewer people filling the parks.

Additionally, the weather will be very pleasant since the daytime temperatures in January and early February run around 65 to 70 degrees. Although the summer goes hot, that simply results in fewer crowds for you.

When taking a vacation to Disney World, consider staying in one of the hotels outside of, but close to, the parks. Those are normally less expensive than hotels inside, but still have shuttles to take you to and from the park - so nearby convenience isn’t lost. These hotels are less crowded as well.

If, on the other hand, you stay at a hotel inside the park, you will have the convenience of taking a monorail right to your room, helping to avoid parking lots and the hassle of getting in and out of the park. It is more expensive, though, so you will do well to evaluate the pros and cons prior to making a hotel decision.

Another tip for a great vacation at Disney World is to plan your “in park visitation strategy” before arrival. It is also advisable to you buy your tickets before even traveling to Orlando. The benefit will be fewer lines, and you will be able to be one of the first visitors in the park.

There are plenty of activities in Disney World, especially for the kids. Disney characters walk around the parks, while you enjoy and a seemingly endless array of rides, games, and entertainment to keep your children busy for the entire day. They real question is who will wear down first - the kids or their parents.

If you have a teenager, you may want to plan a day at Wet ‘n Wild, a water park they are sure to love. Magic Kingdom and Epcot are geared largely toward teenagers, so it is great to plan at least one day at each.

Finally for the adults, there is more than enough to do during the evenings. Pay a few extra dollars and hire a Disney-hired babysitter while you go out for a great dinner at one of the many famous restaurants. Or you could be bold and head to Pleasure Island to dance and laugh the night away.

No matter when you go to Disney World or what you do there, you are sure to have one of the best times of your life!

If you really want to delight your child – or yourself – you should arrange to have a Disneyland Character meal. This will allow you and your whole family to have quality time with one or more of the Disneyland characters. In fact, this is the best way to really get to interact with them for any length of time.

Start by making a reservation. This can be done through the Disneyland Vacation Planning Services Department. Reservations can be made up to sixty days in advance, so don’t leave this to the last minute. Make these reservations when your Disneyland vacation is being planned.

Character breakfasts take place every morning at the park. You do not have to have a reservation for these meals. These breakfasts take place in many of the parks restaurants, but Goofy’s Kitchen is a great place to start. It is located in the Disneyland Hotel, and there are dishes to please everyone. Children under three years of age get to eat free, which should be considered when you are planning the budget for your trip. Goofy is always there, with Pluto, but other characters come and go all throughout the day. You should definitely make reservations for Goofy’s Kitchen, as it is very popular, and the wait can be lengthy.

If dining with Princesses is important, than Ariel’s Grotto is the place to be. Serving three course meals, this is elegant dining that both kids and adults can enjoy. Each princess will come spend a little time at your table during your meal – one at a time.

Reservations for Ariel’s Grotto are also recommended. This is one place in the park where both alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks are available.

The Storyteller’s Café is another place that is highly recommended for Character Meals. Characters are only here during breakfast, however.

While time is not spent at each individual table, the Characters do interact with the children as a group. Both buffet and menu dining are available, and again, reservations are recommended. Lilo and Stitch also have a Character Breakfast, as does Minnie Mouse. Breakfast with Minnie and Friends is extremely popular, so make reservations.

You should definitely include a Character Meal or two in your Disneyland Vacation plans. This is something that your child will remember forever and interacting with the famous Disney characters that we all know and love is part of what Disneyland is all about! Be sure to make reservations as far in advance as possible.

Whether it is for themed birthday parties, holidays or Halloween it is really useful to be able to face paint. And it is really easy to learn.

Learn more
face painting designs
Face painting ideas
Easy face painting

Things to do in Tucson Arizona, in Southeastern Arizona.

On your tour of south-eastern Arizona, plan to spend a day touring Tombstone. This historic mining town of the 1880s is now a terrific tourist spot where visitors can tour a variety of fascinating historic buildings and sites.

Visit Tombstone Arizona

Most people identify Tombstone, AZ with the famous gunfight that took place at the OK Corral. You can tour the OK Corral and learn about this gunslinger battle on location on your visit to Tombstone. There is a re-enactment of the 1881 gunfight at the OK Corral daily at 2:00 pm. You’ll see Doc Holliday and Wyatt, Virgil and Morgan Earp fight the McLaurys and Clantons right at the original location.

You will be shocked] at how simply 30 seconds, three men died and two were wounded. Depending on your enjoyment in history, you’ll probably find the tale behind the gunfight at the OK Corral even more interesting than the re-enactment.

The gunfight at the OK Corral involves a surprising level of historic disagreement. There is disagreement over who was at fault for the battle and why it took place. There is even discusion over the exact date of the shootout, although most historians date the event to October 26, 1881.

Two different Tombstone newspapers took opposite views in their support of the Clantons and the Earps. Both sides appear to have a significant amount of community support. There are so many missing details to the tale of the feud between the Earps and the Clantons, it can easily become an intriguing focus of long-term study for anyone interested the famous gunslingers.

Historic Ok Corral

Tombstone was a wild mining town during the 1880s, and it was one of the toughest towns in the Wild West during its hey-day. Lured by gold and silver, the town was overwhelmed with an assortment of “bad guys,” including thieves, murderers, and card-sharks. There were hundreds of rooming and gambling houses in Tombstone, and living to see another in Tombstone was considered a success.

On your stay in Tombstone, you’ll see original, historic buildings containing bullet holes reminiscent of the town’s tougher days. Pay a visit to Boot Hill Cemetery and you’ll see the graves of victims and villains, and you then tour local attractions such as [/spin]the Old Bird Cage Theatre|the Crystal Palace Saloon[/spin]. The 1882 Courthouse is an historic park and museum where you can view many interesting artifacts and old photographs related to Tombstone’s history.

Many of Tombstone’s historic buildings are located in the area of town bordered by Fremont, 6th, Toughnut and 3d streets. In addition to historic buildings, there is a variety of dining options available in town and a wonderful assortment of unique shops and boutique stores for vactioners to browse.

After visiting historic Ok Corral, make sure that you check out your Arizona Vacation and Travel Guide. You will have a wonderful time while in Arizona!

I wanted to give everyone a quick update.

Summer is heating up, and so is our travel schedule.  I hope you enjoyed the five or six live broadcasts we ended up doing last week from San Diego.  It seemed like people really enjoy the beach stuff as well as the LIVE feed while we were inland.  Sorry I didn’t have any edited in video to to put up.  Since it was a solo trip running two cameras at the same time, tends to make me a little crazy.  It’s one of the reasons why we use the LIVE streaming and you should always check it out when ever you get a chance.

During the trip to San Dieo I figured out a way to get clearer shots while walking around and fixed some of the transmission dropouts that we were having.  It hurts a little being on the bleeding edge of technology but we are making huge progress with quality and consistency.

We haven’t been doing a lot from around Chicago since some pretty bad storms have been in and out here lately.  We haven’t got hit like some of the places in Iowa, and the rest of the Midwest.  Hopefully we will all be able to start drying out soon.  We will get some really good stuff from downtown and the lakefront as soon as these weather patterns start to change.

We do have a few trips planned over the next two weeks.  So stay tuned to your computer, if you want to see live broadcast.  I really suggest you sign up for twitter and follow us through that.  Our twitter profile updates every time we start a live broadcast.  Our name on twitter is RoadWarriors.  So when you start using it do a search for us and just hit follow.

As far as the upcoming trips go.

This weekend (June 28 - July 1) we are taking a trip up to the Lake Castle Rock in Wisconsin.    My brothers and I used to fish there with my dad when we were kids.  My dad passed away the day before Christmas Eve last year, and the immediate family is going there to spread his ashes in the lake.   I won’t be broadcasting spreading the ashes since that’s a little personal, and if you ask me kind of morbid. 

We will be broadcasting the trip down, camping, and fishing with my brothers on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday (June 28 - July 1).  We are taking the RV and renting a couple boats. You should see some pretty good video as were on the lake and in the campground.  We always have a good time whenever we get together and you will see some very interesting family dynamics going on. We might have some video of the trip prep on Saturday but we will see how that goes and how pressed for time we are.

I will be broadcasting live from the Chicago White Sox game on Wednesday July 2nd.  We will be streaming video from around the park, and even if you’re not a baseball fan.  This is one broadcast you should not miss.

On Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday (July 3 - 7) we will be broadcasting live for the whole weekend from a campground in central Illinois.  We have a ton of activities planned and it should be a blast.

There are a few more things planned for July, and I will let you know about it once we firm up the details. We are watching the gas prices very closely and trying to determine a start date for the Route 66 trip.  As always, things come together at the last moment.  So make sure you subscribe for updates, and don’t miss the chance to ride shotgun for someplace you’d like to see.

Stay tuned for the LIVE video this weekend, and as always thanks for riding shotgun.

Steve

Who wouldn’t want to make the most of his trip? Nobody! However, to make the most of your tour you should gather as much information as possible about the best lodging and dining facilities available and Boston is not an exception. Apart from other excitements the city offers, there are some of the best dining and lodging facilities available that offer top class services.

To help you find the best hotels in the city of Boston, I’m providing you with the list of Top 10 Hotels & Motels in Boston. This list will help you in selecting the best Boston Hotels & Motels since it’s arranged and determined by how often that how frequently the Boston Hotels & Motels are used by the visitors.

The more frequently the Boston Hotels & Motels are used, more frequently they are stored in people’s records. The basic idea is that hotels that are stored more often tend to be businesses that people patronize more often.

The most recommended Boston Hotels:

1. Marriott Hotels

(617) 236-5800, 110 Huntington Ave - Boston, MA 02116

www.marriott.com

2. Four Seasons Hotel

(617) 338-4400, 200 Boylston St - Boston, MA 02116

3. Charles Hotel Harvard Square

(617) 864-1200, 1 Bennett St - Cambridge, MA 02138

4. Ritz Carlton Hotel Boston

(617) 536-5700, 15 Arlington St - Boston, MA 02116

5. Boston Harbor Hotel

(617) 439-7000, 70 Rowes Wharf - Boston, MA 02110

6. Hotel Sheraton Boston

(617) 236-2000, Prudential Ctr - Boston, MA 02116

7. Fairmont Copley Plaza

(617) 267-5300, 138 Saint James Ave - Boston, MA 02116

www.fairmont.com/copleyplaza

8. Courtyard by Marriott

(617) 734-1393, 40 Webster St - Brookline, MA 02446

www.marriott.com/courtyard

9. Boston Park Plaza Hotel

(617) 426-2000, 64 Arlington St - Boston, MA 02116

www.bostonparkplaza.com

10. Hyatt Regency Cambridge

(617) 492-1234, 575 Memorial Dr - Cambridge, MA 02139

(for a full list of Hotels and Motels in Boston)

Generally, whenever you visit a new location, it’s very important to get some information about the best hotels and motels that provide you best services as well as best value for your money. An excellent hospitality-lodging and dining service will definitely add fun and thrill to your trip.

This list of Top 10 Boston Hotels & Motels (hotel boston) will help you finding the best quality dining and lodging facilities. So, if you are going to visit Boston, Massachusetts, don’t forget to consult this top 10 list to make maximum of your trip in this city.
–
by Zander Smith

Traveling can be an utter blast. That is of course, if you know where you’re going. Although it can be exciting to just tackle the highway with no destination in mind other than cool new places, it’s not so great when you can’t find your way back home. This is why modern-day road trips require something a bit more advanced than a paper road map that smacks you in the face every time you attempt to adjust or fold it. What you need is a GPS navigation system. Fortunately these are available in any electronics store now days. So if your vehicle didn’t come standard with one, no worries. Add one of these nifty innovations to your dashboard. The next time you hit the highway, you’ll know the best route to anywhere you please.

We all recall a few past road trips as children. Some of them probably consisted of our folks getting lost and/or confused. If your family was anything like mine, your father would drive most of the time, while your mother struggled endlessly with a map. The whole time this was going on, you were probably fighting in the back seat with your sibling or jamming to a Walkman. Yeah, sound familiar yet? Anyway, this is pretty much how road trips went for our family. One of my favorites was to the Mall of America. We were driving from Elkader, Iowa all the way up through Minnesota. It wasn’t too bad overall. Although once we got close to the mall, my father refused to acquire directions from anyone around. Fortunately we finally found it with the trial and error process. Thank God! A new GPS system would have taken us straight to this location without effort. Where were these back then?

Is it time for your next adventure yet? Plan your road trips using the web. This makes things so much easier. If you don’t have a GPS system, the Internet can do all the work for you ahead of time. Personally I like to use both when heading out on crazy road trips with the family. It’s nice to have the device and hard copies to resort to if need be. One aspect you will want to pay attention to when planning road trips is the route. There are different routes to many places. Are you looking for the shortest one or the scenic one? Just some food for thought. Happy tripping!

I’ve been debating whether or not to broadcast the trip I am about to go on.  I am not taking the RV this time. I have to fly to California for two days.   

I asked a couple people that follow Road Warriors Live, and they said sure, why not we would love to see it.  So starting today, I will be broadcasting live on and off for the next three days.

Bookmark this page and don’t forget we still need your vote at www.seero.com/contest.php

This should be some pretty interesting stuff and give you an insight into what I do. You will see how I can afford to be able to drive all over the country and spend this much time with my kids. 

I hope you enjoy the video, and don’t forget we still need your vote.