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Hooray for the Staycation- Friday Favorites

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Chad and I have been doing so much travelling lately.  It certainly seems we’ve been away from our house more than we’ve actually been there.  In the last month, we’ve spent a week in Ft. Myers, then went to Ohio, Indiana and Michigan.  This weekend we are heading to Tampa for a bloggers event at Busch Gardens and the fine folks at Yelp have set us up with brunch at a few local establishments.  As I write this, I am at a hotel on the beach in Clearwater, Florida.  We have tough working conditions as bloggers, don’t we?  Below is my current view-

Clearwater Beach view

However, last week Chad and I had an opportunity for a staycation right in Orlando.  I won an Orlando Magical Dining package through a Yelp event that included an overnight stay at the Hyatt Regency Orlando and dinner at one of the hotel restaurants.  For those of you not familiar with the Hyatt Regency in Orlando, it is the hotel that used to be known as The Peabody on International Drive.

My Friday Favorites this week are all about my staycation.  I apologize in advance- my pictures are not even close to doing the amazing views justice.

Hyatt Regency room

First…this is the room.  You can see how high we were.  We were on the 24th floor with floor to ceiling windows.  We had windows on two sides of the room.  Below is the view from the bed at sunrise.

Sunrise hotel

We had a clear view of International Drive, Universal Studios, downtown Orlando, Disney’s Magic Kingdom, Epcot and The Hollywood Studios.

Magic Kingdom view

In the picture above, you can just make out the Contemporary Hotel and Space Mountain in the distance.

Magic Kingdom fireworks Hyatt Regency

At night we could see the fireworks from Disney.  First was Epcot, then the Magic Kingdom and The Hollywood Studios were off at the same time.  Again, pictures don’t do this justice.

The pool at Hyatt Regency Orlando

Hyatt Regency

We had a chance in the morning to see the pool up close.  There are two pools on the property- so inviting on such a sunny but warm Florida day.

Hyatt Regency from the pool

This is a picture from behind the waterfall at the pool.

Friday Favorites is to me about reflecting on the past week and this to me was a wonderful experience.  Sometimes a staycation is a perfect time to reflect on all that your city has to offer.  I sometimes get down on Orlando.  Sure we have all the theme parks- but after living here so long, even Disney can get a little routine.  I am not saying boring.  I am saying routine.  We take it for granted.  Taking this mini staycation was perfect timing for me in that I realized that Orlando is such an exciting and fun place.  Just having the opportunity to spend an evening looking over International Drive gave me a new perspective.  Most locals in Orlando, including myself, tend to avoid I-Drive as we call it because it is cluttered with tourists, junky touristy stores and tourist traps.  However, there are a lot of gems even for locals if you know where to look.

I-Drive Orlando

I admit, as this picture cannot explain, I stayed up most of the night even though the bed was incredibly comfortable.  I just sat in the chair by the window and watched the night in Orlando move on.

TV in bathroom

Oh, and we enjoyed the TV that was in the mirror in the bathroom.  I mean, I told Chad I need that in my bathroom at home but he didn’t seem to act like it was a possibility.  What could be better than soaking in a big tub while catching up on The Real Housewives of New Jersey?  Maybe if I promise to watch more baseball and football Chad will see the light.  Who doesn’t need a TV inside the bathroom mirror?

So that’s it for my Friday Favorites.  Hope you not only enjoyed this post but you are ready to book your trip to the Hyatt Regency.  And if you do, ask for a view corner room.  That’s all.

Watch for my full post about the Hyatt Regency Orlando coming soon.

See you all at Howl-O-Scream at Busch Gardens!  Happy Friday!!

Thanks to Heather over at Housewife Glamour for hosting the Friday Favorites linkup!

Heather @ Housewife Glamour

Saturday 4th of October 2014

I absolutely LOVE Howl-O-Scream and Busch Gardens! Have so much fun!! Enjoy the time in Tampa for me. I miss that city. Thanks for linking up! xo

Helen Corbin

Friday 3rd of October 2014

Very very nice :-) We non-Orlandoians love to visit Orlando and this gives another great perspective - thank you :-)