With all the college planning, DH and I have yet to plan our 25th anniversary trip for mid July. Since CC has been so helpful with other things, I’m going to seek out your recommendations for vacation destinations.
Criteria: U.S., Mountains (preferred) or Coastal (as in Maine, Pacific NW but not “beach/tropical”), easy-access from airports (we don’t want to spend more than 3 hours in the car getting there), not crazy busy (DH prefers more secluded). We just want to see beauty, relax, hike, and eat good food. We were looking at Whistler, BC but it was going to take a full day to get there each way and we only have 1 week.
San Diego fits most of your criteria - coast and mountains and good food and lovely scenery and hiking, all within three hours of the airport. ( You could include a couple of days in Palm Springs.) There is a lot of beach but its not tropical. There are some very nice resort hotels away from the coast.
Other possibilities include Seattle and Portland if you looking at the Pacific NW.
I second San Diego and Maine. So much to do in San Diego. It’s like 3 different cities within a city, all 20 minutes apart. Downtown San Diego has just tons of fun things to do and sightsee. It’s right in the bay, for a lovely cruise. Across the bridge is Coronado Island with the famous Coronado Hotel. We stayed in Pacific Beach, because we wanted a beach view, and then just ubered everywhere. LaJolla, upscale, beautiful to dine, walk around and shop. I can’t wait to go back.
July in Maine would be the perfect months. We stayed in Boothbay Harbor, But just for 3 nights.
The Mount Washington Hotel in Bretton Woods, NH fits your mountain, beauty, hike, relax, and eat criteria. It’s a magnificent “grande dame” type hotel in a spectacular setting. Lots of great hikes, as well as plain old relaxing on their stunning wraparound veranda.
We are celebrating 28 years this year. For our honeymoon we ended up in Ogunquit, ME which is very nice. But it was because I was still in training and in the Army which would only give me 3 days “leave” for my honeymoon. Husband and I would have loved to have traveled to India to see the Taj Mahal. Cox and Kings (travel agent) had a fantastic train tour, but we didn’t have the time or money.
Now so many years later, I don’t think my health could take such a long distance, but if you have any interest see if you can jump on Cox and Kings last minute and get a good deal. I think Turks and Caicos in the summer would also be a fantastic trip. Outside of winter, I think you could still get a bargain. Other nice islandy adventures state side would include Nantucket and Catalina.
Would it be hard to get accommodations in ME in mid July? That’s super high season. I know it doesn’t seem late but lots of places are booked a year in advance.
Not on the coast but Mackinac Island fits the bill. It’s around 1.5 hours from the Traverse City airport.
PNW: San Juan Island via Seattle is lovely with many charming bed and breakfasts, lots of outdoor activities, fantastic restaurants, but also laid back. The ferry is about 1.5 hour drive from the Seatac airport and then it’s maybe an hour to the island. There are other small islands nearby to explore.
Vancouver Island is another option but potentially more difficult getting in and out as you’d have to clear customs as well as take a substantial ferry ride. Gorgeous place with a nice mix of charming city (Victoria), small towns, mountains and coastline. Sidney is a charming town that is about 45 minutes outside of Victoria - it has many second hand bookstores, antique shops, whale watching, excursions, etc. and is also within an easy distance of the amazing Butchart Gardens. High tea there is well worth it at the gardens if you’re into that sort of thing.
Newfoundland/Prince Edward Island might be more manageable from the East Coast. I’ve never been but I’ve researched it and it’s on my bucket list. Looks gorgeous.
It might not be too late to get reservation on Mt. Desert Island, ME, which I have visited many times. There are lots of rental options as well as hotels and B&Bs and there are a few small towns other than Bar Harbor if you want something more tranquil. If you’re interested, I’d try to book accommodations sooner rather than later. Many options on Air BnB.
Monterey, Carmel, Big Sur fits the bill. Coastal redwood forested mountains, beautiful coastline with craggy cliffs and crashing waves. About a 2 hour drive south of SFO or an hour from San Jose. There are many great restaurants.
What area of the country are you traveling from? Just asking since it seemed Whistler is too far for one week so don’t want to mention other locations almost equally as long.
“Would it be hard to get accommodations in ME in mid July?”
You might need to look into less well known destinations. We made our Seattle VBRO reservations for July back inJanuary, and our favorite spot was booked for our week. July is very much high season in the PNW.
If you go to Victoria, fly to Seattle and take the ferry to Victoria. Much cheaper than flying direct.
You’ll be coming from Texas presumably. No mountains, but Bermuda is a different kind of island from the rest of the Caribbean and much less prone to hurricanes.
I love Vancouver Island but if the OP thought getting to Whistler took to long for a week trip, Vancouver Island isn’t going to be an easier/quicker journey.
High-end hotel necessary? By ‘good food’ do you mean fancy dining or tasty but casual? Does wine country appeal at all? Bend, Oregon is a beautiful small town, maybe a little hard to get to, though. Oregon in general has a lot of lovely spots. You could stay in a BnB in the Willamette Valley and do wine tasting and hiking. Mt Hood is really pretty and not far from PDX.
I’ll second TatinG’s suggestion of the Monterey Peninsula area. Beautiful scenery, great restaurants, wineries, art galleries, and hiking.
Since you said that somewhere with mountains was preferred, I’ll also suggest the Lake Tahoe area. It is a short drive from either Reno or Sacramento on easy roads; no scary mountain driving is necessary. The north side of the lake is quieter than the south, but wonderful scenery is everywhere. Consider renting a house for the week for more peace and quiet than a hotel would offer.
I second the Oregon suggestion. You can do both Mountains and the shore, and throw in Portland for a city too. cannon Beach, drive along the coast, Hood River Valley (fun watching windsurfing and kiteboarding), Willamette Valley (great Pinot Gris comes from their).
