Month: September 2012

A Review of the Hampton Inn Downtown Cincinnati Riverfront

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Our last minute trip to the Cincinnati area for Day Out with Thomas came with needing last minute hotel arrangements. Needing a hotel room on a whim is one of the many reasons I enjoy collecting and using reward programs to help make things happen.

We are pretty full on Club Carlson points at the moment due to this past summers promotions; however, hotels around Cincinnati were either at inconvenient locations, had poor reviews, or were high on points for a $100/night stay. So overall, I was not completely satisfied with our options and looked to Priority Club and HHonors to evaluate our options.

While not the best redemption option, fortunately Hilton had the Hampton Inn Cincinnati-Riverfront (Downtown Area) located near the aquarium (another stop on our trip) at an affordable cash and points option. We always know that we will get a reliable product at Hampton Inns as we have stayed in many, so it is an easy sell. The free breakfast is also a nice benefit, especially with little hungry boys. Our Gold status with HHonors also afforded us a free bottle of water and a candy bar. Who says status does not have its benefits?

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Really, there is no need to glorify a standard Hampton Inn. Our room had two beds and met all our families expectations for the night. The room also featured a fridge and microwave, both perfect for heating the boys late night snacks.

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A note for the expected?

We spent a good deal of the evening in the pool, seeing as ours at home had been closed down for the season. Several other families and their kids spent a good deal of the evening at the pool too, making for friendly conversation among the parents and excellent kid interaction.

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Our room overlooked the Ohio River and downtown Cincinnati. Look at the picture and the beautiful scenery! Even that Cleveland Browns bus was interesting to look at, and there in lies the one problem.

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I had no idea Cleveland was playing Cincinnati this weekend in football (queue the non-manly horns). So I thought it was interesting seeing the bus outside our hotel window. Well low and behold, every other drunk idiot in the area (the hotel is surrounded by liqueur stores, bars, etc.) also thought it most fascinating to look at, touch, and who knows what else happened all night long. The bus just seemed like a large target asking to be destroyed, and the noise and ruckus went on into the night. So much for a tranquil, river view. 🙂

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Apparently carrying and drinking liquor outside is legal, as is apparent around the Hampton Inn.

Breakfast was the typical Hampton affair, with cereals, breads, pastries, yogurts, fruits, hot sausage, eggs, waffles, and sausage gravy. While the food was all rather bland, the staff was amazing and accommodating. I have never stayed in a more friendly breakfast staff Hampton before, as they not only kept the food supply full, but also cleared the tables as you finished eating.

Overall, the Hampton Inn Newport was exactly what our family needed, and thanks to a couple of points, we were able to have the cost down to $40 for the night. Despite the noise outside the hotel, which I can not blame Hampton on, we would absolutely stay at this property again.

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Cincinnati Day Out with Thomas, Hofbräuhaus Newport (Visit 2), and Gap Distribution Center Outlet

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This past weekend our family was drawn back to the Cincinnati area on last minute notice thanks to receiving some tickets to ride Thomas the Tank Engine courtesy of Family Friendly Cincinnati. Visiting the traveling show was the same as I remembered it from 2 years prior when it stopped in the Cleveland area. Only this time it was a different setting in the Lebanon, OH area.

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After arrival, and securing of our tickets, we headed into the park adjacent to the train line to wander throughout the exhibits. Among them were the typical huge tent dedicated to purchasing every Thomas the Tank engine contraption ever made, an area with train tables for little hands to enjoy, a storytime tent, volunteers applying cool temporary tattoos, and a playground/blow-up area. The boys favorite part of the exhibit though was the hay maze near the back. Surprisingly, with so many trains around, they were more mesmerized by trying to help each other find their way through. After seeing them quickly master the hay maze, I guess maybe we should have taken them into the pineapple maze in Hawaii!?

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After chasing the hale devils, we headed over to get in line to board the train. As is typical for these events, Thomas the Tank engine is hooked up to the standard passenger line, in this case the Lebanon Mason Monroe Railroad, with six passenger cars. For those that may be wondering (spoiler alert), Thomas the Tank Engine is not really the workhorse, as there is an engine on the opposite end of the train moving the whole train.

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The insides of the passenger cars were pretty standard, sterile, and nostalgic. The boys quickly chose our back-to-back seats, and shortly thereafter, we were on our way. Pulling away from the station was beautiful, leaving small town Lebanon, Ohio. However, after traveling down the track a couple of feet, the ride became less scenic as we progressed through an abandoned industrial area. The scene was quite the contrast compared to riding the train back home through the Cuyahoga Valley. It kind of is a rough comparison when it comes to the environment. However, the kids knew no difference, and had a wonderful time with their pal Thomas!

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The nice thing about the event in Lebanon was everyone could get a lot closer to Thomas (when he was not moving) than we remember at the Cleveland event. As soon as Thomas pulled back into the station, people began to gather and get in line to take their official picture with the blue puffer-belly.

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Hofbräuhaus Newport for Oktoberfest

It was our destiny to return to the Cincinnati area, after just being here back in May. The nice thing is, the Hofbräuhaus Newport invited us back, and this weekend we happy to be lucky enough that they were celebrating nothing other than…Oktoberfest!

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I do not drink bier/beer, but can enjoy the authenticity of my mother country, Germany. Add on some great, German cooking, and you have my family sold. This trip I ventured outside of my favorite Wiener Schnitzel (Breaded Pork Cutlet Fried and served with Cranberry Sauce, German Potato Salad and Fried Cabbage), and chose a Heidelberger Rahm Spätzle (Pulled Chicken and Spätzle Sautéed with caramelized Onions and Field Mushrooms tossed into a Marsala Cream Sauce). Fortunately, Mrs. InACents chose the former!

I was glad I tried something different, because it was FANTASTIC! The chicken was not so much “pulled” and rather just “sliced,” but the only thing that would have possibly made my Spätzle any better is if they would have substituted the Wiener Schnitzel for the chicken. Next time I return, remind me to see if I can make a special request.

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The good thing of arriving for an early dinner (around 4:30 PM) is the main dinner crowd has not shown up yet on a peak Saturday night. Within a half hour, there was a line out the door waiting for reservations. The downside, is even after trying to look it up, there was nothing special going on celebrating the historic Oktoberfest. We did get to briefly see a magician, and there was a super-friendly “statue” girl at the front of the store, but unfortunately, not even the live music was playing until we left. We had just wished there would have been a better schedule available to better plan our visit.

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The other surprise during our visit was happening to get smacked with a valet parking fee after we had parked for free previously. While not a tremendous amount of money, considering the parking spaces were only 20 feet away, and we were coming in to spend money, it kind of threw us off guard. I understand why Hofbräuhaus charges for parking, especially during Oktoberfest weekend, but when you are used to getting something for free…oh I digress. My belly was full and happy, which is all that really matters.

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Gap Distribution Center Outlet

Mrs. InACents search for high-ranking TripAdvisor activities sometimes finds some great gems. While on the ride down, she happen to by accident (i.e. not even through TripAdvisor) find out about the Gap Distribution Center Outlet. Previous visitors had raved about their $0.25 cent finds throughout the store on Old Navy, Gap, and Banana Republic brands. While I normally would encourage the Mrs. to find another suitable option, I was intrigued, and decided to head to the outlet after dinner.

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Located in a distribution center environment (i.e. not a shopping complex or outlet mall), in an unassuming building, was definitely what others had talked about. As soon as we walked in, we were greeted by a super, friendly staff directing us right to where the bargains were located. Right by the door was a bin full of woman’s tank tops, all marked $0.25 because one of the straps may not have been connected. I feel pretty safe in saying even I could figure out how to sew a strap onto a tank top.

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While the entire store was not the bargains I had really expected, we still ended up walking away with a major haul of over $100, all for the boys and my wife. So much for our cheap, weekend trip. 🙂

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The boys for sure had a great time playing dress-up when they got home with all of their new mismatched apparel.

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Thanks to Family Friendly Cincinnati for providing our family with a four (4) pack of tickets to visit Day Out with Thomas, and the Hofbräuhaus Newport for providing our family with a $25 gift card.

Top 10 Activities for Families to Build Emotional Intelligence

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Framed Mweeman

Over the summer I took a class, which was the basis for our article Family Travel to Build Emotional Intelligence. We then published the Top 10 Cheap and Easy Family Trips to Build Learning Through Experiences. Through actually doing these one day trips some meaningful experiences are sure to be had.

I learned in class that the things that end up as our long term memories are the things that are meaningful and seem to make the most sense to us. Since “seeing is believing” and experiencing something for yourself is very meaningful for children and adults alike, it is hard to beat the hands on experiences that come with travel.

Here are some activities I want to do with my boys to build their overall Emotional Intelligence. Again as readers I hope you can find these ideas easy enough to do in your own home to strengthen your family bond and learn more about each other:

  1. Have a pay it forward day and have each family member think of one good deed to do for someone else and do it that day!
  2. Make artwork or cards for elderly neighbors or relatives and mail them.
  3. Have the family each write five (5) interesting questions on small slips of paper and place in a basket. Draw one each night and have really different dinner conversation as you discuss each answer the question.
  4. Have a family art night. Buy each family member a canvas that they can decorate as they please to represent themselves as individuals. Pop popcorn and make milkshakes to snack on while making awesome art. Hang all of the finished art together to represent your family as a whole.
  5. Have children go through their old toys and pick three (3) items each to donate to children in need. Drop off the items together.
  6. On New Years Eve make a list of activities you would like to do together and things you would like to accomplish together as a family in the next year.
  7. Pick a volunteer project to help with as a family.
  8. Host a neighborhood potluck.
  9. Have family traditions that are weekly such as a weekly movie night, board game night, or movie night. Let your children come up with the traditions.
  10. Make time to have dates with each of your kids, one on one, so they don’t have to always share attention. Make sure to make regular dates with just your spouse as well. Everyone needs to feel special!

I hope my thoughts on Emotional Intelligence and travel strike a chord with you as well. Most of all, I hope they awaken your inner learner to experience some family travel. Happy memory making!

Do any of you have favorite one day family trips or family bonding ideas to add to these lists? Please comment on what your family enjoys doing to learn together. These were pretty standard ideas so I would love to hear more creative places and things to do for my family to do together!

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