I am not a travel expert. In fact, I joked that taking the red-eye home alone from California made me an experienced traveler. You should know that I was saying this to my cousin who has done multiple trips to Europe and Asia (for upwards of four months at a time). I do have experience with domestic travel, however, this was the first time I planned a trip without my parents. They did foot the air and hotel bills, thank you parents and Southwest mileage.
Last semester I had a building desire to visit the west coast, specifically California, partly for “grass is greener” reasons and partly because I hadn’t been there in years and felt I would appreciate the lifestyle. I probably could elaborate on these reasons one day. In addition, I enjoyed my experience exploring NYC last summer so I wanted to see what its counterpart had to offer. Once I recruited my cousins to join, we (or at least I) had so much fun bookmarking restaurants and workout studios to try. We went into the trip with a “wellness” mindset and planned accordingly. I say wellness loosely because we didn’t stay at spas or health-focused resorts ($$$ but I would love to go one day).
I’ve pinpointed a few tactics we used in planning this healthyish/wellness vacation and thought they might be useful to share.
Websites
Well + Good
The Chalkboard Mag
Refinery29
Goop (yes, I like some of the things on Gwyneth’s site)
Restaurants
Aside from me having celiac disease and sensitivities/preferences to certain foods, my cousin has some dietary restrictions as well. I’m accustomed to looking at menus ahead of time to see if there are GF options but, because we didn’t know the area, this required more planning. I know all too well that when you Google “gluten-free restaurants” many of the top options are either chains and/or dumpy places that offer sub-par GF pizza. We wanted good quality restaurants with fresh options.
When searching for restaurants I Googled one or more of the following:
“Farm to table”
“Local, organic”
“Organic gluten-free”
I also put Instagram to good use and stalked some of my favorite accounts (and hashtags) in the area to see where they’ve eaten before. Don’t dismiss Instagram as another addicting social media, it can serve a real purpose ;)
Lastly, the first night we arrived in LA we went to Whole Foods and stocked up on snacks for the hotel room because, snacks.
Fitness
This was ALL Well + Good and The Chalkboard Mag. Both sites put together “healthy city guides” with tons of workout studios, salons and spas. We made a list of our favorite spots and signed up for classes the night before, when we decided our plans for the next day. For example, we knew we wanted to go to Venice Beach and Santa Monica so that day we took a Megaformer class at The Studio (MDR). I also tried to find studios that were in semi-popular areas, meaning there would be juice bars, cafes and shopping within walking distance so we didn’t have to keep driving everywhere. Also, most studios offer a discount for first-time students so you can save some money off the full price.
Other ways to find unique fitness classes:
Fitness magazines (Self, Shape, Women’s Health)
Greatist
ClassPass (just browse their options in the area)
Speaking of ClassPass, I seriously thought about renewing my membership for this week (and I think that would be a good idea for future trips) but there was a fee because I cancelled it after NYC…and I forgot until midway through the trip.
Things I Might Do Differently
-I’d be interested in exploring Airbnb for future trips, which might come as a shock to anyone who knows me and hotels (we go together like PB&J). However, I think it might be nice to have a kitchen as an option for meals. Eating out, although delicious, is very expensive.
-We did rent a car but had some last-minute issues and ended up with a huge mini-van. Note to self: call ahead of time to make sure a small car is actually on the lot. Oh, and did you know that you can rent a car if you are under 25? I know, now there’s nothing to look forward to since I already turned 21. It was only a $10 daily fee from Enterprise. (We used über during our time without a car…what was life before über?)
-Book direct flights. Me + non-direct flights = a mess waiting to happen.
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Hopefully I can put these tips to use again in the near future. Other states in the west coast are calling my name. Anyone want to join?
I used to do reviews for a website called Ramblen (ramblen.co) that was a healthy travel resource00everything from running paths to gluten free restaurants!
Susie @ SuzLyfe recently posted…Never Give Up
How have I never heard of that site? I’m on it now and it looks great!
I’ve definitely never done anything like this, but it’s such a great concept! Haha I love how they gave you a mini van! I know a LOT of people who either rent out for Airbnb or use it for traveling and absolutely love it.
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And there seems to be airbnb locations everywhere with varied housing options (treehouse, apartment, house, etc.).
I have never used airbnb. I love to travel and like be healthy while doing it. Usually my vacations consits of a racecation. After running the race, I don’t have to feel guilty about eating all the delicious food while exploring the city.
I need a racecation in my life! I’ve never done one but it sounds so appealing.
My family and I are using airbnb for the first time this summer when we head up north for a family vacation. We were originally going to stay in a cabin but once my brother and I mentioned airbnb to my parents they searched around on the site and found us a nice summer cottage to stay at instead so I am excited to see how it turns out since we want to be able to have breakfasts and quick lunches at the cottage instead of going out to eat all the time.I first traveled on my own in 11th grade when I went to Boston and it was nerve wracking to fly by myself and to be going to a summer institute where I knew no one at all — it ended up being totally fine and I made a ton of life long friends out of it!
Brie @ Lean, Clean, & Brie recently posted…Cinnamon Cookie Baked Oatmeal & Hamilton Beach GIVEAWAY
Oh that’s awesome that you’ll get to use it soon! I think my family would love the option of having a kitchen instead of paying for every meal out.
I think other blogs are an AWESOME resource, I know when I visit other cities in the US there are often bloggers who are GF who have reviewed restaurants. I’m a fairly experienced traveler, having gone to college in another country for 3 years and traveled as far as Sydney and Singapore, but I still get VERY cranky with time changes, redeyes, and flight connections :)
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The flight to Asia/Australia is such a deterrent for me. Just need to get over that because I would like to go :)
So fun! You definitely need to give Airbnb a try. I haven’t been disappointed with them in the last 6 years, but you do need to do your research and communicate with the host.
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That’s great to hear…I think I will look into it for next time!
Love these tips! I’m in the process of planning a few trips this year so these are awesome suggestions! I’ve used Airbnb once in Vegas and for the price, I think it’s a steal. I don’t need anything fancy during vacations because hopefully I’ll barely be there haha. And I actually didn’t travel by myself until last fall.. haha I was so stressed getting to my gate on time. But I felt like such an adult figuring it all out:) Haha.
Amanda @ ExploringLifeAndThings recently posted…BBG weeks 9-10 + something I miss
Uh I always stress about getting to my gate on time, no matter how often I fly! I actually almost missed my connecting flight home from California because the first one was delayed. BIG TIME stress there.
so well + good only does NYC and LA ? if i went to the correct area of the website ?
I’ve traveled alone once a year to meet a friend i used to work with that moved away in different places. so far we have went to NYC (this was like 3 days before i found out i had celiac so it was truly my last carefree no plan vaca. at this time i felt bad about myself for eating lots of pizza and cheesecake – now i think it was wonderful!).
Savannah – so charming and lots of walking, casual, and chatting for a great girls trip
Houston/Austin/San Antonio – she moved to Houston so i went there and we road tripped it.
Seattle/Portland – i think you would like this one ! Flights super suck but for adventure it was fun to go to Mt Raineer and hike a bit. Good GF food but not as healthy as one might think (at least not where we went).
This year we are planning on maybe Key West in June. Vaca-ing with another girl is awesome because they share the planning responsibilities vs my BF who like an hour before we leave asks if we are flying or driving : )
and…am i the LAST person to use uber ? Im just not sure when/where/etc. will it be safe ? how long do i have to book in advance, etc. what if they dont show and i am late for my flight. blah blah blah.
Well + Good does mainly NYC and LA but I’ve seen articles about San Francisco, Chicago and Boston. Type in the search bar to see if they have an area you’re looking for :) My parents went to Savannah last year and I really want to go now as a girls trip. Oh and Seattle/Portland is exactly where I want to go on the west coast. I think I’d love the health/nature/wellness focus. And for uber, I’ve never had a problem. You just download the app and “request” a ride whenever you are ready to go (just like a taxi) it normally takes anywhere from 3-10 minutes depending on where you are.
Take me! I promise I’ll come over one day!
A friend and I spent a month in Ethiopia doing volunteer-type work which was good fun but certainly taught us some things about dealing with unexpected events whilst being immersed in a completely ‘new to us’ culture. For my next trip though, I would prefer for it to have a more holiday-type vibe and could definitely see myself thoroughly enjoying a ‘healthyish’ vacation :)
xx
You always amaze me with your travel experiences! That sounds like an incredible experience (but I can imagine not much relaxation).
I want to go to California so badly! And one of these days, when the budget allows, so a spa/fitness/yoga retreat vacation somewhere. These are great tips, and thanks for the links, definitely bookmarking.
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I wish it wasn’t so expensive to go on those wellness retreats. It might not be too bad though if food and activities are included. Will have to do more research :)
We’re in Aruba right now staying at an Airbnb and it has been awesome!! So nice to have a kitchen even just for snacks/breakfast. I love the wellness focus of your trip. It looked like so much fun!
I think having a kitchen would honestly make a huge difference for me! I’m so glad you’re having a great time :)
Such great tips!! And I love those websites as well! And yay for healthyish vacations!! I love it! And to answer your questions, I’ve never used Airbnb… but I want to! I really haven’t tried much… and the first time I traveled alone was last year actually. To visit my cousin in NYC! Hope that you’re having a great week!
xoxo Cailee!
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NYC is the best place to travel in general so I’m glad you got to visit :) Happy Friday!
We used airbnb a LOT as we traveled around New Zealand and luckily we didn’t have a single bad experience! We stayed in everything from a treehouse to a city apartment and everything inbetween!
Kristy @ Southern In Law recently posted…Recipe: Healthy Potato Crusted Egg Bakes
That’s so great to hear! SO COOL….I would love to stay in a treehouse. Totally looking into that for next time!
great tips! i’ve never heard of those sites before! need to check them out before our california trip in December!
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You’ll have a blast! Such a fun area regardless of what you do.