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MUScoop => The Superbar => Topic started by: brewcity77 on June 25, 2012, 11:25:15 AM

Title: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: brewcity77 on June 25, 2012, 11:25:15 AM
So the fiancee and I are getting married in Savannah, Georgia later this year. We are going down there twice, once to do pre-planning in September, then for the wedding just after Thanksgiving. While Milwaukee-Savannah could be a one-day drive, especially with two of us, we plan to stretch the drives out and have some mini-vacations along the way. Probably drive for 6-8 hours, then stop at different travel destinations along the way for mini-vacations. Right now, here are some of the cities we are considering:

.
Just wondering if anyone had any thoughts or must-see spots along that general area. Pretty much any cities in Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, or Georgia are in the running, with Missouri, Alabama, Southern Illinois, and maybe West Virginia (though I have seen Wrong Turn and the Whites, so I'm leery ;D ) not too far out of the way to consider. Any suggestions of places that we should or shouldn't hit, or other cities I may have forgotten?
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: GGGG on June 25, 2012, 11:42:03 AM
I have been to every one of these places, and St. Louis IMO is the most interesting of the bunch with all of the stuff by the arch.  I live in Indiana and Indianapolis is by and large a pretty dull place unless you are at a convention of some sort. 
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: Ari Gold on June 25, 2012, 12:11:26 PM
Nashville is a pretty great city. Didn't get a chance to truly explore the nightlife when I was there, but what I saw was awesome. think of every bar as Red Rock.

Louisville you could tour the Louisville slugger plant. I remember that pretty fondly

Never been to Atlanta but have been to the surrounding area. A lot of historical places to visit (stone mountain and other civil war sites).
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: Blackhat on June 25, 2012, 12:42:33 PM
Did a trip a couple summers ago through Tennessee to visit civil war battlefields.  Tenn. actually has the second most battlefield sites during the Civil War behind Virginia.   Chattanooga is a fun one or two day stop.   They have a modern arts district for good dining and atmosphere.   You could bike through the civil war parks.   Great Pancake place called Aretha Frankenstein's, get there early though. 
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: Benny B on June 25, 2012, 12:43:32 PM
I have been to every one of these places, and St. Louis IMO is the most interesting of the bunch with all of the stuff by the arch.  I live in Indiana and Indianapolis is by and large a pretty dull place unless you are at a convention of some sort. 

Agreed... lived in Indy for three years; not a lot of tourist activities that are appealing to late 20- and 30-somethings; unless you want to see the place where the NCAA makes all of its f'd up decisions.

Personally, I'd stay away from Atlanta -- it will take you 6-8 hours just to get in/out of the city. There are some casinos just outside of Louisville if that's your thing... nothing spectacular, but something to do if you're there.  Lynchburg, TN or Bourbon County, KY seem to be popular destinations... probably not so much that time of year, though.  Glad to hear you're locked in on Nashville... I would say that's the best interim destination on your list strictly based upon the variety of things to do/see.

Honestly... if you gave me a list of every possible place between Milwaukee and Savannah and complete discretion as to how I could allocate my time, I'd find the fastest route to Savannah and spend it all there.  I've been there three times - twice for conventions, once with my wife (fiancee at the time) - and there's still days' worth of stuff I haven't done and still want to do.  We're aiming to go back to Savannah soon... possibly next spring.

Suggestions for Savannah:
-Have a "Call a Cab" at Wet Willie's
-Haunted Pub Crawl -- don't remember which one, but the one that starts at the British bar with the red phone booth out front.  The guy who gives the tour has a Boston accent so thick you'll think he's fro, Australia.
-Go see the square where Forrest sat.  The bench isn't there, but you have to say you at least tried.
-If you like southern food and can get into Lady & Sons, it's worth the wait.  But if you're not into southern food, it's not worth the hype.
-Olde Pink House is very good regardless of your tastes in food... pricy, though highly recommended.
-"Midnight/Garden" stuff around if you're into that (my wife is, I'm not)... you can't get to the statue, but plenty of other places to go/see.
-St. John's Cathedral... even if you're not Catholic, the architecture is stunning.
-Art galleries everywhere.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: mugrad2006 on June 25, 2012, 01:12:33 PM
Even if you're not a camper/outdoorsy type, I'd try driving through the Great Smoky Mountains (i.e. through Gatlinburg) just for the scenery.  If you are the camping type, stay for a day and do some hiking/driving around. 

Also, it might add a couple hours to your total trip but Savannah isn't that far from Charleston, which is one of my favorite cities in the whole US.  Take a tour, eat some fantastic seafood on the shoreline, and visit the forts.  Makes for a great day or two.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: Spotcheck Billy on June 25, 2012, 01:30:59 PM
to bad you probably aren't going by motorcycle, near Knoxville you could ride the Tail of the Dragon http://www.tailofthedragon.com/
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: JD on June 25, 2012, 01:36:49 PM
I was extremely young, but i'm not sure if the Mammouth caves are nearby, i thought they were in Kentucky..

Very neat!
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: brewcity77 on June 25, 2012, 01:57:21 PM
Thanks for all the feedback...right now, here's my thought process:

On the way down the first time, drive 6.5 hours to St. Louis and have an afternoon and evening for the Arch and surrounding area. Next day, drive 5 hours to Nashville, hit up BB King's, take in some music, food, and sights. Is Opryland worth the time? I read somewhere it's little more than a series of strip malls now. After that, it's about 8 hours to Savannah, which is easy to do in a day.

Coming back the first time, we'll have my future brother-in-law along, so I'm trying to think of a way to go somewhere he won't be a third wheel. Planning on only doing one stop that time, maybe Cincinnati. Probably drive the 11 hours to Louisville, stay the night, then do some cave stuff in the morning before leaving after lunch (7 hours to MKE).

Third trip is up in the air right now. I think I'd like to do some smaller towns on the way down, maybe Nashville, Indiana and Damascus, Virginia. On the way back up, I think Louisville would be nice, there's an underground cavern tour you can drive that has holiday lights and music.

But of course, it's all still up in the air, so any more suggestions are much appreciated.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: MU Fan in Connecticut on June 25, 2012, 03:59:44 PM
My geographic location is not much help to you Brew.  I have been on plenty of road trips from Conn. but Tennesse/Kentucky/Southern Ohio & Indiana has never been an area I've headed towards.  I'm usually headed north towards Canada or south towards Myrtle Beach, SC (or shorter to Washington, DC).  I drove out to Milwaukee for the 20-yr last summer, and our overnight stops (1 to 3 days) in between were in Chicago, Cleveland, Pittsburgh & Hershey, PA.  This years road trip is to Orlando and our overnight stops (1 to 3 days) in between include Daytona Beach, Charlottesville, VA & Savannah, GA.  Thanks to Benny B I have a couple places to check out now and plenty of great ideas for "concept photos".  My wife will be happy with all the art galleries.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: warriorchick on June 25, 2012, 04:08:54 PM
Thanks for all the feedback...right now, here's my thought process:

 Is Opryland worth the time? I read somewhere it's little more than a series of strip malls now.
But of course, it's all still up in the air, so any more suggestions are much appreciated.

If you are talking about Opryland the theme park, it no longer exists. Awhile back they decided in December that they weren't going to open up the following Spring.  This was before the Internet was big, and all the travel guides for that year were already printed up, so for an entire summer, families were driving up to it like it was WallyWorld.

I don't know if tickets to the Grand Old Opry are still mega-tough to get, but if you can score some, it's something you wouldn't want to miss, even if you are not much of a country music fan.  It's a slice of American cultural history at its greatest.

Also, they hold events at the Old Ryman auditorium (that's the Grand Old Opry house you see in all of the old movies).  Around the corner is Lower Broad, a cool bar scene.  Much improved from when I was a kid and the only reason I guy went down there was either go to Tootsie's or pick up a hooker.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: reinko on June 25, 2012, 04:11:33 PM
Hit up the Makers Mark Distillery and tour in Loretto, KY.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: Ari Gold on June 25, 2012, 04:20:24 PM
Hit up the Makers Mark Distillery and tour in Loretto, KY.

Lynchburg has JD, but its a dry county. heard the tour is phenomenal.
Northern Georgia also has a number of gold mine tours.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: nyg on June 25, 2012, 04:25:09 PM
If you are talking about Opryland the theme park, it no longer exists. Awhile back they decided in December that they weren't going to open up the following Spring.  This was before the Internet was big, and all the travel guides for that year were already printed up, so for an entire summer, families were driving up to it like it was WallyWorld.

I don't know if tickets to the Grand Old Opry are still mega-tough to get, but if you can score some, it's something you wouldn't want to miss, even if you are not much of a country music fan.  It's a slice of American cultural history at its greatest.

Also, they hold events at the Old Ryman auditorium (that's the Grand Old Opry house you see in all of the old movies).  Around the corner is Lower Broad, a cool bar scene.  Much improved from when I was a kid and the only reason I guy went down there was either go to Tootsie's or pick up a hooker.

Went to Nashville to give a speech about six months ago.  Hate country music.  Stayed at a Hilton and walked down to the Bar/Restaurant street, can't remember the street but its the main drag.  It was dark and when I came to the street it was unreal.  Neon signs for like 25 bars, all with music going on in each.  Like a mini country music Las Vegas.  Found one place to eat, had ribs which were awesome and then went bar hopping listening to these wanna be bands, all of which were very talented.  Heard stories from each bartender on which country music stars made their living and got their big breaks in these bars.  Just was an unexpected treat and nice experience.  
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: awilhelmscream on June 25, 2012, 04:33:59 PM
First off congrats on getting married!

Now to the business end.  I grew up 2 hrs north of Nashville, 3 hrs to the west of Louisville, and 3.5 hrs south of St. Louis and have spent extensive amounts of time in those 3 places.

Nashville - Hands down my favorite of the 3.  If you're staying the night you can hit up the bars on Broadway which is the Nashville version of Water St minus all of the underagers.  If your wife wants to get in some shopping Opry Mills is there and I think they just reopened it a few months ago.  Great food in the area as well.

Louisville - Second favorite.  4th st live for boozing.  Open court yard and you just bounce from bar to bar.  There's a casino on the Indiana side of the river there that's decent.  Also a very underrated food town.  You could look into hitting up the bourbon trail while you're there as well.  Makers Mark, Blantons, and the Wild Turkey distilleries are in the area but if you really like bourbon you need to drive out toward Lexington and visit the Old Rip Van Winkle distillery.  Get the Pappy 20yr bottle and thank me later.

St. Louis - I personally think it's a crap hole.  There is a cool area of town that is a little like the east side of Milwaukee in feel (I forget the name of the area but IIRC it's near the Pageant) that has a few micro brews, decent restaurants, some small locally owned shops, and some concert venues.  The stuff around the arch is ok but super touristy.  Fun fact about St Louis is you can walk around with an open container as long as there is a sporting event taking place in the city which is almost 365 days a year.

Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: wardle2wade on June 25, 2012, 04:38:18 PM
Congrats, Brew...

Best piece of advice I can give you is USE TRIPADVISOR when researching where to stay. 

I assume you already do, but I travel for a living and it still shocks me how many people don't use it and are then surprised when they get a bad hotel.  A Hilton could be the nicest place in a town and be a run-down dump in another... just depends on the city. 

My rule of thumbs are at least 4 stars on TA and never a place which has a report of bedbugs.  Since you are doing this as a vacation, do a reality check on the hotel's location too.  Sometimes business hotels are highly rated on TA, but are not in an ideal honeymooner location.

Best of luck!
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: wardle2wade on June 25, 2012, 04:44:35 PM
First off congrats on getting married!

Now to the business end.  I grew up 2 hrs north of Nashville, 3 hrs to the west of Louisville, and 3.5 hrs south of St. Louis and have spent extensive amounts of time in those 3 places.

Nashville - Hands down my favorite of the 3.  If you're staying the night you can hit up the bars on Broadway which is the Nashville version of Water St minus all of the underagers.  If your wife wants to get in some shopping Opry Mills is there and I think they just reopened it a few months ago.  Great food in the area as well.

Louisville - Second favorite.  4th st live for boozing.  Open court yard and you just bounce from bar to bar.  There's a casino on the Indiana side of the river there that's decent.  Also a very underrated food town.  You could look into hitting up the bourbon trail while you're there as well.  Makers Mark, Blantons, and the Wild Turkey distilleries are in the area but if you really like bourbon you need to drive out toward Lexington and visit the Old Rip Van Winkle distillery.  Get the Pappy 20yr bottle and thank me later.

St. Louis - I personally think it's a crap hole.  There is a cool area of town that is a little like the east side of Milwaukee in feel (I forget the name of the area but IIRC it's near the Pageant) that has a few micro brews, decent restaurants, some small locally owned shops, and some concert venues.  The stuff around the arch is ok but super touristy.  Fun fact about St Louis is you can walk around with an open container as long as there is a sporting event taking place in the city which is almost 365 days a year.



And I completely agree with the above for my rankings.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: brewcity77 on June 25, 2012, 04:56:54 PM
I was extremely young, but i'm not sure if the Mammouth caves are nearby, i thought they were in Kentucky..

Very neat!

I definitely want to hit some of the KY caves. Also went to Mammoth Caves as a kid but was probably 3 and don't remember them at all. They are on my list, though Louisville has some caves that you tour on zip-lines and are lit up at Christmas (on the way back will be early December).

Regardless, we will be driving down twice, and I want to squeeze at least 6 destinations out of this trip, so any ideas people have would be on the table. I think St. Louis and Nashville are the two mortal locks. Looked up Grand Ole Opry tickets and they generally run about $34 apiece if we don't go for floor seats, so I think I'll probably try to get in there.

I'm hoping AAA will help keep my hotel rates down somewhat. Seems like it'd be easy to spend way too much on hotels, but will be using TA and AAA to find places that suit our needs best.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: BrewCity83 on June 25, 2012, 04:58:30 PM
Haven't been to Nashville but I spent quite a few weekends in Louisville and I got engaged there.  There's lots of fun to be had there in a weekend between the fun bar scene, Churchill Downs, the distilleries and the Louisville Slugger factory.

Memphis wouldn't be a bad stop if you want to see Graceland.  That's totally a worthwhile trip in my opinion.  And the bars on Beale Street (and the BBQ) can keep you busy at night.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: warriorchick on June 25, 2012, 06:35:41 PM
Went to Nashville to give a speech about six months ago.  Hate country music.  Stayed at a Hilton and walked down to the Bar/Restaurant street, can't remember the street but its the main drag.  It was dark and when I came to the street it was unreal.  Neon signs for like 25 bars, all with music going on in each.  Like a mini country music Las Vegas.  Found one place to eat, had ribs which were awesome and then went bar hopping listening to these wanna be bands, all of which were very talented.  Heard stories from each bartender on which country music stars made their living and got their big breaks in these bars.  Just was an unexpected treat and nice experience.  

Slightly off topic, but one of the really cool things about living in Nashville is you are always running into country stars, and they are almost always super friendly.  My mom will never forget the day Minnie Pearl came up to her in the grocery store to tell her what a beautiful family she had (she had all of us rugrats in tow as she shopped).  A few years back, my sister was behind Wynonna Judd at the checkout line at Kroger. She was buying a cake and candles.  When my sister got home, she flipped on Entertainment Tonight just in time to hear Mary Hart say, "Celebrating a birthday today...Naomi Judd!"

Then there was Dan Hill, who lived next door to my brother in a very modest starter-home neighborhood. His wife worked as a receptionist on Music Row.  They later divorced.  Dan never got to be famous, but his ex-wife, Faith, sure did.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: tower912 on June 25, 2012, 07:14:57 PM
http://creationmuseum.org/

Can't go wrong there. 
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: ZiggysFryBoy on June 25, 2012, 09:48:50 PM
any road trip is worthless without a stop at a strip club.  preferably one in each city.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: MU Fan in Connecticut on June 26, 2012, 07:20:52 AM
Brew,
Someone mentioned bed bugs.  I always check these two sites before deciding on a hotel:
www.bedbugreports.com
www.bedbugregistry.com

Also, I forgot about Asheville, NC.  You can do everything in a 1-day stop or less.  I used to visit a couple times a year as my company had it's warehosue there.  I never minded going there for the mountain air and seeing a Southern version of Vermont.  Check out the Biltmore Estate (the Vanderbilt mansion) and pick up some of their wine.  Downtown is easily walkable with lots of open-to-sidewalk bars & restaurants.  Also, I recently saw it listed as a Top Ten place to visit for beer lovers.  (Milwaukee was #1 on the list.)
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: JWags85 on June 26, 2012, 09:51:26 AM
Id drop Cincy from the consideration set.  Especially compared to some of the other places you are looking to stop.  Going to school just outside the city for 4-5 years, its fairly underwhelming.  I actually can't think of any touristy stuff off the top of my head that makes me go "Oh yea, you should definitely see that."
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: BrewCity83 on June 26, 2012, 10:01:35 AM
I spent a week in Cincy last month for one of my kids' athletic events and I can confirm that outside of Reds baseball, there's not that much to do there relative to the other cities you're looking at.  Although if you like amusement parks, King's Island is supposed to be pretty awesome and is just north of Cincy.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: Spotcheck Billy on June 26, 2012, 10:44:21 AM
cancha tour WKRP?
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: jsglow on June 26, 2012, 05:48:38 PM
I'll defer to warriorchick on all things Nashville related.  But on the drive north from there I can vouch for a 1/2 day stop at Mammoth Cave.  One of the great national parks and one of the few relatively close by us in the midwest.  I concur with the comment that 4th street in Louisville is pretty cool.  Warriorchick jr. and I attended the NCAA this year and enjoyed our time in the city.  Louisville is more interesting than Indy unless you are interested in touring the speedway and its related museum.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: PBRme on June 27, 2012, 07:52:54 AM
I think Atlanta is getting shorted here.  It is an incredible city with more to do than the rest.  The aquarium donated by Home Depot founder is unbelievabe (Chattanooga's is second).  In addition they have the history (MLK museum, cyclorama, Coke, CNN tours, Atlanta History Center, etc), the High Museum of art, Carter Museum, Entertainment --Buckhead, and you can see the pandas at the Zoo

Nasheville is second

Asheville third and don't miss the Biltmore if you go there.  

Charleston is Fourth
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: MU Fan in Connecticut on June 27, 2012, 08:01:11 AM
I think Atlanta is getting shorted here.  It is an incredible city with more to do than the rest.  The aquarium donated by Home Depot founder is unbelievabe (Chattanooga's is second).  In addition they have the history (MLK museum, cyclorama, Coke, CNN tours, Atlanta History Center, etc), the High Museum of art, Carter Museum, Entertainment --Buckhead, and you can see the pandas at the Zoo

Nasheville is second

Asheville third and don't miss the Biltmore if you go there. 

Last night as I thumbed through the AAA book on Georgia in an attempt to read up on my visit to Savannah, I saw an ad for the Atlanta CityPass.  If you go there, I'd recommend purchasing one.  I bought for Chicago last summer and I walked passed lengthy entrance lines at the museums and observatories.  We waved to the people who had to wait an hour at the Schegg while we walked right in.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: Lighthouse 84 on June 27, 2012, 09:28:42 AM
Brew, head over to Hilton Head Island (from Savannah only about 45 minutes), have dinner at the Old Oyster Factory and get up the next day and play golf.  No offense to you and your bride to be, but you've probably been doing it for a long time already, you'll do it on your wedding night and you'll do it a ton afterwards (until the wedding cake kicks in).  You might as well go play the Trent Jones course at Palmetto Dunes or Harbourtown while you're that close.  Your bride can shop.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: brewcity77 on June 27, 2012, 10:37:40 AM
Brew, head over to Hilton Head Island (from Savannah only about 45 minutes), have dinner at the Old Oyster Factory and get up the next day and play golf.  No offense to you and your bride to be, but you've probably been doing it for a long time already, you'll do it on your wedding night and you'll do it a ton afterwards (until the wedding cake kicks in).  You might as well go play the Trent Jones course at Palmetto Dunes or Harbourtown while you're that close.  Your bride can shop.

Are you talking about golf, or sex? (http://myco-tek.org/images/smilies/Laughing_smiley.gif)

I don't play golf, but we do want to get to South Carolina, heard many good things. If we do, we'll probably make a daytrip of it when we're in Savannah the first time for location scouting. The trip for the actual wedding will pretty much be all business.

We might do Atlanta after the wedding as well, the Maid of Honor's mom lives there, so we might hang out with her and her husband an extra day when they head over. I'm liking Louisville as an option more and more with what I read here...wasn't completely sold before, but it's sounding like a nice stop, especially with the caves around.

Looking for some small town ideas as well, if anyone has some. Here are a few I'm considering...

.
Anywhere else with nice small-town charms?
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: Benny B on June 27, 2012, 10:51:40 AM
Are you talking about golf, or sex? (http://myco-tek.org/images/smilies/Laughing_smiley.gif)

I don't play golf, but we do want to get to South Carolina, heard many good things. If we do, we'll probably make a daytrip of it when we're in Savannah the first time for location scouting. The trip for the actual wedding will pretty much be all business.

We might do Atlanta after the wedding as well, the Maid of Honor's mom lives there, so we might hang out with her and her husband an extra day when they head over. I'm liking Louisville as an option more and more with what I read here...wasn't completely sold before, but it's sounding like a nice stop, especially with the caves around.

Looking for some small town ideas as well, if anyone has some. Here are a few I'm considering...

  • Nashville, IN: Seems like a mini-version of the Tennessee one, a nice rustic destination with some music.
  • Damascus, VA: Scenic, lots of trails, and bike rentals near the Appalachian Trail.
  • Franklin, TN: Tons of 19th Century charm, just outside Nashville.
.
Anywhere else with nice small-town charms?

Personally, I think Nashville, IN is closer to a mini-version of Branson, MO than it is a mini-Nashville, TN.  With that said, if you're going to be in that area (Brown County), you might as well head over to Bloomington... someone tells me the university there has great tanning facilities, but skip that part.  Despite what some here would have you believe, it actually is a pretty cool campus with a lot of good restaurants & bars near the main gates (my wife always recommends Nick's for pizza, I like the Irish Lion)  Monroe Lake is just south of town... you can go to the beach, hike around the lake, rent a boat, etc.  The state park around the lake has plenty of outdoorsy-type stuff as well -- hiking, biking, covered bridges, cabins, teenagers smoking in the woods, naked 60's-era hippies who have strayed too far from their nudist colonies, etc.
Title: Being an Indiana Native
Post by: mugrad99 on June 27, 2012, 11:32:19 AM
Indy is great if there is an event happening (500,SuperBowl, Final Four, GenCon (just kidding)). Not so much for a destination place any other time.   You can always go by Bloomington and say hello to Coach Crean. 

I would second Asheville...huge beer town.

Atlanta is a fun city as well. 
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: Spotcheck Billy on June 27, 2012, 11:35:21 AM
 

I would second Asheville...huge hipster town.

Atlanta is a fun city as well. 

fixed
Title: Re: Being an Indiana Native
Post by: Benny B on June 27, 2012, 12:04:06 PM
Indy is great if there is an event happening (500,SuperBowl, Final Four, GenCon (just kidding)). Not so much for a destination place any other time.   You can always go by Bloomington and say hello to Coach Crean. 

I would second Asheville...huge beer town.

Atlanta is a fun city as well. 

GenCon is great entertainment, as long as you don't actually go into the convention center.  One of my best memories of Indy is sitting at the RAM watching stormtroopers try to drink beer in costume two tables over.

If you're into people-watching, GenCon is your Super Bowl.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: awilhelmscream on June 27, 2012, 02:49:47 PM
Are you talking about golf, or sex? (http://myco-tek.org/images/smilies/Laughing_smiley.gif)

I don't play golf, but we do want to get to South Carolina, heard many good things. If we do, we'll probably make a daytrip of it when we're in Savannah the first time for location scouting. The trip for the actual wedding will pretty much be all business.

We might do Atlanta after the wedding as well, the Maid of Honor's mom lives there, so we might hang out with her and her husband an extra day when they head over. I'm liking Louisville as an option more and more with what I read here...wasn't completely sold before, but it's sounding like a nice stop, especially with the caves around.

Looking for some small town ideas as well, if anyone has some. Here are a few I'm considering...

  • Nashville, IN: Seems like a mini-version of the Tennessee one, a nice rustic destination with some music.
  • Damascus, VA: Scenic, lots of trails, and bike rentals near the Appalachian Trail.
  • Franklin, TN: Tons of 19th Century charm, just outside Nashville.
.
Anywhere else with nice small-town charms?

Hilton Head or Charleston, SC.  Charleston has an incredible historic downtown area.  Gatlinburg, TN is a little touristy nowadays but would be a great place to stop off.  You could go do some hiking or canoeing with the wife there if you're into that type of thing.  

Someone said Atlanta got shorted and to an extent I agree.  They've cleaned it up a lot but the one thing Atlanta offers in spades is a stupidly good food scene.  The coca cola factory is cool too if you've never been.

You could also stop by Morgantown, WV, go to a karaoke bar, and sing "Country Roads" while wearing a Marquette shirt :)
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: PBRme on June 27, 2012, 04:20:59 PM
Hilton Head or Charleston, SC.  Charleston has an incredible historic downtown area.  Gatlinburg, TN is a little touristy nowadays but would be a great place to stop off.  You could go do some hiking or canoeing with the wife there if you're into that type of thing.  

Someone said Atlanta got shorted and to an extent I agree.  They've cleaned it up a lot but the one thing Atlanta offers in spades is a stupidly good food scene.  The coca cola factory is cool too if you've never been.

You could also stop by Morgantown, WV, go to a karaoke bar, and sing "Country Roads" while wearing a Marquette shirt :)

AND make sure to do a little polka while your singing.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: brewcity77 on June 28, 2012, 09:45:53 AM
You could also stop by Morgantown, WV, go to a karaoke bar, and sing "Country Roads" while wearing a Marquette shirt :)

While that would be undoubtedly awesome, I'm not sure I'd come back from West Virginia alive if I did that ;D
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: brewcity77 on September 27, 2012, 10:27:53 PM
Just wanted to thank everyone for the input. So far, the mini-vacations have been a success. I made two on our first trip, one on the way to Savannah, one on the way back. The first one I went for the small-town and settled on Danville, Kentucky. It's just outside Lexington, we stayed at a B&B, ate at an excellent tapas restaurant, and did some sight-seeing at some old historic areas. It was a really nice, relaxed day. Then I took a Scooper's advice...

Also, I forgot about Asheville, NC.  You can do everything in a 1-day stop or less.  I used to visit a couple times a year as my company had it's warehosue there.  I never minded going there for the mountain air and seeing a Southern version of Vermont.  Check out the Biltmore Estate (the Vanderbilt mansion) and pick up some of their wine.  Downtown is easily walkable with lots of open-to-sidewalk bars & restaurants.  Also, I recently saw it listed as a Top Ten place to visit for beer lovers.  (Milwaukee was #1 on the list.)

We went to Asheville, but ended up spending pretty much the whole day at the Biltmore. I thought I might be overspending a bit, with the tickets at near amusement park levels, but it was well worth it. We got there around 3:00, toured the house, walked the grounds for around an hour, got some amazing photos, did a wine tasting, and had dinner at their excellent cafe. I'm seriously thinking about hitting Asheville again on the way back down to Savannah the next time.

I think we're going to make a mini-honeymoon out of Nashville and spend 3 days/2 nights there. Our full honeymoon won't be until February, but who am I to argue with a preview?
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: MU Fan in Connecticut on October 01, 2012, 09:45:44 AM
Just wanted to thank everyone for the input. So far, the mini-vacations have been a success. I made two on our first trip, one on the way to Savannah, one on the way back. The first one I went for the small-town and settled on Danville, Kentucky. It's just outside Lexington, we stayed at a B&B, ate at an excellent tapas restaurant, and did some sight-seeing at some old historic areas. It was a really nice, relaxed day. Then I took a Scooper's advice...

We went to Asheville, but ended up spending pretty much the whole day at the Biltmore. I thought I might be overspending a bit, with the tickets at near amusement park levels, but it was well worth it. We got there around 3:00, toured the house, walked the grounds for around an hour, got some amazing photos, did a wine tasting, and had dinner at their excellent cafe. I'm seriously thinking about hitting Asheville again on the way back down to Savannah the next time.

I think we're going to make a mini-honeymoon out of Nashville and spend 3 days/2 nights there. Our full honeymoon won't be until February, but who am I to argue with a preview?
   Glad to hear you enjoyed AVL.  More important, congratulations on the wedding.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: swoopem on October 01, 2012, 11:42:00 AM
If you swing back through Ashville a MU alum manages a resort in Ashville, his name is Ricky (wont say last name) but ask around..class of 2006
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: warriorchick on October 01, 2012, 02:06:39 PM
If you swing back through Ashville a MU alum manages a resort in Ashville, his name is Ricky (wont say last name) but ask around..class of 2006

I am sure he won't mind if you plug his business...what's the name of it?
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: Bocephys on October 01, 2012, 02:09:58 PM
I am sure he won't mind if you plug his business...what's the name of it?

Rickey's on State.
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: swoopem on October 01, 2012, 02:16:52 PM
Biltmore Estate
Title: Re: 8-hour vacations (Sell your city)
Post by: Benny B on October 01, 2012, 02:32:27 PM
6 years out of college and he's managing the Biltmore?  I bet I can guess his last name ---- Vanderbilt.