221: Chickasaw Country and Oklahoma City Road Trip Travel
Vacation Mavens
Tamara has finally made it to her 50th state...Oklahoma!! She took an Oklahoma road trip to visit both Oklahoma City and Chickasaw Country in south-central Oklahoma, in partnership with Chickasaw Country and the Chickasaw Nation. Oklahoma City has a lot to offer as a stand-alone destination including the First Americans Museum and the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum. Tamara stayed at the aLoft hotel in Bricktown, which is the entertainment district with plenty of restaurants, bars, shops, and the minor league baseball stadium and water taxis. If you are interested in learning more...
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220: African Safaris
Vacation Mavens
Tamara is hosting an all-women small group trip to Portugal this fall and she would love for you to join her! . Did you know that Kim has been on safaris in four African countries? Today she shares some great tips that will help you decide where you might want to go, understand the differences between various safari experiences, and provide some advice for planning an African safari trip. You can read more about a few of Kim's safari experiences here:
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219: German Christmas Markets Trip
Vacation Mavens
Tamara is hosting an all-women small group trip to Portugal this fall and she would love for you to join her! . In this episode, Tamara talks about her two-week German Christmas Markets road trip! If you have this magical holiday trip on your radar, make sure to give this episode a close listen and check out the following articles:
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Barge and River Cruising Through France
Vacation Mavens
Before we say goodbye to summer and pull on our flannels and break out the pumpkin spice, Tamara and Kim are back with a recap of Tamara's European summer travels including a month spent exploring France by river and barge cruise! Tamara first spent two weeks in the United Kingdom, on a road trip through both Scotland and Wales with two other travel writers. She then took the Eurostar down to France and spent one week cruising through the Canal Nivernais on the Hotel Barge Elisabeth. Next, she went to Bordeaux and her husband joined her for a weeklong river cruise with AmaWaterways. Tamara...
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217: Scottsdale and Japan (Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka)
Vacation Mavens
Well it has been a minute since we had a chance to catch up and record a podcast but in this episode Tamara shares her insights and experience from her recent family trip to Japan. Kim and Tamara also share their love for Scottsdale, Arizona and some of the things they did on a girls' trip together. Read more at: Tamara also talked about her time in Paso Robles, California. You can read her to get inspired to visit this wine region. Kim attended conferences in Walt Disney World (read her tips for using DVC points to ), Disney Land, and San Antonio. She also took a family cruise to...
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216: Ireland and Northern Ireland
Vacation Mavens
Kim took a last minute spring break trip to Ireland and Northern Ireland with her younger daughter and this week on the podcast, she tells us all about it! She flew into Dublin and then stay at a country estate hotel in Northern Ireland before visiting Belfast, the Causeway Coast, Derry/Londonderry, and Galway before looping back to Dublin. See Kim's articles on: Ireland Trip Highlights: in Northern Ireland Belfast - Titanic Belfast and city architecture - Carrick-a-Rede bridge, Giant's Causeway, Dunluce Castle in Derry - walk the walls around the city Galway - Kim...
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215 Oceanside Disneyland California
Vacation Mavens
Spring break is almost here and on this episode Kim and Tamara share their experience on a girls' trip in Oceanside, California and then their mother-daughter trip to Disneyland with their girls. If you want some inspiration for a SoCal getaway, be sure to listen in!
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214 Northern Italy + Big Announcement
Vacation Mavens
Happy New Year! We are back and apologize for taking so long to release a new episode. Moving forward, we will strive to have one episode a month to share our travels and tips, as we continue to each put more time into our respective websites. But first, Tamara has a big announcement and that is that she is hosting a women-only small group trip to Iceland in September 2023! You can get all the information on and she really hopes that some listeners will be able to join! Note that there is a discount of 15,000 ISK if you register by January 15, 2023. Next Tamara tells us all about her...
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213: Glacier Country, Montana
Vacation Mavens
This episode is sponsored by Glacier Country Tourism. All opinions are our own. This week, Tamara shares what it is like to visit Glacier Country, Montana on a girls' trip and Kim shares her thoughts on this scenic part of Northwestern Montana. From Missoula to Whitefish, Kalispell to Glacier National Park -- if Montana is on your bucket list, give this episode a listen! Read more: Things to do in Glacier Country, Montana Glacier Country is a tourism region of Northwestern Montana that covers eight counties To get to Glacier Country you can fly into Missoula or Glacier Airport in Kalispell,...
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212: Summer Travel Catch Up
Vacation Mavens
We are back from our summer travel and packed a whole lot into a one episode recap! We apologize in advance for some audio difficulties on this one, especially after taking so long to get it live. Thanks for hanging in there with us! On this episode we cover Tamara's summer trips to: Nantucket (read her ) New Brunswick, Canada (, , and ) Prince Edward Island, Canada () Sailing on the And Kim shares about her adventures: Mediterranean cruise on Costa Cruise Lines () Gorilla trekking in Uganda Alaskan cruise on Holland America Graduation trip to Disney World and Universal Orlando ()
info_outlineWho knew the small city of Madison, Wisconsin could offer so much to do -- especially in the winter? This week Tamara fills us in on her recent trip to the Wisconsin state capital, and home to the University of Wisconsin - Madison and shares why this college town makes a cool winter weekend getaway. Warning: you may end up craving cheese curds if you listen to this episode!
This episode is part of a paid partnership with Destination Madison, allowing Tamara to experience what Madison has to offer and share her honest opinion with our listeners.
ON THE PODCAST
00:30 - Talking with Kim and Tamara
00:55 - Tamara’s time in Madison, Wisconsin
06:48 - Where to stay in Madison
12:55 - Things to do in Madison
20:30 - Madison Eats Food Tour
29:55 - Favorite cold weather travel gear
TIPS FOR VISITING MADISON, WISCONSIN
- Madison is the state capital of Wisconsin and home to the University of Wisconsin - Madison. This vibrant city is also the HQ for many tech and healthcare start ups and over 50% of the people that live in Madison are under 30.
- If you are visiting the University, or want to stay downtown, the Graduate Hotel is a great choice that offers an academic and local vibe. This hotel has a rooftop bar and restaurant called the Camp Trippalindee which is named after an 80s movie Back to School.
- On the lake, also walking distance to the Capitol and downtown, you will find the The Edgewater Hotel. Newly renovated and slightly more upscale, here you will have a great view of the lake and during the winter they also have a small ice skating rink right next to the lake.
- You can catch a free tour of the capitol building which runs every hour. If you don’t want to take a tour, you are free to roam around on your own if that is what you prefer.
- If you take a walk down State Street from the capitol building you will find a bunch of boutiques, bars and restaurants. As you walk you will see the transition from downtown life to more of the college town scene.
- If you like food and want to explore some of Madison's neighborhoods, you should really check out taking a food tour through Madison Eats. Tamara took the Atwood "Brew and Chew" tour, which included six food stops and three drinks.
- There are a lot of different locations in Madison that offer a class or some type of hands on activity. When planning your trip you should really make sure to look into some of these Essential Madison Experiences. You can find more information about them on the Destination Madison website.
- If you like mustard at all you should check out the National Mustard Museum. The bottom floor is a kitschy museum with old packaging, signs, and videos. But the top floor has a shop along with a mustard tasting bar where you can taste test 200+ types of mustard!
- Madison also offers many museums and attractions, like the zoo, which are free to visit, making this city an affordable weekend getaway.
- On Saturday mornings in the winter, the Dane County Farmer's Market is held at the Garver Feed Mill, also home to the Kosa Ayurvedic Spa.
- There are many entertainment options in Madison, including the new Madison Circus Space.
- Madison is home to many restaurants and some that really stood out include Everly, Graze, and Short Stack Eatery.
FOLLOW US AND SPREAD THE WORD!
If you liked this show, please be sure to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play and leave us a review! Have a question or comment? Send us an email at [email protected]. You can also follow our travels on Stuffed Suitcase and We3Travel, or follow the Vacation Mavens on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter. Thanks for listening!