Why You Should Avoid Hosting for Vacation and Go to a Hotel

Here are some things you should know about me. I like spending time with my friends and family. I love cooking. But I not I love hosting for the holidays.

I know some people love to make a big turkey dinner with all the trimmings and invite their loved ones over for the holidays. I’m just not one of them. I don’t like the amount of cooking, cleaning, and traveling it takes to make sure everyone has a good time.

Related: 12 Festive Hotels for Those Who Really Love the Holidays

I found a great alternative for hosting during the holidays: avoid it altogether and head to a hotel. I just returned from a Thanksgiving visit to Orlando and it was the perfect way to kick off the holiday season.

Here’s why I think you should forgo lodging duties and spend the vacation in a hotel.

You don’t have to cook, clean, or play host(s)

My husband and I have three children – all boys – and although we try to do otherwise, the level of cleanliness in our home is questionable, to say the least. The amount of work we have to do to make him presentable is more than we can handle on top of keeping said boys fed, clean and clothed.

This year we flew to Orlando, where an immaculate room awaited us at the Gaylord Palms Resort near Walt Disney World.

We returned to our room each afternoon to find the beds made, the trash emptied, and the room tidied. I still did my best to keep the kids’ mess under control between cleanings, but that alone alleviated a lot of my holiday stress.

I am a strong advocate of tipping. hotel staff and restaurant waitersand I recommend tipping even more during the holidays if you can afford it. Tipping a little extra is a simple way to say “thank you.” Plus, it was well worth the peace of mind of knowing I could spend more time with family rather than spending the holidays cleaning non-stop.

Although we tried to save money by stocking up on breakfast essentials and snacks for our hotel room, we also dined out during our visit. Most of the hotels I’ve visited during the holidays serve holiday meals on Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, and Christmas.

I enjoyed my Thanksgiving lunch poolside at Gaylord Palms Cypress Springs Water Park. I’m not sure if a tuna poke bowl is a historically accurate Thanksgiving meal, but it certainly made me grateful to be in the Florida sun, sitting poolside, rather than in the cold kitchen from southern Indiana.

Most hotels plan special meals and activities

Lest you think we avoided turkey and stuffing entirely, we had a more traditional turkey dinner at the Rainforest Cafe at Disney’s Animal Kingdom that evening. The park is less than 15 minutes from Gaylord Palms and the animatronic animals brought plenty of Thanksgiving laughs.

In many cases, you don’t even need to leave your hotel for a traditional holiday meal. On the road to Universal Orlandoseveral on-site hotels serve holiday meals. Loews Portofino Bay Hotel, Hard Rock Hotel, Loews Royal Pacific Resort And Loews Sapphire Falls Resort all serve a festive buffet at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Outside of Florida, several other hotels serve special meals at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Grand Cypress Lodge in Memphis serves a Southern-inspired meal of Thanksgiving classics, while the Ritz-Carlton in Grand Cayman serves a traditional turkey dinner or a “Thanksgiving-to-Go” for guests who want to dine in the privacy of their sequel. Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts in Mayan Riviera And Punta Cana serve a special Christmas brunch so you can fuel up before heading to the beach or water park.

Related: A sleigh ride like no other: 9 theme parks not to miss during the holidays

In addition to delicious meals, hotels around the world mark the holiday season with special events and activities. Over the past few years, we have sung with carolers and met Santa in the lobby of the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel at Universal Orlando. Every Universal hotel is part of the holiday spirit.

This year, Universal’s Cabana Bay Beach Resort at Universal Orlando held a tree lighting ceremony the day after Thanksgiving. It was complete with free hot chocolate and cookies and surprise character meet-and-greets.

In addition to special meals, Santa stops by both Nickelodeon Hotels & Resorts this Christmas, and kids can participate in special holiday-themed activities, like cookie decorating.

Or, if you’re someone who enjoys holiday turkey trot races, Grand Cèdre Lodge near Branson, Missouri, hosts an annual “Gobble Wobble 5K” the day after Thanksgiving.

You will create new holiday traditions and memories

The above activities are just some of the fun and festive hotels you can visit during the holiday season. You can find similar deals in destinations all over the world. No matter where you travel for the holidays, the unique experiences you can’t have at home help create treasured vacation memories.

Related: 13 Vacation Destinations for Family Fun

My family has made it a tradition to visit a Gaylord hotel during the holidays to experience the annual holiday event called Ice! This is our first year going there for Thanksgiving, and the festive atmosphere made us feel like it was a very fitting way to spend the holiday.

We may not have participated in the typical traditions, but we still had fun and spent quality time together. In the spirit of the holidays, we sat around the table on Thanksgiving evening and shared what we were grateful for.

Getting out of our usual routine and filling the day with fun activities meant I wasn’t scrambling to keep the iPads away from my kids or finding ways to keep us busy.

You can earn last minute status nights or use expired certificates

I don’t know about you, but this year I’m grateful for all the ways points and miles have enhanced my travels. I earned things like room upgrades, late checkout, and free hotel nights through my Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card And The Platinum Card® from American Express.

The Amex Platinum automatically grants me Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status (registration required), which comes with perks like room upgrades, late checkout, and bonus point earning on stays. My Marriott Bonvoy Boundless card comes with an annual free night certificate (up to 35,000 points; some hotels may have resort fees) on my cardholder’s birthday.

Related: Don’t Waste Your Credits: Your 2024 Year-End Credit Card Checklist

I almost forgot to use it last year, which led me to another funny story. But this isn’t about the time we took our dog on a staycation to avoid losing out on a free hotel night. This is to remind you that the holiday season is a great time to check for free night certificates or other money-saving credit card benefits that might be about to expire.

For example, my Amex Platinum comes with up to $200 in annual prepaid hotel statement credits each calendar year. And as the old saying goes, if you don’t use it, you lose it.

Related: Last-minute tips for maintaining elite hotel status before the end of the year

You can also justify throwing holiday traditions out the window and creating your own if you need to book a few last-minute nights to access a new level of elite status. You will spend a special vacation with your family And enjoy high hotel benefits for the coming year. Now that’s something to be grateful for.

Conclusion

Don’t get me wrong, I love throwing a party. But I’m more of a hostess of aperitifs, drinks and board games.

Rather than push myself to the wall trying to plan the perfect Thanksgiving (and removing the innards from a turkey, which I’m never interested in), I found an alternative. This allows my family to celebrate everything we love about the holidays without any stress.

However you choose to celebrate, I hope you have a very happy holiday season.

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