Great Summer Specials!

Copyright Karen Schaler all rights reserved

Who doesn’t love celebrating Mom? On Travel Tuesday, where we always highlight the best travel specials of the week, this week we’re focusing on some top Mother’s Day Trips that are also good all Summer! My own mother and 93 year old grandmother are flying all the way from Seattle to New York City so we can all celebrate Mother’s Day together and be together.

I always love trying to plan a trip with my mom around Mother’s Day because sometimes it’s one of the only time of year we can find the time to get away together and no matter what we do it’s always special as long as we’re together.

So don’t worry if you don’t have the cash on hand to splurge on a big trip with your mom, just carving out some special time together, by going to lunch, a spa, a museum, hiking, whatever your mom likes, can also make it a special day. Sometimes the best Travel Therapy is right in your own backyard! 

If your mother is no longer with you let this holiday get you down. Mother’s Day is the perfect time to celebrate the time you did have with your mom and honor her memory by doing something she would have loved or would have wanted you to do.   

On Mother’s Day if I can be with my own mom I’ll try and celebrate with a friend who is a mom. Last year I was in L.A., with a good friend from high school who has two young adorable children. Sharing family time and honoring her as a mom was an incredible way to spend the day.  

So on this Mother’s Day think outside the box to celebrate the moms in your life and let the Travel Therapy begin. 

If you are looking for a special Mother’s Day Trip, whether mom likes the mountains or the beach, here are some great ideas to help get you started  

Country Retreat:

Treat mom to southern Vermont’s finest with a Mother’s Day Weekend Getaway at Windham Hill Inn. The charming retreat in West Townshend, Windham Hill is part of the Vermont Fresh Network, assuring everything on the menu is either just plucked from the inn’s organic garden or secured from nearby farms. The getaway affords two nights in a double and one dinner for two at Windham Hill Restaurant, as well as a gift basket of regional goodies, a 1/2-hour in-room massage, three-course breakfast each day and more. Package starts at $554/double with options for additional amenities. www.windhamhill.com  

Urban Oasis:

Take mom to Dallas for the Mother of All Packages at The Stoneleigh Hotel & Spa. The newly renovated legendary hotel has glamorous comforts for the taking, including holistic organic therapies at the Spa at the Stoneleigh and fine dining at Bolla, celebrity chef David Bull’s modern Italian restaurant. Let mom experience the possibilities with one night in a Studio Suite, Champagne and strawberries, breakfast in bed from Bolla, and an Uptown Mani/Pedi for two at the Spa for $495 per night. Or, take her over the top with dinner for two at Bolla included for $595 per night. www.stoneleighhotel.com  

City Chic:

As if brunch at the Polo Lounge at the Beverly Hills Hotel weren’t celebration enough, the Dorchester Collection property is making it more so with a unique Mother’s Day menu. Treat her to traditional and innovative creations starting with Seasonal Fruits and Berries followed by choice of Eggs Benedict, Eggs Florentine, Croque Madame or Smoked Salmon with Boursin Cheese Quiche. Afterwards, take mom to the Golden Triangle for shopping and nearby attractions like The Getty Center. Just have her back to The Polo Lounge by 6:00pm – that’s cocktail hour! Mother’s Day Brunch, $94 per person; weekend rates start at $515/double. www.beverlyhillshotel.com 

Mountain Splendor:

Topnotch Spa in Stowe, Vermont is offering a Perfect Pampering for Mom day spa package including deluxe hand renewal, a June Jacobs spa pedicure and a wash/blow dry with deep conditioning treatment. Moms are also welcome to utilize all of the facilities and fitness classes offered at Topnotch. Located on 120 wooded acres and surrounded by Vermont’s legendary Green Mountains, Topnotch Resort and Spa is New England’s premier, four-season luxury destination retreat. “Perfect Pampering” is $120 inclusive of all gratuities; weekend rates start at $300/double. http://www.topnotchresort.com 

Caribbean Hideaway:

From the Copacabana Casino to Hyatt Pure treatments at Stillwater Spa there’s so much for mom at the newly renovated Hyatt Regency Aruba Resort & Casino, you might as well make a weekend of it. Be sure her day includes Mother’s Day Brunch at Ruinas del Mar. The elegant restaurant will have good fortune on the menu with a stemmed rose for every mom and the chance to win prizes including a free weekend stay, dinner for two, and a dinner sail. Best of luck! Mother’s Day Brunch, $49.75 per person; weekend rates start at $395/double. www.aruba.hyatt.com 

Serene Valley: 

For a respite from all the hustle and bustle, treat mom to a weekend getaway at the Omni Bedford Springs Resort & Spa, located in Pennsylvania’s peaceful Cumberland Valley.  Spend the day shopping in the charming town of Bedford before relaxing with a spa treatment at the property’s Springs Eternal Spa.  The resort’s Mother’s Day Brunch features a “From the Harvest Sampler,” including dishes such as Rosemary Roasted Rib Eye of Beef with Pinot Noir Reduction and French Toast with Blueberry Compote.  Mother’s Day Brunch, $55 for adults, $45 for seniors age 65 and older, $16 for children 6-12 and free for children 5 and under; weekend rates start at $289/double.  www.bedfordspringsresort.com 

For more fantastic Mother’s Day Trips ideas you can get your copy of my new book Travel Therapy: Where Do  You Need To Go? on this site for more than 30 percent off the cover price and free shipping. The new Travel Therapy book also makes a great gift for anyone who loves to travel because just looking at all the glossy photos is an escape in itself! 

Coming up, the Travel Therapy launch party at the famed New York Palace Hotel and the first Travel Therapy book signing at the amazing Borders at 10 Columbus Circle in New York City on May 14 where we’ll be giving away free signed copies of Travel Therapy, gift certificates for free luxurious spa treatments and much more! Stay tuned!