What to Do in Interlaken

For some of the most beautiful views in the region, holiday-makers and hikers alike have visited the striking mountains of Bern Canton for years. The quaint and lively town nestled within the mountainsis often a main port of call.

JungfrauMountain, Switzerland Photo Credit

On the edge of Jungfrau Mountain,Interlaken isn’t increasingly becoming popular among tourists who want something more from their skiing holiday.

As experts in the travel field who know this area inside out, Inghams travel reps Liz and Mike Cakebread know everything holidays need to know about thiscosmopolitan town.

The basics

As it’s not too far from the Swiss capital,it’s really not that difficult to get here.  Situated between the two lakes of Brienz and Thun, it’s got plenty of life and offers plenty of mountain and boat excursions.

In fact, the name Interlaken comes from the Latin word interlacus – meaning land between two lakes. Liz and Mike Cakebread are happy to dish out some suggestions regarding what to do while staying at one of the area’s hotels.

Boatingwonders

 One recommendation is to enjoy the nearby lakes by boat. Lake Brienz’s crystalline emerald green waters are best enjoyed ona lazy cruise, and can take you to see the Giessback Waterfalls.

It’s also recommended to see the woodcarving village of Brienz, where the woodcarving museum is full of delights and wonder. Continuing on beyond Brienz will lead you to Ballenberg, an open-air museum which showcases the best of architecture in the country.

Revolutions

For a bite to eat with a difference, you can’t get much quirkier than the revolving restaurant Schilthorn. Most famous for featuring in the James Bond flick OnHer Majesty’s Secret Service, it even offers a ‘James Bond Brekkie Buffet’in homage to the film.

                                            007was Partially shot in Switzerland Photo Credit 

Before returning to Interlaken, take a stroll in the village of Murren and enjoy the charming Swiss chalets and mountain huts.

Jungfraujoch

Standing at 11,333ft above sea level, the Jungfraujoch is the highest railway station in Europe. Once you’re up at the highest point, you can enjoy skiing and husky rides atop the Aletschgletcher,the longest glacier in Europe.

Whether you choose to follow all of the Cakebreads’advice or not, a stay at Interlaken promises to be full of beautiful views,great views and some truly unique experiences.

Liz & Mike Cakebread – Zermatt & Interlaken Liz & Mike are very knowledgeable Inghams resort reps, having travelled and worked in number of resorts around the world. Their favourite resorts include Zermatt & Interlaken where they have worked for 2 decades. In winter their favourite place to be is Whistler Canada, where they have enjoyed the ski lifestyle for the past 15 years.

Cambria Suites Review

As I am sure you all know, I am a single mom of an adorable and sweet little boy named Noah. He is almost 4 and a half and I love him with all my heart, but even a supermom like me needs a break every so often. I was thinking about when was the last time I had a whole night to myself, not at home. I came up with the night before my sister and brother in law were married, in May. So, when I had the chance to stay in my local Cambria Suites I jumped on it. The funny thing is that it is the closest hotel to where I live. There are other hotels in my town but I had never stayed at any of them. I am certain you can imagine how ecstatic I was, to get this kind of invitation.

Cambria Suites is an awesome hotel, it is primarily a business hotel, but it is also really family friendly. It is part of the Choice Hotels chain, and yes I am now a Choice Privileges member. I had seen the hotel many times as it is right there, I always thought that it looked really nice. I had no idea how nice it was. I always have high expectations when it comes to accommodations, but I think that it was nicer than I expected. I arrived at the hotel and kissed my son good bye while he was convincing me to give him his car for Valentine’s Day a day early. I made him wait. I walked in and I was greeted by a really nice man at the reservations desk. He checked me in and gave me all the information I needed about the restaurant and pool, and I signed up for Choice Privileges, I knew before even seeing my room I would stay at Cambria Suites again. I am all about rewards programs. I took the elevator up to my room on the third floor and looked around. My room was gorgeous. It was a King Suite and I felt like a queen staying in it because it was huge. I noticed how quiet it was. Even being close to a highway and the mall, it was really quiet. The hotel was quiet too. I really liked that. I don’t think I heard a noise at all the whole time I was in my room, except for the wind.

After looking around at my suite, I realized I had a little fridge and a microwave, which I really liked. I had every intention of bringing popcorn but, I forgot. The bathroom was really nice too. It had a huge stand up shower, and all of the bathroom products were Bath and Bodyworks which is amazing, most of the time hotel toiletries aren’t that great or smell very good, not the case this time. I decided to lie down and watch some TV on my very comfortable bed. The bed was so comfortable that I was lying down for quite a while. I wasn’t sure what I wanted for dinner. I thought about ordering pizza but I also wanted to see what the restaurant had to offer. I was even toying with getting room service since the prices were so reasonable. I went down to the front desk and asked to see a restaurant menu. I took it up to my room so I could look it over. I got up to my room and realized that I demagnetized my key. My purse has magnets to fasten it and my Blackberry case also has a magnet on it so, this was something I was familiar with. I went back down and the man promptly fixed it for me. I decided my key wasn’t going in my purse anymore and kept it in my back pocket.

I was amazed at the menu that Reflect had to offer. Pizza was no longer in my mind. I wanted a BBQ burger. After watching some more TV and relaxing I went down and ordered my burger. The guy at the restaurant and bar was really nice. Everyone was very friendly and nice. He even offered to call my room when it was ready so I didn’t have to wait downstairs. I took advantage of that option. It only took 10 minutes or so before my food was ready. I brought it up to my room to eat. It was so good. I enjoyed every little bite of it. It had caramelized onions on it and I love onions. I really am glad I didn’t get pizza that night. It was Sunday so; I watched Desperate Housewives and then went down to the bar and had a couple drinks. I had a great time chatting with the bartender. We talked about all kinds of things. I explained that I was a mom blogger and he asked me a lot of questions. We talked about other random things.

The thing I was looking forward to the most was going to the hot tub. So, I wasn’t going to miss that. I love that the pool and hot tub are open until 12 am. That was a plus because usually hotels close their pools at 10 pm. I noticed that they had a really nice fitness center too. There wasn’t anyone in the pool area when I went which was really nice because I could fully relax and not have to worry about kids yelling and throwing things. I love kids but I was having my own mom night. I love that I didn’t see a single child during my whole stay, which was a nice change from the normal kids everywhere hotel. I am sure it had to do with the fact that it was a Sunday night and kids had school the next day, but man it was nice.

I ended my night with more TV watching and laying in bed. The bed was so comfortable. I slept so well. I sleep with a feather bed at home so I love soft comfortable beds and sometimes hotel beds can be not so comfortable. When I woke up, I thought about trying to see if I could stay another night just because I had such a wonderful and relaxing time. I decided that I needed to spend Valentine’s Day with Noah. I have come to the conclusion that I will have an occasional mom night at Cambria Suites just to have a little getaway. I am really looking forward to staying there again soon, I am addicted. The best part is that it is inexpensive and that I will be able to afford it. I found out from the bartender, Ben, that the room I was in is their standard room. So, I will be back soon.

I highly encourage you, if you are a mom, single or married, to have a mom’s night alone. I know that the word alone can be scary sometimes, trust me you deserve it. Just so you can relax and unwind. I am sure it will make you feel refreshed and recharged for all those challenges that motherhood brings you.
For more information and locations near you please visit the Cambria Suites Website.

You can also check out the other Choice Hotels and sign up for Choice Privileges. I know that Cambria Suites are not in all locations but I am sure one of the other hotels in the chain will be just as nice.

Thank you to Cambria Suites for giving me a complimentary night in a King Suite for me to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

St. Louis Hilton at the Ballpark Review

I wanted to tell you guys about the hotel, we stayed at in St. Louis. We stayed at the St. Louis Hilton at the Ball Park. It is extremely close to Busch Stadium like across the street. It is in downtown St. Louis and it is an easy walk to the Arch and many restaurants. We didn’t have to do a whole lot of driving when we were there. It is a great location and a gorgeous hotel. The lobby is beautiful. There is even a Starbucks and a restaurant in the hotel. There are also two bars. It was amazing. The hotel staff was all very nice and made our stay very comfortable. We had valet parking. It was my first experience with valet parking and it was really neat. The hotels parking lot is across the street and down the road a little ways so not having to carry our luggage that far was great. Not only that but the bellboy brought our luggage up for us and unloaded it. We were all pretty tired at the end of each day it was nice to just be able to pull up and get out of the car and walk in the hotel. The valets were very nice and we didn’t have to wait long to get our car. We had a lot to do so not spending the extra time was great.



The room was so comfortable. The beds were so soft and it felt good to lay down on them and just hang out. The view was breathtaking. We had a view of part of the Arch, the old capital building and a couple fountains. St. Louis is a gorgeous city. The TV was a nice one. It was a flat screen. Noah’s favorite channel was the hotel channel. It was pretty funny to hear him to ask to watch it. It was great to have such a nice room that we didn’t have to worry about anything to come back to.

Every night we enjoyed the pool and hot tub. This pool and hot tub was featured in George Clooney’s movie The Air Up There. I have never seen the movie but it was cool to think that George Clooney could have been sitting where I was sitting. Yes, I am a huge George Clooney fan. Noah and I danced in the pool in my arms. I sang him songs and we just had some special mommy and Noah time. He had a huge smile on his face the entire time. It was nice to have his little warm body in my arms because the water was pretty cold. My favorite thing was the hot tub. It felt so nice to be in it after a long day. It was huge. It is the biggest one I have ever seen or been in. It would accommodate a lot of people. They also had a dry sauna that I would sit in too. I love saunas. I would rather be hot than freezing cold. There was hardly anyone in the pool area when we were there which was nice. I don’t like a lot of noise when I am trying to relax. It felt like our own personal spot to go and relax.

Unfortunately, the night before we left, Noah got really sick. I was lying in bed watching Locked Up Raw. All the sudden I heard someone throwing up. I jumped up because it scared me. I was almost asleep and so I got up and my little boy was sitting up extremely sick all over the bed. I will spare you the details but it was really gross. The comforter, the sheets, his pillow pet was all covered in it. I felt so bad for Noah because it happened over and over again. I called Guest Services and explained the situation. I wasn’t sure if they were able to do anything because a lot of places don’t have overnight housekeeping. Thankfully St. Louis Hilton at the Ball Park does. Housekeeping came up to our room and changed all the bedding for us. She even left an extra sheet incase it happened again. The other times we were more prepared with towels. I was sad to check out of the hotel because it was so nice and everyone was great.

If you are in St. Louis you should stay at the St. Louis Hilton at the Ball Park because it is a great hotel that has lots of great amenities and is even there for you when your child gets sick in the middle of the night. It is a beautiful place and I would love to stay there again the next time we are visiting St. Louis.

Thank you to The St. Louis CVC for sponsoring my family's trip to St. Louis. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Marriott You Asked..We Answered $100 Travelcard Giveaway- 5 winners

THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED!!!!

I love to travel. When I travel, I like to stay in Marriott Hotels. I like Marriott because they are always clean and friendly and I know when I stay at one the service will be wonderful. They have quite a few braches of hotels. A few of them are Courtyard,Residence Inn and Spring Hill Suites. There is a Courtyard Inn in Macon Georgia I have stayed at more times than I can count. Growing up it was always our stopping point for the night when we were going to Florida.

My friend and I took a trip to Macon and I recommended that we stay at that same Courtyard. There is a really nice Residence Inn in Virginia Beach that is amazing. I really liked staying there and hearing the ocean as I fell asleep and the ocean view was great. I have also stayed at Spring Hill Suites. They are as impressive. I love Marriott Hotels and I stay at one anytime possible. Not to mention my whole family are members of the Marriott rewards club. If you aren’t a member I suggest you sign up. It’s free and you can earn free hotel nights.

I have some really exciting news to share with you all. First here is a letter from Marriott Hotels.

At Marriott, we’re always looking for ways to serve our guests better. That’s why the new Marriott was developed through a two-way dialogue between Marriott and thousands of our customers. The results? Search front and center. Improved navigation. A more modern and elegant look and feel. And, of course, enhanced functionality overall.

It just goes to show that only good things can happen when a huge organization like ours takes the time to listen to our individual guests to find out how to better serve them. They helped us create something better. It’s also the reason why we’re calling our new campaign, “You asked. We delivered.”

To celebrate the re-design and get the word out, we’re running a promotion that gives Sheilacakes visitors a chance to win a $100 Marriott TravelCard. Entering is easy, just watch the video below and share your thoughts with Marriott in the comment section. On Tuesday, December 8th, Marriott will select five lucky winners at random from my comments.



That’s right FIVE (5) of you are going to win a $100 Marriott TravelCard Gift Card for being a reader of my blog!

All you have to do is watch the video above and leave a comment sharing your thoughts with Marriott on this post.

One (1) entry per email address, per comment specifically relating to the posted video (any posts not relating to the video, as determined by Sponsor, Sweepstakes Administrator, and/or the Sweepstakes Blog in their sole discretion, will not count towards an entry) You must leave your email address in your comment. I am not picking the winners and I want it to be easy for the folks at Marriott to contact the winners.

Sweepstakes ends next Monday December 7,2009 at 11:59:59 P.M. ET. No purchase necessary. Void where prohibited. Open only to legal residents of 50 US (incl. D.C., excluding Puerto Rico). The winners must be 19 or older and 21 in Mississippi. See Sweepstakes Rules & Regulations for details.

I would like to thank Marriott for providing the five travelcards for my giveaway. I received nothing for this post.

To learn more about the new design and to enter for a chance to win one of three $250 Marriott TravelCards and the Grand Prize of a 7-night vacation (plus $1,500 for travel expenses) visit MarriottDelivers.