Travel isn’t always perfected composed Instagram photos, sometimes it is flight delays, lost luggage, and meltdowns in the terminal. Coming home from our Anaheim Quest that included visits to Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farms, I met this trifecta of travel woes in the span of 24 hours, with both girls in tow…. solo.
After a very long day of flight hiccups we had two choices, stay at the airport to hope for 2 seats together on a flight, or find a hotel and fly out with confirmed seats in the morning. Being a military family we have the privilege of accessing the USO lounge at the airport, but the girls and I had already spent 5 hours there earlier in the day, and while the staff was fabulous with Roo, I knew that she was on the brink of a meltdown (so was I for that matter), so I opted to find a room.
Initially, when I was looking for hotels I just wanted somewhere that the girls and I could crash for the rest of the afternoon, somewhere for them to spread out and for us all to have a long overdue shower. Our bags were somewhere rotating on a baggage carousel in Seattle, so all we had were our day bags. I made the rookie mistake of not packing any of our essentials because I was confident that a flight from California to Seattle was easy as pie. What my temporary confidence didn’t factor into this seemingly simple trip was this little thing called Murphy’s Law and pretty much everything that could go wrong did go wrong leaving us without spare clothing, toothbrushes, and 1 diaper to last us until we got home! A quick search revealed that there was an Embassy Suites just around the corner from the hotel; it provided a free airport shuttle and complimentary breakfast. At the time those were the only two things that mattered to me so I quickly booked the room.
We headed out of the airport, and as the sunny California sun hit our faces it felts like we had finally been released from some kind of travel purgatory! As we walked to the hotel shuttle area I looked down at Roo and noticed that both of our moods had instantly improved once we left the confines of the airport. It was in this moment that I had to remind myself that although we were without any of our travel essentials that there could be far worse outcomes, so I decided to stop stressing and just try to make the best of the situation.
Within a few minutes of calling the Embassy Suites to request a shuttle pick-up, our driver arrived at the curb with a smile and eager to help with our travel gear (stroller, diaper bag, and book bags). Once we were underway to the hotel he engaged us in conversation and told me about the free shuttle that will take us anywhere within a 3-mile radius of the hotel, and within 3 minutes we were walking through the doors of the Embassy Suites. The first thing that greeted me was the delightful smell of coffee from the full-service Starbucks in the lobby and next was the warm and inviting smiles of the front desk staff. The representative that helped us got us checked in quickly, provided us with complimentary water and a welcome bag, and then and informed me about their Evening Reception which was kid-friendly.
As we crossed the threshold into our suite I was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief. It had been years since I stayed at an Embassy Suites property, but as Roo began her ritual of exploring every inch of the room, I found myself really impressed with the amenities they offered. I opted for a King suite which was two rooms, one with the comfy King sized bed with a city view, and a Queen sized sofa bed in the front room. The spacious suite was appointed with a large table/desk, televisions in each room, a bathroom with a tub/shower combo, a wet bar with mini-fridge, microwave, and coffee maker.
After we explored the suite I had an epiphany about the hotel shuttle. I hopped on Google and much to my delight I realized that there was a Wal-mart within the 3-mile radius. We quickly got our shoes back on and headed to the lobby to request a shuttle trip, and within a few minutes, our kind shuttle driver was transporting us in the direction of soap, toothbrushes, diapers, and clean clothes. We were practically skipping through the store we were so gleeful! After we stocked up on all of the essentials to tide us over until our flight, we grabbed some dinner from Jersey Mike’s subs, and then called the shuttle to pick us up.
Back at the hotel, I realized that the Evening Reception had started since it had been awhile since we stayed at an Embassy Suites property we decided to see what they offered. We dropped our bags off in the room and headed down to the atrium. The Evening Reception was much more than I expected! It included complimentary snacks such as nachos, cheese crackers, trail mix, and beer, wine, mixed drinks, with the option to make a fancy Shirley Temple for kiddos or those that do not drink alcohol. The reception would be the perfect way to unwind after a long day or even a jumping off point to get your night started at some of the local attractions in the area.
However, our destination after sampling those yummy appetizers and drinks was shower-land with a final destination in sleepy-town! Let me tell you, after being in the same clothes for over 24 hours, covered in traveler’s grime, there are very few things as great as taking a shower and putting on fresh clothes.
Just before we settled into bed for the night the lovely Embassy Suites staff rang and asked if they could bring up a treat for Roo. Within moments 2 large pieces of Black Forest cake and 2 glasses of milk arrived at our suite! Roo could hardly wait for the tray to be placed on the table before she started salivating, jumping up and down, and asking to dig in. One of Roo’s challenges is ADHD, so we try to limit her sugar intake, but after the day we had we both deserved a sweet treat. We shared the cake while watching a little TV and it was the perfect ending to a rough day.
The next morning I was promptly awoken by the wake-up call I placed the night before, stretched and realized that I hadn’t moved from the original spot I laid down in. No tossing and turning, and even though I was up before the sun rose I felt well rested. As girls and I got dressed, we were able to catch the sunrise from the bedroom window, and despite it being partially unobstructed by the parking garage it was still pretty magical. Ready to tackle the airport yet again, we headed downstairs to catch the shuttle.
Sadly for us, our early morning flight meant that we didn’t have a chance to sit down for breakfast, but what the staff was putting out sure looked delicious. We headed to the front desk to request a shuttle to the airport, but the front desk representative looked a bit perplexed because apparently the morning shuttles run on a schedule and we had just missed one, and the next shuttle would make us late for our flight. Somehow we missed this tidbit of information during check-in and I immediately started to panic. The representative sprung into action and called a local taxi to fetch us. I practically held my breath for the 10 minutes it took for the taxi to arrive, and while I was pacing the lobby she was even kind enough to call and check on the status of the taxi when it didn’t arrive right away. Thankfully the taxi driver pulled up front just as my anxiety was about to reach a new high score, and we dashed off to the airport.
All in all the shuttle bus situation was a minor hiccup in an otherwise great stay. The next time we are in the Anaheim area I will definitely consider staying at the Embassy Suites Orange County again so that we can have a chance to fully experience everything they have to offer!
