On the Road with Rosalyn, Dillon, CO! Guest Post!
One of the things we’re most proud of at Social Butterfly Express is our personal connection to travel. SBE grew from the personal passion for travel of Founder and Lead Travel Consultant Rosalyn Cooper, combined with her planning savvy, and she is constantly on the road scouting locations for her destination wedding couples, honeymoons, and even large group trips!
Our "On the Road with Rosalyn!" series chronicles Rosalyn’s personal and professional travels, giving you the scoop on the best locations, venues, and excursions. And now, we're excited to announce our collaboration with guest blog contributors - friends and colleagues of SBE who are gracious enough to share the deets of some of their favorite all-time trips! (Interested in being featured? Submit an application here.)
In this edition, we're handing over the reigns to Kayla Bates who's giving us the scoop of her dreamy anniversary trip to Dillon, CO! Check out Kayla's story below.
I have always loved to travel! When I was younger, my exploration was limited to the East Coast/Southeast region of the US, but as I've gotten older I've begun to explore more of the West Coast. And believe me, it has NOT disappointed! (Just check out the picture below and you'll see why!)
In September, my hubby and I decided to get away to celebrate our 3 year anniversary with a long weekend in Dillon, CO. We were actually married in the same location, so it seemed like an easy choice for an anniversary trip. Honestly, we weren't really sure what to expect given #thiscovidlife, but overall we felt safe and had a good experience getting to and from our destinations and we both remained healthy so no complaints!
Getting There
Part of what inspired this trip was the incredible deal we got on our flights from Frontier. During a special they were running, we ended up scoring 2 round-trip tickets for less than $50 total! If you are familiar with Frontier as an airline, you probably know there are NO bells and whistles when it comes to their flights. That said, we got from point A to point B (and back again!) without any issues. If you are looking for a more cost-effective way to travel long distances and can do without some of the costly extras, check out Frontier!
PRO TIP: Allegiant Air is another budget-friendly airline that cuts costs by cutting amenities. You may find better luck with one or the other depending on where you're traveling to and from.
Accommodations
While in Dillon, we spent our time in an AirBNB property. We also spent a couple of nights at a budget hotel in Denver (Microtel). Both properties were taking sanitation regulations very seriously, making for a really clean environment and giving my husband and I both peace of mind throughout the duration of our trip.
Since we'd be traveling between different cities within the state, it only made sense we rent a car. However, we didn't go the traditional Enterprise or Hertz route here.....Turo is a car-sharing marketplace that functions similarly to a rental car company, but lets you rent out personal vehicles to use, or allows people to rent their vehicles for others to use rather than renting from the rental company themselves. This San Francisco based company is making its way across the US and we'd definitely recommend you try it out if you're looking for alternatives to traditional car rental!
Things to Do
We had an absolute blast exploring the outdoors and the beautiful mountain scenery. On the first day, we rented a side-by-side (sort of like an ATV - see what they look like here) and summited 3 mountains, including Georgia's Pass, and William's Peak.
The next day we explored Breckenridge and enjoyed the beautiful scenery of color-changing Aspens before grabbing a bite to eat at Yo Mommas! <-- this taco and burrito shack was TO DIE FOR! The food was so delicious and I definitely recommend you make the trip next time you're in or near the Breckenridge area.
The day after that included one of my favorite memories from the trip - hiring a photographer to take photos of my husband and I at the same location where we had our wedding. It was really nice to be back in that spot with my husband, reflecting on our wedding day and how we've grown together over the past three years. We can't wait to get the photos back from our amazing photographer!
After the photoshoot, we did some hiking and exploring before finishing the night off at the Dillon Dam Brewery. This is another location that is super special to us as it's the same location where we had our wedding reception. Returning to the brewery was a great way to unwind from the day full of exploring, and relive the magical moments from the night of our wedding.
On the last day, we continued exploring by visiting Grand Lake and Rocky Mountain National Park. The views and scenery are breathtaking, and the wildlife is nothing like what we're used to in Ohio (complete with plenty of elk!) We ended up summiting the 4th mountain of our trip, this time in the truck we rented from Turo (don't worry - it was definitely the right truck for the job!). I'm not going to lie, summiting a mountain in a truck is not for the faint of heart! It was certainly a little nerve wrecking, but overall I would definitely recommend adventurers and thrill-seekers trying it out.
Check out Colorado for your next trip!
Sounds pretty amazing, right? A huge THANK YOU to Kayla Bates (and her hubby!) for taking the time to give us the deets about her trip.
If you're ready to hit the road to Colorado or elsewhere, SBE would love to help you plan your next big trip! Consultations are complimentary and obligation-free. Request a quote today, and hit the road with Social Butterfly Express!
