LoveHorses

Ok, my husband won 2 round trip tickets to anywhere in USA. We want to use them in April for a romantic spa and sightseeing getaway for 4 nights. We live in Florida so we were thinking about somewhere else. We have been thinking of Vail, (sonnelop Hotel), Santa Fe, (10,000 Waves or other hotel) Arizona (Sedona,Grand Canyon area) Nashville, TN, or maybe somewhere else we haven't thought about. If anyone has been to a place they would like to tell me about it might give us some good suggestions to look into it. Thank you,

tchoiniere

Given a choice, I would go to San Diego.

LoveHorses

Why San Diego? And have you been to a great hotel there that you can recommend and what sight seeing we can do there

tchoiniere

Its probably my favorite city to visit. I usually come on business but mix in plenty of sightseeing.

1. Zoo or Wild Animal Park - prefer the Zoo but the Animal Park is great too.
2. Gaslamp District - many restaurants / bars.
3. La Jolla - very nice town by the beach
4. Plenty of great restaurants - Fish Market, Island Prime, various Mexican Restaurants
5. USS Midway - Aircraft Carrier that has been turned into a museum.
6. Cabrillo Monument - top of a hill overlooking the ocean / Pt Loma. Great overlook for a fantastic view
7. Coronado Island
8. Balboa Park - Zoo is located here. Lots of great activities
9. Sea World - haven't gone there due to how expensive it is

I'm limited for hotels due to corporate policies. I cannot help you with spas. I have stayed at the
1. Bay Club - very reasonable price and great location.
2. Hilton Harbor Island - great location but price is ~ $300
3. Marriott Gaslamp - located right next to Petco Park (where the Padres play) and the Gaslamp. Very expensive.

Do a search on these forums. There are a lot of threads on San Diego from people that live there.

kelliebellie

California wine country!

Retired_teacher

If it's truly anywhere in the US, then I'd select a destination with the greatest airfare advantage and fly to Hawaii or Alaska....

hdm

They probably won't let you go to Alaska or Hawaii. We had the good fortune to win a similar trip years ago and the restriction was that it had to be in the continental (and contiguous) US. We live in Toronto so we chose San Francisco, which was about as far as we could go.

So how about San Fran. Or how about Santa Fe? It's lovely there. Lots of good restaurants and good art and if you're skiers, there's Taos nearby.

Orlando_Vic

How about San Antonio for Fiesta <http://www.fiesta-sa.org/>?

The 10-day Fiesta is held between April 18-27 and is one of this nation's premiere festivals. During that time of the year, the temperatures should be very comfortable.

follow_your_bliss

We don't do spa vacations per se, but I can recommend Ten Thousand Waves in Santa Fe. We love New Mexico and Santa Fe so that's where we went for our 10 year anniversary. We didn't stay there, though. Their lodging looks nice, but we chose to stay in town and drive out to the spa so we could walk the rest of the time. If I recall correctly, you wouldn't be able to walk anywhere if you stayed at the spa.

LoveHorses

Thank you all for your great ideas. I will look into each of them.

TahitiTams

Living in Florida, I would get out somewhere that the weather is different and from your posts it seems you love 'dude ranches'..
Maybe Sedona and the surrounding areas..
New Mexico, I would do Taos over Santa Fe and some great places that would fit your style..
Maybe Telluride too..very Cowboyish and a wonderful town.
Expedia is a good starting point to look and see what prices are and photos..

beanweb24

What is your budget for lodging? If you REALLY want luxury and spa, head to Sedona and stay at Mii Amo (connected to Enchantment resort). If Mii Amo is too pricey, stay at Enchantment and get day packages to the spa at Mii Amo. It's just a short walk from Mii Amo to Enchantment (they are on the same property).

LoveHorses

Tahiti and Bean -

Yes we love dude ranches. New Mexico is great. Been to Taos and loved it my aunt lives there but she will be away that time and would like to save Taos when she is there. Santa Fe is great but do not know where to stay there. MiAmo Spa sounds great even the Enchantment but pricy. I have to check into it again. Telluride sounds great but we only have 4 nights and it might be a long drive.

I would like to spend no more than $250 per night lodging because we want to get some treatments in and have great dinners. Expedia has great ideas but it gets confusing so many choices. I think we are leaning to not such a cold place. Its been cold her in Florida and we have visited some cold places this winter. I think we want mediocre nice weather. What do you guyes think

TahitiTams

Then come to San Diego and stay in La Jolla at the Grande Colonial Hotel..a block from the ocean and you can just hang out and stroll the coastline, eat at great restaurants and just relax!

thegrandecolonial.com
georgesatthecove.com

hdm

We stayed at the Inn of the Governors in Santa Fe and it was lovely. It gets excellent reviews on both expedia and tripadvisor and I think it's within your price range but, of course, I guess it depends on when you're planning to go.

It's a couple of minutes walk to the main square. Our room was very charming and even had a wood-burning fireplace which we happily took advantage of since we were there in the chilly months.

I also remember the front desk staff as being very helpful when we asked for information and directions.