So this week I started looking in to all the destinations we could use our timeshare. The group we own with recently switched from RCI to Interval International and I'm not fully acquainted with all of the resorts they offer so it was fun to go through the map to see what was available, when, and where. Apparently you can exchange into the southern coast of Spain pretty easily. I was equally shocked to see a couple of places in the Austrian Alps available for exchange. What you might not know is The Sound of Music is my absolute favorite movie of all time; I'd have no problem whatsoever schlupping around Salzburg and the green mountains surrounding it. Unfortunately, airfare in to Munich was $1450/person. Yikes! So even though we were looking at our lodging already taken care of, we would be spending nearly $3000 just to get there. Yeah, that wasn't going to happen.
So then I started looking at other places in Europe that we could fly to for cheaper. We could use our timeshare in London at an affiliated hotel, so I did some research and found direct flights priced at $1050/person on British Airways. Getting better but still not perfect (especially as we have had really crappy flights on BA).
Since we visited Ireland in the winter and had to contend with the Storm of the Millenium, we've talked about visiting Ireland when the weather is warmer and more hospitable. Flights to Dublin were $1000/person to $1400/person depending on which airline and route you took. Strangely, with the $1400/person flight, for $96 more per person you could add a whole week at a well-rated three star hotel in Temple Bar. Flights were a terrible deal but flight + hotel was actually a pretty good deal when you look at it that way. Alas, we don't want to spend a whole week in Dublin the next time we visit so it was a no-go for us.
I brought up all of these options about the time same Alan was reading my post from yesterday and he brought up a really good point. He's super busy at work and feeling a bit worn out so having a vacation that's go, go, go (what all of our European adventures are) would make him even more tired - he'd need a vacation from his vacation. On the flip side, when we got back from Maui he felt rested and rejuvenated and ready to go back to work. That type of vacation is exactly what he wanted, and I agreed. In exchange, he told me we could go to Europe next year. It's a deal.
So this morning I called our timeshare company and booked us a week in Princeville at The Cliffs Club, the same place we stayed in May 2010 for five nights. I thought I'd be kind of ho-hum because I was really looking forward to casacaudill's great european adventure (TM), but within minutes of getting my confirmation number I was as giddy as if it was my first time going to Kauai. Sure, there's really not a whole lot new for us to do, but we're staying on my favorite island at a place on my favorite part of the island and that's something to definitely look forward to. Oh, and I will try surfing again.
