Traveling with other families can be wonderful or dreadful. Luckily for us, we have only heard about the dreadful but haven’t experienced it first hand. The key is choosing the right people to travel with. This past weekend we ventured back to our most frequent getaway location, Palm Springs. With two other families, it was a fantastic weekend that ended too quickly. The kids got along great and someone always had playmate. You know when the flow of playtime seems easy and organic? That’s how it was. Each kid played with who they wanted, when they wanted and it all worked out so nicely. We all pulled our kids out of school early Friday (shh, don’t tell) to beat the traffic and get in some swim time while the sun was still up. We ended back in our room for dinner and drinks and let the kids go into a trance on their respective devices to end a very long week and start a fun, relaxing one off right.
The next morning was an early one as the dads were hitting the golf course while us mamas got the kids downstairs to the pool and ordered ourselves breakfast cocktails. It took some time to warm up but eventually our sweatshirts came off. We spent time reading magazines, eating, watching the kids play, chatting about anything and everything, and enjoying the sun. It also involved a lot of getting up and making sure the kids were safe and behaving. Once the dads returned, we all had fun in the pool and passed the parental baton for a short time before heading to clean up for dinner.
Both nights we were there, we ordered in. My favorite find at many hotels is the availability of a Parlor Suite which is basically a large living room area with conference table. It usuallly has either pull out couches or murphy beds and adjoining bedrooms. While this room is typically used for business purposes, it makes the perfect space for a large family to hang out and dine in, especially traveling with a big group. The first night we had delicious Italian food and the second night was chinese food. Both delivered to the hotel, we just had to meet them in the lobby which is typical when ordering food to a hotel. Ordering in is so nice after a long day when everyone is tired. We brought games for the kids and they ended it watching a movie while the adults ended things on a more animated note after a day of cocktails (but we don’t need to talk about that, haha).
We spent our last morning before heading back home swimming, eating, and laying by the pool. The late checkout we requested let us take our time and make the most of our weekend.
A note about the resort we stayed at. This will not be the first or last time you hear me talk about the Renaissance Indian Wells Resort. We love this place. The rooms are good size, the pool offers so much with two spas, a waterfall, huge swimming areas, and my favorite, the beach. The kids played for hours in the sand, could run right into the pool and rinse off, and we didn’t have to worry about any waves. It’s a pool for all ages. All in all, a successful and too-short weekend away that will definitely be repeated soon if I have anything to say about it.
