When deciding on a place to celebrate my birthday and the Thanksgiving holiday with my family, I initially thought of celebrating in a cabin up in the mountains, during the cold winter season. I started to think about how the cool weather would feel against my body, then immediately began rethinking of other places with warmer weather lol. I was able to find one of the best oceanfront resorts, with spectacular views, through the Booking.com loyalty program website. I chose the amazing Daytona Grande Oceanfront Resort, which is located in Daytona Beach, FL.
Now let’s tRavel iN style!
I drove to and arrived at the Daytona Grande Oceanfront Resort on the day of my birthday. From the moment we pulled up to the front entrance of the resort, we were greeted by the utmost courteous, pleasant staff members who handled our luggage with care. For parking, we had the choice to self-park or use valet. We chose to self-park, which was a short walking distance directly across the street, in a securely gated parking garage. Fortunately, the staff members secured our luggage on a bellman’s luggage cart upon arrival and delivered it to our room, once we checked-in.
From the front desk to our room, the ensemble of the resort was stupendously stunning. The color scheme of the resort was a direct reflection of the calmness of a beach. There were calm shades of beige, ivory and soft blues throughout the resort that mirrored the sand and water on the beach.
Our room, the Oceanfront King Suite, was on the 23rd floor out of 27 floors. This one bedroom suite included a kitchenette, full size refrigerator, microwave, dining table set, king size bed, sleeper sofa, panoramic views, and more. The best parts of the suite were the panoramic views that were seen throughout the entire living room and the views from the balcony. I rested better than I have ever rested in my entire life during my afternoon naps, by opening the balcony door and feeling the cool ocean breeze, while relaxing to the sound of the ocean waves.
To celebrate my birthday, my family and I went to MAMA FOO FOO, a contemporary cuisine restaurant. If you didn’t already know, I love good cocktails and ordered the sweet, delicious Purple PNKLLR. This drink had 7 different rums in it! There’s no wonder why I didn’t feel that blister on my big toe when I wore those pink/orange Vince Camuto heels! As for the food, I had the Fried Catfish & Grandma’s Collards, which was just ok, but the presentation and service were great👌🏾.
The next day was Thanksgiving Day. Instead of the traditional turkey meal, my mother cooked a small pot of Chili and prepared a charcuterie board. We didn’t want to get too full from our afternoon meal because we had Thanksgiving dinner reservations that evening at the resort’s restaurant called The Abalone at Daytona Grande. When we arrived, we were greeted by amazing hosts. The Thanksgiving spread was delicious and plentiful. I was stunned when the waiter kept bringing dish after dish to our table. The dinner spread included turkey, ham, cranberry sauce, roasted Brussels sprouts, mash potatoes, gravy, baked macaroni and cheese, soup, salad, and then some! I won’t even mention the dessert spread. We had to pack up the remaining food that we could not eat and take it back to our room to eat later.
I truly enjoyed my time at the Daytona Grande Oceanfront Resort. Traditionally, we would celebrate Thanksgiving Day at a family member’s house, usually grandma’s, but now it is time to create new traditions. If you’re looking to celebrate holidays outside of “tradition”, I believe celebrating at the Daytona Grande Oceanfront Resort would be a great start.
Let me know if you have ever celebrated holidays outside of the “traditional” way. Drop a comment below! 😃🌊