I hope you’re ready for a full work week; I’m already feeling like I might be dragging behind the struggle bus, but I’m keeping a positive mind that I’m going to get through this.
Today, I am sharing some photos from my long weekend in Cincinnati. I went right before the 4th to watch a good friend of mine get married. While I’ve been to Cincinnati a few times {it’s only an hour and a half from Louisville}, its always been just for a few hours. I’ve never really had the chance to explore so I decided to plan my own weekend getaway and relax a little.
I chose to stay at 21C Museum Hotel for a variety of reasons; I’ve only heard good things about the boutique hotel chain that started in Louisville and now has six locations throughout the south and midwest. The Cincinnati location is downtown and and was central to everything I needed: donuts, Panera, the wedding reception, etc. It also has a CVS right at the corner in case you forget any necessities.
Each hotel has an art museum in the lobby that is open to the public as well as a restaurant and spa. You can book online or by phone and the staff was amazing. There are several parking lots very close by, but I chose to utilize the valet; it’s $35 per night and you do have in and out privileges which is really convenient if you want to leave the city and check out some of the shopping, art murals or cross over the river to Northern Kentucky.
So let me show you what the suite looks like!
I brought my laptop with me so that I could work on some homework {and watch Netflix, let’s keep it 100% real!} I actually used most of my free time to explore so I didn’t get a ton of series watching in, but I loved that the hotel had free WiFi so that I didn’t have to worry about blowing through my data plan like I usually do when I travel. It also was super convenient when I was looking for food, trying to see how far away things were or googling directions.
You can just see a little peek of my luggage, the closet is covered with a rolling mirror and had shelves for me to put my crossbody up on as well as a robe, luggage rack, the iron and ironing board. I rented a dress from Rent the Runway for the wedding so as soon as I got settled into my room, I hung it up in here.
I watched a little bit of the Olympic Trials Friday night {y’all it doesn’t matter if I’m home or away, Friday nights are a time to relax in my mind} and a little baseball before bed. I don’t think I’ve mentioned it here, but I’ve been actively trying to increase my water consumption lately so it was a sweet surprise that the hotel left me two complimentary water bottles to enjoy. There also was a mini bar tucked away in the middle cabinet under the tv, but obviously I’d stocked up on enough Sour Patch Kids at the gas station prior to my arrival.
How stinkin’ cute is this dog pillow? I need one with an Airedale on it in my life. The view from my room was so pretty the first day so after I ate some dinner I curled up on this couch with my Kindle. Another huge plus for me about my room was the blackout blinds. I struggle to sleep away from home so being able to get my hotel room completely dark at any point of the day was everything. I was mildly concerned about downtown noise keeping me up but I slept super solidly the first night and was even able to take a nap before the wedding on Saturday.
And of course, making all my blogger dreams come true – multiple full length mirrors with great lighting. You can only see a very dark peek of the bathroom in this shot but it was gorgeous. Very spacious, I had plenty of room to get ready and even steam my dress. All white tile and a walk in shower. {You can also let the front desk know if you’d prefer a room with a bathtub and they will take care of you!}
Saturday morning, I got up and decided to walk down to a donut shop I’d heard good things about; I was also thrilled because the walk would take me past a couple of the Artworks murals that I really wanted to see while I was in town. Artworks has a map if you want to take walking tour of the different downtown murals and also has the full list of murals with their street addresses listed on their website. While I did get to see a handful of them, I’m hoping I can go back up to Cincy soon to see some of the others. This mural is the Martha the last Passenger Pigeon mural and it’s right across the street from Cincinnati’s Table.
My long stroll helped me get my steps in {#FitBitLife} and took me to Over the Rhine. Everything is super cute and boutiquey and I loved it. I felt really safe walking by myself, but it was about 11 am so I was comfortable knowing that people were out and about.
Most of the murals I saw during my walk were part of public parking lots; the color of this wall from the Energy and Grace mural is gorgeous in person {check out a better picture of the vibrant color here}.
Holtman’s Donuts immediately was near the top of my to do list. They have a wide variety of specialty donuts. Think Shark Week themed with Swedish Fish, Lucky Charms marshmallows covered, Fruity Pebbles, etc. The line was out to door when I strolled up but moved very quickly and I even got to chat with a guy in line behind me who filled me in on which donuts I had to try while we waited.
When I got up to actually pick out my donuts I felt mildly overwhelmed, but my new friend and the sweet lady behind the counter were quick to jump in, make suggestions and make sure I got a fresh maple and bacon donut, Holtman’s top seller.
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about Cincinnati!
