Wine and Spirits Travel

It wasn’t long after I moved to the Midwest before I started hearing about Lake Geneva. I honestly didn’t know much about the Wisconsin town before this, but when I met with a representative of their Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB) at the Chicago Travel Show , I knew that I had to put it on my trip list. Finding a friend to come along was an easy task. In fact, my friends Cortney and Amy were both begging to come. I checked with the Lake Geneva CVB who was making all the arrangements, and they agreed that it sounded like the makings of a great girls’ getaway. They weren’t wrong. The drive to Lake Geneva only took a few hours. We arrived at Maxwell Mansion 1856 late afternoon and were immediately taken with the property. Chicago Surgeon Dr. Philip Maxwell built this property for him and his wife to move into in 1856. It joined the list of Lake Geneva properties that had become vacation homes for the wealthy in Chicago. Among those who have stayed at Maxwe

It was a short trip, but I had some time before meeting my mom for her birthday celebration, so I decided to go for it. I had flown into West Palm Beach Airport more times than I can remember.  From there I always headed straight into Delray Beach without even exploring the area, even though I never actually got to the “beach,” the area didn’t disappoint. This time, with an invitation to stay at The Chesterfield , a member of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World, I decided to stick around Palm Beach – at least for 24 hours. While I was there I decided to check out a few restaurants. The Palm Beaches include many towns, including Ocean Ridge, Palm Beach Gardens, South Bay, West Palm Beach, and Riviera Beach. The area has its own airport so I was able to fly right in from Chicago.  Palm Beaches Tourism arranged for a car to pick me up and take me to Avocado Grill for lunch, where I would learn more about this region – while enjoy a fantastic lunch.