Tweet
We are squarely on the 3rd leg of our summer vacation as we have arrived last night at WorldMark Marina Dunes. Pismo Beach was a terrific place and we will definitely be back.
One of best attributes of WorldMark is the Noon check out times. I am a very early riser, but my family likes to sleep in. I have always used the 10 am check out time as the forcing function for us to get up and on our way when it's time to go to our next vacation. But, I must admit, being able to check out at Noon is a nice luxury. The family can sleep in. I can get a bunch done and we can take our time getting out the door.
We left about Noon from WorldMark Pismo Beach to head north to the Monterey area. Our first stop on the way was Hearst Castle. We have never been to it before since it was always too far out of the way for a stop. We are very happy we did it. Hearst Castle is MAGNIFICENT. I really do not aspire to be a mega millionaire. But, after seeing this place, it would be very nice to have enough money to travel the world collecting artwork and building a museum from our global treasure hunts.
There are 4 tours you can take of the estate. We took tour 2 which went through the 70000 sqft main house and Hearst's private quarters and the very elaborate, 22-carat gold leaf swimming pool. The indoor pool has over 1M tiles and it took 3.5 years to lay the tile. Normally, I don't like ostentatious displays of wealth. But for some reason, this felt like it was done more for the people than for the person. The family donated the Castle to the state as made it an official monument. I wish that more ultra rich people would spend money in this way.
After Hearst Castle, we headed up the Pacific Coast Highway for another 94 miles to Marina Dunes. There was no cell service all the way up the coast. It was tough not having access to telephone service. How spoiled we are. We drove through Big Sur and Carmel. Saw the Hyatt from the Highway and ended up at Marina Dunes.
WorldMark Marina Dunes is also a hotel. The units are very WorldMark-like in their very plain furnishings and unique floor plans. And, of course, there is a murphy bed in the living room. I love those as well.
The most important feature of this resort, however, is the High Speed internet access you can get for $16/week or 10-day period. WorldMark will be putting in Telkonet service in all 50 plus resorts by the end of this year. For people like me, this is probably the single most important feature they could offer. I LOVE IT. I have my vonage set up and I don't have to access the internet through my dial up T-mobile service.
My sister and her family are here. We are spending the week together. Their unit is right next door to ours. So, it's going to be a fun week. Her two girls and my three boys. So far so good. No major blow ups yet.
I think we are heading over to Carmel today to watch an outdoor musical.
It is COLD here. The good news is the pool is heated.
I'll post some pictures later.
That's it for now.
One of best attributes of WorldMark is the Noon check out times. I am a very early riser, but my family likes to sleep in. I have always used the 10 am check out time as the forcing function for us to get up and on our way when it's time to go to our next vacation. But, I must admit, being able to check out at Noon is a nice luxury. The family can sleep in. I can get a bunch done and we can take our time getting out the door.
We left about Noon from WorldMark Pismo Beach to head north to the Monterey area. Our first stop on the way was Hearst Castle. We have never been to it before since it was always too far out of the way for a stop. We are very happy we did it. Hearst Castle is MAGNIFICENT. I really do not aspire to be a mega millionaire. But, after seeing this place, it would be very nice to have enough money to travel the world collecting artwork and building a museum from our global treasure hunts.
There are 4 tours you can take of the estate. We took tour 2 which went through the 70000 sqft main house and Hearst's private quarters and the very elaborate, 22-carat gold leaf swimming pool. The indoor pool has over 1M tiles and it took 3.5 years to lay the tile. Normally, I don't like ostentatious displays of wealth. But for some reason, this felt like it was done more for the people than for the person. The family donated the Castle to the state as made it an official monument. I wish that more ultra rich people would spend money in this way.
After Hearst Castle, we headed up the Pacific Coast Highway for another 94 miles to Marina Dunes. There was no cell service all the way up the coast. It was tough not having access to telephone service. How spoiled we are. We drove through Big Sur and Carmel. Saw the Hyatt from the Highway and ended up at Marina Dunes.
WorldMark Marina Dunes is also a hotel. The units are very WorldMark-like in their very plain furnishings and unique floor plans. And, of course, there is a murphy bed in the living room. I love those as well.
The most important feature of this resort, however, is the High Speed internet access you can get for $16/week or 10-day period. WorldMark will be putting in Telkonet service in all 50 plus resorts by the end of this year. For people like me, this is probably the single most important feature they could offer. I LOVE IT. I have my vonage set up and I don't have to access the internet through my dial up T-mobile service.
My sister and her family are here. We are spending the week together. Their unit is right next door to ours. So, it's going to be a fun week. Her two girls and my three boys. So far so good. No major blow ups yet.
I think we are heading over to Carmel today to watch an outdoor musical.
It is COLD here. The good news is the pool is heated.
I'll post some pictures later.
That's it for now.
Comment