These hotels are childlike playgrounds for grownups
Who wants to be an adult when they're on vacation? The following hotels double as fully-equipped playgrounds for adults:
1. Pod 39 (NYC). Pod 39's rooms are full of tech amenities including bedside charging stations, free Wi-Fi and hook-ups that connect your phone to the TV so you can stream Spotify or Netflix.When it's time to unplug, you can head downstairs for a bite at Salvation Taco, run by Michelin Star Chefs April Bloomfield and Ken Friedman, or enter the Play Room, a colorful lounge that features brightly hued Chinese lanterns, Moroccan rugs and couches, as well as books, craft cocktails, board games and ping pong. Upstairs, the 17th-story rooftop lounge offers views of the Chrysler Building, One World Trade, the East River and the Empire State Building.
2. Hotel Mama Shelter (Turkey/France/California). While each property differs, the idea behind the brand is shared fun for all income brackets and age groups. Its newest Los Angeles property has fun local twists like bistro ceilings donning chalk drawings of LA "mamas" as well as LA-based film scripts in rooms. Other fun features include foosball, masks used as bedside lampshades, interactive note boards for guest communication, LA-themed Monopoly-inscribed tables and a rooftop projector for movies.
3. Primland Resort (Meadows of Dan, Virginia). Set on 12,000 acres in Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains region, Primland Resort is the perfect place to partake in a techno-enabled scavenger hunt, aka geocaching. Other activities include a clay pigeon-shooting obstacle course, disc golf, fishing, paddle boarding and recreational tree climbing.
4. The Embassy Row Hotel (Washington DC). This property features an underground street art-adorned playground with foosball, ping pong and sometimes a pop-up bar. Its onsite Station Kitchen & Cocktails features fun, kiddish items including bacon lollipops and bottled cocktails. There are also regular events and activities such as supper clubs, poolside games and rooftop yoga, and Instagrammers can transform into heavenly beings — and get 10% off their dining bill for social sharing — in front of artist Colette Miller's colorful angel wings.
5. Hotel Zed (Victoria, B.C). Playful design is what Hotel Zed is all about, with retro neon-hued furniture, 1960s-style rotary phones, shelves of comic books, a vinyl record listening station in the lobby, vintage typewriters (type up a postcard and mail it free of charge), a pool with a water slide, free bike rentals, and a game room with ping pong and Nintendo Wii.
6. Wilderness Resort (Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin). This property mixes business with pleasure. Along with a 55,661 square foot conference center with seating for 1,200 people as well as smaller meeting spaces, adults can enjoy laser tag, mini and traditional golf, go karts, ziplining, ropes courses, and a water park totaling the size of 12 football fields.
Jessica Festa is the founder on the solo and offbeat travel blog, Jessie on a Journey, and the online responsible tourism and culture magazine, Epicure & Culture. She's constantly searching for local experiences beyond the guidebook. You can follow her travels on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.