Best staycation at Blue Horizon Hotel

This is a sponsored post, but I tell 'ya, I am absolutely delighted to write it. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Question: When best friends come to Vancouver for a visit, is it be better for me to go home every night to sleep or stay with them at the hotel? Duh!

Thank you, Blue Horizon Hotel, for an excellent weekend of hospitality lavished on me, Suzanne Carillo, Patti of Not Dead Yet Style and Sherry Dryja of Petite Over 40. Sue from A Colourful Canvas also joined in a couple of times.

me, Suzanne, Patti, Sherry (photo by Sue)

F O M O  no more!

(FOMO means fear of missing out)

A staycation has never been so much fun. Blue Horizon, a boutique hotel, was the perfect home-away-from-home for our visit. We had the pleasure of experiencing one of its private bedroom suites. 

Below is what the living room looked like when I arrived, pristine, except for my little wheelie cart on the right. There was a Keurig coffeemaker, a kettle with complimentary tea, and a fridge for storing our leftover nibblers and other snacks. Chocolate treats and chips were in constant view for spiritual training purposes.

Located on the southwest corner, our room was flooded with natural light, which is always good for style bloggers armed with cameras and their most fun outfits, but there were blackout curtains as well. Isn't that a groovy armchair on the left? Of course I had photos in it. 

I call this shot by Suzanne, Upholstery Camouflage. I could have stayed in the room for weeks without anyone noticing I'm there. The groovy vintage jacket and pants were a gift from Suzanne in the summer.

photo by Suzanne

Below, a mirror selfie of me grinning in anticipation of my friends' arrivals from planes, trains, and automobiles from Toronto, Florida, and Seattle. 

And, gulp, check out that view, stunning from our balcony on the 29th floor. The green area is Stanley Park and that main drag is Robson Street, one of Vancouver's preeminent shopping areas. The hotel is walking distance from it all, including the Art Gallery, fantastic thrift stores, the Convention Centre, and more.

Along the water's edge on the left is English Bay, where I sometimes pose with big logs. Heh.

The only thing better than a view like this...

...is a view like this with friends, Suzanne and Sherry.

We enjoyed sunny skies for part of the weekend, but it also rained and even hailed. If we were outdoor athletes, it would have cramped our style, but indoors? Meh, nothing cramps our style except too-tight, sky-high shoes, even then we grin and bear it.

And there we are united on the sofa. I set up my tripod with the remote for this one.

Left to right: me, Sherry, Suzanne, Patti. 

The private bedroom with a king-sized bed was spacious and bright with it's own private bath. The living room area also had a mini wing with a private washroom. Having two facilities in our room ensured peace and harmony throughout our stay. 

You know you're having fun when the photo above starts to look like the one below, and that's just part of it.

I brought two large suitcases stuffed with clothes to play with for our photo shoot. As a local I didn't have luggage restrictions and hotel attendants happily provided extra hangers.

We made full use of Blue Horizon's pool, fitness area, and lobby during our stay. You'll have to wait to see what I mean by that in a follow-up post. Heh.

Our room was set up well for hanging out but we also spent quite a bit of time in Abode, the hotel's restaurant and coffee/cocktail bar. Below is the view from the dining area toward the lobby.

The food was delicious and the service was fantastic. This server is from Australia and we had the pleasure of her camaraderie and care on a couple of occasions.

photo by Sue

It's possible that below we were discussing Abode's famous apple rhubarb crisp with ice cream. I (and someone else - Suzanne!) ordered it twice during our stay. She'll probably post about it. Her photo was waaay better than mine.

photo by Sherry

There's Suzanne with her buddy "Marilyn" in the elevator. The blue patch is a reflection of my phone. Each lift features a fun photo of "Marilyn" in a series of speak/see/hear-no-evil poses. Hahaha! You can read more about her on the hotel website, here. 

There is also a large back-lit cibachrome colour photo of her with curlers in her hair and a martini in her hand in the lobby. Can you think of anything more welcoming and appropriate for our group? I found this partial view in one of my photos. Isn't she great?

Finally, there I am on the last day, captured by Sherry on the balcony.

Truly, getting away, even in my own city, staying at a place that took good care of me, and spending time with good friends gave me a fresh perspective on the world of possibilities ahead.

photo by Sherry

Thank you again, Blue Horizon Hotel, for your role in making this such a memorable weekend. The only complaint I have is that our time was too short. We'll have to do it again!

Stay tuned for our photo shoot post!