Our travel day could not have been more perfect!! Everything was incredibly smooth and on time and then a few happy surprises were added in...and what we are calling Day 1 in the Tetons was a success!!
After a 4:00 a.m. wake-up call, we headed to the airport...
- no lines at check-in
- no lines to drop our bags
- no lines at security
- made it to our gate in record time and found breakfast.
We boarded our plane to Denver with no problem. We were on one of the new Dreamliner 787s and it was pretty impressive. Great seatback entertainment, new windows that dimmed automatically without shades and the first class had the "lay flat" seat/beds (we weren't there, but they looked pretty cool).
We had only a 30 minute layover in Denver and it was also very smooth - our gates were 5 away from each other and our luggage made it with no problem. We even had time to grab a quick snack before boarding.
We landed in Jackson at about 1:00 p.m. their time and again, so smooth.
- Our luggage came out quickly
- Our rental car was ready for us
And away we went. Our room wasn't ready yet, so we set out to explore a bit.
Our traditional selfie in front of the mountains on arrival day. :)
It really is a winter wonderland here - so beautiful!!
After exploring the Tetons for a bit, we then headed into Jackson for our traditional stop at the grocery store before going to the hotel.
Our grocery trip started out uneventful, except that we were all starving and probably buying things that we didn't need, until Carleigh was asked to move in an aisle and she turned around and JIMMY KIMMEL was asking her to move.
Yep, we went grocery shopping with Jimmy Kimmel for a while...more like trying to stalk him and not act like we were bothering him. He and Don exchanged niceties and Carleigh and Katie tried not to stare (unsuccessfully!) We checked out at the same time and they went to their car and we went to ours...this pic is of him at his car. You can't see much, but it is our evidence that he was there.
We then headed to our hotel and as we were pulling in to the parking lot, we got the call that the room was ready...again, perfect timing and smooth sailing.
I checked us in and was told that we got a complimentary upgrade to a 1 bedroom suite, instead of the single room with 2 beds that we paid for. This trip is a belated 50th birthday adventure and the front desk knew that, maybe the upgrade was because of that or maybe because this is our 5th time visiting this hotel....who knows? And we aren't complaining!!
We unpacked a bit and then headed back out to the Tetons to one of our favorite restaurants for an early dinner. Again, it's a winter wonderland here!
After dinner, we returned to Teton Village and wandered around for a bit to enjoy the cold air (8 degrees) and see what it looked like in the dark with all of the holiday lights still up!
Arrival day was a success! From smooth travels to Jimmy Kimmel to upgraded hotel room to great dinner and beautiful scenery...I can't wait to see what tomorrow holds!
