Friday, September 18, 2015

Anniversary Surprise Trip to Coeur D'Alene!

I absolutely fell in love with this beautiful place!
As those of you who follow me on Instagram and Twitter know, I just returned home from a surprise trip to Coeur D'Alene, Idaho. Now, to many, Idaho certainly does not sound like a tourist destination. Or like it would be pretty - let alone gorgeous! Let me assure you though, Coeur D'Alene was absolutely stunning and stole my heart. Today, I want to give you a quick wrap up of how this trip came to be, and all of the wonderful things I was able to do while in Coeur D'Alene!

Strolling the boardwalk with the love of my life!
A few months ago, Nick found out that he would most likely be traveling for work to Coeur D'Alene September 14-16. He's been on the road almost every week for the last eight weeks- in between trips to Minnesota and Wisconsin, he has headed to Boston, Washington D.C., and Sacramento. However, this trip was different. First, because I had always heard Coeur D'Alene was beautiful, and second, because we were celebrating our second wedding anniversary on September 14! Naturally, I asked if I could tag along on the trip. Not realizing how beautiful Coeur D'Alene was, Nick kind of brushed the idea aside (or so I thought!) for the next couple of months. All of a sudden, as I was trying to make anniversary plans for us here in Des Moines, I found out that he had arranged for me to take the time off work and purchased a ticket for me to join him! (talk about an amazing husband...!)

A quick pit stop in Post Falls, Idaho!
Nonetheless, fast forward until we land in Spokane, Washington. Coeur D'Alene is about 30 minutes outside of Spokane, so as soon as we had landed and collected our bags off we went! About 15 minutes into our drive and all of a sudden we crossed this stunning bridge, with a backdrop of a deep ravine and waterfall in the background. Despite wanting to get to the hotel and checked in, Nick pulled off to the side of the road and we had a quick pit-stop in Post Falls!

Slightly blurry...but gosh, was Post Falls ever beautiful!
We only strolled around Post Falls for 20 or 30 minutes, but the entire park area we visited was beautiful. Unfortunately, the beautiful waterfall we saw from the road with the steep ravine was a bit different of a view close up. However, with the beautiful bridge, clear water reflecting everything, and a gorgeous park area- you couldn't ask for a much better pit stop!

After getting back on the road, we finally made it to our destination at the Coeur D'Alene Resort, right on lake Coeur D'Alene. Once we had checked in, I decided to head out and explore the town solo! With a population of just over 40,000, Coeur D'Alene is definitely a small town that has embraced tourism. As such, strolling the streets it was amazing to see all of the locally owned shops and boutiques that still had an upscale feel. I didn't recognize a single store or restaurant, which was terrific because it really meant that Coeur D'Alene had maintained the small town feel.

Walking along the boardwalk in Coeur D'Alene!
Other than exploring the town, I spent a ton of time walking the world's longest floating boardwalk and hiking Tubbs Hill. All of the views along the waterfront were spectacular. My only regret is that the sun did not come out to play for too long during my trip, so I was never able to catch a sunrise or sunset! Both of these are supposed to be just stunning in Coeur D'Alene.



One of the things that surprised me the most with visiting Coeur D'Alene was our date night at Tony's On The Lake. Tony's was established by the D'Alessandro family, who emigrated to the U.S. from Italy in 1909. If there is one thing I love, it is fabulous Italian food. Well, Tony's not only had some of the best Italian food I have ever had, but the service was far superior to almost any restaurant I've visited in the world. Definitely not what I was expecting in Idaho, but oh my gosh! Beyond wanting to return to Coeur D'Alene for the stunning views, I will certainly be returning so that I can have the pleasure of dining at Tony's again.

so many beautiful murals in town!
The other thing that I really enjoyed about Coeur D'Alene (really, what didn't I enjoy?) was the amazing kindness of each individual I came across. Now, in Minnesota we like to call ourselves Minnesota Nice- but the Coeur D'Alene people have certainly adopted that mentality! Each person that I interacted with, whether a staff member at the restaurants or hotel, somebody in a shop, or random people I encountered while hiking- was so warm and friendly. There is definitely something about small towns that will make you fall in love!

taking in the gorgeous views!
This trip was absolutely so amazing. If you had asked me a year- or even six months ago- if I thought I'd be celebrating my second anniversary in Idaho, I would have probably laughed at you. Looking back at how things have changed, it is a truly great reminder that sometimes life's unexpected turns bring us some of the greatest things. I can't wait to continue to share more beautiful pictures and memories from Coeur D'Alene with you!

9 comments:

  1. What a beautiful looking place!!! I love that top pic.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Mar! It was definitely beautiful. I know I want to go back!

      Delete
  2. Definitely not a place I'd think to go, but it looks beautiful!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm in the same boat- I had never really thought of Idaho as being beautiful, but it most certainly was!

      Delete
  3. My college roommate was from Coeur D'Alene and she grew up right on the lake! I never have had the chance to visit but would love to one day it looks like such a beautiful place.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh what a small world! Hopefully one day if you are back in the U.S. for a longer trip you'll be able to go visit her!

      Delete
  4. Ahh I still can't believe you guys were in Coeur D'alene! It's so sweet your husband surprised you for your anniversary with a trip there! I would love to move to CDA in the future, everyone always thinks I'm crazy when I say I want to move to Idaho, but it really is paradise - especially in the summer. I frequently hike Tubbs Hill with my dog, it's so beautiful! There's also randomly a pretty big hockey community out there (not like MN, but definitely much bigger than expected - theres a lot of current/former nhl players with houses on the lake) and tons of wineries and breweries in Spokane. Sorry this comment is the length of a book, but basically you guys need to visit again in the summer months ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Annessa! And hey, don't apologize for the novel- I love it! You are so lucky that you live that close to CDA. How cool that there is also a hockey community out there for your hubby. I'm definitely convinced that we will need to head back there one of these days for a longer trip! I really want to go horseback riding out there- it seems like that would be such a great way to really see more of the city and beautiful forests!

      Delete
  5. I've wanted to visit Couer D'alene for years. My husband and I recently passed through Idaho on the way to Oregon and I couldn't believe how gorgeous the state is. Definitely one I'd like to visit again. Congratulations on your anniversary.

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
Thank you so much for taking the time to read and comment on my blog! I truly appreciate and will take the time to respond to each of your comments. Please, do not post links unassociated with my content as they will be deleted.