Category Archives: Georgia

Remodeled King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort

July 29, 2014Georgia, Travelgeorgia, St. Simons Island, The King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort, TravelAlicia

The King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort

Location:
201 Arnold Road
St. Simons Island, GA

About a 5.5 hour drive from Atlanta
About an hour drive from Jacksonville International Airport

Reservations: 877-724-3170
www.kingandprince.com

St. Simons Island, Georgia is home to an award-winning vacation destination called The King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort. If you live in Georgia, chances are you and/or your friends and family have been to The King and Prince and many families have memories of visiting the quaint seaside resort for decades. The King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort, opened in 1941, recently underwent a head-turning remodel.

My family stayed in one of the The King and Prince’s rental homes called the Familia Meadows House in July and experienced the beautiful renovations first-hand. During our stay at The King and Prince last August, Bud St. Pierre – director of sales, explained the upcoming renovations and while I had reservations about the indoor heated pool being taken out and replaced with a seating area, I can’t imagine it any other way now. The King and Prince’s lobby, bar and restaurant were completely remodeled and look better than ever. It’s hard to believe that the work was completed in just three months.

The newly remodeled lobby features a huge fireplace with a plush and relaxing seating area where the indoor pool used to be. My kids were concerned that the indoor pool was ‘missing’ but quickly formed a bond with the seating area and view in the lobby, like kids do. The mixture of hardwood, tile, modern and vintage fixtures in the lobby and dining areas grab visitors attention while at the same time the beautiful use of these elements relaxes the mind and body. The gorgeous view of the ocean from the lobby and ECHO restaurant and bar, doesn’t hurt.

St. Simons Island is a barrier island off the southern coast of Georgia that offers visitors a wealth of scenic views, historical sights and tours such as Fort Frederica and St. Simons Island Lighthouse Museum as well as wildlife viewing areas, great food, fishing, and boutique shopping. St. Simons Island isn’t what I would call a touristy beach town but more of a town where year-round residents welcome visitors and share the beauty St. Simons Island has to offer with guests.

What my kids love most about The King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort and St. Simons Island the beach. The hard-sand beaches make for amazing sand castles, great bike riding, and easy walking. Twice a day, as if by magic, large sandbars appear about 25-75 yards from shore and closer in some places. Many visitors swim or kayak to the sandbar to look at shells. During low tide my kids found dozens of empty knobbed whelk shells in the large rocks. We learned from a St. Simons Island native who walks the beach every morning, that the snails living inside the knobbed whelk scurry (slowly I suppose) out of their shell to get to water once the shell gets stuck in the rocks at low tide.

The King and Prince Guests See A Lot of Marine Life

You can’t get much better than St. Simons Island in regards to viewing marine life. During our visit this month we saw small sand sharks playing near the sandbar early in the morning when the tide is very low as well as lots of hermit crabs, blue crabs, purple crabs, horseshoe crabs, and sea anemone.

Grab your family and watch the short video below to see what is so great about
The King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort on St. Simons Island, GA

About 15 minutes from The King and Prince Beach & Golf resort is one of the greatest opportunities for your kids to learn about and see what is in the waters of the St. Simons Sound. On board the Lady Jane shrimpin’ excursion is marine biologist, Mr. Phil – as the kids called him, who explained in detail the marine life that was pulled up in the net during the 2 hour ride through the Sound. The kids loved seeing and learning about the stingrays and squid while I enjoyed learning about the delicate yet thriving ecosystem of the area. I highly recommend that you take a trip on the Lady Jane shrimpin’ boat during your next visit to St. Simons Island.

Water Activities

Not one’s to miss out on adventure, my husband and 14-year-old son took to the ocean in kayaks. Kayaks are available to rent right from the beach at The King and Prince and if kayaking isn’t your thing, hop on a bike rented from one of the local shops and ride the shores to take in the scenery and wildlife. For the entire family, I recommend hopping on a trolley tour of St. Simons Island. Standup paddleboarding is big now and we got to see plenty of paddle boarding action, including paddle boarding yoga, from the beach. Paddleboards are also available to rent. Visit the concierge desk at the resort to plan your itinerary during your stay on the island.

The King and Prince Resort Accommodations

Accommodations include 2-bedroom villas, oceanfront suites, oceanfront rooms, partial ocean view rooms, resort-view rooms, standard rooms, and private guest houses. Guests can enjoy access to the onsite pools and exercise facility. Spa/massage services are available in the Royal Treatment Cottage.

During our stay in July, we stayed at the Familia Meadows House at The King and Prince. The five level, 4 bedroom pet-friendly house has 4 decks/patios, a loft living room with large flat screen TV, stainless-steel appliances, beautiful hardwood floors, a huge walk-in closet in the master bedroom, and a fenced in yard. The top deck looks out onto the resort property and has a fireplace, seating area, and a sink. The kids spent most of the time we were in the house on this deck.

The King and Prince Dining Options

ECHO is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and its menu, which changes seasonally, features ingredients provided by fisherman and farms in the local region such as fresh Georgia shrimp and peaches as well as local cheeses. On days you want to relax by the pool all day, The Sea Shack Bar + Bites, will happily serve your family items such as all-beef hot dogs, chicken tenders, ceasar salad, and shrimp cocktail.

Connect with The King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort

The King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort
201 Arnold Road
St. Simons Island, GA

Reservations: 877-724-3170
www.kingandprince.com

Six Flags Over Georgia Announces Biggest Expansion Ever, Hurricane Harbor Water Park!

August 29, 2013Georgia, Travelgeorgia, Six FlagsAlicia

Planning a visit to Georgia next summer? Be sure to include a visit to Six Flags Over Georgia in your plans! Six Flags Over Georgia will surprise you from entry to exit. The healthy food options, immaculately clean park, safety features, and shaded play areas make the popular theme park a must visit for Georgia residents and tourists alike. Opening Memorial Day of 2014, Hurricane Harbor will provide you and your kids with one more way to have an amazing day and build great memories. Don’t forget to bring a waterproof camera! 🙂

Six Flags Over Georgia announced the addition of Hurricane Harbor, opening in 2014, today. Hurricane Harbor, an all-new water park element of Six Flags Over Georgia will open Memorial Day 2014. Not only can parents take their kids to get the thrill of a lifetime on Six Flags’ traditional roller coasters and rides, starting Memorial Day of 2014 parents and kids can relax in the 800,000 gallon wave pool or enjoy a (gigantic) splash on Bahamas Blaster sporting a four story drop in the 7-acre Caribbean landscaped Hurricane Harbor. Younger kids will enjoy the wave pool and interactive children’s water play area.

Park president, Dale Kaetzel, informed us that the Caribbean Island themed water park will include cabanas, shaded areas, dining locations, and shopping. The addition of Hurricane Harbor to the South East’s premier theme park, will make Six Flags Over Georgia a must-visit park for residents and tourists alike. Six Flags Over Georgia is located at 275 Riverside Parkway SW in Austell off of Interstate 20 west of Atlanta, just a quick drive from Atlanta and surrounding areas.

Hurricane Harbor, set to open in late May 2014, will include an 800,000 gallon wave pool, a multi-slide tower, and a “world’s first” single slide tower combining two extreme slide thrills, plus an interactive children’s water play area.

Admission to Hurricane Harbor will be included in any one day admission ticket or a Six Flags Over Georgia season pass. Six Flags White Water in Marietta, Ga. and Six Flags Over Georgia will continue to offer combination passes for guests to enjoy both destinations at one low price.

What Will Be Inside Hurricane Harbor:

Learn more about Hurricane Harbor at Six Flags Over Georgia on AtlantaMoms.com here.

Gigantic Wave Pool – Hurricane Bay
With over eight hundred thousand gallons of water this, thirty eight thousand square foot high tech ocean experience will simulate the deep blue Caribbean surf. Equipped with a state of the art wave system that is capable of producing waves up to four feet high this pool will create rolling waves that guests can enjoy all day.

Dual Slide Complex – Calypso Cobra
For those who feel the need for speed and cool thrills, this world’s-first slide will test riders bravery as they take on something the world has never seen. Combining two great slide experiences into one extreme thrill; four riders will take on the Cobra as they barrel down an enclosed 5-story drop before they are shot into a 40 -foot wide bowl and take on complete watery mayhem. Just as they think it is over riders take on the Calypso Cobra’s finale which shoots them perpendicular to the ground and suspends them in a moment of zero-gravity as they are swept across the Cobras tail. Guests will find themselves screaming around every slippery turn.

Multi-Slide Complex – Bahamas Blaster and Runaway Pipeline
Riding with their family and friends in an inner tube, guests will careen down a dark watery decent through the enclosed tunnels and soar down 180 and 360 degree curves. The serpentine tunnels will propel riders through rushing water and then drops them into the pool below. Bold adventurers can take on the Bahamas Bowl and careen down a four story drop into a gigantic bowl that will hurl them around and around in gushing water before finally dropping them out through a corkscrew chute into a splash pool below.

Children’s Activity Area – Paradise Island
Kids will be in command of this, 200 square foot interactive water playground that includes three giant water-dumping towers and hundreds of interactive water elements. Splash into this water play structure and get soaked on six slides with dozens of water gadgets, climbing nets, water blasters and tipping buckets.

As you may have read on AtlantaMoms.com, I am thrilled to be a Six Flags Super Mom for the next year and hopefully longer. Being a super mom has its benefits.. such as learning about new and exciting developments at Six Flags Over Georgia. Holding this fabulous secret in has been tough and I am so glad to get to share it with you today!

Learn more about what I am and will be doing as a Six Flags Super Mom here!

Connect with Six Flags Over Georgia

We Have a Green Lawn, Thanks To TruGreen! Before and After Photographs

October 16, 2012Gardening, GeorgiaFall lawn care, grass, TruGreen, yard careAlicia

This post was written by my husband, Timothy.

When you’re young you have ideas and expectations about how things are going to be when you reach adulthood. Getting married, having a family, a great job, a flying car, and a dream home with a beautiful green yard for my kids to play on, were some of my dreams. I know what you’re thinking, one of those dreams is just that a dream and nothing more. Having a beautiful green yard in a time of constant running around is just not possible..or is it?

Between full time jobs, school activities, after-school activities, weekend commitments, and everyday errands, how in the world does one find time to do all that is needed to achieve a green yard? Read on to find out!

I consider myself to be a do-it-yourselfer, like many guys do. During the eight years that we’ve owned our house repaired the roof when a tree went through it, fixed pipes under the house in the crawl space, replaced the waterline to the house, and built a swing set of my own design in the back yard. With a list like that it sounds like there is nothing I can’t tackle. Oh, but there is!
A beautiful green yard.

Sure, if you were to drive by our home you would see a green yard but as you got closer, the truth would reveal itself. Until the last two weeks, our green lawn was only about 28% grass. The majority, about the other 72% of our yard, was a variety of weeds, each their own unique shade of green. I say majority because spread out in no particular pattern all over the year, are dirt patches. The yard doesn’t look like this because of a lack of trying by any means. I’ve aerated the yard, reseeded, used fertilizer, added lime, watered, raked, had heartfelt talks, and even played music. Granted I may not of done all of these things the exact way that they are supposed to be done but give me a break I’m only one guy.

I thought about getting a service but at the point when I should sign up, the cheap stubborn part of me speaks up. “You can do all of the things they are going to do and you can do it cheaper!” For years I listened to that voice, but not any more. I figured that if I can be wrong about things like thinking that as long as the lawn mower is working why get it serviced, I mean I do check the oil level and put gas in it, that’s all that matters right? Sadly no, but that’s another story.

It turns out that my inner voice and I were wrong about a lot of things. When you compare the price of the materials, the act of creating a lawn maintenance schedule and following it, along with all the work it takes to do it all, using a service is a great deal. The amount of time that is saved alone is worth every penny.

TruGreen Lawn Care - Plant Grass

So far our service with TruGreen has been exceptional. During the first visit a TruGreen manager walked me through everything that was an issue with the yard. He pointed out all of the different kinds of weeds in our yard, and there were quite a few. It turns out that even what I thought was grass was mostly weed. He pointed out the areas that were heavily shaded and suggested that I remove a few branches from the surrounding trees so more light could make its way through to the yard. He discussed what needed to be done to the yard in order for it to become the beautiful green yard full of grass I dreamed of having. He talked for awhile about the process and the different things that would be applied to the yard but to be honest that’s about the time my ADD kicked in so I only got about half of it. That’s how much information our TruGreen representative gave me! When he was done I asked “what do I need to do to make all of this happen?”, trying to play off the fact that I checked out for a few minutes. His reply was “nothing.” Now that threw me off. Surely there was something that I needed to do, to help. He assured me that the only thing I needed to do was make sure the yard was watered as needed and when the time came to aerate and overseed, I would have to rake the yard to get it ready. Wow, that was wonderful to hear!

I put customer service pretty high on my list of priorities as a consumer. I’ve left stores because the employees were too busy talking to each other to acknowledge me. Having said that, TruGreen has provided great customer service. Everyone from TruGreen that I have come into contact with has been courteous and knowledgeable. Even the techs that come when I’m not home leave a note saying that they were sorry they missed me and included detailed information about what they did to the yard and what I need to do to maintain their work, if anything.

After the first few visits from TruGreen the weeds were almost all gone. Since the yard was mostly weeds though, this posed a small problem. The dirt patches were growing in size and increasing in number. They offered to put down some rie as a filler but I opted not to. Soon after, the time came for them to aerated the yard and overseed it. Since then, for the last two weeks, I have watered the yard like my life depended on it and it is paying off! The grass seeds are sprouting and the dirt patches are slowly changing to green grassy patches. Words can not explain the feeling of joy that I’m feeling!

Because the grass is getting a good start before winter arrives, it will form a solid root system during the Winter. Come Spring, it’s on! Next year the green Easter eggs won’t be so easy to find.

If you are struggling to create a green lawn for your family, I highly recommend that you call TruGreen today!

Written by Timothy Hagan

Everyone In Your Family Will Find Their Happy At The King And Prince Resort And On St. Simons Island

July 12, 2012Georgia, Travelgeorgia, St. Simons Island, The King and Prince Beach & Golf Resort, The king and prince resort, travelingAlicia

During our trip to The King and Prince Resort earlier this week myself, my husband, my son, and daughter all found our own happy-place and we didn’t even have to look for it. It just happened.

I, for example, am convinced that my brain has a chemical reaction when I see and hear the ocean. When I am at the beach, I’m in my happy place. The King and Prince Resort’s ocean backyard, beautiful ocean views from the villas and rooms, restaurants and pools, and swings that sway from the ocean breeze, ensure that I’m in a happy place during my entire stay there. I *need* nothing else.

The King and Prince Resort on St. Simons Island, Georgia — Finding our happy-place at The King and Prince Resort on St. Simons Island

My son is happiest when he’s climbing trees. He was very happy to find this tree outside the St. Simons Lighthouse. He instantly found his happy place when he places his hands and feet on the tree in climbing position.

My daughter is happiest when she’s floating. She tries to float in mid-air (dancing) but there isn’t a time when she’s nearly as at peace as when she is floating in a pool, of which The King and Prince Resort has at least five.

My husband found his happy place while he was finding beautiful whelk (or conch) shells on the sandbar and when he was building sand castles with the kids at all hours of the day and night, right outside our villa.

It’s so wonderful that everyone in my family found and sustained their own happiness while we were on St. Simons Island and at The King and Prince Resort. We’ve dubbed The King and Prince Resort ‘our all-inclusive happy place’. The King and Prince Resort provides guests with the ultimate environment and atmosphere for finding their happy-place.

Have you been to St. Simons Island and The King and Prince Resort?