Alright, let me explain...
As you know, I love traveling on the cheap. I pride myself on finding great deals with rock bottom rates because I'm willing and (mostly) able to trim down all the frills. I've even been known to fly to locations for three day vacations with NO LUGGAGE whatsoever, just the shirt on my back and the shit in my pockets. Just to save a dime or two. I am a cheapskate.
But one of the pitfalls of my style of vacation booking is that I like to do things on my own and find my own way. I'm crotchety in that way too. I don't need AI or even other people suggesting better ways to find deals, I'll hunt them down on my own.
Now all that being said, I gather by now you may be thinking, "Oh shit Michael, did you just book the shithole place we're seeing in the screenshot above as some Airbnb or something?" No, but there is some issue with the above location that I have to figure out a solution to. I'm in the middle of my planning and booking phase of another vacation I'm going to be going on, prior to my September cruise. The above street scene is the exact locale where I was initially planning to connect with a local light rail in the city I'm visiting to its bus system where I'd be able to then travel the two or three miles to my hotel accommodation downtown. Obviously, I'll NOT be doing that now. I'll have to consider alternatives. I'm cheap and willing to put up with some low-frills travel, but getting knifed or shot is not in my gameplan.
In case you haven't figured out from the distinctive architectural style of the rowhomes above, I'm going to Baltimore. I hear ya. "Why?", you ask. Perhaps, like that timeshare sales dude at the Hilton resort, with a very scrunched-up, "are you crazy?" face.
I worked it out over many nights of trying all sorts of options and it was the cheapest one out of the five locations hosting this:
Like my Mini-Americana Tour, I'm going to geek out on American national pride and heritage stuff including the Tall Ships, museums, exhibits and patriotic festivals... there's even an air show! Does this make me a Republican or MAGA or supporter of Trump in any way? Fuck no! Being proud to be an American is not, I repeat NOT, the sole privilege of any one party or faction. I personally think many Republicans and especially so-called MAGAs have corrupted patriotism and made it seem embarrassing as they now seem to use it to justify a version of America I KNOW is fundamentally wrong! But I digress, my trip is for me, not for any political reason. I love history, above all, and I love ships, which is a main focus of this celebration, and I'm retired so I have the time and I'm traveling cheap, so I can afford it, so there. That's that.
So I got the airfare and hotel booked and paid for. I'll be driving up to Orlando very early in the morning on June 25, flying with my ol' pals at Frontier again (although much more expensive than a few years ago with this same route, probably due to a few factors like the event itself, fuel costs, Spirit is outta the picture now so less competition, etc.) and I found this old fashioned 1920s hotel (with good reviews) in downtown Baltimore for less than a hundred bucks a night, steps away from the Inner Harbor where the ships'll be, Lord Baltimore.
So far, not including airport parking or public transit, I'm at $433. As it stands, that's still more than the cruise fare, expected cruise parking and gratuities combined, and, of course it doesn't cover food. Tell me cruising isn't the way to vacation. But, the entertainment should be like a cruise as the tall ship tours, outdoor festival music and maybe shows, and the air show flyovers, IDK, are all free. Other museums and exhibits I'll have to pay for, of course.
Like any of these whirlwind tours I plan, it'll be go-go and tiring, I'm sure, so I best get fit for it. Baltimore downtown, once I'm in it, does seem nicely compact and walkable, relatively clean-looking (at least in Street View) and not like the scene in the top pic, as long as you stay in the very tight core of the downtown CBD by the harbor.
So yes, I hope it will be happy travels. And if I happen to become yet another statistic in this notorious city, setting for "Homicide: Life on the Streets" and "The Wire," and current "optimistic" numbers such as, last year, it had "only" 133 homicides, the fewest in nearly 50 years...
Oh I'm so fucked. I'm looking at the picture of the hotel again and all I can think is that's a fucking murder hotel, I'm definitely gonna see twin little girls chanting a spooky song in the dimly-lit hallway, for sure. Oh lordy!
EDIT: Ok, good news. I definitely don't have to worry about that street scene above. The twin girls, and "the caretaker," maybe. But here's my route to and from the airport to the hotel. Light rail directly from the airport to Camden Yards stop only a few blocks away in downtown. $2 each way. I can walk the short walk (amongst benign skyscrapers) to and from the hotel. I'll only have my grey felt 1980s backpack (small enough to be "free personal item" on Frontier).
