Weekend at Welk’s Resort: A Relaxing Escape from Life
For the most part, I was taught to pursue what I wanted. But sometimes, circumstances have led me to what I need instead. One example led to the most relaxing period of my life.
NOTE: This is a post inspired by #FlashbackFriday, where I reminisce about my past experiences for nostalgia, and also to practice my (rusty) writing skills. The events, prices, and other details mentioned are not necessarily accurate when reading. It’s best to assume the events, prices, and other details are from my previous personal experience unless I state otherwise that it is accurate at the time of writing.
Table of Contents
The two types of travelers
I believe that there are generally two types of travelers:
- The go-getters obsessively plan where and when to go and pursue that goal with a single-minded focus (or close to it).
- The leaf has a Pinterest board of interesting traveling destinations but ultimately goes where the wind takes them. Or rather, when someone asks me, “Wanna go here?” I generally think, “Eh, why not?” Then I say yes.
While I enjoy a well-planned escapade, ultimately I am the leaf.
I mean obviously, I only say yes if I actually do have both the free time & funds to spare, which isn’t always the case. But clearly, I mainly write about the opportunities I accepted, as opposed to the ones I’ve had to decline.
My then-boyfriend (now-husband) and I were lucky enough to be able to say yes and stay at the Welk Resorts back in March 2017. Even luckier was that it was pretty much free for us, other than our food & gas.
It was free for us since it was in exchange for a couple of days’ worth of babysitting. My relatives wanted some child-free time. So after we (I say “we” to be generous to my now-husband) were done babysitting, we were off to Welk Resorts in San Diego.
We weren’t sure what to expect. But it turned out to be a lot more relaxing than we thought.
Relaxing at the Resort
If I had to pick just one word to describe our 4-day stay there, it would be: slow-paced.
It wasn’t necessarily boring, but neither was it particularly exciting nor adventurous. It was simply relaxing, with no plans or pressing need to “fill up” our time there.
To be honest, the only reason I hesitate to use the word “chill” is that it was rather hot at the time, and I simply cannot describe our stay as such without feeling like a liar. Yes, I know I’m describing the vibe, rather than the temperature, but nonetheless.
Of course, a slow-paced and overall relaxing vibe was something I’ve come to expect from the San Diego area as a whole. So it was unsurprising to find a similar vibe at the Welk Resorts.
I enjoyed the fact that there were only a small number of other guests and that most of them weren’t there looking for conversation. Score!
Granted, the other reason that we had found Welk’s Resort so relaxing was that most of our fellow guests at the time were senior citizens… Since this was in March 2017, school was still in swing for the most part so I wasn’t that surprised.
The funniest thing for me was that they had so many swimming pools & hot tubs to choose from – probably super helpful when it’s crowded, plus there are options for adults with and without kids. But it was all rendered moot since I probably only saw about 2-3 other (senior) couples per pool area.
Maybe the other guests were staying inside their rooms? Either that or they were out at the crack of dawn, whereas we…weren’t. A sunrise might be a pretty sight, but waking up that early has never sounded relaxing to me.
However, I have since done my research and learned that they also have a lot to offer for families and an otherwise younger demographic. It would be interesting to see how different the vibe is during more peak travel seasons, but back then as now, I’m just glad I’m able to take time off outside of summers & winters.
Food Scene?
Fortunately, though the resort didn’t boast a lot of guests at the time, we still managed to catch a mini farmer’s market during our first night there. It was small and intimate, so even that experience was relaxing!
Unfortunately, we made the mistake of buying a sizable portion of BBQ ribs. I say unfortunately because while it was delicious, we were hungry when we bought it and got way more than we could eat.
We stayed in a 1-bedroom, which included a fridge, and I believe a microwave – if I remember correctly – but after 2 days of eating ribs, we didn’t even want to think about BBQ. I may have even craved a salad.
So while my then-boyfriend and I typically make it a point to check out the local food scene, we skipped it for this trip. We were just basking in the slow-paced, almost lazy energy. We simply made do with what was convenient, such as fast food or other chain restaurants. None of which I even remember to this day.
Surprisingly, I don’t regret how little we did. It was a time in both of our lives when we desperately needed some time off from real life, and the space to just simply be, without external pressures. It was the most relaxing time we’ve had at that point.
We hadn’t agreed to our trip expecting it to turn out into a recuperation period, but I’m glad it happened. Being able to disconnect from the heartbreaking problems aimed at us from the outside, we were able to remind ourselves of what was important to both of us.
In the end,
Our March 2017 stay at the Welk Resorts has been a trip I’ve always thought of fondly, although we didn’t even do anything exciting or unique. But it wasn’t until I sat down and wrote this post that I was able to articulate why I cherish that time in our lives.
Currently, a total disconnect & recuperation from real life isn’t necessarily what my husband nor I need in this season of life. Nonetheless, I’m all the more glad we were able to have that time back then.
Plus, if there’s ever a need for another relaxing vacation I know where to go. I would be willing to try our luck and try to be there for another “off” season.
Who knows, maybe I’ll even end up writing an actual review of the rooms, amenities, & activities for our next stay!
