Best Christmas Destinations to Visit in America...

Hello, everyone, and welcome back to another episode of American Classic Tour TV. I'm your host, J.D. Conroy, and on today's episode, we have a special edition in store for you, a Christmas edition of American Classic Tour TV. On today's episode, we're going to preview Christmas tours that every American should take. But before we get into today's episode, folks, I hope you don't mind, I need to take a quick minute to vent, because boy, oh boy, did my day get off to a miserable start. This morning, I went out and I decided I was going to do my annual Christmas shopping, and here in Chicago, the temperatures today are about 37 degrees, so just a few degrees above freezing temperatures, and it's rainy and cold and windy. Okay, cold rain, in my opinion, is about the worst weather you can get. But I decided, I had the bright idea, you know what, I'm going to brave the elements anyways, I'm going to go out and get my Christmas shopping done. Well, after a few hours of sitting in traffic here in Chicago, after waiting in line, after walking from the parking lot into the store, getting pelted by cold rain, I decided, you know what, I'm tired of this, I'm going back to the Tour TV studio, I'm going to put on my Christmas sweater, get real comfy, I put on my slippers here, and I made some nice hot cocoa, and I'm getting ready to dream of Christmas next year, okay, when we can get away from the Chicago cold and enjoy the elements. And, oh yeah, I forgot, I also got my festive Santa Claus Christmas hat. Is this thing on right? Is this how you wear a Santa hat? Let's move on with today's episode, we've got to preview our five tours, I'm all cozy here with my Christmas sweater on, I've got my hot cocoa made, I'd encourage you all at home to make yourself some hot cocoa, let's sit back, relax, and dream of the places we're going to go for Christmas in 2021. One more thing before we get started with today's episode, if you sign up for any of the tours that I'm going to preview today, we are offering an exclusive Tour TV discount, if you sign up for an air tour, you'll save $200 per person per tour, if you sign up for a motor coach tour, you'll save $100 per person per tour. Also, before we get started with today's episode, make sure if you have not done so already, you hit the red subscribe button that sits just below the bottom right hand corner of this video. Okay, on to today's show. A Southwestern Christmas in San Antonio is my favorite Christmas tour that we offer each year here at American Classic Tours. I just love this tour and I'd say that there are five reasons why. Number one, I'm a sucker for warm weather. It's right at around this time of year in early December that where I live in Chicago, the weather starts to become really cold and uncomfortable. So I love getting away in early December to San Antonio where the temperatures are much nicer. In early December, temperatures in San Antonio average in the 60s. So it's real nice, comfortable weather. Number two, this tour has an amazing laid back pace. Now what exactly do I mean by this? Well, first of all, we stay all four nights of this tour at the same hotel, the Holiday Inn Riverwalk, which means you only have to unpack your bag once. I find that our travelers really enjoy tours like this that are five to six days long where we stay in just one hotel throughout the trip. Our hotel on this tour is located right on San Antonio's famous Riverwalk in the heart of downtown San Antonio. And because of the central location, we include plenty of free time on this tour for you to explore downtown San Antonio at your own leisure, which leads me to the third thing I really enjoy about this tour. And that is the famous San Antonio Riverwalk. The Riverwalk is one of America's most unique attractions. It is lined with lovely shops, historic hotels, top tier restaurants and bars. It's an enchanting destination to visit, especially at Christmas time when the Riverwalk is covered with holiday lights. And folks, just take it from me. I've been there three times during Christmas. These photos don't do it justice. It's really hard for photographers to capture the beauty and the lighting of the Christmas lights over the Riverwalk. As I mentioned, you'll have plenty of time to explore the Riverwalk at your own leisure, but we also include a guided cruise on the San Antonio River. Number four, this tour features premier attractions. I remember when I first went on this tour, other than the Alamo and the Riverwalk, I didn't quite know what to expect from the attractions. After I led this tour, I remember coming back and talking to my dad and Mary Pelk at our office saying, wow, you know what? This tour might have my favorite collection of attractions of any tours we offer. Our tour will begin with a visit to the famous Alamo. Here you'll learn about one of the most dramatic stories in American history, the Battle of the Alamo. As you explore this historic fort and you watch the entertaining and informative IMAX movie, The Price of Freedom. We'll also visit the historic Mission San Jose, located just outside of downtown San Antonio. This mission was built in 1718, and if you love history, you'll love visiting the Mission San Jose. It's one of those places that has been so wonderfully preserved that it literally feels like you're taking a step back in time as soon as you step in to this historic mission. We'll visit the Briscoe Museum of Western Art to see some of the Southwest's best works of art. We'll take a day trip out to Texas's beautiful hill country where you'll visit one of America's hidden gems, the lovely little town of Fredericksburg, Texas. This German town has a fascinating story and a charming main street which is home to lovely shops, craft breweries, and wineries. Fredericksburg, Texas was also the home of Admiral Chester Nimitz, the great American general who led the American effort in the Pacific during World War II. Because of this, the National Museum of the Pacific War is located in Fredericksburg. And folks, this is one of the best museums in the entire country. I'm sure many of you have been to the National World War I Museum in Kansas City or the National World War II Museum in New Orleans. I would say that this museum, the National Museum of the Pacific War, is on par with those two great American museums. There's two attractions on this tour that stand out in particular as just being very fun. If I had to pick one, I'd say these two attractions are two of the most fun attractions we offer throughout all of our tours throughout the entire year. And the first is the Wyo Ranch. This massive ranch in Texas's West Hill Country is home to over 58 species of exotic wildlife. It's so cool. What we do is we get in this big vehicle and we off-road on the beautiful hills and we see all these exotic wildlife species such as water buffalo, giraffes, zebras, and more. Now the second attraction that I think stands out for being especially fun is San Antonio Sea World. And this visit is not just any visit to Sea World. What we do is our group gets a private tour. We go on one of the days that the park is closed and we get this backstage, behind the scenes tour. The members of the staff give us this guided tour where we get to see sea lions, we'll see orcas, beluga whales, otters, seals, and more. It's such a neat attraction. And the fifth and final thing I love about this tour, folks, is margaritas. It's funny. Each year I've led this tour, I've led it three times, I always remember having good times drinking margaritas with our group. One of the many places you can try a margarita is at our dinner at the lovely Mia Terra restaurant. The ambiance of this restaurant is so neat. It's elaborately decorated, especially at Christmas time. You're going to love our visit to Mia Terra. Nothing can put you in the festive holiday spirit quite like a journey to Nashville for a country Christmas. This tour features some amazing attractions. We'll take a guided tour of Nashville, known as the Athens of the South. Some highlights of this tour include Music Rose recording studios, homes of country and western music stars, and the Parthenon, a replica of the original in Greece. We'll take a cruise on the Cumberland River on the festively decorated General Jackson showboat for lunch and live entertainment. We'll visit the Country Music Hall of Fame for a fascinating look into the history of country music. The main highlight of this tour is the Grand Old Opry, which we'll be taking in from the historic Ryman Auditorium. Over the years, the Grand Old Opry has hosted country music's biggest stars, from George Strait to Toby Keith to Taylor Swift. And many of country music's biggest stars come back routinely to play at the Grand Old Opry. I remember the first time I saw the Opry, I came away so impressed. And the thing I really enjoyed the most was watching the young artists who were playing at the Opry for the first time. Watching them get on stage, you could see it was a dream come true for them. And the emotion in the entire auditorium was palpable, as you saw this young artist kind of take on a rite of passage in country music. You know, if you're going to make it big in country music, you have to play at the Grand Old Opry. So that live music emotional experience was unforgettable. On this tour, we stay at an amazing experiential hotel, the famous Opryland Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee. Each year, the Opryland creates a glittering holiday extravaganza, sparkling with the brilliance of two million lights. Nine acres of indoor gardens are lavishly decorated with brilliant displays of holiday ornaments and huge sparkling trees. You need to see it to believe it. This tour also features the Opryland's exciting Fantasy in Ice, which is an incredible exhibit of carving, sculptures, and 3D holiday-themed displays, all handcrafted by more than 35 artisans from China. The Rose Parade is America's signature New Year celebration. Since 1890, Pasadena has ushered in the New Year with this great tradition. For many people who, for years, have watched this parade on TV, seeing it in person is a dream come true. To usher in the New Year in sunny Southern California, watching the incredibly intricate flowery floats, the equestrian teams, and the marching bands pass by in person is an experience every American should enjoy. This tour also features the best of Southern California. We'll visit Catalina Island, a beautiful island sitting about 20 miles off the coast of Southern California. With its sharp golden cliffs, its iconic marina, and its bright sunshine, visiting Catalina Island will make you feel as if you were in the middle of the Mediterranean. We'll enjoy a guided tour and a gourmet dinner aboard the historic Queen Mary. This is a gigantic, retired British ocean liner that sailed primarily across the Atlantic from 1936 to 1967. We'll visit the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum on a stunning mountaintop in Simi Valley, California. We'll learn all about the life and presidency of Ronald Reagan through the museum's awesome exhibits and you'll also have a chance to step aboard the retired Air Force One right here at the museum. We'll take a guided tour of Los Angeles where we'll explore Hollywood. We'll walk the Hollywood Walk of Fame. We'll visit the Chinese Grauman Theater where so many of Hollywood's biggest movies have premiered over the years. We'll visit Dodger Stadium. We'll see the Hollywood Bowl, Walt Disney Concert Hall, and more. This tour also features a behind-the-scenes tour of Warner Brothers Studio and it's really neat to go behind the scenes and see how your favorite TV shows and movies have been made. The last tour we're going to preview today is our Smoky Mountain Christmas. Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg transform into a festive wonderland of twinkling lights during the Winterfest Lights Festival. Entertainment abounds with professional musical theater shows. We'll celebrate a Smoky Mountain Christmas Dolly Parton style at her brand new Dreammore Resort. We'll marvel at her Dollywood theme park featuring holiday lights and decorations, music shows, mountain craftsmen, and a variety of interesting attractions. So that's it for our 2021 Christmas preview. If you're interested in joining us on any of these tours next year, simply call us at 847-548-3333 to make a reservation. Remember that there is an exclusive Tour TV discount if you sign up by December 22nd. You'll save $200 per person per tour on air tours and $100 per person per tour on motorcoach tours. Also, I've included links to the brochures in the show notes below. Well thanks for tuning in to today's episode folks and we want to wish you on behalf of the entire American Classic Tours team here, we want to wish you all a very, very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.