Best Summer Road Trip Ever!

The secret to a happy life is having fun friends!  I had such a memorable summer 2012 and was blessed to spend it with someone so wonderfully special.  My college roommate and BFF, Anna Haas and I went on a sponsored 1-month road trip where we were given a Honda-CRV, gas money and a stipend by Rand McNally and USA TODAY as well as hotel vouchers for Choice Hotels and were tasked to find the best small town in America in one of five categories.  We didn’t even know what the category was until we got to our starting point in Washington DC!

AND Travel Channel followed us to document the whole thing AND it’s airing on July 25th, 2012 at 7/8 Central! How AWESOME is that?  AND we couldn’t ask for cooler camera guys. We adore them!  See them hard at work in the photos below.

Here are our videos of all the fun we had in the six towns we went to. Check out our full experience and more articles and photos of the AMAZING time we had on the Best of the Road Blog!

Video 1: Meet Patricia and Anna! The intro video that the Best of the Road camera crew made of us.

Video 2: Our FreshTraveler “audition” video for the Best of the Road Rally!  It’s this video that won the hearts of the Rand McNally, USA Today and Travel Channel folks!Video edited by Anna Haas.

Video 3: Patricia and Anna reunite!  We’re dorky so we made a video on our reunification. Target audience: Ourselves. Video edited by Anna Haas.

Video 4: Kick off Rally in Washington DC!  We find out we’re the FUN TEAM! Woo hoo!Video edited by Anna Haas.

Video 5: Late Night Driving and Making Waffles! We drove at night (because we’re crazy like that) and made it just in time for a waffle breakfast at the Comfort Inn in Corning, NY.Video edited by Anna Haas.

MOST FUN TOWN NOMINEE #1: Corning, NY

Corning, NY was the first stop on our crazy adventure in search of the most fun small town in America. From water sports and creative chefs to early morning rock n’ roll, this town knows how to have a good time, and is just four hours outside of New York City! The perfect place to get away and have a blast in one of the most picturesque possible settings. Click here for our full review of Corning, NY!

Fun in Corning, NY!  Video edited by Anna Haas.

Jet Skiing on Lake Keuka in Corning, NY!  Video edited by Anna Haas.

MOST FUN TOWN NOMINEE #2: Geneva on the Lake, OH 

There is a dream-like quality that permeates Geneva-on-the-Lake, or GOTL as the locals lovingly call it. Unexpected combinations make the place almost surreal and here we see ordinary things in new light. Like when we found maple syrup that was made in Ohio—we didn’t know Ohio even had maple trees. And the numerous wineries by Lake Erie—we didn’t know there were so many. There is a little something for everyone in GOTL and we were happy to discover that so much could be packed into this small lake town. Click here to read the full review of Geneva-on-the-Lake, OH! Video edited by Anna Haas.

FreshTraveler vs. The Vertical Trampoline in Geneva-on-the-Lake, OH!  Video edited by Anna Haas.

Anna sings with local artist Rob Covert in Geneva-on-the-Lake, OH - Video edited by Anna Haas.

MOST FUN TOWN NOMINEE #3: Santa Claus, IN

If you’re looking to immerse yourself in the spirit of Christmas in the middle of summer, you’ll be able do so in this Indiana town named after jolly ol’ Saint Nick.

Santa Claus, IN can be described by the words made famous by Michael Jackson. “There’s a place in your heart and you know that it is love.” How much love and dedication must a town have to put out the spirit of Christmas 365 days a year? A lot, we tell ya. This place even has an official post office with Santa’s name. We wanted to send out a million postcards to friends with that official SC stamp because who doesn’t want that? This place also has it’s own official Santa Claus one dollar bill that can be used as real money. Click here to read our full review of Santa Claus, IN!  Video edited by Anna Haas.

MOST FUN TOWN NOMINEE #4: Delray Beach, FL  

Life is happy here in Delray. Without the cutthroat commercialism of bigger cities, residents are allowed to breath and just live. People are fun, present, health-conscious, athletic, socially-aware, and positive all year round. Maybe the year-long sunshine has something to do with it. Click here to read our full review on Delray Beach, FL!  Video edited by Anna Haas.

MOST FUN TOWN NOMINEE #5:  Denton, TX

Doing reckless, irresponsible, and possibly dangerous activities seems to be the consensus of what fun is in Denton, TX.

Day 1. We’re fitted with cowboy hats and boots, given Bloody Marys, put on horses and then handed guns in 100 degree heat.  Yes, we felt that adrenaline rush after our first few shots at the balloons.  That was hella fun. Yes, we felt powerful and strong. Yes, we thought our cowboy instructor, Marcus Wadley, was cute.  Now, Anna wants to ride horses and shoot guns everyday.

Day 2. Patricia thought she’d get killed out here in cowboy country. And that almost happened when we were thrown into roller derby at The House of Quad.  Patricia’s possible death was made more probable by the fact that Patricia had never roller skated in her life.  Click here to read our full review on Denton, TX!

FreshTraveler in Denton- Video edited by Anna Haas.

Denton, TX: The Most Fun Small Town in America - by The City of Denton

Best of the Road: Hailstorm in Arizona! Video edited by Anna Haas.

MOST FUN TOWN NOMINEE #6: Buena Park, CA 

Everyone is happy in Buena Park.  Maybe it’s the constant sunshine.  Maybe it’s because Snoopy lives here.  Maybe it’s because you can be anything in Buena Park.  You can be a princess, a knight, or a pirate.  Maybe it’s because you can make a living here as an aerial dancer. And that’s freaking awesome. Click here to read our full review on Buena Park, CA. Video edited by Anna Haas.

Click here to see who was America’s MOST FUN SMALL TOWN 2012!

So that’s what we did this summer!  What did YOU do? Hopefully you’re living life to the fullest!  LIVE your dreams.  LOVE your life.  LEAP and the net will appear.  Check out our leap list  - the list of MUST DO things before you settle down.  Our advice, don’t ever settle for anything less than what you deserve!  xoxo