Head straight south of Dallas along I-35 East, and you’ll come across Lancaster, Texas. This part of Dallas County started out as a frontier post, but these days it’s a major suburb of the Dallas-Fort Worth metro. People go there to meet with family, see the festivals of the South Dallas area and get a good deal on a hotel far from the noise and lights of downtown Dallas. Your stay might be long or short, but either way, the following advice will help you feel at home while you’re in Lancaster.
Maintain Your Morning/Evening Rituals
Most people follow a certain pattern just after they wake up and right before they go to sleep. You might get a workout in right away, take a shower and shave first thing, or head straight for the fridge to grab your breakfast. In the evening, it might be time for a shower, brushing your teeth, and maybe reading a good book until you get drowsy. If you can keep these rituals going when you’re on the road or living out of a hotel with amenities that feel like home, that can go a long way to helping you feel normal.
Unpack Your Things
If you plan on staying more than one or two nights, you should unpack your clothes, toiletries, and other things and put them in the drawers and cabinets in your hotel room. This way, you won’t feel like you’re living out of your suitcase and having to worry about problems such as wrinkled shirts or clean clothes sharing space with dirty clothes. Just remember to be thorough when you leave. You wouldn’t want anything to go missing just because you didn’t check every drawer.
Choose a Nice Hotel
Different types of hotels can come with very different lists of amenities. A motel gives you easy access to your car and possibly a continental breakfast, but you hardly get any more than that, outside of a room to sleep in and a bathroom. However, a nicer hotel in the Lancaster, Texas, area can offer amenities such as a swimming pool, an exercise gym, complimentary breakfast, microwave and fridge, and laundry facilities. A nice hotel where you can spend some free time is a good place to feel at home.
Go Eat Like a Local
Do some research on Lancaster-area restaurants before you decide where you want to eat. While a chain restaurant will help you feel at home since the food is always exactly the same, you can often get a more homey, welcoming atmosphere from a local spot with a lot of glowing reviews. You can also get more chances to meet new people and maybe even make a new friend.
Home is a state of mind, and for many people, it’s wherever they happen to hang their hat. If you follow these tips, and that feeling might just come a little faster than before. By bringing bits of your own home with you and getting to know the people of Lancaster, you can make a temporary stay feel like a family vacation.
