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Guest Stories

Featured Guest: Food Blogger and Recipe Developer, Garianne’s Table

We’ve hosted food blogger and recipe developer, Garianne Gagliardi at Getaway Eastern Catskills a few times this year so she could disconnect to reconnect to her creativity and enjoy #MoreFreeTime in nature with her partner and their dog, Basil. Here’s what she had to say about spending more free time in nature.

As a food blogger, content creator and recipe developer I am on my electronics often. In our modern moment, we are so connected to everything that it has disconnected us from ourselves. The most important way for me to find balance in my profession is to disconnect. When we step into nature, we step into ourselves. This is why I make time to visit Getaway Cabin… here I am able to not only relax off-grid but to spark my creativity!

While at Getaway we relax by the fire, walk around the woods with our dog, play card games and my favorite: cook over campfire! I’ve developed some of my favorite recipes at getaway cabin. It’s very clear my creative side comes out here.


When we step into nature, we step into ourselves.

Garianne stable

Something that stood out to me immediately about Getaway was how spotless and well designed the cabins are. Each cabin is equipped with everything you could need, aesthetically pleasing and so easy to come and go! And after a stay at the cabins, I always realize how important it is to find joy in the little things. Slowing down, exploring the world around me and just appreciating what little I need to be so satisfied.


Ready for your own escape to nature? Book your Getaway today.

Guest Stories

Featured Guest: Blogger, Amber Lacy

We hosted Amber Lacy at Getaway Hill Country outside of Austin on her birthday, so she could spend #MoreFreeTime with her partner celebrating another trip around the sun. Here’s what she had to say about her escape.

It felt very refreshing to disconnect on our Getaway. I love how every home comes with a cellphone lockbox where you can keep your devices safe and secure during your stay. It definitely helped me stay off my phone and social media! 

Unfortunately we were not able to experience Jacob’s Well because it was booked for basically the rest of the season, but this is how we ended up finding out about Cypress Falls! Cypress Falls was only about 10 minutes away from our post. They offered a bar, tubes, and amazing views! Not to mention, they also have a goat island right across the swimming hole! You can get an all day pass for under $10 which was a huge plus for us. 

After our Getaway, I noticed how important it is to sit back, give yourself a break and just enjoy the simple things in life.

Amber Lacy

There were so many great moments during our Getaway! My favorite moment had to be between roasting marshmallows once the sun went down, or looking at how beautiful nature looks during the sunrise. I’ve always wanted to experience what camping is like, but with some source of electricity and a decent bathroom (glamping as the kids would say). Getaway gave me exactly what I needed for my glamping experience, so of course we had to top everything off with roasted marshmallows! We are also suckers for big windows and good natural light so of course just looking at one picture of the Getaway home had us sold! 

After our Getaway, I noticed how important it is to sit back, give yourself a break and just enjoy the simple things in life. I feel like my generation (millennials) as a whole has this mindset to where we feel like we always have to be doing something productive when that is not the case. It’s okay to detach yourself from your phone and social media sometimes, it’s okay to give your heart a break from the news outlets, and it’s okay to do little things you enjoy even if you feel like it’s not productive. Enjoy your time of solitude because your mental health will thank you later! 


Ready to disconnect on your own escape? Book your Getaway today.

Features | Reflections

Here’s to #MoreFreeTime

Labor Day was created 127 years ago to honor American workers with a national day of rest. After this harrowing year-plus, workers really need a break, including our team at Getaway. Tomorrow, we’re proud to be closing our company, including all of our Outposts, for Labor Day and the entire work week to give our employees #morefreetime to recharge and reconnect to who and what matters most.

We’ll be back next week to help you disconnect to reconnect to what matters most—in the meantime, we invite you to join the #MoreFreeTime movement. Show us what you do when you’re off the clock by tagging @getawayhouse on Instagram and using the #MoreFreeTime hashtag for your chance to win a free Getaway — three individuals who share their stories with us this week will win Getaways to spend #MoreFreeTime enjoying the things and people who matter most to them.

Ready to plan your fall escape? Book your Getaway today.

A pared down Community team will be here for you this week via email (lodge@getaway.house) to answer any questions or concerns.

Guest Stories

Featured Guest: Disability Travel Blogger, Jennifer Allen

We hosted Jennifer Allen at Getaway Eastern Catskills so she could spend #morefreetime with her family. Here’s what she had to say about the quality time with her kiddos.

What Getaway means to us is unadulterated family time. No distractions: just us. I’ve never seen so many smiles and laughs from my crew.

Our Getaway was RELAXING. I was traveling solo… with my three kids (ages 3, 3, and 6 at the time). This is my normal crowd, but something wonderful happened in all four of us knowing that we were “stuck” together in the woods with no tech devices. We had better conversations, bigger fun, and everyone seemed to be their best selves.

In “disconnecting,” we connected better.

Jennifer Allen

We spent our free time using the list in the cabin and working through all of the activities! It was fun doing some of the grown-up conversation starters with the kids and seeing what they came up with! We also did some hiking and spent a morning in town exploring the local highlights from our Getaway map.

My favorite memory of our family’s Getaway was making dinner. Or, I should say, watching the kids make dinner. The stove was low enough that my oldest could make the Mac and cheese, which he thought was brilliant. All three roasted s’mores for dessert. I think they felt grown-up doing things for themselves, and they were just so happy. Actually – that’s my favorite memory – their smiles and big laughs. I have a beautiful mental picture of my oldest belly-laughing over the sound it made when I put the fire out with a bucket of water.


Our Getaway happened to be the week before the world closed for COVID. I came home thinking that I wanted to build in more low-key time to just be together as a family – I was certainly able to do that! The timing was great for me in building gratitude in the midst of a pandemic. I came home wracking my brain over how we could just chill more as a family… and then it was handed to me. That gave me a much better mindset entering the madness of The pandemic!

In need of your own family Getaway? Book your escape today.

Guest Stories

Featured Guest: Digital Creator, Crystall Cho

We hosted Crystall Cho at Getaway Piney Woods where she spent #MoreFreeTime reconnecting to herself and those who matter most. Here’s what she had to say about carving out time to reset.

My trip to the Getaway House was truly a free time that I needed in the midst of a busy, overwhelming year. Being in a secluded, private area surrounded by nature gave me so much time to reflect on my life and check on myself – without technology, without the distractions, and without the busy aspects of life. I spent my free time catching up on readings that I’ve been pushing off, walking around the trail without having to worry about anything, and enjoying good food with a good company. After visiting Getaway twice, it’s definitely been a great “break” from life to focus on yourself and your loved ones. It’s so relaxing, peaceful, free, silent, and thoughtful. It was such a meaningful experience for me both times!

I loved being able to enjoy the silence and focus on myself – reading books, walking around without any disturbance, and enjoying the moment without technology.

crystall cho

I definitely had powerful moments of peace and clarity during both visits. It also opened up room for conversations that would never take place if we were in a different setting – whether it was with a friend or family, it was a great time where we could focus on another and listen to each other. After my Getaway, I like to now give myself time to disconnect from technology and the world at least once a week, preferably on the weekends.


In need of your own escape to nature? Book your Getaway today.

Guest Stories

Featured Guest: Blogger, Ashley Weller

We hosted Ashley Weller and her daughter at Getaway Piney Woods so she could spend #MoreFreeTime in nature with her daughter before sending her back to college. Here’s what she had to say about the quality time they got to spend together on their escape.

We had a great time in the middle of nature! We enjoyed feeling like we were in the middle of nowhere. So quiet, and full of quality time. We put our phones away and played games, had a picnic, made s’mores and talked for hours. It’s what every mother and daughter needs to just get away and enjoy each other without any interruptions! It felt amazing to get away and disconnect – to not be around anyone or anything that would interfere with our quiet and quality time! 

Getting away really put things back into perspective.

Ashley Weller

Before we left, we stopped and got an awesome lunch so that we could have a picnic when we got to our little cabin. We sat and ate our lunch right after we got there. While we were there we talked a ton, played games like Uno and Mancala and we popped popcorn and made s’mores!

We did things that we never slow down to do in the city. My favorite moment of our Mother Daughter Getaway was laying in the bed next to the wide open window and seeing all of the start while we talked for hours. 

Abby and I really used our free time carefully after our Getaway. She was off to college a month later so we slowed down and really cherished our last few weeks together. Getting away puts things back into perspective. Something about being out in the middle of nowhere in nature is magical! 

Ready for your own escape with those who matter most? Book your Getaway today.