Our 2013 Luxury Baseball Tours

Posted by Doug Lawson on Sat, Oct 27, 2012 @ 03:11 PM

Big League Tours Group

They're ready!  We are excited to reveal our 2013 Season Tour Packages to our fans.  We have all your favorites like the Hall of Fame Tours, West Coast Tours, and the Midwest Tours; but we've also added Southwest, Southeast and Windy City tours to our schedule.  Plus, NEW for this year are our Destination Tours and Getaway Day Tours for guests who want a shorter Big League Tours adventure.  Click below to go directly to the Big League Tours website:

BIG LEAGUE TOURS 2013 SCHEDULE

EARLY BOOKING PROMOTIONBook your 2013 Tour before Nov.21, 2012 and receive 5% off your total package price. Just use the coupon code "Early Bird" when booking your tour. 

 Please call (866) 619-1748 with any questions. 

 

Topics: baseball vacations, Luxury baseball, baseball road trips, baseball trips, baseball tours, baseball stadiums, baseball travel, baseball vacation package, ballpark tours, big league tours, MLB tours, group tours, family tours, MLB road trips, Baseball

Big League Tours To Host 2013 Baseball Tour Announcement Party

Posted by Kayla Wininger on Wed, Oct 03, 2012 @ 02:12 PM

Mark your calendar baseball fans, we’re throwing a party and you’re invited!  For those of you who have been waiting for the release of the 2013 tour schedule, this is an event you won’t want to miss. 

logosmall

Join Big League Tours and Reds sportscaster Chris Welsh on Thursday, October 16th between 4:30PM and 8:30PM for the formal launch of the baseball tours for the 2013 season. The 2013 baseball tour schedule is jam-packed with opportunities to visit your favorite stadium and check some items off of your bucket list!

Guests will be welcomed with a ballpark themed buffet and giveaways throughout the evening. Winners will also be announced for a Grand Prize Getaway Day for two!

Can’t make it to the party but still want to enter the Grand Prize drawing?  Just click here and sign up for your chance to win.

Whether you're interested in planning a company outing or a weeklong baseball vacation, you won't want to lose your spot in these grand slam packages! RSVP to the event today and get full event details by clicking here

Get your friends together and we’ll see you at the party!

Topics: group travel, stadium tours, Luxury baseball, baseball trips, baseball tours, baseball stadiums, baseball travel, baseball vacation package, big league tours, MLB tours, company outing

My Big League Tours Welcome!

Posted by Kayla Wininger on Mon, Aug 13, 2012 @ 09:56 AM

When I joined the Big League Tours crew in May, I kept wondering if I’d get the chance to join the group on the road or if Glenn and Doug would keep me locked up staring at a computer for eight hours every day. Luckily, a few weeks in, they finally decided they liked me enough to assist Martha Ellen for part of the Midwest Tour. I’m an Indiana girl but I’ve gained a few friends throughout the past four years of college so I was thrilled for a little work and a little play in the Windy City.

Being a tour guide may be classified as work, but let’s be serious, is attending baseball games and staying in luxury hotels really a job? Anyway, at the beginning of my adventure I felt like others thought I was just the daughter of someone on the tour instead of the person leading the tour! I guess that’s what happens when you’re fresh out of college?

Back to baseball…  I’ll admit it, I’m pretty much a newbie to the whole baseball world and Wrigley Field was only my second MLB stadium so I was thrilled to see that Wrigleyville had the same atmosphere as the area around Fenway Park. Lots of baseball loving, beer drinking fans that are sure to enhance your experience!

Wrigley Field

For me, the atmosphere makes your experience and both Wrigley, Miller Park and US Cellular all managed to impress me. From the people at Wrigley, to the craft beers and spending the day with Ron Kittle at Miller Park in addition to the fireworks at US Cellular, they all provided me with great memories of my first trip with Big League Tours.  

Of course there’s more to it than just the baseball, the people travelling with us were one of a kind and by the end of the trip I felt like I’d gained a second family. One of the best memories was celebrating an 87th birthday with Walt, our favorite grandpa that everyone wanted to steal by the end of our trip. The more the merrier was definitely a true statement with the group of 20 that joined us. Check back in October for our 2013 Baseball Tours schedule to see when we'll be hosting the Midwest Tour again!

Thanks every for making my first trip a true success!

Kayla

Topics: baseball trips, baseball tours, Wrigley Field, sports vacation, Chicago, Cubs

Dodger Stadium & Mr. Vin Scully - West Coast Baseball Tour Part VII

Posted by Glenn Dunlap on Mon, Jul 30, 2012 @ 11:30 AM

Our West Coast Baseball Tour flew from San Francisco to Los Angeles. After Dodger Stadium from our seatsthe travel day and free morning to explore LA on their own, our guests headed out to Dodger Stadium on July 4th to see the Dodgers host the Cincinnati Reds. Here's a view from our seats. 

Chris Welsh at Dodger Stadium

We started the night with a visit with Reds broadcaster andformer MLB pitcher, Chris Welsh. Chris hung out with us at field level and then took us up to the broadcast booth to see things from that vantage point. The booth is pretty small so we only went in three people at a time. Here's a shot of our three with Chris. 

I would have to say the highlight for me, though (and no slight intended for Chris), was to IMG 7159 resized 600meet the voice of baseball, Mr. Vin Scully. As we were exiting the visiting team's booth, Chris introduced us to Mr. Scully who graciously spent a few minutes talking with us. It was surreal to be talking with the man who I've listened to all of my life calling the Dodgers games. 

Here we are with Mr. Scully, in the Dodgers broadcast booth. What a fantastic time. Thanks to Chris and Mr. Scully for making our visit so memorable!

Check out the Game Summary on MLB.com

Topics: Dodgers, west coast baseball tour, baseball tours, Dodger Stadium, Reds

Safeco Field & Pike Place Market - West Coast Baseball Tour Part II

Posted by Glenn Dunlap on Tue, Jul 17, 2012 @ 10:00 AM


5 spotOur day started off by visiting the 5 Spot Cafe on Queen Anne. The menu was very inventive and the food was delicious. It was the perfect way to start off a full day of siteseeing and baseball tour activities!

We then took the bus down to Pike Place Market. We paid homage to the original Starbucks location and then walked the market. Witnessed the fish throwing that has become known around the world. Even bumped into Dustin Pedroia (the Red Sox were in town) at the market!

Safeco Field from seats

In the middle of the afternoon, we connected with our group at the hotel to officially kick off the tour. After they received their goody bags, we headed out to Safeco Field. This was the first time for all of our travelers to visit the stadium so we went early to give everyone time to take a look around.

Here's a view from our seats early in the game. About the middle of the 6th inning, it started to mist or rain a bit so they closed the roof. I had gone up to the upper deck to take some pictures and realized in just the last minute or two that it was closing. 

Even if you take the train to Safeco as we did, I would recommend entering the stadium at 1st Avenue and South Royal Brougham Way. It's a much more inviting entrance and will give you a much better feel for the ballpark than any other entrance. It's much larger and also helps you avoid having to change levels to walk around to home plate. 

Topics: west coast baseball tour, Seattle, baseball tours, Safeco Field

Exploring Seattle - West Coast Baseball Tour Part I

Posted by Glenn Dunlap on Tue, Jul 17, 2012 @ 06:45 AM
Space Needle in Seattle

The first day of our West coast baseball trip was a free day for our guests to arrive at their leisure, get settled in the hotel, and see a few sites in Seattle. Our tour group stayed in the heart of Seattle within easy walking distance of the Space Needle, Pike Place Market, and lots of restaurants and shops. 

The first afternoon we walked to the Space Needle. It's hard to believe that this structure is 50 years old. I personally hadn't visited the needle or that area for 26 years. From what I could remember, it appears that the park and area surrounding the needle have been re-built or re-vitalized.

We were a little disappointed that we didn't go up in the needle but it was so overcast that we wouldn't have been able to see much. At $19 per person, we didn't feel that we could go up and not see anything and feel that it was worth it. For another day!

We had also had a recommendation from a friend to check out Top Pot Donuts. Holy cow, they were great! We're all fans of different kinds of donuts so we sampled several. 

Top Pot DoughnutsAll I can say is that if you are ever in Seattle, you have to stop in!! My personal suggestion is the Maple Bar and a cup of Americano. 

You know, as I sit here and right this blog post, I'm thinking that it would be worth a trip to Seattle just for these doughnuts!!

Here's a photo from their website that's of their 5th Avenue location. Nice atmosphere, great folks, fabulous doughnuts and coffee!!

Topics: west coast baseball tour, Seattle, baseball trips, baseball tours

Hall of Fame Tour Travelers Pick Up a New Glove?

Posted by Glenn Dunlap on Tue, Jun 05, 2012 @ 12:01 PM

Later this month and again in July, we'll host a couple of groups of baseball tour travelers to one of our favorite destinations, Cooperstown, New York. Our tours will spend the day at the National Baseball Hall of Fame - looking into the past of the nation's favorite sport. 

Here's a fun video about a man who's looking to change an important element of the game - the baseball glove. Looks to me like our guests will have to swing into his shop to check out what he's been developing...

Our 2012 Hall of Fame Tours include games at Citi Field, Yankee Stadium and Fenway Park as well as a full day in Cooperstown. For more information or to join us for the baseball vacation pacakge, visit the Hall of Fame 4 webpage.

Topics: Boston, Citi Field, New York, east coast baseball tour, baseball tours, Fenway Park, Yankee Stadium, MLB road trips, hall of fame, Cooperstown

Brandon Phillips Tackles Bizarre Food in NYC

Posted by Glenn Dunlap on Fri, Jun 01, 2012 @ 06:57 AM

New York City has so many locations for dining. When we were just out there for our Big Apple baseball tour, we dined in a couple of restaurants that were suggestions from friends and absolutely loved our experience. 

One major-leaguer who loves his food is Brandon Phillips, All Star 2nd baseman for the Cincinnati Reds. If you follow @DatDudeBP on Twitter, you'll often see tweets about food. On the Reds recent trip to New York, Brandon had dinner with Bizarre Food's host, Andrew Zimmern. 

Check out Brandon's reaction to these dishes... 

Topics: sports travel and tours, New York, baseball tours, Yankees, Yankee Stadium

Last Call for the Hall of Fame Tour 3

Posted by Doug Lawson on Wed, May 09, 2012 @ 07:17 PM
 

This is the last call for the Hall of Fame Tour 3.  If you are interested in this tour, please make your reservations by this Friday.

The HoF 3 starts in New York City with games at Yankee Stadium and Citi Field.  Then, we're off to Cooperstown for a day at the Baseball Hall of Fame.  That evening, we'll make our way to Boston for the first of our two nights at the fabulous Boston Park Plaza hotel.  The exclusive Big League Tours Player Experience happens before the Red Sox game on June 27th.  Our guests will get a behind the scenes tour of Fenway Park with Sox legend Bill "Spaceman" Lee!  And don't forget all the Big League Tours extras.  Click on the links below to get all the details.

Join us on this fantastic tour.  But, you must book before 5PM EDT this Friday.

Here are the links to the tour:

Hall of Fame Tour 3

Download the HoF 3 Brochure

Call 866-619-1748 with any questions.

Topics: Red Sox, baseball vacations, baseball tours, Fenway Park, Yankees, Yankee Stadium, hall of fame

Inside the Green Diamond Gallery: Cincy's Baseball Hall of Fame

Posted by Glenn Dunlap on Fri, Apr 20, 2012 @ 09:37 AM

I had the privilege of attending an event at the Green Diamond Gallery in Cincinnati. I have had several Cincy locals tell me that I needed to get up there but just hadn't had theView of the Green Diamond Club opportunity to do so. Boy, were they right!

Here's how their website describes the gallery:

"The Green Diamond Gallery houses a breathtaking array of high-end baseball memorabilia dating back to the late 1800s.

Marvel at the Hall of Fame Wall with photos and autographs of almost every inducted Hall of Fame member. 

Travel back to the founding of the Cincinnati Reds, re-live the team’s World Championships, and get information about our hometown’s greatest ball players through an incredible Reds Timeline.

Gaze at hundreds of autographed and mounted baseballs from greats like Mantle, Ruth, Morgan and Bench. 

Browse vintage and current baseball books and magazines in our Library.

In addition, you’ll find:

Hundreds of game-used baseball bats

Game-worn jerseys, including jerseys from defunct teams and Hall of Famers

Seats from stadiums old and new

One-of-a-kind documents dating back to the 19th century

Thousands of historical photographs depicting the greats of the game

Signatures and photos from some of the most talked-about scandals in baseball, including Shoeless Joe Jackson and the 1919 Black Sox

And much, much more!"

Much more is right. What kept running through my mind while I was there was that the Hall of Fame wallgallery felt like Cooperstown had been brought to the best "man cave" ever conceived. It's hard to fathom the depth of the private collection. For instance, check out the picture to the left. 

The wall is covered with photos of every Hall of Famer arranged by the year they were admitted to Cooperstown, and most have their autograph included, too. How incredibly amazing is that?? 

So for all of you who ever suggested that I should make a special trip to the Green Diamond Gallery, I now know that you weren't exaggerating a bit. And for those of you who haven't been, you'll now have to listen to me encourage you to get there as soon as you can. It's a great experience. In fact, one that we hope to incorporate on our trips through Cincinnati!! 

Topics: Luxury baseball, baseball tours, hall of fame, Cooperstown, Cincinnati