From Where I Sit: "Three Days In New Orleans"

Join intern Liz as she blogs about her experiences on the Step On Bus Tours team. 

Stand on any given street corner in New Orleans and you’ll be barraged with the unexpected. Neon lights flash, beckoning you into voodoo shops, bars with frozen cocktails to go, and live performers. Visitors and locals alike watch overhead from balconies, listening to the sounds trumpeted by the jazz players. You’ll most likely find some sort of plaque or marker, explaining the events that took place hundreds of years ago and yet are still a part of the atmosphere.

The St. Louis Cathedral in Jackson Square

It can be tough to decipher where you are, what era it is, or, most of all, what you want to explore first.

The magic of New Orleans is unlike any other place. It is a French-Creole city of many different cultural influences, experiences, and histories. The impact of the city’s establishment by France is still strong, from the architecture to names on the street signs to the signature food (beignets being an arguable favorite). Mixed with the Creole history that imbibes the area, the almost forty-year presence of the Spanish, and the uniquely American Antebellum touches, you get a gumbo pot full of personality with something for everyone.

Walking through the streets, it is easy to think that you left the America that you have known and arrived in a different country with its own unique swagger.

The party reputation of the French Quarter, however well-earned, is not the only aspect of the neighborhood: the small, local shops and restaurants bring character to the area. Ride the streetcar to the Warehouse District to go to the Ogden Museum of Southern Art. Walk through the Garden District and be treated to an unofficial home tour, looking at some of the most beautiful residences in America. Or, for the adventurous traveler, venture to the bayous for some quality time with alligators.

The French Quarter

What really sets New Orleans apart, however, is the thorough enjoyment of the simple pleasures that the city’s patrons revel in. There is no guilt in these pleasures: a large, hearty plate of jambalaya; an ice-cold drink in the Southern sun; a swinging melody. Religion is a large part of Orleans culture. Family gatherings on porches are commonplace. I have a theory that music is so popular in NOLA because it is so easily shared with others, giving anyone who can hear it a little pleasure of their own.

It’s near impossible to describe the Big Easy in just a few paragraphs. New Orleans is something that has to be seen to be believed. And even then, as you stand on that street corner, you may not be able to believe your eyes.

For more information on our trip to Biloxi and New Orleans September 10-16, 2017, call us at (248) 619-6692.

From Where I Sit: "About Detroit"

Join intern Liz as she blogs about her experiences as a member of the Step On Bus Tours team.

“The Comeback City,” “The Paris of the Midwest,” “Motown,” Detroit.

What is it about this city that warrants this plethora of names?

Is it the resilience of a city so judged by those outside of it? The dedication of those Detroiters who refuse to believe what naysayers are trying to tell them?

Through the eyes of a young visitor, it can be as simple as the magic of the skyline.

I grew up in Monroe, a small town about thirty miles south of Detroit. We weren’t lacking for history: with the River Raisin Battlefield, historic Downtown, and markers all around denoting Native American trades, important settlements, and museums, Monroe can hold its own with many cities in Michigan and elsewhere.  

But taking excursions up to Detroit was different. I think back to how I first saw the city from the highway, the GM building as the jewel of the skyline, exhilarated by the city’s energy. When you’re young, you can avoid the onslaught of bad news about Detroit. All that you see are the streets lined with skyscrapers so old it is reminiscent of New York’s cosmopolitanism.

When I heard that Step On Bus Tours would start providing short tours of Detroit, I was excited by the prospect of allowing someone else to see Detroit the way I first saw it. The new tours last three hours or six hours – the perfect time to discover (or rediscover) facts and destinations about the city. Many people, both from Detroit and from other places around the state and around the country, can benefit from driving through the streets and learning something new about the Motor City.

Between the history of its inception to its rise as a world power in the 20^th century to its comeback as a business powerhouse, these short tours will explore every role that Detroit has played in its life. The grandness of the city will be at the center of it all.

Detroit has taught me many life lessons, one of which has lasted almost my entire life -  when times are tough, keep your eyes on the skyline.

For more information on the new Detroit tours, call (248) 619-6692.

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From Where I Sit: "What Can I Learn?"

Join intern Liz as she blogs about her experiences as a member of the Step On Bus Tours team.

If touring some of Detroit’s most gilded and ancestral churches sounds like your idea of a fun day at the office, we’re on the same page.

This is just one of the perks I get from joining the Step On Bus Tours family a few weeks ago.

Before, my days with Step On Bus Tours were spent planning the Historic Detroit Churches tour. Where will we eat lunch? How many pick up destinations will we have? The tour itself felt less like a fun outing and more like a long-standing responsibility.

But when I was walking through Christ Church in Detroit, I was finally able to see what happens when long plans come to fruition – all the work of planning, advertising, and patching metaphorical holes fall into place, and I am with a group of about 25 zealous tourers, marveling at Tiffany glass windows and magnificent altars. What we were accomplishing extended far beyond our office. I was working to entertain and inform some of the most avid history buffs and dedicated Michiganders the state had to offer.

It was here where my excitement for my position really intensified. I took snapshots of everything, from the ceilings high above me to the ornate tile below my feet. The tour group made their way through rooms normally only open to clergy members while being led by one of the most fervent tour guides I have come across.

Although I enjoyed portions of the tour, I was ultimately there to work behind the scenes. Everything needed to run smoothly and seamlessly. Halfway through the day, we had to quick-change our motor coach after an air-conditioning malfunction. While the group explored Little Rock Baptist Church, the Step On Bus Tours crew was outside, calling bus drivers and fixing the problem before it even showed itself. And I loved every minute.

What most surprised me was what I was able to learn from the tourers themselves. Their passion for history (and for Detroit) was axiomatic. Almost every time we passed a grand building on Woodward Avenue, I was told about its history, current use, and even the year in which it was built. Some told me that they learned these facts on a previous tour. Others just knew; Detroit was their lifetime home, and it showed. It proved what is said time and time again: experience is truly priceless.

I’m looking forward to seeing what else I can learn through the people and places I will encounter. And one day I hope to be able to spread this knowledge to others, maybe even while driving down Woodward.

Annual Tulip Festival

Welcome to the Tulip Time Festival!  Since 1929, the small city of Holland, Michigan has blossomed with literally hundreds of thousands of tulips - and an equal number of tulip-lovers who attend the annual Tulip Time Festival. This trip is everything tulips as we meet our Dutch Guide who will take us past tulip fields where we can get out and take pictures. Guide will explain how Holland came to be the capital of tulip fields in Michigan. There will be opportunities to get off the bus and see tulips. Church buffet lunch. Our docent-led motor coach tour will take us past extraordinary colorful gardens, to the Dutch Market Platz for shopping. Veldheer's tulip farm. DeKlomp Tulip Farm and Wooden Shoe Factory.  Time to stroll downtown. Back alley street dancing.  Cost includes transportation via motor coach, lunch, and admissions. $75/person

Exclusive Groupon for Resale Rodeo

Sign up for our Resale Rodeo tour today and get an exclusive Step On Bus Tours Groupon for your resale shopping! Groupon will include getting $25 worth of merchandise for only $15!

Capitalize on great deals and steals like this blue cardigan for under $10!

Step On Bus Tours Joins Dr. Paul's Family Talk

Keep on a look out later today, for a new video playlist featuring all of our wonderful visits on air with Paul Reeves, for his Dr. Paul's Family Talk!

https://www.facebook.com/stepon.bustours/

Step On Bus Tours presents: Resale Rodeo

March 28, 2017
Do you love consignment or thrift shopping? Hit the road this spring for some awesome bargain hunting! Visiting 5 multiple resale shops, and clean up on deals and steals! Includes box lunch on the bus and heavy snacks 8:00AM - 4:30PM. $65/person
For more information contact StepOnBusTours.com or call 248-619-6692