10 Geeky Summer Destinations

http://youtu.be/RiQtsvTWFwE
It’s our first show shot in the Geek House since we moved in! And to make things even more exciting, Todd Pacey from Pacey Electrical and Technologies is here setting up our access control system! He’s just one of a bunch of people helping to make the Geek House an amazing place… which leads us right into our first summer geek destination!

The Geek House

Our first Geeky Summer Destination is our very own Geek House. We’ve just moved in and won’t be officially done with renovations until August 1st, but when we do unveil some surprises at the Grand Opening Party, you’ll know just why we refer to this building as Disney World for Geeks! It’s going to be incredible! Full of technology and geek memorabilia. If you’re EVER in Dallas, we’d love to meet you and show you around the place. We have an open door policy! Except during the party because of fire code. But if you’re a Patron or bought a plaque for the Geek House Wall of Fame, you ARE invited to the Party! Just check your email.

World’s Biggest Private Star Wars Collection

Star Wars fans! I have a constellation of Geeky places to go for you! Like Rancho Obi-Wan in Sonoma County in Northern California. Rancho Obi-Wan houses the largest private collection of Star Wars memorabilia in the world! Before you visit in person, you’ll first need to visit their website and join their non-profit. Someone’s gotta maintain the collection! It’s only $40 for an annual membership. Then you can book a tour for $60 but there’s two ticket minimum, so bring a friend! Most fans spend several hours walking the collection and admiring it. The owner is also the guide and since he was an employee of Lucasfilm for a loooong time, he’ll be able to answer any questions!

Visit Tatooine!

How about visiting Tatooine? There are two ways to do it, and neither requires booking a trip aboard the Millennium Falcon. Number 1! You could hop over to Africa and hire a Tunisian guide to take you deep into the desert to the village of Mos Espa… but man that’s a long trip! And you better hurry! The sands of the Sahara are burying the abandoned set. There’s also a much easier, equally geeky destination. Death Valley, California is home to several very recognizable Tatooine locations: Artoo’s Dunes, Tusken Raiders Canyon, Artoo’s Arroyo, and Dante’s View where Ben Kenobi warns young Luke Skywalker what awaits them at the Mos Eisley Spaceport in the valley below.

To truly experience Death Valley as George Lucas did, book a room at the 70 year old Furnace Creek Inn. That’s where the Star Wars crew stayed while filming pick up shots for the movie.

Vacation with the Dinosaurs!

How about a Jurassic Park vacation? Between now and mid-August, The Museum of Western Colorado has more than a dozen dinosaur digs you can participate in and one Colorado River Raft Day Trip to some of North America’s oldest dinosaur tracks. The raft trip takes you through 25 miles of Jurassic-era canyons. And the digs focus on the bones of Jurassic giants…. like Allosaurus and Apatosaurus (unfortunately no Velociraptors). Joining a dig for a day is $135 and that includes tools, transportation, food… and Gatorade. Want a more tamed rafting trip for your not-so-geeky partner? Check out American Whitewater Expedition and their tours.

A Harry Potter Holiday

Harry Potter Geeks can satisfy their inner fan through a trip to Orlando, Florida. Universal’s Islands of Adventure is home to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter-Hogsmeade. And so you’re not confused, the Wizarding World of Harry Potter-Diagon Alley is at the neighboring Universal Studios. And of course, no Harry Potter experience would be complete without tasting the magical food, so there’s plenty of Butter Beer, Pumpkin Juice, Fizzing Whizbees, and Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans to be had!

Aviation Geeks Rejoice at National Air and Space Museum

You’ll find something for every geeky persuasion at the museums of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC and admission is free. A favorite geeky destination is the Air and Space Museum that houses the Apollo 11 Command Module, a Hubble Space Telescope test vehicle… missiles and rockets…there are twenty-three galleries. When John P, Kubby, Pablo and I were in DC to take a Boot Camp class at the CEA offices with Gary Shapiro (don’t worry, there’s video of that!), we took a brief moment to trample through the museum. And OMG, it’s completely awesome! I was totally geeking out and VERY disappointed that we couldn’t actually stay more than 30 minutes. I will definitely be going back!

Explore the Disney Archives

Disney Geeks should consider a visit to the Museum of Science and Industry between now and August 3rd. Nine Decades of memorabilia from The Disney Archives are on display covering everything from Mickey Mouse to Captain Jack Sparrow. The museum also has a Fab Lab where Design Geeks can go hands-on with 3D Printers and Laser Cutters!

Geek Out at Our Photography Workshop

And if you’re into learning, we’re holding our first workshop in the new Geek House on August 22nd! It’s designed to help you take your photography to the next level, and I’m going to be learning from John P. and Scott Kublin right along with you! I’m super excited! Our video production workshop we had a while back sold out very quickly, so if you’re interested, get all the details at geekbeat.tv/photoworkshop.

Walk the Prime Meridian in Greenwich

Now for those of you “across the pond”. Be sure to stop by the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, London. In addition to taking a selfie across two hemispheres at the home of Greenwich Mean Time and the World’s Prime Meridian, you’ll be able to touch a 4 and a half Billion year old asteroid and travel the universe in London’s only planetarium.

Science Night in South Kensington

Also in London, the Science Museum in South Kensington has a collection of more than 300,000 artifacts (and free admission except for special exhibitions). If you just happen to be there on August 3rd, look into booking a place at “Science Night” — an all-night experience and sleepover with MORE science and an IMAX film after morning breakfast.

Explore the Fandom of Your Choice at Nine Worlds Geekfest

Or there’s the Nine Worlds Geekfest 2014 at Heathrow Airport. There’s cosplay, comic & film fandom… and, this being the UK, plenty of Doctor Whovians, as well as exploration of “Game of Thrones.” You can buy tickets for the three day event online for 90 pounds or 100 at the door.

Here are just some of the summer destinations that you may want to visit. For more travel destination options, visit a site like https://www.visitcaymanislands.com/en-us/plan-your-trip/getting-here/travel-by-air. Also before going on vacations like this, it’s good practice to make sure that you have all the travel documents. If, for example, acquiring a visa is tough for you due to the long queue time, you can seek consulates, such as a the Italian Consulate New York, to help you out.