Oh, the places you’ll go!
The world is yours and under one roof at the Alderwood AAA Cruise &Travel store that opened in December.
There’s a grand opening celebration on Jan. 6, with specials throughout the month at the store, 3000 196th St. SW in Lynnwood.
The building that used to be kick-back-and-relax ReclinerLand has undergone a major transformation. These digs will make you want to get up and go. Supersized video displays flash images of white beaches, pink sunsets and turquoise seas that seem a fantasy … until now.
Amp up at the free coffee bar with AAA’s special brand, Bold Adventure Blend, to evoke that adventure within. Get your passport photo taken, an International Driving Permit and don’t forget the travel insurance. The store has backpacks, books, hats, ear plugs, compression socks, adapter plugs, Seahawks luggage tags and foreign currencies.
Sure, it has traditional AAA services, such as maps, guides and travel planning. But this is not your father’s AAA automobile roadside safety net. Like you, it has grown up and evolved with the times.
“It is meant to be a destination where you can get everything you need to travel,” said AAA spokeswoman Jennifer Cook. “We completely gutted and reconfigured the space to create the optimum retail floor plan.”
The travel center is the largest AAA store in the state and has 30 employees. It replaces the AAA sites in Everett, Lynnwood and Mill Creek. At 13,500 square feet, there’s plenty of space for seminars and travel fairs.
An AAA membership is not required to partake in the store or services. Yes, you might be asked at the register if you are a member, which is a good thing. Members get discounts on purchases.
The new store got the nod from Mukilteo travel writer and globetrotter Brandon Rudd, an AAA member since his dad signed him up in 1988.
As he put it: “It has high-end, cool travel gear, without having to look like a backpacker at REI. It was like the best of Starbucks, T-Mobile, Nordstrom and Barnes &Noble ‘atmospheres’ in one boutique.”
Rudd, author of the Cooper’s Pack series of travel guides for kids, bought a collapsible water bottle and an iPad cover that was orange, his favorite color.
Care to guess what is one of the hottest selling items at the store?
Slim electric toothbrushes that come in a variety of colors.
You can get socks, pillows, pill cases, suitcases and reading glasses in matching colors.
So, get packing. Today is your day.
Your mountain is waiting. There is fun to be done.
Andrea Brown: 425-339-3443; abrown@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @reporterbrown.
If you go
AAA Cruise &Travel store is at 3000 196th St. SW, Lynnwood.
Hours: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday; and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday.
The grand opening goes on all month, with a community party from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Jan. 6. Prizes, in a drawing on Feb. 2, include a Caribbean cruise for two on Princess Cruises; $1,000 Delta Vacation voucher; Travelpro luggage set; Victoria Clipper transportation for two to Victoria, B.C.; and a multi-pocket Scottevest, the latest in travel attire.
For more information, call 425-744-7302 or go to www.aaawa.com.
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