Fifty Grande

Feb 14, 2025 | fiftygrande.com | Matt Meltzer

I crept into San Xavier del Bac Mission’s almost-empty parking lot and rolled toward a makeshift taco stand, which wasn’t much more than a couple of giant soup pots, a cooler, and a hand-painted plywood sign under a white oak ramada. “Five dollars,” the woman at the metal cash box said, as she handed me a 10-inch fresh fry bread topped with refried beans, lettuce, tomatoes, and a beef stew so spicy the steam tickled my nostrils.

Jan 9, 2025 | fiftygrande.com | Elissa Hunter

It’s Friday, the first day of the 25th annual Black Forest Star Party (BFSP) and all anyone can talk about is the weather. As with any outdoor-related activity, a star party is at the whim of Mother Nature and the forecast is bleak: while the afternoon skies are blue and bright, it’s forecasted to rain all night into Saturday morning and be cloudy the rest of the weekend.

Dec 19, 2024 | fiftygrande.com | Emily Frantz

There is one day a year when, anywhere in New York City, without rhyme or reason, your subway car could be boarded by one or 100 inebriated Santas. This year’s SantaCon happened this past Saturday, much to the ongoing dismay of all New Yorkers. On a small makeshift stage at 40th and Broadway in Midtown Manhattan, Head Santa and his crew of budget miscreants led the crowd of several thousand through breathing exercises to prep for the day’s outing. “Take a deep breath in. And out.

Dec 4, 2024 | fiftygrande.com | Bailey Berg

Imagine cruising down a highway, the open road stretched out before you. Suddenly, a 55ot-tall green man dressed in a leafy toga suddenly appears on the horizon. Or perhaps it’s a house shaped like a giant shoe, a massive fiberglass igloo, or 4,000-pound bug. Across the United States, roadsides are sprinkled with attractions that are as odd as they are unforgettable. These weird, quirky and yet notable stops reflect local history, eccentric personalities, and an undeniable sense of creativity.

Nov 19, 2024 | fiftygrande.com | Matt Meltzer

While it’s not the nonstop travel extravaganza of summer, fall has its own reasons to get out and explore. There are football games, of course, but also fall colors, apple picking, and shoulder season retreats that are both cheaper and less crowded than they are in the summer. There’s also a cool new crop of hotels which opened in fall 2024 across the U.S. that can be destinations unto themselves, like a seaside resort on California’s Central Coast and a rehabbed railroad depot in Utah.