A Destination Party at a Secret Location

[shannonqualls]

A few weeks ago, I was getting ready for Dîner en Blanc in Albuquerque, double checking my packing list and picking up last minute supplies when I looked down at my phone and saw a tweet from Southwest Airlines. 

I had entered a sweepstakes the previous week and had desperately hoped that I would win, but I didn’t hold my breath since I had never won anything that large before. After recovering from a near fatal moment of excitement, I did what any sane person would do. I had a dance party—by myself. That’s right. Because that awesomeness needed to be celebrated.

Then I called my husband and replied to the tweet. Because I was NOT going to miss that 24-hour deadline. After getting in touch with the fabulous Derek H. at Southwest, my husband and I worked on securing a babysitter for our three boys while getting all of the details worked out.

There were a lot of emails going back and forth, but in the end, everything went very smoothly and everyone we corresponded with was SO helpful. Thank you Derek H., Tena G., Kelsey B. and Alyssa E.!

SWAg bag with cheese, crackers, and waterIf you aren’t familiar with Dîner en Blanc, definitely do a Google search. There is a ton of information about it out there, but it’s essentially a pop-up dinner party where guests wear white outfits and enjoy music under the stars at a secret location that is revealed to them only when they arrive at the venue. It is so incredibly fun. As veteran “Blancers,” my husband and I had an idea of what to expect for the event. But since we had never traveled to another city for it, there were a few unknowns.

Luckily, we had the amazing Southwest Team available to answer questions for us. Typically when you attend Dîner en Blanc, you bring EVERYTHING with you. I mean everything. You bring a table, chairs, dishes, linen, food (unless you buy the catering), decor, etc. I was a little concerned about how to get all of our stuff on on the plane, but since we won the sweepstakes, we were invited to sit as guests at the Southwest table. Score! The only things we had to bring were our white outfits and a good attitude. And if you are thinking of traveling to a destination for Dîner en Blanc, Southwest is the way to go. With their free checked bags, you could easily take everything you needed to have a great night.

We flew into Dallas courtesy of Southwest Airlines the morning of the event. Our flight was great, and like all of the previous times we had flown Southwest, the service was awesome. After arriving in Dallas, we killed some time making a few stops around town before checking in at the hotel that Southwest had secured for us. The DoubleTree by Hilton was great, and the bed was very comfortable. We took a quick nap before getting ready for our evening.

We were told to meet at Southwest Airlines Headquarters by 6:30 p.m. If there is one thing I know about attending Dîner en Blanc, it is that you DO NOT want to be late. So we caught the shuttle from our hotel to meet up with our bus and were greeted by our amazing bus leader, Grace Ann, and her husband! We loaded on the bus and headed to the venue while completing Dîner en Blanc and Southwest trivia for prizes. We also received some pretty great swag from the official sponsors of the night, Southwest Airlines and Mercedes-Benz.

A shot of the SWA table

Thank you, Southwest!Upon arriving at the secret location (Dallas City Hall), we unloaded from the bus and followed our bus leader to our table. From there, we had the opportunity to wander around and look at the tables people were setting up, get photos, and just enjoy the beginning of the evening. When it was time for dinner to begin, we participated in the traditional napkin wave and enjoyed a delicious bento box of food courtesy of Southwest. After dinner, the dance floor opened up, and my husband and I walked around looking at all of the table decorations before finding our way to the dance floor. To finish the evening in the most magical way possible, the large pond located at City Hall was lit up with fireworks. It was such a fantastic night and one I will always cherish! Thank you, Southwest, for making it happen!