Alex and I just returned from attending the iHeart Podcast Awards. Points Talk with the Travel Mom Squad was one of five podcasts nominated for Best Travel Podcast. What an honor to be nominated for a podcast that is barely a year old—especially considering we have often recorded it from the floors of our closets (just keeping it real)! Thanks so much for supporting our modest efforts; it is because of our listeners that we got the nomination.

 

Preparation for the Award Ceremony

About two months ago, we were informed of the nomination and that it would be held in Austin, Texas in conjunction with the SXSW festivities. Evidently those are well-attended as we couldn’t find hotel availability anywhere. In fact, we finally booked a Hyatt Place at the airport. Luckily the Hyatt Regency Austin opened up and we were able to book a room there for 18K Hyatt points/night. Alex used a SUA (Suite Upgrade Award) and not only were we given a suite, but we got a premium suite. We had SO much space, including a small kitchen that we didn’t utilize. More on that stay later.

We thought the dress code for this occasion would be fancy, and since we don’t own fancy, looked at Rent the Runway for outfits. I ordered two dresses so I had options. Alex found a cute black jumpsuit at Abercrombie.  She reached out to the contact person for the award show about two weeks before and found out the dress was business chic. I was a bit overdressed (luckily so were a few others).

 

The Hyatt Regency Austin

This hotel is about a 15-20 minute drive from the Austin airport. We took an Uber that cost about $30 (we used credits from our Platinum cards to pay for our Ubers). The hotel was in a great location for walking around the downtown area. We actually rented electric scooters (first time for this grandma) and went near the river for lunch. We had the best birria tacos and guac and chips at a cute place called FaireMarket which housed several options. Taco Pegaso was delicious and I would totally return.

 

 

We had a free Globalist breakfast before that which was a nice buffet. I especially loved the Pearl Sugar Waffles that they had. I love that Globalist breakfast even includes the gratuity.

The Hyatt Regency Austin is huge with many rooms and the service was great. While we were just there for 2 nights, it is a hotel we would both recommend.

 

 

The Red Carpet

We were supposed to check into the show between 6:00 and 6:30 pm. It was held at the Fairmont Hotel and was another quick Uber ride away. We checked in and were escorted to the Green Room which was an area of the hotel with a bar and appetizers. We waited about 20 minutes and were then led to the Red Carpet area. When it was our turn, we were to pose in front of the iHeart Podcast Awards sign as photographers took our picture and a few people from the “press” asked us questions. Awkward!

One of them was, “If you could pick one person to fangirl your podcast, who would it be?” I quickly thought of Jess and responded, “Taylor Swift.” She then asked us what Era our outfits would be from. We were both wearing black, so Alex responded, “Reputation.” Jess would be so proud!

 

The Award Show

We then had an hour before the show was to begin. It was held in a large room with a runway down the middle and standing tables on both sides. The far side had couches where the presenters could sit. There was no seating for us, and by the end of the show, my feet were hurting. (Heels and I don’t mix well anymore.)

 

They did not present all the awards as it was just a one hour award show. In fact, ours was not presented. And, no, we did not win (we didn’t expect to). Atlas Obscura won Best Travel Podcast—they also won last year.

There were several comedians, influencers, athletes, and famous personalities presenting the awards.  Molly Sims, Jay Shetty, and Adam Devine were among the presenters/winners. New Heights won Podcast of the Year and we were slightly disappointed that Jason and Travis Kelce accepted via a video instead of being there in-person.

After the show, there was an after party but we grabbed tacos and a couple of appetizers and called it a night. All in all, it was a good experience but more causal than we initially thought it would be. We had fun together, met an interesting podcaster (Carol of The Girlfriends), and had our very brief moment of fame.

 

 

Bottom Line

Attending the iHeart Podcast Awards was so interesting. The best part was just being nominated, though. Austin seems to be a great city with great food and I would definitely return. Thank you so much for supporting our podcast, “Points Talk with Travel Mom Squad”—please share it with your friends!