Scouting the best airfares, hotels, cruises and vacation packages

Two California luxury hotels added to AAA’s 2010 Five Diamond Award list

November 6, 2009 2:45pm

Open less than a year, the Resort at Pelican Hill in Orange County like all hotels, has struggled against the tides of a beleaguered economy. But that doesn’t mean it can’t take a great compliment. The luxury coastal property is one of two California resorts that have danced into the exclusive ranks of AAA’s just-released Five Diamond Award list for 2010. [Corrected at 5:45 p.m. Nov. 6: An earlier version of this post said the Resort at Pelican Hill is south of Laguna Beach. It is north of Laguna Beach.]

California, with 20 five-diamond hotels, also added the opulent Grand del Mar in San Diego to its coffers.

The new Golden State additions join the company of some real longtimers, like the Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel, which has populated the list for 24 consecutive years, and the Peninsula Beverly Hills, with 17 consecutive years under its belt.

Read the rest of this entry »

Permalink | No Comments | E-mail | Add to My Trips

National World War II Museum rallies the troops, plus Tom Hanks, for premiere

November 6, 2009 10:14am

Everyone from war veterans to movie luminaries are rallying today, Nov. 6, in New Orleans to inaugurate the expanded National World War II Museum, which has doubled in size and added a theater with a film experience that promises to plunge visitors into the wartime world, complete with (fake) falling snowflakes, seats that shudder as munitions explode and other special effects.

Among today’s attendees is Tom Hanks, executive producer and narrator of the 35-minute movie “Beyond All Boundaries” (photo above),  which will screen at the museum’s new theater. The film stars Kevin Bacon, Patricia Clarkson, Neil Patrick Harris, Brad Pitt and many others.

Today’s events were sold out, museum spokeswoman Kacey Hill said. But there was still plenty of room on Saturday, dubbed “Family Fun Day,” when a range of free activities will be offered, she added.  Here’s the 411:

Read the rest of this entry »

Permalink | No Comments | E-mail | Add to My Trips

New York City in winter: Hotel bargains, post-holiday ice rink and freebies

November 6, 2009 5:58am

Cold it may be come December and January, but in New York City this winter, you might find comfort in the plentiful hotel deals on offer. And as always, attractions in the Big Apple can be found for cheap, or free, for the resourceful traveler.

Hotels

At the Pod Hotel, on East 51st Street at 3rd Avenue, the cheapest accommodation is a single pod room. You may have to share a bathroom with strangers, but you get stylish digs with a twin bed, workspace, WiFi, iPod docking station and LCD TV. I found one of these in January for just $79 per night (pre-tax). If your party consists of more than you, a bunk-bed pod room (pictured above) can be had for $89 — also a shared-bath situation. Double and queen rooms, with private bath, are $119 and $139, respectively.

The W New York, in Midtown, is having a sale, though you have to book this one by Nov. 10: Read the rest of this entry »

Permalink | Comments (3) | E-mail | Add to My Trips

The Michael Jackson theme park that never was, but still could be

November 5, 2009 12:29pm

Michael Jackson dreamed of a theme park based on the J.M. Barrie story of “Peter Pan,” complete with looping roller coasters, 3-D flight simulators, water rides, stunt shows, dinner theater, nighttime spectaculars and hotels.

The Disney and More blog has the full story of how the dream nearly became reality, including blueprints and concept art from the envisioned project.

In the late 1990s, the King of Pop partnered with Burbank-based Landmark Entertainment Group — the creators of the Spider-Man ride at Islands of Adventure and the Jurassic Park water ride at Universal Studios Orlando — to draft a plan for Peter Pan’s Neverland theme park.

The concept looks remarkably similar to Disneyland past and present, with all the Peter Pan parts of the park (pirate ship, dark ride, skull rock) amplified and embellished with plenty of pixie dust.

Peter Pan’s Neverland envisioned a grand entrance into Victorian London with replicas of Kensington Gardens, Big Ben, Tower Bridge and the Houses of Parliament.

On Neverland Island, reached by boat, there were six themed lands:
Read the rest of this entry »

Permalink | Comments (3) | E-mail | Add to My Trips

Expedia drops fees for booking over the phone

November 5, 2009 11:04am

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s a call to Expedia. If you have missed talking to a real human when making your travel reservations because the extra fees forced you to figure out how to do it online, get ready to have  your life back. Expedia today, Nov. 5,  let go of all its fees for booking flights, hotels, rental cars and cruises over the phone. Yesterday, calling in travel reservations cost customers $20 per transaction; today, it’s zippo.

Here are four scenarios that will save you money if you call in your reservation with Expedia.

1. If you book your flight by calling an airline directly. You know those pesky charges that airlines tack on if you call them to book your flight? As examples, Virgin America charges $15 per guest per itinerary. Delta charges $20 per person per ticket and United charges $25 per person, per reservation. As of today, if you call Expedia to book a flight (on any of those airlines and others) there will be no extra fee for doing so.

2. If you book your flight over the phone through a a competing online travel agency (OTA). Orbitz, Travelocity and CheapTickets charge $25 to book a flight over the phone. If you are making that call to book flights for more than one person, the fees can go up and up. For two people, it’s $50 on those three other OTAs and $75 for three people. When you call in flight reservations for four people, the fee stays at $75 on Travelocity but becomes $100 on both Orbitz and CheapTickets. [Update on Nov. 5: An earlier version of this post said Priceline doesn't charge for offline flight bookings and hasn't for years. The correct information is that Priceline does not offer telephone bookings for flights.]

3. If you book a flight with some OTAs and need to change or cancel the itinerary. Travelocity, Orbitz and Priceline generally charge $30 for flight changes and cancellations. However, Orbitz has a 24-hour no fee flight cancellation policy through its My Trips feature. Priceline’s Name Your Own Price does not allow changes. CheapTickets charges $50 for flight changes and cancellations.

4. If you book a cruise for a family of four with an OTA and need to cancel it. Some online travel agencies charge for changes. Orbitz charges $75 for canceling a cruise, according to a spokeswoman and their website. [Corrected at 4:30 p.m. Nov. 5: In an earlier version of this post, I noted that I called Orbitz and was told they charge $100 per cabin for cruise cancellations but that there will be no charge if you rebook for a different date on the same phone call. I was also told that again when I called later. But an Orbitz spokeswoman e-mailed to correct this information]. And of course, there’s the nonrefundable $25 booking fee. CheapTickets charges $75 per cabin for cancellations. It’s worth noting that Travelocity and Priceline do not charge a fee to change or cancel a cruise booking.

Read the rest of this entry »

Permalink | Comments (1) | E-mail | Add to My Trips

First look: ‘Tiana’s Showboat Jubilee’ opens at Disneyland for a limited run

November 5, 2009 7:28am

I got a sneak peek at “Tiana’s Showboat Jubilee” last night, and I have to say I really enjoyed the latest Disneyland show.

The limited-engagement show, tied to the upcoming “Princess and the Frog” animated movie from Disney, begins its daily run at the Anaheim theme park starting Friday (Nov. 6). The 20-minute production — presented four times a day — continues through Jan. 3.

About three dozen performers dressed in 1920s-era Mardi Gras costumes dance through the crowds in second-line fashion near New Orleans Square before boarding the Mark Twain Riverboat for a floating musical revue.

The hybrid parade-show combines two of my favorite experiences at Disneyland: Read the rest of this entry »

Permalink | No Comments | E-mail | Add to My Trips

San Diego Omni Hotel’s $99 ‘Stuff Your Stocking’ deal

November 5, 2009 5:56am

You don’t need to prove that you’ve been good all year to get this gift from Santa. The Omni San Diego, connected to  San Diego’s Petco Park, has a “Stuff Your Stocking” special worth taking advantage of well before Christmas. Guestrooms are on sale starting at $99 per night starting Thanksgiving week and lasting through the New Year’s holiday. Baseball season may be over, but there’s plenty of holiday shopping to be had in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter.

Deal: Use the promo code “STOCKING” to get a guestroom for $99 per night, pre-tax, based on availability. But the best part of the deal is that guests will receive a letter upon their departure that enables them to purchase another night at the hotel for $99 in 2010.

Tested: I searched for available dates on the Omni San Diego website and found several, including Nov. 28 (the Saturday after Thanksgiving), Dec. 18-21 and Dec. 24 - 27.  The deal was not, however, available for the New Year’s holiday,  Dec. 30 - Jan. 1. When I looked for rates outside of the deal, I found a low of $84 on a current 72-hour sale and a rate of $118 for a 21-day advance purchase for rooms Dec. 24 -27. However, the best available rate was listed as $139, pre-tax. I think all these rates are worth jumping on because I’ve been watching this hotel and often see prices of more than $200 and sometimes $300 per night. Granted, that might have been during baseball season.

Read the rest of this entry »

Permalink | No Comments | E-mail | Add to My Trips

Priceline.com’s Hotel Negotiator app for the iPhone & iPod Touch

November 4, 2009 4:54pm

Just what you’ve always wanted — William Shatner in your pocket. Priceline launched an app for the iPhone and iPod Touch last week and it has already made it to the No. 3 spot for travel apps on the iTunes store. Priceline’s “Hotel Negotiator” is a handy, free app that starts off with a Negotiator karate chop followed by a menu page,  where you can shake your iPhone or iPod Touch to find recent “Name Your Own Price” hotel deals that were booked in your area and then book a deal yourself. You can also select a city from its top 50 destinations. Click “Browse” at the bottom of the screen to get hotel recommendations, see reviews, prices and book a hotel without using the “Name Your Own Price” feature.

When I tried the app under the “Name Your Own Price” feature (versus Browse), the Hotel Negotiator showed me a deal for $100 at a three-and-a-half star hotel in San Diego’s North County Coastal area. I liked that they map out exactly where the hotel would be located since part of the compromise with using Priceline’s “Name Your Own Price” deal is that you don’t find out which hotel you’ll be staying at until they’ve booked it on your credit card.

It’s particularly helpful that they tell you how much of a percentage savings you’re getting on normal rates. I also found it helpful that you can see a list of nearby deal scores because if you’re familiar with that area, you can consider driving a little bit farther to get a better deal. For example, a three-star hotel for $85 was found in North County Coastal between Oceanside and Encinitas with a savings of 39%. But I found that someone scored a $60 price for a three-and-a-half star hotel in the Del Mar - Solana Beach - Rancho Santa Fe  area for a savings of 60%. That’s only a 10-30 minute driving difference.

Read the rest of this entry »

Permalink | No Comments | E-mail | Add to My Trips

Phoenix airport luggage thefts: Did you lose a bag? [Updated]

November 4, 2009 2:19pm

Take a look at the photo above. Recognize your bag?  If so, you may be one of possibly hundreds of passengers whose luggage may have been stolen off carousels at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) in Arizona.

Police are asking travelers who think they might have been victimized to call the property crimes section at the Phoenix Police Department, (602) 495-7808.

In a news alert on their website, Phoenix police said they arrested two people on suspicion of stealing luggage from the airport’s carousels after an officer reported suspicious behavior there. When police searched the couple’s home Tuesday, Nov. 3, they found “suitcases everywhere — from floor to ceiling,” said Det. James Holmes, a department spokesman. The photo above shows some of the bags.

Read the rest of this entry »

Permalink | Comments (13) | E-mail | Add to My Trips

Enjoy a free day at national parks, forests on Veterans Day, Nov. 11

November 4, 2009 8:52am

Next week, national parks and forests will waive entrance fees for one day, Wednesday, Nov. 11, to honor servicemen and women. Unlike past years, when only U.S. veterans, active members of the U.S. armed forces and their families got a free pass, this year’s Veterans Day observance will allow everyone in for free, according to a news release Tuesday, Nov. 3, from the U.S. Department of the Interior.

If the deal otherwise works like it did in past years, you’ll still owe fees for camping, permits and other activities. But you can save a lot anyway because some popular parks, including California’s Yosemite National Park, normally charge entrance fees of $20 or so per car.

The Interior Department earlier this year expanded the number of free days on federal lands, offering three fee-free weekends over the summer. At that time, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar noted that parks provide affordable family vacations “during these tough economic times.”

Read the rest of this entry »

Permalink | No Comments | E-mail | Add to My Trips