Archive for the 'Western Canada' Category
Before Winter Olympics, travel to Vancouver via 25%-off Amtrak
November 20, 2009 5:57am
If you’re heading to Vancouver, B.C. for the 2010 Olympic Games, you’ve probably (hopefully) got your travel plans in place. But if you’d prefer a quieter visit, get there well before Feb. 12, which is when the Games begin and crowds descend.
Amtrak’s Cascades service provides an especially enjoyable means for pre-Olympics travelers to reach this “freewheeling and offbeat” destination. Direct services link Portland, Ore., and Seattle — among other places — to Vancouver, but the discounts currently on offer for the route may provide Southern California travelers incentive to craft together a trip too.
Deal: Amtrak is offering 25% off coach fares for Cascades passengers traveling between now and Jan. 31, 2010. You must book by Dec. 31, 2009. Discounted one-way fares from Portland are as low as $34.50 total per person; the trip takes about eight hours. I easily found availability on certain dates at this price. Read the rest of this entry »
Free-night offer by Country Inns & Suites
September 22, 2009 5:55am
Everyone’s serving up free nights these days. Expedia is doing it with a recently announced promotion. And Choice Hotels —with Comfort Inn and Econo Lodge a couple of the names under its banner — has offered, after a three-night stay, points applicable for a future one-night stay.
Now, the mid-range Country Inns & Suites by Carlson has joined the trend with a deal of its own, available at its hotels in the U.S. and Canada.
Deal: Through the “Free Night Fall” promotion, stay two or more nights at a participating hotel this fall and you’ll receive a voucher for a future free night that can be applied to a visit of two or more nights this winter. You can redeem the voucher at any participating hotel, regardless of where you stayed initially.
After your stay in October or November (see valid dates below), you’ll need to register online to receive your free-night voucher in the mail. Read the rest of this entry »
Happy Hour Links: San Diego County Fair begins; baby-whale birthing at Vancouver Aquarium; George H.W. Bush jumps
June 12, 2009 5:40pm
> Deep-fried s’mores, demolition derbies and musical performers ranging from KC & the Sunshine Band to the B-52s? Get ready for the San Diego County Fair, which opened today at the Del Mar Fairgrounds. It’s got a full calendar of attractions on offer almost daily from now till Sunday, July 5.
> One of the coolest things I’ve seen this week was the video above, recorded June 7, of a 20-year-old beluga whale giving birth. A resident of the Vancouver Aquarium in Canada, mama whale Aurora labored for three hours, according to an aquarium news release.
> George H.W. Bush took the leap, again. To celebrate his 85th birthday in style, the former president jumped out of a plane. Read the rest of this entry »
Stay twice at a Choice hotel and earn a free night in U.S., Canada and Mexico
March 26, 2009 1:05pm
Here’s a deal perfect for spring road-trippers. Join the Choice Privileges rewards program (free) and stay at a Choice hotel two separate times by April 30th and earn enough points for a free night stay good at up to 1,500 Choice hotels within the U.S., Canada, Mexico and more.
New to Choice? It includes 5,700 hotels from 10 mid-priced lodging chains including Cambria Suites, Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality, Sleep Inn, Clarion, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge, and Rodeway Inn hotels. Free breakfast and free high-speed Internet are offered at many of the hotels.
Western ski resorts offer warm deals
December 27, 2008 7:00am
[Related story: Mammoth Lakes is new and improved but still affordable]
Ski-and-stay packages are mountain resorts’ way of jumping on the recession-friendly holiday deals bandwagon. Some even offer a free night’s stay and a lift ticket after stays of two or three nights. Here is what some major resorts outside California are offering:
Vail, Colorado: Winter Savings Web Specials here include a third night of lodging free as well as gifts - a $50 RockResorts gift card and a bottle of organic Bonterra wine. $345 per night based on double occupancy; (800) 404-3535.
Snowbird, Utah: Ski Free specials through February for $135, per person per night; (800) 232-9542.
Park City, Utah: A Buy Four Get a Fifth Night Free package with 15% off multiday lift tickets is available through the end of January. Read the rest of this entry »
12 books of Christmas: ‘Visions of Paradise’
December 20, 2008 6:00am
My new personal hero may be Bronwen Latimer, who created a photographic escape hatch for these gloomy days when the economic news is as overcast as SoCal skies on a stormy day.
Latimer asked National Geographic photographers where, in their view, was heaven on earth. The result is this luscious book, “Visions of Paradise” (National Geographic, $35), which takes a reader to some predictable places (Hawaii), some not so much (Nebraska) and some I’d never heard of (Lago Ypoa National Park in Paraguay).
The 12 books of Christmas: ‘Sacred Places’
December 16, 2008 12:10pm
If you want something a bit more in tune with the vibe of the season, think “Sacred Places of a Lifetime” (National Geographic, $40).
Its subtitle, “500 of the World’s Most Peaceful and Powerful Destinations,” tells you it’s a big ride, but its really the organizing principle that is fascinating.
The 12 books of Christmas: ‘Encyclopedia of Earth’
December 15, 2008 5:41pm
Did you know most valleys are either V-shaped or U-shaped? That most tress cannot grow if the temperature doesn’t average at least 50 degrees in summer? That the harmattan wind, a dry, dusty Saharan wind, is so devoid of moisture that it can warp wood?
This is part of the delight of “The Encyclopedia of Earth: A Complete Visual Guide” (University of California Press, $39.95).
Ski travel: Should you pay extra baggage fees, carry on your boots or mail your ski equipment ahead?
December 11, 2008 11:00am
[Related story: Snow-making jumpstarts ski season in Southern California]
When the first snow fell last season, traveling by air with skis or a snowboard to a mountain resort was mostly just burdensome.
Now it’s become costlier.
The changes in baggage policies in the last year mean, at the outset, that most all but elite fliers will pay for checked bags, usually $15 for the first bag and $25 for the second.
And that’s if it doesn’t exceed the weight limits, which could be as little as 50 pounds. Thankfully, most airlines count a ski or snowboard bag and a separate boot bag as one piece for which you will not incur excess weight charges if they don’t exceed the 50-pound limit.
So, for many skiers, the bottom line starts about $80 per round trip, besides the airfare.
Roundup: Orange County evacuations ordered; no flights from Bangkok, travelers stranded; Whistler Mountain opens
November 26, 2008 8:27am
When it rains, it pours — figuratively and perhaps literally today, which is traditionally one of the year’s busiest travel days. Keep reading for bits of big news locally and abroad. To all of you hitting the airports and roads tonight and tomorrow, have good, safe travels, and don’t forget to carry on some patience.
[Click on photo above to see a gallery of demonstrators in Thailand.]
O.C. | Flash flood warnings have been announced and, because of the danger of mudslides, an evacuation has been ordered in Yorba Linda. In the Orange County city, 1,500 or more residents were told this morning to leave their homes, according to the Associated Press report, “Rains bring mudslide fears to California burn areas.” This follows voluntary evacuations that had already been called in Yorba Linda, affected by the recent Freeway Complex fire. Read the rest of this entry »
