Archive for the 'Idaho' Category
Coeur d’Alene to the North Pole: An Idaho resort goes all out for Christmas
November 21, 2009 6:49am
When not in Vegas, 1.5-million lights can only mean someone’s putting on one heck of a holiday party. Northern Idaho’s Coeur d’Alene Resort, which claims to hold the world’s tallest living Christmas tree, puts on a family-friendly Holiday Light Show annually on the shores of Lake Coeur d’Alene. This year, the event runs Nov. 27 to Jan. 1.
One of the show’s highlights is a “Journey to the North Pole” boat cruise, which includes a visit with Santa at the North Pole Toy Workshop. And that towering tree? At 161 feet, the green giant beats, in height, the 76-foot Norway spruce in New York City’s Rockefeller Center. What’s more, each ornament on the Coeur d’Alene tree will be 10 feet tall.
The following accommodations package offered by the resort makes a Christmas-themed trip easy.
Deal: The “Holiday Light Show B&B” package, which starts at $145 per night (pre-tax), includes your room, two tickets to the “North Pole” and breakfast for two. Read the rest of this entry »
At Yellowstone, wolves and winter deals
October 24, 2009 9:00am
While it can’t compete with the 25-cent hotel rooms recently offered in the U.S. Virgin Islands, or $20 rooms at Hooters Casino in Las Vegas, Yellowstone National Park is offering up some interesting snow packages that include wildlife tours, snowmobiling and ice skating.
The “Winter Getaway” packages are available just after the holidays, Jan. 3 to March 6, a period often ripe with snow-play specials.
Particularly appealing: “Trail of the Wolf,” a guided snowmobile trip to the interior of the park, which is known for its wolves, and wildlife watching by special van in the park’s northern range. The package includes three nights of lodging at Old Faithful Snow Lodge or Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel, two breakfasts per person, a one-hour hot tub rental, unlimited skating and skates. Prices begin at $411 per person pretax, double occupancy, for two nights at Mammoth Hot Springs and one night at Old Faithful. Two nights at Old Faithful and one night at Mammoth Hot Springs runs $546 per person.
Yellowstone fire abates under rain, snow; road may be reopened
September 30, 2009 3:35pm
A hoped-for cold front blew through Yellowstone National Park today, Sept. 30, bringing rain, snow and a welcome break for firefighters, who have been battling a lightning-sparked blaze for more than two weeks. After scorching more than 9,000 acres, the so-called Arnica fire appeared to be retreating, allowing abatement efforts that have involved more than 200 firefighters to be scaled down, officials said.
In the meantime, the National Park Service today was working to clear fire-damaged trees so that it can reopen about two miles of a roadway between the junctions at Lake Village and West Thumb. Regardless, drivers can expect delays in the park because another key route, between Norris and Madison, is scheduled to be closed until Nov. 2 as part of ongoing road construction.
Most of Yellowstone, including the iconic Old Faithful geyser area (pictured above), has been unaffected by the blaze, which is in the Lake Village region on the west side of Yellowstone Lake. The park is huge, with more than 2 million acres, and spreads across three states: Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.
For updates, check the Yellowstone website or call its fire-information line, (307) 344-2580 or its road-information line, (307) 344-2117.
— Jane Engle, assistant Los Angeles Times Travel editor
Photo: Old Faithful’s spray hits cold air above the snow-dusted grounds in this shot taken from the park’s webcam about 1:40 p.m. PDT Sept. 30. Credit: National Park Service
Wet and cold may douse Yellowstone fire, officials hope
September 29, 2009 5:11pm
Mother Nature may be coming to the rescue at Yellowstone National Park, where a lightning-sparked wildfire has burned more than 9,000 acres since Sept. 13. Firefighters just have to hang tough through high winds today and tonight before hoped-for cold and snow arrive Wednesday, said Tom Kempton, a National Park Service spokesman on the scene.
“The winds are what we’re watching very carefully now,” Kempton said.
Most of the giant park, which sprawls over more than 2 million acres in Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, has been unaffected by the so-called Arnica fire, which is in the Lake Village region (pictured above) on the west side of Yellowstone Lake. The Lake Yellowstone Hotel and Lake Lodge Cabins in Lake Village were undamaged, Kempton said. The area of the Old Faithful geyser, he added, was unaffected and was showing partly cloudy skies on the park webcams this afternoon.
But the blaze was spreading smoke in other areas and, along with ongoing road construction, was blocking some key in-park routes.
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 »
Family Travel: Ski deals, kids fly & ski free
October 15, 2007 10:25pm
Skiing can get expensive, especially when there’s the cost of taking the whole family. Ski.com knows this and is trying to help skiers and boarders keep their favorite sport a winter family tradition. A partnership between Ski.com and United Airlines means free flights for kids, and free ski passes & rentals at participating resorts in Colorado, California, Idaho and Wyoming and more.
Deals: Kids 12 and under can fly free when their parents book a ski package on Ski.com for Vail, Beaver Creek, Crested Butte, Steamboat and Jackson Hole. There are additional resorts that offer kids free ski and board rentals, or free lift tickets. So now the question becomes, where do mom and dad want to go skiing this winter? Package deal prices vary depending on where and when you go. Be prepared to travel midweek.
When: Select dates this winter.
