Archive for the 'Deals' 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 »
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 »
Grand Bahama Island: Flight-hotel packages for $900
November 19, 2009 6:05am
For us West Coasters, the Caribbean is not really so close. But given the amazing sale rates we’re seeing to this island region, we just can’t ignore its appeal. Take, for instance, the following package deals now being offered to Grand Bahama Island in the Bahamas.
Deal: For winter travel (holidays included), CheapCarribean.com is offering up to $500 in savings over its typical rates for vacation packages. Stay five nights or longer for the $500 discount. For four-night vacations, you’ll save $400, and for three nights, $300. Some of the Grand Bahama Island hotels included in this deal are Flamingo Bay Hotel, Our Lucaya Reef Village, Pelican Bay at Lucaya, Radisson Our Lucaya Resort and Viva Wyndham Fortuna Beach.
Tested: I tested a four-night getaway at the Viva Wyndham Fortuna Beach in early January. From LAX, I found fly-stay packages for $706 per person (pre-tax, and based on double occupancy). Via CheapCaribbean.com’s online reservations system, that worked out to $892 per person total, after taxes. Read the rest of this entry »
NYC Restaurant Week 2010: Three-course dinner for $35
November 18, 2009 12:32pm
Time your New York City vacation right and you may be able to eat your way through the Big Apple without going broke. This week, the dates for the famous NYC Restaurant Week Winter 2010 were announced by NYC & Company, the city’s marketing and tourism organization.
The two-week event, which runs semiannually in summer and winter, is scheduled for Jan. 25 to Feb. 7, 2010.
And maybe we have the recession to thank, but prices for the foodie series are the same as they were in 2006. At participating restaurants, three-course, prix-fixe dinners will run $35. Lunches will cost $24.07 (as in 24 hours a day/7 days a week in the city that doesn’t sleep). These prices do not include beverages, tax and tip. And the special prices are valid every day during the two-week period except Saturdays. Read the rest of this entry »
Book your 2010 Palm Springs hotel stay now to save 40%
November 18, 2009 6:03am
Here in Los Angeles, we may get flak when complaining about a winter chill, especially during times when much of the country is buried under snow. But it’s all relative, right? So once we’re in the winter months, remember: When the goose bumps start popping up and the heating bills skyrocket, head to the desert.
Palm Springs is just perfect, weather-wise, in the late winter, and there’s always lots to do, whether you’re into hiking or shopping, hot-air ballooning or horseback riding. And if you plan your stay in advance, you can save a pretty penny on accommodations at the family-friendly Riviera Resort.
Deal: A current Riviera Web special offers 40% off the resort’s best available rates for those booking now for stays from Jan. 1 to March 31, 2010. Read the rest of this entry »
Santa Barbara: Third night free at 22 hotels with ‘24 More’ promotion
November 17, 2009 5:55am
Who can’t use an extra 24 hours in Santa Barbara? Whether you’re heading to this popular vacation destination to get pampered in a B&B or anonymously relax in a larger resort, have a look at the following promotion. It provides great incentive to take a longer-than-usual weekender away.
Deal: With the new “24 More, Compliments of Santa Barbara” offer, you can take advantage of a third night free when you book two nights at one of 22 participating properties in and around the city.
Venues featuring the offer include Hotel Oceana Santa Barbara, Four Seasons Resort, Inn by the Harbor and Franciscan Inn. You can see your full list of options here online.
You must book directly with the hotel or other venue, referring to the promotion code cited in the respective place on the “24 More” page.
When: Valid for stays now through March 31, 2010. Read the rest of this entry »
Oahu, Hawaii: Trump International Hotel Waikiki Beach Walk opens
November 16, 2009 2:52pm
Boasting 462 guest rooms over its 38 stories, a new luxury hotel is now open for business in Honolulu. Trump International Hotel Waikiki Beach Walk — the fourth property for the Trump Hotel Collection brand — is welcoming its first overnight guests today.
A ceremonial welcoming event, with traditional Hawaiian dance and music, occurred this morning for the inaugural guests of this hotel that is a few minutes’ stroll from the ocean, and right on Waikiki Beach Walk.
Pre-opening rates, valid for stays now through Dec. 21, 2009, start at $255 per night (pre-tax) for a “studio beach walk” room. In January and February, the rack rate for the same kind of room is $385. Read the rest of this entry »
Marriott New Orleans and other hotels offer ‘Papa Noel’ deals
November 16, 2009 5:59am
With sleigh bells ringing –– and surely an appetite for etouffee –– Papa Noel (that’s Santa Claus to us out-of-towners) is readying himself for a holiday destination guaranteed to be brimful with festive cheer.
Boasting a full holiday calendar in December, New Orleans will be offering its visitors free jazz and gospel cathedral concerts; caroling; themed meals and free cooking demonstrations; and the nightly Celebration of the Oaks tour in City Park.
And, as has become tradition, numerous hotels about town are offering “Papa Noel” rates for December stays. For a full list of participants, see the Christmas pages on New Orleans’ tourism site. One such deal, by New Orleans Marriott, is detailed below.
Deal: This Marriott, located on Canal Street in the French Quarter, is offering “Papa Noel” rates from $89 to $159 per night (pretax) for stays Dec. 1-24, 2009. Read the rest of this entry »
Big Bear: Free Thanksgiving dinner with vacation rental
November 14, 2009 5:45pm
I’m grateful for my many blessings — really, I am. But the thought of cooking a Thanksgiving dinner this year makes me to want to hide out until 2010. The only problem with that plan is that I’d really be missing out on the turkey and the trimmings, and of course the familial camaraderie. So maybe I’ll cart everyone up to a cabin in the San Bernardino Mountains instead.
Deal: Big Bear Vacations, which rents out over 300 cabins and homes, is offering a free prepared Thanksgiving dinner for those booking any of their properties for at least two nights during the holiday weekend, with arrival being on Wednesday, Nov. 25, only.
The dinner, enough for six to eight people, is prepared by the deli at the Vons in Big Bear Lake, and it will include turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, dressing, cranberry sauce, rolls and a pumpkin pie. If your party is a smaller one, you’ll get the same amount of food — but presumably, you’ll end up with lots for leftovers too. Read the rest of this entry »
Friday the 13th travel deals: Hotels.com 50%-off one-day sale
November 13, 2009 10:31am
I’m going to ignore the bad luck that is associated with Friday the 13th and focus on the good. As in it’s a good time to take some time off with a hotel travel deal. Hotels.com is having a one-day sale on rooms through Nov. 27. Nearly 200 properties in 60 destinations are on sale for up to 50% off. I started looking at hotels in San Diego and Los Angeles, but I might not have been as lucky as I thought. Although the rooms were heavily discounted, I was hard pressed to find them at the promoted prices in San Diego on the Friday the 13th sale page. I did, however, get lucky with hotels in Los Angeles. Let us know what kind of room you scored with this sale. But you better hurry, the rooms with the lowest prices are selling out fast.
Deal or no deal? I had better luck finding the sale rates in Los Angeles than I did with hotels in San Diego.
Los Angeles: On the promotion page, the Custom Hotel was marked down from $178 per night to $95, but when I plugged in my dates for next Saturday, the nightly rate came to $69 pretax for a deluxe room with a queen bed. One of my favorite hotels, Hotel Angeleno, was promoted at $80 per night. I didn’t find it for $80, but I did find it for $99, which is still a great price for this hotel that can sometimes cost more than $200 per night. I also found the Hotel Maya (pictured) for $100 per night. Sure, it was listed at $90 on the sale, but at only $10 more I’d still hop on this rate for a Joie de Vivre boutique hotel.
