Roundup: Deals from Vegas, Santa Barbara, Southwest Airlines; Barney dog video; and more

Good morning, travelers. We’re seeing some fresh deals out there, and, even better, a cute holiday video of “First Dog” Barney. (I have a soft spot for Barney, and it has nothing to do with politics.) Here we go:

$49 Treasure Island rooms: MGM Mirage Inc. is selling this Las Vegas Strip stalwart for $500 million to former New Frontier owner Phil Ruffin. Meanwhile, you can get rooms starting at $49 through Dec. 25, subject to availability, plus 2 for 1 tickets to Cirque du Soleil’s “Mystere.” Enter code TI49 to access the deal on the hotel’s website.

Savings in Santa Barbara: Good, affordable hotel rooms are scarce in Southern California’s “Riviera.” So it’s great to get a break. Under the Santa Barbara Car Free Project, visitors who arrive by Amtrak can tap discounts up to 50% at dozens of hotels, restaurant and activities in the coastal county and also get 20% off their Pacific Surfliner or San Joaquins fares. Yes, I know gas prices have dropped to 2004 levels. But I find Amtrak a hassle-free way to get to Santa Barbara. It drops you right next to hopping State Street.

New Southwest deals: Southwest Airlines Vacations is trying something new this week: Deal of the Day, which gives you until 11:59 EST (8:59 PST) to book that day’s offer. The deal for today, Dec. 16, is 40% off Cirque du Soleil shows in Vegas. Look for it in the flashing “Featured Deals” window on the homepage.

Barney forever: I love the annual holiday videos of Barney, the First Family’s Scottish terrier—some more than others. This year’s is refreshingly free of policy wonk-dom. It offers fun views of Barney scampering past White House holiday decorations, plus cameos by Michael Phelps and others. The plot is silly, and the Bushes give wooden deliveries of their scripted lines. It’s perfect.

—Jane Engle, assistant Los Angeles Times Travel editor

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 16, 2008 at 8:19 am by Jane Engle and is filed under Airline travel, Arts & Culture, California, Deals, Eco-Travel, Frequent Flier, Good Morning, Hotels, Las Vegas, News, Tips & Advice, Santa Barbara, Travel with Pets, Weekend Getaways. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.