Katie Hammel
- http://twitter.com/KatieHammel
Katie Hammel lives in Chicago with her husband and two very fat cats. She is obsessive about food, wine and beer, and is easily excited by a good deal.
Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
More travel deals for Black Friday and Cyber Monday
The folks over at the LA Times have rounded up a few more great travel deals for Black Friday and Cyber Monday. And what better way to recoup from this most hellish of shopping weekends than by looking forward to a discounted vacation? Shell's Vacation Hospitality's Black Friday Sale runs today with discounts of up to 50% off at 26 of its resorts located in Arizona, Hawaii, Nevada, New Hampshire, Texas, Wisconsin, California, Mexico and Canada. Sample deals include a $79 per night room in Napa Valley, $84 per night on the Big Island of Hawaii, and $64 per night in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. There are some blackout dates around the holidays and the rooms must be prepaid and are nonrefundable.
Gap Adventures' sale runs from Black Friday to Cyber Monday and offers 20% savings on selected tours. 12 days in Laos can be had for $999 per person, 8 days in Thailand is just $479, and 20 days in India is only $1099. Over 25 tours are discounted, and include locations in South and Central America, Asia, Africa and Europe. Prices don't include airfare and are only valid on select departures in December, January, April and May.
Sonesta, a resort company that operates two properties on St. Maarten, is also offering 50% off for bookings made through Monday. The discount is valid for stays from December 18 to March 31. Stays over Christmas and New Year's require a 5-night minimum, but at just $138 (down from the usual $275), the total price is much more affordable.
Southwest and Virgin celebrate Thanksgiving with sales
Here are two more things to be thankful for this Thanksgiving - Southwest Airlines and Virgin America. Both carriers have announced Thanksgiving sales to celebrate the holiday. Sample one-way fares in Southwest's seven-day sale include: Austin to Houston for $59, Baltimore to Chicago for $97, Chicago to Las Vegas for $148, Denver to Milwaukee for $96, Fort Lauderdale to Long Island for $103, LA to Oakland for $59, Orlando to Nashville for $94, and Portland to Spokane for $58.
Fares start at $47 (and go up to about $159) each way plus tax. The tickets must be purchased by November 30 and are good for travel through February 9. A 14-day advance purchase is required, travel is valid every day except Fridays and Sundays, and there are a few blackout dates.
Tickets for Virgin's sale must be purchased by December 2 and are valid for travel December 3 to 17. One-way fares range from $59 to $249 and include LA to Seattle for $79, LA to New York for $169, and Las Vegas to New York for $249.
Seven ways to explore the world without leaving home
Even more than the physical act of moving to a new place, traveling is about discovery, and just because you can't get away from home at a particular time doesn't mean you can't still embrace that philosophy of adventure. Here are seven ways to "travel" without leaving your hometown.
Movies
Movies can take us to other worlds - real or imagined, of this Earth or not. Next time you are suffering from serious wanderlust, pick up a movie set in a foreign land. Explore the sweeping grasslands of Kenya with Out of Africa, ride the back roads of South America with Che in The Motorcycle Diaries, wander the chaotic streets of Tokyo through Lost in Translation, or explore India by train on The Darjeeling Limited.
Movies can take us to other worlds - real or imagined, of this Earth or not. Next time you are suffering from serious wanderlust, pick up a movie set in a foreign land. Explore the sweeping grasslands of Kenya with Out of Africa, ride the back roads of South America with Che in The Motorcycle Diaries, wander the chaotic streets of Tokyo through Lost in Translation, or explore India by train on The Darjeeling Limited.
Public transportation roulette
Travel is all about exploring a foreign place. For most of us, that doesn't mean we need to venture far to discover a place that is new to us. I've lived in Chicago for three years, but there are still pockets of the city I've yet to step foot on. It's easy to fall into a routine and only visit the same reliable places in your hometown, but this can lead to a feeling of boredom. Spice up your daily life by seeking out new places in your own city.
Seven travel-related things to be thankful for
While travel as the act of discovering a new place can be exhilarating and exciting, travel as the act of being in transit can be annoying and exhausting. Long lines, delays, rude people and all the frustrations that go along with moving large amounts of people from A to B can make the physical movement involved with travel something to really complain about. But this Thanksgiving, I wanted to take a step back and think about all the travel-related things that we do have to be thankful for.
I'm thankful for the airlines.
I know, I know, we spend a lot of time griping about all the things the airlines are doing wrong. They run late, they lose our luggage and they charge us extra for everything, but without them, traveling would be a completely different experience. Thanks to the airlines, we can leave home and arrive on the other side of the world within a day – a single day. That kind of immediate access to a far off country was unfathomable just a few decades ago. Back then undertaking a long-distance journey meant days, if not weeks spent on a train or a trans-Oceanic boat ride. And for all but the rich, that kind of travel was cramped, uncomfortable, dirty, and often dangerous. So I'm thankful for the airlines, for making long-distance travel quick, affordable and safe, and for allowing us to travel the world with relative ease.
United plans for new image overhaul
After coming in last among large airlines in customer satisfaction surveys for two out of the last three years, United Airlines has been overhauling its operations in an effort to increase on-time performance and win back customers. Now the airline is working on the physical appearance of its planes and crew.Every single one of the airplanes in United's fleet will be getting a make-over. The grey with black and red stripes interiors (knows within the company as the "tequila sunrise" scheme) will be replaced with blue leather. The 1980's-era overhead bins will be updated as well. The airline also announced that fashion designer Cynthia Rowley will be creating more stylish, updated crew uniforms.
With a reputation for poor customer service, delays, cancellations, broken guitars, safety violations, and lost luggage, can United really overhaul its image with a few aesthetic updates? Probably not, but airline officials hopes they can continue to address the issues that have led to its poor satisfaction survey rankings and eventually turn things around. Apparently, they just want the airline to look good while they do it.
Book a stay at Hawaii's Kona Village and get an $800 flight credit
Last week, while on Hawaii, I had the chance to wander over to Kona Village Resort and stroll through the grounds. I was pretty impressed by what I saw. While the resort is located right next to the Four Seasons, the feel (while still luxury) is totally different. Rooms here are hale - thatched roof bungalows in various forms. In keeping with the barefoot, carefree style of the resort, the rooms don't have tvs, radios, or even telephones. What they do offer is total seclusion, privacy and romance, as each bungalow has access to a beautiful black sand beach and its own hammock. Hotel staff communicates with guests via notes, and a coconut is used as a "do not disturb" symbol.
It's the perfect spot for honeymooners to escape and relax, but they are also plenty of activities offered, like snorkeling, stand up paddle boarding, whale watching, surfing and SCUBA diving. Rates for the hale start at $410 per night for two people, including breakfast and selected water sports.
Right now, Garden, Superior, or Deluxe rooms, which run about $700-$900 per night, qualify for a special fare deal. Book five nights in the room and receive $800 in flight credits. The room rate includes breakfast, lunch and dinner. The fare credit is applied to the cost of the room.
Dive packages, romance packages, and family packages (book one hale and the second is 50% off) are also currently available.
Top ten alternative lodging options
When it comes to lodging, most people automatically look for a hotel. And if you want room service, a business center, gym, and all the other perks that come with a hotel, that may be your best bet. But if you're looking for a more unique place to stay, if you want to save money, or if you want to experience a destination in an entirely new way, you have a whole range of options outside the sphere of Marriotts, Hiltons, and Four Seasons. Here are the top ten alternative lodging options.
Bed and Breakfasts/Guesthouses
A bed and breakfast (which in some countries, goes by the name guesthouse) is always my first choice for accommodation. Do I have a deep-seeded fetish for doilies, furniture that looks like it belongs in my grandma's house, and forced interaction over tea and scones? Definitely not. Luckily, not all B&Bs fit that stereotype. Many offer chic, modern décor and accommodations that are just as luxurious and stylish as their hotel counterparts.
The reason I choose these types of bed and breakfasts is this: generally, as it's a small business, the owners are very hands on and present. You don't feel so much like another anonymous customer as a welcomed guest. At bed and breakfasts I've stayed at, the hosts have been more than happy to sit down and give me personalized recommendations for the city I was visiting, to offer champagne toasts on New Year's Eve, and even to provide me with a ride to the airport when my cab didn't show up on time.
Enter to win a Washington State New Moon package
New Moon comes out in theaters tomorrow, and to capitalize on the excitement, Washington State is offering a New Moon themed package to one lucky winner as part of its "Experience More" giveaway. Each month from November to April, one grand prize and one mini-prize will be awarded. The grand prize for November is two nights at the Quileute Oceanside Resort, located near La Push Beach (featured in the Twilight books), in a luxury oceanfront cabin with a Jacuzzi tub and fireplace. The package continues with one night at the Red Lion Hotel in Port Angeles, two Twilight Tour tickets, and a complimentary fire permit and bundle of wood for a fire on First Beach.
A second prize includes a night at the Red Lion in Port Angeles and a kayak excursion on the Olympic Peninsula. Other prizes offered over the next few months include adventures in Leavenworth, Seattle, and Yakima Valley's wine country.
To enter, just fill out the online form by April 18, 2010. Entrants must be 18 years old and residents of the US or Canada.
Hawaiian airlines offers free flights to the mainland
Hawaii seems like a beautiful place to live - great coffee, awesome surf conditions, nearly perfect weather at all times. But, hundreds of miles out in the Pacific, I imagine it starts to feel a bit isolated, especially with the high cost of flights from the islands back to the mainland US. But for those Hawaiian islanders looking to get away to the rest of the US for a while, Hawaiian airlines, has a pretty great deal.
For every inter-island round trip flight you book on Hawaiian Airlines, you'll get a discount on your flight from Hawaii to other destinations in the US. The discount starts at 10% (for one round trip flight) and goes all the way up to 100% (yep, a free flight!) after you've taken 10 round trip flights around the islands.
Inter-island flights began racking up points towards the discounts on August 3 and will continue through December 31, 2009. The discount can be applied towards flights booked for now through June 15, 2010.
The discount applies to flights to select cities in California, Oregon, Washington and Nevada.
Score deals to site of 2010 Olympics now
As excitement for the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver builds, most people who haven't planned ahead are looking for last minute accommodations for the event and finding rates to be quite pricey. During the Games, costs will be as high as the demand, but it seems that in the weeks leading up the event, there are plenty of deals to be had.
Right now though December 17, Whistler-Blackcomb, the official Alpine Skiing venue for the Games, is offering the third night free at many of its best resorts and hotels. The average nightly rate with the promotion works out to just $66 (CAD) for many properties in Whistler Village. Package deals that include two nights of lodging and two days of lift tickets start at $103 per person per night through December 21.
Travelzoo has put together a comprehensive list of the other discounts available in the area and the deals don't stop at accommodations and skiing. Flights, shuttles, and activities like snowmobiling are also on sale.
The games run February 12-28, and chances are they'll be even more discounts announced between now and then. So if you've got your heart set on a winter wonderland vacation in Vancouver but don't have a fortune to spend, plan your visit just before the Olympics to take advantage of these great deals.
