This Memorial Day weekend (May 23rd - May 26th), the ‘Inn’ thing seems to be local travel. Gas prices flying high, grounded airlines and recession infected 401(k)’s are limiting travel spending. Hawaii would be nice, but if that’s not on the cards, there’s still lots of things to do in Sacramento, or Anaheim, or Vegas. And the hotel deals listed below will shave even more off your local Memorial Day weekend vacation costs.

The Golden Nugget, Las Vegas  -  Travelzoo is offering an unbelieveable rate of $49 for the nights of May 26th and 27th at the Golden Nugget. The rates go up to $99-$119 for stays between May 23rd and May 25th. Bookings before May 20th. Use promo code TZGV10. Hat tip to Hotelchatter.com. The ‘Nugget also has a mambo pool with a colossal shark tank and a three-story water slide.  There are three restaurants, a buffet, three cafes, and a Starbucks, in case your adrenaline wanes on the casino floor for a split second. Photo by liltree via Flickr. Info: Golden Nugget - 129 E. Fremont St.  Las Vegas, NV 89101; 800-846-5336; www.goldennugget.com

Ayers Inn Orange, Anaheim - Just off I5 at the State College exit, a short ride away from the Disneyland Resort, and minutes from the Anaheim Convention Center, Angel Stadium, Crystal Cathedral and everything of interest to visitors in Anaheim, the Ayers Inn Orange is ideally situated for a perfect weekend getaway. And they’re offering a special ‘Disney Memorial Weekend Stay & Play Package’. The package includes three nights in a deluxe guestroom, complimentary breakfast buffet each morning with bacon or sausage, eggs, home style potatoes, fresh fruit and juices, 2 Adult  - 3 Day Park Hopper Passes, complimentary shuttle to & from Disneyland, and complimentary parking. Package costs $674.88 including taxes, based on double occupancy. Valid until June 1st. Info: 3737 W Chapman Orange CA 92868; (714) 978-9168; www.ayreshotels.com/orange/

Sheraton Grand Sacramento - They’re offering a special package deal which includes free passes to the Sacramento Jazz Jubilee 2008, which coincides with the Memorial Day weekend. The hotel’s three night package includes, in addition to accomodation and access to teh Jazz festival, six drink coupons and six buffet breakfasts (2 per day) in Morgan’s Central Valley Bistro.

The breakfast spread is a delicious all-you-can eat affair, and you can have your fill of fluffy scrambled eggs, potatoes, sausage and bacon, cheese blintz, a chef’s specialty item, breakfast pastries, yogurts, and freshly sliced fruit. And remember, it’s free for you - So you really should eat all you can…And the drink coupons are a seperate issue. The package costs $759, based on double occupancy. If that sounds a bit above what you were planning for, they’re also offering reduced rates for CA residents (identity proof required) with rates as low as $119 per night. Info: 1230 J Street Sacramento, CA 95814; (916) 447-1700

Posted on May 16th, 2008 by PLing
Filed under: Hotels | 2 Comments »

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger restored $13.3 million in funding to California State Parks in his revised budget proposal released Wednesday. Contra Costa Times report says that the governor’s proposal calls for an $11.8 million infusion to California State Parks from the state’s general fund in the 2008-2009 fiscal year. It also requires the parks department to raise $1.5 million in annual visitor and concessionaire fees, and Schwarzenegger proposed raising entrance fees by $1 to $2 at certain parks to help reach that goal.

LAT has a quote from State Parks Director Ruth Coleman.

“We’re really grateful to the governor,” state parks Director Ruth Coleman said. “We’ll probably raise some day-use fees no more than a dollar or two at select parks … we’re still trying to figure out which ones.” Coleman said she was “pleasantly surprised” when she received word on Tuesday of the fiscal turnabout. “Times are tough for a lot of people,” Coleman said. “This reflects the governor’s understanding that state parks are going to be really important to California this year… They’re a good, affordable vacation. - Mary Forgione, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer, Daily Travel & Deal Blog, May 15, 2008

In January, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger had proposed shuttering 48 of California’s 279 State Parks, mostly in Orange and San Diego Counties, due to budget shortfalls which were at that projected at about $14 billion. That amount has now gone up to $17 billion in the revised budget. More details and background about the state park closure proposal  here.

The California State Parks Foundation released a statement which says that “Finally, the Governor woke up to what tens of thousands of Californians throughout the state have been saying for months– that our precious state park resources are not to be taken for granted and it’s essential to keep the doors to our state parks open and keep lifeguards on our state beaches.  It’s clear that the May Revise is responding to the overwhelming statewide outcry opposing the closure of state parks.”

The torrential outpouring of support for keeping the state parks open proves that nature enthusiasts don’t have that many things to do in San Diego , and other places where state parks were slated for closure, other than to poke around inside the parks. Let’s just say that its environmental protection gone wild, where a place is instantly designated as a state park if it’s inhabited by humans. Can you name one place in California, which has not been designated as a state park area, and where you can enjoy the outdoors and nature unspoilt by man? Don’t take too long to think about it, cause by the time you find a place, they’ll probably have slapped a state park sticker on it too.

For the record, Arnold isn’t alone in this boat. The same thing is going on in New Jersey, where Gov Corzine’s 2009 budget will result in the full closure of 9 state parks and their historic sites, as well as a reduction of services at other parks.

Posted on May 16th, 2008 by PLing
Filed under: California, Parks | No Comments »

So I was on my daily stroll across the ether, in search of little travel tidbits to blog about, and I bump into not one, but two great pages. And both have a German connection.

First up is an article on err…something, by err…someone, or a lot of someones. Whatever. Ok. Take a look. The article has no clear format or subject, has multiple authors and is virtually chaotic and would - should - cause any self respecting editor to commit hara kiri. Only problem is, the article is fantastic and a must-read piece. About vacations and trains and California - I think….At the very least, the first few paras are hilarious and well worth the read. Here’s an excerpt.

Did you know that Hitler managed to give every German man, woman and child a yearly vacation at either the mountains or the sea? Give a man two weeks’ R&R, and you can get away with just about anything. Did you know in Norway, even the welfare mothers get paid vacations? Yeah, that’s what happens when you’re sitting on a lovely pool of beautiful crude but make your own wind power instead so you can sell your oil to assholes like us.

So what does that have to do with your vacation? Quite a bit, actually, because thanks to the flabbergasting sleight-of-hand that’s been perpetrated by el Prez, you can’t go anywhere this year. Why? Because we done spent all our money and are having a depression, that’s why, and all the $150 billion stimulus bills in the world are only going to make the Wal-Mart heirs $150 billion richer. Also? You don’t have a job. So at least it’s like you’re on a permanent vacation! - Oh, the Places You’ll Go!, Los Angeles CityBeat

Read the whole piece. If you can. I couldn’t. My eyes started scoping out after the ‘Human Cargo’ part. But still interesting, if you’re looking for a California road trip and /or train trip and things to do in Los Angeles and Orange County and, well…I didn’t read the rest of the article…

The second article, related to Germans, is the ‘Venture Road Trip’ Gang, PhD students from Germany who started out from Austin, TX, and made their way to San francisco by road, meeting every two bit entrepreneur and venture funded tech startup CEO they could find along the way. At present, they’re poking around in Silicon Valley, meeting such eminent rock stars such as Martin Eberhard, founder of Tesla Motors. I mean, we all know about groupies who travel around with rock stars, or Elvis fans paying homage to the King in Graceland, but, driving around the country searching for venture funded tech startup CEO’s? How geeky is that? And pathetic too. Funnies aside, fact remains that they’re doing some excellent sight seeing and restauranting along the way, and learning about how pancakes can ease the deal flow.

Yesterday, we met Martin Eberhard, founder of Tesla Motors at his favorite restaurant: Buck’s of Woodside. After the interview, we had a chance to talk to Jamis MacNiven, the owner of Silicon Valley’s restaurant with the highest deal flow. Jamis told us many interesting stories about companies like 3Com, Netscape, PayPal and Tesla Motors, who have started negotiating with investors at this popular place.

What did you learn from that? Restaurants in Silicon Valley are graded by a quantization of the deal flow. One of these days I’ll have to come up with a list of the top 10 Silicon Valley restaurants graded by deal flow. Umm…Don’t stay tuned. That was just a thought. I’m not actually gonna do it. When I see a restaurant, I see food, not seed money. Guess that’s why I’m fat and not a CEO… 

Posted on May 15th, 2008 by PLing
Filed under: Travel News | No Comments »

You like cupcakes? Mini-cupcakes made by bakeries in Los Angeles? If you do, then you don’t want to miss the LA Cupcake Challenge at Montmartre Lounge on May 18th 2008. Hat-tip to LASnark.com. Ten bakeries in LA are on hand at the cupcake bake-off to demonstrate their cupcake baking skills, and visitors are supposed to sample the cupcakes, drink wine and vote for the ‘best cupcake in LA’, along with a panel of celebrity judges.

The participating bakeries include Famous Cupcakes, Lucky Devils Hollywood, Essential Chocolate Desserts Inc., Leynas Kitchen, Mrs Beasley’s, Lark Silver Lake Cake Shop, Hotcakes Bakes, Yummy Cupcakes, Violet’s Cakes, BabyCakes Baking Company, The Oinkster, The Milk Shop, Sugar Jones, and My Little Cupcake.

Info: LA Cupcake Challenge - Sunday May 18th 2008, from 1 pm to 4 pm, at Montmartre Lounge, 6757 Hollywood Blvd West Hollywood CA 90028; Tel - (310) 709-3969 ; Tickets at $60 per head - Book online. A percentage of proceeds from the event will go towards the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

Posted on May 15th, 2008 by PLing
Filed under: Los Angeles | No Comments »

Palo Alto, CA based travel search site Uptake (www.uptake.com) just announced the launch of their public beta for U.S. hotels. Uptake’s travel database has built up well over 400,000 U.S. hotels and attractions, according to the press release.

Founded by Yen Lee, former general manager of Yahoo! Travel, UpTake (formerly known as Kango) brings together content from thousands of trusted web sites like Expedia, Fodors, goCityKids, Travelocity, Virtual Tourist, and Yahoo! Travel, offering more than 400,000 U.S. hotels and attractions. “Unlike other travel sites, we are focused on delivering the most comprehensive coverage,” said Lee. “We offer the broadest and deepest information about U.S. hotels and we’ll be developing similar levels of coverage for other lodging and destinations later this year.”

The difference between Uptake and other travel search sites, is that Uptake straddles the divide between aggregated content and human written reviews. What I mean is, a site which has human edited or written reviews cannot possibly have a vast footprint, and so they’ll be limited to specific locations, or areas. On the other hand, automatically aggregated content often provides a mish-mash of unrelated results. From my personal experience with Uptake (Kango), I can say that the results presented for each destination or hotel query are uncannily accurate inspite of not being a human written review. 

That’s likely because their results combine a database listing of hotels with a search technology that has the capability to sift through millions of user reviews on the web, compare the query with relevant results and then narrow the results down to those which match specific keywords. For instance, if you searched for ‘family hotels in San Francisco’, Uptake would only list those San Francisco hotels in it’s database for which users had posted reviews on sites like Yahoo! Travel and Virtual Tourist, which included the word ‘family’.

The point here is that this combines Uptake’s database listing of a specific hotel (which includes a lot of very specific information such as a map, address, a description of amenities, room rates, etc., which you won’t find in a user review) along with human opinions, or reviews of the hotel from across the web.

If all that sounds a tad bit difficult to digest, just think of Uptake as a opinionated travel search robot helper, which provides both information and opinion and allows you to make an informed choice. Kinda like R2-D2….For the record, I’m a contractor for Uptake (Kango), and the work I do for them includes whatever content you find on this blog.

Posted on May 14th, 2008 by PLing
Filed under: Travel News | No Comments »

First up is a most interesting story which is going to make Jetblue see a lot of red. $2 million worth of red, to be specific. USA Today reports that an NYC resident has filed a $2 M lawsuit against Jetblue Airways Corp. because a pilot made him give up his seat to a flight attendant and sit on the toilet for more than three hours on a flight from California.

Gokhan Mutlu, of Manhattan’s Inwood section, says in court papers the pilot told him to “go ‘hang out’ in the bathroom” about 90 minutes into the San Diego to New York flight because the flight attendant complained that the “jump seat” she was assigned was uncomfortable, the lawsuit said.

When Mutlu expressed reluctance to go sit in the bathroom, the pilot, who was not named in the lawsuit, told him that “he was the pilot, that this was his plane, under his command that (Mutlu) should be grateful for being on board,” the lawsuit said. - USA Today, 12th May 2008

I’m thinking the pilot will have neither plane nor command soon, and Mutlu is gonna be really, really grateful he was on board - $2M worth of grateful…

China’s quake, where the death toll has pushed past 12000, and counting, has produced a few interesting (albeit morbid) sideshows. The fate of the Pandas at the Wolong Giant Panda Protection and Research Center, at Chengdu, about 20 miles from the epicenter of the quake, has been a hotly written about on the net, on various travel, environment and animal websites over the last few days. To top it off, 19 Britons were there at the reserve on a panda watching expedition. At last count, Google News showed 462 articles about the Pandas and 757 articles about the 19 British tourists. Photo by Hipnos via Flickr

My point is that with 12,000 plus people dead, tens of thousands more buried under, and billions in damage, most of these thousand over websites were explicitly focused on the fate of the Pandas. Question is, environmental concerns aside, are pandas more important to the media than 12,000 dead people? Forgive me if I sound racist, but what would have been the reaction had the same thing happened in the U.S. or in Europe? Its worth thinking about. For the record, the pandas are safe. No news yet on the British panda-watchers. Let’s hope and pray they’re safe and sound.

Lastly, Liz Webber, CNN Travel has a list of 7 tourist traps that her readers love anyway, based on feedback. The list includes San Francisco’s Cliff House. The mechanical museum has moved to Pier 45 at Fisherman’s Wharf (415/346-2000, museemechanique.org). But the camera obscura still projects a fantastically detailed view of the coast in a building on the grounds, using a trick with light and mirrors that’s similar to the inner workings of a submarine periscope. Stroll the grounds for free, pay $3 to see the camera obscura or dine at one of the two indoor restaurants that face the ocean. (1090 Point Lobos, 415/386-3330, cliffhouse.com).

If you know of any more things to do in San Francisco which could be construed as tourist traps, which you love anyway, please post in the comments. I think I’d like to build a list of ‘lovable tourist traps’ in San Francisco.

Posted on May 14th, 2008 by PLing
Filed under: Travel News | No Comments »

The U.S. economic recession storm has just about blown away the roofs off the tourism incomes of all the states, except for a few of the popular destinations. One of these exceptions happens to be Hawaii, where the number of incoming visitors actually went up in the first quarter of this year. Jim Carlton, Wall Street Journal, reports that the number of visitors to the islands rose to about 1.9 million in the year’s first quarter, up 2.8% from the year-earlier period, according to the latest figures from Hawaii state officials. Hotel occupancies rose 1.5% in the period, compared with a 4.6% drop nationwide, estimates Smith Travel Research, an industry-tracking firm.

He also writes that this uptick didn’t just happen by accident. Despite the fact that there has been a dropoff in local tourism across the board in the U.S., Hawaii has agressively sought out international tourists to make up for the shortfall in U.S. tourists, by marketing itself in countries like the U.K. and Germany where it hadn’t made big efforts before. And by sprucing up facilities in the Islands to be able to offer a better experience to visitors. Pretty smart, I’d say, considering the fall of the Dollar vis-a-vis the Euro.

In fact, I’d say that it wouldn’t hurt for Hawaii to push a parallel national ad campaign. Lemme give you a pop quiz to prove that you know squat about Hawaii. Answers in the links. Everyone wants to go to on a Hawaii vacation, but do you have any idea about what are all the things to do in Honolulu, or Oahu? What’s the name of that darn volcano where you can see the lava tubes flowing? Lastly, I say Hawaii and you hear beach vacation. So, it stands to reason that you should know where in all of Hawaii’s islands one can find the best place to enjoy a beach front vacation? Photo by TimWilson via Flickr.

FYI, you don’t need to book a room at the Hilton Hawaiian Village to enjoy the pleasures of all the fun things that go on at the beach-front resort. You can join in even if you book a room at a cheap B&B, and then spend all your time at aforementioned resort without spending a dime. That’s just about the only way someone as broke as me could afford to enjoy a luxury beach front resort vacation in Hawaii. I’m sure I have a lot of company, what with the recession having slashed your investment portfolio and all…

Posted on May 13th, 2008 by PLing
Filed under: Travel News | No Comments »

The Sun magazine has a humdinger of an excerpt of Andrew Boyd’s as yet unplublished book Pilgrimage To Nowhere, which details his spiritual exploits in Thailand. From the looks of the excerpt, there’s two things I can conclude. First, that the book is well worth a read. And second, that the concept of spirituality becomes warped as it crosses the oceans from Asia to the West. Before I put you to sleep with my thoughts on spirituality, here’s an excerpt of the excerpt.

For the drive up from Chiang Mai, the nearest city, I’d split a taxi with two young German women, one of whom was blond, cute, and sufficiently charmed with me to have more or less invited me back to the guesthouse where she’d be staying that night — the same night that I, in a cruel twist of fate, would be putting on the white robes of an apprentice monk and swearing an oath of celibacy.

That night I had a dream: I was walking with the cute German tourist, who was pushing a stroller, “practicing” for when she had a kid. She was trying to get pregnant, she said, and I listened politely as she described her fucking schedule and fertility cycle. Instead of a baby in the carriage, there was a little Buddha. - Pilgrimage To Nowhere, By Andrew Boyd, Sun Magazine

These two paras underline something which is quite important for every dim-witted Western tourist who lands up at an Asian monastry in search of peace, or whatever you want to call it. It’s not some magic potion or textbook study which you can inhale and watch your worries slip away. Point I’m trying to make here is that whatever benefits or awakening you experience, is simply the result of not focusing on everyday life - office chatter and Oprah and bikinis and fast food - And instead listening to what your mind is saying. Take away all these things and listen to yourself, and it sorts out your priorities real quick.

Finding Nirvanaland is an easy matter, if you can shut out everything else, and listen to yourself. So this whole concept of going to Asia to find enlightenment is a bit overrated, actually. You can do it in your own backyard, provided there are no cute German tourists hanging around who’d like to bear your children. If there are, well, you could always name your baby Nirvana instead of Gunther….

Posted on May 12th, 2008 by PLing
Filed under: Travel News | No Comments »

Did you know that the week of May 10 -18, 2008, has been designated by the TIA for the 25th Annual National Tourism Week, and May 14th is National Tourism Day? I didn’t either. Before we get into this year’s events, just a quick note to inform you that in 2009, the week is from May 9-17 and in 2010 from May 8-16. This is just in case the TIA’s marketing blitz again comes a cropper next year and the year after that. Photo courtesy and copyrights Travel Industry Association.

Right, so what exactly are we supposed to do this week, and what are these great American traditions awaiting discovery? Well, states and cities and counties are supposed to organize whatever they think best fits the description of the theme. So I guess it would be best to explain this by giving a concrete example. Here’s a press release from the Carlsbad Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Joining in this year’s local celebration of tourism, Al’s Cafe in the Village, located at 795 Carlsbad Village Drive, is offering up samples of his yummy, California coastal homemade fudge.  Visitors are also invited to stop by The Bwarie Gift Basket Company, 300 Carlsbad Village Drive in the Village Faire Center, to sample some extraordinarily unique and tasty specialty foods that can only be found at Bwarie Gift Basket Company. The CVB along, with Carlsbad’s only boutique hotel, West Inn & Suite, have teamed up to invite members of the local tourism and hospitality industry to join in a “Celebration of Carlsbad’s Travel & Tourism Industry,” on May 14, National Tourism Day. Invited guests will enjoy an evening with their industry colleagues along with festive libations and tasty appetizers served poolside at West Inn & Suites. Press Release, PR-USA.net, Contact - Frankie Laney,
Carlsbad Convention & Visitors Bureau, www.visitcarlsbad.com, (760) 434-6093

If you’re still not sure what exactly you can do, just visit the AOL Travel National Tourism Week page, and you’ll be surprised to find the amazing range of places you can travel to and all the quaint attractions you’ll find there, along with festivities specially being held so visitors, like you, can enjoy the attractions and feel welcome. Everyone from the ‘New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corp.’ to ‘Alaska Travel Industry’ is taking part in the initiative. I spent some time clicking through all the pictures and the links, and, tell you the truth, I didn’t know there were so many things to do in San Diego. I mean, you usually confine yourself to places like Seaworld San Diego and the Gaslamp Quarter, but it’s festivals like the National Tourism Week that bring out all the hidden tourism treasures that you never notice all year round. There’s going to be Vegas showgirls at Balboa Park as part of the celebrations. And you could be the lucky winner of a trip for two to Vegas with free airfare and a two night hotel stay. 

And then, there’s the ‘Weird and Wacky Landmarks’ section in the aforementioned AOL Travel page, which includes such magnificient attractions like the Extra Terrestrial Highway (Area 51) on Nevada State Route 375. Then there’s Lucy the 65 foot elephant at Margate, NJ. There’s a floating wedding chapel in St. Petersburg, FL, and then there’s Gravity Hill in Bedford County, PA, where cars roll uphill (this is no joke, it’s for real). Photo by thievingjoker via Flickr.

Doesn’t sound bad at all. Actually could be quite interesting. Why don’t you find out if your city, county or state is doing something this week, get up off your butt, and join in on the fun? You can always continue the great American tradition of spending all day watching television and browsing the internet after this week is over.

Posted on May 12th, 2008 by PLing
Filed under: Travel News | No Comments »

While there’s lots of things to do in Anaheim and Orlando and all the Disney theme parks and resorts, I have this feeling that people are getting tired of being left with no choice except Mickey & Friends. Into this void comes Hard Rock Park (www.hardrockpark.com), the new $400 million, 140 acre rock n’ roll theme park in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, which is almost famous already. For a rock n’roll theme park, there’s no higher compliment you could possibly give.

It’s not just about the rides and amusements. There’s this gut feeling which says that Hard Rock Park ‘gets’ it - They want you to take a trip across the edge - And that’s what it’s all about. Consider ‘Led Zepplin - The Ride’, with a lift height of 155 feet, six inversions, on-baord audio with 64 speakers and 1200 watts per train, a maximum speed of 65 mph, and - this is the kicker - the Coaster is just 13 inches below what the FAA will allow, because the zone comes under the flight path of the Myrtle Beach International Airport. Planes roaring above, water looming below (part of the ride is over water), and you’re barrelling along at 65 mph (well..maybe a bit less). Now that’s what you call a thrill ride - One that you’re most certainly not going to get at Disneyland.

I totally dig the 70 foot tall Gibson guitar icon, but that’s not all HRP offers to hardcore rock n’roll fans. There’s all sorts of shows and concerts and festivals going on all over the Park. One show called the ‘Malibu Beach Party’ celebrates the California beach scene with aerial acrobatics, springboard diving, motorcycle stunts, and off-the-wall comedy. There’s a  ’Live Ampitheater’ with a 10,000 standing capacity for outdoor concerts and shows. The ‘Origins Theater’ features multimedia presentations chronicling the history of Rock n’Roll.

You can dine at ‘Alice’s Restaurant’, where Arlo Guthrie himself might stop by, mixing counter-culture comfort food with leisurely hospitality, to create the ultimate folk rock inspired dining experience. “Alice’s Restaurant is an attraction it it’s own right,” said Steven Goodwin, CEO of Hard Rock Park. “The award winning New England clam chowder alone will delight the taste buds of visitors from all over the world.” Featuring acoustic and folk music that spans the 60’s to today, Alice’s Restaurant has that “walk right in” feel offering sanctified entrees and desserts so good they are criminal. Read the full press release here.

Like I said, Hard Rock Park is not just about rides and amusements. It’s about paying homage to Rock n’Roll, not just in name, but also in the way you are treated, the thrills you get, and the kind of people you’ll probably meet up with. Bring your own reefers. Just kidding. You’ll probably find some there. Kidding. Kidding. Ease up…It’s a family place.

Photo credit: scmikeburton via Flickr; Info: Hard Rock Park - 211 George Bishop Parkway, Myrtle Beach, SC 29579 (off US 501, less than 3 miles from the beach); (843)  236-ROCK; $10 parking, $50 tickets ($150 for an annual pass with free parking thrown in); www.hardrockpark.com  

Posted on May 10th, 2008 by PLing
Filed under: Travel News | No Comments »