Archive for February, 2010

Get Revved Up for Daytona Bike Week

February 28th
2010
by Matt Wilson
posted in:
U.S. Southeast beaches destinations events and festivals

If you like to get your motor running, head out on the highway, and look for adventure or whatever comes your way, then chances are this week the motor that’s running is your bike and you’re cruising down A1A. As far as whatever comes your way, there’s really no limit, because during Dayton Bike Week, anything can happen—and usually does. It’s an event where thousands of motorcycle riders descend on this Florida beach town, filling up Daytona Beach hotelsand Daytona Beach streets with lots of leather, chrome, revving engines, fun, and festivities.

There’s just something about this city and motors. Well known for the big NASCAR race it hosts each year, the Daytona 500, it’s also the place where you can drive on the beach in certain parts. And it’s where, each March, literally hundreds of thousands of bikers line the streets and shorelines of Daytona for a week full of parades, partying, and high-octane events—quite the unique vacation package and a tradition that is celebrating its 69th year.
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Head West to Oklahoma’s National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum

February 27th
2010
by Matt Wilson
posted in:
U.S. West destinations

There’s an old, famous country song called, “Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys,” and who among us, at some point in our childhood, didn’t want to roam the range sitting high atop a saddled horse, wear a ten-gallon hat, and strap on a six-shooter to protect the town from the black-hatted villain? As a young buckaroo who spent many summers on Oklahoma City vacations while visiting grandparents, my days were often filled with old Gene Autry and Roy Rogers movies, reruns of Bonanza, and recreations of the shootout at the OK Corral. Being in cowboy country so often, my life’s ambition at that point was to tame the Wild West. That never happened (obviously), but for those whose mamas did let them grow up to become cowboys, there is a place where the most famous of the Wild West and cowboy crowd have been enshrined after riding off into the sunset.  

The National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum honors pioneers of the American West with three separate halls of fame. These include real cowboys in the Hall of Great Westerners, “reel” cowboys in the Hall of Great Western Performers, and kamikaze cowboys in the Rodeo Hall of Fame. So saddle up (or book a cheap flight) and head out west from your ponderosa with a trip to this Wild West gallery—and with plenty of surrounding Oklahoma City hotels, you can leave the covered wagon at home.
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Phoenix’s Matsuri Japanese Festival

February 25th
2010
by Becky Youman
posted in:
U.S. West destinations events and festivals

While Phoenix isn’t exactly known as a cradle of Japanese culture, the city has a sizeable enough Japanese and Japanese-American population to host an entertaining and educational Japanese festival. Held annually in Phoenix’s Heritage and Science Park, the Matsuri Japanese Festival offers two days of immersion into Japanese culture. With today’s economy you might not be able to take an Asia vacation, but this weekend you can experience the Land of the Rising sun right here in Phoenix.

Heritage and Science Park, located in the heart of downtown, is surrounded by Phoenix hotels, museums, sports arenas, and concert venues. The historic square will be the site of the festival’s three stages as well as vendor booths. The festival will highlight both traditional and modern Japanese food, art, crafts, culture, and music – and admission is free.

Saturday’s Events

The festival will kick off Saturday morning with the mikoshi parade. A mikoshi is a portable Shinto shrine that Shinto followers believe houses a divine spirit at the time of a parade of deities. The mikoshi, which sits on poles for carrying, looks like a miniature building with elaborate pillars, railings, verandas and roofs. Appropriately enough, the roof often has a carving of a phoenix. Mikoshi parades are customary during matsuri festivals in Japan.
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Flag Day in Mexico

February 24th
2010
by Becky Youman
posted in:
Mexico destinations events and festivals

Flag Day, Día de la Bandera, is celebrated in Mexico every February 24. It is a national holiday, meaning schools, government offices, and banks will be closed throughout the country today. Whether you are enjoying your Mexico vacation in an idyllic Cancun resort or a chic Mexico City luxury hotel, you will be sure to see plenty of flags flying the Mexican colors. Other celebrations throughout the country include boisterous parades, lengthy speeches by government officials, singing of flag songs, and the ubiquitous Mexican fireworks.

It’s always nice to know some background information about any special event taking place when you are visiting a foreign country. Here’s a little Mexican Flag primer to help you impress locals on this día festivo:
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Scottsdale’s Big Golf Event

February 23rd
2010
by Becky Youman
posted in:
U.S. West destinations events and festivals

Formerly known as the Phoenix Open, then the FBR Open, the PGA golf tournament taking place in Scottsdale, Arizona this week has a new name. Times were tough when officials were looking for a new sponsor last year, which is the only way to explain why the PGA is okay with naming a standout tournament the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Seriously? While the name may be less than appropriate, especially in light of Tiger’s shenanigans and the stink they have left on the PGA, the party in Scottsdale remains the same. No matter what the tournament is officially named, it is unofficially known as the Greatest Show on Grass and the biggest bash on the PGA tour.

Scottsdale hotels are filled with vacationers coming into town to take part in the most highly attended golf tournament in the world. Combine warm, sunny weather with the spectacular Sonoran Desert surroundings at the TPC Scottsdale, along with many of the world’s best golfers, and you get the perfect equation for enormous galleries. Officials this year are hoping to break the attendance record of 538,356 set in 2008.

The Waste Management Phoenix Open (“WMPO” from here on out), is not your typical staid golf tournament. It is its own unique breed and must be enjoyed in its own unique way. Here is how to get the most out of your WMPO experience:

Sit at the 16th Hole

This 162-yard par three is unlike any other hole in golf. Surrounded by stadium seating and corporate boxes, it’s more like a gladiator arena for golfers. Large quantities of beer are guzzled by the 20,000 fans at the 16th, meaning that normal golf decorum is thrown out the window. If a golfer misses the green, or acts like a jerk, he will be assailed by a hailstorm of boos. If he makes a great shot, or simply attended ASU or U of A, the crowd will rain cheers like he’s never heard before. Some golfers love the hole, and others abhor it, but there is no doubt that the pressure here is unique. As one official put it, “The hazards as this tournament are not the rough or sandtraps, they are the fans.”

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Forget the South Beach Diet – Stuff Yourself Silly with Food and Festivities in Miami

February 22nd
2010
by Matt Wilson
posted in:
U.S. Southeast beaches destinations events and festivals food

South Florida has had quite a month. Now that all the hype and hoopla of the Super Bowl has transitioned from the Sunshine State to New Orleans (despite Fat Tuesday already passing, Lombardi Gras is still going on there), South Beach is serving up something a little different from football fare this week—instead of crazed pigskin diehards, it will be refined tastes, exquisite appetites, and luxury Miami hotels being filled.

Hosted by Southern Wine & Spirits of Florida and Florida International University, which just happens to have one of the best college hospitality programs around, the South Beach Food & Wine festival has become an annual Miami vacation for some of the top names in the wine and culinary world—as well as connoisseurs of the fruit of the vine and foodies everywhere. For four days, the event will showcase these talents, tasters, and numerous culinary personalities, including many from the Food Network which sponsors the event.
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Yoga in Hotels — Ommm

February 22nd
2010
by Becky Youman
posted in:
activities news

Another Monday morning, another body part sore from my weekend adventures.  (This time it was mountain biking racing instead of snowboarding.)  Once again I’ll be headed to yoga class this afternoon to help work out the kinks. And I won’t be alone. Yoga has become so popular that even travelers aren’t content to leave their yoga practice at home. According to a recent article in the New York Times, yoga is becoming so mainstream that, “like Wi-Fi, on-demand movies and fitness centers, yoga is becoming an amenity many hotels and resorts just can’t do without.”

The article states that yoga classes are no longer offered exclusively at resorts and spas, but also at conventional hotel chains. You are as likely to find a yoga session offered at Salt Lake City hotels these days as at fancy San Jose del Cabo resorts.  According to the article, the hotels see yoga as a way to help the bottom line. While the widespread offering of yoga in hotels may be a new trend, there are some chains that deserve kudos for getting the ball rolling, or maybe I should say, “downwalk dog walking”, earlier than others.

Kimpton Hotels

Kimpton was the first chain hotel to offer in-room wellness and yoga. The idea was to make it easier for guests to maintain the practices that keep them calm and serene, even while traveling. Most of their hotels offer special yoga tote bags for guests that include yoga props, mats, and straps. Combine those with an on-demand video yoga class and you might not even need the famous complementary Kimpton wine hour in the evening.
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Remember: Visit the Alamo when in San Antonio

February 22nd
2010
by Matt Wilson
posted in:
destinations

There’s one place in Texas that people will never forget after visiting: The Alamo. While the Disney film that came out a couple of years ago was largely forgettable, the actual building and the story behind it is something ingrained in the memory of every Texan. First built (as it stands today) as a Roman Catholic mission in 1724, the historic building is best known as a fortress during the Lone Star Republic’s battles with Mexico during the Texas Revolution, where it changed hands between both sides several times—most notably in 1835 when it was surrendered to the Texas Army, and in 1836 during the infamous Battle of the Alamo. Today, it stands as a museum and a reminder of why you “Don’t mess with Texas.”

Originally named Mission San Antonio de Valero in 1718, the structure was likely given its current name by the Second Flying Company of San Carlos de Parras, a Mexican army battalion, who occupied the compound surrounded by a grove of cottonwood trees known as álamo in Spanish. Today, this humble, historic building near the heart of downtown is surrounded by high rises and San Antonio hotels, and is a must-see when in town. You’ll always remember the Alamo after visiting it, and there’s no better time than now during the 174th anniversary of when the battle first began.
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Earning Airline Perks

February 19th
2010
by Becky Youman
posted in:
South America news tips

Want free airfare for your unborn child? Try to give birth on one of Bolivian airline TAM’s flights. A couple of weeks ago a woman went into labor on a flight to La Paz and ended up delivering her baby at 24,000 feet. Luckily there were both a doctor and nurse onboard as passengers who assisted in the delivery. According to the Miami Herald, the child will be given free domestic flights on the airline until she reaches the age of 18. In a funny twist, the girl’s mother named the newborn Tami in honor of the airline.

While you might not be willing (or able) to go to those lengths to get cheap tickets or free airfare, there are other things that you can do to try to get airline perks.

Fly the Same Airline – A Lot: As we all learned from watching George Clooney’s character Ryan Bingham in Up in the Air, super-elite frequent fliers are treated like royalty by airlines. News stories since the movie came out have reported airlines that have private check-in areas and procedures for these fliers, as well as unique meal and boarding services. These VIPs get rebooked as soon as there is a flight delay and even have connecting flights held for them.

Even if you don’t make the super-elite status, having any status at all on an airline is a good thing. People who qualify for the lowest level of elite status on US Airways for example, get free space-available upgrades, are allowed to check in via the always shorter first class lines, and are one of the first groups to board the airplane, meaning they don’t have to fight for overhead space. Another perk, not having to pay for checked bags, is a bonus with true monetary value these days.
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All Aboard: Take the Train on your Next Vacation

February 19th
2010
by Matt Wilson
posted in:
destinations tips

It’s been quite an interesting couple of weeks for air travel. Last week we had a rash of cancelled flights due to the bad weather, and there’s been all kinds of personal rights controversy as of late with how the full body scanners work that are in use at numerous airports now. And then there’s the latest beef, involving filmmaker / actor Kevin Smith who was removed from his flight because of his girth and forced to buy an additional ticket to accommodate his size. He responded by shedding his Silent Bob side and lashing out about the policy via Twitter which caused a media firestorm (interestingly enough, this topic is something that was hotly debated here nearly a year ago).

All that to say, you can avoid all of these issues by considering a different travel option—one that’s been used for nearly two centuries, and was instrumental in the social and economic growth of the U.S. in the late 19th / early 20th century. Can you say, “All aboard?” Or to quote the Quad City DJ’s, “Come on ride that train!” Still vastly popular across the globe (especially if you’re on a European vacation), rail service is a viable option here in the States as well, with service across each region of the U.S. and in most major cities. There are many reasons to consider taking the train for your next trip—not in the least because it can be a vacation within a vacation. Here are several reasons why:
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