The Basin Complex fire that has charred nearly 65,000 acres jumped a containment line and has engulfed the historic tourist town of Big Sur, forcing hotel and residential evacuations. The fire burned down three more houses. This brings the total number of properties burned down in the area to 20. Photo by U.S. Geological Survey via Flickr (Creative Commons).

The fire has burned down so much of the surrounding forest area that animals are being forced to flee the forest and take shelter on the Ocean front. Reports are coming in of bears and other big animals being spotted moving towards the coast. San Jose Mercury News report says that one rare California condor chick may have died and two more are in danger. There are only 151 wild condors in the world; 23 of them live in Big Sur, reintroduced from captivity by the Ventana Wildlife Society.

Firefighters are struggling to beat back the fire and prevent some historic hotels like the Ventana Inn and Spa, from being burned down. The Inn was evacuated of all guests and the management has a notice up on their website that the premises are closed until further notice.  “As always, the safety of our guests and staff is of the utmost importance,” said General Manager Jonathan Farrington. Relocation assistance was provided as needed and physical room to room search was performed to ensure all guests had evacuated. The management has began contacting guests scheduled to arrive in the next few days to let them know Ventana Inn & Spa, Cielo Restaurant and Allegria Spa will remain closed until further notice.

Guess you’re just going to have to find enough things to do in San Francisco this summer….

AP report says that a resident living next to the Nepenthe restaurant had to evacuate in an emergency because it was ‘raining’ yellow smoke and ash mixed with fire. The report also says that a total of 367 fires are still blazing in California and more than 790 square miles have been scoched and at least 65 structures destroyed since June 20. One volunteer firefighter - Robert Roland (age 63) died at a Mendocino County hospital  after collapsing while helping to fight a fire north of the Bay Area.

A 25 mile section of Highway 1 remains closed, and there is no telling when it will be reponed, according to Caltrans. Meanwhile, the Gap fire north of Santa Barbara expanded to 2400 acres, burning brush that hasn’t burned in the last 50 years, and threatening the town of Goleta. Caravans of people, packing possessions, are winding their way out of the area.

Updated statistics about active fires and endangered areas here - www.fire.ca.gov/index_incidents.php

Posted on July 4th, 2008 by PLing
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Newton, MA based TripAdvisor LLC has purchased VirtualTourist.com, Inc. and Onetime.com for amounts undisclosed. Both VirtualTourist and Onetime are based out of Manhattan Beach, CA and were co-founded and chaired by J.R. Johnson. TripAdvisor is owned by Expedia Inc. These new acquisitions push TripAdvisor’s online reach upto nearly a whopping 32 million unique monthly visitors.

VirtualTourist (www.virtualtourist.com/) is one of the largest online travel communities, with a business model similar to TripAdvisor’s own with user generated content system. Onetime (www.onetime.com/) is a travel price comparison site where users compare prices from more than 60 popular travel websites, direct suppliers, and metasearch engines.

“VirtualTourist pioneered the concept of an online travel community, and with the help of over a million enthusiastic members, has created a fantastic travel site,” said Steve Kaufer, founder and CEO of TripAdvisor in a press statement. “I’m thrilled to have such great companies join our media network, and I look forward to working with the teams to help grow the sites and the community.”

In other news, the Great Orlando Wheel (www.greatwheel.com/orlando/) is making waves in the travel media. Scheduled to open in 2010 the Great Orlando Wheel will tower at 400 feet. It will capture the experience of flight with spectacular views of the attractions and things to do in Orlando like SeaWorld, Universal Studios and Walt Disney World, as well as firework displays and rocket launches from NASA Kennedy Space Center. Photo credit & copyrights - Great Wheel Corporation

More details from the Sun Sentinel. Observation wheels are next-generation Ferris wheels. Riders travel in large, glass capsules attached to the wheel’s rim, which creates a “top of the world” feel. The Orlando wheel will travel nine inches a second, slow enough that riders will be able to get on and off without stopping the wheel’s rotation.

A shameless bit of self-promotion. Check out my Q&A session with Dave Freedenberg aka the one and only Famous Fat Dave.

And here’s something which should tickle your funny bone some more. Julie L. Jackson, from Vista, CA, racked up more than $150,000 in purchases on a company credit card before going on the lam. She bought more than $63,000 worth of Rolex watches… Anyone with any information is asked to call Crime Stoppers’ anonymous tip line at (888) 580-8477. Tips that lead to a felony arrest can result in a $1,000 reward.

Speaking of shopping addicts, E! Online reports on Lindsay Lohan’s 22nd Birthday bash at Teddy’s at the Hollywood Roosevelt hotel. Seems the most written about serial shopper in Los Angeles went birthday shopping looking for diamonds at Cartier in Beverly Hills. Hopefully she won’t put it on the tab and then skip town. On the other hand, that wouldn’t be such a bad thing. Lindsay free Los Angeles is a very attractive proposition. Pity the poor Mexicans who’ll have to put up with her prima donna antics…

Posted on July 3rd, 2008 by PLing
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Sacramento, inspite of being the seat of California’s power, has long suffered under the shadow of its more famous tourist destination brethen like Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego. So we thought it might a good idea to focus the spotlight on the nifty things to do in Sacramento this July.

But before that, outrageous quote of the day from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who says he’s “very happy with his little hotel room”.  This in response to a report that he and CA First Lady Maria Shriver have been a new 15-floor hotel and condominium project being built a few blocks from the Capitol. The ‘little hotel room’ he currently stays in when he’s in Sacramento is the penthouse of the Hyatt Regency Sacramento hotel across from the State Capitol.

If that’s a little room, then what would he call the standard rooms that we common riffraf stay in? And what happened to that darn smoking tent he put up on the State Capitol?   

Anyway, let’s move on to Sacramento’s July specials for visitors. For starters, the Sacramento Zoo has a neat lineup of events scheduled, including the 24th Annual Ice Cream Safari on July 26th (4 to 8 pm) with all-you-can-eat ice cream from Baskin Robbins and beverages from Coca Cola. Also included are live music and entertainment, face painting, and a GiRaffle. Admission for adults at $17 and kids over age 2 at $13. Photo credit & copyrights - Sacramento Zoo

Other events at the zoo in July include music concerts on July 8, 15 and 22, and a penguin farewell (seems they’re marching the penguins back to where they came from) from July 4 to 6.

Other events across Sacramento in July include the Music Circus at the Wells Fargo Pavilion from July 5 to 28, showcasing such oldies like the ‘Sound of Music’, and the Sacramento French Film Festival from July 18 to 27 which will screen rare classics and new releases in French Cinema.

Lastly, there’s the upcoming California State Fair, which starts August 15th 2008. Its not in July, but you just might want to keep it in mind, because Sacramento entertainment and fun doesn’t get better or bigger than this.

Posted on July 2nd, 2008 by PLing
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Hotel Interactive reports that the hotel in Times square, formely known as The Premier at Millennium Broadway, has re-launched with as a boutique hotel with a new name - ‘The Premier’ (minus the millenium broadway), along with one entire floor reserved for women only. 

Seems there’s no floor reserved for men only. Whatever happened to equality of the sexes? Photo credit & copyrights - Millennium Hotels & Resorts

Anyway, here’s what the new women travelers floor offers, in terms of rooms, guest services and amenities. Accessible only with elevator key-card access, the seven-room Women Travelers Floor will feature thoughtful amenities including yoga mats; plush robes and slippers; a lighted make-up mirror, wash mitts and bath salts in bathrooms; and women’s magazines in guest rooms.

As for the hotel itself, there’s a business center on the mezzanine level with a conference room, a fitness center, gift shop and a concierge desk at the lobby level, valet parking, laundry and the usual stuff like nightly turndown and complimentary newspaper delivery every morning.

As far as dining facilities go, the Premier offers complimentary breakfast in the ‘Premier Lounge’, along with an evening reception. The Lounge is also a place where you can enjoy some entertainment in the evening, with complimentary cocktails. The food comes from the Charlotte restaurant, offering fresh American seasonal fare, and which also takes care of room service requests.

The Premier offers a total of 125 guest rooms and suites furnished with pillow top mattresses, floor to ceiling windows, in-room safes, 32″ LCD television and CD players, and complimentary high-speed internet access. Bathrooms are outfitted with European-style soaking tubs and separate walk-in showers.

Info: 133 West 44th Street  New York, NY 10036. Room rates start at $329.  For more information or to make reservations, call (212) 789-7670 or visit www.thepremierhotel.com

Posted on July 2nd, 2008 by PLing
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Just when you think you’ve seen and heard eveything, along comes like SAFERChoice.org, whose mission statement pretty much summarizes the group.

SAFER’s purpose: 1) to educate the public about the simple fact that marijuana is less harmful than alcohol to both the user and to society, and 2) to raise awareness of the harm caused by laws and policies that steer people toward using alcohol instead of marijuana and punish them for making the rational, safer choice to use marijuana.

And its not all just idle pot talk either. Laura Main, News2, CO, reports that SAFER, Safer Alternative For Enjoyable Recreation, which got a ballot initiative passed to make enforcing marijuana laws the lowest legal priority in Denver, is now pushing to allow passengers to get high before they fly. So they think adults should be allowed to smoke either marijuana or cigarettes in the airport’s smoking lounge.

I guess this is what they call ‘Pot luck lounge’. Or maybe ‘Flying high’. On a serious note, if the Airlines started providing a better flying experience and no-hassle on time flights, then we wouldn’t be needing to legitimize pot-ty organizations like SAFER who pretend to be helping fight air-rage, just so they can smoke marijuana without being harassed.

Moving on to something a bit more authentic - The dairy of a hotel maid. Yvonne Holt, writing for the Modesto Bee, tells us about her experience as a hotel maid at the Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite National Park. Not every guest was a slob. Japanese tourists, I loved them. Not only were their rooms barely used, but their beds were remade on checkout and they left tips for the maids. Older couples in smaller rooms on the lower floors were also nice and tidy. For some reason, I never had huge messes to clean up in the bungalows, either, though they were outside and usually held families with small children.

Let’s move on to something even more authentic. Of all the things to do in Las Vegas, one would have thought that brothels would be doing just fine, recession or not. Not so, it seems. CNN report has the details. Of Nevada’s 28 legal brothels, 16 are located in rural areas that are being hurt by truckers’ higher diesel costs, Arnold said. Brothels closer to Reno and Las Vegas, which rely more on tourists and conventioneers, say business is up this year. In response to a 5 percent drop in business, the Shady Lady Ranch along U.S. 95 about 150 miles north of Las Vegas plans to offer $50 gas cards to clients who spend $300 and $100 gas cards to those who spend $500.

But they’re not the only ones in trouble in Vegas. The Wall Street Journal has a report which says that even the big Vegas casino companies are in trouble, with the gambling slowdown in Vegas taking a serious toll. Shares of several gambling companies have tumbled dramatically this year, washing out billions of dollars in market valuation. Las Vegas-based Boyd Gaming Corp. has fallen to about $12 a share, a five-year low, from a high of $54 last summer. After topping $98 last fall, shares of casino giant MGM Mirage now trade below $35. The public debt of Harrah’s, which is highly leveraged after a $17 billion private-equity buyout last year, has traded as low as 52 cents on the dollar.

Posted on July 1st, 2008 by PLing
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Paging travel gear geeks. There’s a new toy on the market - Power assisted suit cases. Live Luggage (www.liveluggage.com/), a UK based company, has, according to their press release, designed and manufactured a true state-of-the art travel system that includes an intelligent torque control system which powers the wheels when the handle is tilted and is designed to power up only when help is required. The tilt switch/sensors only power the wheels at certain angles - between slopes of 15% and 35%. (Image courtesy & copyrights - Live Luggage)

If you accidentally drop the case or let go, it won’t run away from you. In these instances, the case will go beyond its ‘active’ angles, so no power will be delivered to the motors.

That’s ok, then. I was having visions of chasing down a runaway suit case which wanted to take a look around the airport… Oh, and now you have one more thing you need to recharge (”Excuse me, I need to charge my suit case….”). And one more charger you need to carry around…

Moving on, here’s something else that’s new. A hotel inviting people and asking them to trash their hotel rooms. Did somebody say Paris Hilton? Sorry, but this one only has Paris, no Hilton. It seems the new owner of the hotel Royal Monceau in Paris is shutting down the hotel for a renovation, and he has a unique idea of how it should look. He invited artists and celebrities to come and do whatever they wanted to the rooms, in an ‘artistic’ sense. Details from AFP via Yahoo News.

He invited plenty to his “Demolition Party” — US indy rockers Gossip, Belgian electronic punk band 2 Many DJs and French rapper MC Solaar, to name just some of the musicians. Leggy young things in skimpy outfits and their argumentative alpha-male companions crowded the marble staircase for their turn to don safety gear and have a go at the gypsum walls in rooms that once cost up to 650 euros a night. Hotels were certainly well built in Paris in 1928 — it took a good five minutes for this AFP reporter to punch a fist-sized hole between rooms 427 and 429. The wallpaper proved especially resilient.  - Robert MacPherson, Paris, AFP, June 27 2008 

Of all the things to do in Los Angeles that our A-listers love, this is their dream come true. If only they had known, a chartered plane full of Hollywood celebs would surely have landed up in Paris, hammer and overalls and all, ready to trash the hotel…

Speaking of A-listers with problems, it seems that Jennifer Lopez’s dog bit off a bit more than it could pay for, and an airline stewardess named Lisa Wilson is suing J Lo for $5 million, cause her dog bit Wilson in-flight in 2006.

Posted on June 30th, 2008 by PLing
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Poke around all the landmarks and monuments and things to do in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and all the areas in between while on a Highway 1 roadtrip, and you’ll be hard pressed to find a conservative iconic landmark worth visiting.

One of these happens to be the Reagan Ranch or ‘Rancho del Cielo’, a 688 acre ranch located in the Santa Ynez Mountains adjacent to Refugio pass, northwest of Santa Barbara. It is accessible from Highway 1 via a one lane road and from the other side of the Mountains from Solvang. Photo credit & copyrights - Young America’s Foundation

President Reagan purchased this ranch during his second term as California Governor and spent his Presidential vacations at this ranch. Visitors to the ranch include former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, Queen Elizabeth II and former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. Since much of the ranch was built by President Reagan himself, the place reflects his “his humility, his idealism, his diligence and hard work” as quoted from the Young America’s Foundation website.

The property currently belongs to the Young America’s Foundation (www.yaf.org). While the ranch is closed to the public, the Foundation does organize tours to allow students and supporters to visit the ranch.

If you want to see his principles at work, you can visit any one of the numerous conservative thinktanks in Washington DC, but if you want a true slice of Reagan, become a supporter and visit the Reagan Ranch - One of last bastions and representative icons of true conservatism in the liberal land of Nancy Pelosi and latte sipping liberals.

Posted on June 29th, 2008 by PLing
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After nearly a week, the lightning sparked fire in the Basin Complex has been only 3% contained and continues to wreak havoc in the area. Big Sur, while having so far dodged the direct impact of the fire, is feeling the heat from the fallout of the fire. Photo by U.S. Geological Survey via Flickr (Creative Commons).

16 miles of Highway 1 in both directions south of Big Sur continue to remain closed. Caltrans has advised motorists to avoid unnecessary driving. The smoke hangs over the entire region in a haze and air pollution is several times higher than the federal standard for clean air.

Tourism has been especially hard hit, with the fire driving away tourists at the peak of the summer season. Guess you’ll have to make do with the things to do in San Francisco this summer, and forego the Highway 1 roadtrip.

San Jose Mercury News reports that the fire has claimed 16 houses, including the historic 1939 hunting cabin, made of hand-split redwood, where the conservation group Big Sur Land Trust was founded. Last weekend’s lightning strikes sparked 1,211 blazes across Northern California that so far have burned 302 square miles. Only 266 of the fires are contained and more lightning storms are expected this weekend. Photo by kangotraveler via Flickr (Creative Commons)

The historic Inns in Big Sur like the Ventana Inn & Spa and restaurants like Nepenthe suffered a close call with the fire licking right up to the edges of Highway 1. As of now, Big Sur hotels have no customers, but they’re being kept busy catering to firefighters.

Info: Visit www.fire.ca.gov. Road conditions - Call (800) GAS-ROAD.

In other news, yet another incidence of a hotel being invaded by a bear. The 29 Palms Inn, located in 29 Palms, CA, a desert city in San Bernardino County close to Joshua Tree National Park and the Mojave National Preserve, has a shy bear who’s running around the Inn hiding from visitors, locals and the Animal Control Officer. Photo credit & copyrights - 29 Palms Inn, 73950 Inn Avenue Twentynine Palms, CA 92277; (760) 367-3505.

About 8 p.m. the bear, believed to be about 18 to 20 months old and weighing between 200 and 400 pounds, sat leisurely on the back patio of inn owners Jane and Paul Smith, staring at Boyd, Bernal and Deputy Dale Dyer for several minutes before lumbering through a gate and disappearing. About 45 minutes later, the bear was spotted in a tamarisk tree behind the inn restaurant, scratching itself on the tree’s thick branches as a small crowd stood about 15 feet away, jabbering excitedly and taking photos. The crowd dispersed when the bear came down from the tree. - Bear is shy, but people aren’t, Kelly O’Sullivan, Desert Trail, June 27 2008

Its no big wonder the bear chose 29 Palms Inn, considering that the Inn offers cabins and cottages with fireplace, queen beds, private sun patio, fridge, shower and a tub and a great desert view at rates starting from $70. With Double occupancy…

Posted on June 29th, 2008 by PLing
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WFTV of Orlando reports that Huey Tsao from Washington DC, and 26 weeks pregnant, was left stranded at Port Canaveral in spite of having a ticket, a brochure which said the Cruise company allowed pregnant women up until 27 weeks, and a doctor’s note, after Carnival Cruise Lines refused to let her on board citing a change in policy. Her family went ahead on the cruise without her. Carnival now says they’ll grant Tsao credit  towards a future cruise.

USAToday follows up on the story. A check of cruise line websites finds that other lines such as Princess and Royal Caribbean also have been quietly switching to a 24-week cutoff. None of the lines have announced the changes in press releases, and the changes have not been widely reported.

In other Florida news, the Lexington at Orlando Cityplace, an old hotel converted to a Condo, is all set to become a Crowne Plaza hotel again. The  227-room property conversion will include room upgrades such as new bedding packages and a 30 percent increase in meeting space to 6,500 square feet.  The owners are offering $88,000 to investors who bought condos in the building. That’s less than half the price they paid. Optionally, condo owners who don’t want to sell can share in the revenue with the hotel, and they’ll be getting half the $122 per night rate.

Seems Orlando’s hotel industry is doing better than the real estate industry, cause there’s lots of new hotels opening up to cater to the hordes of tourists coming in to check out the things to do in Orlando. In addition to the aforementioned Crowne Plaza which debuts on July 3, the Holiday Inn in the Walt Disney World Resort is scheduled for an opening in Feb 2009.

The hotel will feature 323 guest rooms and more than 11,000 square feet (1,022 square meters) of flexible meeting and event space. Guest room amenities include 32” (81 centimeters) LCD wide-screen HDTVs, granite bath vanities, wireless and high-speed online connections and a daily newspaper. The property will also include the Atrium Restaurant and complimentary transportation to the Walt Disney World Resort theme parks. Source - Orlando Convention & Visitors Bureau

And back in California, it seems not only people, but plants also are interested in traveling. Bloomberg report, citing a scientific study, says that plants in the Golden State threatened by global warming are moving at about a mile a year. California, almost 80 percent the size of France, is home to about 5,500 native plants, including roughly 2,400 that live only in the state. As temperatures warm, redwoods along California’s coast may move farther north toward Oregon and native oak trees may no longer be found in the central part of the state, the study said.

Posted on June 28th, 2008 by PLing
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You can add the New York City Waterfalls (http://nycwaterfalls.org/) to the growing list of free things to do in New York. Olafur Eliasson’s work of public art consists of four scaffoldings, 90 to 120 feet tall, strung along the Brooklyn, Manhattan and Governors Island waterfronts. Photo credit & copyrights - Public Art Fund

A temporary park has been set up at Pier 1 as a place to view one of the waterfalls. The waterfalls are active from 7 am to 10 pm everyday, and lit up after dark.

But this is New York City we’re talking about, where nothing is free, and everything has a price. The waterfalls were were set spouting by Mayor Bloomberg on Thursday, and a couple of days later, people have already started making money off it. Circle Line Downtown is running waterfall cruises starting from South Street Seaport at $10 per adult ticket. A bike rental and tour company, Bike and Roll, is offering bike tours at $40 per person, including the bike rental.

But, again, this is NYC, and it just gets bigger and better. And costlier. The whopper comes from the midtown Buckingham Hotel, which is offering a $75,000 waterfall cruise vacation package, which inludes a side-trip to Niagara Falls, after the four waterfalls in NYC. Details from the NY Daily News.

The faux falls are a warmup for the real thing at the Canadian border in the trip offered by the Buckingham Hotel. Guests arrive at its 2,000-square-foot penthouse to find another waterfall - of champagne. The next day brings a private jet trip to Niagara Falls, with lunch in the Skylon Tower’s revolving dining room nearly 800 feet above the falls. - 75G trip lets you go with flow, Larry McShane, NY Daily News, June 26 2008 

This is what we call the entrepreneurial spirit - NYC style. Something new and exciting and free comes up, milk it and squeeze it and surround it with paid options until the free thingy can no longer be seen or heard. Anyway, let’s move on to Atlanta and King Tut.

The Renaissance Atlanta Hotel Downtown has whipped up a hotel package for the opening of the “Tutankhamun: The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs” Exhibition at the Atlanta Civic Center, opening November 15, 2008. Featuring over 130 objects, most never before seen in the United States, this King Tut exhibit will showcase relics from the tomb of King Tutankhamun, discovered in 1922, along with other famous Egyptian pharaohs that lived over 2,000 years ago.

The King Tut package includes deluxe accommodations for one night, buffet breakfast, two exclusive V.I.P. King Tut exhibition tickets for any date and time, even if the exhibition is sold out (the only non-timed tickets available for the exhibition), “Front of the line” access to the exhibition, and complimentary hotel parking (the hotel is a mile away from the Atlanta Civic Center). Rates from $190 - $245 per room, per night. Promo code E0Q for online booking or call 800-228-9290.

Posted on June 27th, 2008 by PLing
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