14 New National Monuments Being Considered

by Kraig Becker on

Last week a leaked document from the Department of the Interior gave travelers and outdoor enthusiasts a glimpse into potential plans by the Obama administration to designate as many as 14 new national monuments spread out across nine western states. And while a spokesman for the DOI was quick to point out that the memo was just a draft for internal discussion, environmentalists and conservatives were equally as quick to line up in praise, and condemnation, of the proposal.

The list of potential new monuments, and the states in which they are located, includes the following: San Rafael Swell, UT; Montana’s Northern Prairie, MT; Lesser Prairie Chicken Preserve, NM; Berryessa Snow Mountains, CA; Heart of the Great Basin, NV; Otero Mesa, NM; Northwest Sonoran Desert, AZ; Owyhee Desert, OR/NV; Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument, CA (expansion); Vermillion Basin, CO; Bodie Hills, CA; The Modoc Plateau, CA; Cedar Mesa, UT and the San Juan Islands, WA.

Many of these places are already popular destinations for hikers and backpackers, but naming them as national monuments gives them protected status and removes them from the jurisdiction of the states in which they reside. That is exactly why representatives from Utah are up in arms, and are preparing to fight this proposal to the bitter end. Senator Orin Hatch, who represents that state, has widely been quoted as saying he’ll do everything in his power to prevent the proposal from moving forward, and likewise Utah’s Governor Gary Herbert has been extremely outspoken against the plan as well, arguing that the states should be allowed to manage their own natural resources, not Washington bureaucrats who have never stepped foot on the land.Whether the Department of the Interior moves forward with the plan remains to be seen, but it seems everyone is already gearing up for a big fight. Meanwhile, the hikers that are already enjoying these public lands will probably continue to do so, and not even notice a change should they federal government take control.

For more information on this story, including a look at each of the potential new monuments, check out this story over at The Adventure Life, where you’ll also find the whole controversial document itself in .pdf format.

UPDATE: The Senate rejected a move on February 25 to bar the Obama administration from designating any new national monuments, including two in Utah, that were listed in a leaked Interior Department document. As a result, the administration is required to work closely with local communities affected by any such designation.

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New York City’s Jane hotel, from $69 through March

by Amy Chen on

Shoebox-size hotel rooms in New York City are notoriously overpriced, especially since you’re usually too busy running around the city to spend enough time in them.

The Jane hotel could be the antidote — now through March, the starting price has dropped down to $69 for a single room (compared to $99). A room with bunk beds now starts at $79. Note: these 50-square-foot rooms have communal bathrooms and are extremely narrow — the wall-size mirror can only do so much to conjure airiness. The rooms, which were modeled after train and yacht cabins, do at least come with built-in drawers underneath the twin beds and overhead luggage racks so you’re not tripping over your stuff.

If you’re claustrophobic, though, you may be happier booking one of the 250-square-foot Captain’s Cabins for $179 (normally $250-$300), which have private bathrooms.

For once, these prices match the size of the rooms. Besides, The Jane’s location in the West Village really makes it hard to justify spending too much time in the tiny rooms anyway.

Disney opens re-branded ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando

by Gadling Staff on

Walt Disney World opened its re-branded ESPN Wide World of Sports on February 25 in a ceremony that only Disney could stage.

Athletes (everyone from golf legend Annika Sorenstam to the Cincinnati Bengals’ Chad Ochocinco) walked a “green carpet” made from turf and signed autographs for fans, many of whom had won sweepstakes or booked special travel packages to be there. Florida Governor Charlie Crist even flew in to take the stage and discuss how important youth sports are to Florida, both in tourism dollars and in health and wellness.

New Orleans Saints (and Super Bowl Champion) kicker Garrett Hartley put one over the gate of the complex with an assist from Minnie Mouse. The gate opened and out poured dozens of sports stars, ESPN personalities and youth sports athletes, led by Mickey Mouse, who was dressed and ready to take the field himself.

And then the real fireworks began. Really. Fireworks.

And confetti cannons, because it’s not a Disney event without confetti cannons.

But unless you are the parent of a child who plays sports, you probably didn’t know that Walt Disney World had a sports complex. This grand re-opening is part of Disney’s push to change all that.

Youth sports is big business for Walt Disney World. The 14-year-old complex hosted more than 300 events last year and drew hundreds of thousands of people to Central Florida. Faron Kelley, Disney’s director of sports marketing, says 85 percent of those people would not have vacationed in Central Florida otherwise. That’s a lot of add-on Disney park hoppers and hotel rooms.

%Gallery-86600%The ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex was already home to a baseball stadium (where the Atlanta Braves do spring training), two field houses that can be set up to house everything from college basketball to inline hockey to robotics competitions, and dozens of baseball, softball and soccer fields.

Through a direct pipeline with ESPN studios, SportsCenter hosts will provide intros to the youth sports clips. And some of the action may even make it to ESPN’s cable or online networks. The goal is to make even the flag-football players “feel like they’ve made the big time.”

The ESPN name change brought some new additions, mainly in the form of high-definitions cameras and screens throughout the complex. The plan is to film many of the events taking place around the sports complex and edit highlight reels that will be shown on the big screens around the ESPN Wide World of Sports, as well as on a dedicated TV channel in Walt Disney World’s 27,000 hotel rooms.

Through a direct pipeline with ESPN studios in Bristol, Conn., SportsCenter hosts will provide intros to the youth sports clips. And some of the action may even make it to ESPN’s cable or online networks.

The goal, says Disney Sports Enterprises Senior VP Ken Potrock, is to make those Pop Warner flag-football players “feel like they’ve made the big time.”

ESPN President George Bodenheimer announced that ESPN will continue to use the Wide World of Sports Complex, and its year-round access to outdoor sporting events, to develop new broadcast technologies. The ball tracker used in last summer’s broadcast of the All-Star Game Home-Run Derby was developed here. And future development for ESPN’s 3D cable network, which launches June 11, will happen at the ESPN Innovation Labs nestled among the Atlanta Braves practice fields at the complex.

Also new to the ESPN Wide World of Sports is the Playstation Pavilion, where players can come between games to try out the latest video games (sometimes before they are available in stores). And there’s a new central marquee with a giant video screen and scrolling news ticker at the crossroads of the complex. Underneath? An information booth where those youth sports enthusiasts can extend their hotel stays and buy water park tickets.

Potrock says while no plans have been announced, there are more than 250 acres set aside for new development at the ESPN Wide World of Sports. And this spring, while dozens of softball, baseball, golf and soccer teams travel down from the Northeast and Midwest to thaw out and train, Potrock’s staff is working on bringing down an event for a fast-growing, new sport: Pickleball.

“Just don’t ask me what it is,” Potrock says.

So, we looked it up. Pickleball is a game played on a badminton court with the net lowered to 34 inches. Players use a paddle (like a ping-pong paddle), to bat a plastic baseball with holes (like a waffle ball) over the net. There’s even a USA Pickleball Association.

We’re guessing Disney could fit six, maybe even 12, Pickleball courts inside one of its fieldhouses for a round-robin tournament. And I, for one, can’t wait for that SportsCenter highlight reel.

Luxury hotels still discounting in 2010

by Tom Johansmeyer on

If you didn’t book a luxury trip last year, don’t worry; you didn’t miss your big opportunity. Without a doubt, 2009 was hell on the luxury travel market. It was rough on just about every luxury business, frankly. And while the economy looks like its taking a step in the right direction this year, it’s not doing so fast enough for luxury travel providers. Look for another year of discounts, according to industry tracking firm Rubicon. Properties like the Four Seasons, St. Regis, Ritz-Carlton and Mandarin Oriental are going to have to bite the bullet again in 2010.

According to Rubicon, luxury hotels are booking more business at this point in the year than they did in the same period in 2009 – but only 4.6 percent more. Meanwhile, the average rate they’re fetching is off 13.2 percent. Clearly, the upscale properties are buying guests with discounts. Of course, luxury on sale still isn’t cheap. You’re looking at $325 a night instead of $389 a night a year ago, Rubicon reports, based on bookings made as of February 1.

“Hotel companies are not rushing to lift the rates and slow that tide of recovery,” Rubicon CEO Steve Swope told USA Today. “So the other good news is: there are some real bargains out there for consumers. Now’s a good time to get out and travel. In another 18 to 24 months, the rates seen today are not going to be there anymore.”

Win a Trazzler trip to San Francisco!

by Stephen Greenwood on

Did we get your taste buds tingling with yesterday’s Travel Talk San Francisco segment? Well you could win one of 10 free trips to San Francisco with Trazzler.com’s City Flavor Writing Contest!

How do you enter? Submit a story about a city that you love which corresponds with one of five themes; “Foodie Temples“, “Love in the City“, “LGBT Icons“, “Neighborhood Spots“, or “Only in SF“. If you choose the fifth theme, it must be about San Francisco, otherwise the destination is up to you!

You can enter up to five submissions (one per theme) to increase your chances at being one of the 10 lucky winners that will receive round trip flights to San Francisco and a 5 night stay in the Joie de Vivre. The 5 winners chosen by Trazzler.com’s editors will also receive a writer-in-residence contract, so if you’ve got stories to tell, start writing!

The entry deadline is February 28th at 11:59PM EST so don’t delay. For more information, head on over to Trazzler’s contest page.