Top five weekend travel media stories

by Alex Robertson Textor on

Here are some of the best travel stories culled from the travel sections of this past weekend’s newspapers.

1. In the Financial Times, Claire Wrathall pens a sailing exploration of northern Croatia’s Kornati islands, which take a backseat to the country’s southern Adriatic islands and port cities.

2. Seven writers weigh in on their first independent teenage trips in a Guardian travel feature. It’s amusing throughout, though the stories told by Terry Alderton and Emma Kennedy are especially funny.

3. In the Los Angeles Times, Michele Bigley recommends ten kid-friendly pit stops along Highway 1 between Los Angeles and San Francisco.

4. In the Winnipeg Free Press, Phil Reimer ponders the future of Antarctic cruises after the heavy-fuel ban takes effect next August. (Another great piece exploring the future of cruises among other tourism ventures was written by Doug French for the June 7 Christian Science Monitor.)

5. In the Irish Times, Ruadhán Mac Cormaic celebrates the virtues of Paris beyond the city’s six most central arondissements, sharing top-five hotel, restaurant, and activity lists.

(Photo: Flickr/Alaskan Dude)

Daily Pampering: Be it Ever So Barbie, at Hôtel Plaza Athénée

by Melanie Nayer on

Forget the corvette, this Barbie is heading to Paris for some serious luxury travel.

Grab your Barbie bag, Barbie clothes and Barbie iPod, and hop your Barbie plane to Paris for a stay in ultimate Barbie luxury. For the first time in France, Hôtel Plaza Athénée on Avenue Montaigne is offering a Barbie-inspired stay for guests. Plaza Athénée will accessorize two guest rooms to resemble a little girl’s dream in Barbie’s favorite colors (shades of pink!) with exclusively signed furniture and accessories galore. In addition to the Barbie room, guests ages three to 16 will receive a very special Barbie-inspired gift.

The Barbie rooms will only be available from August 6 through September 2, 2010. Choose from one of two family packages: one Barbie room and connecting deluxe room for parents, from 1,600€ (about $1,900 USD); one Barbie room and connecting deluxe suite from 2,500€ (approximately $3,000).

I think even Barbie would give up her Dream House for this Parisian escape.

Want more? Get your dose of Daily Pampering right here.

Concorde Hotels turns up the heat with summer deal

by Tom Johansmeyer on

The euro has never been lower, and Europe is calling. With the Concorde Hotels & Resorts “Summer Offer,” you can get on a plane and out the door without breaking the bank. The Hotel Lutetia in Paris and Hotel de la Paix in Geneva are on the list, with rates as low as $159 a night – a savings of up to 30 percent.

Travel by the end of August, and you’ll also get a buffet breakfast daily and a special amenity (per person) waiting for you in your room every night, as long as you stay between two and four nights. And if Europe doesn’t turn you on, Concorde has locations in Japan and Africa, too.

Take advantage of the discounts now. With the economy turning around, 2011 is expected to be the first year of a hotel recovery.

France in summer: Three ways to do it in style

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Skip your usual vacation spot this summer, and go to France. You need a break from the norm (I sure do), and there are some great deals all over the country that make it hard to resist getting on a plane for seven hours of smelling the passenger crammed in next to you.

Focus on what happens when you hit the ground: it’s worth it.

Bessé Signature Hotels has put together three hotel deals in France that make the burden of air travel worth shouldering. Step off the plane and head to some of the country’s unique contemporary hotels, and you’ll forget all about having your sweaty neighbor’s head on your shoulder for the entire trip across the Atlantic.

Girls: Check out the Hotel Edouard 7 for a girls’ getaway, and you won’t be disappointed. The “Girls Night Out” package includes a suite for three, limousine transfers to and from the airport and three sets of Princesse tam tam pajamas – not to mention a variety of Keihl’s products and a bottle of champagne every day(!). The best part, I suspect, is the three VIP passes to Le Printemps, complete with personal shopping services and a 10 percent discount on all your purchases. As if this isn’t enough, you’ll score breakfast and dinner en suite every day. The deal is good through the end of August and starts at 380 euros a night.

Golf: Pack the ladies of to the Hotel Edouard, and take the guys out to Domaine de la Bretesche, in the Brittany region. Dinner for two every day at the Michelin-starred Montaigu is a nice touch, but that doesn’t compare to having your greens fees covered every day for 18 holes of golf. Get the frustration of the links rubbed out every da at the Spa de la Cour Carree, and you’ll have the perfect golf experience. Rates start at 800 euros a night for two guests, through August 31, 2010.

City: Beat the currency fluctuations with a guaranteed rate of $395 a night at theHotel Bel-Ami in Paris. Good through the end of the year, this deal includes a double superior room and breakfast every day. Explore the city, and dodge the beggars that lurk under the Eiffel Tower. It’s a great time.

Photo of the Day (6.1.10)

by Stephen Greenwood on
June has finally arrived, which can only mean one thing – the World Cup is just less than two weeks away! When traveling abroad, it’s easy to see that football really is the most widely played sport on Earth; scenes like this one are a familiar occurrence.

This photo was taken by Flickr user pirano, on the steps of the beautiful Sacré Cœur in Montemartre, Paris. I love the beautifully balanced black & white tones and unique perspective that offsets the distinct backdrop of Parisian buildings with photo’s subject.


Do you have a shot of people playing football in an interesting location? Care to place your bet for World Cup outcomes in the comments? Head over to Flickr, submit your photos to our pool, and you could be featured as the Photo of the Day!