ABC News and Hotels.com list best US cities for hotel deals

by Katie Hammel on

On most trips, your two biggest expenses will be your transportation and your accommodation. You don’t have much control over the price of your flight, but you can balance out that cost by picking a destination where you are more likely to score a deal on your hotel. ABC News has put together a list of popular tourist destinations in the US where hotel rates are falling, including Las Vegas, Tuscon, Anchorage and Chicago.

In some cites, the savings can be as much as 30%. In New York, the average has dropped from $281 to $196 – nearly $100 per night. Stay 2-3 nights and that could cover your airfare. Miami’s average is down from $176 to $140 and the cost of a typical hotel room in San Francisco has decreased from $155 to $124. Even rates in Waikiki Beach, Hawaii, are down 18% from $191 to $157.

The stats came from Hotels.com’s list of average hotel room rates around the world. Chicago, with a drop of 22% came in third place (tied with Anchorage) among major cities for the most significant drop in rates. Juneau, Alaska, was in second place. New York and Las Vegas tied for the top spot with a drop of 30%. Every state in the US experienced a drop in the average nightly rate, except for North Dakota. Rates there remained stable.

The lowest prices in the country were found in Albuquerque, New Mexico; Boise, Idaho; and Las Vegas.

The global average for hotel price drops was 17% with Moscow experiencing the most significant decrease of 52%.

Journey to the dark side of the moon

by Sean McLachlan on

On this day fifty years ago, humanity got to see something it had never seen before.

On October 7, 1959, the Soviet space probe Luna 3 orbited the moon and took photos of the “dark side”.

Of course, everyone already knew that the dark side isn’t really dark. It gets just as much light as the side we see, but since it always faces away from Earth we’ve spent the last hundred thousand years wondering what’s over there. Luna 3 gave us the answer.

Some of Luna 3’s ghostly images and those from later Soviet probes can be seen here.

If you go to Moscow, you can learn the story of the Soviet space program at the Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics, located in the base of the Monument to the Conquerors of Space, pictured here in this striking photo taken by AlphaTangoBravo and put in our Flickr photo pool. The museum has one of the most impressive buildings of any museum anywhere, being incorporated into the base of a 107 meter (350 ft.) depiction of a rocket and its contrail. A poem on the side of the monument declares, “And the reward for our efforts was that, having triumphed over oppression and darkness, we have forged wings of fire for our land and our century!”

Besides a bit of Soviet-style hypocrisy about “oppression and darkness” this poem is spot on. The Soviet Space program achieved a whole series of firsts–first satellite (1957), first animal in space (1957), first probes to Mars (1960) and Venus (1961), first man in space (1961), first woman in space (1963). . .the list goes on and on.

The museum has undergone three years of renovations and reopened on April 12 of this year, which happens to be Cosmonautics Day, celebrating Yuri Gagarin’s historic 1961 flight, the first time a human being ever left Earth. The Soviets put up a very cool statue to him in Moscow’s Gagarin Square, but sadly there’s no photo of it in the Gadling Flickr pool. The first person who puts one up there and tells me by leaving a comment will get a Soviet-era space program postcard as a thank you. You’ll also see the photo on Gadling, so upload your best!

If you want a sneak peek inside the renovated museum, this article (in Spanish) has an interesting slide show.

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Moscow luggage handlers lighten load

by Tom Johansmeyer on

What’s going on in Moscow? If you have any valuables in your luggage, they may not be there when you get to the hotel! Well, maybe the odds are better now that police at the city’s main international airport have arrested several luggage handlers suspected of sifting through bags and pocketing the good stuff.

The thefts began in early January at Sheremetyevo Airport. It seems that a daily flight to Sharm el-Sheik, a Red Sea resort in Egypt, was the most popular target. This destination is something of a favorite among Russians. So, the bags on Nord Wind Flight 1921 were lightened a bit, especially of cameras, computers and jewelry.

Police spokeswoman Yelena Starkova was stingy with the details, not revealing how many arrests were made or the value of the stolen goods.

Will secretary Clinton help or hinder travel to Russia?

by Grant Martin on

Travelers around the world are waiting for the day when the borders to Russia open wider to visitors. Although the formerly Communist country does and will accept tourists, the application process is long and expensive — you don’t just wander up to the border to Russia, get your passport stamped and mosey down to Red Square, no, before visitors to the Red State are even allowed to apply for a visa they need to be sponsored, a process that isn’t difficult but one that takes time, money and most of all, patience.

Now that the Obama administration has the reigns, however, many have high hopes for better relations between the United States and some of her formerly cold neighbors. Cuba, for example, has recently been hinting at welcoming American citizens back into the island nation and kick starting its economy.

Such is the message that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is taking with her as she circles the globe: Give us some time and space to figure things out and rebuild bridges — we’re not here to fight.

Or at least that’s what she thought she was saying to Sergi Lavrov, Russia’s Secretary of State and a prominent official with whom she met last week. In an attempt to get relations started off on the right foot, Mrs. Clinton presented Lavrov with a gag “reset button” that was meant to symbolize the resetting of relations between the former Cold War foes.

On the bottom was written RESET, in English, while the top said PEREGRUZKA, in Russian. Which does not mean “reset.” It means “OVERLOAD.”

Thankfully, Mr. Lavrov took the gaff in stride and the meeting still went well. And with any luck, relations between the east and west will soon become even warmer, making we American tourists one step closer to easy weekend caviar and vodka trips to Moscow.

Amazing Race Season 14: Recap 4, Siberia looks like fun

by Jamie Rhein on

During episode 4 of this season’s Amazing Race, the teams headed off in the middle of the night from Bucharest to Krasnoyarsk, Siberia via Moscow. Unlike getting to Bucharest from Salzburg, Moscow from Bucharest is a piece of cake. Flights went through Munich, Frankfurt and Sofia, Bulgaria. Half the teams were on one flight and half on another once they reached Moscow. After the teams landed in Krasnoyarsk they were in for some fun and games with wood piles and bobsleds.

Here’s one travel tip: On the way to the airport, flight attendants Christie and Jodi stopped at an Internet cafe to find the best option and book tickets. Those flight attendants sure know how to zip through airplane schedules.

This episode was the best so far for giving each team air time, and again showing off the flavor of the country. In Siberia there were traces of snow and grey skies, but the people were friendly and seemed happy to be part of the reality TV experience. Plus, taxi drivers seemed to know where they were going and the traffic was minimal. Besides that, the teams seemed to be enjoying each other each time their paths crossed. Also, when a team experienced bad luck, the others close by doled out sympathy.

First stop, the Krasnoyarsk Hydroelectric Dam–no bungee jumping this time, just the clue for the next stop and a look at Lenin’s face. This is where this episode began to get dicey.

Once teams headed to the charming, small wooden Church of Innukenty, they could either stack wood or build traditional wooden shutters for a house in need of some TLC. Each task was to give a nod to Siberian winters and had to be done exactly.

The wood pile was daunting for half of the teams who tried. One wrong move and half the enormous pile came tumbling down–and in the worst case scenario, taking the already stacked pile partially with it. While teams were busy stacking, there were some Siberians hanging out drinking, eating sausage cooked that was cooked over an open fire, and playing music to add in some cultural backdrop.

Once some of the teams gave up on wood stacking, the shutter building business proved to be a doable task, but like any task done under pressure, finding the house to put the shutters on gave a couple of the teams pause.

Because the teams were spread out time wise, this episode provided a rollicking switch back and forth between tasks as some teams moved on to the second task while others were just starting the first one. Split screen TV comes in handy.

Once teams either stacked their wood, or made their shutters and fastened them to the house, they were off to the Museum of the Novel “The Last Bow” and the next clue. Here Margie and Luke did a “Blind U-Turn” to Amanda and Kris, who, earlier in the episode, were waxing poetic on how their youth and competitiveness made them a shoo-in to win the million. Yeah, right.

Next stop, Bobrovy Amusement Park and a speedy ride down the 3 miles of a bobsled course keeping track of the 7 letters in the name of a famous Russian playwright. One thing was clear, Russian literature isn’t general knowledge information. Victor was one of the few who knew the answer straight off and seemed to think Anton Chekhov isn’t exactly obscure.

As an interesting aside, this task offered a slight glimpse into what people who are deaf have to deal with when it comes to the interplay between American Sign Language, English and another language. Luke was operating through his second language, English to figure out an answer in another language. It took him several attempts, but by trying various combinations he eventually got it right.

Like last week, this week showed that this season is any team’s game. As Mike said after he and his dad hung their shutters after the wood pile task went bust, then finished the bobsled task and found out that other teams were behind them at the bobsled course, “Just when you think you’re out of this race, you’re back in.”

Once the bobsled task was done, off the teams galloped to the Krasnoyarsk State Musical Comedy Theater.

Who won?: Christie and Jodi made it to the Pit Stop first with Kesha and Jen a close second. For their win, they each received a 650 motorcycle.

Who lost? Amanda and Kris came in last due to their U-Turn, but took it well. They have their love and maybe will pep things up in Ko Samui, Thailand where the other losers are at the Elimination Station.