Celebrity Hotel of the Week: The Guanahani in St. Barthelemy
Posted August 21, 2009 , add a comment
Aerial view of the Guanahani Hotel and Spa
Gisele Bundchen
Last time we covered St. Tropez’ Byblos Hotel. And we have another French hotel and celeb hotspot for this week’s Celebrity Hotel of the Week. Smack dab in the middle of the French West Indies is the Hotel Guanahani and Spa in Saint Barthelemy. A fave amongst celebrities such as Naomi Watts, Alessandra Ambrosio, and Jon Bon Jovi, the Guanahani is the finest of luxury hotel resorts.
Located on a private 16-acre peninsula, you’ll find amazing beaches, dining, Creole-styled rooms and suites that’ll blow you away, shopping…it’s all there at the Guanahani, just waiting for your arrival. And talk about some incredible free activities and services!
The luxurious Guanahani
Included with your room stay: free Continental breakfast either in your room or at the Indigo restaurant, canoes and pedal boats, snorkeling, windsurfing, tennis courts, a fitness center, and daytime Kindergarten for children 2-6 years of age. By the way? Kids six and under stay for free. And for a little extra, there’s jet-skis, boat rentals, scuba diving, bars on the beach, and instructors for tennis and windsurfing.
Guanahani Room, Feel like a celeb!
Guanahani Room
The Guanahani has 68 rooms, all in private bungalows with private terraces. There are 34 suites (some with private pools), 24-hour room service, satellite TV with LCD flatscreens, DVD players (DVD library available at the front desk), and free Internet.
Bed with a view, Guanahani Hotel & Spa
Gastronomically speaking, there are lots of good eats around, including Indigo (a wonderful poolside restaurant on the beach) and Bartolomeo (gourmet dining and lounge bar). Scrumptious Mediterranean/Italian dishes at Bartolomeo are faves of Marisa Miller and Gisele Bundchen alike, and you can’t beat a romantic meal at night with the stars overhead.
Guanahani Restaurant
The spa at Guanahani rocks, too. Get a look at some of these views. Steam room, massages, rejuvenation packages. There’s even a salon on the premises.
Guanahani Spa
Rates. Right. Well,depending on the room and the time of year, prices start at 360 Euros (currency converter here) and work their way up from there. A Superior Gardenview Room, for example, is 360 Euros a night during the summer and 915 Euros a night during the Christmas holiday. An Ocean 1-Bedroom Poolside Suite, with private pool overlooking the sea starts at 1,095 Euros in the summer and goes up to 1,655 Euros over Christmas and New Year’s.
Guanahani Hotel, Private Suite Pool
Jon Bon Jovi
But if you’re really going for the celebrity treatment, you can get a suite with butler service! Yeah, baby! The most expensive one - La Villa - starts at 2,800 Euros a day and tops out at 5,700 Euros a day. Think I’ll stay for a month. Or maybe just for 15 minutes, because that’ll only cost me 60 Euros. How much can a butler do in 15 minutes, anyway?
Fine beaches, luxurious rooms, poolside bars, the warm sunny climate…yeah. I can’t wait to get there. Who wants to be my Sugar Mama?
CELEBS SPOTTED: Marisa Miller, Selita Ebanks, Alessandra Ambrosio, Adriana Lima, Gisele Bundchen, Naomi Watts, Laetitia Casta, Stephanie Seymour, Karen Mulder, Yasmeen Ghuri, Jon Bon Jovi.
And if anyone has any tips for hot celebrity hotels, feel free to let me know.
Photo credits: Daylife.com, Celebutopia.net, Guanahani Hotel
South America & Central America Vacations from the Globus family of brands
Posted , add a comment) South America may take up 3.5 percent of the world’s surface but it’s responsible for much more of the planet’s excitement. Listed as a “hot destination” by the USTOA, South America’s culture, nature, food and value make it a place worth discovering and exploring in 2010. Now, the Globus family of brands has unveiled more than 20 vacations to emerging destinations in Mexico, South and Central America, including four new itineraries, spotlighting the company’s increased dedication to growth in this area of the world.
“Since 2005, we’ve seen double-digit percentage growth in our South America business,” said Pamela Hoffee, vice president of product and operations for the Globus family of brands. “This is a destination with enormous appeal ? from culture, access and favorable currency to diversity, food and adventure. And, while the logistics involved in traveling to South America can seem somewhat intimidating for first-time travelers to the destination, a guided tour or independent travel package (Monograms) with help from our experts present travelers a great, stress-free yet fun-filled solution.”
Ranging from eight to 20 days, the Globus family of brands’ 2010 Latin American vacations are as robust as the countries and regions featured. Four NEW itineraries for 2010 include one Cruise & Tour itinerary and three Monograms independent travel vacations. They are:
Avalon Waterways (Cruise & Tour)
? NEW Ecuador & the Galápagos (9 days from Quito to Guyaquil), priced from $3,379 land, cruise and intra-vacation air only.
Monograms (Independent Vacations)
? NEW Brazil, Argentina & Chile (12 days), priced from $2,239 land only.
? NEW Amazonia Voyage with Rio & Iguassu (10 days), priced from $2,769 land and cruise only.
? NEW Costa Rica Wonders (8 days), priced from $1,299 land only.
“Not only are Americans discovering all the beauty, color and vigor Latin America offers, the dollar goes further in Mexico, South and Central America than in many other destinations,” said Scott Nisbet, president and chief executive officer for the Globus family of brands. And, to whet South America travel appetites even more, the Globus family of brands is offering travelers a PROMOTION: Receive $300 off per person on the air-inclusive price of any 2010 Globus, Monograms or Avalon South American vacation between now and October 13, 2009.*
Additional 2010 South America Tour, Cruise & Tour and Independent Vacation offerings include:
Globus (Tour)
? Natural Wonders of Costa Rica (9 days), priced from $1,529 land only.
? South American Escape (8 days from Rio de Janeiro to Buenos Aires), priced from $2,469 land and intra-vacation air only.
? Mayan Civilizations: Honduras, Guatemala & Belize (12 days from Guatamala City to San Ignacio), priced from $2,559 land only.
? Mexico’s Colonial Cities (8 days), priced from $1,349 land only.
Avalon Waterways (Cruise & Tour)
? Discover the Galápagos & Peru (13 days from Lima to Quinto), priced from $5,169 land, cruise and intra-vacation air only.
Monograms (Independent Travel)
? Peru Highlights (6 days), priced from $1,639 land only.
? Pantagonian & Chilean Fjords (13 days), priced from $6,179 land and cruise only.
? Galápagos Highlights (6 days), priced from $2,589 land, cruise and intra-vacation air only.
For more information, visit www.globusjourneys.com or www.ColorfulSouthAmerica.com. Or, to learn more about touring in South America, check out a video made by some of our South America travelers.
* Book a 2010 Globus, Monograms or Avalon South America, Asia or South Pacific air-inclusive vacation to receive the $300 per person discount. Booking must be made, under deposit and discount applied between August 12 and October 13, 2009 for travel commencing through December 31, 2010. Offers not valid with any other offer except Journeys Club and applies to new 2010 bookings only. Offer reliant on space availability. Full cancellation penalties will apply. Additional restrictions may apply.
ABOUT THE GLOBUS FAMILY OF BRANDS
Littleton, Colorado-based Group Voyagers, Inc. is the privately held company that markets and sells the Globus family of brands within the United States. Globus, Cosmos, Monograms and Avalon Waterways offer travelers unparalleled tour, independent travel package, river and small ship cruise options. Considered the world’s largest tour operator, with 80 years of international travel experience, the Globus family of brands is dedicated to enriching the lives of travelers by turning foreign destinations into familiar harbors, where the expense of travel is forgotten and replaced by personal value. The Globus family of brands is a member of Sustainable Travel International (STI).
Consumers can book a Globus family of brands vacation or reques brochures by visiting a preferred travel agent or by calling the following toll free number: 1.866.313.2855. For more information, please visit www.globusfamily.com.
Travel agents can request any Globus family of brands brochures by calling toll free 1.800.221.0090 or visiting www.globusfamilypartner.com.
Warwick Denver Extends Airfare Farematch Package
Posted , add a commentA few months back, the Warwick Denver and the Warwick San Francisco launched an innovative airfare ‘Farematch’ package, where your rates were tagged to the price of your airline ticket into the city, beginning at $79. The Warwick Denver has now extended that offer until Jan. 23, 2010.
Warwick Denver Hotel
Rates are based on Classic Room accommodations and upgrades to a Junior Suite or a corner one-bedroom suite are available. The “Fare Match” package can be booked by calling the hotel (800-525-2888), or by email res.denver@warwickhotels.com.
Guests must present a copy of the ticket receipt with the price, showing travel into Denver International Airport, upon check-in.
Scott Ostrander, general manager of the Warwick Denver Hotel, explains that “Many airlines are offering great discounts right now for travel, and the Warwick’s ‘A Fare Match’ program is an easy way to pair inexpensive airfares with a significant savings on exquisite lodging at one of Denver’s best hotels. Put the two together, and a wonderful late summer, Labor Day or fall getaway is well within reach.”
Situated in the heart of Denver’s trendy Uptown neighborhood, Warwick Denver Hotel is within minutes of the State Capitol, 16th Street Mall, the Colorado Convention Center, Pepsi Center, the Cherry Creek shopping district and other Denver attractions.
Each of the hotel’s guest rooms offer private balconies with floor to ceiling glass windows that offer spectacular views of the city and the front range.
Info: 1776 Grant Street Denver, CO 80203; (303) 861-2000; www.warwickdenver.com/; Photos courtesy Warwick International.
The River That Ran Away to the World: Ca?o Cristales, La Macarena National and Ecological Reserve, Colombia, South America
Posted , add a commentToday I am taking a departure from my usual sandy path, a trip inland somewhere far, far away. Because today’s post is not so much a beach as it is a river. And it is not so much just a river as it is “the most beautiful river in the world,” also known as “the river of five colors,” or even more poetic, “the river that ran away to the world.” With monikers such as these, how can I not write about Ca?o Cristales?
Count the colors. http://www.flickr.com/photos/10162032@N03/952959556/
I have been slightly bewitched ever since I first saw photos of Ca?o Cristales a few days ago. And now I must add this river to my list of Places I Must See Before I Die or Get Too Lazy to Travel, although apparently I need to plan accordingly. Because Ca?o Cristales is not always worthy of a poetic name. For most of the year it is just a regular old river with maybe some pretty green moss covered rocks and water that is at times dark blue. Nice, but not worthy of around the world or me pining.
This is algae? http://www.flickr.com/photos/kaytaria/3769825917/
Located in La Macarena National and Ecological Reserve Park, Ca?o Cristales is about 100km in length. During Colombia’s rainy season, the water flows fast and deep as rivers are wont to do. The bottom of the river is obscured from the sun, denying the myriad of mosses light. And during the dry season the river is not quite deep enough; the lack of water unable to support the growth of algae. But during a magical period between the wet and dry seasons, when the water level is just right, the many varieties of algae and moss bloom in a dazzling display of colors: blotches of fuschia, dabs of yellow, swaths of green, bright blue, black, red, all set off by dramatic waterfalls and lazy watering holes.
Rainbow river complete with waterfalls. http://www.flickr.com/photos/fredygomez/3537191787/
There is something other-wordly about these photos, about this place. A cross between fantasy and reality, I half expect to see a unicorn grazing at the bank of this river, “the river that ran away to the world.”
Leaf-Peeping Hotels in Vermont
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Vermont Fall Foliage
Attention, leaf-peepers! The season is almost upon us. In just a few short weeks, the upper Northeast’s trees should begin to bloom with fiery reds, yellows and oranges. If you’re an autumn-lover and leaf color chaser, you know that Vermont has some of the best color in the country. Your best bed to budget-friendly lodging in Vermont is to avoid the peak leaf changing season, and visit in either earlier September or very late October, depending on the area. And, avoid hotels and bed and breakfasts in Vermont’s “major” cities such as Burlington.
Here are a couple of suggestions where you should be able to get a good deal:
Old Red Mill - Wilmington, Vermont
This hotel is in South-Central Vermont, in an area called Mt. Snow, and you’ll be close to the major highways so that you can visit the state parks and all the beautiful foliage you can handle. It’s a cozy, comfy lodge that’s great to visit in winter, too.
Latchis Hotel - Brattleboro, Vermont
This is more of a conventional looking hotel, but it offers good rates even at the height of leaf-peeping season. It’s actually a very cool Art-Deco structure that was completely renovated and has a movie theater attached - guests get a discount!
Remember, trying to hit the exact peak of the colors is nice, but it can be very frustrating. Just go out and enjoy these hotels and the beautiful surroundings - amazing color, if you hit it right, is an awesome bonus.
Photo Credits: PD Breen
