Scouting the best airfares, hotels, cruises and vacation packages

Arizona: $89 rooms at Wigwam Golf Resort & Spa

April 27, 2010 5:58am

Travel bargains in the desert are common in summer, when temperatures soar into triple digits.  But you can start taking advantage of this deal at a well-regarded resort near Phoenix as early as May.

Deal: The Wigwam Golf Resort & Spa in Litchfield Park, Ariz., has a Travel-Ticker deal that offers “adobe traditional” rooms through May 31 for rates that range from $99 per night, pretax, midweek (Sunday through Thursday) to $109 on weekends. In June, the rates drop to $89 midweek and $99 on weekends.

The Wigwam, rated Four Diamonds by AAA,  has three 18-hole golf courses; three pools and Jacuzzis; a fitness center; a Red Door Spa; nine tennis courts; and two AAA Four Diamond restaurants — the Arizona Kitchen and Red’s Steakhouse. The grounds include palm and citrus trees and gardens.

Greens fees, including golf cart and taxes, are typically $39 to $65. Frank Ashmore, the resort’s director of sales, said the Wigwam this summer is offering a “Twilight Golf” package after 3 p.m. for $49. The price includes nine holes of golf, plus a burger (or sandwich) and a beer. Tennis costs $16 an hour per court.

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Xcelerator roller coaster to reopen after 9/09 accident at Knott’s Berry Farm

April 26, 2010 4:46pm

The Xcelerator roller coaster at Knott’s Berry Farm will reopen Monday after a seven-month state investigation into an accident last year that injured two riders, officials said.

The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) performed a final inspection earlier Monday of modifications made by Knott’s to the ride after the Sept. 16 accident and determined the ride was safe to operate, officials said.

In a statement, the theme park said the state’s report “identified shortcomings in the manufacturer’s instructions regarding the inspection and maintenance of the cable” and that Cal/OSHA had “required Knott’s Berry Farm to put into place additional safeguards to determine cable viability and to work with the manufacturer to revise maintenance instructions.”

“Ride safety is our highest concern at all times,” said Knott’s spokeswoman Michele Wischmeyer.

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JetBlue 1-day sale: $9 fares to Bay Area from Long Beach

April 26, 2010 2:39pm

JetBlue Airways has a great sale to the Bay Area, but you’ll need to act quickly. The airline is selling $9 one-way fares between Long Beach (LGB) and either Oakland (OAK) or San Francisco (SFO) today only, April 26. Here are the details on the Web-only deal, which JetBlue calls “Jet Between the Bay and Basin for $9 Each Way”:

Dates: You must book by 8:59 p.m. Pacific time, April 26. The fare is good for travel Tuesdays and Wednesdays, April 27-28,  May 4-5, May 11-12 and May 18-19, subject to availability. Travel must be completed by May 19.

Tested: These seats are going quickly. When I checked Monday afternoon on JetBlue’s website, hoping for a May 4-5 quickie round trip, LGB-SFO, I found I would have to depart 3.45 p.m. or later May 4 and return no later than 12:35 p.m. to get $9 fares both ways; the other flights started at $52. It was tough to get $9 fares both ways unless I left, say, May 5 and returned May 11. But getting $9 one way isn’t so bad either, so there’s no need to get greedy.

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New Washington, D.C., museum honors German Americans

April 26, 2010 10:52am

The new German-American Heritage Museum in Washington, D.C., is greeting guests with a big guten tag.

The nation’s first museum dedicated to German American heritage tells the story of more than 400 years of immigration to the United States, honoring such diverse immigrants as Babe Ruth, Levi Strauss and Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben.

The facility, the newest addition to the museum circuit in Washington D.C., details the rich history and contributions that German Americans made in building America. It includes historical narratives as well as multimedia installations and exhibits.

Fittingly, the museum is in the Penn Quarter, which was settled by German immigrants. The building is a renovated Victorian townhouse called Hockemeyer Hall, built in 1888 by John Hockemeyer, a German immigrant who became a successful merchant.

Info: Admission is free. The museum is open Tuesdays through Sundays. 719 6th St. N.W., Washington, D.C.; (866) 868-8422.

—Rosemary McClure, special to the Los Angeles Times

Photo: Facade of the German-American Heritage Museum, built in 1888 by John Hockemeyer, himself a German Immigrant.  Credit: Christophe Avril

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At Park City’s Sky Lodge, savings peak in Utah’s summer

April 26, 2010 8:57am

In winter, the Sky Lodge in Park City is a darling of the Sundance Film Festival, a place where weary celebrities crash at a VIP lounge or let loose at a “10 Directors to Watch” party. But in summer, things wind way down, and the Utah hotel pretty much holds a fire sale on all of its rooms.

Some examples: A one-bedroom suite with a living room, kitchen and hot tub on the deck will set you back $950 a night in winter but starts at $300 a night in summer. The two-bedroom residence (two king beds, pull-out sofa, full kitchen, washer/dryer and deck with hot tub) that starts at $750 a night in winter goes for $250 in summer. And for high-roller wannabes, a three-bedroom penthouse is just $550 for a summer night instead of the $1,600 starting rate in winter.

I found plenty of rooms at low summer rates when I tested with random dates online. (A $15 per night fee and taxes are tacked on to these rates.)

So how can this get any more special?

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A toast to Mom with a Temecula wine country getaway

April 26, 2010 5:45am

This deal helps Mom enjoy special Mother’s Day wine tastings in Temecula without worrying about driving back home.  Temecula is about 85 miles from Los Angeles.

Deal: The Temecula Creek Inn is offering a Chauffeured Wine Country Getaway Package for $299 weeknights (Sundays-Thursdays) and $379 weekends that includes:

•Guest room with two queen beds or one king with a fairway view (better views or Junior suites cost more);

•Made-to-order picnic lunch for your wine tour ($30 value for two)

•Select bottle of wine on arrival;  red or white (about $32-$36).

•Four- to five-hour chauffeured limousine wine country tour (shared with others) with tastings at three wineries.

Tours depart at 10:30 a.m. or 2:30 p.m. weekdays and at 10:30 a.m. weekends. (For $60 more, guests can make their limousine tour private. )

The hotel offers an optional dining upgrade that includes breakfast and a three-course dinner in the hotel’s Temet Grill for $55 a person.

When:  Through Dec. 30 and  may be extended into 2011.

Tested:   When I called, I found the deal for two people widely available, including Mother’s Day (May 9), July 4 and Labor Day week (Sept. 5-9) for $299 per night (or $331.92 with fees and taxes).  A check-in on July 3, however,  requires a two-night stay; Saturday night would cost $379 (or $416.82 with taxes and resort fee).  Most guests choose the best available rate or a golf or spa package for their second night rather than two days of chauffeured wine tastings.

Caveat:  When your reservation is booked, the hotel charges a first night’s room, resort fee and tax deposit to your credit card.  The deposit is refundable if you change or cancel your reservation at least 72 hours before check-in.

Contact: The Temecula Creek Inn, (877) 517-1823; request the Chauffeured Wine Country Getaway Package.

—Terry Gardner/special to the Los Angeles Times

Photo: Temecula Creek Inn. Credit: Temecula Creek Inn

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Atlanta Botanical Garden: $55 million in new flower power

April 25, 2010 1:07pm

Everything’s coming up roses in Atlanta as the city gets ready to celebrate the grand opening of the newly expanded Atlanta Botanical Garden.

The 30-acre garden, which will open Saturday, has an elevated canopy walk that allows visitors to get a bird’s-eye view of a forest of oaks, hickories and poplars from 40 feet in the air.

The $55-million two-phase project was four years in the making and doubles the size of the facility.  It’s a fitting project for a city known for its beautiful private gardens.

“We call it an urban oasis,” says Sabina Carr, who represents the garden. “We’re in the center of the city; the skyline is visible from throughout the garden.”

Other features of the expanded facility include a 13-acre woodland; the Cascades Garden, a sunny retreat with three waterfalls; and the Edible Garden, a formal garden built on the site of a former parking lot that includes orchards, an herb wall and an outdoor kitchen.
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‘Stranded’ by the volcano, Magna Carta gets unexpected New York showing

April 25, 2010 10:08am

The volcanic cloud that snarled air traffic over much of Europe has a silver lining for New York museum-goers. A rare copy of the Magna Carta, held by Oxford University, was flown to the Big Apple for a special event last weekend but, like so many other travelers, it just couldn’t get a flight home.

So Oxford contacted the Morgan Library & Museum, which agreed to put the document on display immediately. The unexpected exhibition, which opened Wednesday, features one of 17 copies of the Magna Carta known to exist and one that had not left Britain since it was issued in 1217. It will remain on display through May 30.

“We made space in what was J.P. Morgan’s private library, one of the period rooms open to the public,” said spokeswoman Sandra Ho.

The Morgan also is offering free admission (usually $12 for adults) to travelers who got stranded. (They must show  a boarding pass or ticket for delayed flights.) “We’ve had some visitors who came by because they were supposed to leave but got stranded here,” Ho said.

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Laguna Cliffs Marriott in Dana Point is catching a wave of change after multimillion-dollar redo

April 25, 2010 7:37am

The spectacular California coastal view hasn’t changed, but almost everything else has at the Laguna Cliffs Marriott Resort & Spa, which will unveil a multimillion-dollar renovation project on  April 30.

The 22-year-old resort, which was beginning to show its age, upgraded its 378 guest rooms, created a new ocean-view lounge, renovated its meeting spaces and added new pool facilities.

The revamped resort in Dana Point “allows us to offer our guests unparalleled luxury at an incredible value,” said Jim Samuels, general manager. Current specials include rates of $209 per night, including breakfast and parking.

The April 30 grand reopening will feature a parade of vintage surf Woodies, followed by a ribbon-cutting and reception.

The project features contemporary beach house decor, the new indoor-outdoor OverVue lounge and deck, and a new family pools with a splash zone, water cannons and other kid-oriented activities. Eco-friendly landscaping has been added.

Set high on a bluff above the Pacific, the AAA Four Diamond resort overlooks Doheny State Beach and Dana Point Harbor. 

Info: Laguna Cliffs Marriott Resort & Spa, 25135 Park Lantern Drive, Dana Point, (949) 661-5000

—Rosemary McClure/special to the Los Angeles Times

Photo: Great views and new decor and amenities at Laguna Cliffs Resort & Spa in Dana Point.  Credit:  Laguna Cliffs Resort & Spa.

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Reduce, reuse and relax in Yosemite Lodge’s new eco-rooms

April 24, 2010 12:47pm

Having just celebrated the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, what’s more fitting than greening up a few guest rooms at Yosemite National Park? Two guest rooms featuring a dozen planet-friendly features were rolled out to the media this week and hailed as “the first of their kind” in the park.

The rooms at Yosemite Lodge at the Falls have a distinctive look, but you have to drill down to appreciate the eco-wow factors. For example, the 100% organic cotton sheets were made in a solar-powered factory in Rhode Island, furnishings were made from renewable hickory saplings and the countertop in the bathroom is made mostly from glass tossed into curbside recycling bins near San Francisco.

How do you book one of these guest rooms? Though the prototype rooms were designed as possibly being rolled out throughout the lodge, don’t expect a green makeover for all 245 guest rooms anytime soon. The two rooms will be booked just like any others at the lodge — you can request a green room, but there’s no guarantee you’ll get one — and they don’t cost any more than the others.

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