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London: UK Budget Hotels Found Unfit to Lick

HotelChatter | 5 minutes ago

A room at the Ibis Eustson in London.Here's an early-morning story out of the UK that will give you the heebie jeebies: Holiday magazine sent microbiological technical consultants into sixteen budget hotel rooms around the UK and found some pretty skanky stuff in a few Ibis and Travelodge properties. In this iteration of the classic evening-news-coming-into-a-hotel-with-a-blacklight operation, the budget rooms were thoroughly inspected and, well, let's just say that the Extended Stay Lick-Eve...

Wheels Up: I.M. Pei, Monte Carlo & Alternative Hotels

Gridskipper | 12 minutes ago

Monte Carlo [Christiaan Ploeger]·Travelers still looking for green vacations, don’t want to pay extra [MSNBC]·I.M. Pei’s Islamic Art Museum opens in Qatar [USAToday]·Tickets to Monte Carlo’s Grand Prix [CNT]·A new boutique business hotel opens in...

Providenciales: Derek Jeter and Minka Kelly Hide Out at the Nikki Beach Resort

HotelChatter | 24 minutes ago

We're not quite sure how Derek Jeteris still pulling young ladies these days. Remember when he used to date Mariah? Isn't it about time he settled down and got married? Also, what do these ladies see in him? Don't think we forgot, Jessica Biel, that at one point you were frolicking with #2 before you hooked it with JT.Whatever the allure he has (we suspect Drakar Noir) Jeter has moved onto former Mayercraft victim and Friday Night Lights star Minka Kelly and the duo were spotted "gorging on ...

London: Seriously. A Room for 1 a Night in Notting Hill

HotelChatter | 37 minutes ago

London, we love you. But most of the time we just can't bloody afford you! The British pound has not been kind to the American dollar and although we popped in for a quick visit last year we only managed to do it because we split the room with a friend and because we went when it was freezing to the point of snow. Oh and it was also Easter.But this news from Umi Hotels has peaked our interest in you once again. Umi, with hotels in London’s Notting Hill and on Brighton’s famous seafr...

Madrid: Madrid Hotel Makes Good Use of Your Left-Behind Reading Material

HotelChatter | 37 minutes ago

It looks like hotels' obsession with books will definitely continue in 2009. The latest is from the Gran Hotel Conde Duque, a hotel in downtown Madrid, which has started a library out of guests’ left-behind books--a collection that has turned out to be so diverse it includes Dan Brown’s Angels and Demons and a Spanish translation of the Book of Mormon. (How’s that for some light vacation reading?) The fact that this hotel is starting an orphaned books club definitely makes up f...

Do You Know The Way To the Inauguration? Jaunted Does!

HotelChatter | 16 hours 23 minutes ago

Finding a hotel is often only one part of your trip. The other half is getting there. And our bro Jaunted does a bang-up job of covering the latest news and trends in the travel world. Obviously a very big even this month are the festivities for Barack Obama's inauguration. Here are some recent stories from Jaunted that are worth a look.· Yes We Can Has Cheezburgers: Barack Obama flies Air Force One Elect and has cheeseburger, fries and a water during the flight.· Pimp My House for ...

Washington: Obama Can See His New Digs From His Hotel Room

HotelChatter | 16 hours 41 minutes ago

As we reported last week, Barack Obama and his family has moved out of their Chicago home and the gang has headed to D.C. For the time being, they're living in the historic Hay-Adams Hotel; word on the street is that the girls started school today. No doubt the fam is up in the Presidential Suite (duh), where the views are probably even better than this one from a Junior Suite at the same hotel: imagine waking up every morning and gazing out the window to see the White House — your new h...

Jetcetera: Capetown, Chinese New Year & Ice-Skating

Gridskipper | 16 hours 50 minutes ago

Capetown, South Africa [Paul Watson]·Penthouse trailer park opens in Capetown [PSFK]·The Year of the Ox begins January 26th, Chinese festivities to follow [AP]·Snow Park at Atlanta’s Stone Mountain Park open til March 1 [via Yahoo]·Indulging...

Jet Lag Study Pays for Travel to France

TravelPost.com | 17 hours 47 minutes ago

Jet lag, one of those unwanted consequences of globe-trotting, may actually be able to work in your favor, after all. New York-based research group Clinilabs is conducting a clinical study on FDA-approved sleep-disorder medication and its potential use for jet lag. For their willingness to become human guinea-pigs, travelers chosen to participate in the [...]

Big Sur: Meditate Your Budget Worries Away at The Post Ranch Inn

HotelChatter | 18 hours 4 minutes ago

Dear Poor Troubled Global Economy, we're going to splurge on the Post Ranch Inn. Xoxo, HotelChatter.It's no secret that the Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur, Calif. is one of the most scenic hotels in the U.S. With beyond-killer views of the Pacific Ocean from each room and a location on the windy backdrop of Highway 1. The hotel was in harm's way over the summer during the Big Sur fire but has rebounded this winter and is now offering a new Stay and Dine Escape package. The deal includes lodging, a...

Cinephile Shopping in NYC

Gridskipper | 18 hours 42 minutes ago

Films are an obsession for many, including myself. Besides buying DVDs of your favorite flicks, there are plenty of other ways to show your love for your favorite film or star, and most don't involve jail time. Fortunately, there are...

Barcelona: The Giant Windsail in Barcelona Will Become a W Hotel

HotelChatter | 18 hours 48 minutes ago

In late 2009, visitors flying into Barcelona will see what looks to be a giant windsail on the coast right next to the entrance to the Port of Barcelona. Except this windsail is actually the W Hotel Barcelona scheduled to open on October 1, 2009. The W Hotel Barcelona will be the second W to open in Europe (W Istanbul was the first) and the first W in Spain. But like all Ws it will debut with a bang due to its location right at the foot of the Mediterranean Sea in a building designed by Spa...

Five Hotels For Working on Your Fitness

HotelChatter | 19 hours 8 minutes ago

As we are all too well aware, the start of the new year is typically the time to reflect on your health and make some resolutions to do better by it. If you're a frequent traveler, one of the first changes to make (if you haven't already), is to incorporate some light exercise into each of your days, since the rest of the time is spent stressing or eating food on-the-go. To gain musculature along with flyer miles, luckily a few hotels have a better idea of a workout than simply a few guilty s...

New Orleans: Find the Baby, Get a Free Night at W French Quarter

HotelChatter | 19 hours 41 minutes ago

The holiday season is over, but don't fret: your next excuse to participate in a huge celebration and indulge in an excess of glitter and stupid behavior is just around the corner — in fact, tonight marks the beginning of Carnival season — and Mardi Gras 2009 is coming up on February 24. It's not too early to book your hotel room in New Orleans for the big festivities. W New Orleans French Quarter — in a killer location adjacent to Jackson Square — is waiting for you with ...

New York: The Waldorf-Astoria Is Not What You Think It Is

HotelChatter | 20 hours 26 minutes ago

Every so often we feature a hotel review from one of our readers that we feel should be shared with the rest of you dear hotel guests. These reviews are highlighted because they are timely, about cool hotels in cool places and are relatively level-headed. Think you can submit one just like this? Send it in. Today's review takes place in the big bad city of New York. Enjoy. Let's hope that the model that Waldorf-Astoria Collection is using as they go around snapping up properties around the wo...

Going Beyond Sushi In LA's Little Tokyo

Gridskipper | 20 hours 33 minutes ago

There's much disagreement in LA as to what the proper term is for this neighborhood: Little Tokyo? Japantown? Little Tokyo seems most common, though traditionalists seem to prefer Japantown, and Nisei and Sansei Japanese-Americans just call it J-town. Whatever you...

Sydney: Sydney's Menzies Hotel Lives Up To Expectations

HotelChatter | 20 hours 55 minutes ago

Just before Sydney went mad with its annual New Year's Eve fireworks, we snuck into the Menzies Hotel quite pleased with a last minute rate of just A$110 ($75) a night; the average rack rate is more like A$250 so don't expect bargain prices like that all the time.The Menzies belongs to the Accor gang of hotels and seems to live up to its four stars. Friendly service seemed the order of the day, even if the concierge team weren't really too clued up on the info we'd expect them to know like ba...

Drinking Cheap (or Free) in NYC, SF, LA, Chicago…

TravelPost.com | 21 hours 12 minutes ago

For free drinks in New York these days, you don’t necessarily have to flirt with the bartender. Instead of going the old fashioned route, more and more locals and city visitors are turning to My Open Bar, a web site that’s all about finding drinks on the cheap in one of the most expensive [...]

New York: Five Hotels To Hit Up For NYC's Restaurant Week

HotelChatter | 21 hours 33 minutes ago

New Yorkers (or New York tourists): Winter Restaurant Week is upon us. During this magical time — which runs January 18-23 and 25-30 — over 250 NYC restaurants offer fixed-price lunches for $24.07 and dinners for $35.00. Reservations opened up today, and for the first time ever, some participating spots are offering Sunday Restaurant Week deals (an affordable gourmet hangover antidote?) While the usual hyped-up spots (Union Square Cafe, Nobu, Gramercy Tavern, Tavern on the Green) m...

Washington: NYT Checks In to DC's Donovan House, Decides DC is Lame

HotelChatter | 22 hours 1 minute ago

We know it’s totally in vogue to talk trash about Washington, D.C. Talk about a bunch of straight-laced drones, right?! Uh, whatever, some of us would beg to disagree (such as, ahem, this writer, who just so happens to like living there).Reading Danielle Pergament’s review of D.C.’s Donovan House in the New York Times this weekend, you can’t help but get the feeling she’s been wronged by the District before. Sure, the Thompson Group’s new hotel still has some maj...

A Chocoholics Guide To Paris

Gridskipper | 22 hours 42 minutes ago

The art of chocolat is a high calling in Paris, with chic boutique chocolate shops all around town catering to the chocophile in search of new sensations. For your delectation, here's a tour of some of Paris' master chocolatiers, who...

Rio de Janeiro: Jude Law Finally Gets Noticed Again at The Copacabana Palace

HotelChatter | 22 hours 55 minutes ago

Yo, remember Jude Law? Anyone? You know, the dude from Alfie we haven't heard from in a long time and somehow never really noticed how we hadn't heard from him? He used to be engaged to Sienna Miller? Yeah. Where's he been? According to Just Jared, he's been spotted chillin at the Copacabana Palace in Rio de Janeiro with his kiddies: The 36-year-old British actor and his kids were seen playing soccer on the beach, lounging poolside at the Copacabana Palace and exploring the island of Ilha Gra...

Ashburn: Aloft Dulles Opens For Inauguration But All Rooms Are Booked

HotelChatter | 23 hours 26 minutes ago

Standard Aloft Signage (Not from Aloft Dulles North.)It's been a while since we reported on an Aloft Hotel opening but that's because those hotels are opening up seemingly every week across the country. However, the most recent opening in Washington D.C. (ok, scratch that. We mean Ashburn, Virginia) has us wondering if there are any rooms open for Barack Obama's Inauguration. The Aloft Dulles North opened its doors to guests just before Christmas and will hold it's officially opening party on...

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