Holland America Line will open up grand voyages and pole-to-pole sailings to travelers hoping to book just a segment, making it easier to explore some of the coolest regions on Earth.
30.08.2024 - 20:12 / thepointsguy.com
Don't ask me how, but August is leaving and September is knocking — and while there are technically still a few weeks of summer left, I'm already dreading its end. This summer has been a good one for me, full of travel, friends and family. This month has been full of hotel news, too, including a few exciting things you might have missed.
Late in August, Hyatt announced its plans to buy the hip Standard International hotel brand for a cool $335 million. Marriott also made waves with the announcement the company will be rolling out a partnership with Sonder, a short-term rental company that offers apartment-style stays in major cities.
We also saw the opening of two different hotels on our list of the most exciting hotel openings of 2024: the St. Regis Longboat Key Resort in Florida and the Graduate Princeton in New Jersey.
Folks heading to Australia — the state of South Australia, specifically — can finally cash in Marriott Bonvoy points for a hotel stay, as the first Marriott in the state has opened in Adelaide. Set in the 150-year-old Adelaide General Post Office building (along with a shiny new tower), the hotel has 285 rooms, including 12 suites, plus a restaurant and bar and even an indoor swimming pool. The hotel marks the 600th Marriott International property in Asia-Pacific (excluding China), with another 400 in the pipeline.
"The Lion King" has long been one of the most loved shows on Broadway. Now, fans of the musical can spend the night in an immersive suite decked out from top to bottom in a "Lion King"-themed design and memorabilia from the show, like fabrics used on stage and drawings of various costumes.
Designed by Devin Sparkles Design, "The Lion King's" Royal Suite is part of a larger package that also includes two drinks (either a Hakuna Manhattan or a Serengeti Sunrise mocktail), a wake-up call from Rafiki (played by Tshidi Manye), Simba-themed s'mores, gifts inspired by the show, breakfast at the hotel and access to special rates for premium seating at "The Lion King" on Broadway.
Rates for the suite start from $500 per night and can be booked online by emailing [email protected] or by calling (212) 913-9488.
Good news for IHG loyalists who love the thrills and entertainment of Orlando! The city is getting an InterContinental hotel. Set to open in 2028, the InterContinental Orlando will have 700 rooms, five restaurants and bars, a 15,000-square-foot wellness area and a Club InterContinental Lounge, all found on International Drive and near the major theme parks.
Orlando has a lot to look forward to over the next few years, starting with the opening of the new Epic Universe theme park and the Universal Helios Grand Hotel, which will have a dedicated entrance into the park.
Holland America Line will open up grand voyages and pole-to-pole sailings to travelers hoping to book just a segment, making it easier to explore some of the coolest regions on Earth.
Good morning from Skift. It’s Friday, August 30, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.
Universal Orlando Resort has rolled out a brand-new offer for dining options.Available to purchase now, the Dining Card Vacation Package applies to 4- or 5-plus-night on-site stays and includes park-to-park theme park tickets for Universal Studios Florida and Universal Islands of Adventure, the resort shared withTravel + Leisure. An option to add on Universal Volcano Bay is also available. The value of the dining card, up to $1,000, is dependent on length of stay and resort, and this offer can not be combined with any other discounts.
A residential cruise ship that was supposed to travel around the world has been stuck in Northern Ireland for the past three months.
Clarksville, a historic district of Austin, Texas, has lately emerged as a stylish dining and shopping enclave. Among the area’s most compelling new businesses is La Embajada, a design shop housed in a 1923 Craftsman bungalow. Combining the hospitality and interiors expertise of its founder, Raul Cabra — who has designed tableware for some of Mexico City’s most celebrated restaurants, including Rosetta and Pujol — La Embajada presents a refined, regionally diverse selection of Mexico’s artisanal offerings. A series of small rooms display vintage and contemporary furniture, from stately midcentury armchairs and 1970s glass sconces to a minimalist agave fiber rug by the Oaxaca-based textile artist Trine Ellitsgaard. The house is also an actual residence. Cabra often stays in the bedroom up the creaky stairs, and he’s recently made it available for short-term stays (bookings include a daily basket of baked goods from Austin’s Swedish Hill). Guests can purchase the room’s handmade décor, such as a pair of sleek bedside lamps in milky white onyx, a 1960s La Malinche dresser and a bedspread from a Michoacan manufacturer that once supplied Herman Miller. Downstairs, glassware, candles and gifts fill a section modeled after a typical general store in a small Mexican town. But La Embajada’s heart is its inviting kitchen, where visiting chefs cook elaborate meals and staff prepare ice cream and coffee. In another twist, every bespoke detail — including a hammered copper sink, caramel-colored tiles and waxed pine cabinets — can be custom-ordered for one’s own home.
Fans of upscale cruises are about to have a new option for sailings to the Caribbean and the Panama Canal.
As the summer travel season comes to a close, travelers have a new way to save on fall getaways. JetBlue recently announced the «Game On» fare sale, which offers flights as low as $49. The promotion is a nod to the fall football season, however the fares can provide an affordable options for early fall vacations, or last-minute trips. As an example, JetBlue shows a fare of $49 one-way from New York's JFK airport to Nashville, Tenn. for travel in both September and October.
Government officials in Sri Lanka announced that citizens from 35 countries—including the United States—will be granted visa-free entry into the Asian nation, according to the Times of India.
Exciting news, Carnival Cruise Line fans: A visit to a massively revamped private island is in your future.
Low-cost Frontier Airlines is expanding its domestic network in New York, Los Angeles, and beyond by rolling out nearly a dozen new routes.
Dozens of global carriers have secured more than 550 orders for Airbus' newest narrowbody plane, the Airbus A321XLR, since its 2019 launch.
Get ready for more options for summer cruises to the Caribbean.