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20.09.2023 - 12:53 / thepointsguy.com
Bama Rush is no longer just for TikTok.
Travel + Leisure Co., the membership travel brand formerly known as Wyndham Destinations, is rolling out a new offering tied to college sports fans who want game day to last from check-in through check-out.
The membership travel offering acquired the rights to Sports Hospitality Ventures, LLC, which is the hotel and resorts licensee for the Sports Illustrated brand. Travel + Leisure Co. plans to leverage that into a new brand that will offer a full-service hotel, vacation club and residential condos at each "campus" in popular college towns with devoted fan bases.
The new brand offering is slated to open its first project in Tuscaloosa, Alabama — home to the University of Alabama — in late 2025.
"What I'm more excited about is the passion that's in Tuscaloosa is in college towns all over the United States," said Michael Brown, president and CEO of Travel + Leisure Co., in an interview with TPG ahead of the launch. "This is not going to be a one-and-done. It's going to be a network that we're looking forward to expanding in the future."
The first of the company's planned college town resorts will be across the Black Warrior River from the University of Alabama. Why Tuscaloosa? The membership travel brand's namesake magazine calls it one of the leading college towns in the U.S., and the University of Alabama has been on the cover of Sports Illustrated a whopping 41 times — more than any other university.
"There's a lot more to that story and we're going to celebrate former athletes, current athletes, coaches in the history and the legacy that is in each of these college towns," Brown said.
Renderings show guest rooms with sports-influenced design and plenty of amenities, ranging from go-kart racing to swimming pools and batting cages.
Beyond Tuscaloosa, each Sports Illustrated Resorts college town resort is expected to feature branded, property-specific attractions, live-action sports and entertainment, dining and wellness facilities. Renderings show the sports and entertainment venue has the working title "Field of Dreams," but Brown indicated that could change to something more location-specific depending on the college town.
Expect the Tuscaloosa location of Sports Illustrated Resorts to feature between 125 to 150 hotel rooms, around 200 vacation club units and between 60 to 75 condos. Given the enthusiasm toward colleges in the Power Five conferences — the Southeastern Conference (SEC), the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), the Big Ten Conference, the Big 12 Conference and the Pac-12 Conference — it's easy to think about who might consider purchasing a condo at a Sports Illustrated Resort.
"Because we're talking about the University of Alabama, let's talk about
All listings featured on Condé Nast Traveler are independently selected by our editors. If you book something through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
In an ever-connected world, it can be hard to plan a fully unplugged getaway.
The American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) has launched an expansion of its Travel Advisor Roadmap Course, introducing four new career pathway training modules for advisors who are new to the industry.The new courses include Corporate Travel Advisor: Roadmap to Becoming a Travel Advisor; Independent Contractor: Working with a Host Agency; On the Payroll: Working Directly for a Travel Agency and Independent Travel Agency: Building Your Business.Students will have the opportunity to learn in-depth insights towards a thriving career in corporate travel, uncover the strategies and knowledge needed to excel with a host agency, learn the ropes to become an integral part of a travel agency team and unlock the steps and strategies needed to build their very own agency.
A burger and fries by the beach in San Diego, California. (Photo Credit: sophia_ross/iStock Editorial/Getty Images Plus)
New Zealand is launching a new tourism campaign with Kiwi director and actor Taika Waititi to attract visitors after the sector was hammered by Covid-19 and border closures.
Visitors to Monterrey, Mexico will soon have more flight options from the United States. Viva Aerobus, an airline based in Monterrey, Mexico, will launch new routes to Austin, Denver, Miami, New York, San Francisco, and Orlando. The airline is adding the flights due to ‘growing demand’, and there will be a 23 percent increase in available seats for a total of 13 million seats to Monterrey in 2024, according to its announcement. The new flight routes include:
Alaska Airlines will expand its presence in San Diego next year, adding a new flight from the Southern California city to Atlanta.
The Danish chef Mads Refslund first began working on Ilis, his new restaurant in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, in 2016. After years of high-profile jobs at places like Manhattan’s Acme and Shou Sugi Ban House in the Hamptons, Refslund, a co-founder of Noma, wanted a permanent space where he could create an immersive culinary experience. The open kitchen, and its live fire grill, is at the center of the 4,800-square foot room on Green Street. The space has 17-foot ceilings with wooden beams and exposed brick walls; custom rosewood tables and leather banquettes frame the perimeter (though a few counter seats provide the best vantage of a meal coming together). “This is about transparency,” Refslund says. The name Ilis is a portmanteau of sorts, with meaning “fire” in Danish and meaning “ice.” It’s a nod to the dichotomous spirit of the restaurant — serious cooking with laid-back dinner party vibes. The menu allows guests to choose from a selection of primary ingredients, say New England scallops or Pennsylvania wild duck, and, in some cases, style of preparation (raw or grilled, for example). The seasonal cuisine is informed by Refslund’s Scandinavian upbringing, as well as his travels to Japan and Mexico City. But, the chef says, “hopefully, it will just become a New York restaurant,” a reflection of the city he now calls home.
If you are a tennis fan now is the season to get some quality time with some of the world’s best players. The Grand Slam season is over for 2023 but you can still find excellent training experiences, clinics and drills with players such World No. 3 Danil Medvedev in far-flung places such as the Maldives. Look to sharpen both your tennis and pickleball skills with Sam Querrey in Turks & Caicos or tune into a new wellness regimen with Maria Sharapova in Thailand. Here’s the latest on where to go for the ultimate tennis training experience.
If you are a tennis fan now is the season to get some quality time with some of the world’s best players. The Grand Slam season is over for 2023 but you can still find excellent training experiences, clinics and drills with players such World No. 3 Danil Medvedev in far-flung places such as the Maldives. Look to sharpen both your tennis and pickleball skills with Sam Querrey in Turks & Caicos or tune into a new wellness regimen with Maria Sharapova in Thailand. Here’s the latest on where to go for the ultimate tennis training experience.
Global Entry is currently the fastest way to return to the United States after a trip abroad. This program, available through the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency, prescreens travelers and allows them to skip the often lengthy customs lines at airports and other border crossings. The reentry process has gotten even faster for Global Entry members, thanks to the launch of a new mobile app.
A train journey is an ideal way to appreciate fall foliage. Many train lines in the US wind along the same dazzling forests, lakes, and mountains as scenic byways built for cars. But passengers on board a train have the luxury of cozying up and losing themselves completely in the colorful views, without needing to worry about surrounding traffic.