Recently in Country Category

There's a lot to be said about planning your travels well in advance, but impulsive getaways are an awful lot of fun, and sometimes, they save you money as well. Such is the case with Starpicks, which offers last-minute rates of at least 20% off regular rates for stays at some of Starwood's finest properties around the world. The only catch is that stays must be during the next two weekends for hotels, and the next six weeks for resorts. Say, for example, you've always wanted to visit the South Korean capital of Seoul. Since the Sheraton Grande Walkerhill is one of this week's participating Starpicks properties, impulsive travelers can save big on weekend stays in one of South Korea's finest hotels. The Sheraton Grande Walkerhill is located in northeastern Seoul on the site of the ancient A-Cha fortress, and it boasts a range of amenities to keep guests relaxed, well-fed, and happy throughout their stays. Indoor and outdoor pools, fitness center, tennis court, scenic outdoor jogging path, and sauna are sure to keep you fit as a fiddle and feeling fine. And as far as dining is concerned, more than a dozen restaurants and lounges will cater to your every dietary whim, from fine Japanese cuisine at Kiyomizu to Royal Korean dishes at Ondal. And those who appreciate a good view will want to savor an after-dinner cocktail at the Sky Lounge and Bar (pictured), where an expansive vista of the river, cityscape, and blue sky seems to go on forever. New Starpicks properties are posted every Tuesday, so bookmark the Starpicks site and keep checking back for the latest destinations.

In another demonstration that Dubai is the quintessential "City of the Future", this feature from the UK's Times Online details a journalist's 2005 trip to Dubai's 280 foot indoor ski slope. That's right, you can ski year round in the desert. New York, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Bangkok have some catching up to do.

When in Dubai, Starwood has you covered with outstanding lodging like the Sheraton Deira and innovatively constructed Le Grosvenor House West Marina Beach, not to mention an upcoming W in development but sorry, they don't have a special offer on lift tickets just yet.

[image via Skiing Europe]

You may think that Hawaiian music is just ukuleles, or maybe you don't think about it at all...well think again, because the "Flavors of Island Music" campaign is here to show you a thing or two. In a commitment to continue the legacy of Hawaii's music, Starwood Hawaii is showcasing various native musicians and entertainers. Whether you're catching some tunes played at a stateside Starwood hotel or one of the many regular live performances at hotels like the Sheraton Waikiki, you can savor the musical diversity of the islands. The only thing missing from this promotion as far as I can tell is a compilation CD available at the gift shops. If you're in the mood for island travel, also be sure to check out the Starwood Hawaii site, which like the Hawaiian islands has a distinct identity of its' own.

Italian culture has been known through history for reliance on strong familial bonds. In keeping with that theme, Starwood Preferred Guest is offering your famiglia special rates and perks through September on an Italian holiday. The package deal is good for stays at selected hotels in Rome, Milan, Florence and Venice and includes amenities such as an included daily breakfast buffet for adult guests that extends free of charge to children (defined as "those under 17 years of age"). Additionally, an additional bed can be added free of charge for children sharing a room with parents, and if you have more kids than that, additional room rates will be elligible for a 50% discount. And that's a pretty handy way to cut vacation costs for "Cheaper By the Dozen"-style. Head on through the link for more details and participating hotels for this "FAMtastic" offer.

A recent Hotel Online report details the expansion of the aloft brand. One hotel will be located in downtown Toronto, the other in Dorval at the Montreal airport. Aloft Toronto is to be built in the Niagara St. and Portland St. enclave, an area becoming known for "lifestyle offerings," such as highly rated restaurants and hip residential projects. Slated for construction in 2007, it will feature 250 guest rooms in a newly constructed concept high-rise. The Dorval hotel will feature 136 loft-style guest rooms, conveniently located at the entrance to Pierre Elliot Trudeau International Airport. "aloft has set out to eliminate the trials of travel by incorporating style, convenience and a social environment - similar to the atmosphere in W's Living Rooms - to an otherwise tired, lonely experience," said Brian McGuinness, VP, aloft brand development. "We're excited about moving into Canada."

[image via www.toronto.ca]

Although it wasn't invented there, the Bloody Mary cocktail is said to have landed on US shores at none other than The St. Regis. Bartender Fernand Petiot of Harry's New York Bar (which, incidentally was in Paris, France) claimed to have invented the drink in the 1920s, and later moved to New York where he worked at the King Cole Bar at the St. Regis. The hotel unsuccessfully tried to rename the drink "The Red Snapper" and Petiot perfected his recipe by adding additional spices like pepper, Worcestershire sauce and Tabasco. Today, the cocktail comes in infinite varieties, and the St. Regis commemorates its' history on their menus mounted outside the Astor Court restaurant. And of course the King Cole bar featuring Maxfield Parrish's masterful mural is still available for your lounging and socializing pleasure, whatever you want to call your tomato-and-vodka drink. Just remember it was a society club and has an history to uphold; "appropriate attire" only, please.

[image via DCist]

Well, more correctly the largest new hotel to open in Boston in twenty years. Hotel News Resource and the Boston Globe online have written about the recent opening of the Westin Boston Waterfront. Connected to the new Boston Convention & Exhibition Center, the substantial new hotel rises 17 stories, and offers 793 upscale guest rooms as well as the restaurant "Sauciety," a lobby bar and 100,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space. The Westin is the only hotel directly integrated with and connected to the convention center (via a glass-enclosed skyway). Additionally, the entire convention center is conveniently located to Logan International Airport, Back Bay and the Financial District. The Globe heralds the opening as further sign that the hotel business is strengthening in the region.

[image via boston.com]

We're not really sure just how tall the Burj Dubai is going to be; designed and highly touted as the "World's Tallest Building" (though that game always invites the next challenger to step up) it's going to have to be about 630m high to beat out structures currently standing. Answers.com and www.burjdubaiskyscraper.com indicate that only about 40 to 50 stories of the structure have been completed as of last month, and though it will be hard for locals not to notice the bloody great superskyscraper thrusting up out of the city center, exact height measurements are being kept under wraps.

What we are sure of is that Dubai has it going on. Part of the oil-rich UAE the emirate has chosen to break away from the oil-dependent economic model and radically modernize, becoming a hub for regional media, industry and other development. Though it's got its' dodgy aspects, Dubai City is a real hotspot on the 21st Century frontier. If you're in the capital, Starwood offers accommodations from the luxury Residence Deira to the Sheraton Dubai Creek Hotel & Towers with more to come.

[image via burjdubaiskyscraper]

The Westin Osaka is located in Shin Umeda City, a small area in the Kita (or "North") district of Osaka. Though Shin Umeda City is only a few square blocks, it's famous for both its' careful design (embracing Feng Shui and themes of "coexistence with nature") and the towering Umeda Sky Building, a distinctive skyscraper that is Osaka's fifth largest building. The Sky Building is actually two buildings, a pair of 40 story towers connected at the two top stories, with bridges and an escalator crossing the center space. Originally part of a project titled "City of Air" which would have built four connected towers, the construction was ultimately curtailed to the two. As for the Westin, it's got a fantastic view of the whole structure as it's rising up directly in front of it--located, as the brochures say, right at the heart of Shin Umeda City.

Trivia: Though many companies have now moved headquarters to Tokyo, Osaka was historically Japan's center of commerce.

Something for US and North American travellers: Whether you're a US national visiting relatives in Cleveland, hopping up to Quebec City for a vacation or are an international traveller looking for the elusive "Real America" that you won't find in massive urban concentrations like New York or Los Angeles or major tourist cities like Orlando or Las Vegas, jump on over to the New York Times' 36 Hours travel index. This giant, zoomable map page features numerous links to US regions as well as some Canadian destinations--each linked column features a weekend-long itinerary to the area in question. Best of all, the columns from the past three years are all available here without additional Web subscription charges.

[image via Google Images and www.barbarafletcher.com]