Kids Ride Free on Amtrak

Amtrak is celebrating its 40th anniversary by letting its youngest fans onboard for free! So if you book a trip now through May 6, 2011 and travel May 1 through June 9, 2011, your family can join in the celebration, and your kids will ride free. 

For forty days, you can let your kids experience for free how Amtrak has changed the way people travel for the last forty years. And before they go, visit the Amtrak Kids Depot, our new website dedicated to our younger riders.

Visit www.amtrak.com for more details and to book your trip.

Source: Amtrak

GIVE YOURSELF THE GIFT OF SPA ON YOUR BIRTHDAY - Aquae Sulis Spa offers $50 discount and gift to honor that special day

JW Marriott’s luxurious Aquae Sulis Spa Las Vegas wants spa-goers to celebrate their birthdays with a well deserved day of rest and rejuvenation. For 2009, guests will receive $50 off any spa service valued at $100 or more when booked for that special day. And who can forget presents! A special take home gift will be presented upon check-in (valued at $10).

“We want everyone to celebrate their birthday and what better way than with a spa day,” said Nichole Pfeifer, Aquae Sulis spa director.

Also, for guests who register their contact information on their birthday, a complimentary day pass will be given, providing an opportunity to come back and enjoy the spa facilities on another day … a gift that just keeps on giving!

Offer is available any day of the week through to December 31, 2009. No additional discounts can be applied and a valid ID is required.

JW Marriott Las Vegas Resort & Spa features 548 oversized guestrooms set amid 54 acres of lush gardens. Located in Summerlin, 20 minutes northwest of the famous Las Vegas Strip, the resort is close enough to indulge in the city’s amenities, but far enough away to enjoy golfing on one of the courses surrounding the resort or explore beautiful Red Rock Canyon. Indulge yourself at JW Marriott’s luxurious Aquae Sulis Spa or lounge by the grass-edged pool. Plus, the resort features a wide selection of dining and entertainment options, from casual to elegant. All services and amenities synonymous with JW Marriott are at your fingertips when you visit.

JW MARRIOTT LAS VEGAS RESORT & SPA: 221 N. Rampart Blvd., Toll Free: 877-869-8777, www.jwlasvegasresort.com.

Coconut Bay Beach Resort & Spa Fall Package Offers

The best-of-both-worlds is now even better at St. Lucia’s all-inclusive Coconut Bay Beach Resort & Spa. To further cater to guests the resort has launched the “Harmony” and “Splash” wings and introduced several upgrades including redecorated rooms, a new adult pool bar, theme nights, fun snacks and the Caribbean’s first paintball facility.

To introduce the upgrades and launch Harmony and Splash, Coconut Bay is offering value-added packages with special prices for travelers seeking fall, winter and holiday savings.

Between December 1-20, 2008, guests can choose from three packages: 

Fall Romance Getaway for $115 including a Champagne Arrival Reception, complimentary Bubbles-in-Bed (turndown service), 1/2 hour couples’ massage, introduction to kite surfing or windsurfing class. Rates are per person, per day based on double occupancy in a deluxe ocean view room.

Kids Stay Free with Fall Family Frenzy from $99 and receive a round of paintball for the entire family, introduction to kitesurfing or windsurfing class (everyone over age 12), a CocoPack for each child under 12 (backpack, water bottle, hat and t-shirt) and a thirty-minute couple’s massage for mom and dad. Rates are per person, per day based on double occupancy in a deluxe garden view room, kids under 18 stay free (max. 2 kids per room).

Inaugural Premium Package for $149. Complimentary Continental breakfast room service, bottle of preferred drink in room, couples’ private beach picnic, Couples’ oceanfront dinner and preferred dinner reservations. Rates are per person, per day based on double occupancy in a premium ocean view room.

Over the holidays guests have the option of celebrating Christmas or starting the New Year: 
Christmas for $199. Rates are per person, per day based on double occupancy in a deluxe garden view room. Valid December 21-31, 2008.

Bring in the New Year for $157. Rates are per person, per day based on double occupancy in a deluxe garden view room. Valid January 1-21, 2009.

For reservations or more information call 866-978-6226 toll free from the US or 758-456-9999 or email: reservations@cbayresort.com. Space is limited and must be booked by 10/15/08.

Source: Coconut Bay Beach Resort & Spa

Explore Australia’s Shipwreck Coast Without Wrecking Your Budget

Goway Travel’s Five-Day “Shipwreck Coast Explorer” Package With Rental Car and Charming Hotels, Just $824

 
 
Travelers in Australia owe it to themselves to drive Victoria’s Great Ocean Road, one of the world’s most magnificent scenic routes.  A breathtaking stretch of astonishing seascapes, landscapes and seaside towns, the road unfolds spectacular surf beaches, sophisticated resorts and quiet fishing villages.  It’s a trip back in nature and time, leading to colossal rock sculptures on the southern coast and whitewashed cottages of seafaring towns like Port Fairy.

It’s easy to do from cosmopolitan Melbourne in Goway Travel’s comfortable, well planned self-drive along the Great Southern Touring Route linking Victoria’s key destinations of Melbourne, the Great Ocean Road, the Grampians and Ballarat – all just three hours’ drive from each other.

Each journey along the Great Southern Touring Route naturally begins and ends in Melbourne - the arts, restaurant and sports capital of Australia.  Here, you can enjoy the latest exhibit at the National Gallery of Victoria, stroll through the Queen Victoria Market (the largest open air market in the southern hemisphere) and dine on authentic Aboriginal fare at Tjanabi in Federation Square, the architectural center of town.

Shipwreck Coast Explorer

Equipped with a mid-size Hertz rental car and a co-pilot kit (stocked with a detailed itinerary, daypack, and discount coupons for the road), head south on the Great Southern Touring Route towards Apollo Bay, with a full day ahead for a leisurely exploration of all the sights along the Route beginning in Werribee Park.  Meander through the 1870’s Mansion and Victoria State Rose Garden before discovering the Open Range Zoo, where exotic animals roam freely on 225 hectares of grasslands.

After a visit to Geelong’s historic waterfront, explore Torquay (Tor-KEY) and beyond, home to some of the nation’s best surf beaches including Bells Beach, where the Rip Curl Pro is held every March.  Have lunch in Lorne, a beautiful seaside town with a Mediterranean feel, before arriving in Apollo Bay on the edge of the Otway National Park.  This afternoon enjoy bushwalking, kayaking or learning how to surf before turning in for the night in a deluxe studio at Chris’s Beacon Point Villas, set high in the Otway Ranges overlooking the Bass Strait and the Great Ocean Road.
 

After a complimentary breakfast, journey west along the dramatic Great Ocean Road – also known as the Shipwreck Coast – for views of the Twelve Apostles (limestone formations rising from the ocean) and other landmarks including Loch Ard Gorge, the Arch and the London Bridge, all accessible from the road.  As the name suggests, more than 160 ships have met their fate along the rugged coastline, such as Marie Gabrielle (1869) and the Fiji (1891), whose anchors remain embedded at Wreck Beach.  Whale watch near Warrambool, the Shipwreck Coast’s only city, before spending the night in a queen suite at Hearns Cottage Suites in Port Fairy, a busy fishing port home to over 50 classified National Trust nineteenth-century buildings.

On day three head north from Port Fairy to the Grampians mountain range – famous for some of the most spectacular scenery in Australia.  En route visit Tower Hill Reserve, a haven for wildlife, a fascinating ecological site and a showcase for local indigenous culture in the crater of a dormant volcano.  Once in the Grampians National Park, ascend to the top of majestic MacKenzie Waterfalls for lookouts over the impressive mountain ranges, and explore native bushland full of regional flora and fauna.  More adventurous types can rock climb or abseil amongst the largest collection of Aboriginal rock art in Victoria.  Overnight in Cavendish’s Glenisla Homestead, a traditional style homestead built from colorful Grampians sandstone, where guests are welcome to lend a hand on the superfine wool farm of 5000 Merino sheep.

With bellies full from an Australian farm-style breakfast, the return east to Melbourne is an historical adventure via Ballarat.  Built with the wealth of the gold rush, much of the opulence of the era is still on display in the city’s grand public buildings, hotels and historic streetscapes.  Ballarat was the site of the world’s largest deposit of alluvial gold and is showcased in Sovereign Hill – a re-creation of life in the 1850’s where panning for gold or riding a horse-drawn carriage in a town of over 200 volunteers dressed in period costumes is the norm.  Perhaps the strongest draw to the area is the evening “Blood on the Southern Cross” light and sound show depicting the Eureka Rebellion of miners against government forces.  Spend the night in a studio at the modern Oscars Hotel Ballarat after the evening’s performance before the morning’s short drive back to Melbourne.

Per person prices for Goway Travel’s five-day “Shipwreck Coast Explorer” package start at US$824 per person (based on double occupancy) through March 31, 2009 and includes four nights accommodation, a co-pilot pack (detailed itinerary, backpack, discount coupons), five day mid-size automatic Hertz car rental, and a dinner and “Blood on the Southern Cross” show.

For more information or to book, visit Goway Travel website at www.goway.com or call toll-free (800)-387-8850.

For more information on the Great Southern Touring Route visit www.greatsoutherntouring.com.au.  For more information on Melbourne, visit Tourism Victoria’s website at www.visitmelbourne.com.   

Source: Spring O’Brien & Co.