Author Archive for Carmen
First Virgin America Hotel Announced in Chicago
In Europe the Virgin brand name is one of the most well-known and respected among all industries. Now the company aims to strengthen its position in North America by venturing into the hotel business. To that end, Virgin Group has announced the completion of a deal that will bring the first Virgin-branded hotel to America. The site of the property is a historic office building in downtown Chicago that the Group purchased from Wabash Lake Partners LLC, Chicago.
Assisting Virgin Group in the deal was Chicago-based John Buck Company. The two will jointly work together on a redevelopment plan to transform the property into a 250-room, four-star hotel. No details have yet been released on the direction designers will be taking, or the total cost of the renovation, but Virgin’s hotel division has been allotted as much as USD $500 million to acquire and develop properties in America’s most dynamic cities. In addition to Chicago, Virgin has targeted New York, Los Angeles, Miami, San Francisco, and Washington DC.
The Chicago property is a 27-story building on the city’s West side, between the shores of Lake Michigan and the Chicago River. The Art Deco building is significant to Chicago’s heritage, making it a perfect venue for the Virgin brand name. Virgin has not yet scheduled a date for the property’s grand opening and is open the possibility of another US-based hotel debuting before the October 2013 Chicago deadline.
Make Traveling Hassle Free With ‘Luggage Forward’
Seasoned travelers know what a hassle it can be to make sure luggage arrives at its destination safely and on time. So much so, that many try to fit everything they need into a single carry-on bag they can keep with them. But now, thanks to a new service known as Luggage Forward, it’s easy to take the hassles out of travelling with luggage at a cost that’s extremely affordable.
Luggage Forward is an American company based in Boston, Massachusetts. The company offers its service to more than 200 countries and territories around the world, making bookings available via the telephone or the Internet. The company partners with world-class shipping companies and forwarding specialists in order to ensure your luggage gets where it needs to go. Luggage Forward is the official forwarding service for well-known organizations like AAA, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Abercrombie & Kent, Holland America, and American Express.
New Bose Headphones: Perfect for Traveling
Regular users of Bose headphones know that they are an excellent choice for travel. So it should be no surprise that the company’s two newest models, the OE2 and OE2i, live up to the same Bose standards we’ve come to know and love. According to an official announcement, they are even better than their predecessors.
The OE2i feature an in-line switch that allows interaction with connected devices so that users can both listen to music and speak on the go. With your smart phone that means you’ll be able to take calls and listen to music without having to switch your earphones. You’ll be able to make use of voice applications, adjust your volume, scroll through tracks, and a whole lot more.
As for the OE2 headphones, they don’t come with the same voice features, but they reproduce music just as accurately and crisply as the OE2i. Bose accomplishes this with their proprietary TriPort® acoustic technology. This technology reproduces sound that is more natural and more balanced with rich clarity at all frequencies – lows, mids, and highs – so you get perfect sound reproduction by matter what type of music you listen to.
Four Seasons Baltimore Opens November
If you’ve ever visited Baltimore you know that it is a thriving hub of medical research, business, professional sports, shopping, dining, and culture. If you’ve never visited, you need to do so. In fact, there’s no better time to go than this November, when the new For Seasons Hotel Baltimore opens its doors.
This 18 story hotel rises majestically above the city’s bustling east harbor with an edgy, modern look. It’s just minutes from the Baltimore convention Center, the world-famous Johns Hopkins Medical Center, and the city centre. The hotel offers 256 rooms all complemented by Baltimore’s most extensive hotel-based art collection and interior design from Brayton & Hughes Design Studio.
St. Regis New York – The Dior Suite
The St. Regis New York hotel is proud to announce the availability of their new Dior Suite in collaboration with the famed Parisian fashion house. This is the hotel chain’s a second joint effort with Dior, this time in a 1700-square feet space of decadent luxury. And just like the Tiffany Suite, the Dior was designed to the highest standards the St. Regis brand is known for.
The Dior is normally a one bedroom suite with views of 5th Avenue, Central Park, and 55th St. However; it can easily be converted to a two-bedroom suite. It’s been painted almost entirely in the St. Regis signature colour known as “whispering gray”, with the finest luxury appointments included.
LEGOLAND Hotel to Open in Carlsbad, CA – Luxury for Kids
This past summer the ownership of LEGOLAND California Resort made a major announcement regarding the first ever North America based LEGOLAND Hotel to open on resort property in summer 2013. The property will occupy space now being used by the resort for bus parking. Construction begins this month on the 250-room hotel which will feature a LEGO theme with bright colours, LEGO designer décor, a swimming pool, and a restaurant. Initial approval for the project was first given by the city of Carlsbad back in 2009. Since then the company has been working diligently to secure the proper permits and other approvals required.
LEGOLAND California resort first opened in 1999 with just a single theme park area. It has enjoyed astronomical growth in the 12 years since, expanding to four total areas welcoming hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. As for the new hotel, it will be designed specifically to cater to families with children with accommodations being themed after the four main LEGOLAND areas. Guests can expect LEGO characters, LEGO themed furniture, and plenty of colour throughout the rooms and public spaces. Once the hotel is complete it will join two other on-site hotels, the Sheraton Carlsbad Resort and the Grande Pacific Palisades, in providing accommodations for LEGOLAND California’s guests.
JetSuite Brings Fuel Efficiency to Priviate Luxury Aviation
Southern California-based JetSuite is proud to announce a new program which makes them the only private jet operator to fly the new Embraer Phenom 100. This new jet is the most fuel-efficient in its class and will enable JetSuite to provide more service to more destinations at a lower cost. Along with completely updating their fleet, the company now wants to offer more affordable private aviation services to give customers the best flight options with no obligations.
JetSuite currently provides private aviation services to airports in the U.S., Mexico, and Canada, utilizing what the company calls SuiteSpots. The company, which has earned the highest possible safety rating from ARG/US, attributes a lot of their success to CEO Alex Wilcox. Wilcox is one of the founding executives of JetBlue, though he’s no longer with them.
Dorchester Collection Announces New London Hotel, 45 Park Lane
The Dorchester Collection is known around the world for offering the finest luxury hotels with elegance and style. The newly-opened 45 Park Lane in London is the newest member of the Collection, featuring 45 rooms and suites centred on fine art and guest relaxation. The hotel’s Penthouse Suite boasts 1830-square feet of spacious indulgence complete with London panoramas on a wraparound terrace. All the remaining guest rooms feature a view of Hyde Park.
With fine art as a centrepiece, guests will enjoy the ‘Psalms’ series from Damien Hirst displayed in the hotel restaurant. Ten other leading British artists provide the artwork for guest rooms and the rest of the hotel. The building itself is also a piece of art from internationally known architect Thierry W. Despont. His awe-inspiring art deco and contemporary designs will leave you breathless.
45 Park Lane provides fine dining with the CUT restaurant; an American-style steakhouse from world-famous chef Wolfgang Puck. CUT offers choice steaks in a refined and relaxing environment, with a superb wine list. Future guests will also enjoy Bar 45, plus a hotel library and media room on the mezzanine level; all accessible from a grand spiral staircase rising up from the lobby.
Jordan Planning New Star Trek Resort
Rabid fans of the Star Trek television series and movies, also known as Trekkies, will only have to wait three more years before realizing their stellar Shangri-La, thanks to a brand-new 184 acre resort opening in Jordan in 2014. The product will be a world-class resort and theme park centered around the hugely popular Star Trek franchise first made famous by Gene Roddenberry’s television program of the 1960s. The program developed such a cult-like following, that 40 years later there are people who dress in the costumes, play-act as the characters, and even learn to speak the constructed language of Klingon.
The Aqaba resort will include four hotels and the theme park when it is completed, at a cost of about $1.5 billion. Although a number of Middle Eastern and U.S. investors are involved, the biggest money comes from the King Abdulla II Fund for Development – Jordan’s King Abdullah II has long been an avid Star Trek fan. In order for the resort to be profitable it has to draw nearly 500,000 visitors annually, something investors believe will not be a problem due to the universal appeal of the Star Trek brand. The resort is a developed as a joint venture between Paramount Recreation and kept Rubicon Group Holding. It is licensed by the owner of Star Trek, CBS Consumer Products.
How far the Star Trek theme will be taken remains to be seen. But for now, Trekkies can start making plans to be “beamed up.”
Sunpocket Sunglasses – The Perfect Travel Accessory
When packing to go on vacation, suitcase space is at a premium. Everyone wants to take favorite outfits with them, and there are the other vacation essentials such as sandals, sunscreen, books to read by the pool, cosmetics or toiletries. Airlines are getting ever more restrictive about baggage allowances, and many are also limiting the amount of cabin baggage travelers take on board the aircraft with them. By packing sensibly and making clever choices of accessories, you can easily free up space in your baggage and make your journeys smoother and less stressful.
Sunpocket sunglasses have one major benefit over competing brands. All of the different models which are produced by the company fold in half down the middle, making them much easier to slip into a pocket or small pocket on a bag than traditional rigid designs of glasses. The special case which is provided with the glasses protects them when traveling, and means that they can stand up to being crammed in a suitcase or put into the corner of a small cabin bag.
