Banff, Canada Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Banff and Lake Louise have been welcoming international visitors for more than a century. In 1883 the attempts of three Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) workers to stake a claim to the natural hot springs they had discovered bubbling from the base of Sulphur Mountain led to the establishment of Canada's first national park. Today, Banff National Park (6,641 square km / 2,564 square miles) is one of four adjoining mountain parks comprising more than 20,235 square km / 7,813 square miles of spectacular Canadian Rocky Mountain landscape. For current visitors, bathing in these same hot springs is but one of many activities offered in Canada's foremost National Park. When you visit the Banff/Lake Louise area you will see why each year more than 4.5 million visitors come to enjoy the unique feeling of the Canadian Rockies and to experience why the United Nations in 1985 declared our area a "World Heritage Site".
Banff, Canada Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Banff National Park is a year round playground in the Canadian wilderness. A four season recreational area that offers everything from 7,558 acres of downhill skiing/snowboarding terrain to hundreds of miles of mountain trails. Explore our landscape by bus or car, canoe or raft, on foot or skis. Enjoy the many sightseeing opportunities or photograph some of the most spectacular scenery and wildlife on Earth.
Banff, Canada Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Banff, Canada Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Friday, April 25, 2008
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Baltimore Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price - Maryland, MD-USA
Baltimore, Maryland, MD-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The city is a major U.S. seaport, situated closer to major Midwestern markets than any other major seaport on the East Coast.is the largest city in the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area of approximately 8.1 million residents.
The city is named after the founding proprietor of the Maryland Colony, Lord Baltimore in the Irish House of Lords. Baltimore himself took his title from a place named Baltimore in Ireland, which is an Anglicized form of the Irish language Baile an Tí Mhoir - meaning "Town of the Big House".
Baltimore, Maryland, MD-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
BALTIMORE is among the more enjoyable stops on the east coast, and its closely knit neighborhoods and historic quarters provide an engaging backdrop to many diverse attractions, especially those along its celebrated waterfront , like the Inner Harbor's National Aquarium and the Pier 6 Concert Pavilion and Power Plant entertainment complex. The city also boasts top-rated museums , like the Walters Art Museum and the child-oriented, interactive Port Discovery, which cover everything from fine arts through black history to urban archeology. That Baltimore has been home to such diverse figures as writers Edgar Allan Poe and Anne Tyler and civil rights activists Frederick Douglass and Thurgood Marshall goes some way towards explaining its sometimes bizarrely varied character.
Baltimore, Maryland, MD-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The city is a major U.S. seaport, situated closer to major Midwestern markets than any other major seaport on the East Coast.is the largest city in the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area of approximately 8.1 million residents.
The city is named after the founding proprietor of the Maryland Colony, Lord Baltimore in the Irish House of Lords. Baltimore himself took his title from a place named Baltimore in Ireland, which is an Anglicized form of the Irish language Baile an Tí Mhoir - meaning "Town of the Big House".
Baltimore, Maryland, MD-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
BALTIMORE is among the more enjoyable stops on the east coast, and its closely knit neighborhoods and historic quarters provide an engaging backdrop to many diverse attractions, especially those along its celebrated waterfront , like the Inner Harbor's National Aquarium and the Pier 6 Concert Pavilion and Power Plant entertainment complex. The city also boasts top-rated museums , like the Walters Art Museum and the child-oriented, interactive Port Discovery, which cover everything from fine arts through black history to urban archeology. That Baltimore has been home to such diverse figures as writers Edgar Allan Poe and Anne Tyler and civil rights activists Frederick Douglass and Thurgood Marshall goes some way towards explaining its sometimes bizarrely varied character.
Baltimore, Maryland, MD-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Austin Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price - Texas, TX-USA
Austin, Texas, TX-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The Texas State Capitol , at 13th Street and Congress Avenue, is over 300ft high, taller than the national capitol in Washington, with a red sunset granite dome that dominates the downtown skyline. The chandeliers, carpets and even the door hinges of this colossal building are emblazoned with lone stars and other Texan motifs, a theme continued in the recent extension, a sleek maze of marble halls (daily 9am-5pm; public tours every 15min; free). Nearby, the antebellum Governor's Mansion , 1010 Colorado St, contains displays on Texan history (free tours Mon-Fri every 20min 10am-noon). Congress Avenue , a stretch of 1950s shops and muted office buildings that slopes south from the capitol down to the river, is worthy of a stroll; at dusk 1.5 million bats - the world's largest urban bat colony - emerge in a large cloud from their hangouts under the bridge. 6th Street , also known as Old Pecan Street, runs west from I-35 to Congress Street, and is the focus of much of the city's nightlife, as well as featuring many renovated buildings, galleries and hip shops. The elegant Romanesque Driskill Hotel , on the corner with Brazos Street, has its own self-guided walking tour, with a glossy leaflet recounting the hotel's many links with government since 1886. Between 5th and 6th streets, just west of Lamar Boulevard, the 600-year-old Treaty Oak is the last of the Council Oaks where treaties were signed with Native Americans; unfortunately, someone chose to poison the tree in 1989, and only one-third of it remains.
Austin, Texas, TX-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The recently opened Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum , at Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard and North Congress Avenue should satisfy anyone's curiosity for Texas arcana. Exhibits include the diary of Stephen F. Austin, generally considered the founder of the state, and a Bible that saved the life of Sam Houston Jr, during the Civil War; a bullet is still lodged in its pages (Mon-Sat 9am-6pm; $5). The Elisabet Ney Museum at 304 E 44th St is a German-influenced castle-like building in a leafy, historic residential area. It preserves the last studio, with marquettes and finished marbles, of Austin's most celebrated sculptor (Wed-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun noon-5pm; free).
Austin, Texas, TX-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Zilker Park , across the river from Amtrak and southwest of the center, is one of the best of the many fine parks in the city, a perfect retreat on sweaty Austin afternoons. One of its main attractions is the spring-fed (and deliciously cold) Barton Springs Pool , a 1000ft turquoise rectangle shaded by pecan trees (daily 5am-10pm; $2.50 Mon-Fri, $2.75 Sat & Sun). You can paddle in the pebbly creek below the pool free of charge, and you'll also find hiking and biking trails, a miniature railroad winding beside the river (daily 10am-7pm; $2.75), and, to the west, the wildlife garden of the Austin Nature and Science Center (Mon-Sat 9am-5pm, Sun noon-5pm; free). South of the Barton Springs Pool on Robert E. Lee Road, the Umlauf Sculpture Garden (Wed-Fri 10am-4.30pm, Sat & Sun 1-4.30pm; $3.50) is a tranquil, grassy enclave dotted with more than one hundred works in bronze, terracotta, wood and marble. More outdoor relief can be found farther north on the banks of the Colorado River. Don't miss Mayfield Park , a peaceful idyll complete with water lilies and peacocks. Nearby Mount Bonnell gives great views over the city and surrounding countryside.
The Austin Museum of Art is in the process of relocating from its Laguna Gloria location, at 3809 W 35th St, to a permanent facility downtown, scheduled to open in 2004. In the meantime, many exhibits are on view at a separate downtown location, at 823 Congress Ave (Tues-Sat 10am-6pm, Thurs until 8pm, Sun noon-5pm; $3).
Austin, Texas, TX-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The Texas State Capitol , at 13th Street and Congress Avenue, is over 300ft high, taller than the national capitol in Washington, with a red sunset granite dome that dominates the downtown skyline. The chandeliers, carpets and even the door hinges of this colossal building are emblazoned with lone stars and other Texan motifs, a theme continued in the recent extension, a sleek maze of marble halls (daily 9am-5pm; public tours every 15min; free). Nearby, the antebellum Governor's Mansion , 1010 Colorado St, contains displays on Texan history (free tours Mon-Fri every 20min 10am-noon). Congress Avenue , a stretch of 1950s shops and muted office buildings that slopes south from the capitol down to the river, is worthy of a stroll; at dusk 1.5 million bats - the world's largest urban bat colony - emerge in a large cloud from their hangouts under the bridge. 6th Street , also known as Old Pecan Street, runs west from I-35 to Congress Street, and is the focus of much of the city's nightlife, as well as featuring many renovated buildings, galleries and hip shops. The elegant Romanesque Driskill Hotel , on the corner with Brazos Street, has its own self-guided walking tour, with a glossy leaflet recounting the hotel's many links with government since 1886. Between 5th and 6th streets, just west of Lamar Boulevard, the 600-year-old Treaty Oak is the last of the Council Oaks where treaties were signed with Native Americans; unfortunately, someone chose to poison the tree in 1989, and only one-third of it remains.
Austin, Texas, TX-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The recently opened Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum , at Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard and North Congress Avenue should satisfy anyone's curiosity for Texas arcana. Exhibits include the diary of Stephen F. Austin, generally considered the founder of the state, and a Bible that saved the life of Sam Houston Jr, during the Civil War; a bullet is still lodged in its pages (Mon-Sat 9am-6pm; $5). The Elisabet Ney Museum at 304 E 44th St is a German-influenced castle-like building in a leafy, historic residential area. It preserves the last studio, with marquettes and finished marbles, of Austin's most celebrated sculptor (Wed-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun noon-5pm; free).
Austin, Texas, TX-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Zilker Park , across the river from Amtrak and southwest of the center, is one of the best of the many fine parks in the city, a perfect retreat on sweaty Austin afternoons. One of its main attractions is the spring-fed (and deliciously cold) Barton Springs Pool , a 1000ft turquoise rectangle shaded by pecan trees (daily 5am-10pm; $2.50 Mon-Fri, $2.75 Sat & Sun). You can paddle in the pebbly creek below the pool free of charge, and you'll also find hiking and biking trails, a miniature railroad winding beside the river (daily 10am-7pm; $2.75), and, to the west, the wildlife garden of the Austin Nature and Science Center (Mon-Sat 9am-5pm, Sun noon-5pm; free). South of the Barton Springs Pool on Robert E. Lee Road, the Umlauf Sculpture Garden (Wed-Fri 10am-4.30pm, Sat & Sun 1-4.30pm; $3.50) is a tranquil, grassy enclave dotted with more than one hundred works in bronze, terracotta, wood and marble. More outdoor relief can be found farther north on the banks of the Colorado River. Don't miss Mayfield Park , a peaceful idyll complete with water lilies and peacocks. Nearby Mount Bonnell gives great views over the city and surrounding countryside.
The Austin Museum of Art is in the process of relocating from its Laguna Gloria location, at 3809 W 35th St, to a permanent facility downtown, scheduled to open in 2004. In the meantime, many exhibits are on view at a separate downtown location, at 823 Congress Ave (Tues-Sat 10am-6pm, Thurs until 8pm, Sun noon-5pm; $3).
Austin, Texas, TX-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Atlantic City Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price - New Jersey, NJ-USA
Atlantic City, New Jersey, NJ-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
ATLANTIC CITY , on Absecon Island just off the midpoint of the Jersey shoreline, has been a tourist magnet since 1854, when Philadelphia speculators created it as a rail terminal resort. In The real-life model for the board game Monopoly , it has an impressive history of popular culture, boasting the nation's first Boardwalk (1870), the world's first Big Wheel (1892), the first color postcards (1893) and the first Miss America Beauty Pageant (cunningly devised to extend the tourist season in 1921, and still held here yearly). During Prohibition and the Depression, Atlantic City was a center for rum-running, packed with speakeasies and illegal gambling dens. Thereafter, in the face of increasing competition from Florida, it slipped into a steep decline, until city officials decided in 1976 to open up the resort to legal gambling .
Atlantic City, New Jersey, NJ-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The Town
Arriving by train, you'll be confronted by the monstrous Convention Center , which opened above the station in 1997, and houses a massive food court and standard mall shops, along with its meeting spaces and countless hotel rooms. Most of the hopeful new arrivals, however, head straight for the casinos, with an ample overspill flooding the Boardwalk and beach.
Atlantic City's wooden Boardwalk was originally built as a temporary walkway, raised above the beach so that vacationers could take a seaside stroll without treading sand into the grand hotels. Alongside the brash 99¢ shops and exotically named palm-readers, a few beautiful Victorian buildings that survived the wrecker's ball invoke past elegance, despite being dwarfed by the casinos and housing fast-food joints. Early in the morning, when the breezes from the ocean are at their most pleasant, the Boardwalk is peaceful, peopled only by keen cyclists and a few lost souls down on their luck.
The Central Pier offers all the fun of a fair, with rides, games and old-fashioned "guess your weight" challenges. A few blocks south, another pier has been remodeled into an ocean-liner-shaped shopping center. The small and faded Arts Center and Historic Museum on the Garden Pier at the quiet northern end of the Boardwalk, has a free collection of seaside memorabilia, postcards, photos and a special exhibit on Miss America, as well as traveling art shows. A block off the Boardwalk, where Pacific Avenue meets Rhode Island Avenue, and at the heart of some of the city's worst deprivation, stands the Absecon Lighthouse . Active until 1933, it's recently been fully restored and offers a terrific view from its 167ft tower (July-Aug daily 11am-4pm, Sat also 7pm-9pm; Sept-Dec and March-June Thurs-Mon 11am-4pm; call for Jan-Feb hours; $4).
Atlantic City's beach is free, family filled and surprisingly clean, considering its proximity to the Boardwalk. Beaches at well-to-do Ventnor , a jitney ride away, are quieter, but charge users $3 per week. For the same fee, New Jersey's beautiful people pose on the beaches of Margate , three miles south of Atlantic City; all watched over by Lucy, the Margate Elephant at 9200 Atlantic Ave. A 65ft wood and tin Victorian oddity, Lucy was built as a seaside attraction in 1881 and used variously as a tavern and a hotel. Today her huge belly is filled with a museum of Atlantic City memorabilia, and photos and artifacts from her own history (Apr-May and Sept-Oct Sat & Sun 10am-5pm; June-Aug Mon-Sat 10am-8pm, Sun 10am-5pm; closed Nov-Mar; $4).
Atlantic City, New Jersey, NJ-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
ATLANTIC CITY , on Absecon Island just off the midpoint of the Jersey shoreline, has been a tourist magnet since 1854, when Philadelphia speculators created it as a rail terminal resort. In The real-life model for the board game Monopoly , it has an impressive history of popular culture, boasting the nation's first Boardwalk (1870), the world's first Big Wheel (1892), the first color postcards (1893) and the first Miss America Beauty Pageant (cunningly devised to extend the tourist season in 1921, and still held here yearly). During Prohibition and the Depression, Atlantic City was a center for rum-running, packed with speakeasies and illegal gambling dens. Thereafter, in the face of increasing competition from Florida, it slipped into a steep decline, until city officials decided in 1976 to open up the resort to legal gambling .
Atlantic City, New Jersey, NJ-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The Town
Arriving by train, you'll be confronted by the monstrous Convention Center , which opened above the station in 1997, and houses a massive food court and standard mall shops, along with its meeting spaces and countless hotel rooms. Most of the hopeful new arrivals, however, head straight for the casinos, with an ample overspill flooding the Boardwalk and beach.
Atlantic City's wooden Boardwalk was originally built as a temporary walkway, raised above the beach so that vacationers could take a seaside stroll without treading sand into the grand hotels. Alongside the brash 99¢ shops and exotically named palm-readers, a few beautiful Victorian buildings that survived the wrecker's ball invoke past elegance, despite being dwarfed by the casinos and housing fast-food joints. Early in the morning, when the breezes from the ocean are at their most pleasant, the Boardwalk is peaceful, peopled only by keen cyclists and a few lost souls down on their luck.
The Central Pier offers all the fun of a fair, with rides, games and old-fashioned "guess your weight" challenges. A few blocks south, another pier has been remodeled into an ocean-liner-shaped shopping center. The small and faded Arts Center and Historic Museum on the Garden Pier at the quiet northern end of the Boardwalk, has a free collection of seaside memorabilia, postcards, photos and a special exhibit on Miss America, as well as traveling art shows. A block off the Boardwalk, where Pacific Avenue meets Rhode Island Avenue, and at the heart of some of the city's worst deprivation, stands the Absecon Lighthouse . Active until 1933, it's recently been fully restored and offers a terrific view from its 167ft tower (July-Aug daily 11am-4pm, Sat also 7pm-9pm; Sept-Dec and March-June Thurs-Mon 11am-4pm; call for Jan-Feb hours; $4).
Atlantic City's beach is free, family filled and surprisingly clean, considering its proximity to the Boardwalk. Beaches at well-to-do Ventnor , a jitney ride away, are quieter, but charge users $3 per week. For the same fee, New Jersey's beautiful people pose on the beaches of Margate , three miles south of Atlantic City; all watched over by Lucy, the Margate Elephant at 9200 Atlantic Ave. A 65ft wood and tin Victorian oddity, Lucy was built as a seaside attraction in 1881 and used variously as a tavern and a hotel. Today her huge belly is filled with a museum of Atlantic City memorabilia, and photos and artifacts from her own history (Apr-May and Sept-Oct Sat & Sun 10am-5pm; June-Aug Mon-Sat 10am-8pm, Sun 10am-5pm; closed Nov-Mar; $4).
Atlantic City, New Jersey, NJ-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Atlanta Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price - Georgia, GA-USA
Atlanta, Georgia, GA-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
ATLANTA is a relatively young city: only incorporated in 1847, it was little more than a minor transportation center until the Civil War, when its accessibility made it a good site for the huge Confederacy munitions industry and consequently a major target for the Union army. In 1864 Sherman's army burned the city, an act immortalized in Gone with the Wind . Recovery after the war took just a few years: Atlanta was the archetype of the aggressive, urban, industrial ''New South,'' furiously championed by '' boosters '' newspaper owners, bankers, politicians and city leaders. Industrial giants who based themselves here included Coca-Cola , source of a string of philanthropic gifts to the city.
Very few of Atlanta's buildings predate 1915, and nothing at all survives from before 1868. Its characters, on the other hand politicians and newspaper people have changed little, and the ''booster'' tradition has continued to the present, peaking spectacularly when Atlanta won the right to host the 1996 Olympics . The bid to convince the world of the city's prosperity and sophistication was led by city leaders such as ex-mayor Andrew Young (the first Southern black congressman since Reconstruction, who became Carter's ambassador to the UN) and flamboyant former CNN magnate Ted Turner .
Today's Atlanta is at first glance a large American city. Its population has reached 3.5 million. The city is undeniably progressive, with little interest in lamenting a lost Southern past. Since voting in the nation's first black mayor, Maynard Jackson, in 1974, an estimated 200,000 black families streamed in from states further north in the 1980s alone. With its ever-increasing international profile, cosmopolitan blend of cultures and hip local neighborhoods, the spirit and dynamism of modern Atlanta is a far cry indeed from its much-mythologized Deep South roots.
Atlanta, Georgia, GA-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The City
Atlanta's layout is confusing, following old Native American trails rather than a logical grid system, with no fewer than 32 streets named "Peachtree"; take care to note whether you're looking for Avenue, Road, Boulevard and so forth. The most important is Peachtree Street , which cuts a long north-south swath through the city. Sights are scattered, but relatively easy to reach on public transportation. Once you're there, the downtown area, the Martin Luther King Jr Historic District ranged along Auburn Avenue , and the trendy neighborhoods of Little Five Points and Virginia-Highland are all easy to explore on foot.
Atlanta, Georgia, GA-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
ATLANTA is a relatively young city: only incorporated in 1847, it was little more than a minor transportation center until the Civil War, when its accessibility made it a good site for the huge Confederacy munitions industry and consequently a major target for the Union army. In 1864 Sherman's army burned the city, an act immortalized in Gone with the Wind . Recovery after the war took just a few years: Atlanta was the archetype of the aggressive, urban, industrial ''New South,'' furiously championed by '' boosters '' newspaper owners, bankers, politicians and city leaders. Industrial giants who based themselves here included Coca-Cola , source of a string of philanthropic gifts to the city.
Very few of Atlanta's buildings predate 1915, and nothing at all survives from before 1868. Its characters, on the other hand politicians and newspaper people have changed little, and the ''booster'' tradition has continued to the present, peaking spectacularly when Atlanta won the right to host the 1996 Olympics . The bid to convince the world of the city's prosperity and sophistication was led by city leaders such as ex-mayor Andrew Young (the first Southern black congressman since Reconstruction, who became Carter's ambassador to the UN) and flamboyant former CNN magnate Ted Turner .
Today's Atlanta is at first glance a large American city. Its population has reached 3.5 million. The city is undeniably progressive, with little interest in lamenting a lost Southern past. Since voting in the nation's first black mayor, Maynard Jackson, in 1974, an estimated 200,000 black families streamed in from states further north in the 1980s alone. With its ever-increasing international profile, cosmopolitan blend of cultures and hip local neighborhoods, the spirit and dynamism of modern Atlanta is a far cry indeed from its much-mythologized Deep South roots.
Atlanta, Georgia, GA-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The City
Atlanta's layout is confusing, following old Native American trails rather than a logical grid system, with no fewer than 32 streets named "Peachtree"; take care to note whether you're looking for Avenue, Road, Boulevard and so forth. The most important is Peachtree Street , which cuts a long north-south swath through the city. Sights are scattered, but relatively easy to reach on public transportation. Once you're there, the downtown area, the Martin Luther King Jr Historic District ranged along Auburn Avenue , and the trendy neighborhoods of Little Five Points and Virginia-Highland are all easy to explore on foot.
Atlanta, Georgia, GA-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Aspen Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price - Colorado, CO-USA
Aspen, Colorado, CO-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Coffee-table magazines might have you believe that a tollgate outside ASPEN only admits film stars and the super-rich. This elite ski resort , two hundred miles west of Denver via Leadville, is indeed home to the likes of Cher, Jack Nicholson and Goldie Hawn, but it can be an affordable and very appealing place for anyone visit in summer - unless you're on an absolute shoestring budget. Visiting in winter requires more cash, though you can save money by commuting to the slopes from Glenwood Springs, less than fifty miles away. From inauspicious beginnings in 1879, this pristine mountain-locked town developed slowly, thanks to its remote location, to become one of the world's top silver producers. By the time the silver market crashed fourteen years later, it had acquired tasteful residential palaces, grand hotels and an opera house. In the 1930s, when the population slumped below seven hundred, it was, ironically, the anti-poverty WPA program that gave the struggling community the cash to build its first crude ski lift in 1936. Entrepreneurs seized the opportunity presented by the varied terrain and plentiful snow, and the first chairlift was dedicated on Aspen Mountain (now known as Ajax ) in 1947. Skiing has since spread to three more mountains - Aspen Highlands, Snowmass and Buttermilk Mountain, and the jet set arrived in force during the 1960s. Development is a burning political issue: tight architectural constraints have been placed on businesses ( McDonald's is forbidden to have a neon sign), but the last decade has seen yet more Scandinavian-style lodges, condo blocks and giant houses that remain empty for most of the year.
Aspen, Colorado, CO-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The town and the mountains
Despite the virtually limitless recreation opportunities in the surrounding mountains, there's not all that much to do in Aspen itself. Even so, sitting around the town's leafy pedestrianized streets, watching the world go by, or browsing in the chichi stores and galleries is a pleasant way to spend a couple of hours. In summer, the Aspen Historical Society Museum, 620 W Bleeker St, offers walking tours of Aspen and nearby ghost towns. The Aspen Art Museum at 590 N Mill St holds changing exhibits, lectures and special events; Aspen Center for Environmental Studies , 100 S Puppy Smith St, is a wildlife sanctuary, which gives guided nature tours of some of the taller peaks in the Elk Mountain Range. Aspen's four mountains are run by the Aspen Ski Co; call 1/888-ASPENSNO for conditions. The mogul-packed monster of Aspen Mountain , looming over downtown, is for experienced skiers only; Buttermilk is great for beginners, with an excellent ski school that offers a three-day guaranteed "Learn to Snowboard" program; the wide-open runs of Snowmass , though mostly for intermediate skiers, feature some testing routes. Aspen Highlands has some new high-speed lifts and offers excellent extreme skiing terrain. Daily lift tickets for all mountains cost $45 (up to 27 years) or $65 (27 years and older). Rental of skis, boots and poles usually costs around $18 a day - you can also rent snowshoes in which to trek up and down the mountains. However, the town's best value has to be its fifty miles of groomed Nordic ski trails - one of the most extensive free cross-country trail networks in the US.
Aspen, Colorado, CO-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Cycling is the main summer pursuit; The Hub, 315 E Hyman Ave has a wide range of bikes, while Timberline, 204 S Galena St is the cheapest for mountain bikes, and also organizes tours. The Roaring Fork River , surging out of the Sawatch range, is excellent for kayaking and rafting, but sections can be dangerous and every summer sees a few fatalities. Blazing Paddles is not the lowest-priced company, but it does have a good safety record. If you fancy walking in the mountains, the Silver Queen gondola climbs from 601 Dean St to the summit of Ajax (daily 10am-4pm; $18), where guided nature walks set off on the hour from 11am to 3pm. Occasional free lunchtime concerts and talks are held up here, and there's a good restaurant. Even more alluring is the landscape around the twin purple-gray peaks of the Maroon Bells , fifteen miles southwest, soaring above the dark-blue Maroon Lake. The road is closed between 8.30am and 5pm, except for overnight campers with permits, travelers with disabilities and RFTA buses, which leave daily from the Rubey Park transit center (every 30min 9am-4.30pm; $5 round-trip, or $19 combination ticket with gondola ride). Details on hiking are available from the ranger station.
Aspen, Colorado, CO-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Coffee-table magazines might have you believe that a tollgate outside ASPEN only admits film stars and the super-rich. This elite ski resort , two hundred miles west of Denver via Leadville, is indeed home to the likes of Cher, Jack Nicholson and Goldie Hawn, but it can be an affordable and very appealing place for anyone visit in summer - unless you're on an absolute shoestring budget. Visiting in winter requires more cash, though you can save money by commuting to the slopes from Glenwood Springs, less than fifty miles away. From inauspicious beginnings in 1879, this pristine mountain-locked town developed slowly, thanks to its remote location, to become one of the world's top silver producers. By the time the silver market crashed fourteen years later, it had acquired tasteful residential palaces, grand hotels and an opera house. In the 1930s, when the population slumped below seven hundred, it was, ironically, the anti-poverty WPA program that gave the struggling community the cash to build its first crude ski lift in 1936. Entrepreneurs seized the opportunity presented by the varied terrain and plentiful snow, and the first chairlift was dedicated on Aspen Mountain (now known as Ajax ) in 1947. Skiing has since spread to three more mountains - Aspen Highlands, Snowmass and Buttermilk Mountain, and the jet set arrived in force during the 1960s. Development is a burning political issue: tight architectural constraints have been placed on businesses ( McDonald's is forbidden to have a neon sign), but the last decade has seen yet more Scandinavian-style lodges, condo blocks and giant houses that remain empty for most of the year.
Aspen, Colorado, CO-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The town and the mountains
Despite the virtually limitless recreation opportunities in the surrounding mountains, there's not all that much to do in Aspen itself. Even so, sitting around the town's leafy pedestrianized streets, watching the world go by, or browsing in the chichi stores and galleries is a pleasant way to spend a couple of hours. In summer, the Aspen Historical Society Museum, 620 W Bleeker St, offers walking tours of Aspen and nearby ghost towns. The Aspen Art Museum at 590 N Mill St holds changing exhibits, lectures and special events; Aspen Center for Environmental Studies , 100 S Puppy Smith St, is a wildlife sanctuary, which gives guided nature tours of some of the taller peaks in the Elk Mountain Range. Aspen's four mountains are run by the Aspen Ski Co; call 1/888-ASPENSNO for conditions. The mogul-packed monster of Aspen Mountain , looming over downtown, is for experienced skiers only; Buttermilk is great for beginners, with an excellent ski school that offers a three-day guaranteed "Learn to Snowboard" program; the wide-open runs of Snowmass , though mostly for intermediate skiers, feature some testing routes. Aspen Highlands has some new high-speed lifts and offers excellent extreme skiing terrain. Daily lift tickets for all mountains cost $45 (up to 27 years) or $65 (27 years and older). Rental of skis, boots and poles usually costs around $18 a day - you can also rent snowshoes in which to trek up and down the mountains. However, the town's best value has to be its fifty miles of groomed Nordic ski trails - one of the most extensive free cross-country trail networks in the US.
Aspen, Colorado, CO-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Cycling is the main summer pursuit; The Hub, 315 E Hyman Ave has a wide range of bikes, while Timberline, 204 S Galena St is the cheapest for mountain bikes, and also organizes tours. The Roaring Fork River , surging out of the Sawatch range, is excellent for kayaking and rafting, but sections can be dangerous and every summer sees a few fatalities. Blazing Paddles is not the lowest-priced company, but it does have a good safety record. If you fancy walking in the mountains, the Silver Queen gondola climbs from 601 Dean St to the summit of Ajax (daily 10am-4pm; $18), where guided nature walks set off on the hour from 11am to 3pm. Occasional free lunchtime concerts and talks are held up here, and there's a good restaurant. Even more alluring is the landscape around the twin purple-gray peaks of the Maroon Bells , fifteen miles southwest, soaring above the dark-blue Maroon Lake. The road is closed between 8.30am and 5pm, except for overnight campers with permits, travelers with disabilities and RFTA buses, which leave daily from the Rubey Park transit center (every 30min 9am-4.30pm; $5 round-trip, or $19 combination ticket with gondola ride). Details on hiking are available from the ranger station.
Aspen, Colorado, CO-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Asheville Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price - North Carolina, NC-USA
Asheville, North Carolina, NC-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Encircled by a ring of interstates, and skirted to the east and south by the Parkway, modest ASHEVILLE , roughly 100 miles southwest of Boone, retains an appealing downtown core. It's also something of a New Age center, with ephemera stores, holistic healing sessions and a tradition among the region's farmers of growing medicinal herbs. Two miles south on Biltmore Avenue, the Biltmore Estate is the largest private mansion in the US (daily 8.30am-5pm; $33). Built in the late nineteenth century by George Vanderbilt and loosely modeled on a Loire chateau, it's a wild piece of nouveau riche folly, from the Victorian chic of the indoor palm court to the landscaped gardens. There are several upmarket places to eat , among them tiny Salsas , 6 Patton Ave, serving up an aromatic blend of Mexican and Caribbean dishes, though tables can be hard to come by. The Laughing Seed Café , 40 Wall St, has wonderful vegetarian food (check out the "meatloaf"), while Beanstreets Coffee , 3 Broadway, is a fun place to hang out. Although Asheville is small, there are enough students to keep a reasonable nightlife scene going; Barley's , 42 Biltmore Ave, is the best brewpub in town and offers good food and live music. Ashville Music Zone , 81 Broadway, is a very popular venue which caters to all sorts of music tastes, and Jack of the Wood , 95 Patton Ave, is an enjoyable pub.
Asheville, North Carolina, NC-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Pick up information on the numerous local summer music and craft festivals from the downtown visitor center , 151 Haywood St. August's Mountain Dance and Folk Festival features bluegrass and traditional dancing, while the hugely enjoyable Leaf Festival , a folk music and arts and crafts gathering held in mid-May and October in BLACK MOUNTAIN , fourteen miles east on I-40 (one bus a day), showcases Appalachian and world folk music, usually attracting major European and African musicians. There's little to do in Black Mountain otherwise, though the clear fresh air, pretty views and relaxed pace make a stroll worthwhile. The Monte Vista there, at 308 W State St ( $75-100), is a small, very comfortable hotel with regional decor, while the Town Pump , 143 Cherry St, is a tavern/music venue. Twenty miles southeast of the Parkway on US-64/74, the natural granite tower of Chimney Rock sticks out from the almost-sheer side of Hickory Nut Gorge (summer daily 8.30am-5.30pm; rest of year daily 8.30am-4.30pm; park stays open about an hour and a half past last ticket sale; $10). After taking the elevator to the top, you can clamber up and down steps and walk along protected walkways atop the impressive cliffs. Many of the climactic moments of The Last of the Mohicans were filmed here; you may recognize the mighty waterfall that drops 400ft from the western end of the gorge. From the top you can see Lake Lure , where the movie Dirty Dancing was filmed.
Asheville, North Carolina, NC-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Encircled by a ring of interstates, and skirted to the east and south by the Parkway, modest ASHEVILLE , roughly 100 miles southwest of Boone, retains an appealing downtown core. It's also something of a New Age center, with ephemera stores, holistic healing sessions and a tradition among the region's farmers of growing medicinal herbs. Two miles south on Biltmore Avenue, the Biltmore Estate is the largest private mansion in the US (daily 8.30am-5pm; $33). Built in the late nineteenth century by George Vanderbilt and loosely modeled on a Loire chateau, it's a wild piece of nouveau riche folly, from the Victorian chic of the indoor palm court to the landscaped gardens. There are several upmarket places to eat , among them tiny Salsas , 6 Patton Ave, serving up an aromatic blend of Mexican and Caribbean dishes, though tables can be hard to come by. The Laughing Seed Café , 40 Wall St, has wonderful vegetarian food (check out the "meatloaf"), while Beanstreets Coffee , 3 Broadway, is a fun place to hang out. Although Asheville is small, there are enough students to keep a reasonable nightlife scene going; Barley's , 42 Biltmore Ave, is the best brewpub in town and offers good food and live music. Ashville Music Zone , 81 Broadway, is a very popular venue which caters to all sorts of music tastes, and Jack of the Wood , 95 Patton Ave, is an enjoyable pub.
Asheville, North Carolina, NC-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Pick up information on the numerous local summer music and craft festivals from the downtown visitor center , 151 Haywood St. August's Mountain Dance and Folk Festival features bluegrass and traditional dancing, while the hugely enjoyable Leaf Festival , a folk music and arts and crafts gathering held in mid-May and October in BLACK MOUNTAIN , fourteen miles east on I-40 (one bus a day), showcases Appalachian and world folk music, usually attracting major European and African musicians. There's little to do in Black Mountain otherwise, though the clear fresh air, pretty views and relaxed pace make a stroll worthwhile. The Monte Vista there, at 308 W State St ( $75-100), is a small, very comfortable hotel with regional decor, while the Town Pump , 143 Cherry St, is a tavern/music venue. Twenty miles southeast of the Parkway on US-64/74, the natural granite tower of Chimney Rock sticks out from the almost-sheer side of Hickory Nut Gorge (summer daily 8.30am-5.30pm; rest of year daily 8.30am-4.30pm; park stays open about an hour and a half past last ticket sale; $10). After taking the elevator to the top, you can clamber up and down steps and walk along protected walkways atop the impressive cliffs. Many of the climactic moments of The Last of the Mohicans were filmed here; you may recognize the mighty waterfall that drops 400ft from the western end of the gorge. From the top you can see Lake Lure , where the movie Dirty Dancing was filmed.
Asheville, North Carolina, NC-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Annapolis Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price - Maryland, MD-USA
Annapolis, Maryland, MD-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
At the center of ANNAPOLIS , overlooking the town's baroque web of streets, the Maryland State House (daily 9am-5pm, tours at 11am & 3pm; free) was completed in 1779 and soon after served as an early capitol of the US. It remains the oldest state house still in use. The Old Senate Chamber , to the right of the grand entrance hall, is where the Treaty of Paris was ratified in 1784, officially ending the Revolutionary War; a statue of George Washington stands on the spot where he resigned his commission as head of the Continental Army, and displays document the role Annapolis played in the life of the young Republic. Free guided tours are given twice a day, or you can wander around on your own, perhaps stopping by to listen to the proceedings of Maryland's current crop of legislators, who hold court from January to April in the more modern wing to the north of the old building. Also on the grounds of the State House is the cottage-sized Old Treasury Building , built in 1735 to hold colonial Maryland's currency reserves.
Annapolis, Maryland, MD-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Many grand late eighteenth-century brick homes line the streets of Annapolis, but for substance and grace none surpasses the Hammond-Harwood House , two blocks west of the State House at 19 Maryland Ave, off King George Street (Mon-Sat 10am-4pm, Sun noon-4pm; $5 including tour). The warm redbrick Palladian villa, which consists of two symmetrical wings connected by a central hall, was built in 1774 to the designs of William Buckland, and is most notable for its beautifully carved decorative woodwork, especially evident in the intricate front doorway. Despite its architectural harmony, the house has had an unfortunate history, the architect himself becoming so obsessed with its construction that his fiancée left him, breaking his heart and causing his untimely death at the age of 38; the original owner also died in mysterious circumstances before the house was completed.
Another historic Annapolis mansion, the 1765 William Paca House , 186 Prince George St (March-Dec Mon-Sat 10am-4pm, Sun noon-4pm; Jan-Feb Fri & Sat 10am-4pm, Sun noon-4pm; $8 including tour), was a downmarket rooming house until the 1960s; it was restored to its period appearance in time for the 1976 Bicentennial; the interior is decorated in warm rich colors and fancy furniture, while the splendid formal garden, which you can peer into from King George Street, is being constantly landscaped and boasts an impressive viewing pavilion.
Besides such elite manors, dozens of pastel eighteenth-century clapboard cottages and commercial structures fill the narrow streets that run down to the waterfront. Of those that have escaped the gentrifiers, the Tobacco Prise House , 4 Pinkney St (by appointment) is a colonial tobacco warehouse that now sets out to explain the handling and storage of the valuable leaves. Further along, the Shiplap House , 18 Pinkney St (Mon-Fri 2-4pm; free), was built in 1715 as a tavern; now it's a small museum of Annapolis history, with a herb garden to the rear containing assorted medicinal plants grown in colonial times.
Annapolis, Maryland, MD-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
At the center of ANNAPOLIS , overlooking the town's baroque web of streets, the Maryland State House (daily 9am-5pm, tours at 11am & 3pm; free) was completed in 1779 and soon after served as an early capitol of the US. It remains the oldest state house still in use. The Old Senate Chamber , to the right of the grand entrance hall, is where the Treaty of Paris was ratified in 1784, officially ending the Revolutionary War; a statue of George Washington stands on the spot where he resigned his commission as head of the Continental Army, and displays document the role Annapolis played in the life of the young Republic. Free guided tours are given twice a day, or you can wander around on your own, perhaps stopping by to listen to the proceedings of Maryland's current crop of legislators, who hold court from January to April in the more modern wing to the north of the old building. Also on the grounds of the State House is the cottage-sized Old Treasury Building , built in 1735 to hold colonial Maryland's currency reserves.
Annapolis, Maryland, MD-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Many grand late eighteenth-century brick homes line the streets of Annapolis, but for substance and grace none surpasses the Hammond-Harwood House , two blocks west of the State House at 19 Maryland Ave, off King George Street (Mon-Sat 10am-4pm, Sun noon-4pm; $5 including tour). The warm redbrick Palladian villa, which consists of two symmetrical wings connected by a central hall, was built in 1774 to the designs of William Buckland, and is most notable for its beautifully carved decorative woodwork, especially evident in the intricate front doorway. Despite its architectural harmony, the house has had an unfortunate history, the architect himself becoming so obsessed with its construction that his fiancée left him, breaking his heart and causing his untimely death at the age of 38; the original owner also died in mysterious circumstances before the house was completed.
Another historic Annapolis mansion, the 1765 William Paca House , 186 Prince George St (March-Dec Mon-Sat 10am-4pm, Sun noon-4pm; Jan-Feb Fri & Sat 10am-4pm, Sun noon-4pm; $8 including tour), was a downmarket rooming house until the 1960s; it was restored to its period appearance in time for the 1976 Bicentennial; the interior is decorated in warm rich colors and fancy furniture, while the splendid formal garden, which you can peer into from King George Street, is being constantly landscaped and boasts an impressive viewing pavilion.
Besides such elite manors, dozens of pastel eighteenth-century clapboard cottages and commercial structures fill the narrow streets that run down to the waterfront. Of those that have escaped the gentrifiers, the Tobacco Prise House , 4 Pinkney St (by appointment) is a colonial tobacco warehouse that now sets out to explain the handling and storage of the valuable leaves. Further along, the Shiplap House , 18 Pinkney St (Mon-Fri 2-4pm; free), was built in 1715 as a tavern; now it's a small museum of Annapolis history, with a herb garden to the rear containing assorted medicinal plants grown in colonial times.
Annapolis, Maryland, MD-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Anchorage Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price - Alaska, AK-USA
Anchorage, Alaska, AK-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Wedged between the two arms of Cook Inlet and the imposing Chugach Mountains, ANCHORAGE is home to over forty percent of Alaska's population, and serves as the transportation center for the whole state. This sprawling city on the edge of one of the world's great wildernesses often gets a bad press from those who live elsewhere in Alaska - derided as being "just half an hour from Alaska" - but it has its attractions, and with its beautiful setting can make a pleasant one- or two-day stopover.
By the time Captain James Cook came up what is now Cook Inlet in 1778, in search of a Northwest Passage to the Atlantic, Russian fur trappers had already started to settle the area, trading copper and iron for fish and furs with the Native Americans. Though Cook was sure that the inlet was not the Passage, he sent boats out in a southeasterly direction to investigate. When they were forced to turn back by the severe tides, Cook named this gloriously scenic stretch Turnagain Arm .
Anchorage itself began life in 1915 as a tent city for construction workers on the Alaska Railroad. During the 1930s, hopefuls fleeing the Depression came pouring in from the Lower 48, and World War II - and the construction of the Alaska Highway - further boosted the city's size and importance. The opening of the airport established Anchorage - equidistant between New York and Tokyo - as the "Crossroads of the World," and statehood in 1959 brought in yet more optimistic adventurers
Anchorage, Alaska, AK-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The City
Travelers eager to rush off into the "real" Alaska tend to overlook cosmopolitan Anchorage - a blend of old and new, urban blight and rural parks - but there is plenty to see, and it's worth spending some time here experiencing big-city Alaska. The city is laid out on a grid; numbered avenues run east-west, lettered streets north-south.
Your first stop should be the Anchorage Museum of History and Art , 121 W Seventh Ave (summer Sun-Fri 9am-9pm, Sat 9am-6pm; rest of year Tues-Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 1-5pm; $6.50), an excellent overview of the state and its history told through intricate dioramas, alongside beautiful examples of carved ivory and basketware. The art gallery is notable for the works by Alaska's best known painter, Sydney Laurence, particularly his monumental oil painting of Mount McKinley.
The rest of the downtown sites are more modest: the Imaginarium , 737 W Fifth Ave (daily: June to early Sept 10am-6pm; early Sept to May Mon-Sat 10am-6pm, Sun noon-5pm; $5), has hands-on displays telling you all about glaciers, the Northern Lights, polar bears and the private life of the dopey-looking moose; the period-furnished 1915 Oscar Anderson House Museum , 420 M St (June to mid-Sept Tues-Sat 11am-4pm ; $3), illustrates early Anchorage life; and the Alaska Experience Center , Sixth Avenue and G street (summer daily 9am-9pm; $10), presents forty minutes of Alaska's best scenery, shot from choppers and beamed onto a 180° wraparound screen, and the admission price includes a film of the devastating 1964 Good Friday earthquake that leveled much of downtown - 9.2 on the Richter scale and North America's strongest-ever quake.
Anchorage, Alaska, AK-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Six miles to the east on the outskirts of town lies the new Alaska Native Heritage Center , Muldoon Road exit from the Glenn Hwy (May-Sept daily 9am-9pm; $20). It is expensive and still finding its feet, but provides an excellent introduction to the state's five main ethnic groups. Each is represented by a typical house where Native guides interpret their culture. Throughout the day, cultural groups perform in the main auditorium where there is also an instructive introductory film. The 4th Avenue Trolley runs here hourly from downtown for $6.
On long summer days it is better to stay outside, perhaps strolling (or biking) along the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail that offers restorative views of Turnagain Arm, or exploring the mountains and lakes of the 495,000-acre Chugach State Park , just fifteen minutes' drive east from Anchorage. Challenging trails traversing the park include an often treacherous scramble to the summit of the 4500ft Flattop Mountain, a spectacular vantage point from which to view the city and Cook Inlet.
Anchorage, Alaska, AK-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Wedged between the two arms of Cook Inlet and the imposing Chugach Mountains, ANCHORAGE is home to over forty percent of Alaska's population, and serves as the transportation center for the whole state. This sprawling city on the edge of one of the world's great wildernesses often gets a bad press from those who live elsewhere in Alaska - derided as being "just half an hour from Alaska" - but it has its attractions, and with its beautiful setting can make a pleasant one- or two-day stopover.
By the time Captain James Cook came up what is now Cook Inlet in 1778, in search of a Northwest Passage to the Atlantic, Russian fur trappers had already started to settle the area, trading copper and iron for fish and furs with the Native Americans. Though Cook was sure that the inlet was not the Passage, he sent boats out in a southeasterly direction to investigate. When they were forced to turn back by the severe tides, Cook named this gloriously scenic stretch Turnagain Arm .
Anchorage itself began life in 1915 as a tent city for construction workers on the Alaska Railroad. During the 1930s, hopefuls fleeing the Depression came pouring in from the Lower 48, and World War II - and the construction of the Alaska Highway - further boosted the city's size and importance. The opening of the airport established Anchorage - equidistant between New York and Tokyo - as the "Crossroads of the World," and statehood in 1959 brought in yet more optimistic adventurers
Anchorage, Alaska, AK-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The City
Travelers eager to rush off into the "real" Alaska tend to overlook cosmopolitan Anchorage - a blend of old and new, urban blight and rural parks - but there is plenty to see, and it's worth spending some time here experiencing big-city Alaska. The city is laid out on a grid; numbered avenues run east-west, lettered streets north-south.
Your first stop should be the Anchorage Museum of History and Art , 121 W Seventh Ave (summer Sun-Fri 9am-9pm, Sat 9am-6pm; rest of year Tues-Sat 10am-6pm, Sun 1-5pm; $6.50), an excellent overview of the state and its history told through intricate dioramas, alongside beautiful examples of carved ivory and basketware. The art gallery is notable for the works by Alaska's best known painter, Sydney Laurence, particularly his monumental oil painting of Mount McKinley.
The rest of the downtown sites are more modest: the Imaginarium , 737 W Fifth Ave (daily: June to early Sept 10am-6pm; early Sept to May Mon-Sat 10am-6pm, Sun noon-5pm; $5), has hands-on displays telling you all about glaciers, the Northern Lights, polar bears and the private life of the dopey-looking moose; the period-furnished 1915 Oscar Anderson House Museum , 420 M St (June to mid-Sept Tues-Sat 11am-4pm ; $3), illustrates early Anchorage life; and the Alaska Experience Center , Sixth Avenue and G street (summer daily 9am-9pm; $10), presents forty minutes of Alaska's best scenery, shot from choppers and beamed onto a 180° wraparound screen, and the admission price includes a film of the devastating 1964 Good Friday earthquake that leveled much of downtown - 9.2 on the Richter scale and North America's strongest-ever quake.
Anchorage, Alaska, AK-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Six miles to the east on the outskirts of town lies the new Alaska Native Heritage Center , Muldoon Road exit from the Glenn Hwy (May-Sept daily 9am-9pm; $20). It is expensive and still finding its feet, but provides an excellent introduction to the state's five main ethnic groups. Each is represented by a typical house where Native guides interpret their culture. Throughout the day, cultural groups perform in the main auditorium where there is also an instructive introductory film. The 4th Avenue Trolley runs here hourly from downtown for $6.
On long summer days it is better to stay outside, perhaps strolling (or biking) along the Tony Knowles Coastal Trail that offers restorative views of Turnagain Arm, or exploring the mountains and lakes of the 495,000-acre Chugach State Park , just fifteen minutes' drive east from Anchorage. Challenging trails traversing the park include an often treacherous scramble to the summit of the 4500ft Flattop Mountain, a spectacular vantage point from which to view the city and Cook Inlet.
Anchorage, Alaska, AK-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Anaheim Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price - California, CA-USA
Anaheim, California, CA-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Sprawling at the heart of New Mexico, where the main eastwest road and rail routes cross both the Rio Grande and the old road south to Mexico, ALBUQUERQUE is, with half a million people, the state's only major metropolis. Though many tourists dash straight from the airport up to Santa Fe, without a thought for Albuquerque, the " Duke City " has a good deal going for it. Like Phoenix, it's grown a bit too fast for comfort in the last fifty years, but the original Hispanic settlement is still discernible at its core, and its diverse, cosmopolitan population gives it a rare cultural vibrancy. Even if its architecture is often uninspired, the setting is magnificent, sandwiched between the Rio Grande lined by stately cottonwoods and the dramatic, glowing Sandia Mountains . Specific highlights for visitors include the intact Spanish plaza , the neon-lit Route 66 frontage of Central Avenue and the excellent Indian Pueblo Cultural Center ; while every October Albuquerque hosts the nation's largest hot-air balloon rally, attracting upward of 100,000 people to its mass ascensions.
Anaheim, California, CA-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Old Town
Once you've cruised up and down Central Avenue , looking at the flashing neon and 1940s architecture of this twenty-mile stretch of Route 66 (Sun Tran buses do it all day for 75¢), most of what's interesting about Albuquerque is concentrated in Old Town , the recently tidied-up old Spanish heart of the city. As the billboards on the interstate nearby rightly proclaim, "it's darned old and historic." The tree-filled main plaza is overlooked by the twin-towered adobe facade of San Felipe de Neri church , and circled by horse-drawn carriages that you can hop on for a short tour ($5). It's a very pleasant place to wander or have a meal, even if there's not a whole lot otherwise to do. One of the more bizarre of the many knickknack shops is the Rattlesnake Museum southeast of the plaza at 202 San Felipe St NW (daily 10am-6pm; $2), which has live rattlers on display. Nearby, Gus's Trading Post, at 2026 Central Ave NW, is one of the best-value shops in the Southwest for buying the perfect bolo tie or other pieces of Indian jewelry .
Anaheim, California, CA-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Still on Central Avenue, in the Old Town Shopping Center half a block west of the plaza, the intriguing little Turquoise Museum (Mon-Sat 9.30am-5.30pm; $2) may look like just another mall store, but turns out to be more of a fortified bank vault, filled with rare and beautiful turquoise nuggets. The New Mexico Museum of Natural History , four blocks northeast of the plaza at 1801 Mountain Rd NW (daily 9am-5pm; closed Mon in Jan & Sept; $5), has full-scale, animated models of dinosaurs, a simulated volcanic eruption and a replica of an Ice Age snow cave, as well as an engaging, touchable collection of fossils and dinosaur bones.
Anaheim, California, CA-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Sprawling at the heart of New Mexico, where the main eastwest road and rail routes cross both the Rio Grande and the old road south to Mexico, ALBUQUERQUE is, with half a million people, the state's only major metropolis. Though many tourists dash straight from the airport up to Santa Fe, without a thought for Albuquerque, the " Duke City " has a good deal going for it. Like Phoenix, it's grown a bit too fast for comfort in the last fifty years, but the original Hispanic settlement is still discernible at its core, and its diverse, cosmopolitan population gives it a rare cultural vibrancy. Even if its architecture is often uninspired, the setting is magnificent, sandwiched between the Rio Grande lined by stately cottonwoods and the dramatic, glowing Sandia Mountains . Specific highlights for visitors include the intact Spanish plaza , the neon-lit Route 66 frontage of Central Avenue and the excellent Indian Pueblo Cultural Center ; while every October Albuquerque hosts the nation's largest hot-air balloon rally, attracting upward of 100,000 people to its mass ascensions.
Anaheim, California, CA-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Old Town
Once you've cruised up and down Central Avenue , looking at the flashing neon and 1940s architecture of this twenty-mile stretch of Route 66 (Sun Tran buses do it all day for 75¢), most of what's interesting about Albuquerque is concentrated in Old Town , the recently tidied-up old Spanish heart of the city. As the billboards on the interstate nearby rightly proclaim, "it's darned old and historic." The tree-filled main plaza is overlooked by the twin-towered adobe facade of San Felipe de Neri church , and circled by horse-drawn carriages that you can hop on for a short tour ($5). It's a very pleasant place to wander or have a meal, even if there's not a whole lot otherwise to do. One of the more bizarre of the many knickknack shops is the Rattlesnake Museum southeast of the plaza at 202 San Felipe St NW (daily 10am-6pm; $2), which has live rattlers on display. Nearby, Gus's Trading Post, at 2026 Central Ave NW, is one of the best-value shops in the Southwest for buying the perfect bolo tie or other pieces of Indian jewelry .
Anaheim, California, CA-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Still on Central Avenue, in the Old Town Shopping Center half a block west of the plaza, the intriguing little Turquoise Museum (Mon-Sat 9.30am-5.30pm; $2) may look like just another mall store, but turns out to be more of a fortified bank vault, filled with rare and beautiful turquoise nuggets. The New Mexico Museum of Natural History , four blocks northeast of the plaza at 1801 Mountain Rd NW (daily 9am-5pm; closed Mon in Jan & Sept; $5), has full-scale, animated models of dinosaurs, a simulated volcanic eruption and a replica of an Ice Age snow cave, as well as an engaging, touchable collection of fossils and dinosaur bones.
Anaheim, California, CA-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Albuquerque Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price - New Mexico, NM-USA
Albuquerque, New Mexico, NM-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Sprawling at the heart of New Mexico, where the main eastwest road and rail routes cross both the Rio Grande and the old road south to Mexico, ALBUQUERQUE is, with half a million people, the state's only major metropolis. Though many tourists dash straight from the airport up to Santa Fe, without a thought for Albuquerque, the " Duke City " has a good deal going for it. Like Phoenix, it's grown a bit too fast for comfort in the last fifty years, but the original Hispanic settlement is still discernible at its core, and its diverse, cosmopolitan population gives it a rare cultural vibrancy. Even if its architecture is often uninspired, the setting is magnificent, sandwiched between the Rio Grande lined by stately cottonwoods and the dramatic, glowing Sandia Mountains . Specific highlights for visitors include the intact Spanish plaza , the neon-lit Route 66 frontage of Central Avenue and the excellent Indian Pueblo Cultural Center ; while every October Albuquerque hosts the nation's largest hot-air balloon rally, attracting upward of 100,000 people to its mass ascensions.
Albuquerque, New Mexico, NM-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Old Town
Once you've cruised up and down Central Avenue , looking at the flashing neon and 1940s architecture of this twenty-mile stretch of Route 66 (Sun Tran buses do it all day for 75¢), most of what's interesting about Albuquerque is concentrated in Old Town , the recently tidied-up old Spanish heart of the city. As the billboards on the interstate nearby rightly proclaim, "it's darned old and historic." The tree-filled main plaza is overlooked by the twin-towered adobe facade of San Felipe de Neri church , and circled by horse-drawn carriages that you can hop on for a short tour ($5). It's a very pleasant place to wander or have a meal, even if there's not a whole lot otherwise to do. One of the more bizarre of the many knickknack shops is the Rattlesnake Museum southeast of the plaza at 202 San Felipe St NW (daily 10am-6pm; $2), which has live rattlers on display. Nearby, Gus's Trading Post, at 2026 Central Ave NW, is one of the best-value shops in the Southwest for buying the perfect bolo tie or other pieces of Indian jewelry .Still on
Albuquerque, New Mexico, NM-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Central Avenue, in the Old Town Shopping Center half a block west of the plaza, the intriguing little Turquoise Museum (Mon-Sat 9.30am-5.30pm; $2) may look like just another mall store, but turns out to be more of a fortified bank vault, filled with rare and beautiful turquoise nuggets. The New Mexico Museum of Natural History , four blocks northeast of the plaza at 1801 Mountain Rd NW (daily 9am-5pm; closed Mon in Jan & Sept; $5), has full-scale, animated models of dinosaurs, a simulated volcanic eruption and a replica of an Ice Age snow cave, as well as an engaging, touchable collection of fossils and dinosaur bones.
Albuquerque, New Mexico, NM-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Sprawling at the heart of New Mexico, where the main eastwest road and rail routes cross both the Rio Grande and the old road south to Mexico, ALBUQUERQUE is, with half a million people, the state's only major metropolis. Though many tourists dash straight from the airport up to Santa Fe, without a thought for Albuquerque, the " Duke City " has a good deal going for it. Like Phoenix, it's grown a bit too fast for comfort in the last fifty years, but the original Hispanic settlement is still discernible at its core, and its diverse, cosmopolitan population gives it a rare cultural vibrancy. Even if its architecture is often uninspired, the setting is magnificent, sandwiched between the Rio Grande lined by stately cottonwoods and the dramatic, glowing Sandia Mountains . Specific highlights for visitors include the intact Spanish plaza , the neon-lit Route 66 frontage of Central Avenue and the excellent Indian Pueblo Cultural Center ; while every October Albuquerque hosts the nation's largest hot-air balloon rally, attracting upward of 100,000 people to its mass ascensions.
Albuquerque, New Mexico, NM-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Old Town
Once you've cruised up and down Central Avenue , looking at the flashing neon and 1940s architecture of this twenty-mile stretch of Route 66 (Sun Tran buses do it all day for 75¢), most of what's interesting about Albuquerque is concentrated in Old Town , the recently tidied-up old Spanish heart of the city. As the billboards on the interstate nearby rightly proclaim, "it's darned old and historic." The tree-filled main plaza is overlooked by the twin-towered adobe facade of San Felipe de Neri church , and circled by horse-drawn carriages that you can hop on for a short tour ($5). It's a very pleasant place to wander or have a meal, even if there's not a whole lot otherwise to do. One of the more bizarre of the many knickknack shops is the Rattlesnake Museum southeast of the plaza at 202 San Felipe St NW (daily 10am-6pm; $2), which has live rattlers on display. Nearby, Gus's Trading Post, at 2026 Central Ave NW, is one of the best-value shops in the Southwest for buying the perfect bolo tie or other pieces of Indian jewelry .Still on
Albuquerque, New Mexico, NM-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Central Avenue, in the Old Town Shopping Center half a block west of the plaza, the intriguing little Turquoise Museum (Mon-Sat 9.30am-5.30pm; $2) may look like just another mall store, but turns out to be more of a fortified bank vault, filled with rare and beautiful turquoise nuggets. The New Mexico Museum of Natural History , four blocks northeast of the plaza at 1801 Mountain Rd NW (daily 9am-5pm; closed Mon in Jan & Sept; $5), has full-scale, animated models of dinosaurs, a simulated volcanic eruption and a replica of an Ice Age snow cave, as well as an engaging, touchable collection of fossils and dinosaur bones.
Albuquerque, New Mexico, NM-USA Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Acapulco, Mexico Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Acapulco, Mexico Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Everyone - even if they've not the remotest idea where it is - has heard of ACAPULCO , but few people know what to expect. Truth is that, as long as you don't yearn to get away from it all, you'll find almost anything you want here, from magnificent beaches by day to clubs and discos by night. What Acapulco undoubtedly has going for it, however, is its stunning bay : a sweeping scythe-stroke of yellow sand backed by the white towers of the high-rise hotels and, behind them, the jungly green foothills of the Sierra. And, even though there are hundreds of thousands of people here throughout the year - the town itself has a population approaching one and a half million and even out of season (busiest months are Dec-Feb) most of the big hotels remain nearly full - it rarely seems oppressively crowded. Certainly there's always space to lie somewhere along the beach, partly because of its sheer size, partly because of the number of rival attractions from hotel pools to parasailing and "romantic" cruises. Hawkers , too, are everywhere - there's no need to go shopping in Acapulco, simply lie on the beach and a string of goods will be paraded in front of you.Though there's little to show for it now beyond the star-shaped Fuerte de San Diego and a few rusty freighters tied up along the quayside, Acapulco was from the sixteenth century one of Mexico's most important ports, the destination of the famous Nao de China , which brought silks and spices from Manila and returned laden with payment in Mexican silver. Most of the goods were lugged overland to Veracruz and from there shipped onwards to Spain. Mexican Independence, Spain's decline and the direct route around southern Africa combined to kill the trade off, but for nearly three hundred years the shipping route between Acapulco and the Far East was among the most prized and preyed upon in the world, attracting at some time or other (if you believe all the stories) every pirate worth the name. In one such raid, in 1743, Lord Anson (the "Father of the British Navy") picked up silver worth as much as £400,000 sterling from a single galleon and altogether, with the captured ship and the rest of its cargo and crew, collected booty worth over a million even then.
Acapulco, Mexico Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The Town
No one comes to Acapulco for the sights. By day, if people aren't at the beach or asleep, they're mostly scouring the expensive shops. If you only do one thing in Acapulco, though, make sure you see its most celebrated spectacle, the leap of the daredevil high divers . About the only place in Acapulco that gives even the slightest sense of the historic role the city played in Mexico's past is the Museo de Acapulco in the old town (Tues-Sun 9.30am-6.30pm; US$2.50, free on Sun). It's situated inside the Fuerte de San Diego , an impressive, if heavily restored, star-shaped fort built in 1616 to protect the Manila galleons from foreign corsairs. The building's limited success is charted inside the museum, where displays also extend to the spread of Christianity by the proselytizing religious orders and a small anthropological collection. Air-conditioned rooms make this a good place to ride out the midday heat, and you can pop up on the roof for superb views over Acapulco. Along the Costera, the Centro Acapulco (Mon-Sat 10am-8pm) is packed with upmarket shops, pricey restaurants and a futuristic disco. It is also home to the Centro Cultural which has an art gallery, a crafts store and a theatre and also hosts a regular programme of cultural events with a regional bias. Check out the timetable. Geared up for bored kids, the Parque Papagayo on Costera at Playa Hornos, offers boating, roller skating and fairground rides. Further east round the bay near the Centro Acapulco, the Centro Infantil CiCi (daily 10am-6pm; US$6) has water-based rides and puts on dolphin shows.
Acapulco, Mexico Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
Everyone - even if they've not the remotest idea where it is - has heard of ACAPULCO , but few people know what to expect. Truth is that, as long as you don't yearn to get away from it all, you'll find almost anything you want here, from magnificent beaches by day to clubs and discos by night. What Acapulco undoubtedly has going for it, however, is its stunning bay : a sweeping scythe-stroke of yellow sand backed by the white towers of the high-rise hotels and, behind them, the jungly green foothills of the Sierra. And, even though there are hundreds of thousands of people here throughout the year - the town itself has a population approaching one and a half million and even out of season (busiest months are Dec-Feb) most of the big hotels remain nearly full - it rarely seems oppressively crowded. Certainly there's always space to lie somewhere along the beach, partly because of its sheer size, partly because of the number of rival attractions from hotel pools to parasailing and "romantic" cruises. Hawkers , too, are everywhere - there's no need to go shopping in Acapulco, simply lie on the beach and a string of goods will be paraded in front of you.Though there's little to show for it now beyond the star-shaped Fuerte de San Diego and a few rusty freighters tied up along the quayside, Acapulco was from the sixteenth century one of Mexico's most important ports, the destination of the famous Nao de China , which brought silks and spices from Manila and returned laden with payment in Mexican silver. Most of the goods were lugged overland to Veracruz and from there shipped onwards to Spain. Mexican Independence, Spain's decline and the direct route around southern Africa combined to kill the trade off, but for nearly three hundred years the shipping route between Acapulco and the Far East was among the most prized and preyed upon in the world, attracting at some time or other (if you believe all the stories) every pirate worth the name. In one such raid, in 1743, Lord Anson (the "Father of the British Navy") picked up silver worth as much as £400,000 sterling from a single galleon and altogether, with the captured ship and the rest of its cargo and crew, collected booty worth over a million even then.
Acapulco, Mexico Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
The Town
No one comes to Acapulco for the sights. By day, if people aren't at the beach or asleep, they're mostly scouring the expensive shops. If you only do one thing in Acapulco, though, make sure you see its most celebrated spectacle, the leap of the daredevil high divers . About the only place in Acapulco that gives even the slightest sense of the historic role the city played in Mexico's past is the Museo de Acapulco in the old town (Tues-Sun 9.30am-6.30pm; US$2.50, free on Sun). It's situated inside the Fuerte de San Diego , an impressive, if heavily restored, star-shaped fort built in 1616 to protect the Manila galleons from foreign corsairs. The building's limited success is charted inside the museum, where displays also extend to the spread of Christianity by the proselytizing religious orders and a small anthropological collection. Air-conditioned rooms make this a good place to ride out the midday heat, and you can pop up on the roof for superb views over Acapulco. Along the Costera, the Centro Acapulco (Mon-Sat 10am-8pm) is packed with upmarket shops, pricey restaurants and a futuristic disco. It is also home to the Centro Cultural which has an art gallery, a crafts store and a theatre and also hosts a regular programme of cultural events with a regional bias. Check out the timetable. Geared up for bored kids, the Parque Papagayo on Costera at Playa Hornos, offers boating, roller skating and fairground rides. Further east round the bay near the Centro Acapulco, the Centro Infantil CiCi (daily 10am-6pm; US$6) has water-based rides and puts on dolphin shows.
Acapulco, Mexico Cheapest Hotels Motels Listed by Price
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