Dienstag, 11. Januar 2005

Luxury 5 Star Hotels in Rome. Need some ideas on top end luxury hotels in Rome? About.com has a guide up you might want to check out. Hotels mentioned in the guide include the Westin Excelsior (pictured at right) and Hotel Residence Barberini. The guide itself is well laid out, with a good round up of the amenities and features available at each of the four hotels listed. The Hotel Residence Barberini, in particular, is described as having a penthouse suite which has amazing views of the Roman skyline. [Luxist] 3:04:17 PM    comment []

Costa Rica and other Contenders. The New York Times has an excellent article on Costa Rica (the darling of those few politically correct, eco-hip American tourists) and the other countries who are lining up to lure some of those tourism dollars to their own shores. This is good news for Brits, because as far as I know there are no hideous family-friendly "shall we go to Lanzarote or to Cyprus?" self-catering-with-pool package holidays to Panama, Honduras, Nicaragua or Guatemala. There are, however, some fabulous places to stay, like the Punta Caracol Acqua-Lodge in Panama, pictured. Prices in these areas are relatively low; visitors from the UK may spend more on airfare than on hotels, but that's often the case with the most desireable, less-frequented destinations. And at least you won't have to fight for a lounge chair. [Wanda Lust: First Class Travel Blog] 10:13:53 AM    comment []

The Freedom Ship. This is an aft view of the Freedom Ship, and why yes that is a top deck airport upon which to land your Lear jet and a marina in which to berth your yacht. It's the ultimate in luxury living at sea, and cheaper than buying property in London. The ship is not yet built, and may just be a pipe dream, but what a concept: not a cruise ship, but a massive floating city With a design length of 4,500 feet, a width of 750 feet, and a height of 350 feet circling the world every three years. [Wanda Lust: First Class Travel Blog] 10:12:28 AM    comment []