Travel Archives - Page 2 of 3

Baby Let Me Take You On A Repo Cruise

How to get from here to Seattle and back on a highly original, supercool mini vacay for a shockingly low price.

TRAVEL ADVISORY | It doesn’t take career counselling to conclude that all work and no play leads to burnout. If you want to take a quick break before this occurs, we’ve got just the ticket, a micro-mini vacay involving glamorous accommodation, all you can eat and multiple modes of transportation. And did I mention the best part? This adventure is priced so shockingly low you might even want to treat your partner or BFF. Read more

A Sweet Deal On A Sleepover In Seattle

January 19, 2012/1 Comment/in Go Here Now, TRAVEL, Travel, View All Travel Stories /by Editor

Minimoon, romantic getaway or whatever—here’s a sweet deal we’ve found on a romantic boutique hotel in Seattle.

TRAVEL ADVISORY | Married in a quiet ceremony over the holidays, our good friends B&C are just back from a “minimoon” in Seattle. “We want to go to Europe on a honeymoon but it’s cold there right now, so Seattle’s our stopgap,” says B. “We’ll take a longer trip this spring,” says his partner.

Even in the off-season, Seattle hotels never seem that cheap, but B&C did manage to find a great deal on an elegant little boutique hotel right downtown. Read more

It’s Eagle Counting Time In Brackendale

January 4, 2012/0 Comments/in Go Here Now, Travel, TRAVEL, View All Travel Stories /by Editor

The place to be this coming Sunday is Brackendale, B.C., for the 26th annual bald eagle count.

MUST SEE B.C. | Most of us, consciously or not, keep a running record of places we must absolutely see before our particular shot clock runs out. Chances are many of these destinations are the same: Paris, Prague, Katmandu. Probably not Brackendale, B.C. Exoticism requires distance, or so we imagine, and Brackendale is way too close to home to offer anything surprising or remotely unfamiliar.

But what if you could experience something extraordinary close by Vancouver in Brackendale, something exotic that people from other places make an effort to see—wouldn’t you want to experience it too, particularly if it were free? Read more

When Nature Calls Big Sur Is The Place To Be

September 7, 2011/2 Comments/in Go Here Now, Travel, TRAVEL, View All Travel Stories /by Editor

Jump into the wild by cruising Big Sur, one of the all-time great North American road trips.

TRAVEL ADVISORY | Want to drop off the planet for a few days, ditch the cellphone, skip the Starbucks, take a break from recreational shopping? One of California’s most beautiful and elemental places to get away from everything urban in the fall is Big Sur on the central coast. Big Sur isn’t an exact spot on the map, it’s a road trip: 90 miles of two-lane blacktop that zigzag around the edge of the wind-wracked headlands of the Santa Lucia Mountains mere yards, it seems, before they nose-dive into the Pacific Ocean. Cruising along this jagged, Amalfi-like coastline is—to borrow words from hippie vernacular—a mind-blowing head-trip. It’s impossible not to feel spiritual or to reflect on your place in the cosmos when a natural setting this powerful is shoving itself in your face. Read more

Shop This Town: Great Buys In Portland Now

August 3, 2011/6 Comments/in Go Here Now, TRAVEL, Travel, View All Travel Stories /by Editor

In Portland, our dollar is high, the sales are ongoing, and the merch is to buy for.

TRAVEL ADVISORY | Last week we shared some of our favourite places to sleep and eat in Portland, Oregon. Today we cut straight to the shopping (after a toe dip in Lawrence Halprin’s Keller Fountain Park pictured here, arguably the most beautiful water feature in North America).

Maybe because there’s no sales tax or because Portland’s less than stellar economy means sales are constant, but PDX brings out the shopper in me. What I love about this place is that there are plenty of malls and big box emporiums for those who want them, and lots of indie shopping neighbourhoods for those who don’t.

Here’s where to shop in Portland, Oregon, right now. Read more

3 Reasons To Visit Portland Right Now

July 29, 2011/4 Comments/in Go Here Now, TRAVEL, Travel, View All Travel Stories /by Editor

The perfect last-minute no-brainer getaway. Here are three reasons to go right now.

TRAVEL ADVISORY | Did you get sidetracked and forget to plan a vacation this year? No worries: you’ll always have Portland. It’s the perfect last-minute no-brainer getaway. You could fly, of course, but why not drive? If you leave Vancouver at 6 a.m. and ignore the siren call of Seattle, you’ll be in the City of Roses by early afternoon with plenty of daylight remaining to dive into interesting things.

Here are three irresistible reasons to visit Portland right now. Read more

Rent Your Castle When You Take A Holiday

July 18, 2011/1 Comment/in TRAVEL, Travel, Travel Advisory, View All Travel Stories /by Editor

Rent out your home/castle when you go away—you’ll get both a house sitter and extra cash for your vacation.

TRAVEL ADVISORY | One major perk of being married to a university professor is that we can go on extended summer holidays when school is out. Last summer, our family took off for Europe, spending time in London, Paris and the south of France as well as all over Sweden. It was an expensive vacation, but we were able to offset the cost by renting out our house. For two months, a quiet and incredibly tidy family from Oman enjoyed a holiday in our city while helping us bankroll our good times abroad. We’ve done this for several years now, and overall, the transactions have been smooth. There are a few sites on which you can list your home (do a search for vacation rentals or holiday homes – you’ll have no trouble finding them), but we like SabbaticalHomes.com. Read more

Steal Away: Luxury Hotels for Pennies

March 31, 2011/3 Comments/in Travel, TRAVEL, Travel Advisory, View All Travel Stories /by Editor

Online auction buffs can scoop up ultra luxurious accommodations for pennies on the regular price.

TRAVEL ADVISORY | Ever dream of staying at a luxury hotel on a backpacker’s budget? Then Off and Away could be for you. This new hotel room bidding site features only the very best properties with all the luxuries and amenities you could ever dream of. What the site doesn’t have is a price tag. Read more

Victoria’s Sweet Secret: Inn At The Union Club

January 27, 2011/4 Comments/in Travel /by Editor

Prices at this classic British-feel hotel on Victoria’s Inner Harbour are as old school as its style.

TRAVEL ADVISORY | Quick. What hotel comes to mind when you think of Victoria, B.C.? If you didn’t say the Fairmont Empress Hotel I’d be shocked. With its historical blend of architectural styles, grand public spaces and elegant afternoon tea, the Empress easily maintains its number one position as the most British of places to stay in Victoria.

Yet there’s another hotel that looks and feels infinitely more British than the Empress and happens to be located directly across the street from it. Read more

Cheap, Chic & Boutique Hotels In Vancouver

December 23, 2010/1 Comment/in Travel /by carolannrule

Where to get an awesome room in a great hotel in Vancouver right now.

TRAVEL ADVISORY | If you read Frugalbits routinely, you already know that when we travel we prefer hotels with big personalities, either in appearance or the overall experience. Of course we wish no less for our friends when they come to visit us in Vancouver. If you are expecting Christmas guests this week like we are, and you’re already tapped out room-wise chez vous, consider putting up your visitors in one of the following three stylish boutique hotels that are offering super deals for great quality.