Everett Potter's Travel Report

5 Romantic Ski Hotels Under $200

The Omni Mount Washington Hotel, Bretton Woods, NH.

What’s better than a Valentine’s Day getaway to a ski resort? Waiting six weeks to go. You’ll save a bundle, there will be more snow, and these five hotels under $200 a night in Whistler, Bretton Woods, Jackson Hole, Aspen and Park City will still be romantic ...

The Omni Mount Washington Hotel, Bretton Woods, NH
The last of the classic New England hotels, the sprawling Mount Washington has a majestic setting, a deeply wooded valley with the snow-covered Presidential Range of the White Mountains rising behind it. Built in 1902, it has vast corridors with polished wood floors, fireplaces, trophy heads and a grandeur that is almost entirely gone from today's ski lodges. It also has a new, world-class facility, The Spa, where an apres ski massage is just the ticket after a day spent on the slopes of adjacent Bretton Woods, New Hampshire's largest ski area.Doubles from $152.

Born to Shop: Autobiography from the Autogrill

By Suzy Gershman

I am afraid of the dark. I am afraid of heights. And I am really terrified of Italian highways that go over viaducts and leave you hanging out there in the breeze while Enzo in his Fiat is soaring past you at 150kph. So Sarah, the Editorial Director of Born to Shop, drove today. We curled around the gorgeous houses and flowers and trees with a constant view of the sea and then hit the highway right outside of Genoa. Christopher Columbus clearly left because there was too much beach traffic on a Sunday.

Since breakfast was not included in our rate at our Italian palace hotel, we headed to France, hungry. We stopped at the first Autogrill we found past Genoa. The Italian highway routes have many service areas, only some of them have Autogrills. Since I especially like shopping at these, we held out. Imagine our surprise to find that everyone in Italy was having Sunday brunch at the Autogrill.

Wanderlust Video: US Ski Team - Truth in Motion

Last September, I flew down to Portillo, Chile to work on a story for SKI magazine. I was fortunate enough to arrive with the US Men's Ski Team, who had come to hit the Andean slopes for 10 days or so of training before the start of the World Cup season.

Watching Ted Ligety, Jake Zamansky, Marco Sullivan and the other guys fly down the frozen downhill course was a serious thrill. A documentary about the team, Truth in Motion, was being shot when I was there, and it aired last week on NBC. This amazing trailer for the film packs in all of the excitement and adrenaline of downhill racing in just over one minute. Let the Games begin.

Smart Deals: Montreal at Half Price

The Deal: The world is divided between those who love Montreal in winter and those who, well, you get the point. For those of us who can't get enough of Montreal’s French style, lunch at Schwartz's and a last-minute table at L'Express bistro, the season is irrelevant. Now, 25 of Montreal's hotels are having a Sweet Deal a La Montreal, offering a second night at half price. Bring your mittens.

Tel Aviv After the Centennial

The wide, wide beach of Tel Aviv. All photos by Ed Wetschler.

by Ed Wetschler               

In 2009 Tel Aviv marked its 100th anniversary with a 12-month, over-the-top celebration. That might seem strange, considering that many places in Israel were settled several thousand years ago. For example, a Who's Who of ancients fought over Jaffa (aka Yafo), right on the southern edge of Tel Aviv, and in later centuries Arabs, Crusaders, and the Ottomans continued the carnage. Now, they've got anniversaries.
    Still, the odds that some Jews who planted orange trees north of Jaffa in 1909 would end up founding a large, wealthy, enduring city were slim -- yet there it is. And there it was, in 2009, partying nonstop. So now what? It's simple: The centennial is over, but in Tel Aviv, an essentially secular city with countless clubs, concerts, hipsters, surfers, and connoisseurs of non-Kosher pleasures, the partying never stops. And I'm not just referring to the Jazz Fest or Gay Pride parade or Metallica.
    As this burg boogies through its 101st, here are a couple of great things to do by day. Might as well have fun in Tel Aviv until the nightlife kicks in.

Beyond Whistler: Five Great Olympic Cities

US Olympian Lindsey Vonn.

It takes a rare resort to host the Olympic Winter Games. Whistler certainly deserves the honour, but previous Games have been held in some of the most unique mountain resorts and cities in the world. Here are five where you can still catch the Olympic spirit as you click into your bindings. Read more from my article in the current issue of Air Canada onAir ....

The Waldorf-Astoria: 24 Hours, 20 Minutes and a Different World

The Waldorf-Astoria.

By Shari Hartford

Hotels in New York City offer something for everyone. There are small boutique properties with ultra-sleek furnishings and a decidedly hip clientele. There are small --and large-- comfortable and otherwise anonymous places to lay your head. There are the usual chains with their cookie cutter rooms (is this New York or Akron?).

    And then there are the classics. These hotels are so closely associated with Manhattan, and with histories so intriguing, that no further explanation is necessary: the Plaza, the St. Regis, the Carlyle, and, of course, the Waldorf-Astoria. The Waldorf has been a home-away-from-home for presidents, visiting dignitaries and movie stars since 1931, and, recently, I signed the registry too. With a current $299 a night promotion, mere mortals can actually consider it.

Wanderlust Video of the Week: Lila Downs

The great singer Lila Downs extols the virtues of mole in this wonderful performance of La Cumbia del Mole. If you view this and don't want to immediately book a ticket to Oaxaca (her hometown and the source of this most magical ingredient in Mexican cooking), check your pulse.

craigslist for Vacation Rentals

This view for $99 a night via craigslist? Photo by Karen Glenn.

Interested in renting a one-bedroom cottage with a pool in West Palm Beach for $85 per night? Or maybe a two-bedroom apartment in the Pacific Heights neighborhood of San Francisco for $150 a night? Or perhaps a studio in Rome near the Trevi fountain for 85 euros ($119) per night? They were among the hundreds of vacation rentals posted today on craigslist.

Smart Deals: Club Med's "Half off Your Better Half."

WHAT'S THE DEAL? Get 50% off a second guest on select travel dates between January 8, 2010 and October 29, 2010, when accompanying one full paying adult. The participating resorts are Buccaneer s Creek, La Caravelle, Punta Cana and Turkoise in the Caribbean; Columbus Isle in the Bahamas; Cancun Yucatan and Ixtapa Pacific in Mexico; the Sandpiper in Florida.

Is the MS Europa the Best Ship in World?

A balcony on the MS Europa.

By Dalma Heyn

When I tell you that the MS Europa is the only cruise ship on the high seas awarded not just five stars by the 2010 Berlitz Guide to Cruising and Cruise Ships, but five stars plus, I know what you're going to ask.

    "What's the plus for?"

    Well, I found out when my husband and I boarded the 480-passenger, 28,890-ton German cruise ship early last November for six days of a 12-day cruise embarking at Barcelona, moving down to Casablanca, and ending up in the Canary Islands.  The "plus" begins with lovely particulars like a terrace with every suite (and every cabin IS a suite), inside which is a perfectly appointed bathroom with both bathtub and separate shower, a walk-in closet and a full, free, mini-bar filled nightly with beers, waters, juices, fruits, health bars and candies. It means fascinating, diverse itineraries and, once at a destination, the finest possible shore excursions. A spa that only the finest international hotel could boast.  Flexibility in dining choices and hours. But beyond this slew of niceties that you can find out easily on the ship's website, the "plus" refers to a unique onboard lifestyle Berlitz designates as beyond "Luxury" (which is so five star), and dubs "Utterly Exclusive."