Wednesday, August 1, 2012

CNNGo.com

CNNGo.com

New booking portal offers huge discounts on Asia's best hotels

Posted: 31 Jul 2012 10:10 PM PDT

by Zoe Li, Hong Kong Editor

A new members-only hotel reservation website has entered the online booking fray with claims to offer discounts of up to 70 percent at some of Asia's most luxurious resorts.

Currently, the Luxe Nomad is offering US$468 a night at Thai resort Sri Panwa, for example, down from an advertised US$813.

Based in Singapore, the site -- the latest venture of Stephanie Chai, an entrepreneur who spent most of her working life as a high fashion model -- claims the deals it offers are not available anywhere else and can range from 40-70 percent off the hotel's listed prices. 

"The sales that are on our site are exclusively for The Luxe Nomad and its members," says Alexandra Seitz, PR executive for the site. 

"We feature a mix of four- and five-star hotels, resorts and villas that we believe offer good service and great ambiance. Of course you can't please everyone, but our team does its very best to vet each property."

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What cuisine do global travelers love the most?

Posted: 31 Jul 2012 08:02 PM PDT

by CNNGo staff

It should come as no surprise the world's most-visited places also have the best cuisine. After all, nobody wants to eat horrible food on his or her hard-earned vacations. 

But of course no cosmopolitan city is limited to its own national dishes. You're just as likely to find a top Italian eatery in Bangkok as you are an incredible Japanese restaurant in London. 

So which food do travelers crave the most when on the road? 

A recent survey of 27,000 global travelers by Hotels.com shows the traditional European favorites now face a bit of competition, with Asian cuisine rising up the foodie ranks.

Although international travelers still favor Italian (32 percent) and French (24 percent), Japanese food is gaining in popularity, coming in at 18 percent.

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Time travels with your cat: How Google sees your vacation plans

Posted: 31 Jul 2012 01:10 PM PDT

by Barry Neild

Why bother researching answers to vacation questions when you can Google them, right?

In fact, why bother even coming up with the questions in the first place when Google is happy to pose them for you.

Simply start typing "How to travel..." into the search engine and witness it trying to guess what you were about to ask.

Sadly, like a wrinkled sage pondering life's deepest meanings, a philosopher surrounded by dusty tomes in the vaults of some great library, or a clerk manning an airport help desk, Google knows all the questions, but rarely has any definitive responses.

Thankfully, we're on hand to answer everything you never knew you wanted to know about travel and didn't even think about asking until Google asked on your behalf.

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Sprint to Narita on a luxury Hermes helicopter

Posted: 31 Jul 2012 12:00 PM PDT

by C. James Dale

My Tod's tap nervously as I watch the ground slip slowly by.

I glance at my Rolex.

"Relax," I chuckle to myself. "The jet won't leave without you."

I pick a piece of fuzz off my Ermenegildo Zegna suit and adjust my Louis Vuitton Evasion sunglasses.

The pilot looks back at me, smiling, and I acknowledge him by raising my glass of Cristal.

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6 Gobi adventures: Best ways to get sand in your shoes in Dunhuang

Posted: 31 Jul 2012 09:40 AM PDT

by Clarissa Wei

With nothing but 1.3 million-square-kilometer desert for company, Dunhuang (敦煌) really feels as though it's in the middle of nowhere.

But it's the desolation that makes the desert town so attractive.

The air is crisp; there's not the slightest hint of light pollution at night; it's one of the few places in the world where anyone can rent a camel and camp out in sand dunes.

With a population of 180,000, Dunhuang (the name means "big and grand") is located in the Gansu province of western China.

As a town, it was a frontier defensive bulwark in the Han Dynasty and a major stop on the ancient Silk Road.

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at 9:53 AM