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Saturday, December 5, 2015

Crystal opens reservation books for river cruises



Crystal opens reservation books for river cruises





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Transportation bill includes higher fees for airline and cruise passengers



Transportation bill includes higher fees for airline and cruise passengers






The House on Thursday approved a 5-year, $305 billion bill that boosts highway and transit spending and assures states that federal help will be available for major projects. Senate approval was expected to follow later on Thursday.
If the bill becomes law as expected, costs will rise for airline and cruise passengers. Customs fees will be indexed to inflation, and the money will be used to help offset the cost of highway and transit programs.
Lobbying group Airlines for America had fought the proposed increase. On Wednesday, before the vote, A4A said, “Airline customers are already overtaxed, and this agreement will further drive up the cost of travel for the 2 million passengers who fly on U.S. airlines every day. It is unfortunate that, once again, Congress is placing the burden to fund highway spending on the backs of the flying public.”
The bill, approved by a 359 to 65 vote, doesn't include as much money or last quite as long as many lawmakers and the Obama administration would have liked. Nor does it resolve how to pay for transportation programs in the long term.
Despite that, the 1,300-page bill was hailed by public officials as a major accomplishment that will halt the cycle of last-minute short-term fixes that have kept the trust fund teetering on the edge of insolvency for much of the past eight years.
The bill restores $1.6 billion a year in transit aid for seven high-density Northeast states: Rhode Island, Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York. The states provide over half of all public transportation trips in the U.S. The House bill would have made the money available to bus systems in all states.
A big shortcoming in the bill, though, is how it's all financed. The main source of revenue for transportation is the federal Highway Trust Fund, which comes mostly from the 18.4-cents-a-gallon gasoline tax. That tax hasn't been raised since 1993 even though transportation spending has increased. But raising the gas tax is viewed by many lawmakers as too politically risky.
To make up the shortfall, the bill uses $70 billion in mostly budget gimmicks, including one that would move $53 billion from the Federal Reserve Bank's capital account to the general treasury. It's counted as new money on paper, but is actually just a transfer of funds from one government account to another, federal budget experts said.
Other items in the bill also don't include the means to pay for them, including more than $10 billion over five years for Amtrak and other rail programs, $12 billion for mass transit and $1 billion for vehicle safety programs. The money for those programs remains subject to annual spending decisions by Congress.
Among the bill's losers are large banks, which would receive lower dividends from the Federal Reserve, with the savings used for transportation programs. Banking officials complained that banks shouldn't be asked to foot the bill for highways and bridges.
The bill also addresses several concerns raised by a deadly Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia in May. It provides $200 million to help passenger railroads install positive train control technology that accident investigators say could have prevented the derailment had it been in operation. It also raises the liability cap on total damages that can be awarded in such crashes from $200 million to $295 million. The derailment killed eight people and injured nearly 200 others.
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Star Wars attractions opening at Disney World



Star Wars attractions opening at Disney World



ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The Force is awakening a little early at Walt Disney World.

The Florida-based theme park resort is unveiling Friday new Star Wars entertainment two weeks ahead of the much-anticipated release of the movie, "Star Wars: The Force Awakens."

Some of the Star Wars attractions opened earlier this week at the resort's Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park.

Those include a courtyard filled with all-things Star Wars, a video game center, a movie theater showing abridged versions of the Star Wars movies and a motion simulator showing Star Wars locales and characters.

Starting next year, visitors also will get to see a Star Wars-themed firework show.

Both Disney World in Florida and Disneyland in California are planning Star Wars-themed lands in the near future.
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Grand Canyon seeks changes as more visitors use backcountry



Grand Canyon seeks changes as more visitors use backcountry





FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) — The Grand Canyon wants to change the way backcountry areas are managed as more outdoor enthusiasts take to the park's open spaces, with proposals that would require hikers using the most popular inner-canyon trails to spend a few dollars on a permit.

Millions of people visit the Grand Canyon each year, taking in the sweeping views from developed areas where they can stroll along the rim, grab a bite to eat and hop on a shuttle bus to other outlooks. Far fewer people venture into the 1.1 million acres that make up the backcountry, including trails below the canyon rim.

Park officials are trying to get a better handle on how many people are walking down trails such as Bright Angel and South Kaibab from the South Rim, and North Kaibab from the North Rim.

Three options for revising a 1988 backcountry management plan include a day-use permit for hiking more than 5 miles below the rim and paying a minimum $5 fee.

Park superintendent Dave Uberuaga said the system would allow hikers to read up on the weather, physical demands of hiking and traffic on the trail to improve their experience.

"Our intent is not to prevent them from doing it, and we're not talking about limits," he said Monday. "We're talking about educating them so they know what they're getting into."

The proposals for backcountry management also address more remote areas of the park and relatively new recreation activities such as canyoneering, climbing, rim-to-rim excursions and backpacking trips that require short travel on the Colorado River.

The proposals aim to reduce conflicts among outdoor groups seeking the solitude of the backcountry and to ensure the park's resources are protected. Between 30,000 and 35,000 people a year travel to areas that can take days or weeks to access.

Backcountry permits now don't identify when someone plans to go climbing or canyoneering, and the park has no policy on anchors placed into rocks or other gear.

Uberuaga said the park wants to monitor the use and be upfront with people on how those activities can be managed.

Last year, the Grand Canyon started requiring permits and a fee for groups of hikers and runners who publicly advertised a rim-to-rim trip to cut back on overcrowding on the trails, litter and safety issues.

The park's preferred option for the backcountry management plan includes reducing group sizes for overnight backpacking, developing more campsites and limiting commercially guided services.

Chris Forsyth, president of the Grand Canyon Hikers and Backpackers Association, said the group is still reviewing the proposals. But he said he's interested in knowing how backcountry permits might be divided between commercial guides and private backpackers, which could lead to the same kind of controversy seen with river trips. All applications are treated the same now.

"It seems that they're proposing to set aside more nights for guided hikes, and that seems an unnecessary distortion," he said.

A proposed pilot program also would allow seasonal access to a limited number of backpackers to a coveted area of canyons, buttes and a natural bridge beyond a formation known as the Great Thumb. Access has been limited by a nearby tribe.

Another option for the backcountry management plan is to leave things as is. The public has 90 days to comment on the proposals. Public meetings are planned Wednesday at the Grand Canyon and next Monday in Flagstaff.
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Analysts expect SeaWorld to change orca show at all its parks



Analysts expect SeaWorld to change orca show at all its parks







SeaWorld isn’t saying that it will phase out its One Ocean orca show in Orlando, as it will do a year from now at its San Diego park.
But according to analysts, the new direction in San Diego may well be the tip of the iceberg.
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Carillon carries on a tradition of pampering in Miami Beach


Carillon carries on a tradition of pampering in Miami Beach



I was maybe 60 minutes into a 100-minute deep-tissue thermal massage at the Carillon Miami Beach in early November when the obvious occurred to me.
I didn’t want this experience to end. Not in 40 minutes. Not for a long, long time.
I had already spent time inside a steam machine — a contraption that looks much like an MRI machine and circulates steam around your body — and was by then on my back, enjoying some more traditional work on my tight shoulders and neck. Relaxed by the steam treatment, however, they felt incredibly loose.
When I met later with Carillon Managing Director Lester Scott for cocktails and predinner appetizers, I told him how enjoyable the treatments had been. Yet he somehow seemed disappointed that I hadn’t chosen the floating Deep Sleep massage instead.
“You’ve got to try that,” Scott insisted.
Those treatments are among the 45 massage offerings available at Carillon’s 70,000-square-foot spa. The North Miami Beach hotel, which rebranded last January from its former identity as Canyon Ranch, prides itself on its complete suite of wellness offerings, which includes more than 40daily fitness classes as well as a juice bar staffed with its own nutritionist and even a climbing wall. Along with its gym and treatment rooms, the spa also has a men’s and women’s thermal room, where patrons can choose between a sauna, a whirlpool, a steam room, an herbal cold-water shower called an igloo and a laconium, which is essentially a warm, humid sitting room that isn’t as hot as a sauna or a steam room. The property even has a physician in house.
During my one-night visit to the Carillon, where I stayed as an invited guest, I took full advantage of the spa. But the three-building complex, which sits along 750 feet of beachfront, has plenty more to offer. The 150 guestrooms, all of them spacious suites complete with kitchens, are located in the center building and share the Carillon property with 580 condos. Three outdoor pools, a bar and an oceanfront terrace are among the other offerings.
Open since October is Thyme, an American restaurant with Asian influences that promises an ever-changing menu with a focus on seasonal ingredients. During a dinner feast, among the courses I enjoyed were grass-fed beef tenderloin, ahi tuna tartar and mushroom risotto.
Scott said that the Carillon has been busy trying to forge its own identity since the rebranding took place at the start of the year. The first step was returning to the complex’s original name. Beginning in 1958, the Carillon offered a cabaret bar that was frequented by such luminaries as Frank Sinatra and his Rat Pack cohorts, who would make the 25-block trek north after performing at Miami Beach’s Fontainebleau.
But Carillon’s biggest departure from Canyon Ranch will take place in May when an $18 million to $25 million renovation gets underway. Scheduled to last until December, it will include the opening of the Tambourine Bar & Lounge, named after the old cabaret lounge, and a reconfiguring of the restaurant and lobby areas.
The result, said Scott, will be public areas that open seamlessly to the adjacent beach.
“We want to bring the outdoors in and the indoors out,” he said of the renovation.

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Journey Mexico launches villa program, site



Journey Mexico launches villa program, site






Mexican luxury travel company Journey Mexico recently added a component to its line of authentic travel offerings, one that expanded the operator's already in-depth portfolio of customized tour and small-group programs, private jet and yacht excursions that cover Mexico from the Mayan ruins to the Sea of Cortes and from the Copper Canyon to the Magic Towns and many luxury haciendas, markets and resorts on and off the beaten path.

The new component features more than 100 villas and private residences as part of Journey Mexico's new villa program, spearheaded by Sean Emmerton, an industry veteran who has worked in executive posts at hotels in England, Hawaii and Los Cabos and was instrumental in the development of the Los Cabos Tourism Board.

He also created the rental program for prospective villa buyers at Villa Del Mar and ran it for 15 years before it was brought in house prior to Hurricane Odile in Los Cabos in September 2014.


"Journey Mexico had rented villas several times for clients through Villa Del Mar, one of the villa companies that Journey Mexico had in its portfolio," Emmerton said. "After Odile, Zachary Rabinor [president of Journey Mexico] and I joined together to support the company's new villa rental program. Today, Journey Mexico has villas in Los Cabos, Punta Mita, Puerto Vallarta, San Miguel de Allende, Tulum and the Riviera Maya with more coming on board all the time."

He estimated 40 to 50 more by the end of the year.

"In 2016, we will have 200-plus villas in our collection," he said.



Journey Mexico's goal in this venture is to support the growing demand for villa rental requests while combining its knowledge and expertise of private deluxe touring and in-country ground operations, according to Emmerton.

"What makes [our] villa program unique is that we are based in Mexico and have many years' experience understanding the variety of destinations and unique cultural aspects for each area of the country,"
Emmerton said. "There's a big demand for villa rentals with stunning accommodations and flawless service."

Joining Emmerton in this venture is his son Hunter, who serves as villa sales manager.

Together, the two of them seek out villas as they continue to expand a selective portfolio of Mexico's private properties that meet Journey Mexico's criteria and standards. 

While on scouting missions for prospective additions to the villa portfolio, Emmerton often is accompanied by several top-producing luxury agents whose opinions frequently form part of the villa vetting process.

"The program has been received very well and the response has been amazing," Emmerton said. "There's demand on both ends, from homeowners who want their villas in our program and from upscale customers who more and more desire this type of accommodation."


Journey Mexico's villa criteria and standards are high, both for those properties that want to get into the program and for the properties already in it that want to remain in the collection.

Villas must be fully staffed. Homeowners and/or management companies must be able to take care of all prearrival needs, such as stocking the pantry with grocery items.

"We want our clients to be as comfortable in the villas as in a five-star hotel. We want it to be as easy to book a villa as a hotel suite in regard to deposit and cancellation processes," Emmerton said.

Villas range in size from three bedrooms to a 12-bedroom unit in Punta Mita that rents for $10,000 to $25,000 per night, depending upon time of year and number of people, he said.

Even the larger villas are rented only to one party at a time.

"Sometimes we run into clients, just two of them, who want to rent a six-bedroom villa," he said. "All clients want privacy, comfort and unobtrusive service."

The villa minimum-stay requirement depends on the destination. On the Riviera Maya, for example, it is five to seven nights most of the time.

What are the hot villa destinations?

"Tulum is very up and coming. More travelers are aware of Tulum," Emmerton said. "It's rarely crowded and does not have the frenzy of Cancun. The beaches are stunning. It's an ecoconscious area with a biosphere, no mass construction, lots of dirt roads and still is a very natural habitat."

Careyes, a small beachfront community along Costa Alegre in Jalisco state, known for its untouched natural surroundings, luxury accommodations and the warmth of its people, "is a stunning destination. We use the seven villas with 16 suites at Las Alamandas. Guests love it there," Emmerton said.

Four villas and nine casitas at Cuixmala, designed in a Moorish architectural style, are on the grounds of the former estate of a British billionaire. The estate also includes a beach, jungle and nature preserve. 

Cuixmala, which is located south of Puerto Vallarta, did have some minor damage from Hurricane Patricia but is expected to reopen on Dec. 15, according to Rabinor.

Emmerton described Cuixmala and the surrounding area as "untouched Mexico. This entire area is going to explode."

Emmerton has a soft spot for Los Cabos. "I worked there, I lived there and I'll always love it. Our clients love it, too. We get a lot of requests for villa rentals in Cabo and in Punta Mita."

The majority of Journey Mexico's bookings come in through agents.

"We work with a number of top agents, who are very loyal to us. Our villa rental program is brand new, but we've got great bookings already and we expect a good year as well in 2016," Emmerton said.

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