QUONOCHAONTAUG, Rhode Island – Being the smallest state in our country, Rhode Island never seems to get the attention it deserves. Boardwalks are just literally planks on the sand, its beaches are some of the best in the country, and the coast has managed to stay unspoiled. Seafood is obviously the name of the game, but the state's strong Portuguese influence and Native American roots are evident in many dishes. Anywhere you go you are sure to hear that distinctive Rhode Island accent, which turns a party into a potty.
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Little Black Book: Coastal Rhode Island | FATHOM New England Travel Guides and Travel Blog:
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Thursday, August 30, 2012
This is a great artice: Our Favorite Hotel Perks Around the World
Our Favorite Hotel Perks Around the World | Travel News from Fodor's Travel Guides:
"It's the little things, right? Free WiFi, great in-room coffee, or an on-time courtesy shuttle can be all it takes to start a holiday off on the right foot. But there are some hotel perks that truly wow; they're out of the ordinary bonuses that you'll never forget. And having traveled and trekked around quite a bit, we've come to find an esteemed group of hotels, both big and boutique, that deliver more than just a key and directions to the elevator bank at check-in. These are the little additions we'd write home about. (Or, you know, update our Facebook statuses about, since that WiFi's free.)"
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"It's the little things, right? Free WiFi, great in-room coffee, or an on-time courtesy shuttle can be all it takes to start a holiday off on the right foot. But there are some hotel perks that truly wow; they're out of the ordinary bonuses that you'll never forget. And having traveled and trekked around quite a bit, we've come to find an esteemed group of hotels, both big and boutique, that deliver more than just a key and directions to the elevator bank at check-in. These are the little additions we'd write home about. (Or, you know, update our Facebook statuses about, since that WiFi's free.)"
Cookies
The clever minds at DoubleTree Hotels have worked out a simple extra that proves the way to a traveler's heart is through their stomach. In response to guests arriving tired and hungry, someone with a sweet tooth (and good taste in treats) formulated a signature chocolate chip cookie to perk up each guest at check-in. This was 1987. Twenty-five years later, over 10,000,000 cookies are handed over each year across the brand's 200 hotels worldwide. Bonus, the cookies are always served warm for that just-out-of-the-oven, gooey appeal.
Insider Tip: The cookies are so popular, there's an entire website devoted to them. By the way, if you search for the secret recipe online, we're pretty sure you'll be able to find it (but you didn't hear that from us).
Beach Drop-Off
When you visit the same hotels as Oprah, it's pretty much guaranteed that they'll have billionaire perks. Such is the case with Qualia, the exclusive adult hideaway she visited on Hamilton Island during her 2011 Australia tour. The plush perk (aside from a sparkling glass of Veuve Cliquot at check-in and included breakfast overlooking the Great Barrier Reef) is a private beach drop-off to one of six secluded beaches in the nearby Whitsunday Islands. Bathing suits are optional, just make sure you're wearing them when the pick-up arrives.
Insider Tip: Every room comes with a personal golf cart if that's how you like to roll.
Hot Chocolate Wake-Up Call
Alarm clocks are for amateurs. Cradled in a king bed under a luxury tent pitched on the plains of Kenya's Masai Mara, daybreak is announced by the Fairmont Mara Safari Club's wake-up concierge bearing the gift of hot chocolate (or coffee or tea, if you must) and a biscuit. Before you can even open your eyes and say thank you, the wake-up fairy is off to her next good deed. Bless her soul, waking up just got a lot easier.
Local Breakfast
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and when a hotel can meet that need with a frothy cappuccino, freshly-chopped fruit salad, and a just-baked croissant or pain au chocolate (or both!) delivered daily from a nearby French bakery, they should win some sort of 'breakfast of champions' prize. Such a start can be found at a small boutique hotel, aptly named Le Petit Hotel, fronting Montreal's oldest street.
Insider Tip: Since we're talking extras, every room comes with a multi-jet shower and a salon hairdryer (upon request from the female owner).
Foot Massage
A foot massage is heavenly any day, but when you've been banging your heels along the steamy streets of Bangkok, the included foot rub at the Lit Hotel is as refreshing as sitting under the shade of a banana palm dipping your toes into freshwater lagoon in the foothills of Phuket.
Insider Tip: The same hotel offers a daily allowance of included mini bar snacks, a full breakfast, an uber-modern infinity pool, WiFi, and coffee pod machine in the lobby. Just in case that foot rub wasn't enough of an extra for you.
Puppy Perks
With daily wine hours and a multitude of other extra touches, humans are treated well at Kimpton Hotels; so is man's best friend. No matter how many Fidos you have in tow, dogs are always free (some hotels charge up to $60 per night per dog), and what's more, each pup gets a treat upon arrival, a welcome message on a 'doggy board' in the lobby, a comfy dog bed, bowls, and a special 'do not disturb' canine sign to hang on the door.
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Six Flags Great Adventure To Combine Safari, Amusement & Water Parks To Become World's Biggest Theme Park
Six Flags Great Adventure To Combine Safari, Amusement & Water Parks To Become World's Biggest Theme Park:
"Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey is combining its animal safari with its amusement park into a single attraction, the company said Thursday.
The drive-thru safari in Jackson Township, about 50 miles southwest of New York City, is ending Sept. 30. Next year, guests will be driven through a revamped safari area on park-provided open-air vehicles."
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"Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey is combining its animal safari with its amusement park into a single attraction, the company said Thursday.
The drive-thru safari in Jackson Township, about 50 miles southwest of New York City, is ending Sept. 30. Next year, guests will be driven through a revamped safari area on park-provided open-air vehicles."
The current Wild Safari attraction will undergo a massive renovation after it closes its gates for the 2012 season this fall. There will be a redesign of various simulated natural habitats and the creation of Camp Aventura, the main stop along the off-road excursion.
One of the main differences between the current drive-thru safari and next year's attraction will be the ability to see some of the more popular animals more closely, park spokeswoman Kristin Siebeneicher said.
Siebeneicher said the largest theme park in the world currently is Disney's Animal Kingdom, one of four theme parks in Disney World, at 500 acres. Six Flags Great Adventure will be 510, she said.
The park's Hurricane Harbor, a stand-alone park with a separate admission price, will also add Big Wave Racer, a massive new water slide ride.
Siebeneicher would not say how much the publicly traded company is spending on the changes.
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Wayne Parry can be reached at http://twitter.com/WayneParryAC
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Friday, August 24, 2012
Islands Magazine Digital - 8 Free Issues
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