What's New

Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Carolina Pirola

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MAKE OUT
Just like Kristen Wiig and Fabrizio Moretti did at the W Union Square. The comedian and The Strokes’ drummer were seen “literally on top of each other” at Lilium, the hotel’s new club. [Hotel Chatter]

STUN
Your friends at the next dinner party with your ski trivia. The New York Times published a couple dozen fun facts about the winter’s favorite sport. Ever wonder how many ski-in/ski-out Starbucks there are in America? [NY Times]

WIN
A nude wedding in Jamaica. Jamaica adults-only resort Hedonism II is now taking applications from couples who want to tie the knot nude on TV. You could win a free wedding and a four-day honeymoon in Negril. [Go Classy Tours]

PICK
Your seatmate on your next flight based on similar interests. Dutch airline KLM is launching a service that will let passengers who check-in online tap their social media accounts and pick their seatmate. So many creepy (and love?) stories can come out of this initiative… [USA Today]

WISH
Jon Toubin a prompt recovery. A cab plowed through the wall of the New York DJ’s hotel room in Portland while he was sleeping. He is in critical condition. [Oregon Live]

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Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Carolina Pirola

Atlantic Ocean, Beach at the One and Only Ocean Club, Bahamas

BREAK
The piggy bank and get a close-up of the Titanic on its centennial. A company is offering a private dive in a tiny submersible for $60,000. The price includes a two-and-a-half week cruise and one eight- to 10-hour dive with two other people. [NY Times]

STAY
At a former Iraq prison camp. Iraqi developers are revamping former US military bases and prisons, and turning them into business accommodations. Homey and cozy? Probably not. Cheap? You wish– Rooms at Camp Bucca start at $190 per night. [Hotel Chatter]

WAKE UP
Your senses with a unique blindfolded dining experience. Paris restaurant ‘Dans Le Noir’, opening in New York on December 9, serves guests a surprise tasting menu in a completely dark room to “re-educate [their] palates and minds”. Prices start at $49 per person without wine. [Dans Le Noir]

RECONSIDER
What you pack next time you have to fly. An airline baggage handler tells what goes on behind the scenes (and how and why your luggage is battered) while you absentmindedly sip a can of soda at the boarding gate. Tip: You might want to take carry-on only. [Fox News]

SPICE UP
Your relaxing baths this Christmas. The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel’s hip Spare Room has teamed up with an upscale local pharmacist to create a limited edition of exclusive cocktail-scented bath products. Gin tonic bath salts, anyone? [Grub Street LA]

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Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Carolina Pirola

The ice rink at The Standard New York just opened for the season

FLOOD
Please don’t stop the music, but please do stop the bath taps. Singer Rihanna forgot to turn off the faucets in her tub and flooded her $3,000-a-night suite at The Savoy in London. The room was damaged, but reparable, an inside source said. [Hotel Chatter]

FORGET
Booking a crammed, $400 hotel room with a shared bathroom during the 2012 Olympics in London. All About Space plans to pitch tents build pop-up rooms in a park during the event to solve the problem of hotel room shortages and soaring prices. It’s only for companies, though, so better start bugging your boss. [London Evening Standard]

TAKE
A break. Two surveys show the average US worker leaves 6.2 days of paid vacation unused every year. If you’re having trouble deciding what your next destination should be, Oyster can help you. [USA Today]

DISCOVER
Your inner travel nerd. A travel blog put together a list of 50 signs that make you a real travel geek, such as dialing 9 even when at home or having SIM cards for multiple countries. No need to mention we checked off more than just a few of those, right? [Tripbase Blog]

SKATE
Your Christmas away at The Standard New York. The hotel just announced the opening of its winter ice rink and Alpine-themed après-skate food stand, serving hot apple cider, waffles, wine and crepes. [The Standard]

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Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Carolina Pirola

Tryst at Wynn Las Vegas, where Prince Harry was spotted dancing last Saturday with a mystery woman

PARTY
Like a prince. Princess Diana’s younger son Prince Harry partied hard in Vegas last weekend, and he chose some of the top hotel clubs for boozing (and at one, dancing real close with a mystery woman!). [USA Today]

HATE
These airports. CNN published a list of the airports that re-enact your worst travel nightmares. From Paris to New York to Kathmandu, not one continent is free of traveler-hate. [CNN]

DONATE
Your sundries to the troops. All the TSA-rejected toiletries that pile up at McCarran International in Las Vegas will now be donated to the troops passing through. So now when your favorite perfume/hair conditioner/insert your liquid or gel product here gets taken from you, you can feel a little bit better about it. We’re glad our troops are going to smell nice. [FOX]

NAME
Your kid after a hotel. We learn this week that Director Ron Howard’s twin daughters have Carlyle as their middle name after the homonymous hotel in NYC, where they were conceived. His daughter and ‘The Help’ star Bryce Dallas Howard thinks that’s “completely gross”. [Hotel Chatter]

LEARN
About America’s favorite meal with George Motz. ‘Made In America’ host confirmed he’s “deep in production” of his new hamburger television show for Travel Channel. No word yet on when it will be aired. [Eater]

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Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Hilary Walke

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SPOT
Beyonce and her pregnant belly were spotted at the Standard in New York shooting photos in the rain. Of course, the 5-month pregnant star makes everything chic — umbrella, baby bump, and all. [Hotel Chatter]

IMPRESS
A Marriott hotel worker quit his job at a Marriott Renaissance hotel in Providence, R.I. with the help of a marching band. What a way to go. [YouTube]

BASK
Without breaking the bank. Here are some of the best, affordable hotels around the world. Luxury included. [Yahoo! Travel]

BEWARE
Blue The Dog, who has been awaiting his death sentence to be appealed while locked up in the Albany Pet Hotel, has miraculously escaped just in time. [AP]

PLAY
Kids nagging you for a fun family getaway? These 5 overnight trips will not only satisfy your child, it will satisfy your inner-child as well. [CNN]

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Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Hilary Walke

PREPARE
To be slightly uncomfortable. Gordon Ramsay’s new reality TV show on Fox, Hotel Hell, will show audiences the ins and outs of struggling hotels – think moldy bathrooms and dirty kitchens. Very Oyster-esque. [Boston Globe]

PLAY
Starting October 3, The Four Seasons LA will have iPad2s installed in every room. Guests will be able to make restaurant reservations, order room service, book massage at the spa, put in housekeeping requests and call up their Porsche from valet, all through the iPad. [Hotel Chatter]

LAMENT
Over the money you’ve spent on “hotel fees”. A recent study revealed that U.S. hotels will earn a record $1.8 billion in fees and surcharges this year. Shocking, but true — unfortunately. [USA Today]

LEARN
Barcelona hosted its last bullfight this past Sunday. At the end of an era, the Catalonia region celebrates animal rights. [CNN]

LAUGH
Lady Gaga’s PR reps have majorly downplayed reports that the star actually didn’t switch hotels in Las Vegas because she wanted a private pool. She allegedly “doesn’t care about that stuff.” [SF Gate]

All products are independently selected by our writers and editors. If you buy something through our links, Oyster may earn an affiliate commission.

Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Hilary Walke

The Deluxe Room at the Four Seasons Boston

SPREAD THE LOVE
Get ready for National Love Note Day. On September 26, The Four Seasons Boston will help you feel loved with its Room for Romance package. You’ll find a love note featuring different quotes from a famous author, song lyrics or even movie quotes on the bed at turndown. [Hotel Chatter]

CELEBRATE
With Aloft Hotels. The hotel chain has now passed its 50th hotel milestone, with its recent openings in Brooklyn, Shangjie, Haiyang, and Singanallur. Their current number is 52, to be exact. [Starwood]

MAKE A WISH
Melia International’s new quirky social media campaign invites Facebook fans to tell them their dreams. The company plans to decorate a room with a mural based on the best submissions. [Tnooz]

COOL DOWN
These hot summer destinations have a catch: they’re better in the fall. [Huffington Post]

WATCH
An idea come to life. Bronx officials say Yankee Stadium needs an upscale hotel and conference center, where visiting teams would even stay instead of always heading to a glitzy hotel in Manhattan. [USA Today]

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Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Hilary Walke

PROTEST
Thousands of hotel workers are picketing, protesting, and striking against Hyatt Hotels Corporation in four cities nationwide — Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Honolulu. The working conditions have been citedas “deplorable”, as employees’ contracts expired in San Francisco in August 2009, in Los Angeles in November 2009, and in Honolulu in June 2010. [Huffington Post]

BURN
While many think of gaining calories when it comes to room service, the trend now-a-days is lose, lose, lose. These days, people request yoga mats, workout videos, treadmills and recumbent bicycles (yes, really — they fold). [FOX]

DIVORCE
We know, it sounds weird. But it is. Need a nice place to get divorced? Try the new Divorce Hotel in Holland, where couples who have a common interest — luxury hotels — can go to have a 3-day, lawyer-free divorce in an amicable environment. [The World]

RECLINE
Or not. Apparently, reclining one’s seat on a flight is considered rude and uncouth. Do you recline as a right of passage or as a luxury? [Huffington Post]

SPOOK
This Halloween, Loews Hotels are offering a “Spooky Suite” package where guests can mask themselves in specialty costumes from Party City. Party City’s Costume Concierge will assist in styling adults, children and pets from an exclusive Costume Catalogue. [PR Newswire]

All products are independently selected by our writers and editors. If you buy something through our links, Oyster may earn an affiliate commission.

Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Hilary Walke

Bathroom in The Superior Room at the Bryant Park Hotel

CLEANSE
And feel good about it — physically and mentally. Because travelers are demanding greener options in hotels, the mini-plastic-toiletry-bottles trend is rapidly on its way out. Hotels are replacing them with larger bottles. [USA Today]

MOBILIZE
If you haven’t been a victim of baggage-loss, consider yourself lucky. For the rest of us — your mobile device has never come more in handy. A new service will give passengers real-time baggage status updates via their device of choice. [Tnooz]

LOOK OUT
For the third time since July, windows at The Four Seasons Seattle have shattered. Thankfully, nobody has been hurt, but glass awning at the entrance of the hotel is cracked and a car was slightly damaged. [Hotel Chatter]

BURN
Looking to shed some lb’s while your at your hotel? You should look towards the Sheraton. Sheraton Hotels & Resorts Worldwide today announced the official launch of Sheraton Fitness Programmed by Core Performance, the brand’s revolutionary new health and fitness program. [Market Watch]

APPLAUD
A baby was born on an Alitalia flight. Seriously. [Huffington Post]

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Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Hilary Walke

Entrance at the Gansevoort Park Avenue, New York City

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WATCH
Kim and Kourtney Kardashian have settled on their new living accommodations for their upcoming show Kourtney and Kim Take New York. The $7,000-a-night Gansevoort Park Avenue New York City penthouse suite is quite the upgrade from the just $3,000-a-night suite at the Smyth from last season. [Page Six, New York Post]

BORROW
Just because you’re traveling doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice your jewelry fashion, anymore. Thanks to LA’s Fred Segal partnering with Loews Santa Monica, guests who book the hotel’s Suite Deal promotion can choose from a collection of jewelery, books, purses, scarves, sunglasses and other “must-have” accessories to borrow during their stay. [Hotel Chatter]

STAY
Acclaimed Mexican hotelier Carlos Couturier is opening his first U.S. hotel in New York City’s stylish Chelsea neighborhood. With just 56 rooms, Hôtel Americano will have many chic food and drink outlets such as a rooftop patio, pool, restaurant and basement lounge. Apparently, the hotel has started taking reservations for Sept. 5. [USA. Today]

SCOLD
A woman trying to board a plane to China was caught smuggling two small parrots, one taped to her chest and one to her leg. She was arrested by Fish and Wildlife Service officers and charged with smuggling goods and the exportation of an endangered species. [Huffington Post Travel]

LAUGH
Controversial comedian Sacha Baron Cohen, best known as “Borat”, has been spending a lot of his time at The Roosevelt Hotel NYC, shooting scenes for his next movie, The Dictator. The movie will be loosely based on the life of Saddam Hussein. [Hotel Chatter]

All products are independently selected by our writers and editors. If you buy something through our links, Oyster may earn an affiliate commission.

Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Hilary Walke

GO TOPLESS
L.A.’s London Hotel has a new “topless” package — which includes the use of a new Mustang convertible. Available from Sept. 1 to Oct. 31, the package is the perfect opportunity to cruise down the nearby Sunset Strip in this hot ride. [USA Today]

SMILE
You’re on Oyster.com. The New York Times’ front page article revealed that businesses have allegedly been paying fibbers and promoters to write reviews in their favor. [The New York Times]

SPACE OUT
A new hotel will surely exceed any existing ocean-view suite in the hotel industry. Floating 217 miles above earth, a new space hotel is set to launch in 2016. Talk about a view. It will have room for a total of 7 guests, who will all be required to take a training course prior to embarking on their space journey. [Reuters]

EAT
Or should you? Michael Jordan’s Steak House opens today in the Intercontinental Chicago, his first restaurant since his failed Michael Jordan’s Restaurant closed, unlamented. There’s a chopped salad that boasts 23 ingredients, and a 23-layer chocolate cake on the dessert list. Guess why? [Chicago Tribune]

BATHE
And relax. Your skin is in good hands if you stay at any Four Seasons hotel — the luxury chain is switching to all paraben-free toiletries. The hotel will stick with L’Occitane products, but is switching to the brand’s new line as it sheds parabens from all of its products. [USA Today]

All products are independently selected by our writers and editors. If you buy something through our links, Oyster may earn an affiliate commission.

Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Hilary Walke

Lobby at The Ritz-Carlton Marina Del Rey

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Hotels in this story

The Ritz-Carlton, Marina del Rey

Chelsea Hotel

RESCUE
A stolen $250,000 Rembrandt etching known as “The Judgment” that disappeared from an exhibit in the Ritz Carlton Marina Del Rey lobby on Saturday was found this morning in Encino, California. Someone’s got The-Thomas-Crown-Affair-syndrome. [ABC]

REUSE
Rick Kelly, owner of Carmine Street Guitars, picked up wood beams that Hotel Chelsea discarded over a year and a half ago. He makes guitars out of hotel scraps. [Racked]

DRESS TO IMPRESS
Want to be upgraded to first-class, for free? Apparently you need to be wearing a suit. [USA Today]

BEWARE
If you don’t want to get groped on an airplane, sleep with one eye open. Ramesh Advani, who admitted to groping a fellow passenger on a Continental flight last year, was sentenced Monday to spend a year in jail. [AOL Travel]

STAY
New York City is getting its tallest hotel yet. Courtyard and Residence Inn brands are joining forces to form a single 752-foot tall hotel, in late 2013 on 54th and Broadway. [Gadling]

All products are independently selected by our writers and editors. If you buy something through our links, Oyster may earn an affiliate commission.

Travel Tuesday: What’s New?

See recent posts by Hilary Walke

WATCH
Rumor has it the Entourage boys are staying in the Gable Lombard Penthouse Suite at the Hollywood Roosevelt. Three full-size bedrooms, a full-sized kitchen, vaulted ceilings, 1,500sq.ft. of roof deck space underneath the Hollywood Roosevelt sign, and a built-in surround system, among many other amenities are included in this bad boy. [Hotel Chatter]

SMILE
Hate that first travel day when all you seem to do is miss your stop, lose your way, get caught in a downpour, all while jet-lagged? The New York Times helps us cheer up from those first 24-hour travel blues. [New York Times]

BEWARE
Next time you snuggle up in a comfy hotel robe think twice before taking it with you upon check out — a small but growing number of hotels are starting to use new radio frequency chips to keep track of their inventory. [USA Today]

LAUGH
Seems like ordinary people aren’t the only ones being laid off these days. John Travolta, whose three-minute safety cameo has been shown on every Qantas flight for the last five months, has been canned. [CNN]

FLY
Relax, Yahoo! brings us the safest airports in America — and we’re at an all-time high. Last year’s accident rate was 0.61 percent—one for every 1.6 million flights. [Yahoo! Travel]

All products are independently selected by our writers and editors. If you buy something through our links, Oyster may earn an affiliate commission.

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