Travel iPhone Apps :: StayHIP

I know you're hip, you know you're hip and my mom knows you're hip.  You're the type who flies Virgin America's first class (or who wants to), tweets while at 35,000 ft and orders a G+T (hold the lime) in-flight.  But, could your cool cat-ness be threatened by a chain hotel stay when you're lounging in S. Beach next month? Pas de problème, the StayHIP iPhone App rescues you from the mundane and transports you into boutique hotel bliss for over 40 countries worldwide.  Search boutique hotels in your destination by your flavor of the month: beach, industrial, lux, urban, chill, etc... to find the right place, the right crowd and the right vibe. Using the app, i just found a great hotel in Miami for June 2 - 4, that's close to the beach, has a coffee shop, bar, health club, pool and restaurant for $84/night.  Don't worry, I knew you'd ask, it does allow small pets.

StayHIP App Details

• free
• works with iPhone, iTouch and iPad
• find and book boutique hotels
• search by current location, destination, date or keywords
• browse amenities, rooms, prices, pictures
• compare hotel locations on google maps
• in-app secure booking

Other Travel iPhone Apps we’ve Reviewed

• Trip Journal
• Bug Spray
• CameraBag
• Convert Everything
• GateGuru
• Kindle for iPhone
• Packing Pro
• Skype
• World Fact Book
• AAA/CAA Savings
• Royal Caribbean
• Medical Concierge
• Tourism British Columbia :: Near Me BC
• Postman Postcard
• 2010 Guide
• Nat’l Geo World Atlas
• hostelworld.com
• kayak first class
• flight control (game)

Wine Touring 101

[trip style = wine tasting]

Wine tasting season is here! In North America, some key tasting states and provinces include: California, Washington, Oregon, BC and Ontario. To make the most of these unique wine-making regions, a tasting plan-of-attack will help you tour like an apprentice sommelier.  Here's how:

Do

• See a variety of wineries: small, med and big.  This will give you a well-rounded "taste" of wine-making.
• Take time to talk to the Host/Vintner.  Learning from their passion seems to make the wine taste better.
• Vary your experience.  At some wineries take the tour, at others talk at length to the host (if they are not too busy) and at others enjoy the grounds.
• Savor the experience.  Don't just taste to taste, try to learn.  *Usually* the more you find out, the more appreciation you gain for that "zin."
• Heed wine-tasting etiquette.
• Bring cash for your tastings, most cost between $5-20/person. Note that most wineries allow you to share a tasting.
• Consider alternate forms of transport: Limo, Bike, etc...
• Choose your plan of attack - either be spontaneous or plan your journey.  This point is especially true if you only have an afternoon or a short 2-3 day tasting window.
• Eat plenty of food, or bring some---like crackers---with you to eat in between.
• Get recommendations from your hotel's concierge or neighboring wineries about others you'd enjoy.

Don't

• Use wine tasting as an opportunity to drink 'for the sake of it.'
• Only see one type of winery. Further to the tip above, touring different types---region, varietal, size, philosophy---provides an education that deepens your appreciation and understanding for the process of wine-making and drinking.
• Drive after seeing multiple wineries and tasting multiple varietals.
• Drink the 'wine' from the big barrels near the tasting bars: that's wine and spit.
• Wear white clothing.  Due to over-aggressive swirling, I know someone whose pinot noir 'taste' went on their white t-shirt rather than into their mouth.
• Swirl rose or bubbly.

[all pictures my own, taken in sonoma]

Hot for Hotwire

This month we've devoted a few posts to blind booking sites like Hotwire and Priceline, as well as a few other newcomers like Travelocity's Top Secret Hotels and Last Minute Vacation's Undercover Hotels.  Poor Hotwire was lacking some dedicated Trip Styler love, so here are a few of our hottest Hotwire tricks-of-the-trade, but first, a little background: Hotwire Hotwire is a leader in the 'Undercover' travel booking genre, in fact, according to Tnooz (via hitwise), each month it's always jockeying for the leading position in the web's top 10 travel agencies.  The site provides two booking methods: traditional, and blind.  Cars, flights, vacations and cruises fall into the traditional category, and hotels the blind category.

Hotels When 3- and 4-star hotels have unsold rooms, they use Hotwire to fill them. The result? Hotwire makes money and you spend less.  Here's how their hotel bookings work: traveler searches a hotel for the star class and amenities they want, yet can't see its exact location or brand. See example below searching for a hotel in Wailea, Maui for a stay this week: Once you find the hotel selection you're happy with, you book it and find out the name and exact location after you've confirmed the purchase.

Not a Risk Using Hotwire is not a risk, it's an educated risk. Since Hotwire launched some 10 years ago, sites like BetterBidding.com and BiddingforTravel.com have minimized 'the blind' risk by providing Hotwire (and Priceline) enthusiasts the opportunity to enter their 'win' details so that others can figure out what hotel they are probably going to get in that city/area.

The Secret(s) Hotels with whom Hotwire maintains relationships are not random, but predictable. Whether it's a 3-star in Austin, Texas or a 4-star in Vancouver, BC, chances are, there will be precedent indicating the selection you're likely to get. Also, keep in mind that Hotwire tends to work with larger hotel groups, so if you're looking for a boutique hotel, you'll need to book elsewhere.

My Super Hotwire Wins One of my recent Hotwire 'super' wins was in Venice this past fall.  I selected a 4-star hotel for around $100 and got the Hilton Molino Stucky, complete with a lovely room, roof-top pool and water shuttle to and from St. Mark's square.  I know the hotel retailed for MUCH more than we paid.  See the review I posted to Trip Advisor here.

People Who use Hotwire - Is it Right for You? People who like their ducks in a row, aren't always fans of this 'blind booking' travel site because they'd prefer to know their hotel and its exact location on-demand.  Fair enough.  On the other end of the spectrum, suspense-loving, risk-takers don't mind---even enjoy--- the hotel surprise at the end of the rainbow.  I'm somewhere in the middle. Over the past 7 years there are times I've used Hotwire and times I haven't depending on the nature of the trip.  Are you willing to take the educated risk?

Travel Trend :: Plan my Trip

The way we book travel has evolved once again. First there were travel agents. Then there were online DIY travel agencies. Now there's a hyrbid of the two. Recently a few travel sites have surfaced offering agent-planned itineraries based on travel seeker specifications. The catch: agents/agencies bid for your business.

How it works

• Travel seeker goes to the agent trip planning site
• Enters travel preferences: dates, destination, departure city, interests, etc...(in your own words & using check boxes)
• Preferences are reviewed and itineraries put together by travel agents and tour operators
• Trip plans are then submitted to traveller
• Traveller purchases best plan and bookings are made

3 Personalized Trip Planning Sites Catching my Eye - Zicasso - Tripology - Offer Me a Trip (coming soon, but here's the development site)

Save to Splurge or Splurge to Save

Should we save to splurge, or splurge to save?  Luxury travel or budget travel? Or Both? Both Each trip we take tends to be different; each has a varied trip style. Saving to splurge or splurging to save are both good strategies---assuming you're not overextending yourself financially to do so. One strategy propels the other. Saving isn't that much of a sacrifice either, it still means you can travel by doing things like camp, stay overnight in a close-to-home destination or day trip. Then you've saved, enjoyed yourself in the process and get to splurge.

Splurge to Save Let's say you save for a year to go to the Maldives. Because you're a savvy traveler you book your entire trip with your travel rewards credit card, stay at a hotel in your destination whose loyalty program you belong to, and fly there with your preferred airline alliance.  The result?  Your next trip is partially paid for. This 'bonus' allows you to indulge in another, perhaps simpler, trip style sooner than later because of all the points accumulated in the Maldives adventure.

How Travel credit card: you book the entire Maldives trip on your travel credit card, which gives you enough points/dollars to pay for a night or two at a hotel on a weekend getaway.

Airline alliance: you book all your flights to and from the Maldives with your preferred airline alliance, gaining enough miles to put toward a future trip. Let's say you left from Vancouver, Canada (YVR) and flew to Male, Maldives (MLE): your approximate return mileage would be 17,000 miles, which is 8000 miles short of a 'free trip' (depending on the airline rewards chart) in the continental US or Canada.

Hotel loyalty program: you choose a hotel in the Maldives that's part of your preferred hotel group, allowing you to accumulate rewards towards food and beverage certificates, third night free, room upgrades, etc...