Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for U.S. travel
Getting Back Into Dodge
By Linda Tancs
The Old West town of Dodge City, Kansas inevitably evokes images of saloons and shootouts. The violent history underlying the early settlement of Boot Hill, in particular, can be imagined while strolling through the old cemetery and its memorials to cowboys both known and unknown. Given its legendary past, it’s easy to understand why the denizens of the day would be eager to get out of Dodge. Today all that gore gives way to gaming with Boot Hill’s casino and resort, the first state-owned and operated gambling hall in Kansas. Phase 1 of the project now offers 580 slot machines and thirteen table games including such standards as blackjack, craps, roulette and poker. Phase 2 of the resort, slated for a December 2011 opening, will feature a hotel, day spa, two more restaurants and lounges, and more game space to lose–er, donate–your cash. A veritable hodgepodge to get you back into Dodge.
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The author has not received any compensation for writing this content and has no material connection to the brands, topics, products and/or services that are mentioned herein.
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The Beauty of Late Ice
By Linda Tancs
Anglers in training take note: if ice fishing seems out of sync with winter’s transition to spring, then you’ll be missing out on some great catch, especially around Oconomowoc, Wisconsin’s lake district. Don’t worry about sledding into thin ice at the river’s heartland to jig for bluegill. Life is returning to the shallows, and so are the fish. That means you should, too.
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Weightless in Seattle
By Linda Tancs
If Virgin Galactic’s $200k price tag is a bit steep to indulge your taste for weightless travel, then consider Zero G, a company offering you a series of parabolic arcs aboard a modified Boeing 727 to create a weightless environment. Think of it as the adult version of a kiddie bounce house. Flight locations include Las Vegas, Cape Canaveral, Titusville, Seattle, Los Angeles, New York and Washington, DC. Put a little spring in your step.
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The author has not received any compensation for writing this content and has no material connection to the brands, topics, products and/or services that are mentioned herein.
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The Arts Illuminated
By Linda Tancs
There’s more than just The Alamo to remember in San Antonio, Texas. In particular, the month of March is a celebration of contemporary art, highlighted by the Luminaria on 13 March. A nationally and internationally acclaimed event, Luminaria showcases every element of the visual and performing arts in one magnificent evening downtown. Participants include several hundred artists and over 40 nonprofits. In 2009, 185,000 people attended Luminaria. Why not? It’s free. But with attendance like that, you’d better book your hotel now.
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The author has not received any compensation for writing this content and has no material connection to the brands, topics, products and/or services that are mentioned herein.
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Tourists Help Fund Travel Promotions
By Linda Tancs
As reported previously on this blog, a movement has been afoot in Congress to fund U.S. travel promotion with, among other things, fees from foreign tourists. This week President Obama signed into law the Travel Promotion Act. The multimillion dollar national marketing program administered by the Corporation for Travel Promotion will assess a $10 fee every two years on tourists from visa waiver countries . With a decades-long slip in international tourism dollars from 16% of the market to 12%, the added bump in PR revenue might not be all that significant. Good thing the private sector is allowed to contribute as much as $100 million to the cause.
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The author has not received any compensation for writing this content and has no material connection to the brands, topics, products and/or services that are mentioned herein.
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Arts and Crafts By the River
By Linda Tancs
The 37th season of Oregon’s Portland Saturday Market,the largest outdoor craft market in the U.S., begins on 6 March. The event, located at SW Ankeny St and Naito Parkway in historic Old Town, gives 250 or more artists the opportunity to showcase their handicrafts. While there you’ll enjoy live music and exotic foods. The kickoff includes a children’s parade at 2pm. Are you a master crafter? Maybe you should think about joining.
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Flower Power in Philly
By Linda Tancs
Winter white will mix with “Rainbows in Flight” at this year’s flower show in Philadelphia. Now through 7 March at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, the largest and oldest indoor show of its kind has amended its moniker to the “Philadelphia International Flower Show” in recognition of its past exhibitions of landscapes and plants from Asia, Europe, Africa, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. This year’s “Passport to the World” theme builds on previous celebrations of the world’s flowers and gardens. Among the many offerings, visitors can experience the Amazon, trek through an Indian wedding, peek into Zulu culture, enjoy a tribute to the orchid and giant Victoria water lilies and witness exotic displays from New Zealand’s Maori tribe among the popular Casablanca and calla lilies. All the world’s a stage here, and you don’t have to trot around the globe to see it.
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The Ice Man Cometh
By Linda Tancs
The bogeyman may make sad the heart of childhood, but the Ice Cream Man makes glad the palate when he delivers personalized sundaes to kids before bedtime at Boston’s Four Seasons Hotel. For that you’ll need to book the VIK (Very Important Kids) package. What child wouldn’t love their own bathrobe and slippers, complimentary gift from the toy wagon, toy boat filled with treats and a scavenger hunt! Childhood is a short season, as actress Helen Hayes observed. The Four Seasons makes it a little sweeter.
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Age Is Just a Number
By Linda Tancs
Age limits are arbitrary. Just ask the folks at Exploritas. Formerly known as Elderhostel (sounds a bit hostile to elders, don’t you think?), they removed their travel barriers limiting tours to those aged 60 or over. That change, of course, does not magically transform the composition of a group. So why would a millenial explore the wilds of Iceland with grandpa? Therein lies an answer: family. As it was so wisely put in the movie The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, family is the most precious gift we are given. Looks like Exploritas figured that out, too.
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Do Not Disturb
By Linda Tancs
Those Do Not Disturb signs are as yesterday as dinosaurs at Seattle’s Hotel 1000, where infrared sensors let chambermaids know whether anyone’s home. The question is: does that technology protect Fido’s privacy, too? The hotel is, after all, pet friendly. At a wallet-friendly $40 per stay, your furry friend gets a bed, food and water bowl, chew toys and custom treats, among other things. It’s a dog’s life, indeed.
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The author has not received any compensation for writing this content and has no material connection to the brands, topics, products and/or services that are mentioned herein.
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