I thought of sharing some tips (particularly tips for visiting the U.S.) with you guys which I found useful when I was booking hotels, flights and sorting out the car rental.
Of course, the main key is doing your RESEARCH!!! Do not rely solely on one source (say, lonely planet guide book)
I always find tripadvisor.com extremely helpful as a starting point. Type in the city/town you are visiting (in my case, San Francisco) and then, click on 'Things to Do' or 'Overview' or 'Restaurants' etc. It reveals to you all the top attractions, top restaurants, top hotels. I use tripadvisor a lot when I'm looking for hotel reviews. Never book a hotel without checking the reviews first. Also, you can click on 'map' when checking out a hotel. It shows you the location of the hotel on googlemaps.
Also, can may want to check out priceline.com. This website provides a lot of cheap hotel + car rental + flight packages. You may save a lot by using this website. I suggest getting the flight + hotel packages only if you don't mind obscure flight times. For example, you'll might arrive at your destination at 6 pm and leave your holiday destination at 8 am in the morning. Another popular website would be continental.com
Consider checking the local newspapers to see what's happening in the local scene or to check for good reviews at any eateries.
If possible, book flights and hotels during the mid-week, NEVER weekends. Its cheaper and there may be mid-week sales! For example, cheapest airticket from San Francisco to Las Vegas was 350 (after tax) when I checked on Sunday but on Tuesday it was 224 (after tax)!!!!
If you are a risk-taker, you may patronise lastminutetravel.com. I used this to book the hotel for my Las Vegas trip. The interesting thing about this website is that the actual hotel names are not revealed to you till you have finalised your transaction. Think about it as a mystery gift. They only provide you with details of the hotels (such as hotel ratings, restaurants in the hotel, location of hotel, hotel facilities etc). I saved $60 by using this website but my heart was racing before the hotel name was revealed. The same feeling I get before I view my exam results. Nonetheless, I was pretty satisfied with the hotel.
And of course, I always love hostelworld.com. It's the best website for booking hostels. Customer reviews when looked at in aggregate quantities provide pretty accurate feedback. [Don't you get irritate at those trivial negative reviews such as, "I hate that hostel because there are no tea making facilities." Sigh. So much angst and therefore, bad ratings for such trivialities. How about great location? Doesn't that deserve great ratings?!?]
Last but not least, ask your local friends for tips =)
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Hello from San Francisco
I'm currently in San Francisco. Everything has been a little crazy the past two weeks. Two weekends ago, I'm all rugged up in the snow fields and tumbling down ski runs in Australia. Mid-week, I'm in San Francisco, all blurry-eyed and jet-lagged and trying to adjust to a whole new environment. And last weekend, I was sweating under the blazing Las Vegas sun.
Anyway, I'm here for next couple of weeks because J is here for work. He might be here for a couple of weeks to a couple of months. So, just 2 1/2 weeks ago, I thought, "Hey, it's a good idea if I come along." And so, in that short span of time, I've had to get my visa approved, book tickets, pack and do various stuff.
No complains. I'm here, I'm loving this place and I don't want to go back to Melbourne anymore.
Anyway, I'm here for next couple of weeks because J is here for work. He might be here for a couple of weeks to a couple of months. So, just 2 1/2 weeks ago, I thought, "Hey, it's a good idea if I come along." And so, in that short span of time, I've had to get my visa approved, book tickets, pack and do various stuff.
No complains. I'm here, I'm loving this place and I don't want to go back to Melbourne anymore.
Snowboarding at Falls Creek
We went snowboarding at Falls Creek two weekends ago. It was really early in the season so I didn't expect too much snow. Only six runs were open (no black runs were open) but being a newbie snowboarder, I was happy sticking to intermediate and beginner runs. It snowed on the third day we were there, so it provided extra coverage. Overall, it was a good trip.
Love the snow-capped mountains
We stayed at Astra Lodge. It's easily the best ski lodge I've stayed in. I usually put up at some cheap, crappy ski lodge. But because its low season, we took advantage of the half price accommodation deals.
The hotel is equipped with a heated swimming pool, spa and sauna. The staff are extremely friendly and helpful. You can expect fantastic personal service from them. Complimentary cold and cooked breakfast is provided. We are talking about bacon, grilled tomatoes, sauteed mushroom, sourdough bread, poached eggs with awesome hollandaise sauce. You can also have cereal, fruit and toast. In addition, complimentary tea and coffee are served all day in the lounge area.
Whether you are staying there or not, I urge you to patronise their restaurant for dinner. The food is amazing. The Astra Lodge restaurant have won many awards before. Yet the price of the meal is pretty reasonable - probably the average price of an upper-class restaurant. Remember to make a booking if you're heading there.
Fireplace
Another good restaurant/bar/lounge to try is this other Japanese joint at Silverski lodge. It's a pretty relaxed atmosphere. Perfect for chilling out with friends. The food was pretty good but I must say that the selection was pretty limited. Nonetheless, it's still worth a visit.
Japanese gyoza
Grilled beef with rice
Japanese noodles with a variety of vegetables
Love the snow-capped mountains
We stayed at Astra Lodge. It's easily the best ski lodge I've stayed in. I usually put up at some cheap, crappy ski lodge. But because its low season, we took advantage of the half price accommodation deals.
The hotel is equipped with a heated swimming pool, spa and sauna. The staff are extremely friendly and helpful. You can expect fantastic personal service from them. Complimentary cold and cooked breakfast is provided. We are talking about bacon, grilled tomatoes, sauteed mushroom, sourdough bread, poached eggs with awesome hollandaise sauce. You can also have cereal, fruit and toast. In addition, complimentary tea and coffee are served all day in the lounge area.
Whether you are staying there or not, I urge you to patronise their restaurant for dinner. The food is amazing. The Astra Lodge restaurant have won many awards before. Yet the price of the meal is pretty reasonable - probably the average price of an upper-class restaurant. Remember to make a booking if you're heading there.
Fireplace
Another good restaurant/bar/lounge to try is this other Japanese joint at Silverski lodge. It's a pretty relaxed atmosphere. Perfect for chilling out with friends. The food was pretty good but I must say that the selection was pretty limited. Nonetheless, it's still worth a visit.
Japanese gyoza
Grilled beef with rice
Japanese noodles with a variety of vegetables
Monday, June 22, 2009
Queen's birthday weekend - Mornington Peninsula
A couple of us headed to Morning Peninsula for a weekend trip during the Queen's birthday weekend.
Hello, mornington!
Our first activity was deep sea fishing
Caught my first fish
Caught my second fish
There were multiple parasites stuck onto the fish' body. It was disgusting.
We had dolphins swimming with our cruising boat for a while.
The next day, J and I took a morning stroll by the ocean while everyone else slept in.
Later in the day, we stopped by a maze. A pretty easy maze in comparison to the one I did in New Zealand.
We also played boardgames.
The winner of snakes & ladders.
We watched the movie 'Dodgeball' the night before. We decided to play a similar version to the game. We couldn't find a ball, so we used a huge rubber dice instead.
We also stopped by Redhill Estate. Bought a chardonay.
At night, we played my all-time favourite childhood game - hide and seek in the dark. We stayed at a huge accommodation, complete with five rooms, two huge living areas, a study area, two bathrooms and kitchen. Guess where I hid? The seeker couldn't find me.
Can't spot me, can you?
Hello, mornington!
Our first activity was deep sea fishing
Caught my first fish
Caught my second fish
There were multiple parasites stuck onto the fish' body. It was disgusting.
We had dolphins swimming with our cruising boat for a while.
The next day, J and I took a morning stroll by the ocean while everyone else slept in.
Later in the day, we stopped by a maze. A pretty easy maze in comparison to the one I did in New Zealand.
We also played boardgames.
The winner of snakes & ladders.
We watched the movie 'Dodgeball' the night before. We decided to play a similar version to the game. We couldn't find a ball, so we used a huge rubber dice instead.
We also stopped by Redhill Estate. Bought a chardonay.
At night, we played my all-time favourite childhood game - hide and seek in the dark. We stayed at a huge accommodation, complete with five rooms, two huge living areas, a study area, two bathrooms and kitchen. Guess where I hid? The seeker couldn't find me.
Can't spot me, can you?
Brother turns 21
Mini cakes from Laurent. Yum!
There wasn't much of a celebration because the poor boy had exams on his birthday. Number of attendees at his "birthday party" = 3. Me, birthday boy and birthday boy's friend.
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