A Spanish Island Idyll

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2 TR THENEWYORKTIMES,SUNDAY, APRIL15,2012 NICK BRIGGS/PBS, VIA AP OntheWeb FRUGALTRAVELER SethKugelexploresPacific<strong>Island</strong>ercultureinAuckland,New Zealand. nytimes.com/frugaltraveler GLOBESPOTTERS Ourcorrespondentsreportonan ArtSpiegelmanexhibitionin Paris,theopeningofHighclere, thecastleusedtofilmtheseries “DowntonAbbey”(above)near London,andCultureWeekin Rome. nytimes.com/globespotters ONFACEBOOK FollowtheNewYorkTimesTravelsectiononFacebook. facebook.com/nytimestravel WHYWETRAVEL Sendusthebestphotosfrom yourrecenttravels.Somewillappearintheprinteditionofthe Travelsection,andinanonline slideshow. submit.nytimes.com /why-we-travel MICHELE TANTUSSI/BLOOMBERG NEWS TravelWiththeTate To SeetheWorld’sArt TheTategalleriesoftendisplay artfromaroundtheworld.Now, theartsinstitutionishopingto takeitsvisitorsontheroad,as partofTateTravels,aseriesof14 tripsrelatedtotheartsorganized inpartnershipwiththeUltimate TravelCompany. Thefirstjourney,inMay, isa four-daytriptoSt.Ives,where thetouroffersaprivateviewing ofthesummerexhibitionatthe Tategallerythere.(£895,$1,420at $1.59tothepoundperperson.) Amongothertrips:avisitto ParisandChampagneinSeptember,accompaniedbyTate’swinebuyerandaTateModerncurator,andafive-nightstaynextyearinBerlin,wherevisitsincludevariousgalleriesandthe BrandenburgGate,above. Agoalbeyondartisevident. “Everyexpert-ledtourbooked willbenefitTatefinancially,contributingvitalfundstosupport ourmissiontoincreasepublic knowledge,understandingand enjoymentofBritish,modernand contemporaryart,”AlexBeard, itsdeputydirector,saidina statement. MONICADRAKE InTransit HighlightsfromInTransit,ablogontravelnews,dealsandtipswrittenbythe editorsandreportersoftheTravelsection,atnytimes.com/intransit. DANIEL KRIEGER FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES StarwoodRewardsOffer: BiddingforFoodies StarwoodHotels&Resorts (starwoodhotels.com)hasintroducedaslateofrewardsforfoodieswhoaremembersofitsloyaltyprogram.Aspartofaforayintoculinaryawards,theStarwoodPreferredGuestprogram (spg.com)isofferingthechance tobidonrewardslikeasushimakingclasswiththechefMasaharuMorimotoordinnerwith ThomasKelleratPerSe(diners, above). Ratesvary,butinthecaseofa May2dinnerwithDanielBoulud atDanielrestaurantinNewYork, bidscurrentlystartat6,500 pointsfortwodiners.Theprogram,whichisfreetojoin, awardstwoorthreepointsper dollarspentonovernightstays dependingonmembershiplevels, whicharebasedonthecumulativenumberofnightsspent. Point-poormembersmaynot beabletodinewithcelebrity chefs,butthenewprogramalso offersdiningdiscountsof10to30 percentatover500restaurants andbarsaroundtheworld,in Starwood’s1,090hotelsrununder theSt.Regis,theLuxuryCollection,W,Westin,LeMéridien,Sheraton,FourPointsbySheraton,AloftandElementbrands. ELAINEGLUSAC FAIRMONT HOTELS & RESORTS DrinksforBellyingUpto TheBarWithLessBelly Vacationisn’ttheidealtimeto startcountingcalories,butfor hotelguestsstillpreparingforbikiniseason,FairmontHotels& Resortsdoesn’tseewhyyou shouldn’thaveyourcocktailand loseweighttoo.Its“skinny drink”initiativehasencouraged bartendersatseveralofitshotels andrestaurantstoofferdrinks withfewercaloriesandhealthier ingredientsthisspring. InVancouver,theFairmontPacificRim’slobbyloungeisservingaBaliHai(above),pear- and thyme-infusedginmixedwith freshlime,ginsengtincture,coconutwaterandagavenectarinsteadofsimplesyrup,makingit lessthan200calories.TheRoyal YorkinTorontohasdevelopeda seriesof“SkinnySips,”each250 caloriesorless,madefrom house-madesugar-freeliqueurs, freshherbsfromitsrooftopgardenandhoneyfromitsbeehives.“Let’sbehonest,ifyou’rereallycountingcalories,youprobablyshouldn’tbedrinking,” Lori Holland,theexecutivedirectorof publicrelationsatFairmont,said. “Butthat’snofun.Withthese drinks,you’regettingyourcake, justinadifferentway.” RACHELLEEHARRIS Letters TheFlyingLaptop TotheEditor:Regarding“TheMysteryoftheFlyingLaptop”(April8), myguessisthattheT.S.A.“logic” datesfromthedayswhenlaptops werethickerandthebatterypacks might,theoretically,havebeenreplacedbyexplosives.Thismightexplainwhy,atonepoint,theymade passengersturnonlaptopsand phonestodemonstratethey worked.However,boththeshrinkingthicknessandlackofanyevidencethatanyonehasbeencaught withadangerouslaptoprenderall this“securitytheater”moot.The absurdhysteriathathasparalyzed theUnitedStateswithfearsince 9/11isthesourceofthismultibillion dollarwasteoftime,moneyand goodsense. NORMANMcDOUGALL ThunderBay, Ontario TotheEditor:Therulesaresimple —takeoffyourjackets,shoesand belts.Putyourlaptopandanytoiletriesinthebin,andyou’redone.TheonlypeopleIseewhohaveproblemswiththeT.S.A.areeithertotallyunorganizedorlookingfor trouble. JOHNTACKEFF Fairfax,Va. TotheEditor:Rulesthatmakeno senseorareinconsistentlyapplied alwaysleavethedooropenforsuddenandimpulsivesecuritymeasures,preciselywhatthebadguys hate.Asonesecurityagenttoldme, “Ifwewerepredictable,itwouldbe verydangerous.”That’swhyyou’ll seethesameruleapplieddifferently atvariousairports. STEVECOURMANOPOULOS Pointe-Claire,Quebec CORRECTIONS A picture credit last Sunday with the 36 Hours column, about Mendoza, Argentina, misspelled the given name of the photographer. Nicolas Wormull, not Nicholas, took the picturesofapark,acoupledancingthe tangoandawinetastingroom. • The Check In/Check Out column last Sunday, about the Nun Assisi Relais hotel in Assisi, Italy, gave an incorrect Web site for the hotel. It is nunassisi.com.
PRACTICAL TRAVELER WhentoBuyThatPlaneTicket ByMICHELLEHIGGINS WHEN is the best timetobookthat flight?It’soneof the most fraught decisions travelers face, as ticket prices often fluctuate right up to departure time. Recent fare analysis by the Airlines Reporting Corporation seems to challenge the conventional wisdom that the earlier youbook,thelessexpensiveyour fare will be. In January, the corporation, which processes ticket transactionsforairlinesandtravel agencies, reported that over the past four years passengers paidthelowestpricefordomestic flights when buying just about sixweeksinadvance. To determine if that six-week sweetspotwouldholdtrueforinternational routes, I asked the companytoanalyzefaresforseveraltrips,likeasummervacation to Europe and a winter escape in Last-minutedeals arehardertofind thisyear. theCaribbean. Not only did the six-week period fail to stand up, but the findings indicate that the window for booking the cheapest ticket for these trips has increased over the past three years; in some casesit’supto24weeks. “Consumers have been getting the best prices a bit further out year over year,” said Chuck Thackston, managing director of data and analytics at the Airlines ReportingCorporation. Sure, it’s possible that if travelers pull back on spending, airlines will be forced to cut prices, allowing travelers to nab a cheap summer flight to, say, Barcelona, aslittleasthreeweeksout. “Iftheydon’tseebookingsmaterialize the way they’d like, they will put the route on sale,” said Henry H. Harteveldt, a travel industryanalyst. But Mr. Harteveldt and other travel watchers agree that booking well in advance is a safe bet. So far this year, airlines have raised rates three times, said Rick Seaney, chief executive of Farecompare.com, which tracks ticket prices. “I think pricing is going to be crazy,” particularly thissummer,hesaid. So if you place stock in historical trends, the message is clear: actnow. For guidance, here are the booking windows during which passengers paid the lowest price for flights to popular vacation destinations last year, based on data from the Airlines Reporting Corporation. EuropeinSummer LAST YEAR’S SWEET SPOT: 21 TO 22 WEEKSIN ADVANCE You may already be too late to score a cheap flight to Europe this summer. The booking window for the cheapest tickets has moved further out, from 11 or 12 weeks in advance in 2009 to 21 or 22 weeks in2011.(Averageround-tripfares rose to about $1,500 last year from $1,100 in 2009; this year’s outlookisnobetter.) To boost your savings, take the least expensive route to Europe you can find. Then concentrate on getting to your ultimate stop cheaply. “I look into the cheapest fare into a hub like Berlin,” said George Hobica, founder of Airfarewatchdog.com, which scours the Web for bargains. “ThenIfigureitoutfromthere.” He said this may involve taking the train or flying a budget carrier like easyJet or Ryanair to the final destination. <strong>Spanish</strong> airports like Madrid tend to be cheaperthanLondonorParis,he said. Dublin and Shannon also tend to be cheaper jumping-off points. Whatever you do, don’t wait until the last minute. Last year, average fares for tickets pur- THENEWYORKTIMES,SUNDAY, APRIL15,2012 chased less than a week before travel were about $2,600, almost double the price of those bought atleast28daysinadvance.Andif you’revisitingLondonduringthe Olympic Games, July 27 through Aug.12,expecttopayapremium. CaribbeaninWinter LAST YEAR’S SWEET SPOT: 11 OR 12 WEEKS In 2009 and 2010, the cheapest airfares went to procrastinators who purchased tickets just two weeks in advance at a saving of about 8 percent. But last year, the pattern took a sudden shift, with the cheapest ticketsboughtmuchfurtherahead. “Certainly you’ll want to start shopping plenty early to get a gauge on pricing,” said Mr.Seaney of FareCompare, who recommended hunting for airfare as early as three months in advance, especially for hot spots like Costa Rica and out-of-theway islands, which lack the airline competition that tends to keeppricesincheck. BusinessorFirstClass ToAsiaorEurope LAST YEAR’S SWEET SPOT: 23 TO 24 WEEKS While the majority of premium travel is purchased by business travelers booking within six weeks of departure, leisure travelers with the flexibility to buy well in advance have been able to find bargains. Travelers paidabout$3,113,orabout20percent less than average, when buying premium tickets to Asia or Europe 23 or 24 weeks ahead lastyear. A good time to take advantage oflowbusiness-classratesisduringpeakvacationtimeslikesummerorthewinterholidays.While coach class quickly fills up with leisure travelers, the cushy seats at the front of the plane can be empty. Rather than give those seats away as upgrades, airlines often try to fill them with sales, accordingtoJoeBrancatelli,publisher of the travel Web site JoeSentMe.com, which alerts memberstosuchsales. For travel to Europe in summer,forexample,“itlookslikeall gateways and all destinations between the United States and Europe are on sale,” he stated in a recent newsletter, with roundtrip business classprices as low as $2,327 from Newark to Brussels and $2,359 from New York to Frankfurt, if booked by May 31. But, he warned, “Fares seem to be higher in August than in July, and there are some days when prices soar above $4,000 round tripfromtheEastCoast.” GeneralTips LEO ACADIA Beyond historical trends, there are also some useful online tools that can help you evaluate fares. For example, Bing.com offers a Price Predictor that uses algorithms to determine how likely a fare is to rise or fall during the next seven days. It applies to flights from more than 250 cities in the United States and to top domestic destinations and major hubsinEurope. If you decide to wait in the hopes of a price drop, sign up for fare alerts offered by practically every travel site, from American Airlines to Travelzoo. Yapta.com, another price-tracking service, alerts travelers when the price of theirplaneticketsdropafterpurchase, allowing travelers to request an airline voucher for the pricedifference. For the cheapest dates to fly, go to Itasoftware.com, which allows you to scan an entire month’s worth of fares. To buy, you must go to the airline’s Web siteoronlineagencieslikeTravelocity. Finally, buying two one-way fares on separate airlines can be cheaper than the best round-trip price. Kayak.com calls such tickets “hacker fares.” A recent searchonthesiteforaflightfrom Boston to San Juan, P.R., turned up a fare of $313 on Delta to San Juan, returning on US Airways, comparedwith$349roundtripon USAirwaysalone. Æ Q&A AHotelInsider SharesSecrets AnthonyMelchiorriof“HotelImpossible.” THINKofAnthonyMelchiorriasacapeless crusaderforailinghotels,swoopingintotroubledpropertiesandconjuringcures.Heisthehostanddrivingforcebehind“HotelImpossible,”anewshowontheTravelChannel,and fixingwhatailshotelsisaskillhehasbeenhoningover decadesintheindustry.AsgeneralmanageroftheiconicAlgonquininNewYork,heoversawamajorrenovationofthebuildinganditsimage.Heisalsoaformer vicepresidentofTishmanHotelsandisthefounderof ArgeoHospitality,ahotelmanagementandconsulting firm. Hereareexcerptsfromaconversationabouthowto findagreathotelandwhattoexpect—andsometimes demand—fromit. RACHELLEEHARRIS Q.What’sthebesthotelyoueverstayedin? A.Acleanone. Q.Whataresomeofyourfavorites? A.IlovetheVenetianinLasVegas,Shuttersonthe BeachinSantaMonica.TheWaldorf-Astoria—what EricLong,thegeneralmanager,hasbeendoingthereis justtremendous.Andwhodoesn’tlovethePlaza? WhenIleft,IliterallycriedbecauseIdidn’twantto leavethatbuilding. Q.Anyboutiquehotelsonyourlist? A.TheBenjamin,hereinNewYork,andanyofthe Kimptonhotels—theyreallyknowhowtotreattheir customersandtheyarealwaysonthecuttingedgeof conserving. Forbusinesstravel,three-starhotelsaredoinga muchbetterjob.They’regettingbettermattresses, they’recleaner,andtheyaretheonesgivingyoucomplimentaryInternetandwater.Istilldon’tunderstand whyfive-starhotelschargeyouforInternet,when that’sthebiggestcomplaintcorporatetravelershavein theindustry.IdemandfreeInternetorIwon’tgoback. Q.What’sthebestwaytofindagreathotel? A.Goonlineandlookatreviews.Ifindthemtobeextraordinarilyaccurate.Gotothird-partyWebsites, oyster.comorTripAdvisor. Q.Willpeoplegetbetterdealsthroughathirdparty? A.Attheendoftheday, bookonthehotel’sWebsite.If youfindadealonanothersite,youwillrarelyfindit higheratthehotel’s,andyou’llhavemoreflexibility withreservations. Q.Wherecantravelersfindthebestdeals? A.Socialmediaisbigrightnow.Notalotofpeopleare bookingthere,butthegoodboutiquehotelsaredoing promosontheirFacebooksitesandonTwitter. Q.Anytipsforhowtogetagoodrate? A.Checkthecompetitors.Ifyouchecktheratesata comparablehotelandtheyarelower,thehotelwilloften meettheircompetitor’sprice. Q.What’sthebestwaytogetanupgrade? A.Alwayspackyoursmile.Afrontdeskagenthasalot ofcontroloverwhatroomyouhave,soalwaysbepolite nomatterhowbadyourtriphasbeen.Theymighttryto up-sellyouandofferabetterroomatadiscountedrate. Or,ifyou’rereallynice,theymightgiveyouacomplimentaryupgrade,withthehopethatyou’llreturn. Q.Whoandwhenshouldyoutip? A.Tipyourhousekeepereverydaybecauseit’snotalwaysthesamepersoncleaningyourroom.Ifit’sa three-starhotel,give$3or$4;ifit’safour-star,givea littlebitmore;ifit’safive-staryoucanafford$20or$30 aday.Adoormanmakesanhourlywageandit’sless thananyoneelse’sinthehotel.Ifhedoeshisjobandis makingmylifeeasier,Ialwaystiphim. Q.Willyougetbetterserviceifyoutiptheconcierge? A.Agoodconciergedoesnotexpectatip.Inbigcities, theywon’tputyouinabetterrestaurantbecauseofa tip.Ifyou’retryingtogetintothebestrestaurantin townorgetticketstoaBroadwayshow,alittletipup frontdoesn’thurt. TR 3
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A Spanish Island Idyll

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