Travel Hotlinks! Travel Showcase

Turn up the heat this summer with a historic getaway at National Trust Historic Hotels of America. From sandy beaches to sizzling summer nights, Historic Hotels of America is offering more than 60 getaways to some of America's best travel destinations.

The summer specials and packages from Historic Hotels of America are featured at http://www.historichotels.org/press_release/1/41.

The following are selected samples.

Don CeSar Beach Resort, St. Pete Beach, Fla.

This ultimate escape for the mind and body invites guests to bury themselves in the latest "must-read" while sunbathing or sipping poolside cocktails. The Novel Beach Escape package features one night's accommodations, complimentary novel and two frozen beverages. (Available from June 1 through September 30, 2006; $169 per night, double occupancy on Sun.-Thurs. and $256 per night Fri. & Sat.) Visit http://www.historichotels.org/hotel/Don_CeSar_Beach_Resort

Napa River Inn, Napa, Calif.

The Wine and Picnic package for two includes one night's accommodations, breakfast, wine-tasting, lunch at Bouchaine Vineyards, a picnic basket full of goodies and a signature gift from Bouchaine Vineyards. (Available through September 1, 2006; from $249 per night, per person.) Visit http://www.historichotels.org/hotel/218

King & Prince Beach & Golf Resort, St. Simons Island, Ga.

Add some sizzle to your summer on St. Simons Island. The Beach, Bed and Breakfast package includes hotel accommodations, full buffet breakfast and all taxes and gratuities. (Available from May 26 through August 5, 2006; from $280 per couple, per night.) Visit http://www.historichotels.org/hotel/55

Wort Hotel, Jackson Hole, Wyo.

Escape to Jackson Hole with Historic Preservation package. Enjoy a three- night stay in a deluxe room, half-day wildlife tour, tour of historic downtown Jackson Hole and a night cap in the Silver Dollar Bar. (Available from June 1 through September 30, 2006; $524 per person, based on double occupancy.) Visit http://www.historichotels.org/hotel/172

Historic Hotels of America, a program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, has identified more than 200 hotels that have faithfully maintained their historic integrity, architecture and ambiance. To be selected for this prestigious program, a hotel must be at least 50 years old, listed in or eligible for the National Register of Historic Places or recognized as having historic significance. Reservations can be made though Historic Hotels of America: http://www.historichotels.org.

Mobil Travel Guide, originator of the prestigious Mobil Star ratings and certifications and provider of the most comprehensive reviews of hotels, restaurants, and spas, is helping travelers find the right destination for a spa-enhanced summer vacation. The Best Hotel and Resort Spas for 2006 have been identified in the following popular vacation categories:

     - Family Vacations
     - Bachelorette Retreats
     - Urban Renewal
     - Golfers
     - Mother/Daughter Getaway
     - Romantic Getaway
     - Fitness

"Ironically, the stress of planning a summer vacation can sometimes outweigh the relaxation it is supposed to provide," said Shane O'Flaherty, Vice President of Quality Assurance for Mobil Travel Guide. "We've sought to minimize that stress by helping vacationers wishing to enjoy a spa experience quickly pinpoint properties that have offerings and amenities specific to the kind of trip they're planning."

For example, guests at The Spa at the Sanctuary at Kiawah Island in South Carolina, a Mobil Four-Star property on the "Best for Family Vacation" list, can enjoy a luxurious spa experience at a resort offering activities the whole family can enjoy, including an on-site nature discovery center, nightly alligator tours, a children's pool, and even a kids' camp.

All the spas named have a minimum of a Mobil Three-star rating, earning them a "Best Spas in America" designation from Mobil Travel Guide. The ratings, determined by Mobil Travel Guide's undercover, expert inspectors, are based on more than 450 objective criteria. Just two spas, the Spa Montage in Laguna Beach, California and the Spa at the Mandarin Oriental New York, earned the coveted Mobil Five-star rating this year. A complete list of the Mobil Star-rated spas for 2006, as well as comprehensive reviews on thousands of spas, hotels, and restaurants, are provided by HowStuffWorks and found at http://www.mobiltravelguide.com.

About Mobil Travel Guide:

Mobil Travel Guide, originator of the prestigious Five-Star ratings and certifications system, has been providing the most comprehensive ratings and reviews of hotels, restaurants, and spas in the United States and Canada since 1958. Mobil Travel Guide's team of anonymous, expert inspectors evaluates properties against rigorous and objective proprietary standards, giving consumers the insight to make better-informed travel and leisure decisions. Mobil Travel Guide is published by Publications International, Ltd. under license from Exxon Mobil Corporation. Mobil Travel Guide is headquartered in Lincolnwood, IL. For more information, visit http://www.mobiltravelguide.com.

Exotic Product Offering Expands Significantly With Australia, New Zealand

Sightings of koala bears, kangaroos and kiwi birds await vacationers sailing with Celebrity Cruises next year. At a special event in New York today, the line's President Dan Hanrahan announced that Celebrity will sail for the first time in Australia and New Zealand beginning in 2007.

"This marks a significant expansion of our product portfolio, and is particularly exciting because it's a market our guests and agency partners have told us they want to experience with Celebrity," said Hanrahan. "Based on that valuable feedback and our extensive research, we're looking forward to a very successful inaugural season there next year."

Celebrity's Mercury will present six 14-night open-jaw sailings between Auckland, New Zealand and Sydney, Australia from December 2007 through March 2008. Among Celebrity's destinations "down under" are Auckland, Tauranga, Napier, Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin, Dusky Sound, Doubtful Sound, and Milford Sound, New Zealand, along with Melbourne, Newcastle, and Sydney, Australia, and Hobart, Tasmania.

The line's first calls on Papeete, Tahiti; and Moorea and Bora Bora, French Polynesia, will precede Mercury's six Australia/New Zealand sailings on a 16-night voyage departing Honolulu on November 23, 2007, concluding in Auckland.

"Imagine pairing such exotic destinations as these with the extraordinary service and experience we offer onboard every Celebrity ship," said Hanrahan. "It's an unbeatable combination."

Celebrity also has created a new series of Cruisetour packages in the region, complementing the cruise with options including a two-night stay in Sydney, an escorted three-night experience in Sydney and Cairns, or a five- night adventure featuring the best of Sydney, Ayers Rock and Cairns, including visits to the famed Great Barrier Reef.

A total of nearly 40 new ports of call have been added to Celebrity's deployment lineup for 2007, including those in Australia and New Zealand.

    Celebrity's 2007-8 Deployment Overview

    Ship                   Summer                            Winter

    Century         12-night Baltic from            4-/5-night Caribbean from
                    Amsterdam with new Arctic       Miami
                    Circle and Fjords; 10-/11-
                    night Mediterranean from
                    Barcelona with first calls on
                    Morocco

    Constellation   14-night Baltic from Dover,     10-/11-night Caribbean
                    featuring first calls on        from Fort Lauderdale
                    Cherbourg, France; Cornwall,
                    England, and Visby, Sweden;
                    Canada/New England cruises
                    from Cape Liberty, NJ,
                    featuring first calls on
                    Prince Edward Island and
                    Newport, RI.

    Galaxy          7-/10-/11-/12-night Med from    10-/11-night Caribbean
                    Rome featuring calls on         from San Juan
                    Alexandria,Egypt; Casablanca
                    and Agadir, Morocco; and the
                    Bosporous Strait

    Infinity        7-night Alaska from Vancouver   14-night South America
                                                    from varied ports,
                                                    featuring new port of
                                                    Coquimbo, Chile; 14-night
                                                    Panama Canal

    Mercury         7-night Alaska and 3-/4-night   New 16-night Pacific and
                    Pacific Northwest from          14-night Australia/New
                    Seattle                         Zealand sailings from
                                                    Auckland and Sydney

    Millennium      12-night Mediterranean from     7-night Eastern Caribbean
                    Barcelona and Venice,           from Fort Lauderdale
                    including Casablanca and
                    Tangier on Transatlantic

    Summit          7-night Alaska from Vancouver   Hawaii and Panama Canal
                    and Seward                      from varied ports; 7-night
                                                    Caribbean from San Juan
                                                    with first calls on
                                                    Kralendijk, Bonaire

    Zenith          7-night Bermuda from Cape       4-/10- and 11-night
                    Liberty, NJ                     Caribbean from Tampa

Cunard's Newest Ocean Liner to Depart Simultaneously With QE2 on Epic World Cruise Voyages

Full World Cruises and Liner Voyages Available for Sale on June 25, 2006

Cunard Line, the company that pioneered world cruising in 1922 with the first-ever world cruise aboard the Laconia, will make further maritime history on January 13, 2008, as its newest ocean liner, Queen Victoria, departs New York simultaneously with Cunard's esteemed ocean liner, QE2, for their world cruise voyages. Sailing roundtrip from New York, the concurrent world cruise departures mark the start of Queen Victoria's 105-day Pathway to the Explorers maiden world cruise and QE2's 90-day South America, Pacific and Far East Odyssey, her first foray into South America in more than a decade.

Following a full day of festivities to mark the historic occasion, both ships will depart for Ft. Lauderdale, where similar celebrations are planned. From there, the ships will part, each sailing different epic itineraries before reuniting in Sydney on February 24.

"Continuing Cunard's legacy of noteworthy firsts in maritime history, we are delighted to announce the simultaneous grand ocean voyages for our newest liner Queen Victoria and our 'grand dame' QE2. Cunard's World Cruises are widely considered the 'gold standard' in voyages around the world. QE2 has undertaken more long voyages than any other ship afloat and we are delighted that Queen Victoria will continue this fine tradition -- offering a 21st century ocean liner experience as she makes her own circumnavigation of the globe in renowned Cunard style," said Carol Marlow, Cunard Line's president and managing director.

Queen Victoria's Pathway to the Explorers maiden world cruise to call on 36 cities

Cunard's third Queen will depart New York on January 13, 2008 on her Pathway to the Explorers maiden world cruise, calling on 36 cities in 23 countries. Every call, with the exception of Lisbon, will be a maiden call for Cunard's new Queen. She will circumnavigate the globe in a westbound direction and, after her New York call, will transit the Panama Canal before making maiden calls to some of the world's most famous cities, including Los Angeles, Auckland, Sydney, Bangkok, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Mumbai, Dubai, Athens and Barcelona. Queen Victoria will transit the other of the great canals, the Suez, before arriving into Southampton on April 22. Guests returning to New York will enjoy sailing aboard Cunard's flagship vessel, Queen Mary 2, on one of her legendary six-day transatlantic crossings, arriving into the city on April 28.

Early Booking Fares for Queen Victoria's 105-day Pathway to the Explorers maiden world cruise start from $18,827 per person, double occupancy.

Shorter Liner Voyages are also available and include the 41-day New York to Sydney voyage with Early Booking Fares starting from $7,810 per person, double occupancy, and the 47-day Los Angeles to Singapore voyage with Early Booking Fares starting from $9,146, per person, double occupancy.

QE2 Journeys to South America, the Pacific and the Orient

The most experienced world voyager afloat, QE2 will, for the first time in more than a decade, tour South America and the Pacific in a 90-day odyssey that will leave New York on January 13 and make stops in 17 countries -- a mix of exciting cities and interesting ports. After departing New York, QE2 will head around South America calling in Rio de Janeiro, Montevideo, the Falkland Islands and Valparaiso. Cruising into the Pacific, she will then circle the world's largest ocean before arriving in Los Angeles on March 30. Port calls will include Easter Island, Auckland, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Honolulu. After transiting the Panama Canal, the ship will return home to New York on April 12.

Early Booking Fares for QE2's 90-day South America, Pacific and Far East Odyssey start from $13,355 per person, double occupancy.

Shorter Liner Voyages are also available and include the 42-day New York to Sydney voyage with Early Booking Fares starting from $6,848, per person, double occupancy, and the 35-day Sydney to Los Angeles voyage with Early Booking Fares starting from $4,878, per person, double occupancy.

The voyages are on sale from June 5, 2006 and Early Booking Fares for these voyages represent a 15 percent per person savings off brochure rates. As an extra bonus, guests will save an additional 5 percent when bookings are made by January 31, 2007. A special amenity package will be offered to guests booking a Full World Cruise or Liner Voyage including complimentary shore events for Grill guests.

For more information about Cunard or 2008 World Cruises on Queen Victoria and QE2, call 1-800-7-CUNARD or go to http://www.cunard.com.

Cunard Line has operated the most famous ocean liners in the world since 1840. Cunard vessels have a classic British heritage and include the legendary Queen Elizabeth 2 and Queen Mary 2. Queen Victoria joins the fleet in 2007.

Cunard Line is a proud member of World's Leading Cruise Lines. The exclusive alliance also includes Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Costa Cruises, Windstar Cruises and The Yachts of Seabourn. Sharing a passion to please each guest, and a commitment to quality and value, member lines appeal to a wide range of lifestyles and budgets. Together they offer exciting and enriching cruise vacations to the world's most desirable destinations.

Virtual Guidebooks Help Travelers Find the Best Value for Trip Planning

SmarterTravel.com, a comprehensive online travel resource, today introduced their new Travel Guides, a virtual travel planning guidebook that provides extensive information on a variety of destinations throughout the world to help travelers with their trip planning process. The new guides offer information on cities and countries all over the globe, including North America, Europe, the Caribbean, Asia and South America. Each guide includes five sections: When to Go covers seasonality and events that can affect travel plans; Getting To offers unbiased advice on finding the best airfare; Hotels covers local hotel listings; Getting Around provides transportation and car rental information; and Things to Do offers details on worthwhile activities. Travelers now have all the details they need for trip planning, no matter their destination, in one place.

The Travel Guides also include an easy-to-use destination finder search feature, which allows travelers to quickly access information on specific destinations. In support of the site's dedication to offering the most comprehensive travel information, SmarterTravel also recently launched a "Destination Watch" blog to offer the most up-to-date trends and advice on destinations across the globe.

"With the Travel Guides, we can offer travelers specific advice on destinations worldwide, including information on when to travel and what to expect," said Anne Banas, executive editor of SmarterTravel.com. "We wanted to bring all of the information on destinations that is typically found in disparate places into one place, so travelers have it at their fingertips."

The guides offer advice on navigating the destination, popular cities to visit and unbiased information on hotel, airfare and car rental deals that guidebooks don't regularly offer. These guides are being updated regularly with new content on countries and cities, and users can find advice and details to help in their travel decisions.

Additionally, SmarterTravel offers even more comprehensive information, with a focus on finding value, for a variety of popular cities across the U.S., including Los Angeles, New York, Miami and Las Vegas. The popular destination guides give background on each city and offer advice on navigating the town, when to visit and any local quirks or 'need-to-know' information, especially if it helps to save travelers money.

"We are continually looking for ways to better provide travelers with up- to-date, comprehensive travel information," continued Banas. "Our Travel Guides provide coverage for every part of the globe, and we are looking forward to providing more destinations in the future, offering information on cities from San Diego to Shanghai."

The "Destination Watch" blog joins SmarterTravel's other blogs, "Ship to Shore" and "Today and Travel," to offer up-to-date advice and data on destinations all around the world as it happens. The new blog is written by SmarterTravel contributing editor Christine Sarkis, who will post news and information to the blog as it happens.

"Our goal is to provide the most relevant information to all our users, through blogs, special reports and the new destination guides," said Sarkis. "Readers can just click and find advice on cities they plan on visiting or check for news that might affect their travel plans."

SmarterTravel's Travel Guides are available at: http://www.smartertravel.com/destinations

The "Destination Watch" blog can be viewed at: http://www.smartertravel.com/blogs/destination-watch/

About SmarterTravel.com

SmarterTravel.com is the most comprehensive travel resource site available offering consumers up-to-date expert advice and information for their every travel need. Created by an unbiased team of dedicated journalists, the site's goal is to help travelers better manage every aspect of their travel experience by making researched, informed decisions. Unlike other online travel resources, SmarterTravel.com brings together all the best content in one place, giving consumers the tools they need to ensure a great travel experience.