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GG Editors: Greetings! Thank you for visiting for our weekly online chat. Unlike most Tuesdays, today we're fielding questions on Girlfriend Getaways topics. Let's get to it!
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Richmond, Va.: Where can I locate a nice resort w/a full service spa and golf at the resort at a great deal on the east coast? Thanks, Valerie
GG Editors: There are several resorts on the east coast that have full service spas and golfing. One of my favorites is the Equinox in Manchester Village, Vermont, which is about 190 miles from Boston. The historic property—it opened in 1769, and even hosted Ulysses S Grant at one point—has a gorgeous spa and a Par-71 course. The resort is offering an unlimited golf package through November that includes lodging, unlimited golf, and unlimited use of a golf cart. You can also fly fish at the property, take some clay skeet shooting lessons—and even learn to handle and fly a hawk at the Equinox's British School of Falconry. —Liz Ozaist
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Rockville, Md.: I have several friends that travel with me and we have no problem getting along in most instances except one. When we "split expenses" one party in our little group always gives only the amount requested (no tax or tip) or sometimes "she doesn't have change" expects you to cover her portion. Example: four of us took a shore excursion while in a foreign country which was $50 USD. The driver was great and we all decided to give him $20 each. The "cheapie", sitting in the front seat, handed him our $60 and exited the cab. I went back and gave him another $20 and said nothing to the "cheapie" but I know I should have said something. (We have not traveled together since that time. The group does not always include the same people, just the same type of people - so there is always one in our group.) Any ideas on how to handle this?
GG Editors: One thing that I have learned about travelling with friends that you hope to travel with again someday is to create a kitty at the beginning of each trip. The idea is that each person puts in the same amount of money into the kitty that you then all use to pay for taxis, drinks at the bar, and any other miscellaneous expenses. This way, no one gets stuck having to put in extra to cover for someone else. And if you run out of money at any point, you can all replenish the stash at the same time—and enjoy the rest of your trip! —Liz Ozaist
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Grundy Center, Iowa: A group of us are planning on celebrating a 50th birthday with a Scandinavian cruise in 2011. Half of us are located in the US and the other half are in Europe. Can you give us any direction as to what cruise lines to check with on both sides of the pond? Also, any suggestions as to how to make the "birthday girl's" experience really fabulous? Can a group booking desk directly with the operator really bump up the fun and amenities? Thanks for your help!
GG Editors: Hello Iowa! What a great idea to celebrate your 50ths with a cruise. Luckily, most of the major cruise lines sail both the US and Europe… sending their ships across the pond in spring and fall to reposition in either the Mediterranean Sea or the Caribbean Sea. One thought would be that you guys take advantage of such repositioning cruises. They tend to be a better value for the money—costing about the same, but lasting a few days longer. There are less stops at destinations because much of the route is on the ocean…but if you're hanging out on the ship together, you probably wouldn't mind. You get to know your fellow ship-mates better on this type of cruise, as well, and the type of passengers who take this cruise tend to me more relaxed and are less frequently young families. You can find these cruises by looking on the website of your favorite cruise line and looking for the last cruise in a season (usually during March or April, and pick the one with a transatlantic itinerary. Then, to try to save money, you might want to book your tickets on CruiseCompete.com, a site where agents bid for your business. If you have more specific cruise questions as your trip approaches, you may want to check back and ask questions for our Tuesday September 9 chat when the goddess of cruise information, Carolyn Spencer Brown answers questions (she knows the European cruise scene well, too!)
Have a great trip! —Sean O'Neill
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West Branch, Mich.: My best friend lives in California and will fly out of John Wayne International. I will be flying out of MBS (Midland/Bay City/Saginaw, MI)airport or Flint Bishop Airport. We want to travel between Thanksgiving 2008 and New Year's 2009 to Europe (Italy or Ireland). How can we coordinate our flights so that we can travel most of the way together?
GG Editors: Hi, West Branch! Sounds like a fun trip. Unfortunately, you've stumped me on this one—hard to synch up your schedules while also keeping fares low. Here's my best guess…if you can get an airport shuttle the 97 miles to Detroit airport, and hop a Northwest flight to DC's Dulles airport for about $300, your friend could take an airport shuttle the 40 miles to LAX and get a discount flight to Dulles as well, and from Dulles you could get international flights to either Ireland or Italy. Good luck! —Sean O'Neill
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Bronx, New York: I just created a group called "Spa Divas of NYC" for women 45 and over (on meetup.com) so I am the Organizer of this group. We're planning on going to spas 4 times a year with one of those trips internationally and the other 3 trips will be within the U.S. or locally. There are 28 members in my group (with more joining). How do we, as a group, receive discounts for spa treatments, hotels and airfare? Also, our first trip will be a weekend trip either in Connecticut, Upstate New York or Pennsylvania. And as a treat for ourselves, we'll be traveling by limo to and from. Therefore, do you have any suggestions for a weekend spa in either Connecticut, Pennsylvania or Upstate New York where we would be able to rent a cottage or villa, someplace where we can share a suite or 4 bedrooms so that it won't be too costly. I would greatly appreciate your assistance.
Thank you for your time.
—Karen
GG Editors: Hello Bronx! Aren't you an enterprising person?! First, you should know that United Vacations offers special group packages for girlfriends, including the help of a specialist to do coordinating. They have a year-long offer that rewards travelers who book a group of 16 people or more to nearly any U.S. destination with a savings of $25 per person. Plus, the group leader will get 10,000 Mileage Plus® bonus miles. Bookings for travel this year. You also get the help of a travel agent in coordinating flights from various cities to the destination of your choice, reserving hotel rooms within close proximity for convenience, recommending sightseeing tours and shows, help arrange for private motor coach or shuttle bus transfers and limousines, coordinate payment from all group members, and be on call 24 hours in case of problems. If you try it, let us know what you think.
As for suggestions on places to stay, I recommend you check out GirlGetaways.com, where we've listed 50 great places (including in the states you specified) as well as Spa Getaways info. Have a great time! —Sean O'Neill
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Walnut Creek, Calif.: Where in the world...I was reading this month's magazine and fell in love with a dress that is actually on an advertisement page for Fort Lauderdale. It states it is from a store called Pink Papaya in Deerfield Beach, but how can I find out who makes this dress in time to order it for our trip to Hawaii this summer??
GG Editors: Yes, that dress is both snazzy and summery. We don't know the name of it here. But call Pink Papaya at (954) 426-4267. —Sean O'Neill
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Fulton, Mississippi: How do I subscribe to GG? I just looked at a copy and want more.
GG Editors: Great to hear that you're a fan! Unfortunately, we aren't able to take subscriptions for Girlfriend Getaways yet, but you can find the next issue on newsstands in mid-August. In the meantime, check GirlGetaways.com for new package deals and other updates, as we expand our GG coverage. And if you'd like more copies of the current issue, you can place an order here. —Kate Appleton
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Guthrie, Okla.: We took a girltrip last year to Zion and Bryce National Parks and this year I am looking into Acadia Park in Maine for the four of us, probably in the fall. What I am having trouble with is where to fly into and rent a car--or is it so out of the way that it's hard to do that? Even on Tripadvisor, I can't get a correct answer. I know Bangor, Maine has an airport. What can you suggest? Also, where should we stay near the park? Thanks a lot, Christy
GG Editors: Acadia is a great destination for a girlfriend getaway—lots of hikes, terrific sea kayaking, and a nice selection of shops and restaurants. Your best bet is to fly into Bangor International Airport. Taking traffic and roads into consideration (you'll be on a winding two-lane highway for most of the trip), the drive to the park should take about an hour and a half. You might be able to find better deals if you fly into Portland, but your drive to the park will be close to four hours.
Apart from a couple of campgrounds, the park itself doesn't have any lodging. Stay in Bar Harbor, just outside the park. The Ivy Manor Inn would be a perfect Girlfriend Getaway spot. It's a 1940s Tudor house with antiques and clawfoot tubs in the rooms and evening cocktails served in a common lounge. The farmhouse-style Maples Inn could also be fun. It has board games and paperbacks for guests and serves a hearty breakfast every morning. —Beth Collins
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Chicago, Ill. and Harrisburg, Pa.: My friend and I love to go to musicals and we thinking about doing a weekend in New York this summer. She can probably drive in from Harrisburg; I will fly in from Chicago. We need to find a reasonably (very) priced hotel and are not sure what else to do. Also, where would be best to leave her car? (We are both quite public transportation savvy although we do not know the New York system.)
GG Editors: A weekend in New York can be a great getaway—and if you are a little savvy, it won't even have to break the bank. We've written several articles on the subject, in fact. We created a fabulous weekend itinerary for New York City, which is available for free on our website GirlGetaways.com (The only thing to keep in mind is that our dessert pick, Room4Dessert, has since closed. In its place, I'd recommend ChikaLicious, 203 E 10th St., 212/995-9511.) We also recently wrote about scoring Broadway tickets on the cheap with tips for tracking down promotional codes to use on ticket websites and which months you can find best discounts (January, February, September, and October). And lastly, about your friend's car: I'd recommend parking it at a station along the NJTransit line and taking the train into NYC. You can find out specific information about where parking is available, and for how much, online here. Have a great trip! —Laura MacNeil
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Raleigh, N.C.: My girlfriends either have the time to travel and no money, or the money to travel and no time! I have started traveling by myself about every other month. Questions: How do I avoid the single supplement charge? Or how do I friend friends that can travel?
GG Editors: Solo travelers are in a tight spot; hotels usually base their per person rates on double occupancy. Some hotels have single rooms available for solo travelers at a lower prices, but usually, when you're booking directly with a hotel, there's little you can do to avoid paying extra. There are, however, several tour companies that try to be more solo traveler–friendly. G.A.P Adventures, REI Adventures, Intrepid Travel, Djoser USA, and Adventure Center have solo traveler policies share a similar premise: If you agree to share accommodations with another solo traveler of the same sex, you don't pay any extra. In fact, if there's no other solo traveler on the tour, some companies still will foot the bill for your single accommodations just for having agreed to share in theory. —Laura MacNeil
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Bowling Green, Ky.: Are there any trips especially planned for a mother and two daughters (adults)? We try to do an annual trip together and want to continue to do this for years. My daughters are 22 and 29 and we are making great memories. It is difficult to find accommodations and rates for three. We also we try to do something special on the Saturday night. We usually go for about three nights. Thursday-Sunday (June 26-29th). This year we are doing Dallas—any suggestions?
Thanks,
Dana
GG Editors: Hi Dana,
What a fun mother-daughter tradition you've established. It sounds like the three of you want to share a room, which gives you a few options. You could book a room with two beds, request a cot or a sleep sofa, or go for a suite. (If someone is stuck with a less desirable sleeping arrangement like a cot, you could always treat that person to a massage.) It's unusual for a hotel to charge a fee to have a third adult in one room, but if you're booking a hotel package, be sure to inquire about the triple occupancy rate, as most package rates are based on double occupancy. Sometimes the triple-occupancy rates are cheaper.
In Dallas, the recently renovated Stoneleigh Hotel & Spa might be a good fit. A quick search for online reservations on June 26 yielded a rate of $219 per night for a studio suite, which has king-size beds and a sitting area with a sleep sofa. It's in the posh Uptown neighborhood near the Dallas Museum of Art and the Nasher Sculpture Center. You can get more hotel and trip ideas at the Dallas CVB's website, whose calendar includes event listings for June 26-29. There's also a downloadable coupon book for Allen Premium Outlets here.
And if you have time, I recommend swinging by laid-back Fort Worth during your visit. Its Sundance Square is a fun, walkable area with lots of great places to hang out, including restaurant and bar 8.0, which has live music on its patio. The Bass Performance Hall is just a few blocks away—check the event lineup here. You and your daughters might get a kick out of Fort Worth's National Cowgirl Hall of Fame. You can find out more about Dallas's neighbor and rival by reading 25 Reasons We Love Fort Worth. Enjoy! —Kate Appleton
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Randolph, Vt.: I want to take my 18 y.o. daughter, who'd rather hang with her friends than her mother, to Europe to expose her to the joy of international travel. Her principal interest is shopping, while I am a walker. I'd like suggestions of places to go for a week or so where we can do both, and maybe sneak some culture in on the side.
GG Editors: All the major cities in Europe have great shopping, but it's hard to top Paris. Lucky for you, it also happens to be one of the best walking cities in the world (last time I was there I covered pretty much the entire city and only took the Metro once). Everyone associates the Champs Elysées with shopping, and it's true that the boulevard is lined with stores, but there are several other great shopping pockets throughout the city. The 8eme arrondissement, on the right bank, is home to scores of high-end stores (Chanel, Dior, Dolce & Gabana—that kind of thing). They're well out of the price range of most mere mortals, but still fun to poke your head into.
Fortunately, there are plenty of shops that cater to a younger, hipper, less-filthy-rich crowd, too. On the right bank, the rue du Faubourg St. Honoré, around the Bastille and the Marais, has lots of great boutiques. On the left bank, check out the shops on the Rue St. Placide, in the 6eme arrondissement, and the Rue St. Dominique, in the 7eme.
I've always thought Paris's department stores—particularly the Gallerie Lafayette and Printemps—have a lot more character than their counterparts in the States.
Covering these areas will take you past historical landmarks, a few museums (the Picasso museum in the Marais is one of my all-time favorites), and, at some point, across the Seine. You'll get in all the walking you could want, and your daughter will soak up culture whether she intends to or not! —Beth Collins
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GG Editors: Unfortunately, that's all the time we have to take for questions today. We regret that there were a few we weren't able to answer. Be sure to check back on Tuesday, July 29, when we answer your Girlfriend Getaways questions again.
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