Jetsettersblog

The Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel, Bel Air is offering a variety of amenities for children. Kids under 12 receive a customized bath sponge amenity with their first name spelled out with alphabet sponges.

The hotel has also offers kid-sized bathrobes, which are available upon request.

Additionally, the hotel provides milk and cookies at turndown (between 5 p.m.and 7 p.m.) for children ages 10 and under.

Parents must make this request at time of booking in case there is any type of food allergy or they prefer not to have sweets for their children.

And a new children’s menu for kids age 10 and under at OnSunset Restaurant and through room service includes items like chicken nuggets, fish sticks, hot dogs, and angel hair pasta with meatballs.

For more information, call 800-468-3541 or visit www.luxehotelsunsetblvd.com

A new Amtrak station is open near Orlando for the more than 244,000 annual Amtrak Auto Train passengers.

At about 10,000 square feet, the station in Sanford seats 600 passengers and is about four times larger than its predecessor. Thomas Carper, chairman of the Amtrak Board of Directors, joined local, state and federal officials for the celebration.

The original depot, constructed in 1971 and renovated in 1995, was not large enough to accommodate growing demand for the Auto Train, which just reported a year-to-year ridership increase of nearly 5 percent, despite the economic recession.

Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), Amtrak received $10.5 million to reconstruct the Sanford station, as the original facility sustained extensive damage during the 2004 hurricane season and part of the waiting room had since been sheltered in a tent. Station platforms are receiving $161,000 in Amtrak ARRA funds for accessibility improvements of a wheelchair lift and tactile edges under the railroad’s Mobility First initiative.

“The Auto Train is an example of how good stations, modern equipment and competent operation make good service — we’ve made the investments, and passengers are reaping the benefits,” said Carper, the former mayor of Macomb, Ill.

Carper was joined at the ribbon-cutting ceremony by U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown (D-Fla.) and U.S. Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.), who represent the area and both serve on the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, with Brown as the chair and Mica as ranking member. State and local officials also attended the brief ceremony.

In addition to the larger passenger lounge, the modern structure contains a ticket counter, café, restrooms and a gift shop.

The transition between the new station and the remainder of the depot is accomplished by a pavilion whose roof slopes upward toward the trackside façade in opposition to the roofline of the adjoining waiting room. The pavilion is centered upon a deep porte cochere that shelters passengers while they enter the station and register their vehicles for loading and storage.

A portion of the former station abutting the new structure will be reconfigured into administrative offices and will open in early 2011.

The original platform canopy remains in place to protect passengers from inclement weather as they board or exit the Auto Train.

The Amtrak Auto Train holds the distinction of being the longest passenger train in the world, with two locomotives and 40-plus passenger rail cars and vehicle carriers operating daily to Lorton, Va., in the suburbs of Washington, D.C.

The 855-mile Auto Train route is the only Amtrak service to simultaneously transport passengers and their motor vehicles, including cars, SUVs, vans, trucks and motorcycles.

Each year the Auto Train draws more than 100,000 vehicles off of a highly congested highway corridor, with resulting energy, environmental and safety benefits.

These vehicles are primarily diverted from Interstate highway 95, which is why the special toll-free 877-754-7495 phone number for Auto Train reservations spells 877-SKIP-I-95.

The Auto Train originated in a three-year, $3 million Congressional study in 1965, to determine if auto-ferry service could be as successful in the U.S. as it had been in Europe.

The Auto Train began running on Dec. 6, 1971, with daily service in both directions.

Lorton was chosen as the northern terminus because it is the most northerly spot that the auto rack cars can go as they are too tall to fit through tunnels further north.

Additionally, the train was scheduled to leave in the late afternoon so that travelers leaving from Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York could arrive after a day’s drive and take the overnight train to Florida.

The service began two months after the opening of the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World near Orlando and in time for the severe shortages and steep gasoline price increases of 1973-74.

The Auto Train service became so popular that, on May 24, 1974, weekend service between Louisville, Ky., and Sanford was set up. In 1975, the Lorton-Sanford train ran in two sections, five minutes apart during peak periods. However, the combination of two major operational incidents and the lack of success on the Louisville-Sanford run marked the beginning of the end for the corporation.

The Louisville-Sanford service ceased in September 1977 and in early 1978, another incident took its toll on the cash-strapped company. In late April 1981, the Auto Train Company ended the service.

Twenty-two months later, Amtrak revived the operation with a tri-weekly service, now called the Auto Train.

This service became popular enough to return to daily service before long, with former customers returning for the Virginia-to-Florida run.

Since then, Amtrak has upgraded the service with its famous bi-level Superliner rail cars and in 2000 replaced the northern terminus in Lorton with a 450-seat facility. In 2005, Amtrak retired the auto carriers from the original Auto-Train Corporation with the purchase of 80 higher capacity carriers.

For more information, call 800-USA-RAIL or visit www.amtrak.com

Auto Europe has added its 130th country to its growing roster of locations.

In addition to Europe, Auto Europe also offers car rental services within North America, South and Central America, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Central Asia and the Near East.

Auto Europe offers car rental services from Abu Dhabi, United Emirates, and Suva, Fiji, to Zacatecas, Mexico.

The goal of Auto Europe is to continuously expand not only its global services, but to also add incremental new products such as the current expansion with chauffeur drive services, new domestic car rental and hotel packages, and portable GPS rentals with full country mapping.

Auto Europe services over 8,000 car rental locations in 130 countries worldwide.

In addition, through their tour division, FlyInternational.com, they offer scheduled airfare to Europe with over 30 carriers and service three-, four- and five-star worldwide hotels.

American Airlines and American Eagle have strengthened their commitment to Los Angeles with plans to add 10 new destinations — one international and nine domestic — for a total of 33 additional round trips beginning April, 5, 2011.

New destinations from LAX, with total number of daily flights, include Albuquerque, N.M. (three);

Boise, Idaho (two); El Paso, Texas (two); Houston Bush Intercontinental (three); Oklahoma City, Okla. (one); Phoenix, Ariz. (four); Shanghai, China (one); Salt Lake City, Utah (three); Sacramento, Calif. (four); and Tucson, Ariz. (three).

In addition to Los Angeles-Shanghai, American will offer seven additional daily domestic flights from Los Angeles, including two flights each to Dallas/Fort Worth and Miami and one flight each to Chicago, Las Vegas and Orlando.

By spring 2011, American and American Eagle will offer 153 daily departures at LAX — a 28 percent increase from today’s schedule.

The airlines also have flexibility to add more flights and destinations in the future.

Aerolineas Argentinas will sign an agreement by the end of October to officially start the process of joining SkyTeam as the first South American member of the airline alliance. Customers will benefit from increased access to and from Latin America.

SkyTeam is actively working to strengthen its presence in Latin America, a region with strong growth figures and a positive outlook for the future.

Through a five-year restructuring plan introduced last year, Aerolineas Argentinas is implementing a number of measures to strengthen its business model and establish itself as a major player in Latin America.

Key elements of this plan include fleet renewal and rationalization, adding key international destinations, increasing the density of the domestic and regional network and improving product quality and consistency.

For more information, visit www.skyteam.com

The Mexico Tourism Board launched the Visit Mexico iPhone application — the first iPhone travel application to provide nationwide coverage.

Users can select to receive information from six regions and all 32 states, in addition to receiving in-depth information about 27 top tourist destinations.

The app includes several features, such as online news and weather, interesting activities, videos and Google Map links for top destinations.

The application also includes an interactive “piñata” game where users can shake the iPhone to receive a treat — a destination suggestion. By tapping the name of the suggested destination, users can learn more about its culture, cuisine, climate, geographical setting and much more. This is the perfect game for spontaneous travelers, who love nothing more than jetting away to new and enticing locales.

One of the best features of the application is the “Activities” section located on the home screen.

By tapping into this section, users can learn more about Mexico’s wide range of activities.

From beaches to camping to entertainment, users can see their favorite activities in a multitude of Mexican destinations, such as Tijuana, Cancun, RivieraNayarit and Queretaro, among others.

By using the application, users can also learn more about Mexico’s numerous World Heritage sites, festivals and rich history all with the “tap” of a button.

The Visit Mexico application is available in both English and Spanish and is compatible with iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad models (iOS 3.1 or later), allowing users to get up-to-the-minute information about all things Mexico, no matter where they are, or what Apple product they’re using.

The application is available free of charge on the Apple iTunes Web site at www.itunes.apple.com/us/app/visit-mexico/id380085352?mt=8#

For more information, visit www.visitmexico.com

The Red and White Fleet will launch a new City Lights cruise in November. The casual, two-hour cruise showcases San Francisco’s nightscape and features live guitar entertainment, an appetizer buffet and a bar.

The vessels feature heated indoor spaces with large viewing windows and upholstered seating, as well as outdoor viewing decks.

Departures are on Fridays and Saturdays at 5:30 p.m. from Nov. 8, 2010, through March 30, 2011.

Fares are $54 for adults ages 18 and over, $36 for youth ages 5 to 17 and free for children under age 5. Advance bookings are recommended.

For more information, call 415-673-2900 or visit www.redandwhite.com

Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants added The Grand Hotel Minneapolis to its portfolio of boutique hotels.

Recently acquired by Pebblebrook Hotel Trust, the four diamond-rated hotel is located in the city’s downtown business district in a 14-story building originally constructed in 1912 to house the famed Minneapolis Athletic Club. Linked to the Minneapolis Skyway System, the property is connected to key entertainment, retail and convention venues and sits in close proximity to the Walker Art Center, the Guthrie Theater, Target Stadium and the Riverfront District.

Featuring extensive meeting space and one of the largest ballrooms in the downtown area, The Grand Hotel Minneapolis is already extremely popular with travelers doing business in the Twin Cities.

With its transition into a Kimpton hotel, which will take place over the next 30 to 40 days, The Grand Hotel Minneapolis will now also feature the personalized services, programs and amenities for which the Kimpton brand is known.

Such programs include the hosted evening wine hour; Guppy Love (companion goldfish upon request for lonesome travelers); signature leopard print robes; luxurious custom Frette linens; “Forgot It, We’ve Got It” list of travel essentials; more than 100 eco-friendly EarthCare operating practices; pet-friendly services; and more.

In addition, the hotel will undergo some refurbishments to refresh the interior design and make it reflective of Kimpton’s personality and style. At the same time, a dozen or more guest rooms will be converted into Tall Rooms, Kimpton’s custom room design for very tall guests. The refurbishments are expected to be completed by early 2011.

This is the third Pebblebrook owned hotel to be managed by Kimpton. Pebblebrook also owns the Kimpton-managed Sir Francis Drake Hotel in San Francisco and Hotel Monaco in Washington, D.C.

For more information, call 800-KIMPTON or visit www.KimptonHotels.com

The Spa by ESPA at The Gleneagles Hotel in Scotland received the Readers’ Choice Award for Favorite Spa in Scotland by SpaFinder Inc., a global spa resource.

Readers cast a record number of votes in the eighth annual awards, which are considered a thorough and independent assessment of spas worldwide.

The Spa by ESPA at Gleneagles features 20 treatment rooms (many with private bathrooms), a vitality pool lit by fiber optics, and an extensive menu of the latest ESPA therapeutic treatments.

For more information, call 866-463-8734, email resort.sales@gleneagles.com  or visit www.gleneagles.com  or www.gleneagles.com/spa

The 58-room Hotel Bellevue des Alpes on Kleine Scheidegg has been nominated as the Historic Hotel of the Year 2011 for preserving the spirit of the pioneering days of Alpinism.

The historic hotel, built in 1840 on the panoramic Scheidegg Pass, preserves the earliest days of modern ecotourism as the Swiss Alps offered the original 19th century eco-tourists their first challenging destination.

It has been managed by the fifth generation of Andreas and Silvia von Almen’s family since 1988, and has 100 beds.

The building, its interior and its guest list are steeped in history, while the hotel is also famous for being the location where “The Eiger Sanction” starring Clint Eastwood and “North Face” with Benno Furmann were filmed. The Bellevue des Alpes was last extended and renovated in 1948.

Since then, any restoration carried out has focused exclusively on stylistic elements.

All the interiors of the hotel’s public spaces date back to the 1920s.

All the great mountaineers of the 20th century as well as celebrities from society, skiing and the film industry have stayed in this hotel.

For more information, call 011-41 (0) 33 855 12 12,

email welcome@scheidegg-hotels.ch

or visit www.scheidegg-hotels.ch