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Travel with Friends: A Suite Escape You Don’t Want to Miss!

Tuesday, February 28th, 2012

Spending time skiing with my college friend in Keystone Resort in Colorado was a great time.

I often tell people who ask me about my favorite hotels that it all depends on who I am traveling with and where I am going. The hotel that you choose when traveling, in my opinion, can make or break your trip. For example, if you were planning a romantic weekend away with your sweetheart then two nights at the Nickelodeon Suites Hotel in Orlando would not be the ideal spot. On the contrary, you might choose something such as the Santorini Princess Luxury Spa Hotel in Greece.

And there is something truly great about traveling with friends. A vacay away with your besties is often the ultimate way to catch up on life, and even remind yourself who you are. Over the years, I try to make an effort to get away with my girlfriends for some QFT (quality friend time). Just last week, I got to spend some time with my best friend from college. She and her family live outside Atlanta. Even though we are both now married women with multiple children, when we are together I feel not a minute removed from our days at UGA. Spending time on the slopes of Keystone Resort in Colorado was something we haven’t experienced together and made a fun adventure for our collective whole family.

In fact, I wish that I could take a few of my close friends on an amazing trip to Hong Kong, Dubai, the Philippines, or St. Lucia. For each locale, I might pick a few different friends who would be up for that trip’s adventures. Just thinking about it gets my trip planning juices going!

How about you? Would you like an amazing adventure with your buds? Well, here’s your chance!

Suite Escapes Giveaway

For the next six weeks, Hotels.com is giving away 16 luxury vacations as part of their Suite Escapes Giveaway. Each week there are three luxury trips up for grabs and all you have to do is choose one and invite three friends to come along! You can enter to win a holiday at three different hotels each week (make sure to enter them on different days of the week for a better chance to win a daily spot prize).

Who can enter?

Traveling with friends can be so rewarding. Some of my best memories are from trips like these!

Anyone who is 21 years of age or older and lives in one of the participating countries is eligible to take part. The participating countries are:

  • USA (50 states including the District of Columbia)
  • Canada (except Quebec)
  • United Kingdom
  • France
  • Germany
  • Australia
  • New Zealand

How to enter

Go to the Hotels.com Suite Escapes Facebook Page. Entering the prize drawing is easy and can be done in two ways:

1) By creating your own suite 
2) By accepting an invite to check-in to someone else’s suite

Creating your own suite

To create your own suite simply:

  • ‘Like’ Hotels.com
  • Check-in to a Suite Escape by clicking on a valid hotel
  • Invite three Facebook friends to join you
  • Ensure that all three friends have accepted your invitation before the prize draw closing date (you can send them a ‘nudge’ to remind them)
  • Your suite is entered once all three friends accept your invitation

One of my favorite trips was with my friend in New York City to see the Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center.

Accepting an invite from a friend

If one of your Facebook friends creates a Suite Escape, and invites you to check-in to that suite, you will be sent an app request via your Facebook profile.

  • Like Hotels.com on Facebook (if you haven’t already done so)
  • Click the ‘Accept Invitation’ button and provide the permissions requested

You have now successfully checked-in!

Grand prize

All virtual suites that qualify for the weekly prize draws will be entered into the grand prize draw to win a hotel stay at Conrad Maldives, Rangali Island, Indian Ocean. The grand prize draw will take place on or around April 4, 2012.

Daily prizes

In addition to the weekly prize draws and grand prize draw, daily prizes are also up for grabs. An iTunes gift card will be given away each day, in every participating country! For more information, please read the Terms and Conditions.

Don’t forget to spread the word about the competition by sharing it with your friends and posting on your Facebook wall. Good luck!

 

 

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Congratulations to our Taylor Swift Giveaway Winner, Rachelle!

Friday, October 28th, 2011
Jesse with her ticket to see Taylor Swift.

Jesse holding her ticket for the Taylor Swift concert.

Congratulations to our Giveaway Winner Rachelle and her niece, Jesse who won two tickets to see Taylor Swift! This was Jesse’s first concert and it looks like they had a great time grooving to Taylor Swift in San Diego. Thanks for sharing your pictures with us, looks like it was a fun night. Stay tuned for more giveaways on the Travel Smart Blog!

Jesse and Rachelle outside of the Taylor Swift concert in San Diego.

 

 

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“Fall” in Love With Travel

Tuesday, October 25th, 2011

"Fall" in Love with Travel with hotels.com by discovering a new region of the world each week.

Get ready to ‘Fall in Love with Travel’ because hotels.com is taking you to four different surprise regions around the world in just one month! Each week on the hotels.com Facebook page, we will reveal a new region and explore all it has to offer with fun facts, trivia, and stats.

The best part is, even if you can’t travel around the world anytime soon, you can win prizes inspired by the region of the week by simply liking the hotels.com Facebook page and filling out a contest entry form. Receive an additional entry into the contest when you share the sweepstakes with a friend!

This week’s region is: Europe. Enter to win the European prize pack, which includes a cashmere scarf, designer bag, and designer sunglasses to keep you looking chic whether you’re in Europe or any other part of the world.

Make sure to check the hotels.com Facebook page each week to explore a new region and enter to win exciting prizes! I’d love to know what your favorite part of Europe is – leave me a comment below explaining where you would choose and why.



 

 

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How To Pick The Best Sunglasses For Your Trip

Monday, October 3rd, 2011

If you leave a comment at the bottom of this post and let me know where you would use N3L Optics sunglasses, you could receive a certificate good for a custom pair of N3L sunglasses!

Are you planning a getaway to sunny islands, snowy slopes or a great city walking destination? Don’t forget to pack a great pair of shades.

According to a 2011 national survey from N3L Optics, only 66 percent of adults wear sunglasses consistently when outdoors, and three out of five have experienced an eye injury while participating in outdoors sports or activities. Having the right pair of shades helps your vacation look and feel its best, enhances your vision and safety, and protects your eyes from the harmful UV radiation, wind and debris.

The right pair of sunglasses also help you to get your game on so you look and feel your best.

Here are a few tips to help you pick the right pair of sunglasses to enhance your trip.

If you’re planning to hike or climb…

  • Look for lightweight frame materials like nylon and lens materials like polycarbonate to enhance comfort.
  • Resilient frame materials with rubberized grip points on the nose bridge and temples keep eyewear secure.
  • More lens curve maximizes peripheral protection against sun, wind and debris.
  • Amber, bronze, and rose lens tints boost the color contrast of the surrounding greenery so you see the trail better.
  • Hydrophobic lens coatings bead sweat and rain off your lenses to keep your view clear.

A good sunglass for hikers and climbers is the Oakley Fast Jacket. It’s unique interchangeable lens design lets you match your optics to your environment, and switching out the lenses is fast and easy.

If you’re planning to be on or near the water…

  • Polarized lenses block blinding glare so you see objects more clearly. The lenses also boost colors to make your view of the world more vibrant.
  • With hydrophobic lens coatings, water beads up and falls off the lens to keep your view clear.
  • Dark amber and bronze contrast lens tints create greater clarity by enhancing contrast and blocking blurring blue light.
  • For shallow water up to 12 feet deep, select a lens with contrast to help you spot underwater features.  For deeper water, go with a darker contrast or neutral lens tint to shield your eyes from the intense sun.
  • More lens curve maximizes peripheral protection against sun, wind and water spray.
    • Mirrored lens coatings help you see more clearly by reflecting the sun rays bounced off the water.
    • Resilient frame materials with rubberized grip points on the nose bridge and temples keep eyewear secure on your face.

A good sunglass for water sports is the Revo Guide. It has specially engineered, polarized lens that provide great optimal clarity, comfort, and color enhancement in water environments.  The lenses eliminate blinding glare and repel water, dirt and oil.

If you’re planning to bike ride or cycle…

  • Look for lightweight frame materials like nylon and lightweight lens materials like polycarbonate to enhance comfort.
    • Lens materials like polycarbonate are virtually shatter proof to protect during impact.
    • More lens curvature maximizes side protection against sun, wind and impact.
    • Hydrophobic lens coatings create an invisible barrier that easily sheds sweat, rain, sunscreen, skin oils, dirt and dust off the lens.
    • Rubberized grip points keep the eyewear in place during strenuous activity or with rapid moments.

A terrific sunglass for bike riding or cycling is the Oakley Jawbone. The lower part of the frame opens for quick and easy lens changing. Vented lenses enhance airflow that helps prevent fogging.

If you are planning to walk or run…

  • If your walking route mainly covers roads and sidewalks, polarized lenses are best for blocking the annoying glare reflecting off these surfaces.  If you prefer to walk with Mother Nature, contrast lens tints like amber, bronze and rose boost the color contrast of the surrounding greenery so you see the trail better.  If you mix up your routes, look for a polarized contrast lens.
  • Look for lightweight frame materials like nylon and lightweight lens materials like polycarbonate to enhance comfort for extended wear.
  • The more lens curve the better your peripheral view and protection against sun, wind and debris.
  • Larger lenses provide more protection for the eye and the delicate skin surrounding it.
  • Resilient frame materials with rubberized grip points on the nose bridge and temples keep the eyewear secure so you won’t have to continually adjust them.  Some manufacturers use special water-absorbing rubber on the frame that actually increases its grip with perspiration.
  • Hydrophobic lens coatings bead sweat and rain off your lenses to keep your view clear.
  • An interchangeable lens design or photochromic lens allows you to change lens tints to better match the current light environment or sport application.
  • An open-edge lens design or vented lens will increase airflow to prevent the annoyance of lens fogging.

A great sunglass for walking is the Oakley Miss Conduct Squared. It’s squared–off shape and rimless toric shield truly shield from the elements.

If you are planning to hit the slopes…

  • Polarization reduces the blinding rays of glare reflected off flat surfaces.
  • Lens tints, like brown, copper, and rose enhance the wearer’s ability to more accurately judge distances between objects and improve visibility by enhancing the eyes’ ability to recognize colors. This can help avoid obstacles and better judge course layouts.
  • Special lens coatings and venting ports help to ward off the evils of fogging.

A great sunglass for winter sports is the Smith Parallel Max. It provides the value and versatility with three interchangeable lens options to adapt to any light condition on the mountain.

N3L Optics (Newton’s 3 Laws of Motion) is a new and revolutionary sunglass store committed to carrying the world’s best assortment of sport performance optics. For more information, visit www.N3LOptics.com. And be sure to ‘like’ N3L Optics on Facebook!


 

 

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And the Winner of the Clay Yourself Contest is..

Tuesday, March 15th, 2011

Grand Prize Winner Leonty M. will star in a hotels.com commercial

Hotels.com recently announced the winner to the Clay Yourself contest, designed for visitors to audition to star in a hotels.com commercial and create digital clay avatars of themselves. The company had a great response with over 390,000 visitors to the microsite and more than 41,000 headshots uploaded to Facebook.

The Grand Prize winner was named Leonty M (photo seen to the right), a travel enthusiast who lives in Winston-Salem, NC. Leonty entered the contest with a Kelly-green shirt clad, sunglasses wearing and headphone sporting clay avatar who won the hearts of fellow voters and the final hotels.com judges. He will travel to Los Angeles in April to get a behind the scenes view of the commercial creation. Hotels.com also provided Leonty a complimentary three day, two night stay at a hotel in Los Angeles.

Leonty’s avatar is a fun complement to the cast of clay avatar characters planned for the upcoming hotels.com commercial. In addition to the grand prize, eight weekly winners received $200 coupon vouchers for hotels.com. The microsite will remain active indefinitely so users can share their avatars with friends and browse the photo gallery.

And remember to follow Hotels.com on Facebook to see the winning clay avatars.

 

 

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One Day Left to Enter ‘Clay Yourself’ Contest

Friday, February 25th, 2011

Make sure to watch this hotels.com ‘Clay Yourself’ clip from the TODAY show!
(Either JavaScript is not active or you are using an old version of Adobe Flash Player. Please install the newest Flash Player.)

The “Clay Yourself” contest from hotels.com has received more than 215,000 entries, but there is still one more day left to enter!

Throughout the contest, seven weekly winners have received $200 coupon vouchers that will continue through the last day of the contest, which is today. Follow Hotels.com on Facebook to see the winning clay avatars, and for more information, please visit: http://www.clayyourself.com

 

 

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How We Do It – An Inside Look at Creating SMART and Claymation

Tuesday, January 25th, 2011

It is easy to watch SMART, the red-haired travel character for hotels.com, and think he is effortless to animate and “clay”. His movements seem so natural that it’s hard to believe it takes a three-week process to create his unique attributes.

With the recent buzz around the chance for viewers to join SMART in his commercials through the hotels.com Clay Yourself contest, those hopeful to win their opportunity to star alongside SMART might want to know what to expect.


As such, I spoke with Mike Hill, Vice President, Group Account Director, Y&R Chicago, the advertising firm that created SMART, and wanted to share with you his thoughts on claymation.

SMART is miniature.

On screen, SMART appears life-size, but in reality, he’s only five inches tall and made entirely of clay. By creating a tiny version of the travel expert, the commercial director is able to capture life-like details in his mannerisms.

Stop-Motion Animation

Claymation is a form of stop-motion animation. It stands out on TV because it sets SMART apart from traditional cartoon characters, yet doesn’t place him within the human realm. The director stops between each frame to slightly move the clay figures. Slowly, the commercial is shot with individual frames. Once these individual frames are quickly tied together, their fast movement gives the illusion that the clay figures are moving. Every seamlessly easy arch of SMART’s eyebrow actually takes a pause to manually manipulate the scene.

SMART’s friends

Each new character is designed from a sketch, which is then turned into a clay model. Once we confirm a new commercial’s creative concept, the artists sketches the new clay character to fit the role. This sketch is then transferred into 3D reality by Aardman Animations, the Bristol, England-based company who brings the claymation to life. It takes three weeks to develop a new SMART friend, and each detail is carefully sculpted.

One more thing

Hotels.com is bringing the clay experience outside of the animation studio and into your computers. Through the Clay Yourself experience, anyone can create a digital clay avatar that resembles their physical features. This avatar can then be submitted for an audition to star in the next hotels.com commercial. The Clay Yourself contest ends on February 25th, 2011, which means the winner will be shaped, designed and ready for prime time by April. For more information on how to earn a chance to shine in clay, visit: www.clayyourself.com.

 

 

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