ISTANBUL, TURKIYE – One of the richest histories of any city on earth. Wondrous places of worship. Remarkable food. Some of the world’s most interesting markets. And hotels for every budget. I recently spent eight days in Istanbul for a board meeting and then a full convention of the Society of American Travel Writers, and got to check out several hotels and some wonderful restaurants. I also had walking tours that included the Aya (also known as Hagia) Sophia, the amazing Basilica Cisterns, the Spice Bazaar, the sparkling, new Galataport shopping/dining/cruise port, and outside glimpses of the Blue Mosque and Read more
Conrad Hotels
It’s funny how some places just feel like home. My wife and I stayed at the Conrad New York Downtown six or seven years ago and loved it. So, when the nice folks from Hilton provided me with a gift certificate for a Hilton property, I naturally opted for another stay at the Conrad. It has become my fave place to stay in Manhattan. I love Central Park and enjoy Midtown. I really like the area around Union Square. But I’m a California native who loves the water, so I tend to gravitate to places on a river or lake, Read more
It’s a Millenials’ world, folks. You may have heard about the so-called “Instagram Hotel” in Sydney, Australia. No? Well, it’s a property called the 1888 Hotel that was designed to be incredibly photographable and thus appeal to folks who understand that words like “Hefe,” “Crema” and “Lo-Fi” aren’t flavours at Baskin-Robbins or types of stereos but rather filters you can use for Instagram photos. The hotel is not only achingly pretty to look at but they’ll give folks free rooms if they have 10,000 Instagram followers. They’ve received more publicity than many hotels with enormous p.r. budgets, so it’s been Read more
