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OpenThread / Hotel Bookings / Hotel Construction / Disney Hotels / → All Tags

Would You Book a Hotel Room One Year in Advance? Mickey Mouse Hopes So

Where: Ko Olina, HI, United States

Even though it won't open until August 29, 2011, Disney's newest resort in Hawaii, The Aulani will start taking reservations on August 2. Yup, that's more than a year away. And: this is the first Disney hotel that's not positioned next to one of its theme parks.

Which got us thinking: would you book a hotel room 12 months in advance? Do you like careful forward planning, or do you prefer to travel spontaneously? Of course, Disney is all about families, and it can take military precision to plan a kid-friendly vacation. So perhaps advance planning makes sense here.

But then: do you know when you can take your vacation days next August? Will you even have a job?

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Best Western Hotels / Hotel Bookings / Hotel Technology / iPhone Apps / → All Tags

Best Western's iPhone App Taps Into Facebook

It ain't Shazam, nor a fancy-schmancy application like Chanel's, but Best Western's new iPhone app does have its pluses. When we first heard about the smart phone tie-in, we were slightly taken aback. The budget chain doesn't strike us as very cutting edge or tech-forward, though they have been renovating certain locations for a more modern feel lately.

All the cool kids seem to have an iPhone app these days, so BW has jumped on the proverbial bandwagon. With it, you can search and book rooms, create a travel itinerary and highlight nearby attractions via GPS, "capture and categorize favorite locations," and use the app to share travel highlights via e-mail and Facebook. Which is actually more than what typical iPhone hotel apps on the market have done.

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Hotel Bookings / Hotel Websites / Hotel Deals / Hotel Tips / → All Tags

Deal or No Deal with 'What A Hotel' Booking Site?

A video ad for the online travel agency "What A Hotel" recently piqued our curiosity. (Confession: We saw it on the celebrity-gossip website A Socialite's Life.) The site is run by Lorraine Travel, a Coral Gables-based travel agency. The video ad features a voice-over fit for a movie trailer. Said voice-over extols the benefits of booking participating luxury hotels and resorts through the "What A Hotel" website. So what luxury hotels does this include? And can you really get some deals?

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