33480 Travel Guide
Tags: Thanksgiving Hotels / Palm Beach Hotels / HotelChatter Reader Deals / → All Tags
Have a Side of Palm Beach with Your Thanksgiving Turkey
You know what goes even better with a heaping plate of Thanksgiving turkey than a side of mashed potatoes? Palm Beach. OK, so maybe you won’t feel like jumping straight into that bikini or Speedo after gorging on your holiday dinner, but we’re still going to say beach-combing in Palm Beach trumps cramming into your sister-in-law’s house in suburbia.
But here’s what would make us extra thankful: staying at the Four Seasons Resort Palm Beach, with the third night free. And for those of you purists who think the only way a beach should be part of Thanksgiving is lounging around like a beached whale after chowing down on seconds and thirds, fret not, for the Four Seasons has arranged for some traditional Thanksgiving activities.
Tags: Hotel Restaurants / Four Seasons Hotels / Palm Beach Hotels / → All Tags
Four Seasons Palm Beach Rolls Out 'Julie and Julia' Menu
Ah, what a cute fairytale-ish story: way back in the day when the Four Seasons Palm Beach's Chef Darryl Moiles was working at the Four Seasons Boston, the inimitable Ms. Julia Child would "make her way from the dining room to the kitchen" when she dropped in for a bite. Apparently she left quite the impression, because the chef is now paying tribute to her in conjunction with the opening of the new book-turned-Meryl-Streep-flick, Julie and Julia.
Chef Moiles, who is now the executive chef at Four Seasons Palm Beach, is throwing down a special menu showcasing some of Ms. Child's biggest-hit recipes from her cookbook The Art of French Cooking, which will be debuting and running at the Resort's Ocean Bistro from August 8 to September 4. The lineup will change weekly.
Tags: Hotel Pets / Palm Beach Hotels / WTF Hotel News / → All Tags
Stealing Shampoo From Hotels is Fine; Stealing a Parrot is Not
Yeah, we'll confess: sometimes we steal stuff from hotels. Like the little baby soaps and shampoos and things (which are ours for the taking), and one time we swiped a monogrammed washcloth and a tea packet and the binder that held the roomservice menus because we thought it looked nice. But do you know what we have never stolen from a hotel? A bird.
Though this is not as bad as the time some guy ripped the head off of one of the ducks in a hotel lobby (and yes, that really did happen), this is still sort of sad and mean: someone stole a couple of parrots from The Breakers.
According to the AP, police are charging a man with trespassing (and also "violating an ordinance declaring the island town a bird sanctuary") after he stole two baby parrots from the hotel and then left them in a pet store yesterday after trying to sell them to the pet store owner. But, uh, they don't know who the guy is.
Per the report:
The chicks were part of a flock of more than 100 wild birds at The Breakers resort in Palm Beach. Biologists monitor the birds with cameras aimed at their nests in hollowed-out trees. That's how authorities learned the two chicks were missing.
No, but seriously: who does that? Kimpton, you need to start keeping close watch on your pet concierges now. Oy.
[Photo: sgrace]
Tags: Hotel Spas / Four Seasons Hotels / Palm Beach Hotels / → All Tags
The Four Seasons Palm Beach Opens its Own Fountain of Youth
Long a bastion for prettifying glam guests with massages, facials, and hair care, the Four Seasons Palm Beach just opened a shiny new 11,000-square-foot spa facility with 12 treatment rooms, a marble reception area, and multiple relaxation lounges with whirlpools, waterfalls, and steam rooms.
For those of you not drinking from Florida’s fountain of youth, worry not, for the spa’s new treatments are designed to keep you (at least appearing) far from your days of velour tracksuits and early-bird specials at Denny’s. Not that we’re judging.
Tags: WiFi Hell / Four Seasons Hotels / → All Tags
Four Seasons May Be the Worst in WiFi Hell
Thanks to an extremely in-depth review of the Four Seasons Palm Beach, we learn just how little Four Seasons cares about your internet access.
This hotel chains consistently charges $10 a day for wireless access (sometimes more, depending on location), despite the fact that you are probably paying more than $400 a night for your room.
And even though they are a luxury hotel chain, it seems the internet at this location doesn't work for shit.
The Four Seasons advertises internet, but the wireless does not work well - at least not in our room on the third floor (Room 303, which was otherwise a beautiful room). I bring an external antenna card, and despite this, neither my husband's nor my laptop could get a strong enough signal to connect wirelessly in our room to the internet.
So I used the ethernet cable provided in each room to connect to the desk. The problem is that the ethernet internet is incredibly slow (think dial-up speeds at times) and disconnects frequently (one night, about every 15 minutes). I called the front desk and spoke to their internet service directly (Wayport) to troubleshoot this, but nothing worked.....(Note that I tried the business center one day, and it was not a helpful substitute, because it took me over 30 minutes to reach one of the computers, since there are only two desktops and one laptop station and no time limit for the fortunate few in place ahead of you. So using the hotel's computers will not be a good solution for you business travelers.)
You know something's not right when you can get free WiFi in Panera without buying a single bagel or cup of coffee but as a paying guest of the Four Seasons, you need to fork over $10 for "possible" access.
A note to the Four Seasons, Ritz Carltons and other luxury chains: Just because your guests can afford the pricey room rates doesn't mean they think its okay for you to rip-em off on WiFi fees. And if you even want to make an honorable mention on our Annual WiFi Report, then you better start moving fast.
Related Stories:
· Four Seasons Palm Beach reviews [TripAdvisor]
Tags: Hotels / → All Tags
Florida Getaway: Brazilian Court
Like the other "in-town" hotels of Palm Beach, the Brazilian Court Hotel is small with only 80 rooms. But what it lacks in size it makes up in service, privacy, comfort and an overall enjoyable stay.
Just two blocks from the beach and three blocks from Worth Avenue, when you enter the hotel, you get a full view of the french doors leading out to the hotel's famous courtyard and fountain.
The rooms as well as other parts of the hotel have been renovated and upgraded to include new amenities as well as a Frederic Fekkai hair salon, spa and a fitness center. Sadly, unlike other boutique hotels in Florida, the pool scene is not happening. But rather it's a very small-sized pool, made for a quick dip in and out.
Dining at the hotel is recommended as Café Boulud, a New York outpost from famed restaurateur Daniel Boulud offers guests a better chance of getting seating than some outsiders.
Related Stories:
· Brazilian Court reviews [TripAdvisor]
· Brazilian Court Hotel [Worth Avenue]
Tags: Hotels / → All Tags
Florida Getaway: The Colony Hotel
This week, we are reporting from the East Coast of Florida, where 80 percent of the people taking advantage of President's Week have landed.
First stop, is the The Colony Palm Beach, a small hotel just beyond the town's ritzy Worth Avenue (think Rodeo Drive's East Coast counterpart) and a block from the beach.
As with most hotels in Palm Beach, the rates are pricey and start at $450 a night to stay in one of the hotel's guest rooms. They also have suites and villas available for a total of 90 accomodations.
The hotel has a very Carribbean feel. Despite a teeny tiny lobby, there's the Polo restaurant which extends outside around the swimming pool. And the fun Bimini Bar serving alcohol and tropical drinks around the pool.
However, this isn't a pool that you would really go gung-ho swimming in. First of all, there are people in blue blazers and Chanel suits eating at tables around you. Second, it's sort of small.
More pics and info post-click.
Tags: Hotels / → All Tags
Palm Beach: Not just for Trump
The Wall Street Journal enlightens travelers on the new side of the preppy haven, Palm Beach, that is (gasp!) kid friendly.
Once stuffy "old-guard" hotels like The Breakers have started to tailor their services to families with children, as evidenced by the Fun Zone--which was setup one weekend and housed inflatable carnival tents, three-story water slides and bungee-jumping trampolines.
Kids can even stay free with their parents, and with rooms starting at $470, that's a pretty nice perk.
A recent reviewer has added two other services the hotel does for families:
[1.]They provide decent cribs if necessary as well as bottle warmers and diaper pails for your room. They also rent strollers for $18.00 a day if you need. [2.]They will baby proof your room if you request it.
The uppity and chic Brazilian Court has made a small concession, by ordering terry-cloth robes in a child's size.
The "more-adult boutique" Chesterfield now offers a family package with a "make your own Teddie Bear" gift certificate.
While Palm Beach will never be Disney World and is still primarily ruled by the old-guard affluent old folks (the article reports of a restaurant hosting a kid's birthday party in a back room so as not to disturb the regulars) it can be the best of both worlds--adulthood and childhood--for the family.
Related Stories:
· Palm Beach Wants Your Noisy Kids [WSJ, reg. req'd.]
· The Breakers Reviews [TripAdvisor]
Hotels In: Africa | Asia | Australia | Caribbean | Europe | North America | South America
Our Publications:
Jaunted | HotelChatter | VegasChatter
