PE.com - Tourism Blog

Need a little rock with your rollercoaster?

If walking around a cafe ogling rock memorabilia and costumes hermetically sealed behind glass is way too pedestrian, the Hard Rock Park is scheduled to open in 2008 in Myrtle Beach, S.C. (land of 104-golf courses)

So far its first ride under construction is Led Zeppelin - The Ride -- what no "Stairway to Heaven" reference? If ever there was an appropriate pun, it would be used to name that rollercoaster.

The theme park's owners simply licensed the Hard Rock brand and logo, but the park's CEO has ties with the company that brought a Hard Cafe within a 150-mile radius of you.

Alas, no "John Denver Experience" like the one depicted in Comedy Central's South Park.

If you want to get your rock tourist fill before the park opens there is always:

Aerosmith's roller coaster adventure at Disney's MGM Grand

Experience music at the Experience Music Project in Seattle

Or check out the Fender Museum in Corona, not far from home

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 4:59 PM, August 29
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(KRT Graphic)

JetBlue, AirTran, Continental Airlines and U.S. Airways have all signed on to a new service called Bill Me Later.

No need to pay anything for 90 days according to a current offer that lasts until Sept. 30, but after that you'll be paying 19.99% in interest on top of minimum finance charges of $2.

Why not just buy a flight with your credit card?

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 5:08 AM, August 29
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Desert Fashion Plaza circa 2002 (The Press-Enterprise)

For the first time, the city of Palm Springs' Bureau of Tourism has surveyed the folks who visit the area -- even the folks who have never been and think the city is in Florida, not California -- to find out how they can market the destination better.

San Francisco-based Community Marketing Inc. was hired to administer the survey and presented most of the results Thursday which were summarized into a 21-page report. At the time, I didn't have a good deal of time to pour over the summary's details but since then I've found a few interesting nuggets, like this one (emphasis mine):

"The positive news is that once a person does visit Palm Springs, most seem to enjoy the destination and want to return. Palm Springs does not carry with it a lot of negative perceptions or dislikes for visitors, with the exception of the downtown shopping mall."

The survey is referring to the downtrodden Desert Fashion Plaza whose owners, Wessman Development Co., are currently working on plans to redevelop it into an outdoor retail hub.

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 5:40 AM, August 27
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The mouse has added a few new stops for travelers looking for Adventures By Disney. Tourists wanting the California experience can travel from San Francisco to Los Angeles or take backstage tours in Hollywood and Disneyland.

Disney marketing director Lilly Yeatman said the company had looked at Temecula and Palm Springs as possible destinations but, "it just turned out it became too long of a trip."

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 3:14 PM, August 24
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So it feels as if all things tourist are in Palm Springs today -- at 2 p.m. I'll be heading to town to listen to the Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism announce the results of tourist survey. As far as I know, the city has never known who really visits the area besides looking around at the tourists themselves, so it should be interesting to find out who's been vacationing here.

Here is other news out of the city-funded tourism bureau:

Beginning Aug. 31, the city of Palm Springs will be exposed to tourists surfing the Web and watching television, according to statements from the city.
The Palm Springs Bureau of Tourism has partnered with travel Web site Travelocity to display “Discover Palm Springs” banner ads on the site whenever a person searches for flights into or out of Los Angeles International Airport, LA/Ontario International Airport or Palm Springs International Airport.

On cable television, a 20-minute video tour of the city will be available to Time Warner Video on Demand subscribers in Los Angeles, San Diego, New York City, Minneapolis, St. Louis and Chicago as a part of a programming offering called Journey TV.

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 11:54 AM, August 23
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The 80-room Best Western Big Bear Chateau at 42200 Moonridge Rd. has sold for $7.75 million to Rowland Heights-based Skyland Oceans LLC, according to a report from the CoStar Group and alcohol license records.

The hotel had been owned by Big Bear Chateau LLC whose company included Jim M. Ahn and Pun Kwi Hahn.

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 10:58 AM, August 23
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LA/Ontario International Airport has re-opened one of its terminals that's home to Southwest Airlines, American Airlines, ATA and US Airways flights after a passenger's oxygen device scared baggage inspectors enough to call in the FBI and the airport's own bomb squads and Ontario Fire Department.

They closed off the terminal for two hours, but all is apparently well now. No word on flights delays or disruptions as a result.

In honor of the medical device scare here are a few other things that may touch off security:

- Human ashes and a watch in the same box. Seperate boxes? No biggie.
- An iPod
- Anger
- "Organic material" otherwise known as a "cookie"

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 4:23 PM, August 22
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Ontario International Airport's terminal for Southwest Airlines (Terminal 4) has been evacuated while bomb squads investigate a suspicious package that was found inside luggage at noon.

Incoming flights have been diverted to Terminal 2. There may or may not be delays.

Read more here.

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 1:59 PM, August 22
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Maybe its because I like to scare myself, or maybe its because I like to laugh at people who unduly scare themeselves but here's a map that will let you know just how scary the locale is that you're visiting.

Although according to the map there have been absolutely no instances of terror in all of South America, most of southern Africa and all of Canada which I find a little suspect. I'm also wary of the lack of dates attached to these so-called terrorism updates.

When I look at the U.S., it's dotted with radioactive symbols, confused-person icons, pictures of planes -- what maddness is beguiling the country today!? But most of those occurances of "terrorism" occurred days and weeks ago. Those two radioactive telescopes stolen from the Anniston Army Depot in Alabama? Happened Aug. 14.

So rest easy and vacation carefully.

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 5:37 AM, August 20
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Hop in the way-back machine and head to April when ExpressJet announced 14 new direct flights out of LA/Ontario International Airport with much fanfare and Press-Enterprise reader Joe Iorio was thoroughly excited about flying direct from Ontario to Austin without having to experience an inconvenient layover in Phoenix.

Flash forward to today. Iorio is less excited and ExpressJet has been a little slow to take off financially.

Iorio reserved a round-trip flight on Aug. 7 on ExpressJet to leave Ontario at 7:10 a.m. The very next day, the airline e-mailed him to let him know that he really wouldn't be leaving Ontario until 8:30 a.m.

He wrote to say:

"There was no explanation nor was I given the opportunity to make a choice or cancel ... Two recent articles in your paper indicate the Express-Jet is having problems filling seats. Changing flight schedules without explanation is not going to improve their ability to fill seats. I hope my first flight with them will not be so negative that it becomes my last."

The two articles he referred to are here and here.

Since writing those with help from one of my colleagues, I heard from the airport's air service office Mark Thorpe who said he's heard ExpressJet's passenger counts are likely to increase in July.

We'll keep you posted.

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 12:23 PM, August 16
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Used hotel toothpaste lately? High-end brand name Gilchrest & Soames has recalled its small Chinese-made toothpaste samples because they could contain a chemical that's included in anti-freeze and could harm a person's kidneys and liver, according to a story on MSNBC's Web site.

Gilchrest & Soames has more info here.

Chinese-made products have been heaped onto recall piles recently, from tainted pet food to lead-laced children's toys. The CEO of the Chinese manufacturing company that made the toys killed himself today.

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 12:44 PM, August 13
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So if you're in need of a talking bear fix, the San Bernardino Convention and Visitors Bureau has set up its mechanical mascot inside the California Welcome Center at 1955 Hunts Lane, Suite 102.

Berdoo the Bear is officially ready to tout the area's tourist attractions to anyone willing to listen.

Just follow the NASCAR road painted below once inside.

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 8:53 AM, August 08
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Traveling isn't always hugs and gumdrops, sometimes it can be downright scary, according to the folks at Global Rescue.

Here's what they had to say in a recent press release:

This fall, college students living away from home (especially those studying abroad), adventure enthusiasts embarking on a new foliage thrill, skiers anticipating the first few flakes of snow and companies sending top executives around the globe on business should put a new item on their preparation checklist: affordable, comprehensive medical emergency services, designed specifically for travelers by the world's leading emergency service company, Global Rescue.

Question for the adventure enthusiasts among you - is embarking on a new "foliage" thrill really an adventure? And besides doing this and calling it "studying abroad" most universities still send their students to fairly civilized locations with civilized healthcare to match.

But if you are putting yourself in harm's way on a regular basis and don't trust the local emergency services you may encounter (i.e. Cate Blanchett's character in the film "Babel"), Global Rescue claims to be able to airlift you out of harm's way and fly you to a preferred hospital.

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 5:29 AM, August 06
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It'll take a little mouse-clicking energy but check out United Airline's Web site advertising its business class seats that fully recline into a bed. If you haven't seen them in their full computer animated glory click on the image of the seats on the top right, from the main site. From there, click on the same image again (this time it's on the left in the right corner ... here is where I start imploring Web site designers to have specific links to awesome things on their sites).

Now sit back and dream of the air travel experience you could have lying down. Of course you'll need to be lying down when you realize how much of your bank account is gone from buying your mid-air nap.

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 6:07 PM, August 03
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I wish this was tourism related -- but alas, it's just a hilarious press release from an online office supply store based in New York.

New on the list of office supplies that can kill you, right next to the sharp pencil, is your office laser printer.

Tell me when it's safe to come out from under my desk.

Posted by Kimberly Pierceall at 1:59 PM, August 03
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