The Business Travel Web » hotel accomodations

Did You See That Amazing All Star Game?

Travel Blogger — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 15:43:44 +0000

I’ve been in San Diego since early Sunday evening. Having spent nearly a week in Houston I was ready to move on to my next destination, sunny southern California.

Not sure if I’ve mentioned on this site since I started doing this blogging thing that I used to live in San Diego. All over San Diego county, in fact. I was younger then, had just gotten out of the Navy, and really didn’t have much focus or direction for my life.

Even back then in the late 80’s and early 90’s one of the things that I learned quick was there were always awesome San Diego hotel deals but you had to do some research. Today, of course, most of that can be done from your home computer with very little effort.

Since I’m here this trip for nearly a full 7 days, it was important to me that I got a room that while inexpensive, was still going to have the amenities I needed to be comfortable. The Major League Baseball All Star game was this week, so I knew I wasn’t going to miss out on much live ball. Fortunately, however, it looks like some free time just opened up to allow me to attend this Friday night’s game down at Petco Park. The Padres are playing my home town team the Diamondbacks this weekend. The best part of that is I’ll be able to attend both games on the company as I’ve successfully secured great seats and have one existing client and one potential customer that are big baseball fans like myself.

After last night’s exciting game, I’m definitely ready to head back out to the park for some live action. Fortunately the hotel I’m staying at here in San Diego had a lovely and quite comfortable lounge where I was able to enjoy the NL vs. the AL with food, drink, and the camaraderie of fellow business traveling sports fans.

I’ll report back this weekend and let you know how the games were on Friday and Saturday. If you’re watching the game look for me on the TV. I’m pretty good at catching foul balls!

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Thank Goodness For Soundproof Walls!

Travel Blogger — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 03:43:22 +0000

Normally I don’t associate economy hotels with sound proof rooms. And I can hardly use last night as an example of whether the rooms are quite enough or not. Seems like everything that could go wrong getting out of Miami did go wrong. Waiting in the terminal nearly an hour past the stated boarding time.

Then, we seemed to sit in the plane, on the tarmac for at least 45 minutes while “stuff happened”. If you know me at all, you’ll understand that this one act is just about my least favorite part of business or personal travel. Heck, if we have to wait, keep us in the comfort of the terminal where we’re not hassled to death should our bladders decide they need some exercise!

And irony of ironies, when we did land successfully in Corpus Christi, they must have had to ring the on-call baggage unloaders cause we all were huddling around the carousel for nothing short of 25 minutes before the darned thing even turned on! What’s up with that?

So, even though it is a bit on the early side, I think I’m just going to have a light dinner at the cafe next door, and will likely give the room sound proofing a test early tonight. Seems that I only slept about 4 hours before having to rise and head out on the road for my sales calls this morning.

But it’s all groovy. Being able to catch not one, but two baseball games while in Miami was definitely the highlight of my journey this month. If it were not so darned hot and muggy in South Florida, I might actually consider the place if I ever decide to relocate.

I know I say that about every cool place I visit! But this country is filled with some extraordinary places to live. People that aren’t as lucky as regular business travelers just have no idea of what all is out there. For this, I’m definitely very grateful.

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NYC: Another 2 Baseball Team Town!

Travel Blogger — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 22:10:13 +0000

So thanks to the fact that my diligent searching for a cheap Times Square hotel not only am I saving money on my lodging this trip, but I was able to score some decent tickets to tonights Yankee game.

This should be fun. The Yanks are playing cross town rivals, the NY Mets. I just missed out on getting to see the Cubs vs. the Sox during my time in Chicago. This will likely make up for it and then some.

photo credit: hotdogger13

I was in the old stadium many years ago as a teen ager when my father and uncle took me to a game back in the early 80’s. The family had traveled to NYC to visit folks we’d not seen in decades (in fact, I didn’t really remember anyone that we saw during that summer!)

The cool thing about the new stadium is that it’s right across the street (literally) from the old one. I should find out if they are going to do some sort of fancy, implosion of the old one. That would be worth a visit to NYC for that event alone.

Thus far, my only experience with the new Yankee stadium is a boxing match I watched a few weeks ago. It was the first time any fight had been held in a Yankee facility in over 34 years. The last bout was Muhammad Ali v. Ken Norton. Their third fight, in 1976, was seemingly the end of boxing in the house that Ruth built.

Well, tonight I’m about to get to experience a real life slice of Americana. Okay, it’s going to be in a new, billion dollar, state of the art sports complex, but I’m excited just the same. Baseball is still America’s past time, and I can think of few other ways to pass 2.5 to 3 hours of time.

My only concern is getting from Times Square to the Bronx and into the stadium. I’m guessing that it’ll just be as easy as following the general crowd and not looking too much like a tourist. Guess I’ll have to leave my big camera at the hotel

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Things To Do In Downtown Denver When You’re Dead Tired!

Travel Blogger — Thu, 27 May 2010 03:00:51 +0000

One of the first things to do is sleep.

Okay, now that is out of the way, the next thing to do when you’re dead tired is sleep some more!

LOL! Okay, I’m done. But I have to say that my downtown Denver hotel is extremely nice and when I’m not in the mood for messing around with check-in hassles, and getting from curbside to bedside, this is the perfect sort of place to want to be at.

The flight here was a bit rocky. Strangely, there was another bit of wait on the tarmac. I wonder if I should start disclosing to people that are in line to board the same plane as me if they might want to reconsider? Seems like every flight I’m on of late has had some challenge or another.

Well, at least 2 of the last 3 flights I’ve been on has had some sort of misfit adventure. As always, however, I’m glad they get it figured out while we’re still able to walk away from the (potential) disaster.

So, mid-week in downtown Denver. I’ll have to do some research real quick to see what is likely to get my entertainment dollars.

hmmm, hmmm, hmmm, hmmm…

It looks like Iron Man 2 is playing and well within walking distance. With all the sleep I’ve had I probably have the energy to fly there and back (just like Tony Stark!) I know, geek alert!

I’ve been wanting to see IR2 so, now is as good a time as any. In fact, I often wait on seeing new-ish releases just so there will be something I’ve not seen at the theater when I’m out and traveling around the country. You’ve got to have a game plan if you’re going to stay sane in this business!

Will let you know what I think of the movie next time. Have a great week.

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Anaheim Convention Center Hotel Pool Parties

Travel Blogger — Sat, 22 May 2010 16:59:35 +0000

photo credit: wipeoutpdr

Oh, my. Just got into Southern California after a hectic busy week up in Seattle. The weather’s starting to really warm up (well, duh, summer is coming!) and travel is generally affected by warmer weather.

As if right on environmental clue, there was a bit of delay at the airport getting off the ground this am. While I don’t know for sure we had to sit on the tarmac for an extra 45 minutes because of the weather, I never rule these things out. But we landed at Orange County Airport without a wing or wheel falling off, so blessings are being counted.

Not completely sure what’s happening this weekend in Souther California. My Anaheim Convention Center Hotel seems to have been invaded by about 40,000 high school seniors (and their parents.)

It seems there’s some sort of shin dig happening at Disneyland for those graduating. So, I suppose the prospect of a quiet time pool side today or tomorrow is pretty unlikely. But that’s okay I guess. These youngsters only get to this point once in their lives.

And I’m not quite old enough yet to be all curmudgeonly and have fits because of the energy and exuberance that is already and will likely be on display all weekend long here. So, I’ll just have to figure out how and where to have some fun myself.

Tell you all about it next time. Hopefully!

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Memories Of My First Trip To San Francisco

Travel Blogger — Sat, 15 May 2010 00:56:52 +0000

Back up in San Francisco tomorrow until the 19th, I believe. I’ve stayed at this SFO Airport Hotel on a number of occasions in the past, and have yet to be disappointed with the service, rooms or the general care the staff shows the customers. And when you’re travelling for much of your life, getting treated well is always something that one appreciates.

If I’ve learned anything over the years it’s that what you put out there usually tends to come back to you many times over. Not trying to get all “woo woo” or but my experiences of almost 15 years on the sales road bear this out to be true.

When I first started out with this company and was really inexperienced at the process of traveling, I figured it was all about the customer being right. Now I realize that this is definitely not the case. In fact, my first trip to this area was about 13.5 years ago, and I can still remember it like yesterday.

Obviously much younger, I didn’t appreciate the hard work and effort that service folk have to exert in order to make a travelers experience exemplary. And to be sure, many of the folks employed to make travel great just do enough to get by.

After landing at SFO I grabbed a taxi to the hotel (back when I spent way too much money on transportation. Now I take the shuttle or share a van to help stretch my per diem further.) Well, it seemed that one of my bags had not gotten removed from the taxi’s trunk at the hotel. Of course this was the bag with my suits, dress shirts, etc. And it wasn’t until I was into my room that I discovered the error.

As you might imagine, I was livid. I called the front desk and demanded they find my bag. The manager was actually quite the professional and let me know he’d check things out. The bellman was interviewed about the incident. He was ready to take a polygraph to indicate there was no garment bag in the trunk of my cab.

Next the taxi company was phoned and through a series of radio transmissions, it was determined that no cabs having dropped off at my hotel contained any forgotten or lost bags. As you might have felt, I was ready to blow my stack. Fortunately, I held off.

Within an hour or so of the incident, the airlines had delivered my “lost” bag to the hotel, which had subsequently discretely placed it inside my room. Apparently, in my rushing and haste, I’d simply forgotten to retrieve it from the carousel!

You cannot imagine how long it took me to wipe the egg from my face! But that one lesson taught me several things about my job: don’t rush if you don’t have to; pay attention to all of your belongings; and don’t take things out on those that are doing their best to provide you with great service.

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Thank Goodness For the Phoenix Airport Hotel!

Travel Blogger — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 01:03:11 +0000

Since I had to adjust my schedule to come here to Roanoke, VA to deal with some new client issues, I had to rearrange the rest of my travel as well. As I’ve stated, and you undoubtedly know, it’s a pain in the rump to have to make these changes, but what can you do? Good customer service means there are sometimes challenges that come up and if you’re to stay in the good graces of your PAYING clients, you do what it takes to accommodate.

photo credit: Rob Ireton

Well, as it turns out, I’m now going to be heading straight home to deal with some domestic challenges as well. Based upon a call from a neighbor, I just found out that my water heater died. Maybe imploded is a better term. I’m not completely sure as the information I got was there was a sizable flow of water coming out my garage door and flowing down my driveway.

This is one of those reasons I’m glad I rent my house and don’t own it. At least I had someone to call who could check things out in person. The landlord just called me back and indicated there was some sort of freak water pressure issue and not only was my water heater gushing in the garage, but my master bedroom was also under about 4 inches as well!

Yikes! is right!!

I could go and sleep on the couch for a couple of days, but I think I’ll just stay at the nice, dry, clean Phoenix Airport Hotel instead. I’ve been here before, but usually preceding a trip where I have to fly out earlier than I’d want to wake up and drive to the airport.

Well, for the first time, I’ll be staying at the tail end of my journey while the carpets and padding dry out in my house. Hopefully my landlord will also have the new water heater installed before I get home. Okay, you caught me. This is the real reason I’m staying at the hotel. I cannot imagine being without hot water. So spoiled. What can I say!

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My Downtown Denver Hotel Rocks!

Travel Blogger — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 17:50:01 +0000

From time to time I tend to get on a soap box and share general discourse about things that really have a positive impact on me and my travels. This week I’m in Colorado, staying at a downtown Denver hotel. So, in this vane, I’ll share why I’m so enamored and hopefully you’ll find something you can take and apply to your business travel.

First, I just shared my general distaste for so-called business hotels that charge for their WiFi. I still don’t understand this thought process. Well, maybe I do.

That show “Undercover Boss” where the CEO or head of the company goes undercover to work as one of the minions, is all the rage. Clearly, whoever is running the chains that continue to charge for Internet connectivity never travel for business reasons. Meaning they aren’t on the road with their laptops needing to get work done. Work that requires them to be connected to the Internet.

If these CEO’s were actually required to do the this as a part of their jobs, I believe they would be much better at realizing what a great benefit it would be to offer free WiFi (just like my downtown Denver hotel!)

It’s been many years since I’ve eaten breakfast on a regular basis. When I am able to pick up free coffee (and not just muddy water, but Java that’s worth paying for) I’m always appreciative. Combine that with something healthy like fruit or other nutritious snacks for later in the morning, and the true value of the “Free Continental Breakfast” makes me a very happy business traveler.

Out modern communications systems including our cell phones tend to make the concept of free local calls somewhat a moot point. But you know when making a local call is a good thing for the out of towner? When you are trying to order some food to be delivered to your hotel room.

More than once I’ve been told that delivery was not possible unless I called from a local number (I guess to prove that I was actually in the locale and not crank calling.) When I checked into my room this week and saw the massive freebies I’d receive with my room, I knew that I’d have to chat about it.

If you’re not looking for these types of amenities when you travel, you’re simply going to be spending much more money than you really need to. Hopefully, this little reminder will help you save some dough and get you some pizza delivered after room service is done for the night!

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Finding the Best Business Hotel Can Be Challenging

Travel Blogger — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 21:22:34 +0000

For people that only travel for fun and pleasure, choosing hotel accommodations tends to be more about what they have to offer and how much they cost. When you travel as much as I do for your job there tends to be a different set of requirements for a business hotel.

Over the years, one thing I really like in my hotels is whether or not they have shuttles to and from the airport. With the amount of competition for business travel dollars, many of the better places to stay have their own branded vans or shuttle buses that will provide you quick and easy service to and from your port of entry.

Even if I know I’m going to rent a car, I like to get to my hotel first, check in, relax a bit and unpack. I almost always tend to stay for several days and if at all possible, I book my appointments to occur the next day after I arrive at a new city.

Another amenity I prefer in my business hotel is wireless Internet connectivity, or WiFi. If I have a choice over similar accommodations and one place wants to charge me to have access to their wireless offerings, I’ll almost always choose the hotel that provides the service for free.

I suppose this is just because I cannot fully get behind the concept of WiFi being a money maker for the hotel. When you consider the number of places I’ve stayed and in fact the number of times I’ve stayed repeatedly at a particular hotel, I know they have made their wireless investment back several times over.

Once the hardware infrastructure is in place, it really costs the hotel company very little to provide the service. So I stand pretty resolute at not going out of my way to pay for access to their Internet offerings.

A final little personal tidbit I like very much to have is some sort of in room kitchenette. Clearly not all business hotels are designed to offer these types of features so I don’t exclude a choice if they are just a normal hotel room.

But where I have a choice that might include a microwave, apartment sized refrigerator and even a stove top, I’ll choose them every time. In all my years, I’ve never had to pay that much more to get those amenities. A few dollars more is fine. I’ve even gotten the bean counting accountants at my company to stop hassling me when I do spend more money on a room with kitchen facilities.

Ah, life is good. At times!

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When You Travel Don’t Forget About Mom!

Travel Blogger — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 02:52:22 +0000

Are you as much a sap as I am when it comes to getting your mother (or father, I suppose) gifts from the places you travel to? I love to see the look on her face when I present her with something I know she loves. If it comes from Ghiradelli Square in San Francisco, she is going to love it!

She is just like any other person that has a love affair with chocolate, so I’m ensured that she’ll always smile when receiving one of their great chocolate sampler packs. One time I got so caught up in the chocolate thing that a gift I purchased for her never even made it to her hands (or her mouth for that matter!)

My only challenge with getting Mom stuff is that she’s a collector. If you read that last sentence and accidentally inserted the word “hoarder” for collector you would be well justified. I was trying to be polite.

Mom comes from a long line of “collectors”. Her father owned just about any and every toy manufactured from the early 1950’s till he passed away last year. Family members are still having a field day selling his stuff on ebay.

Mom is more a collector of other themes. Refrigerator magnets? Yup, she has literally tens of thousands of them. Post cards? Yup. While no longer actively collecting them, at the height of that phase she had over 70,000. That’s SEVENTY THOUSAND post cards, most of them mounted in little corner bracket things inside of 3 ring binders.

Can you imagine? And the list goes on, but you get the concept. Which brings me to buying things for dear Mom when I get the great fortune of traveling to places she’s either not been or rarely gets the opportunity to see.

Tomorrow I travel back down to Los Angeles. While I’m not sure my LAX Airport hotel will have much in the way of interesting memorabilia I’ll be sure to pick her up something here in San Francisco. Like I said, she loves Ghiradelli Chocolate. Now I just need to make sure I don’t love that chocolate more!

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