Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - (Page 16) DESTINATIONS One of the 30 suites at Le Parc CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14 with many locals and tourists looking to dance the night away. You can probably guess what our main concern was: How can anyone get any sleep in such a noisy part of town? We were reassured after learning each room has soundproof windows with two thick panes of glass. Our guide, Sales and Marketing Manager Ricardo del la Cadena, opened a window for us in room #108 and we could hear every sound imaginable. When he shut the window again, the room was silent once more. We could even hear the suction of the closing window as it smothered the outside noise. Of any room in this 57-room property, this would be the one where sound would have been an issue: It is located the closest to the ground floor with an open area for street performers that is literally outside of the window. On the plus side, guests staying in this room can get a preview of the nightlife by simply opening the curtains. Our favorite room, however, was #502, one of five Jacuzzi Suites. It comes with a small balcony, a queen-size bed and a mix of sophisticated colors ranging from the dark blue velvet headboard to dark red pillows in the bedroom to some subtle browns and oranges mixed in along the way in the living area. The Jacuzzi, like the standalone tubs at Le Parc, offers great views of Quito. This was the second most expensive room type, ranging from $200 to $250 per night plus tax. The only aspect of the property we didn’t like were the incredibly small elevators, which barely fit two people comfortably. While you should note this detail to clients, we don’t think this should turn off this property’s ideal clientele—25- to 35-yearold singles who don’t mind an extra-cozy elevaA Jacuzzi tub overlooks Quito at nü house PHOTOS BY JOE PIKE tor ride for a few seconds. Besides the rooms, we also like the hotel’s proximity to restaurants, which are right outside the front door. If your clients want room service, the hotel can arrange delivery service, but going outside the hotel and into the robust La Mariscal area is highly recommended. The Q restaurant is a trendy, nightclub-type restaurant. During the day, it’s a quiet, sitdown spot and at night is filled with locals and tourists, and the popular music it plays can be heard on the streets. Located directly across the street from the Q is a Latin bistro called Azuca, perfect for outdoor dining. The best part of both is that you can party outside of your hotel with non-guests and can still bill everything to your room by presenting a key card and room number. The nü house hotel is about a year old and is perfect for younger clients or singles of any age. Agents should contact Cadena at 011-5932-09814-0168 or ventas1@nuhousehotels.com. when the view comes directly from your bed as it does with Bamboo and room #203, which we were told some repeat guests have called their favorite. The neighborhood that surrounds this hotel is the quietest of all we visited. It’s in the middle of a street where hardly any cars come through. Rooms here range from $114 to $135 plus tax. Agents can call Francisco Salazar, sales and marketing manager, at 011-5932-25-28062. A Pleasant Surprise The biggest surprise of our hotel tour came during our visit of the Holiday Inn Express, Quito (www.hiequito.com.ec). Now, no offense to the good folks of Holiday Inn, but it’s not necessarily the type of brand you’d imagine fitting in with other authentic, boutique-style Ecuadorian properties. But you can definitely assure clients that this is not your traditional Holiday Inn, which is usually a mid-level, simply laid-out hotel. This Holiday Inn Express captures the culture of Quito, from the portraits in the lobby to the color of the rooms. It’s substantially bigger than the other properties, offering 141 rooms, including 17 Deluxe Superior Rooms, the hotel’s best. We saw #807, which, like nü house, has soundproof windows. These rooms are much bigger than the standard rooms and can connect with a double room for an extra charge. The views of Quito are excellent and the bathrooms are huge. The rooms are excellent, but our favorite part of this hotel was the fitness and business centers. The gym is located on the rooftop and has windows directly in front of all the facility’s treadmills. You can burn some calories while checking out one of the best—and highest—views we saw all day. The business center CONTINUED ON PAGE 18 Home Away From Home The smallest hotel, and perhaps the most unique, was Casa Aliso (www.casaaliso.com), which houses only 10 rooms. The property is a converted colonial home. The rooms are all small and quiet, offering pretty much the same layout and space but with different views. Our favorite was room #206, also known as room Bamboo. What separated this room from the rest was its terrace with direct access to the property’s garden. You can walk outside of the room and stroll into the hotel’s backyard, which has picnic tables set up for lounging. We’re not usually ones to rave about landscape, but the fact that this yard was someone’s actual backyard at one time made it that much more relaxing. The garden, bushes and plants are all well-maintained and are hypnotic to look at 16 | TravelAgent October 13, 2008 http://www.hiequito.com.ec http://www.casaaliso.com
Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 Online Now Contents From the Editor Central & South America Bermuda Europe Pacific/Asia Las Vegas Florida Middle East Cruises Celebrity Continues to Grow and Adapt to the Changing Travel Climate Oasis on the Horizon Troubled Skies Agent Profile Agenda Princess Summit Unveils New Tools for Selling Cruises Tanzania Aims to Draw More U.S. Travelers Jamaica May Legalize Gambling, and New Resorts are in the Works ASTA Seeks Expanded Support from the Agent Community In the Spotlight Agent Access Classified Marketplace Editorial Index Advertising Index Trendwatch Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 (Page Cover1) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 (Page Cover2) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 (Page 1) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Online Now (Page 2) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Online Now (Page 3) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Contents (Page 4) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Contents (Page 5) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Contents (Page 6) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Contents (Page 7) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - From the Editor (Page 8) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - From the Editor (Page 9) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - From the Editor (Page 10) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - From the Editor (Page 11) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - From the Editor (Page 12) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - From the Editor (Page 13) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Central & South America (Page 14) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Central & South America (Page 15) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Central & South America (Page 16) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Central & South America (Page 17) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Central & South America (Page 18) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Central & South America (Page 19) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Bermuda (Page 20) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Bermuda (Page 21) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Bermuda (Page 22) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Bermuda (Page 23) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Bermuda (Page 24) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Bermuda (Page 25) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Bermuda (Page 26) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Bermuda (Page 27) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Bermuda (Page 28) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Bermuda (Page 29) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Europe (Page 30) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Europe (Page 31) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Europe (Page 32) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Europe (Page 33) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Europe (Page 34) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Europe (Page 35) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Pacific/Asia (Page 36) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Pacific/Asia (Page 37) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Las Vegas (Page 38) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Las Vegas (Page 39) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Florida (Page 40) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Florida (Page 41) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Middle East (Page 42) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Middle East (Page 43) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Cruises (Page 44) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Cruises (Page 45) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Cruises (Page 46) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Cruises (Page 47) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Celebrity Continues to Grow and Adapt to the Changing Travel Climate (Page 48) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Celebrity Continues to Grow and Adapt to the Changing Travel Climate (Page 49) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Celebrity Continues to Grow and Adapt to the Changing Travel Climate (Page 50) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Celebrity Continues to Grow and Adapt to the Changing Travel Climate (Page 51) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Oasis on the Horizon (Page 52) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Oasis on the Horizon (Page 53) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Oasis on the Horizon (Page 54) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Oasis on the Horizon (Page 55) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Oasis on the Horizon (Page 56) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Oasis on the Horizon (Page 57) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Troubled Skies (Page 58) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Troubled Skies (Page 59) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Profile (Page 60) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Profile (Page 61) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Profile (Page 62) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Profile (Page 63) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Profile (Page 64) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Profile (Page 65) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Profile (Page 66) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Profile (Page 67) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Profile (Page 68) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agenda (Page 69) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Princess Summit Unveils New Tools for Selling Cruises (Page 70) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Princess Summit Unveils New Tools for Selling Cruises (Page 71) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Tanzania Aims to Draw More U.S. Travelers (Page 72) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Tanzania Aims to Draw More U.S. Travelers (Page 73) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Jamaica May Legalize Gambling, and New Resorts are in the Works (Page 74) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Jamaica May Legalize Gambling, and New Resorts are in the Works (Page 75) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - ASTA Seeks Expanded Support from the Agent Community (Page 76) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - ASTA Seeks Expanded Support from the Agent Community (Page 77) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - In the Spotlight (Page 78) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - In the Spotlight (Page 79) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Access (Page 80) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Access (Page 81) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Access (Page 82) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Access (Page 83) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Agent Access (Page 84) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Classified Marketplace (Page 85) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Editorial Index (Page 86) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Advertising Index (Page 87) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Trendwatch (Page 88) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Trendwatch (Page Cover3) Travel Agent - October 13, 2008 - Trendwatch (Page Cover4)
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