Your own private audio

I still reminisce often about one of my favorite memories made while spending a summer in New York City in 2000. No, not the partying until 6am at clubs, or accidentally wandering into an S&M bar. Though those still make me laugh. It was taking a historical tour of Greenwich Village. It was on this tour that I took a step back in time and heard stories that still blow me away.

Naturally every time I return to NYC I always want to rekindle this memory, but the tour’s scheduling never seems to work out with my own. But now anyone with an iPod can take a step back in time 21st-century style, without having to be limited by tour schedules.

In many major cities across the US you can download to your mp3 player an audio tour of a neighborhood or tourist attraction. There are companies that sell them, or many tourism bureaus offer them for free. In San Francisco you can walk through Golden Gate park to learn more about the serene nature scene, as well as the iconic bridge. In Chicago, you can stroll around the city and learn the history of blues, with Buddy Guy as your guide. These tours are a great way to learn the nitty-gritty details of a city at a schedule you make. Plus you can rewind if you need to.

And if you’re going to Paris anytime soon, Rick Steves (my favorite Europe travel nerd) has some free audio guides for you. Take a step back in time for a few moments and listen below for a history lesson on the art of the Venus de milo. It will make you want to jump on the next flight to Paris.

Louvre.mp3

Hotel crashing made easy

Lounging around in a hotel room is one of my favorite parts of a vacation. Drinking coffee in the morning, wearing a plush robe, and gazing out the window onto an unfamiliar city can really take you away from reality.

Unless of course you stay at an overpriced, unclean, smelly hellhole, which has happened to everyone. But it’s a recession, so don’t do this to yourself. Do the research and get a bargain!

Some may think it’s best to plan ahead and book a hotel room early. Not these days. Getting on line even a week before can get you a hotel room for cheap. And if you do book ahead, get alerts on Yapta.com when your rate drops. Also, believe it or not, calling and ASKING for the bargain can sometimes get you a better rate.

Across the country, occupancy is down 10.9 percent and the average daily rate is down 7.7 percent, according to Smith Travel Research. Look at how much the average daily rates have gone down in some of the most popular summer destination cities:

New York
2009 - $203
2008 - $273

Chicago
2009 – $124
2008 – $135

Hawaii
2009 – $189
2008 - $212

Hotel chains like Marriott and Starwood are offering great incentives with lots of amenities. In addition, luxury hotel chains such as the Four Seasons have been hardest hit during the downturn. So if you’re a Holiday Inn kind of traveler, you may be able to spring for the good stuff. A good deal in a high class place makes that comfy robe even more comfy.


The famous, 4-star Waldorf Astoria costs $199 per night this summer

Check out these cribs

When it comes to seeing how the other half lives, I’m fascinated. Going to open houses of million-dollar homes, browsing through expensive furniture stores and watching HGTV all day, can be an exercise in futility for my husband, but I think it’s fun. Visiting mansions of a bygone era, however, is an experience everyone can take pleasure in.

If you ever visit Newport, R.I., don't only eat the lobster or shop in the idyllic village. Take in the gargantuan mansions sitting on the cliff. You can enjoy the view by walking on the path cut along the rock, but go inside to take a trip back in time. The most impressive to me is The Breakers.



The mansion was built by a Vanderbilt, and no one did mansions like these guys. The family (Anderson Cooper is an heir - no kidding!) made a fortune through railroads and steamships, and their many "vacation homes" served as symbols of American power and wealth.

Luckily many of them are still standing and now we call all take a glimpse inside how THAT half lived in the gilded age. Read this tidbit of history.



Moving toward the Mason Dixon line is another Vanderbilt vacation home: the Biltmore. This one boasts 250 rooms! You can’t stay the night, but you can book the Inn on the premises.

When I think about these mansions I can't help but apply it to today's economic times. The Great Depression made these super-duper mansions become nearly extinct and the Vanderbilt family eventually fell from prominence and wealth. Many millionaires today are doing the same. I read this article recently about how the current recession is forcing some of the rich to liquidate everything they own. Or some, as the couple featured, are simply yearning for a simpler life. Some say the days of excess are gone. I say, these days of excess are nothing like they once were.


But, whatever, this is America...dream about your McMansion. And there's always the local Tour of Homes to help with that.