Spring rate discounts in play at Los Cabos hotels
Plus a suite deal at Hilton Hawaiian Village on Waikiki Beach
To celebrate the arrival of spring, Solmar Hotels & Resorts is offering UT Travel Deals readers up to 62 percent off at its portfolio of seven Los Cabos hotels. Couples can stay for as little as $55 a night at Quinta del Sol in downtown Cabo San Lucas. At the beachfront Solmar Resort, couples can snag all-inclusive packages (with all meals, snacks, drinks and cocktails, plus a menu of daily activities included) for about $250 a day. Deals must be booked by March 15 for travel through April. Know before you go that local taxes and fees will add 29 percent to your tab. Book online at www.solmar.com using the code SPRING20.
Southwest will begin daily San Diego-Honolulu flights on April 20. We’ve landed a sweet suite deal that makes a Hawaii visit that much more enticing. The Hilton Hawaiian Village on Waikiki Beach is offering San Diego Travel Deals readers half off all suites for stays through Dec. 15. To get the deal, you’ll have to book by 7 p.m. (PST) on Friday, March 13. With half off, guests will pay as little as $245 a night (plus a daily $50 resort fee) for a one-bedroom suite in the Diamond Head Tower; it includes a parlor with a sofa bed and a separate bedroom with views of Waikiki and the Pacific. Or opt for a large junior suite in the Rainbow Tower for $302.50 per night; it includes two lanais overlooking the Pacific and yacht harbor. Celebrating a special occasion? Splurge on a one-bedroom suite in the exclusive Alii Tower for $427.50 — half the usual rate of $855. The 22-acre Hilton Hawaiian Village complex includes 2,860 rooms in five towers. The resort has five pools, Waikiki’s longest waterslide, 20 restaurants/bars and a full-service spa. Since 1988, the resort has staged a weekly Friday night fireworks show. The $50 nightly resort fee covers a menu of cultural activities and exercise classes; it provides special offers/discounts at resort shops, on a range of beach activities and at nearby attractions. Savvy travelers won’t rent a car; self-parking costs $49 per night. Know before you book that prepayment is required and nonrefundable. Book online starting March 6 and book by Friday March 13 at www.hiltonhawaiianvillage.com/SDsuitesale.
Hotel Metropole, in the heart of Avalon on Catalina Island, has a cool “Best of Winter” package, available Sunday through Thursday nights through March 26. It includes accommodations for two in a “deluxe” category room, plus round-trip Catalina Express boat transport for two from Dana Point, Long Beach or San Pedro. Guests get a glass of Champagne on arrival and daily continental breakfast. Rates start at $269 per night, with no resort fee and no minimum stay required. (Stay two or more nights starting at $225 a night.) Add a 60-minute couples massage at the hotel’s Touch of Heaven day spa for $150 — or simply enjoy the hotel’s rooftop whirlpool spa. Book online at www.hotel-metropole.com/packages using the code BEST or phone (800) 300-8528.
The Victorian-style Gosby House Inn in Pacific Grove is offering a second night free for Sunday through Thursday stays through May 28. It means couples would pay as little as $205 for a stay of two consecutive nights. The deal includes a hot breakfast buffet daily, plus afternoon wine and hors d’oeuvres. Wi-Fi and parking are free; there’s no resort fee. The deal requires payment at the time of booking and is nonrefundable. The inn is blocks from the beach and Pacific Grove’s monarch butterfly sanctuary. Learn more and book online at www.gosbyhouseinn.com/specials or phone (831) 375-1287.
Late last year, Amtrak Pacific Surfliner launched an additional train linking San Diego and Los Angeles. It means the Surfliner now offers 13 daily San Diego/LA round trips. Equally cool: Almost all of us are entitled to a Pacific Surfliner discount: Kids, ages 2 to 12, ride for half price with a paying adult. Students age 13 to 25 get a 15 percent discount using the code V353. Others entitled to a 15 percent discount: those 62 and older (V282), veterans and their spouses (V430), passengers with disabilities and their companions (V577). Even better: Travel to stations in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties and get 20 percent off adult fares year-round — through “Car Free” promotions. (Check out www.santabarbaracarfree.org and www.slocarfree.org .) The Pacific Surfliner travels a 351-mile coastal rail route linking 27 stations from San Diego through Orange, Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. Learn more at www.pacificsurfliner.com.
Here’s a hotel booking amenity we’d like to see catch on: The Hoxton, an international collection of nine boutique hotels, is offering all guests complimentary 24-hour check-in and checkout options. It means guests can choose a check-in time as early as 1 a.m. on the first day of their stay and a checkout time as late as midnight on their departure day. The only stipulation is that time selections must be made at the time of booking — and at least 72 hours in advance of stay. The Hoxton has hotels in Los Angeles, Portland, Ore.; Williamsburg, N.Y., Amsterdam, Paris, plus three hotels in London. The prospect of early morning check-in definitely eases the anticipated pain of red-eye flight fallout. Learn more at thehoxton.com/flexy-time.
DaRosa is a freelance travel writer. Find more of her articles at www.AlisonDaRosa.com. Prices quoted here are subject to change. Restrictions and blackout dates may apply, and all deals are subject to availability.
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