Tag: travel

Categories
Featured

DOWNTOWN’S Valentine’s Day Gift Guide 2022

 
Let us endeavor to make 2022 the year of Love, for there has been no greater time when love is so very needed.
 
“Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments; Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O, no! it is an ever-fixed mark,
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth’s unknown, although his height be taken.
Love’s not Time’s fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle’s compass come;
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom. 
If this be error and upon me prov’d,
I never writ, nor no man ever loved.”
-William Shakespeare, Sonnet 116

 

 
 
 
 
We love Valentine’s Day, especially when we celebrate at Ladurée. This year, book take your sweetheart for a special breakfast for two, consisting of two rose lattes, two pains au chocolat, two boxes of three custom macarons, and a NEW heart-shaped rose croissant. This is the perfect Valentine’s Day gift to share with that special someone.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Fly XO to Aspen and experience world-class skiing while staying at five-star resorts. Use the XO mobile app to book an entire charter or select individual seats on a private jet at a fraction of the cost.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Get you and your sweetheart back on the right track to fitness with a membership at Asphalt Green. Say ‘I love you’ with fitness for 2022. Their memberships offer top-notch fitness centers and pools. Book one of their instructional classes or programs for both children and adults. Throughout the year, winter, spring, summer, and fall, no excuse. Asphalt Green includes everything from infant swim, diving classes, youth basketball leagues, and private Pilates Reformer classes.
 
 
 
 
 
LIPS Embellished Throw by Jonathan Adler. Sexy, seductive, saucy—a kiss of glam in bold red and glittering gold to chic up your comfy spot. Hand-embroidered by artisans, their unbelievably soft and luxurious throws are just the accents your abode deserves.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Dr. Amy Lewis  Give the gift she will love you all year, natural lip filler. Big is out, going back to the natural look Expertly done by Dr. Amy Lewis. 
 
 
Tokyo Totepack. This premium leather upgrade to our Tokyo Totepack adapts to your day, with two carry modes and surprisingly sorted storage.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Flex Pro Denim Jacket GOOD MAN BRAND A classic-style denim jacket made from comfortable stretch denim is a surefire staple for your casual wardrobe.
 
 
 
 

 

Our CEO’s favorite everyday brand is PhilanthroBee’s®️ skincare. Bee Body Bar saved her from itchy skin. As a daily swimmer, chlorine eventually got to her angrily inflamed skin. Until she tired, PhilanthroBee’s®️ skincare. The last thing you want is to layer chemically treated thick creams on top of your skin. That’s why the BeeCause Body Bar works with your body heat to melt into your skin, using the power of natural bee products to soothe, replenish moisture, promote skin health, and protect against damage.

Another favorite of hers is the Bee-Ch Facial Clarifying Mask. Every week (sometimes more), she enjoys the BEE-ch facial mask cleanser. It gently draws out toxins and debris that accumulate in our pores throughout the week. Living in New York City, taking care of your skin is extremely important. 

 

 

Maybe a little self-love this year try Ascention, a blend of red currants and strawberries, laced with delicious vanilla and musk. Infused with an authentic, fair-trade Rose Quartz crystal. Ascent to Love with the perfect gift for those in need of some self-love this Valentine’s Day.

 
 
 
 
 
 
Full of Mediterranean character, Corvo is produced with the use of modern technology, to preserve the integrity and naturalness of the ingredients, always ready to offer a simply perfect tasting experience. Corvo Grillo Sicilia DOC and, Corvo Nero d’Avola Sicilia DOC. Both restyled clean, with a harmonious design delivering the freshness and fruity aromas of Sicily to the table. Be sure to give the first wines bottled in Sicily in 1824, and now one of the most appreciated wines.
 
 
 
 
One of our favorite places downtown to relax and take in the views, The Greens invites you to cozy up with your loved ones in your own private and cozy winter cabin. Enjoy a menu of regional delicacies and hand-crafted cocktails, along with a complimentary bottle of Rosé and a Valentine-themed dessert included with your reservation.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Scapegrace Black is the world’s first naturally black, color-changing gin by The New Zealand-based Scapegrace Distillery. Scapegrace Black begins, like all quality gins, with intense juniper and the addition of premium, exotic botanicals. The master distiller used a combination of local sweet potato, aronia berries, pineapple, and saffron, as well as Butterfly pea flower, which they sourced from Southeast Asia
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Give her the gift from Christian Lacroix For Swiminista, a sarong in Josephine print, then whisk her away on an impromptu holiday to her favorite sunny locale. 

 
 
ICON Roland Sands Signature 2254 Chronograph. 43mm 316L Stainless Steel Case and Fixed Bezel with IP Antique Gold Plating, Stainless Steel Push Crown, and Screw-In Caseback. K1 Flat Hardened Mineral Crystal. Japan Quartz (Miyota 6S21) 2 Eye Chronograph with Date Movement.
 
Larroudé Vail Boot is a brand to add to your wardrobe. Marrying the comfort of Montana with the functionality of a lace-up boot to give us the Vail. Ready for the mountains, the faux shearling interior is super soft-to-the-touch while the all-weather exterior is all about function.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Larroudè and Her Highness – Valentine’s Day, customers will be gifted with a “highly orgasmic” pleasure oil as a gift with purchase (while supplies last). We are excited to have our clients treat themselves to the perfect pair (shoes + pleasure oil) this Valentine’s Day! 
 
 
 
 
 
 

For the side sleeper, this Scrumptious Side Sleeper Pillow is unique, with a curve that supports your neck and shoulders whether you are on your side or your back. Their design is meticulously from the degree of its curvature to the height and firmness of the fill inside it.  The perfect give for your side sleeper.

 

Take your sweetheart on one of New York’s historical treasures, with a memorable horse-drawn carriage tour of Central Park. The tour includes a bottle of sparkling wine, a bucket of roses, and photographs.

 
 
 
 
 
Wish your love off to Las Catalinas is a new beach town on the Guanacaste coast of Costa Rica. Its purpose is to create a way of life that is healthy, sustainable, fulfilling, and fun. Las Catalinas consists of houses, shops, restaurants, small hotels and inns, plazas, parks, and recreational facilities. Las Catalinas in Guanacaste, Costa Rica. Check out the new outdoor beachfront gym there, CORE by Chakfitness, and sign up for a week of personal training and unlimited gym and class access — including a personalized take-home program designed by owner Chakiris Menafacio.
 

 

Categories
Featured NYC

Downtown Highlights: Classic Harbor Line

Classic Harbor Line's Full Moon

Somewhere, beyond the sea, Classic Harbor Line waits for thee.

Welcome back to Downtown Highlights, the series in which we take the opportunity to “highlight” businesses in NYC, like Classic Harbor Line – your one-stop (shop? or should we say port?) for seeing the city you love from the water.

After a tumultuous year and a half or so, it is important for us at Downtown to make sure that we’re serving the places that are serving us.

Classic Harbor Line owns a fleet of nine stunning vessels, designed by Scarano Boat Building of Albany, New York. These floating pieces of history call the east coast home. Hop on a Classic Harbor Line yacht in Boston, Massachusetts; Manhattan, New York; Newport, Rhode Island, and Key West, Florida.

Tours specialize in ticketed cruises and private charters, fit for guests and locals alike. Experience a sail as you’ve never experienced before on the luxuriously comfortable yachts that feature teak decks, mahogany trim, and carbon fiber rigging.

We at Downtown magazine had the pleasure of joining Captain Greg Freitas of Full Moon and Captain Sarah Pennington of America 2.0 on the two yachts for our Downtown Highlights series.

The first yacht we had the pleasure of visiting was Full Moon at Brookfield Place’s North Cove Marina in Manhattan. She’s a 65 foot fully restored 1950 classic yacht complete with full bar services, a full-service galley, and catering. We sat down with Captain Greg in her saloon to chat about Classic Harbor Line and his career as a yachtsman. “OLD SALT” fittingly read his cap as he gave anecdotal details of his experienced life on the water.

Over at The Chelsea Piers Marina, we paid a visit to America 2.0. She’s a 105 Feet LOA and a tribute to the first Schooner America — the winner of the very first America’s Cup in 1851. She’s a class act, complete with comfortable seating and bar service, and an open salon below featuring a full-service galley and two heads. Captain Sarah’s invitingly sat with us and gave us America 2.0’s history and her own.

Set sail yourself with Classic Harbor Line or take a walk along the esplanade to watch their stunning ships.

Bon Voyage!

For more Downtown Highlights, click here

Categories
Culture Featured Hotels News NYC Travel

A Gate to Excitement: Westgate Hotel Opens the Way to Fun in NYC 

Westgate New York

Not everything shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic.

While other businesses went into hibernation, Westgate began a metamorphosis. Over the course of the next year, they renovated almost all of their locations, set on a new and improved experience for the eventual re-opening. For Westgate New York Grand Central, that came at the beginning of July, when they re-opened their doors. Renovations complete, Westgate has already become a hub for commuters, traveling businessmen, and tourists ready to explore a re-opened New York. 

 

 

Westgate New York Grand Central was acquired by Westgate in 2018. Before that, it was a Hilton, a Crown Plaza, and originally Tudor City Hotel. Tudor City grew out of the bones of an old tenement building, a true part of NYC history.

 

Don’t worry, though, the rooms are much bigger.

 

Tudor City Tavern & Marketplace

 

Each of Westgate’s rooms is equipped with a flat-screen TV, a comfy bed, and blackout curtains (thank goodness!). Several dozen even have balconies— not original to the tenements. But the quirks make themselves known: the same room types have different layouts on different floors and areas of the building, following the old bones of the original tenement. As of mid-July, the spacious fitness center was still under construction, but the Tudor City Tavern & Marketplace, where you can grab a delicious cocktail, some snacks, or a meal on the go, is still open. 

 

 

 

If you’re heading to the Tudor City Tavern, I recommend the Bodega and the “Rag Gang’s” Smoking Gun. The former is a delicious craft cocktail flavored with agave, cucumber, and jalapeno. The latter is a complicated Old Fashioned served in a cherry wood smoking decanter. Their bar staff are talented, experienced, and watching them make the drinks is part of the fun. 

 

 

 

Of course, no matter how good a hotel is, nobody travels to NYC for the hotels— what matters is where you go after that, and Westgate New York Grand Central is perfectly placed. Located right on 42nd Street, Westgate is a hub for all things Midtown. There are so many things to do in NYC, and that is even before Broadway and other big-name shows open back up. In the meantime, treat yourself to some of the best food spots in the city, and the endless sights. Even the cheesy ones. 

 

 

 

Westgate New York Grand Central is an affordable, luxurious, centrally-located piece of New York history. It is the spot, whether you are a corporate there for business or a family looking to check out the city for the first time.

Categories
Sports

Big Sporting Events Worth Traveling For

Speaking of traveling became a taboo of sorts during 2020 given the global pandemic the world sadly fell into. Still, the idea of traveling, especially for sports fans could be considered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity has always lingered in the minds of people. While we return to our normal way of life, or even more a “new normal” lifestyle where ideas like traveling for headlining sporting events will be more and more of a possibility let’s look at some events that should be in every sport betting fans’ bucket list.

FIFA World Cup, Soccer’s Biggest Party

If there is one thing that is veridical and true in the sporting industry is that there is no sport as popular in the world as soccer. With a following of around 3,5 to 4 billion people, the FIFA World Cup tournament has the power to bring countries to a scratching halt if their national team is playing. For soccer players, coaches and fans there is nothing bigger than being able to win the World Cup. For a whole month, the host country becomes the epicenter of all soccer-related activities and said hosts sure make a point to show the world that they are the place to be at.

Soccer fans that travel to the World Cup are treated to around-the-clock activities, concerts, meet and greets with some of the sport’s most important personalities as well as the most important event in the calendar, the games themselves. Tickets for World Cup games are usually gone in instants with tickets for the Championship game sometimes reaching price tags big enough for fans to be able to buy a car or a small house with the money.

The Summer and Winter Olympic Games, Sports’ Must-See Events!

If there are two events that can boast the claim to be able to bring the sporting world to hold without them being a one-day affair, then look no further than the Summer and Winter Olympic Games. Both events which happen in selected cities every four years and span throughout a whole month bring together the best exponents of the sporting world to compete for the ultimate prize, Olympic gold.

The Summer and Winter Olympic Games are the biggest all-around sporting events on any athlete’s calendar. With competitions that span through almost all professional sports disciplines, fans are treated to a vast selection of activities, competitions and events in cities that become the sporting capital of the world for that period of time. With the Summer Olympic Games set to begin in mid-2021 in Tokyo, Japan, after having to be postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Winter Olympic Games to be held in early 2022 in China the hopes of health and safety protocols being strong enough to allow fans to participate are slim but not at all dead, time and precautions will give the final word.

The Super Bowl, America’s Biggest Sports Event of the Year

The NFL Super Bowl can easily be considered the most important sporting and entertainment event in the calendar in the United States. While some may consider it to be all about the actual football game, at the end of the day the Super Bowl is an event with many facets, the actual football game being one of them. With show-stopping performances featuring some of the biggest musical artists of the moment, especially the coveted halftime show which has seen the likes of Michael Jackson, Prince, the Rolling Stone and Beyoncé perform, just to name a few artists the Super Bowl is the event to be at every year.

Cities that host the Super Bowl transform themselves into football cities to be able to offer fans the best football-related experience prior to the actual game. Football fans are known to be some of the most passionate and loyal fans in the sporting world so spending a good chunk of cash in order to live the Super Bowl experience at least once in a lifetime is a definite must.

Categories
Featured Hotels Travel

Cancun is Calling with Contactless Check -in

Is it time for a COVID break?

Ready for another snowstorm, below-freezing temperatures, or you just need that long-overdue getaway?

Cancun & Playa Del Carmen reopened in June were Expedia’s number 1 and 2 most searched destinations in 2021. Mexico is in the ORANGE phase and Americans can travel there with no restrictions.  And while there is a lot of buzz about the openings of Margaritaville Resort Riviera-Cancun the majority of visitors are seeking out a more intimate boutique hotel experience with contactless check-in and far less staff and foot traffic.

The Acanto Hotel Trademark Collection by Wyndham Playa Del Carmen comes in with 3 special “No Covid Here” packages.
Just a block from the beach and half a block from the shopping and restaurants on 5th Avenue in Playa Del Carmen offers Hacienda Style 1-3 Bedroom condos and a grotto-style pool. You will feel right at home and ready for an extended stay with the rooms all equipped with full kitchens, dining tables and chairs, utensils, and chic private terraces for fresh air.
The front desk can arrange for day trips jungles and ruins and expeditions like diving snorkeling and para-sailing. There are a set of more swanky rooftop suites that feature outdoor rooftop kitchens with BBQ and dining tables. Be sure to direct bookly and enjoy an additional 10% off, easy cancelation, lowest rate guarantee, early and late check-in and check out, free calls, free wifi, and even discounts at select local favorite restaurants nearby. There is even free breakfast in the mornings.

Work From Paradise

Acanto keeps it simple with this package to offer the best possible monthly rate for your work/School at home in one of our spacious suites. Complimentary breakfast and weekly maid service are provided as well as daily towel service. Enjoy some rooftop yoga, a swim in the pool, and some sand between your toes for a walk along the beach in between zoom meetings.
Monthly rates start at $1,500 for 2 People. with High-Speed Wifi, Maid Service, Breakfast, Front Desk, and Concierge  Services

Bring Your Pod To Acanto

With fewer bookings allowed hotels will be able to offer a complete buy-out option.  The Acanto Hotel with its’ 19 1, 2 and 3 bedroom  Suites is a perfect option for a group up to. 70 people. Prices have never been lower and this is just for 2021.

Give Back, Get Back at Acanto

If you are willing to give back to the local Playa Del Carmen community by either teaching young children to speak English, the local dog rescue, or at the CEA (Ecological Center of Akumal) to help with Turtle hatching season we will give you 2 free nights when you stay for 2 nights. This is perfect for a long weekend getaway that is feel-good and easy on your wallet.
Well, what are you waiting for, book now, and we’ll see you at the Playa!
Categories
NYC Travel

Qualities That Make New York City One of the World’s Most Attractive Destinations

Qualities That Make New York City One of the World’s Most Attractive Destinations
https://images.unsplash.com/

 

If you’ve already been, you want to go back; if you’ve never visited, you’re itching to see it for yourself. New York City is truly a place unlike any other in the United States. Rich in history, culture, and world-famous sites, the Big Apple contains the most diverse population in the entire country and is visited by over 60 million tourists each year. Below we’ll take a look at just a few of the qualities that prove the City that Never Sleeps is one of America’s most desirable destinations.  

It’s known as America’s melting pot

New York possesses a special history rooted deeply in immigration. Since the building of Ellis Island’s immigration station in the 19th century all the way up to today, millions of people have found a home in the city, originating from many different places around the world. From Koreatown to Chinatown, Little Italy to Little India, the city offers a unique blend of cuisine from a variety of different cultures and ethnic groups. With over 8 million people speaking more than 800 varying languages, New York is as diverse as it gets.

Exciting entertainment opportunities await at every twist and turn

It’s quite literally impossible to grow bored when living in or visiting the Big Apple. If an event is not currently taking place, it’s being planned, with thousands of opportunities presenting themselves each and every day. Whether it’s seeing a show on Broadway, attending a live jazz concert in Harlem, or playing a round of blackjack at a glamorous casino, New York has your entertainment needs covered. In fact, even for fans of online casino gameplay, New Jersey is conveniently located only a short drive away on the Williamsburg Bridge and is one of four states which offer legal virtual gameplay as well as a variety of no deposit casino offers for their users. It just goes to show that everything you could ever want is in the big city and if it’s not, well, it is probably just a hop, skip, and jump away.

Everything you see exudes character, art, and culture

In New York City, many aspects of life are centered around important American cultural activities. For example, there’s the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, the Rockefeller Christmas Tree Lighting, the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, and more. Central Park is a cornerstone venue for various outdoor events, and people flock to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to enjoy local and international pieces as well as different exhibits all year round. Architectural beauty can be seen around every corner and some of the city’s most stunning buildings like the Flatiron and Met Life Clock Tower are important structures that have been around for many decades. The bottom line: in New York City, a walk to the grocery store can become a great cultural experience no matter what area you live in.

If you’ve been convinced by the magical qualities of New York City and want more than just a visit, check out some of these helpful tips for apartment hunting in the Concrete Jungle, and fast-track the process to living in your dream locale!

 

Statue of Liberty
https://images.unsplash.com/photo-

A symbol of American freedom, the Statue of Liberty is one of the United State’s most famous landmarks