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During my recent trip to New Delhi and Agra, India I was lucky enough to be put up at the Taj Palace Hotel. The luxury hotel is one of the most popular for business travelers in India. The Taj Palace is situated approximately 15 minutes away from Indira Gandhi Airport and close to many of New Delhi’s attractions, like the Red Fort and India Gate.

Accommodations: The Taj Palace rooms were, in my opinion, not entirely impressive, considering the price (beginning at 10,000 rupees) of $220. The rooms were clean compared to some of the hotels I’ve stayed across India at much cheaper hotels and the service was excellent.

Food: The Taj Palace serves a complimentary breakfast buffet offering a variety of traditional Indian and Western dishes. The quality of the food is good, my only grip being that there wasn’t enough actual Indian food offered. There are several other restaurants in the Taj Palace if you want to try something different, just at a considerably higher price.

Price: Speaking of price (rooms starting at $220), the Taj Hotel is expensive, and not the kind of place I personally would stay if traveling on my own. I’d suspect that many of you avid travelers wouldn’t choose the kind of class the Taj Palace is in, but is a great choice if you are a luxury hotel addict, or want easy access to personal transportation and a more-Western atmosphere.

Location: Again, this distinction depends on what type of traveler you are. The Taj Palace is close to many of New Delhi’s best sights - by car. It’s not in a location where a you can just walk out of the hotel and go exploring. Bad for backpackers and travelers like myself who enjoy a little bit of adventure on a trip, but excellent for older or more traditional tourists.

Below you can see some of my pictures in and around the Taj Palace.

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Next time you’re going to book a hotel in a large city save some money by looking for local conferences beforehand. Hotels in large cities often host conferences, meetings, and business trainings and give those attending discounted rates.

Before you book any place do a Google search, for example “New York City Conferences” or “New York Marriott Conference 2008″. Then, contact the hotel over the phone and tell them that you’ll be attending the conference and would like to know if there are any discounted rates. Usually there are - and they won’t check any further to verify that you’re actually a conference or meeting member.

To test my theory, I called several hotels in major cities hosting events and was able to book at all but one. It took some “truth exaggeration” in some cases, although the average 15-25% discount may be well worth it for downtown overpriced hotels. A search for conferences should be a part of your next hotel search using Google, or if you prefer a more honest approach, try Kayak.

What “white lies”, if any, do you tell to get discounts when traveling?

[photo by: The Green Party]

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The term “staycation” refers to someone who decides to take off time from work to enjoy life at home. Although the concept is an old one, it’s getting more popular due to a poor economy and travel hassles.

My recent travel plans to several countries in Europe never panned out but I decided to use the time I had already taken off and spend it at home. Over the last two weeks I’ve learned what to do - and more importantly what not to do on a staycation.

• Don’t Plan Anything - Make a rudimentary daily plan and outline what it is you want to accomplish each day. For me it was usually, go run, go to the pool, etc. and it took about 5-10 minutes to schedule out. It shouldn’t take longer than that, remember you are on vacation.
• Watch TV - Sitting in front of the television for hours might be relaxation for some, but it turns your staycation into a regular night off from work. This is where planning comes in, poor (or no) planning will just have you sitting in front of the TV for a week or two which won’t be very fulfilling when you go back to work.
• Missing Things Right Under Your Nose - A week before you plan to take a staycation, keep your eyes open for events, parks, and other attractions right around your own town. Jot them down somewhere are get a chance to visit close places and events you can go to during the day and miss the crowds.

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Organizing a move from one home to another takes time and effort initially but saves you a number of headaches when you finally begin to settle in. The same is true of packing our carry-ons and suitcases. People tend to wait until the last minute and stuff their baggage with whatever they can find. The result is once you arrive at your destination you waste time site seeing muddling through your disorganized suitcase.

I’ve taken Lifehacker’s 5 essential tools for moving and adapted them for lazy travelers.

Labels

Using a labeler or masking tape gifts (ones you are taking or bringing back). It amazes me how many people don’t do this and end up spending time looking for the proper package opening each one. You can also use labels to mark what groups of clothes are clean or dirty.

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Make sure your next hotel isn’t on a list of places with known infestations. This Stormtrack thread has a detailed list, as does the Bed Bug Blog.

Both lists seem heavy with New York City and London hotels. Keep your eyes opens for bed bug clues such as sniffing dogs in the lobby, or allergy (aka. bed bug) free bed covers.

The little critters hitch rides in luggage and travel all over the globe. There is no real one-stop source to find out if your next hotel is infested, you’ll have to search forums, travel blogs, and ask around to avoid bed bug bites.

[photo by: gothambill]

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Make sure to rinse and wash glasses and mugs you find in hotel rooms before you use them. An undercover investigation found that they were not cleaned properly or at all in many cases.

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Incentive programs at Marriott hotels, when compared to Hilton, have lead to more efficient hotels that are better for the environment.

Marriott has created incentive systems to award and highlight managers for their environmental initiatives. And on a corporate level, they are taking MEASURABLE steps toward reducing their energy and water use.

Simple Green Choices notes that both chains still have a long way to go. To really hotel it up green style, check the list of green certified ones.

[photo by: Daniele Muscetta]

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Vacationers and winter-phobes are purchasing up expensive real estate located in Marrakesh’s palm groves.

??Ten years ago the Palmeraie barely existed, and the land was almost worthless,?? said Alban Pamart, owner and director of Atlas Immobilier, a Marrakesh-based real-estate agency specializing in expensive properties. But within the last several years, Marrakesh has emerged as a major style capital. ??All the Europeans who wanted a place with prestige and luxury bought in the Palmeraie,?? he said.

An acre of land in this emerging style-capital goes for anywhere between $170,000-$570,000 and construction per foot runs about $125. Even if you can’t avoid these prices, Morocco is one of the places in the world you should visit and you shouldn’t be scared to; plus your dollar will go a long way there.

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Search through real estate listings and find people looking for roommates on the interactive JoLocate map.

JoLocate allows you to select from specific regions in major cities across the US where you can narrow down the selection of homes by price and pet preference. The map then shows you (Google Maps style) all of your options.

JoLocate is geared mainly towards renters and is a good tool for home owners looking to rent out a room or two.

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Russia is currently undergoing a population decline, so the governor of Ulanovsky is giving the people the day off to “work” on the problem.

Sergei Morozov wants couples to take the day off work to have sex. If a baby is born on national day, they will receive cars, TVs or other prizes.

The other baby-making initiatives seem to be working, the population has increased 4.5% over the last year.

Let’s hope the holiday is a trend.

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