TravelLeisure

Crisp leaves, cool nights and cozy fires-all signs that summer is giving way to the magic of autumn. This fall, choose from nearly 60 relaxing or rejuvenating getaways from Historic Hotels of America. The fall specials and packages from Historic Hotels of America are featured at www.historichotels.org/fall_getaways

Phoenix Park Hotel, Washington, D.C.
Experience the ultimate in hospitality and newly renovated guest rooms with this Fall Weekend package. Enjoy a pint of Guinness upon arrival and walk to the city's museums and monuments. (Available October 5 through November 26, 2006, Thursday through Sunday; $109 per night, single or double occupancy.) Visit www.historichotels.org/hotel/38 Read more

Whether it’s timed to honor a special birthday, a chance for over- worked women to recharge their batteries, the last hurrah before the Bride says “I do”, or the multi-generational getaway for the women in the family, the Girls Getaway Weekend is a growing trend and a collection of Orient-Express properties is laying out the welcome mat to groups of women who seek the perfect blend of relaxation, indulgence and shared experiences. Read more

Divot Divas, Keswick Hall, Keswick (Charlottesville) Virginia
Designed for the female golf enthusiast or beginner, Keswick Hall’s Divot Divas package combines an interest in golf with a sporting way to bond with the girls. The package includes two-nights luxury accommodations at the award winning hotel, two one-hour golf lessons, two rounds of golf and two spa treatments for each person (one each day). The package also includes Keswick Hall’s signature “Goga” class. This 60-minute class based on the principles of yoga emphasizes twist and core strength poses as well as meditative relaxation, which help improve flexibility, distance and focus.

School is almost back in session, and that means fall is just around the corner. Whether you’re planning on only visiting Galveston Island for the day or you plan to make it your weekend getaway, there’s a list of fun and exiting things to do.

  SEPTEMBER
To help kick off the month of September, and this fall in Galveston, is one popular event that can’t be missed! Whether you consider yourself a wine connoisseur, or don’t know the difference between a Pinot Noir and a Pinot Grigio, get ready to uncork some of the finest wine during this year’s Galveston Uncorked! For the 4th year, the Historic Downtown Strand Partnership and the Galveston Island Park Board of Trustees proudly present this event formerly known as the Downtown Wine and Food Celebration. From Thursday September 7th through September 9th experience unique wines, delicious cuisine, and a chance to rediscover Galveston’s Historic Downtown District! Read more

With loads of courses, comparatively low green fees, unmatched settings and year-round play, Greater Fort Lauderdale has quietly earned a reputation as a first-rate Florida golf destination. A healthy mix of semi-private clubs and premier public courses, designed by luminaries like Rees Jones, Raymond Floyd and Trent Jones, make Greater Fort Lauderdale the perfect play for skill levels ranging from weekend warrior to semi-professional. Following are “Three to Play” in Greater Fort Lauderdale – one new course, one renovated course, and one classic course.

Plantation Preserve Golf Course & Club
Just opened in 2006 is the Plantation Preserve Golf Course & Club, which provides a new wrinkle on the word “green.” Located on 211 acres of protected, everglades-themed open space, the new facility includes a Par 72, 7,000-yard Audubon-certified Championship Golf Course, a 6,600 square foot club house that seats 160 guests, a linear park trail with two trailheads winds its way through the golf course and 29 acres of wetland preserve. Plantation Preserve Golf Course & Club is one of the only public courses in Greater Fort Lauderdale to feature the internationally- recognized Dwarf Seaside Paspalum Grass surface. Read more

With 641 castles in its diminutive 8,000 square miles (about the size of Massachusetts), the highest concentration of castles of any European country, Wales knows a thing or two about medieval structures. Wales is inviting travelers to step back in time and tour its castles. Planning a castle-hopping tour in Wales is easy since the castles of Wales are unavoidable. This family-sized nation has the most impressive collection of monuments left from the Middle Ages and is home to some of Europe's finest surviving examples of medieval castle construction.

It is easiest to divide Welsh castles into three categories: Norman Castles, Native Welsh Castles and Edward Castles. Wales also has Tudor castles, but for the novice castle collector, the three main categories should suffice. Read more

Club ABC Tours announces a unique new adventure in fine dining that takes food enthusiasts through the marketplaces, restaurants and gourmet kitchens of Hong Kong, Vietnam and Thailand, the "New Asian Cuisine Chefs Tour." Inspired by the cookbook sensation, "New Asian Cuisine: Fabulous Recipes from Celebrity Chefs" by Wendy Chan and Grace E. Niwa, each 13-day escorted tour is led by one of the top chefs whose dishes are featured in the book. It takes food connoisseurs on a whirlwind voyage of discovery through the marketplaces and dining establishments of the three distinct Asian cultures and lifestyles that feature strongly in the cuisine. Read more

The Carlton on Madison Avenue, which has just completed one of the most elegant hotel restoration projects in New York City, has created a cost-effective meeting package for the image-conscious and budget-minded corporate meeting planners. The new meeting package, which is aptly named “Big City Meetings – Country Style,” offers meeting spaces that combine the flair of Old New York with the sophistication and elegance of Manhattan.

Meeting Package: Big City Meetings – Country Style
(Valid for all meetings of 14 or more that includes breakfast and/ or lunch)

• 2 flip charts with pads/markers
  
• Choice of complimentary iced tea, lemonade served throughout the meeting or
  
• One glass of champagne or cocktail in our Champagne Lounge (valid for each attendee and must be redeemed the day of the meeting)
  

For the Meeting Planner booking the Meeting Package Read more

• $50 gift certificate to Country Restaurant or
  
• Signed copy of Celebrity Chef, Geoffrey Zakarian’s new book Town/Country

The Orchard Hotel in Singapore has announced the unveiling of a multi-million dollar renovation of the hotel’s Signature Club Rooms. The new rooms are exquisitely designed by renowned French interior designer Pierre- Yves Rochon, known for his work at the Four Seasons George V in Paris and L'Hotel Hermitage in Monte Carlo among other luxury properties worldwide. Rochon’s vibrant designs at the Orchard Hotel fuses contemporary and classic designs with a strong Eastern flavor and distinctly European interpretation. Read more

Straight from the Domaine de Perignon vineyards of Burgundy, France… the Lescombes family lands in New Mexico! The high desert, with its warm days and cool nights, offers an optimal climate for growing grapes. As the state's largest winery, New Mexico Wineries offers wine under several different labels. Family owned and operated by the Lescombes family, who came to America from France in the early '80s, the winery continues to make a wide variety of wines according to generations of French tradition.  Serving award-winning favorites such as Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Merlot, New Mexico Wineries also offers a full range of classic varietals, in addition to some fun Southwestern alternatives. Available both in stores and online, visit www.stclairvineyards.com for selection and shipping. Read more

Over the years, the air travel industry has gone through massive changes for a variety of reasons including improved technological advances, heightened security measures resulting from 9-11, and most recently, passengers seeking convenience and peace of mind. The airlines went from paper tickets to e-tickets, airports went from random baggage screening to 100% inspection of checked baggage utilizing sophisticated security screening equipment, and now air travelers are changing their ways as well. Read more