Travel deals, hotel bargains, travel news | Theme Park Mom

On the Gaslamp Quarter’s waterfront, a combination of family fun, adult nightlife and considerable savings await families at the scenic Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego. With the downtown San Diego luxury hotel’s “Sunshine on Sale” package, every third night the hotel room is free, everyday two kids eat free and enjoy free outdoor recreation, free indoor board games, and the family pet stays free (usually $30 per day) too. It is available between September 5 and December 31, 2010.

Reservations for the “Sunshine on Sale” rate must be made in advance at (800) 233-1234 or visit www.SunshineOnSale.com . For up to two adults and two children, “Sunshine on Sale” rates are from $149 per night and are based on availability.

Free kid’s meals are served everyday to two kids 12 and under when one regular meal is purchased in the resort’s Lael’s restaurant or in Sally’s Seafood on the Water restaurant.

Award-winning downtown dining and nightlife options at the San Diego California hotel include the award-winning Sally’s Seafood on the Water, the Top of the Hyatt sky-lounge and its unequaled sunset views over the Pacific Ocean, with San Diego Bay and Coronado in the foreground, and Redfield’s Sports Bar, which offers darts and billiards along with food and drink. The Hyatt is only a few-blocks’ stroll from the heart of the Gaslamp Quarter, site of Petco Park and ample shopping and nightlife.

Views and comfortable elegance define the hotel’s 1,625 guest rooms, each a spacious 340-square feet. Every guest room has at least partial water or city views and most offer spectacular water views, including panoramic vistas of the Pacific Ocean. Guests can upgrade to a Deluxe Bay View Room, a corner room providing panoramic views of San Diego Bay and the Pacific Ocean from floor to ceiling windows on two walls. The stylish decor of all these accommodations includes windows that open to capture sea breezes and either one king or two double Grand Beds fitted with luxurious linens and down duvets over pillow-top mattresses and a generous work area.

About Manchester Grand Hyatt
Located on the Gaslamp Quarter’s waterfront, the Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego overlooks San Diego Bay and many rooms offer spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean too. This urban resort defines San Diego’s skyline and is comprised of two stylish towers, the 33-story Seaport Tower and the 40-story Harbor Tower, the latter of which is 497 feet tall, making it the tallest building on the west coast waterfront. Connecting the two towers is a four-story building that boasts a rooftop pool with a 25,000 square foot deck. The stylish Hyatt includes 95 one-and-two-bedroom suites, Kin Spa with full-service salon with an adults-only pool at adjacent Kin Oasis, tennis courts, bay-view pool and deck, a fitness center and several award-winning restaurants and lounges -most all overlooking the bay. It is adjacent to Seaport Village, near Horton Plaza and convenient to San Diego International Airport, San Diego Zoo and Sea World. For more information, call 619-232-1234 and visit www.ManchesterGrandHyattSanDiego.com . The hotel’s latest news, special offers and information on upcoming events is also found on Facebook and Twitter.

Mini breaks can make a world of difference. We know that pint-sized fun is better than no fun at all whether it’s a daytrip or a weekend escape, enjoying time together and making family memories matters. Based on reader feedback theFamilyTravelFiles.com has expanded the Best Fall Festivals & Corn Mazes for 2010 to include more mazes and festivals in the USA plus terrific spots in Canada.

The Best Fall Festivals and Corn Mazes for Families for 2010 regional lists reveal a plethora of chances to have fun with kids. The lists span eight distinct geographic regions in the USA plus three regions within Canada.

The collection of festivals and events runs the gamut from barnyard mini-golf in Vermont and pumpkin bowling in Kansas to pig races, hayrides, living history, and the most remarkable corn mazes on the continent. Mini breaks in Canada include plenty of pumpkin patches, scarecrows, hay rides, corn piles, and apple picking plus corn quests in Nova Scotia and a cranberry bog encounter in British Columbia. For night owls there are maze adventures by moonlight or flashlight.

Celebrating the season takes more than corn, pumpkins and apple cider. To be the best means offering families clever ways to add to the fun of the season. The best for 2010 was compiled from Family Travel Files staff favorites as well as suggestions by readers who took the time to “Tell Mom” about their favorite fall festival or corn maze.

The expanded list of family friendly Fall Festivals & Corn Mazes may be viewed at theFamilyTravelFiles.com by clicking on the special green and yellow folder labeled “aMAZEing Fun” or by selecting a region of the country and viewing the relevant feature. To expand the list for the future readers are encouraged to “Tell Mom” about their favorite family corn maze or fall festival.

Readers may become a fan of Family Travel Files on Facebook and keep up with the latest family vacation news or follow Family Travel Files Blog and provide feedback as news is posted.

About theFamilyTravelFiles.com

Kennebunkport, ME – Most people start the year with a pledge to improve themselves in some way. Rick Litchfield and Bev Davis, owners of the Captain Lord Mansion in Kennebunkport, ME, started 2010 with a different kind of resolution. Throughout 2010, Captain Lord Mansion has donated a dime for each guest who stayed at the Captain Lord Mansion to a fund they called “A Dime for Time”. In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Dime for Time funds will be donated to the American Cancer Society for breast cancer awareness and research programs. Additionally, breast cancer survivors have been invited to apply to be treated to a complimentary weekend at the luxury Kennebunkport inn, November 19-21 via the Captain Lord Mansion’s page on Facebook.

The Dime for Time program will culminate the weekend before Thanksgiving (November 19-21) when breast cancer survivors will be offered a complimentary two-night stay at the Captain Lord Mansion. Those wishing to be considered for free stays should indicate their interest via email to innkeeper@captainlord.com, including a brief story about themselves. Additionally, those interested in being considered should “like” the Captain Lord Mansion on their Facebook page by October 15, 2010. Each breast cancer survivor who is selected for this weekend at the inn will receive a complimentary two-night stay, chair massages and attendance at a reception where Captain Lord Mansion will present the check for funds raised through the Dime for Time program to the American Cancer Society.

To date, more than $,2,000 has been raised in the Dime For Time Program through donations from the Captain Lord Mansion and its guests. The inn donated one dime if the guest visited once, yet the dime was doubled if it was the guests’ second visit, and it was multiplied by ten if the guest visited ten times. In short, the pledge for each guest came from the number of visits to the Captain Lord Mansion, multiplied by 10-cents. After 31 years of owning the Captain Lord Mansion, Litchfield and Davis know that the contribution for most guests is multiplied by at least 5, and up to 80 times for some guests!

The campaign was created in honor of Bev Davis’s sister who died of breast cancer. During the October Breast Cancer Awareness month, the notion of helping others with breast cancer spurred the idea to create this campaign. “We think one of the most meaningful wishes a breast cancer survivor has is for time; time to spend with their families and time to enjoy the rest of their lives,” said Rick Litchfield. “This campaign has allowed Captain Lord Mansion and its guests to contribute throughout 2010, allowing each person to make a difference or to honor someone they know who has been touched by breast cancer” finished Litchfield.

About Captain Lord Mansion:
The Captain Lord Mansion is a premier bed and breakfast inn located in the heart of Kennebunkport, Maine. Combining luxury amenities with spa services, an extensive gift and wine shop, beautifully appointed guest rooms and haute hospitality, all within Southern Maine’s extensive beaches and recreation, Captain Lord Mansion is the ideal choice for romantic getaways and celebration vacations. An AAA four diamond rated inn for 29 years, a 2009/2010 Top 30 Small Hotels choice by Condé Nast Traveler readers and a 2009/2010 Fodors Choice Selection, the Captain Lord Mansion takes its place among New England’s most distinctive inns. Recently joining the Diamond Collection from BedandBreakfast.com and a long time member of Select Registry’s group of distinctive inns, Captain Lord Mansion offers distinctive surroundings for sophisticated travelers. For more information on Captain Lord Mansion, visit www.captainlord.com or call 800-522-3141 to order Captain Lord Mansion gift certificates.

With the 2010 hurricane season entering it’s busiest period, Squaremouth, America’s fastest growing travel insurance (http://www.squaremouth.com) comparison web site, today announces some essential tips and terms to help travelers sort through options for hurricane coverage.

Hurricane insurance (http://www.squaremouth.com/travel-insurance/information/travel-insurance-hurricane-&-weather-benefit.html) tips:

1- No insurance covers absolutely everything that could happen when a hurricane hits or a traveler needs to be evacuated. “Hurricane Warning” coverage from Travelsafe and Global Alert Administrators, for example, works only if the warning that a hurricane is about to hit comes within 24 hours of departure date, and only if the policy was purchased more than 15 days ago.

2 – Buy the policy before a storm is named… Or there will not be cover for losses relating to that storm. This is because insurance is based on unforeseen circumstances; once a storm has a name it’s deemed to be foreseen. (The same is true for things like airline strikes: if the impending strike becomes public knowledge before the insurance is purchased, the claim will be denied.)

3 – The wording of a policy may be vague. Some policies don’t refer to hurricanes at all; coverage may fall under the catch-all category of a “natural disaster” instead. And often they’re interpreted case-by-case at claim time.

4 – Some benefits that don’t specifically mention hurricanes can help. An example is “cancel for any reason” cover, though most policies pay out less than 100% and stop within two days of departure (there is cover for cancelling travel plans ahead of time if a hurricane threatens but not for an emergency evacuation once the storm rolls in).

5 – If bad weather is predicted, but no warning is given… No insurance carrier will pay claims in this situation. The only option is to buy “cancel for any reason (http://www.squaremouth.com/travel-insurance/information/travel-insurance-cancel-for-any-reason-benefit.html)” coverage.

6 – Consider options offered by the airline, cruise or tour operator. Travelers offered alternate trips with the same travel dates, may not be able to make a claim if they refuse their offer. If the dates are different, most insurance companies will pay the claim, however, the tickets must be surrendered.

7 – There’s plenty of variation in hurricane benefits from one company to the next, so it pays to shop around. But keep in mind that policies offered by the same company tend to offer similar protection against hurricanes, although the carrier’s higher-end product might afford slightly better coverage.

Hurricane insurance terms:

1 – “Accommodation at destination made uninhabitable”
In the past, even if the hurricane soaked hotel were flattened and the pool awash in filth, travelers would be on the hook for a vacation as long as the airline could still fly them there. With this benefit, they may cancel if they can no longer reach the resort, it has become unsafe, or has lost electricity and running water.

2 – Mandatory evacuation “Conditionally covered” or “Not covered”
If a vacationer is thinking of cutting short her trip because of a hurricane, she should check her policy. “Conditionally covered” means covered for going home early if there is a certain amount of the trip left; this varies by carrier and is usually 50 percent, or four days or less remaining at the end of an evacuation order. If a traveler is “Not covered,” they can’t make a claim if the hurricane missed their destination despite the order to evacuate. (If the hurricane does hit, they can make a claim under the “Accommodation at destination made uninhabitable” portion of the policy.)

3 – “Hurricane warning” coverage
Timing is everything when it comes to buying peace of mind this hurricane season. “Hurricane warning” coverage from Travelsafe and Global Alert Administrators works only if the warning that a hurricane is about to hit comes within 24 hours of your departure date, and only if you’ve held the policy for more than 15 days.

4 – “Complete cessation of common carrier services”
If an airline has stopped flying due to the weather and a traveler can’t get to their destination, they have missed a cruise departure or connecting flight, or they are stuck in an airport, most carriers will let them make a claim. The difference between policies is in the number of hours the airline is down: at least 24 hours of downtime is usually required, though some policies allow claims for any period of downtime.

5 – “Covered for inclement weather”
This benefit is a more liberal version of “Complete cessation of common carrier services” and will allow a claim without the required number of hours’ downtime. This means that if a flight cancellation impacts in some way, a traveler can claim the loss.

If the trip includes a cruise:
If a hurricane makes a traveler miss their departure, insurance will pay for them to catch up at the next port of call. If the cruise is canceled, any losses not reimbursed will be covered. If the itinerary is changed and the traveler refuses an offer of an alternate route with the same travel dates, they won’t be allowed to make a claim. If the dates offered are different, most insurance carriers will pay the claim (the tickets will need to be surrendered).

If the trip includes flights:
If a flight is canceled, depending on the policy and trip itinerary, there could be a claim for an alternative flight, cancel and go home, or wait for the flight to be rescheduled and claim for expenses.