Alaska Airlines has flown internationally to Canada and Mexico for some time. But they are adding a third international destination. Starting May 21 you can book a flight to Costa Rica on Alaska Airlines. The flights will begin to San Jose on October 31 and Liberia the following day.
The announced flights (below) are only out of LAX (at least for now). While Seattle is Alaska’s hub, I can see why it would make more sense to fly out of a southern city.
The Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego was one of the “official” hotels of the conference I was attending and is only a few blocks from the Convention Center. I booked a Double Bed at Costco rates as it was the best I could find; each night just under $300. There were two large conferences in town (one at the hotel), so I am guessing you could find some better rates if you go when there isn’t a conference in town. It is the largest hotel in San Diego (with 1,625 rooms).
The Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego is located on the waterfront just south west of the downtown core. It is about 10 minutes from the airport and you can walk to Petco Park, the Convention Center, Gaslamp, and downtown. There are a bunch of restaurants just across the street. Across the street there is also a light rail stop.
After spending three nights at the Disneyland Hotel with my family, I rented a car and drove north. I spent a night at the Hyatt The Pike Long Beach by myself for some non-Disney relaxation. I love Disney and I love my family, but it was great to have some solo time before heading back home and to work.
Hyatt The Pike Long Beach is one of the non-conformist properties; it is simply a “Hyatt”, and not a member of any of the Hyatt sub-brands (although many compare it to an Andaz). In this light it is similar to Hyatt Olive 8. This is expected to change soon as Hyatt The Pike Long Beach gets rebranded as a Hyatt Centric when the new sub-brand launches this summer.
I have often wondered if this was truly about the environment or the hotel’s bottom line. Or the hotel’s image as being eco friendly.
If you are a fan of Major League Soccer or just want a deal on a flight, check out this promo that Alaska Air is running. 10% off flights during the week of away games to the opponents city. What it basically breaks down to is a 10% discount between two cities for a week throughout the next 6 months.
I stayed at the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara for a weekend in October, 2014. The hotel is older, my guess it was built in the mid 1980’s, and has a large footprint of 501 rooms. The closest airport is San Jose (6 miles), a small airport that makes getting in and out easy.
I assumed it would be quiet on a weekend when business travelers were at home, but was I wrong! This is definitely a conference hotel (it is attached to the Santa Clara Convention Center in the heart of Silicon Valley). There were two conferences at the hotel (ironically neither were tech conventions); one was quilters the other was high schoolers. As you can imagine, I was disheartened to say the least. Luckily, the check in agent could tell I was not looking forward to a weekend with youngins, so he put me on the 13th floor away from the students. I thought he said he “upgraded” me as I am a Platinum HGP member, but it turned out that the only upgrade was that it was on a higher floor.