Gadling

Kayak drops Blackberry support in favor of iPhone and Android

McLean Robbins — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:00:00 EST

If we didn't already think the death knell for Blackberry had begun, here's yet another sign that the once leading phone platform, at least where it comes to consumer travel apps, is well on its way to becoming outdated.

Kayak has revealed that it dropped support for its BlackBerry app, NextWeb reported.

"When we started KAYAK in 2004, we issued BlackBerries to the entire engineering team so we could communicate instantly 24/7," stated a memo from the Kayak team. "Today we've all switched, and it seems our users are doing the same. Our audience of BlackBerry users has been declining precipitously, and we can't justify the cost any longer."

Users won't find any updates for the app, but it will still exist in its present form. Users can also access the mobile version of the Kayak site from their browser.

Paul English, Kayak co-founder and CEO, told Tnooz last month that the brand, which has more than 10 million app downloads, has discovered an even further differentiation between platform users, namely that while both iPhone and Android users download the app, iPhone users are the ones most likely to buy online.

This may be a demographic shift. A user survey last summer also suggested that iPhone users are bigger travelers, and thus a more likely fit for the Kayak demographic.

The survey found that Android users are "36% more likely to not remember their last vacation," and that iPhone/iOS users are 15% more likely to have taken a vacation in the last six months, and were 55% more likely to have used their frequent flyer miles to have taken several free rewards flights during 2011.

What phone do you use?

Kayak drops Blackberry support in favor of iPhone and Android originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hotel in Vancouver, Canada, puts a new spin on in-room iPads

Jessica Festa — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Learning, Business, North America, Canada, Hotels and Accommodations, Budget Travel, Internet Tools

No need to worry about tipping your tour guide on your next trip to Vancouver, Canada, as the OPUS Vancouver hotel has recently added iPads to each of their 96 guest rooms to act as personal tour guides of the city. While the trend of adding tablets to hotel rooms is not a new concept, the OPUS adds a new spin by having the technology reflect the guests' personality and show them around the city.

First, guests choose their rooms based on what they like: Red Modern and Minimalist, Blue Stylish and Sophisticated, Green Artful and Eclectic, Orange Vibrant and Outgoing, or Taupe Daring and Dramatic. Your in-room iPad concierge and guide will then give you a personalized tour of the city based on your personality. To make these fictional guides more human, they've been given names, professions, and home cities. Guides include:

Pierre, a food and wine critic from Paris
Billy, a cultured rock star from London
Susan, a fashion executive from Toronto
Mike, a doctor from New York
Dede, an actress and prima donna from Los Angeles

And no need to worry about Wi-Fi as the virtual guides work offline, as well. For more information, click here. To get to know the tour guides a little bit better, you can also visit the OPUS Hotels' Blog to read some posts written by the fictional characters.

Hotel in Vancouver, Canada, puts a new spin on in-room iPads originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 01 Feb 2012 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Superbowl 2012 travel trends

McLean Robbins — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Festivals and Events, Hotels and Accommodations, Internet Tools

For football fans, next weekend is the penultimate match up between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants. What does that mean for travelers? Stay the heck away from Indianapolis!

Kayak just released data showing that searches from New England to Indianapolis saw an increase of 28 times the average immediately following the Pats/Ravens game. New York Giants fans accounted for a flight search increase to Indianapolis of 38 times the average.

Hotel searches for Indianapolis on January 22 were seven times the average hotel search share of the first two Sundays of the month.

Of course, that means hotels are raising prices accordingly - Staybridge Suites Indianapolis- Airport hotel is showing a rate of $312 and the Residence Inn Indianapolis Fishers is offering a rate of $179. Both are a 20 to 30-minute drive away.

Hotels up to 10 miles from the stadium are already beginning to sell out, if they haven't done so already.

Of course, if you want to go luxe, you certainly can. Jetsetter is offering three packages for the game, which include overnight accommodations, VIP game passes and party access. Of course, the price goes along with the exclusivity - the most expensive package is $20,000 for two.

Gallery: Superbowl trends

[Flickr via indywriter]

Superbowl 2012 travel trends originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 30 Jan 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPhone app review: 'Spotted By Locals' European city guides

Jessica Marati — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Europe, France, Netherlands, Internet Tools

On a recent extended trip to Phnom Penh, I decided to bring along my trusty five-pound Southeast Asia on a Shoestring guide from Lonely Planet. Big mistake. In a city changing as quickly as Cambodia's capital, I found that nearly all of the information had become dated and irrelevant. Nearly half of the recommended restaurants had gone out of business, and the budget guesthouses, experiencing the "Lonely Planet effect", were now half as nice, twice as expensive, and filled with people who, well, kinda sucked.

Spotted By Locals aims to be a different kind of travel guide by providing up-to-date travel advice from urban residents through blogs, PDF city guides, and a newly redesigned iPhone app. After road-testing the app, I'd say they're well on their way.

Continue reading iPhone app review: 'Spotted By Locals' European city guides

iPhone app review: 'Spotted By Locals' European city guides originally appeared on Gadling on Sat, 28 Jan 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Valentine's Day is coming - where are people traveling?

McLean Robbins — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Festivals and Events, Hotels and Accommodations, Internet Tools

Most holidays see a spike in travel - particularly those that involve long weekends. But what happens on the romantic holiday of the year, which, in 2012, just so happens to fall on a Tuesday? Sure, card sales, flowers, chocolate and the prix fixe menu at The Melting Pot will go up in price, but will travel increase?

Kayak sourced the top five most romantic destinations based on both a) search volume (the number of searches for that location) and b) the percentage of change in search volume for Valentine's Day vs. the weekends prior and following February 14th.

According to their data, New York City is 64% more popular over Valentine's Day weekend than the two flanking it. According to Kayak data, cities seeing the most search volume for Valentine's Day weekend include: New York City, Venice (Italy), Honolulu, Maui and Denver. While we're not quite sure how Denver hits the list, we can only suppose it's a stopping point for a romantic ski trip away.

Searches for US flights showed a spike for Valentine's travel to New York City and Chicago.

Are you traveling to any of these cities this Valentine's Day?

[Flickr via moominmolly]

Valentine's Day is coming - where are people traveling? originally appeared on Gadling on Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Purple Passport launches chic urban guide for New York City

Jessica Marati — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Business, North America, United States, Internet Tools, Luxury Travel

For the hip, worldly, and discerning traveler, there's a new guide on the block: The Purple Passport, which just added New York to its roster of web-based city guides.

The Purple Passport offers handpicked hotel, restaurant, spa, nightlife, shopping, and activity recommendations from its team of travel tastemakers, with an easy interface that allows users to add items to personal "passports" that can then be printed or emailed to travel companions. Their listings are candid, comprehensive, and current, with categories like "Well Coiffed" for nightlife spots with a door policy and "Chic & Design" for trendy minimalist hotels. Picks in the New York City guide include home decor emporium ABC Carpet & Home, the Ace Hotel in up-and-coming NoMad, and the swanky Rose Bar at the Gramercy Park Hotel.

Founded by friends and travel companions Emily Brands and Jennifer Garcia-Alonso, The Purple Passport aims to provide a one-stop-shop for urban travelers seeking carefully curated information on the world's most stylish cities. Guides are also available for London, Paris, Los Angeles, Palm Beach, and Beijing, with Abu Dhabi, Taipei, Chicago, Miami, and Washington DC next on tap.

[image via The Purple Passport]

The Purple Passport launches chic urban guide for New York City originally appeared on Gadling on Thu, 26 Jan 2012 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HipGeo iPhone app makes sharing travel easy

Chris Owen — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Gear, North America, United States, Internet Tools

HipGeo is a Los Angeles based development team with a passion for creating the most convenient way for people to keep track of what they saw, where they saw it, share it, and use what other people share to enhance their own travel experiences. Now, HipGeo has a new, free iPhone and iPad app that passively records your location as you travel. It can then mash your pics and comments into an animated map and travel diary for sharing.

"If Tumblr and Foursquare had a baby, it would look like the new HipGeo," HipGeo's chief product guy, Rich Rygg told cnet.

HipGeo automatically groups photos, comments, places, tags, likes, and dates together, allowing users to search and follow real travelers who go interesting places.

As users go about their normal posting, HipGeo creates place blogs with user generated content. In addition to seeing what friends and family are doing while traveling, we can also access this user generated information to help plan a trip or discover something interesting.

Continue reading HipGeo iPhone app makes sharing travel easy

HipGeo iPhone app makes sharing travel easy originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 23 Jan 2012 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gogobot iPhone app taps Facebook timeline

Chris Owen — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: North America, United States, Internet Tools

Gogobot is a trip-planning travel site with a social element that allows users to get advice from people they trust, not from anonymous strangers on the internet. Now, Gogobot has a new iPhone travel app that integrates with a user's Facebook Timeline

"Our travels serve as bookmarks in our lives that evoke memories and feelings of friends, family and experiences. The places we go and the things we see say a lot about who we are as individuals. By integrating with Facebook's Timeline, Gogobot makes it possible to integrate the stories of your travels into the greater context of your life," said Travis Katz, CEO of Gogobot.

The new Gogobot app lets friends turn to one another for travel advice and share trip plans, photos, recommendations and personal travel guides on their Facebook Timeline. Simplifying the Timeline process, users can add their travel content to their Facebook Timeline from within Gogobot.

"Gogobot is proud to be one of the first travel companies featured in Facebook's launch: this highlights how travel has become a core social behavior and how Gogobot is leading the category,"said Katz.

Continue reading Gogobot iPhone app taps Facebook timeline

Gogobot iPhone app taps Facebook timeline originally appeared on Gadling on Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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National Geographic and AllTrails.com partner on map website

Kraig Becker — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Biking, Hiking, Learning, North America, United States, Camping, Internet Tools

National Geographic Maps and AllTrails.com have announced that they are joining forces to create a new online resource for adventure travelers and outdoor enthusiasts alike. The new venture will provide a wealth of information on hiking trails from across the United States, while mixing in elements of social networking and member generated content.

AllTrails.com already sports an impressive database of more than 40,000 trails and a membership that tops more than 200,000 users. Those members rate the trails on a scale of one to five stars, while also sharing their personal experiences and tips from their favorite routes as well. The site includes detailed information on the hikes, such as overall length of the trail, change in elevation, allowed activities (hiking, mountain biking, etc.) and a measure of how potentially crowded it could be. In short, it's a one-stop shop for anyone looking for new hikes in their area or for suggestions for other places to trek throughout the country.

Visitors to AllTrails.com are encouraged to create a member profile, or simply sign-in using their Facebook account, and contribute to the growing community of hikers, backpackers, and other outdoor enthusiasts there. The site automatically recommends trails close to home, and allows users to save routes to your "favorites" lists, while also making it incredibly easy to share those same hikes with others. The site also includes a reputation system that allows members to follow other users whose interests match theirs, while also building a following of their own.

In the weeks ahead, AllTrails will expand their site and introduce a new premium service that will offer exclusive online access to National Geographic's iconic line of maps, including their Trails Illustrated and Topo! Series. These maps are incredibly detailed and are a fantastic resource for hikers and backpackers everywhere. Perhaps best of all however, is the fact that this deal extends to the AllTrails mobile app, granting access to those Nat Geo maps while on the go as well.

There is no word yet on how much the new premium service will cost, or when it will officially launch, but it is likely to be a popular one with outdoor enthusiasts. Nat Geo's topographic data is second to none, and having access to it in a digital format will certainly be a major feather in the cap for the AllTrails website.

National Geographic and AllTrails.com partner on map website originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 18 Jan 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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More Istanbul shopping and dining secrets from Daily Secret

Meg Nesterov — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Blogs, Asia, Europe, Turkey, Internet Tools, Luxury Travel

Last week, Gadling included Istanbul in our picks for 2012 luxury travel, and introduced you to Daily Secret, a web-based "guide service" offering insider intel to 12 cities, including Istanbul. We got so many more great Istanbul secrets from editor Laura Wells (many with special discounts and exclusive access), we're posting them for Gadling readers to add to their itineraries. Happy shopping (and tasting)!

Local designer fashion: To buy designer clothing for men & women from multiple up-and-coming Turkish designers, this is a really cool, brand-new co-op: Fashion Tunnel in Galata

Turkish wine: Turkey has amazing wine, but it's difficult to export as it's heavily taxed. To try the best Turkish wines (even local sour cherry wine wine, which is delicious) and get ideas for what to buy at duty free, check out Rouge in Taksim. They have free tasting every Saturday, but you can try anything by the glass in the restaurant above, which also serves amazing rare Turkish cheeses and cure meats.

Waterside dining: For a gourmet, organic meal that few know about with a view of the Bosphorus, head to Fark-et-mez in Sariyer. The chef & sous-chef are both Turkish, and Daily Secret members get 15% off their meal. They also have live jazz on certain nights.

Continue reading More Istanbul shopping and dining secrets from Daily Secret

More Istanbul shopping and dining secrets from Daily Secret originally appeared on Gadling on Sat, 14 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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10 hidden travel expenses backpackers often overlook

Jessica Festa — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Festivals and Events, Food and Drink, Hotels and Accommodations, Budget Travel, Internet Tools

When planning for a backpacking trip, most people try to create a budget of how much they think they are going to spend. While the flight, accommodations, and daily meals are often factored in, there are still many others expenses that still need to be covered. Here is a list of some of the expenses I've encountered in my travels that can add extra dollars to your budget.

Laundry

When backpacking, I've tried to get around doing laundry by doing things like:

Bringing a small bottle of detergent and creating my own human-powered washing machine by using a giant Ziplock bag, adding water, and shaking
Using shampoo and hand soap to wash my clothes in the sink and then hanging them all over the room
Trying to forgo washing my clothes as long as I could

Unfortunately, these options never ended up working out perfectly, as they were messy (that detergent bottle always ends up breaking open in my backpack, without fail), inefficient (the clothes are always wrinkled and damp when I put them back into my pack, no matter how long they hang up), somewhat inconsiderate (I'm sure there were people who didn't like having my dirty socks next to their heads while they slept), and dirty (obviously, not washing your clothes when backpacking doesn't smell great). The point is, you're probably going to end up having to go to a laundromat and wash your clothes, or at least pay someone to wash them for you. And, a side note, the laundromat dryers usually take a long time to dry your clothes, so you'll have to put in a little extra change. Make sure to set aside some cash on your trip for washing, drying, and detergent.

Continue reading 10 hidden travel expenses backpackers often overlook

10 hidden travel expenses backpackers often overlook originally appeared on Gadling on Fri, 13 Jan 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Build your own adventure with the Africa Safari Planner

Kraig Becker — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Africa, Botswana, Kenya, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Australia, Hotels and Accommodations, Ecotourism, Internet Tools, Luxury Travel

The Africa Safari Planner, a newly launched website from adventure travel company Natural Habit Adventures, gives travelers the ability to create their own custom trips to the African bush. The site, which launched earlier this week, provides options to visit nine different countries, and stay in over 300 unique camps, while encountering some of the most spectacular wildlife on the planet.

The process begins by selecting which months you would prefer to travel in, and indicating the number of people in your group. From there, you'll be presented with options for travel in both Eastern and Southern Africa, in such countries as Kenya, Tanzania, Botswana, and Namibia. After selecting a starting destination, travelers are then given the choice of several single and multi-country routes for their African adventure, which then prompts the site to suggest possible camps to stay in for each day of the journey. Those camps are broken down into categories based on price, giving the customer the ability to budget accordingly.

That said, there isn't much that is "budget" about these tours. They definitely fall into the upscale category, and travelers on these custom safaris aren't exactly roughing it. No matter which camps they choose to visit, they'll have their own comfortable rooms, complete with large beds and private showers. They'll also enjoy gourmet meals in spacious dining rooms and access to a host of other amenities while at the lodge. Of course, you don't go to Africa to hang out at the lodge, and each of the camps offers unique options for viewing the wildlife as well.

If you're looking for a truly once-in-a-lifetime journey, and don't mind paying for it, then this is an excellent tool for creating your own custom safari itinerary. There are less expensive alternatives for booking a trip to Africa, but few offer this kind of flexibility and options for travelers.

Build your own adventure with the Africa Safari Planner originally appeared on Gadling on Fri, 13 Jan 2012 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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10 Etsy shops from around the world

Elizabeth Seward — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Arts and Culture, Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania, South America, Kenya, India, Japan, Singapore, Ireland, Switzerland, United States, New Zealand, Argentina, Internet Tools, Caribbean

With all of the Etsy shops out there, how are you supposed to know which shops to peruse and potentially support? While it's a good thing to be supporting independent, local, self-made, all-natural, and/or struggling artists, it's a difficult thing to know where to start. So here's some advice, fellow travelers of the world: start with the Etsy shops that bring different regions of the world to your shopping window. Start with the Etsy shops that can transport you into another culture with a single browsing. Start with the Etsy shops that allow you to bring home goods with a flare from your favorite places if you can't always be getting on a plane to travel to those places and bring home the goods yourself. Need some inspiration? Here's a list of 10 Etsy shops from around the world, 10 personal favorites. This should help get you started.

Continue reading 10 Etsy shops from around the world

10 Etsy shops from around the world originally appeared on Gadling on Thu, 12 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Major hotel brands band together to launch RoomKey.com

Melanie Renzulli — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 11:30:00 EST

Filed under: North America, United States, Hotels and Accommodations, Internet Tools

What do you get when six of the world's leading hotel brands come together? You get RoomKey.com, a new hotel search engine that launched on Wednesday.

Choice Hotels International, InterContinental Hotels Group, Hilton Worldwide, Hyatt Hotels Corporation, Marriott International, and Wyndham Hotel Group form the group of six that created RoomKey.com, a simple search tool that allows travelers to search for hotels by date and location, then delivers results that can be sorted by price, distance, hotel name, and star rating. Room Key users can toggle search results to view them on a grid, in a list, or on a map.

At first glance, Room Key's format appears to be modeled on Google Hotel Finder, the hotel search engine that Google unveiled last summer. Like Hotel Finder, Room Key results link to the hotels' websites rather than a third-party booking site, thereby ensuring "a personalized and welcoming experience that offers flexibility, accuracy, and benefits of booking with the hotel companies' proprietary sites," according to Shafiq Khan, senior vice president of ecommerce, Marriott International. Choice Hotels International's Senior Vice President of Global Distribution Robert McDowell added, "We at Choice are thrilled to be a part of Room Key alongside these five other global hotel companies. In the face of a staggering number of online booking options, our goal is to make the experience of finding the right hotel as personal and enjoyable as the experience of staying in one."

Room Key's beta launch includes only U.S. hotels, but that should change in a future iteration of the site given the vast inventory of properties available under Room Key's six partners. Also look for the site to expand with more user reviews, comparison tools, and social sharing of travel plans.

Major hotel brands band together to launch RoomKey.com originally appeared on Gadling on Thu, 12 Jan 2012 11:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Four Seasons relaunches hotel websites in $15 million brand initiative

McLean Robbins — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Hotels and Accommodations, Internet Tools, News, Luxury Travel

Four Seasons has today launched the latest upgrades to their brands hotel websites, a $15 million corporate initiative that places a greater emphasis on images, social media, special offers and destination "experiences".

Looking almost Tumblr-esque in layout, the sites use real-time social media data from Facebook, Twitter and TripAdvisor to show reviews from visitors, both positive and negative.

Such a bold move could be risky for hotels, but, as we've noted before, Four Seasons as a brand excels at social media,training hotels and staffers in how to respond properly to individual messages.

Hotel expert Barb De Lollis of USA Today quoted the brand's marketing chief Susan Helstab, who said that "there's no room for smoke and mirrors in today's socially networked world." She cited a brand survey saying that 33% of guests rely heavily on TripAdvisor when making booking decisions, but that one person's "bad" may be another person's value-add.

"If you find that not every experience is equally positive, you will understand the framework for that experience. Maybe it was from a traveler who wasn't quite like you," she says. "Maybe you want an active kids' pool with lots of amenities (unlike the writer of a particular review that complains about the pool scene)."

We're happy to see the new website playing up the destination as much as the property - lush, vivid photos and an extensive "Destination" and "Highlights" page play up what there is to do in the area. Meetings and Weddings, while extensively built out, take a back seat in the main navigation for tiny, top-level tabs, indicating that this is a site that is speaking to the leisure consumer rather than the corporate one that forms much of the brand's base. UGC content from sites like Flickr also gives a more personal touch, and fully-functioning mobile sites allow on-the-go travelers to book.

While there are still a few kinks to work out (not all room types load with images and we caught a few typos) the site looks impressive and modern, more like what we'd expect from a boutique chain rather than a big brand with 86 hotels under their belt.

We're excited to see if other hotels follow suit.

Four Seasons relaunches hotel websites in $15 million brand initiative originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 11 Jan 2012 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Travel contest season is in full swing

Chris Owen — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Europe, North America, United States, Hotels and Accommodations, Airlines, Internet Tools, Travel Deals, Cruises, Luxury Travel

January brings cold weather, post-holiday blues, dreams of travel and travel contest season every year. With few exceptions, sellers of travel roll out some of their best promotions during this time too. Aimed to make those dreams reality and have us focus on whatever travel product they are selling, travel companies want to bring our attention to their options over another.

Amble Resorts' Life-Changing Travel Contest has travelers looking at their new travel blog, The Ambler, for a chance to win a free flight anywhere in the world. Launched in mid-December, the contest is quickly gaining momentum as globetrotters from around the world share their most life-changing travel moments in the hopes of fulfilling resolutions to travel in 2012.

This contest asks visitors to reflect on their own life-changing travel experiences and draw inspiration from the stories of others, encouraging people to broaden their travel horizons and explore the world in 2012. The contest will reward one commenter with a trip to the destination of their dreams, in the form of a $1,500 travel voucher (OK, maybe not anywhere in the world) on the airline of the winner's choice, valid any time in 2012.

Continue reading Travel contest season is in full swing

Travel contest season is in full swing originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 11 Jan 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Browse historic photos of San Francisco with Old S.F.

Jeremy Kressmann — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 10:30:00 EST

Filed under: Photos, North America, United States, Internet Tools

A photographer could spend weeks wandering around San Francisco - between the city's dramatic natural setting, bright murals and colorful rows of Victorian homes, there's a lot to see (and shoot).

As Gadling blogger Jessica pointed out recently, it's also a city rich with history. In fact, photographers have been documenting this City by the Bay ever since the very first days the camera was invented. Now a website called Old S.F. lets you blend these two pursuits, displaying the city's pleasing photography and rich history via an interactive map.

The story behind Old S.F. begins when resident Dan Vanderkam was looking at historic photos at the San Francisco Historical Photograph Collection and came upon an image of his block that was identified with the wrong cross streets. The inaccuracy inspired him to start a searchable database, layered onto a Google Map of San Francisco to help others find them more easily. The rest, as they like to say, is history.

To start using Old S.F., just pull the sliders along the top to adjust the date the photos were taken (starting at 1850 and ending at 2000) and then click on one of the red dots to see images from that location. It's a fascinating journey through some of San Francisco's most famous (as well as its most intimate) landmarks - witness the chaos and destruction that followed the 1906 earthquake, or watch the elegant Golden Gate Bridge as its construction slowly creeps across the Bay. It's your own personal time machine to San Francisco - and you're holding the controls.

[Photo courtesy of army.arch]

Browse historic photos of San Francisco with Old S.F. originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 11 Jan 2012 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hipmunk launches mobile hotels app

McLean Robbins — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Hotels and Accommodations, Internet Tools

Jumping on the mobile hotel bandwagon today is Hipmunk, known already in the travel world for its flight planning website.

Just like the flight tool sorts by level of "agony" involved in each flight (based on cost, flight time, number of connections, ect.) the hotels tool uses a heat map based on current location and overlays it with data showing price points and proximity to areas like shopping, dining and nightlife. Pretty nifty, hmm?

The tool lets you compare up to three hotels at a time and allows you to book reservations directly through the hotel or via third party provider like Orbitz. If you'd prefer to complete the transaction on a laptop, the app lets you paste a code into your computer that will keep your data and search history ready for you.

VentureBeat spoke positively about the app, calling the user experience "a great one," but correctly pointed out that, like its flight app, much of the data is dependent on third party aggregators instead of one-to-one partnerships.

The app is available on iPhone, iPad and Android.

Hipmunk launches mobile hotels app originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 10 Jan 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PUBLIC Hotel in Chicago plans $1 sale

McLean Robbins — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Hotels and Accommodations, Internet Tools, Travel Deals, Luxury Travel

Ian Schrager may already be the hotel world's darling, but he's going to capture even more fans when his hotel, PUBLIC Chicago, launches their $1 sale soon. We've seen a few of these before for special promotions, and they're usually hellishly hard to score. That won't stop us from trying, however.

Here's how to snag a deal on this one:

For a 90-day period commencing on a secret date soon to be announced, PUBLIC will offer three special guest rooms per night, each with a rate of only $1.
Participants must sign up to receive a priority email detailing when the sale goes live
Once the sale goes live, participants will have 48 hours to book a room at the $1.00 rate - first come, first served.

PUBLIC's One Dollar Sale will be announced through social media, email, PUBLIC Chicago's website, and the hotel's partners.

"PUBLIC is a brand that stands for outstanding value - not to mention sophisticated, authentic style and spot-on service. We thought this would be a really fun thing to offer our guests to expose them to how special the hotel is," said Schrager.

Of course, we'll let you know when we see the deal live - be sure to let us know if you scored a room!

PUBLIC Hotel in Chicago plans $1 sale originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 10 Jan 2012 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Oh Ranger! ParkFinder guides you to public parkland

Jeremy Kressmann — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Biking, Climbing, Arts and Culture, Hiking, History, Camping, Internet Tools

I often forget the amazing wealth of national parks, hiking trails and historic sites within easy access of my home. For instance, did you know there's 260 sites within 100 miles of Brooklyn, NY? In fact, iPhone users can now find out for themselves just how many great outdoor sites are near their hometown using a great smartphone app called Oh Ranger! ParkFinder.

The American Park Network, a publishing company that creates visitor guides for national parks, is behind Oh Ranger, a searchable database of outdoor activities ranging from cycling to historical sites to camping to bird watching. In addition to their free web database, they've released Oh Ranger! ParkFinder for iPhone and iPad Touch, a fantastically useful mobile extension that makes it easy to track down your favorite activity at a park near you. Once you've downloaded the app, you can easily search for parks based on favorite activities, search for a specific park, or use your iPhone's location to find sites nearby.

Whether you're a die-hard outdoor lover or simply looking for some great weekend or daytrip getaways, Oh Ranger! Parkfinder is a nifty, convenient way to find it. You give it a try for free by downloading from the iTunes app store. Although there's not yet an Android version of the app, the Oh Ranger website utilizes the same park database.

Oh Ranger! ParkFinder guides you to public parkland originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 09 Jan 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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