bargain

Maui Four Seasons Announces Special Rates

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Spas

The Four Seasons on Maui at Wailea is consistently rated as one of the top hotels on earth, and so as you'd expect, this newly renovated property, owned by Michael Dell, isn't meant to be a bargain: its 1,400 square foot stunning ocean-view suites run $2,495 a night. (The sunrise as seen from one those rooms pictured here.)

But the hotel has always been notable for the extras it provides, whether you're in a standard room or a suite. There are no nickle n' dime charges for poolside cabanas, for instance, nor for the sunglasses-cleaning service provided by attentive poolside staff. Also included: yoga, snorkeling, intro to scuba diving classes, and even an outrigger canoe excursion, in which you learn how to row in a traditional canoe, while learning canoeing commands in Hawaiian. What's more, the hotel has no plans to roll back (or start to charge for) these extras given the tough economy.

Still, the Four Seasons Maui is a bit more of a bargain now, as the hotel has just announced a new $395/night entry level rate, for its mountainside rooms, as well as a book four nights, get the fifth night free special. Personally, I'd use the savings to book a spa treatment at the property's hale hau, a traditional Hawaiian thatched roof hut. It's perfectly private, but situated right on the ocean, so you can hear the waves crashing while you're getting massaged, wrapped or facial-ed. A 110-minute massage costs $340 at the hale hau, couples get massaged together for $660.

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Tags: bargain, bargains, canoe, hawaii, hotel, spa

Wine Bargains At Auctions?

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Wine, Auctions

Don't turn to Trader Joe's for a bottle of Two-Buck Chuck if you're looking for a good price on wine. The Wall Street Journal (subscription) reports that more and more wine lovers are heading to auction houses like Christie's to shop - not for the ultra-expensive or rare bottles of wine, but for bargains. Many lots of good, ready-to-drink wines, perhaps "from overzealous collectors, who bought more than they [could] drink," sell for well under $100 per bottle.

When people consign their collections to the auction block, they almost always have several lower-ticket items in addition to the really expensive bottles of Chateau Petrus that the auction houses take one either because they must, or because they're hoping to attract new bidders. Whatever their reason for offering the wines, the budget bottles are a boon to wine fans who find cases of their favorite vintages for less than retail. The self-described "bottom feeders" say that it just takes a little research on the catalogue listings to sniff out the best deals, but to come home with some good wines at even better prices, it is worth the effort.

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Tags: auction, auctions, bargain, cases, christies, deals, petrus, sothebys, wine, wine auction, wines