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CNN Live Saturday
"Weekend Getaways"
Aired November 01, 2003 - 12:48 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JONATHAN KARL, CNN ANCHOR: A busy holiday travel season will be here before you know it. And choice hotels are already booking up. For the first time, the writers and editors at "Fodor's" are naming their top hotels. We're not necessarily talking about the Ritz or Waldorf here. These are quintessential "Fodor's" hotels, and our guest knows all about them.
Dave Downing is a travel columnist for Fodor's.
So, Dave, start us -- you have an interesting pick in Santa Fe, New Mexico, what's that?
DAVE DOWNING, "FODOR'S": Yes, in Santa Fe -- These are the "Fodor's" choice of the top 20 hotels in the world. What they are basicly is our 700 writers and updaters got together and decided to comb through our 50,000 hotels and come up with 20 we think represent a unique experience. These, one-of-a-kind places. As it turns out, none of the entries is a major chain hotel. That's not something we were shooting for. But they -- the writers and editors decided these are the top 20 hotels. The first one you asked about, that's the Don Gaspar Inn in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Three individual houses being operated as one hotel. Three different architectural styles. A great deal. It's 100 bucks a night. And you just get a sense of place about being Santa Fe, southwestern art, artifacts. It's just all about a sense of place.
KARL: From Santa Fe to Manhattan, where should I be stay staying in New York?
DOWNING: Manhattan, Inn at Irving Place. These are twin brown stones, beautiful from the 1830's. Full antiques not reproductions. The great thing about this, when you think of Manhattan, you think of high rises and bustle. This is on Gramercy Park. It's a quietest place in the city, but you're four blocks from the Village, three blocks from transportation. And just gives you a different view of Manhattan and you also get a key to the park.
KARL: And how much?
DOWNING: That's about 200, $225.
KARL: All right, now you have one of my favorite places the whole world coming up next, Sedona, Arizona, The Enchantment Resort. Tell us about that. DOWNING: Enchanted Resort is great. Again, this made the list because it's sense of place. In the Boynton Canyon, there is supposedly a vortex there that the ancients believed was a portal to the spirit world. All of the entire hotel is one story, two story maximum. From a half mile away, you can't even see this hotel. It seamlessly blends into the canyon. The treatments in the spa there are spectacular. They do something called a red clay wrap, where they make this wrap out of clay and you're completely covered in it. But again, it speaks to a sense of place. It kind of celebrates the place it's in.
KARL: I've never found that vortex. But it's a great place.
Now how about Laguna Beach?
DOWNING: Laguna Beach. This is an interesting choice because it's the only place on the list brand-new. This just opened this year. The city fought with them for 15 years they've been trying to build this place. Three or four different plans later this is what you get, arts and craft style spectacular architecture. Just kind of tumbles down the cliff there. It's not an imposing thing. It's very natural. And the restaurant there is top notch. It's a a very high end place. This the most expensive on our list, about $695 bucks a night.
KARL: OK, we only have about 45 seconds. Costa Rica.
DOWNING: This is for the family, this is the other extreme. This is $35 bucks a night. This is in Costa Rica, it's called the Corcovado Tent Camp and Lodge. And what it is, it's in the rainforest, and the edge of the rainforest. You have the rainforest behind you. You have the ocean in front. There are monkeys and mango in the trees above you. It's basicly like a Swiss Family Robinson escape for the whole family.
KARL: OK, all for $35 bucks a night.
DOWNING: $35 bucks a night. You can check all of them on fodors.com and check my monthly travel column and how to save for booking travel.
KARL: Excellent. Hey, we really appreciate it. Thank you very much.
DOWNING: Thank you very much, Jonathan.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired November 1, 2003 - 12:48 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JONATHAN KARL, CNN ANCHOR: A busy holiday travel season will be here before you know it. And choice hotels are already booking up. For the first time, the writers and editors at "Fodor's" are naming their top hotels. We're not necessarily talking about the Ritz or Waldorf here. These are quintessential "Fodor's" hotels, and our guest knows all about them.
Dave Downing is a travel columnist for Fodor's.
So, Dave, start us -- you have an interesting pick in Santa Fe, New Mexico, what's that?
DAVE DOWNING, "FODOR'S": Yes, in Santa Fe -- These are the "Fodor's" choice of the top 20 hotels in the world. What they are basicly is our 700 writers and updaters got together and decided to comb through our 50,000 hotels and come up with 20 we think represent a unique experience. These, one-of-a-kind places. As it turns out, none of the entries is a major chain hotel. That's not something we were shooting for. But they -- the writers and editors decided these are the top 20 hotels. The first one you asked about, that's the Don Gaspar Inn in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Three individual houses being operated as one hotel. Three different architectural styles. A great deal. It's 100 bucks a night. And you just get a sense of place about being Santa Fe, southwestern art, artifacts. It's just all about a sense of place.
KARL: From Santa Fe to Manhattan, where should I be stay staying in New York?
DOWNING: Manhattan, Inn at Irving Place. These are twin brown stones, beautiful from the 1830's. Full antiques not reproductions. The great thing about this, when you think of Manhattan, you think of high rises and bustle. This is on Gramercy Park. It's a quietest place in the city, but you're four blocks from the Village, three blocks from transportation. And just gives you a different view of Manhattan and you also get a key to the park.
KARL: And how much?
DOWNING: That's about 200, $225.
KARL: All right, now you have one of my favorite places the whole world coming up next, Sedona, Arizona, The Enchantment Resort. Tell us about that. DOWNING: Enchanted Resort is great. Again, this made the list because it's sense of place. In the Boynton Canyon, there is supposedly a vortex there that the ancients believed was a portal to the spirit world. All of the entire hotel is one story, two story maximum. From a half mile away, you can't even see this hotel. It seamlessly blends into the canyon. The treatments in the spa there are spectacular. They do something called a red clay wrap, where they make this wrap out of clay and you're completely covered in it. But again, it speaks to a sense of place. It kind of celebrates the place it's in.
KARL: I've never found that vortex. But it's a great place.
Now how about Laguna Beach?
DOWNING: Laguna Beach. This is an interesting choice because it's the only place on the list brand-new. This just opened this year. The city fought with them for 15 years they've been trying to build this place. Three or four different plans later this is what you get, arts and craft style spectacular architecture. Just kind of tumbles down the cliff there. It's not an imposing thing. It's very natural. And the restaurant there is top notch. It's a a very high end place. This the most expensive on our list, about $695 bucks a night.
KARL: OK, we only have about 45 seconds. Costa Rica.
DOWNING: This is for the family, this is the other extreme. This is $35 bucks a night. This is in Costa Rica, it's called the Corcovado Tent Camp and Lodge. And what it is, it's in the rainforest, and the edge of the rainforest. You have the rainforest behind you. You have the ocean in front. There are monkeys and mango in the trees above you. It's basicly like a Swiss Family Robinson escape for the whole family.
KARL: OK, all for $35 bucks a night.
DOWNING: $35 bucks a night. You can check all of them on fodors.com and check my monthly travel column and how to save for booking travel.
KARL: Excellent. Hey, we really appreciate it. Thank you very much.
DOWNING: Thank you very much, Jonathan.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
