IT LOOKS LIKE Los Cabos will soon be getting the
royal treatment; the Royal Hideaway treatment, that is. Occidental
Allegro Hotel Corp. will expand the Royal Hideaway brand by opening
a second upscale, inclusive resort that will fly the Royal Hideaway
flag. Teresa Alfonso, managing director of the Royal Hideaway
Resort and Spa in Playacar, said construction of the Royal Hideaway
resort in Los Cabos is scheduled to begin next summer, with an
official opening planned for fourth-quarter 2004. The Royal resort
will be built near the Presidente Intercontinental. The rooms will
be priced at about $400 a night per person, double, compared with
the $400 a night per room, double, that the Royal Hideaway in
Playacar charges. For additional information or to make
reservations at the Royal Hideaway Resort and Spa in Playacar,
travel agents should call (800) 999-9182 or visit the Web at www.royalhideaway.com.
CUSTOMERS WHO NEED to rent a car in Mexico City
can leave the driving to a chauffeur if they choose Avis. Avis
offers chauffeur-driven rental cars at its nine locations in the
Mexican capital. Isabel Solis Preve, regional sales manager for
Avis Mexico, said the company has been offering the service for the
past two years. "This service was launched for the comfort and
safety of the customer," Preve said. Avis is the only car rental
firm that offers the service in Mexico City, she said. Prices begin
around $80 per day, which includes insurance and unlimited mileage.
Fuel and taxes are extra. Commission is 5%. The chauffeur is on an
eight-hour shift, but the rental car is available to the customer
for 24 hours. For information or reservations, call (800)
331-1084.
MEXICO CITY'S Hotel Marquis Reforma added two
meetings spaces that can accommodate a combined total of 2,400
people. The meeting spaces are part of the first phase of a
two-part, multimillion-dollar renovation that will include a new
business center and a spa and fitness center scheduled for
completion next year. According to a hotel spokesperson, the new
meetings rooms triple the hotel's meetings space. In addition, the
hotel upgraded its existing meetings facilities and added amenities
that include dataports to its rooms. The new spa, which is
scheduled for completion in early 2003, will complete the first
phase of the expansion. The second phase of the expansion will
include the business center and an upgrade of rooms. For
information or reservations, call (800) 235-2387 or visit www.marquisreformahl.com.mx.
PLEASANT HOLIDAYS added six resorts to its
Mexico product line for 2003. The properties are highlighted in a
52-page brochure the company said has been made more user-friendly
for travel agents. The additional resorts bring to 109 the number
of properties in the firm's Mexico line. New for next year are the
Occidental Grand Flamenco Xcaret, Cancun; JW Marriott, Cancun; Club
Hotel Riu Jalisco, Puerto Vallarta; Marriott Casa Magna, Cancun and
Puerto Vallarta; Occidental Grand Cozumel; and Occidental Grand
Nuevo Vallarta. Also new for next year are four-night,
air-inclusive packages to all destinations except Cancun and
Cozumel, which offer six-night packages, and the largest selection
of airlines the company has ever offered, including Aeromexico,
Alaska, American Trans Air, Delta, Mexicana and US Airways. At the
449-room JW Marriott Cancun, a four-night, land-only package costs
$764 per person, double, including airport transfers, taxes and
surcharges. For information or reservations, call (800) 448-3333 or
visit www.pleasantagent.com.
US AIRWAYS VACATIONS is offering up to 25% off
its regular rates under its Sunshine Savings Sale to Mexico and the
Caribbean. The promotion is in effect for air-inclusive bookings
through Dec. 2 for travel from Dec. 13 through April 15. The
operator's participating Mexico destination is Cancun, where prices
begin at $477 per person, double, for three nights at the Imperial
Las Perlas. Packages include roundtrip air fare on US Airways,
hotel, airport transfers, hotel taxes and service charges. For
information or reservations, call (800) 455-0123; bookings also can
be made through VAX Vacation Access or via the major GDSs.
THE FOUR SEASONS RESORT Punta Mita launched two
pre-holiday packages. Through Dec. 20, the Gateway to Heaven
Package features a complimentary fourth night stay, a $150 resort
credit and free use of the Kids for All Seasons program. Rates
start at $590 a night, double. The resort also designed a package
for golfers who want to come to Puerto Vallarta for golf's World
Cup, Dec. 10 to 15. Offered those same days, the World Cup Golf
Package has a three-night minimum-stay requirement and includes one
round of golf per person daily at the Vista Vallarta Golf Course,
with transportation, unlimited practice range privileges and golf
clinics, daily breakfast for two people and room attendant
gratuities. Rates start at $306 a night, double. For additional
information or to make reservations, call (800) 332-3442.