The Space Needle gets a modern twist

THE Space Needle is the celebrated icon of #Seattle, second only to the Eiffel Tower in Paris as the most easily-identified global skyline feature. Built for the 1962 Seattle World's Fair, it continues to symbolize the leading-edge innovation and technology that the city is known for and serves as a beacon into the future.

Now one of the world's most recognizable landmarks, is unveiling a dramatically different visitor experience employing a modern twist on the ingenuity and innovation of the original 1962 World's Fair build. 

Walls, barriers – even floors – have been removed and replaced with structural glass revealing a visceral experience the visionary designers of the Space Needle could only dream of. The new, multi-level tower features the world's first, and only, revolving glass floor delivering wide-open views as guests float above Seattle.

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Take me all the way to the top!

SKY View Observatory and Columbia Center announce that their online timed-tickets go on sale Friday, June 1. 

Seattle's newly renovated, ultimate visitor experience, offers sweeping 360-degree panoramic views at 902 feet, complete with innovative, interactive technology. 

Highlighted by an immersive elevator transformation, the experience whisks guests to the tallest public observatory in the Pacific Northwest, climbing 73 stories above ground in just 70 seconds.

www.skyviewobservatory.com

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Up in the air . . .

STARTING on March 25, 2018, Air France will offer its customers non-stop service between Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and Paris-Charles de Gaulle with up to five weekly flights connecting the two cities. The route will be serviced by a Boeing 777-200 equipped with the latest generation long-haul travel cabins in Business, Premium Economy and Economy, with a capacity of 280 to 312 seats.

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Cheers to the Walla Walla Wine Train

WALLA WALLA has long been known as friendly town set in the heart of Washington's wine country, but getting there can be a challenge. The Walla Walla Wine Train by InquisiTours just made visiting a lot simpler. Travelers shouldn't have to follow in the footsteps of pioneers on the Oregon Trail, following wagon ruts for 2,000 miles. Now it's as easy as booking a tour and hopping on a train. The inclusive escorted tour showcases all Eastern Washington has to offer with stops in two of the region's unique and complimentary towns: Leavenworth and Walla Walla.

InquisiTours offers two- to four-night tours leaving Seattle and Portland. Amtrak's Empire Builder covers the first leg of the scenic journey from Seattle along the Puget Sound to the Cascade Mountains and Leavenworth with views of the water, multiple mountain ranges, and a trip through America's longest rail tunnel, the Cascade Tunnel.

Enjoy a two-night deluxe hotel stay in Leavenworth, Washington's premier mountain town. In this Bavarian-themed town, travelers can choose from a wide variety of activities, from paddle boarding, zip lines or even a visit the famous Nutcracker Museum. An organized event to a local beer garden offers guests a chance to sample some local craft beers and homemade bratwurst.

The tour journeys along the mighty Columbia River through Hanford Reach National Monument, the Columbia's last remaining stretch of wild river, into the heart of Washington Wine Country. The effects of the ice age Missoula Flood on the land combined with the mighty Columbia reveal a vast landscape that surprise even lifelong North Westerners.


While visiting many of the Columbia Valley's unique AVAs (American Viticulture Area), Red Mountain, Walla Walla Valley, and Yakima Valley guests can sample world class wines.


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London Gatwick’s only direct flights to Seattle and Denver

NORWEGIAN is continuing its transatlantic expansion by launching two new routes from London Gatwick to Seattle and Denver on sale now from £199 at www.norwegian.com/uk

More than 125,000 seats are available on Norwegian’s first route to America’s Pacific Northwest and the only route from Gatwick to Denver. With affordable fares and convenient schedules, Norwegian will give cost-conscious business and leisure travellers more affordable choices for #travel to the #USA.

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Top 7 High Tech Hotels

HotelsCombined takes a look at the ways in which the hotel industry is embracing technology. Dmitrijus Konovalovas, Country Manager, UK and Ireland HotelsCombined said: “Hotels use technology to enhance the guest experience.”

Here are their top 7 choices for technology savvy travellers.

Yotel, New York
Arriving in a Starship Enterprise-like lobby just three blocks from Times Square, guests use the touch screen check-in machines and are swiftly greeted by ‘Yobot’ - the hyper-energetic bellman who manages luggage delivery. Innovative Yobot can even store your luggage before leaving for your flight or even send it off to the airport after you check out. Guests rooms come equipped with techno walls that have built in LCD HD TV screens and the ability to stream audio, action-sensing air-conditioning, sound-proofed rooms and super strength Wi-Fi.

Blow Up Hall 5050, Poznan
Technology and art combine at the Blow Up Hall 5050, where an enormous digital art installation captures guests entering this hotel and then projects the image back in a series of stylised surveillance shots. Instead of room keys guests are handed iPhones upon check-in that use digital recognition to navigate users to the correct room and unlock the door.

W Taipei, Taipei
W Taipei is located in the hub of cosmopolitan life in the vibrant Xinyi district. It boasts state-of-the-art technology throughout and, like Blow Up Hall 5050, an alluring marriage of technology and art. While some of the suites offer video projectors for the use of guests, a wall installation containing an interactive grid of OLED lights will change based on guests movements.

Eccleston Square, London
While the exterior of Eccleston Square emanates history, technology is at the heart of this hotel and is reflected in the extensive list of techno-amenities. Rooms are equipped with touch sensitive keypads to control music and lighting, an in-room iPad which doubles as your personal concierge, shower walls that turn from clear to frosted at the touch of a button and flat screen televisions concealed within bathroom mirrors.

Abadía Retuerta LeDomaine, Spain
This 12th century abbey hotel is the first hotel in Europe to offer Google Glass – free – to guests. The spectacles frame forms a virtual screen on which you can access the internet, or in this case, check in, open your hotel room or even order room service with a flick of the eye.

Hotel 1000, Seattle
Ever been ‘caught out’ by harried housekeepers? That won’t happen at Hotel 1000. Built-in infrared detectors alert staff as to when a room is occupied. Hotel 1000 also has a fully converged IP infrastructure that allows guests to choose their own room temperature, artwork and music.

The Peninsula Hotel, Tokyo
Perhaps unsurprisingly, gadgets abound in the Japanese entry. At The Peninsula, guests can enjoy a nail polish dryer, unlimited internet radio with over 3,000 stations, a mood lighting pad and wireless phones with Skype capability. Children may take part in a digitally-interactive Pokemon treasure hunt, brought to life by augmented reality.

hotelscombined.co.uk

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Picture Credit: 35375520@N07/27028121990 View on Down town via photopin.com

New route and attractions to see rise in UK visitors to Seattle

#SEATTLE is expected to be one of the fastest-growing US destinations for UK travellers in 2017 with a Virgin Atlantic direct non-stop daily flight scheduled for launch in March, more than eight new hotels opening before 2018, and exposure of the state of Washington through the new Twin Peaks TV series. 

In the second quarter of this year, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport saw a 10% increase in the number of passengers travelling through the airport, rising to 12 million people during that period, making it busier than London Gatwick. Overall, Seattle-Tacoma’s passenger numbers have increased for 31 consecutive months.

The city’s most recent tourism attraction is the three-acre, £16 million Pavilion at the Museum of Flight. It features the world’s only full-scale NASA Space Shuttle Trainer, Air Force One, Concorde, the B-17, B-29, and B-47 bombers.

Founded in 1965, The Museum of Flight is one of the world’s largest air and space museums. The collection includes more than 160 historically significant aircraft and spacecraft.


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Picture Credit: By Jeffery Hayes - Jeffery Hayes, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7300934

Seattle breaks Alaska cruise ship records

BREAKING all #Seattle records, almost 960,000 visitors will join 203 cruise ships this summer to sail from Seattle in Washington State to Alaska. 

The cruise industry to Alaska started in 1999 with just six sailings and has now has grown into a business valued at over £300 million with 11 premium vessels to choose from this year.

The success of the cruise industry has helped underpin the hotel and tourism expansion of Seattle and the north-west Pacific state of Washington.

Easy access with daily direct British Airways and Delta flights add further impetus to selecting Seattle as the start point of choice for Alaska cruises.

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Picture Credit: Bellevue, Seattle, WA, at night via photopin.com

More ‘looking for a road less travelled?’ - the sequal

Here’s some more from OPERA, makers of the Opera web browsers, and its list of stand-out-from-the-pack travel websites that might help you to discover some amazing, quirky and unusual travel experiences well of off the trodden track.

Adioso: If you’re one of those people without a clue about where and when to travel, this flight comparison site is a great resource. The site offers flexible travel options based on budgets and interests.

Spotted By Locals: No matter where you travel or how much research you do, as a tourist you are bound to end up at some standard “must-see” tourist attractions, unless you have a local connection. This is where this site comes in, offering curated content from locals spanning more than 50 European and American destinations. Each city has local authors who give insider tips on what to do and, more importantly, what not to do in their cities.

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Picture Credit: From Top -  Temple of Debod, Madrid, Spain by Fernando García Redondo via Wikimedia Commons;  Black Bottle restaurant, Seattle, USA by Joe Mabel via Wikimedia Commons

America’s top 10 …

AS millions of US travellers anticipate Memorial Day – May 26 – and the start of summer, Travelocity's latest booking data reveals the top 10 Memorial Day destinations of 2014, with New York City in the No. 1 spot for the third year in a row.

The top 10 Memorial Day Destinations are:

New York City

South Florida

Washington, D.C.

Los Angeles

Orlando

Chicago

Boston

San Francisco Bay Area

Seattle

Las Vegas 

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