Wednesday, 13 January 2010

Win over your Tweet-heart this Valentine's

Here's some good advice from Gadling.com for all you die-hard romantics out there. Get Tweeting and you might be able to impress your, er, tweet-heart...

'You may not be able to say how you feel in 140 characters or less, but you sure can get leads on the best Valentine's Day experience that way. So, instead of tweeting a feeling, use the white-hot social media platform to grab the top travel specials for the most romantic day of the year. Several resorts are running Twitter-only Valentine's Day specials this year, so follow the right people, and you'll be able to wow your better half this year.'

And they come up with a perfect example right here in sunny old Florida...

'ONE Bal Harbour, a five-star luxury property in Florida, is offering a savings of up to $800 a night through its "Tweeterhearts" package. Follow @BalHarbourFL and look for the package that has a room rate of only $1,335 a night for three nights, champagne in your room upon arrival, a couples spa treatment in a private beachside cabana and a romantic dinner for two at 1 Bleu.'

Sounds like a good deal. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter, we're @annamariavac (you'll find us under a search for Anna Maria). There is also a link on our website at www.annamaria.com as well as loads of other cool stuff.

Friday, 18 December 2009

99 cent Christmas present

Got a dollar to spare? fancy a flight to Phoenix? Well, this might be your lucky day!

Allegiant Air hopes to alleviate some of the holiday pocketbook strain by offering a special fare of only 99 cents - good for two one-way flights this Saturday from Florida to Phoenix.

"We needed to move an aircraft from Florida to Phoenix to accommodate seasonal demand changes, so we thought this would be a great way to offer travelers an unbeatable holiday travel opportunity," said Robert Ashcroft, vice president of planning for Allegiant Air.

The travels from Orlando-Sanford International Airport on Saturday to Springfield-Branson, Missouri and will connect to Phoenix for another $0.99. The low fares only apply to those two flights only and other fees still apply. Visit www.allegiantair.com for more information.

Looks like Santa works for Allegiant Air...

Friday, 27 November 2009

Thanks for small mercies

Even the Brits are picking up on the slightly slower traffic we all experienced over Thanksgiving. This article in the Daily Telegraph claims travel was down a third this year as the effects of the economic downturn continue to be felt.

The number of people traveling for Thanksgiving in America has fallen by more than a third since four years ago with the downturn in the economy blamed for the stay-at-home trend.

In 2005, around 58 million people made journeys to see family or friends for the holiday but this year the figure is expected to be 38 million, according to research by AAA. The number of people taking flights has fallen by 6.7 per cent since last year as those that do travel opt for the cheaper option of going by train or car.

Amtrak said it expected the day before Thanksgiving to be its busiest of the year with around 125,000 passengers. On an average Wednesday it carries 74,000 passengers. Most people have decided that car travel makes the most financial sense and about 33 million are expected to drive.

Thanksgiving journeys fell by 25 per cent between 2007 and 2008 and there is not likely to be a reverse of that trend this year, AAA said.

Well, actually it still seemed pretty busy here on Anna Maria Island. Perhaps we should count ourselves lucky...

Visit www.annamaria.com for the very best in vacation rentals on this paradise island

Friday, 20 November 2009

Work, work, work on Anna Maria Island

Just in case you were wondering what those orange barricades, barrels and road-construction signs were doing cluttering up the roads on Anna Maria Island and nearby Longboat Key, get used to them, they’re going to be around for a while.

According to the Bradenton Herald, the Florida Department of Transportation has planned almost two dozen projects spread out over 18 months, possibly the heaviest construction schedule the islands have ever seen.

Some residents who attended the open house meeting where the work was unveiled opposed plans to build a sidewalk along a portion of North Bay Boulevard in Anna Maria. They question whether the $48,416 project, funded entirely by federal economic stimulus money, is justified.

Other projects include rehabilitating bridges on Crescent Avenue and North Bay Boulevard in Anna Maria; resurfacing parts of Pine Avenue and Gulf Drive in Anna Maria; installing sidewalks along Gulf Front Park; and upgrading the traffic signal at East Bay Drive and Gulf Drive.

I'm sure it will all look lovely when it's all done, but, well, y'know, it's a shame they can just swoop in at night and then disappear by daybreak.

Come to Anna Maria Island and stay with us at www.annamaria.com for the very best in vacation rental property this side of heaven

Friday, 9 October 2009

Join Mickey's club

If you're Canadian, you can give a little, get a lot – of Mickey Mouse.

The new "Give a Day, Get a Disney Day" promotion from Disney Parks offers a free one-day admission to Walt Disney World Resort in Florida or Disneyland in California in return for one day of volunteering, reports thestar.com

Through Volunteer Canada, you can sign up for work at volunteer centres and more than 160,000 non-profit agencies.

Many of the projects are family-friendly, and the only stipulation for "Give a Day, Get a Disney Day" says helpers must be at least six years old. The program starts Jan. 1 and a list of available volunteer projects can be found at www.disneyparks.ca. You must pre-register and ticket quantities are limited. Disney is looking for 1 million volunteers for this promotion.

So get out there and get volunteering.

Monday, 14 September 2009

Disney spending Fantasy money

This from the Associated Press wires...
Disney executives have announced the largest expansion in the history of Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom in central Florida. The new development will nearly double the size of Fantasyland and include a new ride based on the Little Mermaid movie.
Disney will be hoping that analysts who predict it will re-ignite travel to Orlando, which has lagged in the global recession, have got it right. Disney's parks contribute about a third of the giant entertainment company's entire revenue - so it's a fair bet that they see any money spent on this development will be worth it.
The Fantasyland overhaul will be complete by 2013. Disney declined to say how much it will spend on the projects.
Information from: Orlando Sentinel, http://www.orlandosentinel.com

Thursday, 20 August 2009

Fewer planes, fewer seats

Here is something to consider if you are thinking of traveling by air between now and December this year. According to Rob Lovitt, writing on CSNBC.com, there will be approximately 307 million seats available on U.S. airlines during the period, a drop of 3.6 percent from the year before. He writes: 'Although smaller than the cut between 2007 and 2008 (8.1 per cent), the cumulative effect is still substantial'.
The states get more telling: only two of the 10 largest U.S. carriers increased their fourth-quarter capacity over the last two years, and the other eight all posted significant drops, with American (down 12.5 per cent), United (down 14.2 per cent) and Frontier (down 16.2 per cent) leading the plunge.
Rob continues: 'The impact on airports has been equally severe. All 67 of the FAA’s “Large” and “Medium” hubs, says ATA, have lost some scheduled service over the last two years. Based on scheduled departures, the hardest hit have been Cincinnati/North Kentucky (down 41.6 percent), Ontario (down 36.3) and Oakland (down 34.2 percent). Other painful cuts include Orlando (25.9 percent), LAX (17.2 percent), O’Hare (9.6 percent) and DFW (5.3 percent).
For passengers, of course, the contraction means fewer choices and less flexibility, but it’s seen by industry analysts as the only viable response to the recession and years of billion-dollar losses. “By the end of the year, capacity will probably be down 12 percent,” says Mike Boyd of Boyd Group International. “The airlines have finally begun to cut capacity faster than the recession has been killing demand.”
The upshot is fewer seats on fewer flights, which is fine if you don't mind a crowded plane, but could lead to some more travel-related headaches before you have even left the ground.


There really is only one company to trust with your Anna Maria Island vacation, and only one website you need to visit. Click on www.annamarianetwork.com for the very best in vacation rentals on the island. From two-bed cottages, to huge homes for the whole family, waterside, gulf front, secluded, we have it all.