Google Map View of Emirates Airbus A380

Google Maps has teamed up with Emirates Airlines to showcase their new Airbus A380-800.  This is an awesome and interactive way to check out the inside of this ultra luxury jumbo jet. 

You can check it out here: https://www.google.com/maps?cbp=13,31.03,,0,20.8&layer=c&panoid=XxG0IKbwvOAAAAQIt3wkPw&cbll=25.242656,55.371904&dg=opt&ie=UTF8&t=m&source=embed&ll=25.242656,55.371904&spn=0.154648,0.303497&z=12

Photo of the Week: Vilnius, Lithuania

The photo of the week this week is from Vilnius, Lithuania.  Lithuania is the southern most of the Baltic states and its location and history certainly give it more of an eastern European vibe than Latvia and Estonia. 

Kimpton Hotels Now Offering PUBLIC Bikes

Earlier this year I was introduced to Kimpton hotels via a status match into their Inner Circle program.  I have since become a huge fan of the brand and the little touches that they add to make your stay exceptional.  You can check out my review of the Donovan House Hotel in DC for examples of how they went above and beyond.  During my Stay in washington, Kimpton offered a free bike pass for Capital Bikeshare, D.C.'s short term bike rental system.  They also gave us helmets to use which were very much appriciated as navigating a city for the first time on 2 wheels can be treacherous.  Biking is such a great way to get around, and Kimpton made it even better by including everything you need for a day of pedaling.  I was very excited to learn that Kimpton is going to make their bike program even better.  They will now have a fleet of cool retro-looking bikes available at every one of their hotels for guests to use.
More information can be found on Kimpton's site.

Photo of the Week: Riga, Latvia

Given that my last photo of the week post was in Estonia, I figured that I would keep with the Baltic theme and work my way south.  Since I missed posting last week I will include not 2 but 3 pictues from Riga, the capital of Latvia.  Riga was a very interesting city and was an interesting blend of eastern and western european archeticutre and culture.

Turkish Airlines Free Istanbul Tour

Turkish Airlines offers free tours of Istanbul for passengers connecting through Istanbul en route to other destinations.  You must have at least a 6 hour layover.  The tour is completely free including transportation, food, museum entry fees.  This seems like a great way to see a great city.  Turkish Airways has been offering some pretty attractive deals from the US in an attempt to further expand their market share. 

Details can be found here:
http://www.istanbulinhours.com/tour-schedule

Rooms in Vegas for 1$

The Excalibur hotel currently has a promotion for rooms as low as 21$ a night and include a 20$ dining credit.  Availability is pretty good and you can search by month here.  Remember that Hyatt has partnered up with MGM so this is a super cheap way to rack up Hyatt nights towards elite status.  There is a resort fee in addition to this price but word on the street is that if you complain about the slow wifi they will waive it.

Free Elite Status at Langham Hotels

Langham Hotels is offering mid-tier Voyager elite status for a limited time.  With this status you get late check out, a welcome amenity, room upgrades and more.  Here is a chart showing the benefits of Voyager status.

Plus you also get this awesome welcome package

Link: Here

Use invitation code: 453826123 

Langham is a smaller hotel chain which is more on the upscale end of the spectrum.  They currently have hotels in Boston and L.A. and are opening ones in Chicago and NYC this year.  They have a strong presence in China.  
While you may never stay at one of these hotels, having status with a hotel chain is important because you may be able to leverage it into status with other chains.  Best Western for example will match just about any other hotel chain: http://www.bestwestern.com/rewards/offers/status-match.asp.  Several other hotel chains will also do status matches.