7 affordable last minute getaways

It’s a familiar tale: you resolve to spend the holidays at home, baking pies with Auntie Wanda. And then it hits you: You’ve got to get out of town. So go! Last minute vacations need not be expensive or far from CNNGo’s six featured cities. Here are our favorite quickie destinations.

1. Escape from Mumbai: Party hard in Dubai

Ring in the New Year in Dubai.

Dubai is less than five hours from Mumbai. So why not ring in the New Year in nightlife central? Air-India Express has frequent flights; round-trip tickets are around US$100. Since competition among hotels is fierce, you can nab a three-star room for under US$100 a night. Throw down your bags, glance at Time Out Dubai’s nightlife guide and get the party started.

2. Escape from Tokyo: Conquer Mount Takao

Mount Takao, Japan.

Take a hike. A day-trip to Mount Takao is cheap and convenient. Just ride the subway to Takao Station. Tokyo college student Yukiro Dravarious reached the top after two hours of trekking (there are lifts for those who can’t make it.) He says, “The view was amazing, although it was a bit foggy so you couldn’t see Mount Fuji. On the way up there’s an ape park. We didn’t go because we were scared by the sign. On the way down, we bought a Japanese style candy with soy sauce, fried over a big fireplace. Really tasty.”

3. Escape from Tokyo: Mystical beaches of Enoshima

Enoshima, Japan.

CNNGo recommended Enoshima as a lively summer getaway. In the winter, the isle turns into a serene retreat, the calm broken only by the call of hawks over crashing waves. Bundle up, take a long walk on the beach, and make cute noises at the cats that pad around the island.

10 crazy superlatives found only in Dubai

Postage stamps. Panini stickers. Wine bottle corks. These are things that people normally collect.

Not Dubai. It collects world records.

Here’s a list of 10 in the city’s collection.

1. Largest man-made island

Viewable from space.“You know what Dubai needs? More palm trees!”

This line might well have been delivered to convince a property developer to cough up a staggering 45 billion dirhams (US$12.3 billion) to build the world’s largest man-made island in the shape of a palm tree.

The Palm Jumeirah covers 560 hectares, took 3.3 billion cubic feet of sand to build and has attracted both world-renowned hotel chains (One&Only, Fairmont, Taj) and numerous celebrities who have invested in luxury villas with a typical price tag of 6 million dirhams (US$1.6 million).

Well, if it’s good enough for David, Victoria, Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz and Harper Beckham, then …

2. Megabucks horserace

The Dubai World Cup is only months away.

10 of the best value hotels in Dubai

Dubai is not the right city for pinching pennies. It’s the city with the world’s largest mall and the first “seven-star hotel.” 

Sure, you may not have the budget for the latter’s US$100 teas or 24-hour butler service. But that doesn’t mean you have to give up on comfort, or even luxury.

Here are 10 of the best value hotels in the emirate.

Citymax, Barsha

Maybe it’s the dramatic blue lighting, but here is budget accommodation that doesn’t look like budget accommodation.
This Canadian chain popped up in Dubai around a year ago, and offers new and comfortable rooms in a great area.

 

Located opposite the Mall of the Emirates (the mall with an indoor ski slope), Citymax is also close to a number of good, cheap local restaurants. Try ARZ Lebanon for its creamy hummus and tasty shish taouk, Pizza Pazza, where they cook pizzas in a stone oven, and Just Falafel, which sells salad-stuffed wraps for 15 dirhams (US$4).

Rates start at 540 dirhams (US$147) for a room with single occupancy.

Holiday Inn, Deira

During your stay you’ll feel the buzz in the district and enjoy the melodic call to prayer in the distance.
Don’t book this hotel expecting glamour. A stay here means a stay in the gritty area of town, which locals refer to as “the real Dubai.”

The streets of Deira are dotted with restaurants serving dishes from around the world, souks selling herbs and spices and rows and rows of small, interesting shops.

Rates start at 543 dirhams (US$148) per standard room.

Premier Inn, Dubai International Airport             

From Dubai to Kyoto: How to see in the New Year in style

For many people, New Year’s Eve can be disappointing — there’s so much hype in the lead-up to the event that when it actually comes around, it often falls short of the mark.

Madding crowds, endless taxi lines and even longer lines to get to the bathroom — it’s no wonder so many people choose to stay at home with a good movie and a bottle of bubbles.

Howvever, certain destinations around the world offer such spectacular greetings to the new year, that you may want to seriously consider braving the throngs for a front-row seat.

Firework’s light up Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbour.

Hong Kong

Hong Kong’s harbor dazzles for most of the year, but on December 31 it really glows. This year, for the first time, the city’s midnight fireworks display will journey across town, beginning at the sea and moving along Victoria Harbour to the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai.

The best places to view the action? The Hong Kong Cultural Centre Piazza, the promenade from the Avenue of Stars to Hong Kong Cultural Centre, the promenade at Golden Bauhinia Square in Wan Chai and the area near Central Pier. Come back in February to witness the whole spectacle again as the city prepares to ring in the Chinese New Year (February 10).

Gulf hubs become travel hotspots

Under the baking hot skies of the Persian Gulf the region’s travel hubs are showing they’re not just places to change planes — they’re destinations in their own right.

The Gulf’s “Big Three” carriers — Dubai-based Emirates, Abu Dhabi’s Etihad, and Doha-based Qatar Airways — have grown dramatically over the last decade, opening new routes and competing with the biggest names in aviation.

Conveniently placed between east and west, the Gulf’s geographic location has been a major factor in these industry-reshaping developments. Anywhere in the world is one stop from the Gulf.

Add to this the investment in state-of-the-art airports and vast new plane fleets, as well as the acquisition of stakes in some of Europe’s biggest airlines which have ruptured traditional airline alliances, and it is clear why more and more commercial traffic is making a pit-stop in the region.

Watch video: ‘Gulf Three’ shake up global aviation

But the “Big Three” are keen to stress that Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Dubai are more than just strategically located landing strips in the desert. Each is a thriving commercial and cultural destination with plenty to offer travelers passing through the region.

Grab the popcorn. Paramount’s first movie-themed resort to open in Dubai

It’s time for your weekly “what incredible development is launching in Dubai now?” update.

This one will please film buffs.

Following an announcement last year, Paramount Hotels & Resorts’ first resort is now under construction in the United Arab Emirates. The entertainment company is responsible for such films as “Top Gun,” “The Godfather,” “Titanic” and the timeless classic, “Zoolander.”

Paramount Hotel & Resorts is teaming with Dubai luxury developer DAMAC Properties to create the DAMAC Towers by Paramount, which will include the 540-room Paramount Hotel & Residences, in Dubai’s downtown Burj Khalifa area.

With a US$1 billion price tag, DAMAC Towers by Paramount is set for completion at the end of 2015, DAMAC said in a statement.

Judging by the flashy design, the property will be a perfect fit for the city.

Made up of four 250-meter-tall towers, the resort will feature both residences and a separate hotel.

Ultimate Dubai stopover guide

Dubai International Airport is among the world’s busiest.

With more than 55 million passengers a year either arriving or passing through, there’s a good chance your next international flight may see you touch down in the desert.

If you’re looking to turn your transit into a 24-hour stopover, we bring you the definitive list of Dubai “must do’s” for your next power visit.

At the Top, Burj Khalifa

At the Top: A name so obvious it works. The best way to orient yourself before exploring the city is with a visit to At the Top, Burj Khalifa.

Yes, at 828 meters, it’s the world’s tallest building. Yes, the panorama is jaw dropping. And, yes, if you’re afraid of heights a visit probably isn’t a good idea.

That’s the obvious stuff.

But did you know that if you visit during Ramadan and decide to break your fast on the observation deck, you’ll have to wait three minutes longer than everyone on the ground?

The world’s largest free standing structure is so tall that Dubai’s Grand Mufti has issued a decree that those above the 80th floor must adjust their prayer times in accordance with when they can see the sun set (not when it’s scheduled on the clock).

World’s largest natural flower garden opens in Dubai

Another week, another announcement of a massive super project in Dubai.

The Middle Eastern city’s latest mega-project is the Dubai Miracle Garden.

Billing itself as the world’s largest natural flower garden, the 72,000-square-meter attraction, located in Dubailand, has more than 45 million flowers.

The name is apt, considering this mega-garden was -– like pretty much everything in Dubai –– built on desert land.

According to a report in Gulfnews.com, Miracle Gardens’ landscaper, Akar, says it wants to demonstrate “that it’s possible to green the desert through judicious re-use of waste water, through drip irrigation.”

World’s tallest hotel opens in Dubai

At Dubai’s newest hotel, an elevator ride is a journey in itself.

The JW Marriott Marquis Dubai officially opened Wednesday as the world’s tallest hotel.

Granted the official record from the Guinness Book of World Records, the 72-floor latest icon in Dubai’s skyline is made up of two towers standing 355 meters (1,164 feet) tall. Only one tower is currently open; the second is slated to open in 2014.

It’s the first of the Marquis brand of JW Marriotts — “reserved only for the most iconic properties within the Marriott International portfolio,” according to the company — to be built outside North America.

The hotel adds nine restaurants and five bars and lounges to the dining and nightlife options in the city.

Inside Dubai’s latest crazy extravagant hotel

It sounds like a chapter out of “The Arabian Nights.”

In order to take advantage of a new couples promotion at Dubai’s latest luxury hotel launch, customers have to utter a select phrase over the phone.

“By quoting ‘silence is golden’ when making a reservation, guests will receive a complimentary upgrade to a Fairmont Gold View Room, offering sweeping views of the Arabian Gulf and Marina skyline,” reads the package promotion for couples who want to “sprinkle a little gold dust” during their stay at the new Fairmont the Palm in Dubai.

Corny promotions aside, the latest Middle East luxury hotel does look like something out of an Arabian fairy tale.

DSA Architects International infused traditional Arabic touches into the design of the 381-room hotel. More than 100 mashrabiya designs (oriel windows with latticework of carved wood) are sprinkled throughout the resort, while Arabian carpets cover more than 23,680 linear meters of floor space.

The new property — which cost a reported US$330 million to build — is the only operational hotel on the “trunk” of Palm Jumeirah, the world’s largest man-made island, which is shaped like a palm tree.

The hotel is offering a number of packages for its launch. The Couples Package (“silence is

Fairmont the Palm opened in December 2012. This is the seventh Middle East hotel launch for Canadian luxury hotel operator Fairmont Hotels & Resorts.