Travelzoo's 'Send Me To St. Thomas' Sweepstakes

Travelzoo is running a sweepstakes to give away a grand prize to St. Thomas. The prize includes round-trip coach airfare for two from the nearest major airport to the winner's residence and five nights at the Frenchmen's Reef & Morning Star Marriott Beach Resort!  Sign up here before July 2, 2013 for your chance to win!

Hawaii Food & Wine Festival Sweepstakes

Hawaiian Airlines is giving away a pair of roundtrip coach tickets on Hawaiian Airlines from any North American gateway city to Honolulu. As part of the grand prize, you'll also get a pair of VIP Tickets to the 2013 Hawaii Food & Wine Festival event. From now until July 20, 2013, you can register here for a chance to win!  Just make sure you're free to travel to Honolulu between 9/2/13-9/10/13!

American Airlines 'A Little Extra' & 'Daydream' Sweepstakes

American Airlines and Hilton are partnering to give away an amazing grand prize to Hawaii here at their 'A Little Extra' Sweepstakes which runs until August 30. The winner will get 180,000 AAdvantage miles which may be used by the winner and his/her guest to travel to Maui. The prize also includes a six night hotel stay at the Grand Wailea, a Waldorf Astoria resort, including a couples massage, a $350 AA VacationsSM gift certificate and an Avis/Budget 7-day care rental.

Also, American Airlines is also running a 'Daydream' sweepstakes is located here and runs until July 24th. Go back daily to sign up for a chance to win one of twenty-nine prizes of 25,000 AA miles, enough for a roundtrip domestic flight!

Delta Million Miles Sweeps

Delta is running a sweepstakes to give away a grand prize of 1 million Skymiles here. Fourteen other winners will get 250,000 miles. Remember to sign up daily for your chance to win until July 16, 2013!

United MileagePlus Shopping's Sky's The Limit Sweepstakes

United MileagePlus Shopping is a portal where you can shop and earn United award miles faster for everday purchases. From now until July 28, 2013, you can simply enter here for a chance to win 1 grand prize of 25,000 United miles and 3 gift cards of $500 from Best Buy, eBags and Neiman Marcus. Nineteen other first prizes of 25,000 United miles will also be given away so sign up today for a chance to bulk up your MileagePlus account!

Virgin America Rock Your Reward Trips with Rocketmiles

Virgin America is giving away 100,000 Elevate points and a $1,000 hotel voucher here until July 15, 2013. You can choose from a selection of 9 cities as your destination including, Los Angeles, San Diego, Washington DC, Seattle, Austin, Fort Lauderdale, New York City, San Francisco and Las Vegas. So sign up today and good luck!

Radisson Turn Your World Blu Sweepstakes

Radisson is running a sweepstakes entitled 'Turn Your World Blu' here which requires you to fill out some information, complete some survey questions and answer the essay question “Which destination have you always dreamed of visiting and why” (in 250 to 1200 characters if in English) before August 15, 2013. For more details, see the sweepstakes terms and conditions here. The grand prize winner will receive 30 one-night stays at any Radisson Blu hotel worldwide which need to be redeemed within 1 year of prize award date. In addition, the winner will take home 360,000 miles in Lufthansa's Miles and More program which must be redeemed for a pair of round-the-world award tickets. This sounds like a great giveaway if you're dreaming of a free trip around the world! Good luck to everyone!

Surreal Mono Lake Landscapes

East of Yosemite N.P. and not far from the town of Lee Vining is the singular Mono Lake. Not commonly will you find a place with such fascinating formations and I'd say this is a definitely must for any bucket list (especially if you'll be passing by Lake Tahoe and Yosemite anyway).

The Grandeur of Yosemite N.P.

Yosemite National Park certainly stands out as one of the preeminent national parks in the United States. With gushing waterfalls, spectacular valleys and mountains and an abundance of wildlife, we were particularly excited to be visiting at a time when the waterfalls were in full bloom as evidenced even at a creek near Lake Tahoe. In fact, we were exceptionally lucky to have chosen that weekend to travel as Tioga pass highway had just opened for the season the day before. Here, we are entering the Yosemite area heading westward from the east entrance.

Aston Lakeland Village Lake Tahoe

The Aston Lakeland Village is located very centrally in the South Lake Tahoe area. They offer a variety of lodging options from lodges to lakefront town homes. The complex has a very communal feel with the buildings grouped fairly close together while the trees make you feel right at home with nature.

Best Western Loyalty Millionaire Sweepstakes

To celebrate their 25th anniversary, Best Western is minting 10 new loyalty millionaires here! From now until July 14, 2013, you can enter once weekly for drawings held on every Tuesday. Two winners will be selected each week to win 1 million Best Western Rewards points each! So good luck to everyone!

A Tale of Three Lakes - Tahoe, Fallen Leaf & Lily

Spring is a gorgeous time of year and its readily apparent in the beauty of the Lake Tahoe and Yosemite area. I had a chance to visit during mid-May this year just when the snow was melting and the waterfalls overflowing in an abundance of water. Lake Tahoe had a gorgeous emerald color and the town was transitioning for the summer season.

Qantas Win a trip to Australia Sweepstakes

Qantas and American Airlines are running a sweepstakes to give away two round-trip flights to Sydney, Australia here. In addition, the winner will also receive five nights accommodation at Accor's Sofitel Sydney Wentworth and a $1,000 gift card from a vendor of the sponsor's choice. Your entry must be received by June 24, 2013 and the drawing will be head around July 8, 2013. Good luck!

Fairmont Win Your Original Summer Contest Sweepstakes

Fairmont Hotels is running a two phase 'Win Your Original Summer' Contest with up to 150,000 Aeroplan/United miles and three nights at any Fairmont hotel at stake! The first phase takes place now until August 15, 2013 and is considered the Sweepstakes and Instant Win phase. During this period, just play their matching game daily for a chance to win one of eleven 10,000 mile prizes (United miles for US residents and Aeroplan miles for Canadians). You'll also be entered for a grand prize drawing worth the previously mentioned 150,000 Aeroplan/United miles (again depending on residency) and 3 nights at a Fairmont hotel.

Phase two of the contest takes place between begins August 19, 2013 and ends Nov 8, 2013. This phase consists of a photo submission period (Aug 19 - Oct 11), a judging period (Oct 12 - Oct 21) and a voting period (Oct 22 - Nov 8). For your chance to win, submit a photo that follows their 'Share Your Fairmont Summer Story' theme following their guidelines to win one of eight weekly 10,000 mile prizes or the grand prize of 100,000 miles and a $500 Fairmont gift card.

For more details, go here and sign up today for your chance to win!

Hilton's Great Getaway Giveaway Sweepstakes

Hilton HHonors just started another sweepstakes here with 4 trips to be given away. The actual prize, however, is decided by the participants. Each phase consists of 4 potential trip destinations, of which the most popular selection will be given away as the prize for that period.  All of the prizes consist of coach airfare for two, 5 nights accommodations and $500 Hilton gift card. See the official rules for more details on the rest of the prize packages as they vary slightly.

The potential places to pick from are as follows:

Phase 1 - Relaxation (now until June 21, 2013)

Hawaii Big Island

Puerto Rico

Florida

Thailand

Phase 2 - Adventure (June 24 until July 7, 2013)

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

Whistler, BC

San Jose, Costa Rica

Orlando, Florida

Phase 3 - Culture (July 8 until July 21, 2013)

New York

Chicago

Nashville

Santa Monica

Phase 4 - Food and Wine (July 22 until August 4, 2013)

Napa Valley

New Orleans

Turkey

Montreal

For me, Thailand sounds mouthwatering. What destination would YOU pick?

Can't Lose Review (2011)

Drama Rating: *****
Personal Rating: All time favourite!!

Story:
Lee Eun Jae and Yun Hyung Woo, both lawyers, happen to meet as strangers at a stadium and unexpectedly hit it off. Romantic sparks fly in every which direction and within a few weeks, the two are married and working as partners at the Hope law firm. Slowly though, as the two find out more about one another, their arguments and disagreements deepen, ultimately leading to divorce proceedings. Will they be able to work out their differences or will they end up going their separate ways?

Sheraton San Jose

The Sheraton San Jose, located in the heart of Silicon Valley, is a Starwood Category 4 hotel located near the Great Mall in Milpitas and about an hours drive from both San Francisco and Santa Cruz. The hotel is located near a few business parks and fairly close to a major freeway.

Wyndham Rewards 1 Million Award Mile Giveaway Sweepstakes

Wyndham Rewards is giving away a ton of airline miles in their 1 Million Award Mile Giveaway! There are four airline giveaways (United, American, Delta and Southwest); the links are as follows:

United Giveaway is here
There will be four grand prize winners each of which will win 250,000 United MileagePlus miles!

AA Giveaway is here
There will be 5 biweekly winners of 1,000 AAdvantage miles and 1 grand prize winner of 1 million AAdvantage miles!

Delta Giveaway is here
There will be 5 biweekly winners of 1,000 Delta Skymiles and 1 grand prize winner of 1 million Delta Skymiles!

Southwest Giveaway is here
There will be 5 biweekly winners of 1,000 Rapid Rewards Points and 1 grand prize winner of 1 million Rapid Rewards Points!

Sweepstakes are all open for your entry until August 26, 2013.

Country Inn & Suites "Pin It to Win It with Genevieve" Sweepstakes

Last day for this one as I just found out about it but better late than never! Country Inn & Suites is offering a chance to win a two-night getaway along with $3,000 in cash here by today (June 6, 2013)! Just complete the registration form and pin it on one of your boards on Pinterest for a chance to win. Good luck!

SPG Tote-ally Luxurious Resorts Giveaway

Starwood is partnering up again with kate spade new york for another sweepstakes here. Get your entry in during four 3-day play periods be one of 400 winners of a kate spade new york tote bag or be the grand prize winner who gets to take home five reward nights at any participating Category 1-7 Starwood property along with an astounding 250,000 SPG points (which can be used towards your flight). Good luck to everyone!

Breathtaking Napali Coast Cruise on the Southern Star

For our last night in Kauai, we decided to take Captain Andy's Southern Star cruise up the amazing Napali Coast. The cruise begins from Port Allen near Hanapepe on the southern side of the island so if you're coming from the north end (Princeville or Hanalei) or from the Westin Princeville like me, leave at least one and a half hours to get down to the port area.

Kauai Scenery in Poipu and Kapa'a

After a gorgeous morning in Hanalei, the entertainment for the evening was a Hawaiian luau on Kauai's south shore on the beautiful beach of Poipu. We left Hanalei Bay/Princeville mid-afternoon and drove along Kuhio Hwy & Kaumualii Hwy down to the Poipu beach area. Enroute, we passed through the mesmerizing Tunnel of Trees made of eucalyptus trees planted over 100 years ago.

New United Club at Seattle International Airport

Last week, I had a chance to visit the new United Club lounge in Seattle International Airport (using those complimentary one-day passes from the Chase United card) for a 4-hour layover. Although this was my first time to an airline club lounge, my expectations weren't high as this was a US lounge so I wasn't expecting too much.

My initial impressions were not great heading to the lounge as it is located near gate A9 which was a decent walk even from the center of the terminal. It would have been much more convenient for passengers had they found a more central location in the airport (say near A1 for instance) as the airport has very few moving walkways or trains linking one end of the airport to the other.