By David Alsabery Santa Monica
I do not work in the travel industry, but I loved the points Doreen Orion made in her column, “Staycations have a few shortcomings,” page 4, Aug. 7. I regularly take long-distance vacations that require airplanes and such to find myself pool side 18 hours later with a book and a beer. In college my best friend and I did not have the money to get out of town so we would go hang out at the local hotels here in Los Angeles. One of my favorite vacations is to take a three-day trip to the Los Angeles area! The place I was born. Go places and do things you would not normally do. Mid-week rates at some posh Sunset Strip Hotels like the Mondrian or the Standard are fantastic. Relaxing pool side by the strip or on the roof downtown might as well be in a different country. A two-night stay at the Viceroy, Casa Del Mar or the Loews have proven to be very relaxing, free of the normal obligations that fill our weekend. I still miss the Park Hotel Vitznau, but the trip home is not a chore either.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 8, 2008. Read the original PDF.