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IT—Inside Traveler
By Jessie Johnston and Emily King

May 31, 2007:

Gas Relief

Planning a summer road trip? If you've filled up your tank lately, you might be reconsidering with prices soaring above $3 per gallon. IT has tracked down some ways to minimize pains at the pump.

Hotels.com is offering $30 gas rebates on minimum two-night hotel stays between now and Sept. 9, 2007. Book your hotel by July 2 to get the deal and the money will appear on your credit card after your stay. You can also earn up to $50 in fuel credit if you book your vacation rental through ResortQuest. They throw in a road atlas and car cooler to sweeten the deal, available through November 1. In a similar promotion, Choice Hotels International is offering Choice Privileges members the opportunity to earn a $50 gas card after three separate stays in selected Choice brand hotels between June 1 and August 16. Participating hotels include Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality Inn, Sleep Inn, and Cambria Suites. Also check BedandBreakfast.com's free gas promotions for deals nationwide. For example, The Victorian Ladies B&B in Newport, Rhode Island, offers $50 or $100 gas discounts for two or three weeknight stays through September.

If, however, you've been reconsidering your road trip because you've been reading the news, do the eco thing and leave your car at home, avoiding the pump altogether. BedandBreakfast.com has a section on Eco Escapes with many B&Bs providing free airport pickup, a location within walking distance of area attractions, and bike/canoe rentals.

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IT's Fishy

As much as we like food, IT tries to stay healthy. Each day for lunch, Jessie sticks to vegetarian concoctions of chickpeas and spinach, while Emily generally fills up on $4 salads from the NGS cafeteria. We do this so that when we travel, we can eat what we want—be it cheesy tacos or key lime pie. Here, Emily writes about one such indulgence (there were many!) from her trip to Mississippi:

"While traveling, I'm on a quest for the unique, especially when it comes to food. So, when my hosts told me about Jerry's Catfish House in Florence, Mississippi, I pleaded that we go. I mean, how many times in my life would I have a chance to go inside a giant concrete igloo, filled with more than 350 other people dining on all-you-can-eat plates of catfish? The idea was compelling—the experience even more so. We arrived early on a Saturday night—Jerry's is about 20 miles south of Jackson, just off Highway 49. According to my hosts, we were lucky we didn't have to wait. 'On Friday nights, the line can reach out to here,' said Arnold, pointing to a spot 100 feet or so from the entrance, 'On those nights, we just turn around and go home.'

"We were seated upstairs, which gave us a great view of the bustling tables below. My hosts ordered for the group—'a mix of filet and whole'—which I was able to translate once the food arrived as: boneless fish strips (filet) and entire-fish-with-the-fin-and-everything (whole). The $10.95 plates of catfish include french fries, hush puppies, and coleslaw—and, as if that were not enough, we also ordered fried dill pickles ($3.95). The hush puppies (sweet and crunchy), the slaw (creamy and crunchy), and the pickles (tart and crunchy) were so good that I only ate a few of the ordinary and surprisingly crunchless fries.

"'Crispy on the outside, moist on the inside, and fried but not greasy,' I was told by my hosts that 'this is the best catfish in town, maybe even in Mississippi.' I'm no catfish connoisseur, but I had to agree. I found myself asking for an extra plate of fish and hush puppies—which, with the help of the others and a big glass of sweet tea to wash it all down, I managed to finish."

Coming soon: IT's detox program.

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From May 29, 2007:

Solar, So Good

Three cheers for Marriott's Residence Inn West Orange in New Jersey! It claims to be the first solar powered hotel in New Jersey. Says TravelPost.com: "Installed on the inn's southward-facing rooftops, the solar electric system produces power that meets about one-fifth of the hotel's total electricity needs. Over the next 30 years, the hotel's setup will reduce carbon emissions by 3,000 tons, says the Solar Center, an energy company that designed the system. That's the equivalent of planting about 43 acres of trees."

The hotel is also non-smoking, a decision we heartily applaud. Here's hoping more hotels follow in their carbon footprints.

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Entranced by Ensenada

The challenge of working at a travel magazine is resisting the constant temptation to travel. National Geographic Traveler staffer Mary Beth LaRue likes to divvy up her vacation days—jetting off for long weekends in New York, Jamaica and good ol' Iowa—rather than taking a single two-week trip in the middle of the year. Her most recent jaunt landed her in Ensenada, Mexico:

"Tickets to San Diego were about $100 cheaper than those to Tijuana, and since it's only 90 minutes from there to Ensenada, saving the money was a no-brainer. I flew overnight, meeting with my friend Francis after arriving in the morning. We took a $1.50 trolley ride to the border and walked across. It was my first visit to Mexico, and I couldn't believe how simple it was to cross over.

"Once in Tijuana, we thought about exploring (a friend had suggested Avenida Revolución, the city's busy shopping district) but the $10 bus to Ensenada was five feet away and ready to leave, so we hopped on. Andrea, our hostess, met us at the other end and whisked us away to Mariscos Navolato, a little seafood joint near the harbor (where more than 90 species of seafood—including tuna, shrimp, sea urchin, mackerel, and abalone—are commercially fished). We let Andrea do the ordering, and feasted on tostada de ceviche and gobernador de marlin washed down with Negra Modelo beers.

"Andrea, her boyfriend Pablo and a friend Joel rent a gorgeous, three-bedroom house right on the ocean about 15 miles outside of town. Considering her rent is cheaper than my 300-square-foot studio in D.C., I spent much of the week considering a move. At high tide the waves literally lap at their house, and at low tide you can swim or surf—a wetsuit helps with the frigid temperatures.

"As the third largest city in Baja California, Ensenada bustles with street vendors, sirens, and tourists. Beyond the cruise ship passengers and spring break vibe, the "Cinderella of the Pacific" charms with gems like the Panaderia Ornelas No. 1 pastry shop (164 México Av.; +646 176 0694), open-air restaurants smelling of sea salt and sizzling fish, and the sand dollars ('sand cookies' in Mexico) buried on the beach.

"On Saturday we joined the downtown crowds at the finish line of the Rosarito Ensenada bicycle ride, a twice-a-year 50-mile ride started in 1979. The sidewalks were filled with vendors peddling food, beer, and jewelry, so we bought fish tacos and churros and watched the bikers (including Pablo, on a bike for only the second time in his life) roll in. The participants—from all over Mexico and the States—cheered each other on, drank Tecate beers, and wore bizarre costumes as they rode. No one topped Pablo's friends, though, who wore fuzzy (presumably sweltering) costumes and rode tiny clown bikes.

"Before catching my red-eye back to D.C., we spent our last day on a beach between Ensenada and Tijuana. Just outside Rosarito we followed a terraced stairway down from the Poco Cielo hotel to a white-sand beach perfect for Frisbee-throwing, beachcombing, and planning my next four-day getaway."

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Emily King, Traveler's assistant to the editor, is sad that her partner in blog will be moving to Ghana mid-July. Researcher Jessie Johnston says "Shhhh, I wasn't going to tell them yet!"

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