Do you love luxury and does it appeal to you? Who doesn't? Keeping this in mind, now that the economy is still trying to recover, you should definitely take full advantage of the amazing prices as you can see from the article just below:
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By Joe Brancatelli
Dublin's Merrion Hotel is the very model of a modern luxury lodging: five-star rating; four landmark Georgian townhouses; two gardens; Michelin two-star dining room; prestigious art collection; 142 gracious guest rooms and suites; spa and indoor pool; statue of James Joyce; and a stratospheric rate structure that starts at 455 euros (about $590) a night.
But surf to the Merrion Web site these days and you'll find all of that luxury on sale for as little as 199 euros a night. And the Merrion's self-described "giveaway" package, priced at just 21 euros more, includes a full Irish breakfast for two and parking, extras that cost about 80 euros a night in palmier days.
The Merrion is not suffering through these down economic times alone. Luxury hotels from Dallas to Dubai are slashing rates and concocting value-added packages in a desperate attempt to attract business travelers and upmarket vacationers. Airlines are hacking away at once-sacrosanct business- and first-class fares to seduce travelers back to the front cabins.
Travel is down all over and in prices categories, of course. But luxury travel has tumbled off the proverbial cliff, and that means airlines and hotels will make fundamental changes in how they price and how they operate.
According to IATA, the airline trade group, year-over-year premium-class traffic fell a modest 1.5 percent in August, then began to plummet: down 8 percent in September, 6.9 percent in October, and 11.5 percent in November. "The low point…has not been reached," IATA economists warned.
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