The California State University Sacramento will see two new hotels coming nearby in the next few years. Media reports recently indicated that the officials at the city of Sacramento have received a development proposal for the construction of two new four-story hotels. The proposal also includes the construction of a 10,000-square-foot retail building on 5.67 acres with the location being at 1817 65th St., near Highway 50 and an existing light-rail station.

The application submitted to the Sacramento City authorities described the proposals to be a vital project and catalyst for the 65th Street area. The two hotels will comprise of a total of 250 rooms and would be serving Sacramento State University, SMUD as well as the medical campuses located nearby.

The proposal envisages the construction of a 117-room Hampton Inn & Suites on the eastern side of Sacramento State University, while the second hotel which is yet to be named would be located toward the western side. The retail building will however be situated on the 65th Street itself. According to the application, the construction of the Hampton Inn & Suites is scheduled to start from next year. The Hampton Inn & Suites would cover an area of 76,764-square-foot. However, the schedule for the construction of another hotel and the retail building is yet to be confirmed.

The application while providing the details of the site plans indicated that the main entrance of Hampton Inn & Suites would be on the north side of Sacramento State University. The outdoor pool and the surrounding parking spaces would be on the south side of the hotel. Apart from hotel rooms, the Hampton Inn & Suites will also have a breakfast room, a fitness center and a meeting space.

Here’s startling revelation from Hainan Airlines. Chinese students are visiting the Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Tufts University in large numbers this summer. The airline in fact said that these three renowned institutions in the United States have become new summer hotspots for students from China.

Media reports said that with numerous Chinese students and their families heading to these institutions in Boston, Hainan Airlines has been prompted to launch direct flights between Beijing and Boston in June 2014.

Considering the growing demand, the airline said that it had to increase the frequencies of flights making it into a daily service from the existing four in the months of July and August this year. The airline stated that Tufts University receives numerous requests from large organized groups and therefore conducts separate tours for these groups.

The increasing affluence of Chinese middle class and the idea of gaining prestige on obtaining a degree from institutions in Boston have prompted a huge number of students to visit the U.S. According to recent reports, there has been a surge in Chinese students with the numbers in Boston metropolitan area nearly tripled to 10,913 in 2013 from only 3,800 in 2009. The report said that this has been rather faster than the growth achieved nationally, which has now more than doubled.

The reports said that Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Northeastern University and Boston University presently rank among the top 25 schools hosting foreign students in 2012-2013. The largest number of foreign students comprised of Chinese who accounted for 27 percent.

The London Parade Festival is held on January 1 every year. It is one of the biggest events in London’s calendar. Tourists from world over don’t lose any opportunity to book cheap flights to London and enjoy their visit to the British capital, while saving on their airfares. The festival attracts nearly 10,000 participants from around the world every year, who take part in the magnificent London Parade Festival. Close to one million people also descend on the streets of London to watch the colorful and historic parade. Don’t miss out any chance to book flights to London and witness the Parade. Also known as the New Year’s Day Parade, it will be the 27th Anniversary of the Parade on January 1, 2013.

Are you planning to attend the biggest ever Amsterdam Dance Event this year? Then hurry up and book your cheap flights to Amsterdam now, if you want to save on your trip and enjoy taking part in the Amsterdam Dance Event’s biggest edition ever this year.

This year the Amsterdam Dance Event will take place over five days from 17 to 21 October. The Amsterdam Dance Event will comprise 800 performances at 75 venues throughout the city. Ranked as the biggest club festival on the planet, the Amsterdam Dance Event is expecting nearly 200,000 visitors, including 30,000 foreign tourists from 65 countries. Book cheap tickets to Amsterdam with Fare Buzz and head off to see the greatest dance festival.

Italy seems to be on everyone’s Bucket List. There’s just something about it that makes everyone want to go there. Whether it’s the food and wine, history, fashion, scenery or all of the above, Italy is a popular destination year round. These are just a small handful of the things you’ll come across on your visit, if it’s your first time or your 20th time!

The Cathedrals: Regardless of your religion, the cathedrals around Italy are a thing of beauty that you really can’t miss (and not just because of their giant size and opulent appearance on the outside). The Duomo di Milano in Milan is the fourth largest cathedral in the world. It’s located at the Piazza del Duomo and is a giant among anything else you’ll see in the city. Heading up to the top, you see the intricate details and wonder just how long it took them to build it (answer: nearly six centuries!). Also worth a visit is the cathedral in Florence, Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore. This cathedral was completed in 1436 and its brick dome is the largest brick dome in the world. The buildings are also part of the Historic Centre of Florence, named a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1982. And while it isn’t actually a cathedral, St Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City is visited by over 4 million people each year, making it one of the most visited spots in the world. 

The Duomo di Milano towers over
the city of Milan in Northern Italy 

The Food: Let’s just be honest, one of the biggest perks about a vacation to Italy is the food! From the homemade pasta dishes around the country, to the fresh seafood from the islands, it’s hard not to want to visit just for a culinary feast. The best thing about the culinary masterpieces in Italy (from rustic to 5-star) is the history behind the food. You’ll find something different in each region of the country, creating the same recipes century after century. One of the best things about the food here is how simple it all is, with each dish typically having just four to eight ingredients. The best places you can go are the little restaurants not found in the guidebooks. If you walk far enough away from the tourist attractions of the city you’re visiting, you’re bound to find a place visited by locals that will make your trip much more special.

When visiting a country like Italy,
only the freshest ingredients will do! 

The Wine: Yes, this could technically be added in with the food. But when you visit someplace like Italy, it really should be looked at separately, if for nothing else then the numerous vineyards and wine tasting opportunities throughout the country (a vacation in and of itself for many people each year). Italy is only second to France in wine production, but they come in first in wine consumption! Grapes are grown all over the country, making it easy to find a vineyard to visit for some wine tasting. Tuscany in the north is one of the more popular regions that people visit, but heading south you’ll find fantastic wines in Abruzzo and Puglia and the islands of Sicily and Sardinia.

The History: Some of the most beautiful structures ever built can be found around Italy. They’re also some of the oldest structures. From the Colosseum in Rome to the Leaning Tower of Pisa, you can’t go far in the country without finding history that dates back hundreds (sometimes thousands) of years. Two of the most intriguing cities that are a must to visit are Herculean and Pompeii. Frozen in time due to the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, the area was undiscovered for nearly 1700 years. Open to the public for about 250 years now, it’s one of the most popular destinations in Italy, attracting upwards of 2.6 million tourists a year. Of course one of the more popular destinations for many American’s is Rome. In Rome you’ll find the Colosseum, the Pantheon, the Trevi fountain and the Spanish Steps (to name a few).

Fare Buzz has recently launched a vacation rental option in a move to set the company apart from other online travel companies. It also looks to improve the company’s revenue within a crowded travel industry.                       

“We at Fare Buzz are willfully increasing our non-air business,” said Arnold Walter, President and CEO of Fare Buzz. “There’s no doubt the sale of discounted tickets is our forte, but we are enthusiastic towards the sale of car rentals, hotel bookings, vacation packages and now vacation rentals.”

A recent survey from eMarketer predicts “there will be 117.6 million online travel researchers (61 percent of internet users) and 98.3 million online travel bookers (51 percent of internet users) in the U.S. by 2012.” Millions of Americans spend close to 60 percent of their total vacation cost on accommodations. Fare Buzz now aims to bring alternative options to these travelers, with something that’s both cost effective and brings all the comforts of home.

“Vacation rental bookings have seen a phenomenal growth of 73 percent in 2011 compared to 2010, and the revenues have also increased by 11 percent,” said Walter. “Keeping those metrics in mind, Fare Buzz started its vacation rental section, as there is a lot of pie to target.”

The new vacation rental feature offers roughly 30 locations to rent from within North America. Unlike other vacation rental websites, Fare Buzz allows the customer to book directly through the website. This new option will give Fare Buzz customers the opportunity to try something new, and for the company to receive feedback regarding travel preferences. Vacation rentals can be found at www.farebuzz.com/vacation-rentals.

About Fare Buzz:

Started in 1994 in New York City, Fare Buzz is one of the leading travel providers in the industry. The company has created affiliations with vendors of various travel products. Due to Fare Buzz’ buying power, the company is able to negotiate aggressive deals on air, hotels, car rentals and now vacation rentals to pass the savings on to the consumer.

In addition, Fare Buzz also specializes in discounted business class fares and offers an attractive rewards program for customers. For additional information, please contact Margaret Yekulis at margaret@farebuzz.com.

Business travel is considered to be an essential tool of commerce in both large and small companies. In fact, small companies seem to have a greater reliance on business travel as they often lack the visibility of large companies. Moreover small companies have to compete with large companies in order to acquire new customers as a result of which they have to often invest in substantially in business travel for face to face client and sales generating meetings. It is estimated that in large firms business travel costs make up three to five percent of sales but in smaller companies this business travel component tends to be much higher.

A recent study conducted by the economic forecasting agency, Oxford Economics states that there is a definite link between business travel and corporate profitability. It goes on to add that every dollar spent on travel by a US company can generate an average of $3.80 in profit and a $12.50 in revenue. However, due to the current ongoing economic downturn, several companies across the board have cut back or drastically reduced their business travel spends in recent months. The study concludes that this should be considered as ‘a penny wise and pound foolish approach’ as the bottom line benefits that accrue from business travel are in fact achieved by most businesses over a long time horizon.

Rather than cutting back or eliminating business travel totally, companies should look to reduce and effectively manage their business travel costs in order to continue to avail of the advantages of business travel in a challenging economic climate. Travel expenses can be managed more efficiently if a company takes these simple actions toward organizing its travel activity and curbing its business travel spending.

Essential business travels trips
Companies who have a regional or global footprint tend to rely quite extensively on business travel, however if business travel costs need to be reduced, then such companies should try to limit their business travel to essential trips that only involve face-to-face client meetings and to those trips which are exclusively sales related or meant solely for incentive purposes.

Partnering with a travel agency
If you are looking to reduce business travel costs for your company and do not have a partnership with a business travel agency now is the time to get one. A professional travel agency like the New York City-based travel agency, Fare Buzz can help you outline your travel goals and build and enforce a business travel policy that fits your budget and business goals.

Negotiating with suppliers
After you have outlined your goals and set down the rules for employee travel, you can then attempt to renegotiate rates with your regular suppliers like airlines or hotels or even shop around for new lower cost suppliers. However if you attempt to do this on your own you might not be as successful as you would be if you allowed your partner agency, Fare Buzz to negotiate on your behalf. Fare Buzz has exclusive contracts with more than sixty domestic and international airlines and can thus effectively negotiate to acquire cheap business class air fares which are especially required for long haul international business travel journeys.

However, Fare Buzz’s services are not just limited to airlines as the company also has an exclusive relationship with a wide network of more than 100,000 diverse hotel properties and can also secure bargains from your preferred hotel chains to meet your business travel needs.

Free travel on award tickets
Fare Buzz is the country’s leading supplier of cheap business class tickets. Fare Buzz through its special relationship with a whole host of airlines manages to procure wholesale cheap business class flights which it then offers for sale to its clients. These cheap business class airline tickets are not lacking in any way as they come loaded with all the perks of full priced tickets like mileage accrual. Miles so earned can then be used to procure free future business class travel and further savings. In fact, Fare Buzz also operates its own rewards program in conjunction with American Express rewards cards and every flight, hotel, vacation package and car rental booking that you book through Fare Buzz earns you points which can be redeemed at more than 200 of the nation’s retail and travel outlets.

Monitoring reports tracking business travel spending
The travel team at Fare Buzz is made up of experienced and knowledgeable travel consultants who are on hand seven days a week to help you find the best airline business class fares and hotel deals for all your business travel. The team at Fare Buzz can also help you monitor your business travel expenditure by providing you with reports that illustrate all your business travel expenditure along with details like names of staff who are booking trips.

So if you are looking for innovative ways to reduce your company’s business travel spends or are even looking for options to effectively manage your annual travel budget do get in touch with the best business travel solutions provider, the New York City-based travel agency Fare Buzz at 1-800-847-1963 today.