Here’s an entry for the annals of pop-culture history:

Who: Eliot Spitzer (alias Client No.9) and “Kristen”

Where: Room 871, the Renaissance Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC.

What: The deed

We wonder if the hotel will follow in the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino’s footsteps and quietly refurbish the room and then renumber the entire floor to stop pesky travelers from ogling the now-infamous doorway (or worse, requesting it for their own pervy dalliances).

We also wonder if, perhaps, Spitzer and his lady friend booked the Mayflower Hotel’s current promotion, the Flirt with an Escape Romance package. The package includes overnight accommodations, Champagne upon arrival, breakfast for two, late checkout and a discount on flowers from FTD.com.

Four Seasons properties in Hawaii are offering different versions of the same Free Night promotion for stays before the end of June 2008.

- Four Seasons Resort Lana’i at Manele Bay: The Resort is offering its
5th Night Free with Breakfast promotion now through June 30, 2008 with
nightly room rates from $495.

- Four Seasons Resort Lana’i, The Lodge at Koele: The Lodge is offering
its 4th Night Free promotion now through June 30, 2008 with nightly room
rates from $345.

- Four Seasons Resort Hualalai at Historic Ka’upulehu (pictured): The Resort is
offering its 5th Night Free promotion from March 27 through June 30, 2008
with nightly room rates from $725.

- Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea: The Resort is offering its 5th
Night Free promotion from April 6 through June 10, 2008 with nightly room
rates from $620.

Bolt Bus, a new low-cost bus line with service planned up and down the East Coast, has announced it will launch a Boston to New York route in April. The New York-DC route begins on March 27th.

Why would you want to ride the Bolt Bus? Well, for one, you get free wireless Internet access (though the company admits it can be spotty at times), power outlets in the seats and three more inches of legroom than found in standard coach buses. On top of that, fares start at $1. Yup, there are a limited number of $1 fares, but hey, at least they offer ‘em. The company suggests buying tickets several weeks in advance to score the lowest ticket prices.

Want a good value on your next vacation? Sure, we all do. Phoenix, shown here from atop Camelback Mountain, was recently rated one of the top places for good travel deals. According to the Hotwire Travel Value Index released yesterday, these are top U.S. cities for travelers to hit up when they’re looking to stretch their vacay dollars:

1. Phoenix

2. Dallas-Fort Worth

3. Orlando

4. Denver

5. Atlanta

6. Los Angeles

7. Washington, DC

8. Kansas City

9. Miami

10. Milwaukee

Frankly, I’m surprised to see L.A. and Miami on the list, as I was just last week hunting for decent deals on hotels in both cities and came up surprisingly short. I mean, yeah, you can stay somewhere cheap, but it often means staying somewhere really bland, really out of the way or really sketch. And that’s not what I call a “value.” In my mind, a good value is something a traveler can get excited about. Not just an inexpensive place to bunk in.

That said, the HTVI rates cities on more than just existing hotel rates. The range of activities in a city and availability of affordable entertainment also figure in. And both Miami and L.A. have plenty of affordable entertainment options (beaches, museums, landmarks). Then again, both cities also happen to have some of the country’s most expensive and exclusive restaurants, bars, retail shops and clubs. Really, in the end, whether or not you’ll get a good value in in any of the cities on the list depends heavily on what you enjoy doing when you travel.

Pretty funny stuff, via Engadget. A traveler carrying one of the new MacBook Air laptops (touted as the world’s thinnest laptop for its ability to fit into a manila folder) baffled security agents with the high-tech device’s lack of drives or ports. The laptop aroused enough suspicion to keep the traveler, one Michael Nygard, detained long enough to miss his flight. Luckily for Nygard, a younger, in-the-know TSA worker stepped in to explain the laptop’s mysterious features to the wary security team.

SmarterTravel.com’s list of 10 Amazing Adventures Under $1,000 is a round-up that’s worth reading. They’ve hunted down some cool ideas for adventurous vacations that hit the inexpensive end of the spectrum. And six of the suggested trips (hiking, rafting, camping, sailing, biking) are outside the good ‘ole US of A (Peru, Canada, Croatia, Tanzania, Laos, New Zealand). Trips range in length from four to 10 days. Most are packages offered by tour operators, and none include airfare in the price.

If you’re as intrigued by the first Citizen M hotel as we are, then we’re guessing you’ll want to try your luck at winning one of the 100 free rooms the hotel is giving away to celebrate its opening. There are two ways to earn a free stay at the hotel, slated to open in the coming weeks at the Amsterdam Schipol Airport. Every 100th person who registers to become a “citizen” on the site will receive a free night at the hotel, as will the author of every 100th post to the Citizen Community forums. There, travelers can post suggestions, reviews and travel tips in categories like shopping, dining, nightlife and romance.

The much-blogged-about hotel has garnered tons of buzz with its pre-fab construction and slick, high design interiors. Following in the footsteps of New York’s Pod Hotel and London’s Yotel Hotels, the newcomer aims to woo travelers seeking uber-chic, yet reasonably priced accommodations in urban areas. Instead of spacious rooms with lots of hotel services, Citizen M concentrates on the basics - a comfy bed, flat screen TVs - but compensates by outfitting its rooms in the ultra mod sort of look that appeals to the iPod generation.

Guess what? You can’t. At least not while you’re using the Denver International Airport’s free wireless Internet access. Boing Boing is one of the sites that the airport has reportedly blocked. The Vanity Fair web site is another. Ostensibly, the airport’s decision to block certain web sites is meant to protect children from accidentally spotting porn on the laptop screens of pervy travelers, but they seem to have gone a little overboard. Also, the airport mentions nothing about the policy on its own web site.

As Jaunted points out, it “discovered” the censorship months ago and also found similar censorship practices in place at some hotel chains.

Denver’s Airport Wi-Fi Blocks Racy Sites

As more and more travelers opt for inexpensive getaways this year, they reserving spots at the nation’s campgrounds in record numbers.

Sure, camping is a cheap way to vacation. And yeah, I love the great outdoors. But hands down, one of my favorite parts of camping is cooking up some good grub after a day spent hiking, swimming and mucking around in the woods. But sometimes it’s hard to know exactly what to make. And all too often, I end up sticking to a menu of trusty favorites like pasta and pancakes.

During my most recent hunt for a cool camping spot to venture to this summer, I instead found myself perusing the Camping Club’s long list of camping recipes. Campfire pretzels? Who knew. Mountain meatloaf? Yes, please. Cowboy quiche? Yee haw. I’m bookmarking this list to pull out for inspiration when the time comes.

The next time you’re strolling through the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, keep your eyes peeled for a Jessica Simpson sighting. The saccharine sweet songstress is reportedly one of the first celebs to close on a unit at the newly opened Palms Place Condo Hotel, located next to the Palms proper. Other celebrities rumored to be purchasing units include Eminem and Hulk Hogan (why is everyone buying here a blond?).

In an effort to offer something that no other Vegas property has, the Palms Place has created a Hammam, or Turkish bath, where men and women can mingle in air that’s basically just really hot and wet. Hmm. Why not just go to a Vegas nightclub instead? As much as we are not into the idea of being trapped in a room with a bunch of sweaty randoms in Vegas, the Palms Place is pretty swank. The 30,000-square-foot Drift Spa intrigues us with its private outdoor garden lounges, and the fire pits around the pool aren’t too shabby. Should you want to bunk in at the latest lodging option from the Maloofs, nightly rates start at $179, but expect to pay between $209 and $299 on most nights (you can check the reservations calendar online to see the rate breakdown).

Simpson’s Found Her Place in Vegas