I spent the past weekend with 3 girlfriends in Palm Springs and was amazed at how empty the town appeared to be. We stayed at the Viceroy (or the Niceroy as dubbed by some), and arrived to be informed that we were upgraded to the largest private villa on the property. As we imbibed 2 free bottles of Veuve and appetizers, we waited (lounged?) poolside as the suite was prepared for us.

We later ventured to the Parker which also seemed quiet with the exception of a small party held in the banquet hall (note: no freebies there although we didn’t stay long enough to try).

I wonder if the room upgrade was indicative of the state of the travel industry – is this common now?-  or was it just a slow weekend? We imagined that more people would be in Palm Springs given the change of weather along with recent fires in that have made the air quality in LA less than optimal. Will there be more big deals and random upgrades in our future? If so, I’ll be happy to travel more! Now if Continental would upgrade my upcoming flight to Cleveland to first class…