<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><FONT SIZE=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Lucida Sans Unicode" LANG="0">Hello you all,<BR>
Beginning this weekend the cost of traveling to Santiago (air fares and hotel) has been drastically reduced for those who go to the city between November and March. <BR>
The Department of Tourism, with the backing of Vivatours, (the Iberia airlines travel agency), Abreu (a Portuguese national travel agency) , and Transhotel, (the hotel reservations center of Spain), worked out a plan to try to space out the visitors to Santiago throughout the year. So far 17 hotels have signed on to the plan, including the most luxurious of them all, Palacio de Carmen (more expensive even than the Reyes Catolicos Parador).<BR>
Under the plan the hotels will charge only about 50% of their regular rates: 2 and 3 star hotels will charge 35 Euros per night for a double room, 4 star hotels 50 Euros and the 5 star hotel. Palacio del Carmen, 89 Euros.<BR>
In addition, travellers to Santiago will receive a 48-hour card for buses and entrance to most museums, and free guided tours of the City.<BR>
The telephone company has also joined the plan and has set up a number for reservations and information: the number is 902 120 130.<BR>
The announcement added that the first 1,000 people to take advantage of this new plan will be treated to a special brunch that will include octopus stew (a specialty of the region).<BR>
Regards,<BR>
Rosina<BR>
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