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Michael Martin
As you begin to swim, you start noticing the oil residue on top of the murky water, probably from the nearby ferries that use the harbor like a train station. There are no fish. That something that looks like a giant jelly on the ocean floor is actually just a harmless plastic bag. And those bubbles? Instead of books and magazines, locals bring their dirty laundry and washing detergent to pass the time as you decide it might just be best to lay out.
Survival Tip: Don't rely on reader awards of well-known magazines for hotel recommendations, look online and judge the hotel for yourself. Welcome to Sydney, one of the world's chicest cities at least until you check into its most-famous five-star luxury hotel. Operated by a super-glitzy hotel chain and patronized by every one-name Hollywood celebrity, the hotel comes with some very big expectations. After a 15-hour flight, we arrived to a sleepy lobby of classical music and hypnotic floral prints. An almost subservient staff assists with baggage and recommends even-sleepier area restaurants better suited for visitors by the busload. Things only get better as we make our way to the room, a comatose design space lost in some sort of Agatha Christie novel that thinks guests want to reside in a life-size Clue game. Perhaps it was drab style and not the Butler that killed this hotel guest. The Shabby Ski Vacation
Survival Tip: Luxury is on its way! Hit the lake's North Shore and new Ritz Carlton opening in 2009. South Lake Tahoe has the makings of a world wonder including snow-capped mountains and dramatic lakeside location. G-4 accessible through a kamikaze-landing strip or cumbersome drive from glorious Reno, you arrive to an array of mega-mansions and quasi four-star hotels. No posh ski chalet? Then pick your hotel poison of highway motels or '70s high-rise casinos with depressed Alpine interiors and communal Jacuzzis stocked with one-piece wearing singles.
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