The Radar: Montmartre Open House, Living Social Escapes, Google Map Error

• Artists residing in the famed Parisian neighborhood of Montmartre will open their studios to the public this month. The weekend of November 19th to 21st is the annual Artists' Studios Open House Days: Anvers to Abbesses, which began in 1990. 124 artists in 74 locations will open their studios to the public to talk about their work and sell pieces. [NYTimes.com]

• Clear your calendars. Not satisfied with brokering cheap rates on everything from restaurants to yoga classes to housecleaning, group buying site Living Social dipped their toe into the travel pool yesterday when they announced the launch of their weekend Escapes program. Their packages to hotels across the country include fun activities like cooking classes, ski passes and champagne breakfasts. [Living Social Escapes]

• A Google Map error of up to 2.7 kilometers was enough to raise a border dispute between Nicaragua and Costa Rica. Last week Nicaraguan troops crossed the border and took down a Costa Rican flag, raising their own, because Google Maps said the land belonged to Nicaragua. The Organization of American States and UN Security Council are being called in to mediate the dispute. [Wired.com via Infoconvulso]

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Photo: Anna Koszeghy/My Shot

Post originale: http://blogs.nationalgeographic.com/blogs/intelligenttravel/2010/11/the-radar-montmarte-open-house.html

The Radar: Harrods Hotel, Urban Escapes, SkyCouch

• Shopping 'till you drop takes on a whole new meaning in London now that the Qatari owners of the iconic department store Harrods are considering building a hotel on its upper floors. The Evening Standard reports that if a hotel were constructed, a restaurant would also be added on the building's fourth floor. [USA Today via Gadling]

• Group buying sites just keep getting better for travelers: LivingSocial has acquired the website Urban Escapes, which currently offers outdoor activities and getaways to young professionals in Boston, Washington D.C., New York and Philadelphia. [Mashable]

• Air New Zealand's highly anticipated SkyCouch seating is now available for April 2011 bookings between Auckland and Los Angeles, reports Jaunted. The in-flight couches cost about $3,200 -- about $2,000 more than a regular seat. [Jaunted]

Photo: Christian Simic/My Shot

Post originale: http://blogs.nationalgeographic.com/blogs/intelligenttravel/2010/10/the-radar-harrods-hotel-urban.html