Despite our best efforts, sometimes circumstances out of our control force us to change our plans. Anybody who has ever found themselves without a place to stay as the sun sets in a foreign city knows the value of good advice or a travel guidebook. Likewise, a last minute business or family trip can force us to book the easiest hotel and rental car, or eat the most accessible and obvious meal, despite better and lower cost alternatives nearby.

Fortunately, the digital world is leveling the playing fields. With a smart phone in your pocket or tablet in your bag, a number of easy-to-use apps are making it possible to enjoy first-class amenities without prior planning AND on a budget.

If you’re often on-the-go, add these apps to your handheld arsenal:

Reno Tahoe USA

When a travel app is valuable even to locals, it’s worth downloading, and the official Reno Tahoe app certainly makes the cut. With all the entertainment constantly coming through town, the app will keep you up-to-date, in addition to offering daily snow reports, lift statuses, and even golf course green fees. When you’re walking around town, use the onboard map to locate restaurants that fit your palate. There may even be a corresponding coupon you can use in the app to save a few bucks on your bill.

Hotel Tonight

As simple as it sounds, this free app for Android and iOS specializes in last minute hotels. Each day at noon in the time zone for a particular market, that day’s deals are announced, based on availability at partner hotels. If a place is completely under-booked, they’ll often mark the prices down to 70 percent off. At most any city in the U.S. and throughout Europe, you can count on at least 20 percent off, just by waiting to commit until the day of your stay.

Triposo

Billed as a “living, breathing travel guide”, Triposo is working hard to corner the market on up-to-date travel info by outcompeting paper books that may quickly contain outdated information. Their database already includes 200 countries and 8,000 destinations, so chances are that your next stop will be covered. Perhaps best of all, the guides update themselves while you’re connected, but you don’t need internet or wireless coverage to access the guides and maps from your Android or iOS phones and devices, so you’re good-to-go even when you’re off-the-grid (provided you keep that battery charged).

Foodspotting

Although plenty of apps exist to find great places to eat, Foodspotting might just be the most fun (which is also why OpenTable recently scooped it up for $10 million). Let’s say you’re in Memphis, but you’re not in the mood for BBQ. Foodspotting pulls up a map of the area, but instead of the names of restaurants, you get photographs posted by other users, pinned to the location of where you can get it. An hour later, you’re sitting at The Elegant Farmer, enjoying their Vegetable Plate, instead of at the chain spot next to your hotel.

Verbalize It

Just in case you had any doubts about the small world we live in today, VerbalizeIt is here to connect you anywhere you go. This app doesn’t work like a traditional phone or internet translator, which often provide awkward translations and can be tedious to use. Instead, this iOS and Android app hires human translators who are available 24/7 to translate between English and Spanish, Hindi, Mandarin, French, German and Portuguese. The founder was inspired by an emergency trip to a hospital in rural China where nobody understood him. With the app used on a phone with the speaker setting, a live translator instantly helps two people communicate their exact words. Usage is sold in time increments per language, and the only downside may be that cell service or Wifi is necessary to access the translators.

Milewise

Flight search engines may be a dime-a-dozen, but for constant travelers, Milewise is worth knowing about. With airlines constantly consolidating and combining their rewards programs in new and confusing ways with their partners, it can be tough to keep track of which flights are eligible for reward travel. With MileWise, all of your accounts are kept in one place, and any flight you search for where you can utilize your miles will be highlighted (as well as those that will help get you to the next benchmark in your miles accumulation). They’ll also give you a heads up to avoid letting miles expire and will estimate the actual value of your rewards, helping you get the most out of your hard-earned miles. Finally, you can set price alerts just like most other search engines so you get the best possible deal.

Has an app ever helped you out of a bind in an unfamiliar city or foreign land? Which of these apps (or others) do you recommend?

Written by guest blogger, Joe Laing

Joe Laing is the Marketing Director for El Monte RV Rentals, your nationwide source for RV rentals. El Monte RV also sells used motorhomes through eight different locations across the United States. For more information on purchasing a used motorhome see http://www.elmontervsales.com/.

Exhibit tracing 100-years of women and auto shows now open

They’ve been called models, sex symbols and eye candy, but the best attribute of these engaging automotive specialists was their ability to sell cars by enticing customers with facts, not just glamour. The fascinating women of the auto shows are featured in the newest exhibit at the National Automobile Museum, Sirens of Chrome: The Allure of the Auto Show Models.

Sirens of Chrome takes visitors on a visual joyride through auto show history and features a treasure trove of rare images of turn-of-the-century goddesses, 1950s sex symbols and today’s highly trained product specialists.  The exhibit showcases posters and photographs of human hood ornaments, fast cars and vintage auto show fashions.

“The talent at auto shows throughout the past century has actually gone through as much of an evolution as the cars themselves,” said Margery Krevsky, founder and owner of Productions Plus–The Talent Shop, a nationwide company that recruits, outfits and trains talent for auto shows. Krevsky is also author of the award-winning book, Sirens of Chrome: The Enduring Allure of Auto Show Models, which served as the muse for the exhibit.  “Auto show models truly morphed from ‘plaster to poster to person’ and now serve as ambassadors of their brand who entice customers with facts and vehicle comparison information.”

Following the format of the book, the Sirens of Chrome exhibit includes many historical photos that have been carefully culled from private collections, auto enthusiast portfolios and the National Automotive Historical Collection of the Detroit Public Library together; they tell the larger story of auto show models and the timeless allure of automobiles.

Attendees of the Sirens of Chrome exhibit will discover whose “body” inspired the Rolls-Royce hood ornament and who sat in a “rumble seat” with 1930s silver-screen goddess Joan Blondell.  They will see the depth of information included from the Dagmar Bumpers, gawk at the over-the-top opulence of the Somali leopard pelt-upholstered 1950 Cadillac Debutante and view in wonder at the fur-clad model atop a Soviet-built Lada.  In total, the exhibit features nearly 75 pieces, mostly photographs, posters, auto show programs and automobile magazine covers.

Also on display are several costumes, which add sizzle to the Sirens of Chrome theme from space age tech to Hollywood glamour, on loan from Karen Burns Productions’ collection of more than 1,200 authentic costumes from the world-famous MGM stage show, Hello Hollywood Hello.

An Evening with Margery Krevsky: Sirens of Chrome

Sirens of Chrome: The Enduring Allure of Auto Show Models author Margery Krevsky will share behind-the-scenes insights and personal anecdotes while telling her story of defying trends in the auto industry to celebrate the opening of the newest exhibit at the National Automobile Museum based on her book. She co-founded Productions Plus in 1981 and the agency rapidly became one of the major players in selecting, outfitting and training talent for auto shows across America. Krevsky, dubbed “The Queen Bee of the Car Show Models” by Forbes, will wrap up the evening by signing copies of her book, Sirens of Chrome: The Enduring Allure of Auto Show Models.

When:  Thursday, March 14, 2013 from 6 to 8 p.m.

Where: National Automobile Museum, The Harrah Collection

What: Presentation and book signing with Margery Krevsky. Wine and hors d’oeuvres.

Cost: Free for members; $10 for the public.

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day this year in Reno Tahoe USA where the luck of the Irish is sure to be upon you as you party with naughty leprechauns, feast on a very special delicacy, race a little green man through the streets of Reno and much more. Here’s a look at what to expect this St. Paddy’s Day:

Miss Naughty Leprechaun Contest

March 14 – Silver Legacy Resort Casino

8:00 p.m.

Kick off your St. Patrick’s Day weekend with the Miss Naughty Leprechaun Contest at Aura Lounge. Wear your best naughty green outfit for a chance at winning:

1^st Place- $1,000 cash and the “Miss Naughty Leprechaun” sash

2^nd Place- $500 cash

3^rd Place – One night stay in a Silver Legacy Spa Suite and a $100 dinner at Sterling’s Seafood Steakhouse

4^th Place – One night stay in Silver Legacy Spa Suite

Rocky Mountain Oyster Fry & St. Patrick’s Day Parade

March 16 – Virginia City

10:00 a.m.

For a St. Patrick’s celebration unlike any other, make your way to Virginia City for the 22^nd annual Rocky Mountain Oyster Fry. This annual tradition, often referred to as “The Testicle Festival,” features amateur and professional cooks whose recipes and dishes feature the unique flavors and textures of beef and sheep testicles, or as they are more elegantly termed- Rocky Mountain Oysters. Can’t get enough of these delightful delicacies? Then be sure to enter the brand new Oyster Eating Contests and eat your way to great prizes.

The fun continues with the first ever Virginia City Leprechaun Bar Crawl, St. Patty’s Day Costume Contest, live music, balloon animals and street magicians for the kids, and of course, the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade.

St. Baldrick’s

March 16 – Reno-Sparks Livestock Events Center

5:00 – 8:00 p.m.

Be a hero this St. Patrick’s Day and join in the fight against children’s cancer by going bald. Hosted by the Northern Nevada Children’s Cancer Foundation, this annual event has raised over 1 million dollars by shaving over 1,600 heads, making it one of the largest St. Baldrick’s celebrations in the WORLD! So gather your pledges, bring your family and friends and say goodbye to your hair in support of reaching this year’s goal of $200,000.

Leprechaun Crawl

March 16 – Downtown Reno

7:30 p.m.

We can’t promise a pot o’ gold but we can guarantee a pot full of fun when Circus Circus Reno, Eldorado Hotel Casino, Harrah’s Reno and Silver Legacy Resort Casino host the Leprechaun Pub Crawl. Just $5 for the official Leprechaun pub crawl cup gets you mystical, magical drink specials in 13 participating bars and lounges in downtown.

For more details, check out our Leprechaun Crawl blog.

St. Paddy’s Day a Day Early

March 16 – BuBinga Lounge

BuBinga Lounge invites you to celebrate the luck of the Irish a day early with a rocking St. Patrick’s Day party on Saturday, March 16. The party includes a $10 premium open bar from 10 to 11 p.m. while resident DJs Dragon and Romance keep the beats going throughout the night. Doors open at 10 p.m. with a $10 cover.

Toast to 58 years with John Ascuaga’s Nugget

March 17 – John Ascuaga’s Nugget

Join the Ascuaga family as they celebrate 58 years of business in Sparks with a complimentary champagne toast at 4 p.m. in the Casino Cabaret. Presiding over the toast is the man who opened up a coffee shop with a few slot machines in 1955, which blossomed into two hotel towers that now illuminate the Reno/Sparks skyline – John Ascuaga.

Because the anniversary always coincides with St. Patrick’s Day, complimentary cupcakes and green beer will also be served while the staff hands out green beads with shamrocks! Additionall

y, traditional Irish specials will be available in Rosie’s Café, and all bars will feature Guinness and Irish whiskey specials.

Leprechaun Chase

March 17 – Terry Lee Wells Discovery Museum

8:30 a.m.

Lace up your running shoes, throw on your green apparel and join Reno’s newest 5k run and walk – the Leprechaun Chase (Yes, there will be a speedy leprechaun in the race). The leprechaun will start after everyone else has begun, giving everyone a generous head start. Make your way through streets of Midtown and the Wells Avenue District as fast as possible, because those who beat the little green guy across the finish line will receive a prize.

Don’t despair if the leprechaun beats you to the finish. For every runner and walker who the leprechaun passes, the leprechaun’s pot of gold will grow in size and benefit the Terry Lee Wells Nevada Discovery Museum.

Sparks Shamrock Shuffle

March 17 – Victorian Square, Sparks

Show off your Irish spirit by dashing through Victorian Square in Sparks in your best Leprechaun outfit, green body paint or any other St. Patrick’s Day costume you can put together for this fun-filled 5k. In addition to a great time, participants will enjoy a delicious Irish beer (or root beer), a running shirt and a downloadable digital photo.

Also, check out our list of Irish Pubs, and be sure to visit our events page.

MORE THAN 52,000 BOWLERS TO HIT THE LANES DURING 2013 UNITED STATES BOWLING CONGRESS OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS

The United States Bowling Congress will hold Opening Ceremonies for the 110^th Open Championships on Friday, March 1^st, at the National Bowling Stadium in downtown Reno. Opening Ceremonies begin at 6:00 p.m. with a ribbon cutting and the Mass Ball Shot Ceremony approximately 30 minutes after Opening Ceremonies begin.

Marking a record 11^th visit to Reno Tahoe, the 2013 tournament will draw more than 10,500 teams representing more than 52,000 bowlers from all 50 states and nine foreign countries. Additionally, more than 26,000 guests will visit Reno Tahoe throughout the tournament, which runs through June 29^th. The USBC Open Championships were first held at the National Bowling Stadium in 1995, and the economic impact of the anticipated 78,750 visitors to the destination in 2013 is projected to be $150 million.

“The return of the USBC Open Championships is an exciting event for Reno Tahoe USA,” said RSCVA President and CEO Christopher Baum. “And we’re making history once again as the first destination to host both the USBC Open Championships and the USBC Women’s Championships in the same year.”

The USBC Women’s Championships begin this April, on temporary lanes currently being constructed in the Reno-Sparks Convention Center. The Women’s Championships are expected to draw more than 37,000 visitors, bowlers and guests included, during the three-month tournament. Reno Tahoe USA will also be the first destination to host both the USBC Open Championships and the USBC Women’s Championships in consecutive years when both tournaments return in 2014.

Every spring since 1982, North Lake Tahoe comes alive with 10 fun-filled days and nights jam packed with events and activities for all ages. This year, the annual favorites will return March 1-10, along with a host of great new ones! On and off the mountain, at North Tahoe’s numerous resorts and vibrant lakeside neighborhoods, there’s something for everyone.

In its 32nd year, SnowFest, is expected to draw thousands of attendees, with the majority of events free to spectators.

Event Highlights:

Opening Night Ceremonies, Laser Show, Torchlight Parade and Fireworks at Squaw Valley (March 1)

Mamasake Extreme Food Challenge for those with a strong stomach (March 1)

Jack London Commemorative Sierra Sled Dog Derby (March 2-3)

23rd Annual Gar Woods Polar Bear Swim in Tahoe’s frigid waters (March 2)

SnowFest Parades in Tahoe City and Kings Beach (March 2 and March 9 respectively)

Rahlves’ Banzai Tour at Squaw Valley (March 2-3)

37th Annual Great Ski Race, a 30-kilometer cross country race from Tahoe City to Truckee (March 3)

Jake’s Mardi Gras on the Lake Party (March 4)

Truckee’s Fastest Bartender Contest (March 6)

Blue Agave’s Indoor River Rafting and Trivia Night in Tahoe City (March

Mother-Son Laser Tag at the Rideout Community Center on the West Shore (March

Rahlves’ Banzai Tour at Sugar Bowl Ski Resort on Donner Summit (March 9-10)

25th Annual Snow Sculpture Contest at Tahoe City’s River Ranch Lodge (March 10)

Ta-Hoe Nalu Arctic Standup Paddleboard Race in Kings Beach (March 10)

For more information about SnowFest and a complete list of events, visit the organization’s website at http://www.tahoesnowfestival.com/. There you can also click to follow the event via Facebook and Twitter.

National Automobile Museum

Special Delivery

Imagine a time when the customer ruled and deliveries were commonplace. Fresh dairy and bakery goods, starched and pressed laundry, and boxes of groceries were brought right to your doorstep. Delivery trucks hit the road with the invention of the motorcar. Many were simply modified cars until demand called for light-duty trucks to meet the needs of communities across the country for both residential and commercial services. Just blocks from the museum, at 627 Mill Street, a french laundry offered delivery service in a 1912 Ford Model T featured in this exhibit, along with other historical “Special Deliveries.”

For more info, call 775-333-9300 or visit www.automuseum.org

Nevada Art Museum

EXHIBITIONS

Voces y Visiones: Highlights from the Collection of El Museo del Barrio, New York

Opens March 2
A wide ranging and diverse survey of the stellar art collection from New York’s El Museo del Barrio, the leading Latino cultural institution in the U.S. dedicated to Latino, Latin American, and Caribbean art. This lively exhibition presents over fifty objects, including sculpture, painting, prints, photographs, and mixed media installations addressing themes such as identity politics, colonialism, emotional connections to homeland, and contemporary visual culture. Artworks created by living artists are contextualized with a concise selection of ancient Taíno stone carvings.

This exhibition was jointly organized by the El Museo del Barrio and the Nevada Museum of Art.

SPECIAL EVENTS

ART BITE Meet the Artist: Frohawk Two Feathers

Friday, March 15 / noon

Frohawk Two Feathers presents mixed media paintings filled with real and imagined colonial histories. Cost: $10 / FREE for MEMBERS Funded in part by Nevada Humanities.

Art Night

Friday, March 15 / 7 – 10 pm

Join us for an all-ages night of live performances featuring Frohawk Two Feathers of SUPERDELUX, art projects, a hands-on printing workshop. an interactive photo station and more! Cost: $5 Presented in partnership with the Holland Project.

ART BITE Meet the Artist: Cecile Chong on Voces y Visiones

Friday, March 29 / noon

Join Ecuador-born, New York-based artist Cecile Chong as she discusses the entanglement of culture, history, place, and interpretation, and how we are all more alike than different from one another. Cost: $10 / FREE for MEMBERS Funded in part by Nevada Humanities.

The Discovery

Leprechaun Chase 5k Run/Walk

Are you faster than a leprechaun? Your chance to find out happens Sunday, March 17th at the inaugural Leprechaun Chase through Reno’s Midtown District. The race starts and ends at The Discovery!

A portion of the proceeds from the race benefit The Discovery, so gather your family and friends and help make this race a success.

Date: Sunday, March 17th
Time: 8:30am
Register: www.race178.com/leprechaunchase

Wilbur D. May Museum

Creatures

Visitors will come face-to-face with amazing full-size animatronics of wooly mammoths, saber-toothed tigers, dinosaurs and sea monsters. The Creatures exhibit features educational and interactive elements for kids, including a fossil dig, a glacier simulation display, and several touch stations.

Creatures opens at the Wilbur D. May Museum on Saturday, March 2 and runs through Sunday, June 2. Tickets are $9.00 for adults and $8.00 for children and seniors.

Saya Fine Art – Grand Opening!

New medium, New works and new subject.
Opens in Reno’s Arts District along the Riverwalk We are delighted to announce the official opening of SAYA FINE ART STUDIO: Recent Paintings By well known artist, Somboun, on view beginning February 23, 2013.

The grand opening of the SAYA FINE ART STUDIO studio is the first solo gallery by artist and painter Somboun Sayasane in Reno, Nevada. The opening of the gallery follows Somboun’s very successful career in San Francisco. Open Monday to Wednesday 11 a. m. to 5 p. m. and Sunday by appointment only.

“I love it here in Reno, I have met many talented artist and decided to open this gallery in the Riverwalk because I love art and enjoy being surrounded by the talents of other painters.” Somboun explains.

It’s no blarney…downtown Reno is celebrating St. Paddy’s Day with the inaugural Leprechaun Crawl, so get out your green outfit and crooked hat and join in the revelry!

We can’t promise a pot o’ gold but we can guarantee a pot full of fun when Circus Circus Reno, Eldorado Hotel Casino, Harrah’s Reno and Silver Legacy Resort Casino host the Leprechaun Pub Crawl on Saturday, March 16 beginning at 7:30 p.m. Just $5 for the official Leprechaun pub crawl cup gets you mystical, magical drink specials in 13 participating bars and lounges in downtown.

Where are the bar stops on this lucky tour?

Circus Circus Reno                                      Harrah’s Reno

Dos Geckos Bar                                               Stage @ The Zone

Sports Bar                                                         Zone Sports Bar

Village Bar                                                        Sapphire Lounge

Eldorado Hotel Casino                               Silver Legacy Resort Casino

The Brew Brothers                                        Aura Ultra Lounge

BuBinga Lounge                                             Rum Bullions Island Bar

Bar Centro                                                       Silver Baron Lounge

The Blender Bar

What else is going on?

Food and drink specials, costume contests with cash and prizes, green beer at a number of stops, popular Irish music and meet the little leprechaun’s…that is, if you get a glimpse of them! What’s more, a portion of the proceeds is benefitting Future Kind, a non-profit dedicated to improving infrastructure and education and closing the global opportunity gap and building communities. To learn more about this exciting and action-packed event, go to www.leprechauncrawl.com “The Leprechaun Pub Crawl” is presented by Circus Circus Hotel Casino Reno, the Eldorado Hotel Casino, Harrah’s Reno and Silver Legacy Resort Casino. You can also find more information at www.circusreno.com, www.eldoradoreno.com, www.harrahsreno.com or www.silverlegacy.com.

Dontay Moch (Nevada Alum and current Cincinnati Bengal) is hosting a series of events to benefit the Make a Wish Foundation and Strikes for Kids, beginning with a bowling tournament on Feb 23, continuing with a party in EDGE Saturday night, and ending with a poker tournament at Peppermill on Sunday. Athletes will also be honored at a Nevada baseball game, 11 am on 2/23 and will be throwing out the first pitch!

Special Room Rates Available:

Code: DSTRIKE
Call: 800-648-5555

Athletes from a number of pro sports teams will be in attendance  – many are Nevada Alum!

Appearing Athletes include:

Dontay Moch, Cincinnati Bengals/Nevada Alum

James Michael Johnson, Cleveland Browns/Nevada Alum

Brandon Marshall, Jacksonville Jags/Nevada Alum

Kaelin Burnett, Oakland Raiders/Nevada Alum

Tray Session, Oakland Raiders/Nevada Alum

Jonathon Amaya, Miami Dolphins/Nevada Alum

Kevin Basped, NY Jets (Retired)/Nevada Alum

Ezra Butler, New Orleans Saints/Nevada Alum

Virgil Green, Denver Broncos/Nevada Alum

Robert Sands, Cincinnati Bengals

John Griffin, NY Jets

Ryan Christenson, LA Dodgers

Schedule of events:

Feb 23 Nevada Baseball Game, 11 am. Throwing out the first pitch

Feb 23 Bowling Tournament, 4 pm to 7pm – National Bowling Stadium

Feb 23 Ballers & Bowties, EDGE party to benefit Make a Wish, doors at 10 pm.

Feb 24 Charity Poker Tournament, 1 pm – Peppermill Reno ($10,000 prize pool!)

It’s here! Jot down the dates to all of your favorite events, and find new ones, for 2013!

Creatures of the night will invade downtown Reno, February 9, adding a dangerously romantic twist to this year’s Valentine’s Day celebration. Sink your fangs into mouth-watering drink specials, contests and prizes.

In order to participate, you purchase a $5 cup and map and you get $2 and $3 drink specials at tons of bars downtown. You also get access to costume contests and other perks. Plus the cup is pretty cool.

Start time is 7:30 pm on Saturday night February 9th. This year we have two start locations: Waterfall and Red Rock. More info here.

Before the crawl you can buy cups at local stores, including Junkee Clothing Exchange, Melting Pot, Chocolate Walrus and Prism Magic. On crawl night we’ll have start bars where you can purchase cups as well.

You don’t HAVE to, but it’s WAY more fun if you do! We’ve compiled easy and fun ideas! There’s so many cool costume ideas you can pull off for the Vampire Crawl- you could be a vamp, a victim, a vampire hunter, and check out the a full listing of locations at their costumes page.

Downtown Reno has plenty of awesome hotels. We partner with the Silver Legacy to get discount rooms so that people don’t have to drive, and 10% of your room rate gets donated to charity! Our discount code is VAMP13. For more info go to our discount hotel rooms page.

Why Vamps? They’re sexy as hell, enjoy a good drink and really into hearts. Kinda like cupid, well, close enough.