National Car Rental is your best option when planning one of the most important dates in your life, for business or having fun on a great vacation!

From a Compact through a Full Size Car or Premium through Luxury Cars you will always get the best deals renting at National Car Rental. Need for more room for you and your family? We have a wide variety of SUV’s,Vans or Minivans that will fit all your needs.

Reserve now and you will confirm why they say: “We are leaders in Car Rentals”.

We have a promotional code for all our ESCAPES readers - when reserving with National Car Rental, mention the code ESCAPES (or enter it on the website when making a reservation) for special discounted prices!

www.nationalcar.com.mx

reservations@nationalcar.com.mx

From USA: 1 877 567 3572

From MEX: 01 800 716 6625

Cabo San Lucas Phone: (624) 143 1414

San Jose del Cabo: (624) 146 5021

La Paz: (612) 125 4747

SPECIAL INVITATION & CONTEST by CAPELLA PEDREGAL Resort & Residence, Cabo San Lucas.

Experience Easter Capella Pedregal way!
Join us on Sunday, April 4th, for an Easter Champagne Brunch at Don Manuel’s.

For our fans on Twitter and Facebook we have organized a special promotion: with the correct answer to the question below you might be a lucky winner of a complimentary Easter Champagne Brunch at Capella Pedregal!

The award winning question: “What is the name of the private tunnel leading to Capella Pedregal?”

To participate:
- On FACEBOOK: post the right answer as a comment under the post.
- On Twitter: Post a Tweet “@CapellaPedregal : Capella Pedregal Easter Champagne Brunch Contest / your answer”

Duration:
- March 23 – by the end of March 30, midnight time GMT -7 (Cabo San Lucas Time)

Winner announcement: April 1st

Award:
- 1 complimentary Easter Champagne Brunch at Don Manuel’s, Capella Pedregal, on Sunday April 4th, for our Facebook fan with the correct answer.
- 1 complimentary Easter Champagne Brunch at Don Manuel’s, Capella Pedregal, on Sunday April 4th, for our Twitter friend or follower with the correct answer.

We will collect the correct answers on Facebook and Twitter and draw 1 lucky winner in each network.

Complimentary Easter Champagne Brunch is valid for 1 person.

Good luck,
See you at Capella Pedregal!

P.S. Capella Pedregal employees and family are not eligible to participate in the contest.

Today we found these yummy bouquets and wanted to share them with you all. We love the idea, and inspiration. Delicious and eatable home decor! See CALL TO ACTION below for a great prize!

The idea comes from Dutch Designer Janina Loeve, which she presented at Dutch Design Week 09. This is how she describes the “Divers, bouquets to eat alive”:

Besides being healthy and tasty, vegetables are beautiful plants. But we don’t notice this attractive side anymore. Most of us think of them as being time taking side dishes. But they are one of the most important parts of our menu. Fresh vegetables and herbs give us endless possibilities to combine. And the seasons apply us naturally with the best variation you can get.

Divers vegetables form a bouquet of colors, smells and tastes. Well matching vegetables and herbs of the season, form a temptation for the eye. And prepared following the recipe on the package, they become a sensation to taste. Bouquets that tempt you to eat healthy and divers.

”

CALL TO ACTION! To all of you who’d like to try the idea at home, we invite you to visit nearest local organic market, get some delicious veggies, make bouquets out of them and send us a picture of your best eatable artwork. We will publish it on ESCAPES website, and award the best bouquet with a delicious breakfast at Don Manuel’s restaurant in Capella Pedregal. There you will be able to explore Su Cocina and enjoy in truly unique breakfast experience. We will be accepting your bouquets until December 15, so hurry up! We are looking forward to seeing your best eatable art design!

”

A list of organic markets in Baja:

- Cabo San Lucas: at Spa MarAdentro, at the entrance to Pedregal by Colegio El Camino (Wednesdays and Saturdays)

- San Jose del Cabo: Farmers market at Tiendas de Palmilla, every Friday from 9 am to 1 pm.

- San Jose del Cabo: at Huerta Maria, across the street from the Tropicana Jockey Club.

- Todos Santos: at Heroico Colegio Militar, mobile fresh market opens from 9 am to 1 pm.

- La Ribera: at La Fortuna farm.

(if you know of any additional one, please send us an email to escapes@pedregal.com and we’ll add it to the list as well)

ESCAPES Club is a dedicated Club for readers of ESCAPES magazine and Grupo Riveras’ clients and business partners. In the ESCAPES Club you will find different offers, promotions, gift certificates and products, offered by our companies and valued partners. Take advantage of them, we prepared them especially for you!

FIRST of our special promotions is prepared in cooperation with Diamonds International. In celebration of our 1st anniversary, we are giving away 100 gift certificates with $100 USD value for Diamonds International. To enter this exciting drawing, send an email to escapes@pedregal.com or call us at (+52) 624 143 0202 by December 31st, midnight (BCS time). Celebrate and sparkle with us!

Dear all,

we are announcing the dates of Travelling gallery with top 10 winners of Escapes photo contest.

The gallery will start in Cabo San Lucas, in El Rincon del Pedregal’s model home on March 26, travel all around Baja and will end in Capella Pedregal on June 3.

Cabo San Lucas, El Rincon del Pedregal: March 26 – April 1

San Jose, CB Riveras office: April 2 – April 8

La Ribera, CB Riveras office: April 9 – April 15

Los Barriles, CB Riveras office: April 16 – April 22

La Paz, Pedregal de La Paz: April 23 – May 6

Todos Santos, CB Riveras office: May 7 – May 13

Elias Calles, CB Riveras office: May 14 – May 20

Cabo San Lucas, Capella Pedregal: May 21 – June 3

We will be posting more information about each location and events in days prior to the event.  

Award ceremony, where we will be awarding the winners of photo contest, will be held at Capella Pedregal by June 3.

Top 10 winners are:

1. Guadalupe Saucedo Aguilera, with dunes from Guerrero Negro

2. Patrick Holdbrook, with pelican at the Sunset

3. Álvaro Luis Berrón Guerrero, with the fisherman and son at the beach in El Tecolote

4. James Stockhorst, with purple sunset at Pedregal de Cabo San Lucas

5. Teresa Ruskowski, with the sunset photo at Santispac

6. Patricia Mendoza Bejarano, with pitahaya

7. Heather Stotlar, with early morning at Pueblo Bonito Sunset

8. Connie Worth, with rainbow at desertic Baja

9. Michel Cavelier, with fishing boat in the sunset

10. Brooke Donovan, with underwater dorado catch

Congratulations! Your photographs are amazing!

Romana Lilic

On February 10 2009 at 5 PM the jury for ESCAPES photo contest gathered to review on-line votes and define top 10 winners. Francisco Estrada, Photomexico, photographer, Mariano Arias Diez, Architect, a10 studio Principal, and Romana Lilic, chief editor of Escapes and Marketing Manager of Grupo Riveras sat down and reviewed the results obtained by public voting, which was available from January 9 to February 10, 12 PM BCS time. Mr Alan Castro, Cultural Director of Los Cabos Municipality, wasn’t able to join us at the final voting.

The decision of a jury was made on the basis of public votes received on www.escapesmagazine.com.mx website, of the rules of the contest, on the quality, resolution, colors and angle of the photograph, and also on unique photograph moment, captured in the photo.

From January 9 to February 10 we had:

-          1,161 individual visitors to www.escapesmagazine.com.mx website

-          1,896 visits to www.escapesmagazine.com.mx website

-          10,975 unique page views on www.escapesmagazine.com.mx website

-          10 countries with top number of visitors: Mexico, United States, Canada, Spain, Germany, Slovenia, Cayman Islands, United Kingdom, Australia, Switzerland.

-          8,792 views of electronic version of the magazine, published on ISSUU

-          676 votes is the total number of votes received for top 50 photos

-          3.65 is the average number of stars submitted to a photo

-          352 is the total number of comments for top 50 photos

Top 10 winners are:

1. Guadalupe Saucedo Aguilera, with dunes from Guerrero Negro
2. Patrick Holdbrook, with pelican at the Sunset
3. Álvaro Luis Berrón Guerrero, with the fisherman and son at the beach in El Tecolote
4. James Stockhorst, with purple sunset at Pedregal de Cabo San Lucas
5. Teresa Ruskowski, with the sunset photo at Santispac
6. Patricia Mendoza Bejarano, with pitahaya
7. Heather Stotlar, with early morning at Pueblo Bonito Sunset
8. Connie Worth, with rainbow at desertic Baja
9. Michel Cavelier, with fishing boat in the sunset
10. Brooke Donovan, with dorado catch underwater

Winners will receive:

Winner #1:

-          A wellness spa retreat for 2 followed by a lunch/dinner at the Beach Club at Capella Pedregal.

-          Memorial cover of ESCAPES magazine

-          Subscription to ESCAPES magazine

Winner #2:

-          Romantic dinner for 2 at the fine dining restaurant Don Manuel’s at Capella Pedregal

-          Memorial cover of ESCAPES magazine

-          Subscription to ESCAPES magazine

Winner #3:

-          Signature spa treatment at Auriga Spa, Capella Pedregal

-          Memorial cover of ESCAPES magazine

-          Subscription to ESCAPES magazine

Winner #4:

-          Spa treatment at El Rincon del Pedregal

-          Memorial cover of ESCAPES magazine

-          Subscription to ESCAPES magazine

Winner #5:

-          Spa treatment at El Rincon del Pedregal

-          Memorial cover of ESCAPES magazine

-          Subscription to ESCAPES magazine

Winners #6-10:

-          Main award will be announced on latest March 2, 12.00 PM (we apologize to the winners for the delay) Gift certificate for lunch / dinner in one of the selected restaurants in Baja

-          Memorial cover of ESCAPES magazine

-          Subscription to ESCAPES magazine

All 42 participants at ESCAPES photo contest will receive:

-          Subscription to ESCAPES magazine

AWARDS CEREMONY and TRAVELLING GALLERY

Travelling gallery will be organized from March to May 2009 all around Baja California Sur, with the final event Awards ceremony, where top 10 winners will receive their awards.

Exact dates and locations of travelling gallery and awards ceremony will be published on www.escapesmagazine.com.mx by latest March 2, 12.00 PM, BCS time. 

Thank you all for participating!

With best regards and wishes,

Romana Lilic

Voting for photo contest has concluded

Dear All,

thank you for voting and participating in the photo contest. Voting for photo contest has concluded at 12.00, noon, BCS time. We will publish the final results tomorrow, February 11, 12.00 BCS time.

Greetings from Baja, Romana

—–

La votacíon en el concurso de fotografía se ha cerrado

Estimados todos,

Gracias por su participacíon y voto en el concurso de fotografía. La vitacíon se ha cerrado a las 12 pm, hora de BCS. Publicaremos los resultados finales mañana, Febrero 11 a las 12 pm, hora de BCS.

Saludos desde Baja,

Romana

Dear All,

we are ready for 2nd round of ESCAPES photo contest! Until 31 December we received 92 photo submissions from 42 participants.

On Thursday, 8 January 2009, the jury of photo contest, composed of Alan Castro, Cultural Director of Los Cabos Municipality, Francisco Estrada, Photographer, Mariano Arias Diez, Architect, a10 studio, Principal, and Romana Lilic, chief editor of Escapes and Marketing Manager of Grupo Riveras set down, reviewed all photographs and selected 50 of them, which are in the second round of the contest, and available for you to vote for your favorite one.

Review all the photos, and vote for your favorite one. Public voting will be available until February 10, midday, and then the jury will sit down again and select the winners from top voted photographs. Top ten photos will be published here on February 11.

Please scrawl down to see all 50 photos, then click on a photo and submit a vote.

Thank you for voting!

Romana Lilic

———————–

Querido lector,

Estamos listos para la 2da etapa del Concurso de Fotografía ESCAPES en Baja. La fecha límite para mandar fotografías fue el 31 de Diciembre y recibimos 92 fotografías de 42 participantes.

El jurado calificador del concurso esta compuesto por Lic. Alan Castro, Director Cultural del Municipio de Los Cabos, Francisco Estrada, reconocido fotógrafo, Arq. Mariano Arias Diez, Director  de a10 studio y Romana Lilic, Editora de la revista Escapes y Directora de Mercadotecnia de Grupo Riveras, los cuales se reunieron el jueves 8 de Enero del 2009 para evaluar las fotografías y seleccionar las mejores 50. Esta selección de imágenes pasaron a la segunda etapa del concurso y están disponibles para que las vean y voten por su fotografía favorita.

Te invitamos a que veas las fotografías y votes por la que te agrade mas. El voto estará abierto al público hasta el medio día del 10 de Febrero. Se tomarán las 10 fotografías con mayor cantidad de votos y serán publicadas en el website el 11 de Febrero. El jurado calificador volverá a reunirse para elegir a los ganadores de dichas fotografías.

Para ver las fotografías, recorre la pantalla hacia abajo. Para votar por alguna, haz click en la fotografía.

Gracias por tu interés!

Romana