NATION-WIDE
New Year's at the W: A night at the slick, clubby boutique hotel

The Real Deal: New Year's Eve one-night stay at W hotels nationwide from $195 per room

When: Dec. 31, 2005 only; check in Dec. 29 - Dec. 31, 2005 check out by Jan. 2, 2006 W Locations: Atlanta, $195; Silicon Valley, $209; Mexico City, $229; Chicago - City Center, $259; Chicago - Lakeshore, $279; San Diego, $339; Seattle and San Francisco, $349; Los Angeles - Westwood, $389; New York, $400; New York - The Court, $450; New York - The Tuscany, $480; New York - Times Square and New York - Union Square, $640.

Details: Rates based on double occupancy. Hotel taxes are additional and vary by state. In Atlanta, the $195 room's taxes amount to $23.40.

Book By: No deadline; based on availability

Contact: W Hotels, 877-822-0000, welcometowhotels.com/2006

The popular and party-friendly W's 'Fab New Year' package treats guests to a bottle of Francis Coppola's Sofia Blan de Blancs champagne; dipped fortune cookies (irreverent messages claim "regret is so last year" and include a secret web link for a third-night-free offer); a limited edition 2006 calendar from artist Shag (shag.com); breakfast the following morning, and a 2 P.M. checkout leaving plenty of recovery time. In comparison, rooms at the W Atlanta typically run $207 - $289 per night.

A similar New Year's Eve package is available at the W Montreal from $404 ($469 Canadian). And in New Orleans, the W French Quarter is reopening on Dec. 30, 2005 and rooms will be priced from $239 on Dec. 31st, though without any added amenities.

LAS VEGAS
Party hard in Sin City: hotel and air-hotel packages, event tickets 

The Real Deal: Three-night hotel packages, Dec. 29 - 31, include the Tropicana with average room rates of $211.90--note that prices spike dramatically for New Year's Eve (Thurs. is $89.70 and Saturday is $305.80). The same applied to Monte Carlo averages $273.37 (Thurs. is $109.74 and Sat. is $379.96). Other participating hotels include New York New York, Luxor, TI, Aladdin and more.

Air-hotel packages include airfare between New York City and Vegas and three nights at the Wynn ($1,451.90), the Paris ($1,221.40), and the San Remo ($900.40). Two-night air-hotel packages, Dec. 30 - 31 are also available: Wynn ($1,254.40), Paris ($1,202.40), Golden Nugget ($875.90).

Club passes are available for blow-out parties at Tao, Light or Fremont St., ranging from $40 to over $200 per person. Performances include Celine's at Caesar's Palace ($115), Avenue Q ($99), and the Four Tops at the Stardust ($54.95). These prices are often comparable or just slightly discounted; the value is in getting very desirable seats for events that may be otherwise sold-out