Jan 18, 2008
See you on Tuesday
I'll be taking off Monday for Martin Luther King, Jr. day and won't be back blogging until Tuesday.
Labels: holidays
The current champ in bargain-priced air-and-land packages to the Caribbean is Atlas Vacations, of Brooklyn, New York, hands down
I base the above statement on numerous offerings, like a price of $471 per person, including round-trip air from New York, for a stay in April or May of seven nights at the White Sands Beach Hotel in Negril, Jamaica, offered by the aggressive Atlas (other firms would probably charge $471 for round-trip airfare alone) of Brooklyn, New York (which is not to be confused with a generally-higher-priced Atlas Tours & Cruises). This one (with the bargains) is reached at tel. 800/634-1057 or 888/285-3390 or at www.atlasvacations.net.
Price of the same package from other cities? From Miami $390; from Chicago $566; from Baltimore $540; from Los Angeles $653. Next time you're looking for an ultra-cheap Caribbean vacation at a perfectly proper and pleasant hotel, try them.
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Price of the same package from other cities? From Miami $390; from Chicago $566; from Baltimore $540; from Los Angeles $653. Next time you're looking for an ultra-cheap Caribbean vacation at a perfectly proper and pleasant hotel, try them.
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Labels: caribbean, deals, travel agent
For some of the cheapest hotel stays in America today, go to the Top Picks section of the Spirit Airways website
As if it were a charitable organization with no thought for its own commercial interests, Spirit Airways (www.spiritair.com) devotes a portion of its website to listing hotel bargains that aren't associated with a Spirit Air flight -- you can use them without going near a Spirit Airways plane.
And what bargains they are! This new budget champion among airlines has apparently made itself a magnet for attracting the lowest-priced deals, or is regarded as such by various hungry hotels. Current examples: $45 a night for a suite sleeping six persons in Kissimmee, Florida, near Walt Disney World. You call the hotel directly and simply ask for the "Top Picks" special. $69 a night including continental breakfast for a weekend double room at the Comfort Inn of Dulles International Airport, Washington, D.C. (they normally sell for $189). And again, you call the hotel directly and simply tell them you're requesting a Spirit Airways "Top Pick".
$25 a night for a winter room in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. $35.95 per room at the Rodeway Inn International Drive in Orlando, Florida. $49 per room at the Xanadu Beach Resort & Marina in Freeport, Grand Bahama. 50% off the rate of a room at a resort hotel in Roatan, Bay Island, Honduras.
Those are examples. With Spirit currently challenging Southwest Airlines as the patron saint of cost-conscious Americans, its website seems to contain unbeatable bargains in the areas (especially, Florida) to which Spirit flies.
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And what bargains they are! This new budget champion among airlines has apparently made itself a magnet for attracting the lowest-priced deals, or is regarded as such by various hungry hotels. Current examples: $45 a night for a suite sleeping six persons in Kissimmee, Florida, near Walt Disney World. You call the hotel directly and simply ask for the "Top Picks" special. $69 a night including continental breakfast for a weekend double room at the Comfort Inn of Dulles International Airport, Washington, D.C. (they normally sell for $189). And again, you call the hotel directly and simply tell them you're requesting a Spirit Airways "Top Pick".
$25 a night for a winter room in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. $35.95 per room at the Rodeway Inn International Drive in Orlando, Florida. $49 per room at the Xanadu Beach Resort & Marina in Freeport, Grand Bahama. 50% off the rate of a room at a resort hotel in Roatan, Bay Island, Honduras.
Those are examples. With Spirit currently challenging Southwest Airlines as the patron saint of cost-conscious Americans, its website seems to contain unbeatable bargains in the areas (especially, Florida) to which Spirit flies.
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Labels: accommodations, airlines, deals
When a seven-night cruise on a good-quality ship sells for around $400 per person, attention should be paid
Most weeks, the chairman of Vacations To Go -- the big Texan cruise broker -- posts a list of what he considers his top bargains. This week, to my surprise, several of his 10 top offers are priced at around $400 per person for a full seven-night cruise in high season (for the tropics) on a good quality ship (and even, in two instances, on an upscale ship). Whether or not these prices reflect a softening of the cruise market in general, at a time when talk of recession is in the air, the offers are quite extraordinary. I have listed the highlights for six of them below, and suggest that you go to www.vacationstogo.com for further details:
- Caribbean, 7 days on Royal Caribbean, departs Santo Domingo Jan. 27, starting at $399 (FastDeal # 10878)
- Mexico, 7 days on Princess, departs Los Angeles Feb. 9, starting at $405 (FastDeal # 20633)
- Caribbean, 7 days on Carnival, departs Miami Feb. 24, starting at $469 (FastDeal # 21194)
- Caribbean, 7 days on Holland America, departs Fort Lauderdale Mar. 2, starting at $549 (FastDeal # 17815)
- Mexico/Central America, 7 days on Norwegian, departs New Orleans Jan. 27, starting at $479 (FastDeal # 15662)
- Mexico, 7 days on Carnival, departs Long Beach Apr. 13, starting at $499, (FastDeal # 19503)
Labels: deals cruise
Jan 17, 2008
Any vegetarians among our readers? Vegans? Here's a travel website just for you
A friend was recently regaling me with tales of a business trip to South America, during which eight members of his group were taken to "an excellent Argentine restaurant." Anyone who knows Argentina knows that it is one of the world's most red meat-obsessed countries, a Mecca for anyone who enjoys a good, hearty steak. The problem was, two members of my friend's group were vegetarians, and a third was a vegan, and spent a morose evening picking at plates of overcooked spaghetti at what turned out to be, indeed, a typical Argentine steakhouse.
If you are a vegetarian or vegan who has become resigned to vacations of endless salads and pasta bowls, take heart. There is a web travel guide called Happy Cow (www.happycow.net) that describes more than 7,700 meatless restaurants, health food stores, and vegetarian B&Bs in more than 55 countries, complete with user reviews. There's also a smattering of everything from organic cooking schools in Tuscany to a vegetarian hot springs resort in Guadalajara.
In one of many thoughtful touches, the page of results for a given country includes a list of topical phrases in that country's language (how to say "Do you have a vegetarian dish?" or "I don't eat butter, cheese, eggs, or honey.") The site also has a primer on air travel for vegetarians, links to vegetarian guidebooks, rates the top 10 for vegetarian-friendly cities, and provides tips for staying healthy on the road.
Other, less well-organized and less complete resources include www.vegetariansabroad.com, www.vegtravel.com, www.vrg.org/travel, www.vegeats.com, and www.vegetarianusa.com (lots of good resources, but only for domestic travel).
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If you are a vegetarian or vegan who has become resigned to vacations of endless salads and pasta bowls, take heart. There is a web travel guide called Happy Cow (www.happycow.net) that describes more than 7,700 meatless restaurants, health food stores, and vegetarian B&Bs in more than 55 countries, complete with user reviews. There's also a smattering of everything from organic cooking schools in Tuscany to a vegetarian hot springs resort in Guadalajara.
In one of many thoughtful touches, the page of results for a given country includes a list of topical phrases in that country's language (how to say "Do you have a vegetarian dish?" or "I don't eat butter, cheese, eggs, or honey.") The site also has a primer on air travel for vegetarians, links to vegetarian guidebooks, rates the top 10 for vegetarian-friendly cities, and provides tips for staying healthy on the road.
Other, less well-organized and less complete resources include www.vegetariansabroad.com, www.vegtravel.com, www.vrg.org/travel, www.vegeats.com, and www.vegetarianusa.com (lots of good resources, but only for domestic travel).
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Hurry to book a blockbuster airfare sale to London -- starting at $378
The big travel news this week is an unusual winter sale on British Airways for both air (to London) and accommodations (in London). What the Brits have announced would be a real steal even if it were limited to the specially low winter airfares that BA is offering on roundtrip tickets to London: starting at $378 out of New York or Washington, D.C., $478 from Los Angeles or San Francisco (15 other departure cities are available at similar or in-between prices).
What makes the deal truly spectacular is that those prices include -- repeat, include -- a free, two-night stay in any of nine three- and four-star London hotels. That's a huge bonus in this age of high European prices and a weak dollar, when even three-star properties in London are charging as much as $200 a night for a double room.
And these aren't in the boondocks, but in such prize locations as Covent Garden, Kensington, and Chelsea, with many of the hotels belonging to prominent chains such as Jury's Inn, Holiday Inn, Marriott, Premier Inn, and Comfort Inn. Do a fast web search and you'll discover that many of the above names charge an average rate of $204 in winter. Deduct that savings from the airfare and suddenly the real cost for flying the Atlantic round-trip can amount to a mere $174.
The catch? You must book by January 24 (that's less than a week from now), and the bargain is good only for travel from January 22 through March 23.
Buried in the fine print is the note that, if you are a www.ba.com member (you can always sign up just before booking), you can get an additional $20 off. Also in that fine print are a weekend surcharge of $30, a Saturday-night stay requirement (for the roundtrip air portion; you can pick any nights of your stay on which to invoke the free hotel room), and those unavoidable various airport fees and government taxes of $165 to $240. Also, only two people traveling together get two hotel nights free; solo travelers can also book the deal, but get only one free hotel night.
There does not, however, seem to be any restriction that confines you to stay at that hotel beyond your freebie nights, after which you can either opt to continue your stay there, search out even cheaper accommodations, or take off from London to explore more of Great Britain or Europe -- the only restriction being a maximum stay of 11 months.
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What makes the deal truly spectacular is that those prices include -- repeat, include -- a free, two-night stay in any of nine three- and four-star London hotels. That's a huge bonus in this age of high European prices and a weak dollar, when even three-star properties in London are charging as much as $200 a night for a double room.
And these aren't in the boondocks, but in such prize locations as Covent Garden, Kensington, and Chelsea, with many of the hotels belonging to prominent chains such as Jury's Inn, Holiday Inn, Marriott, Premier Inn, and Comfort Inn. Do a fast web search and you'll discover that many of the above names charge an average rate of $204 in winter. Deduct that savings from the airfare and suddenly the real cost for flying the Atlantic round-trip can amount to a mere $174.
The catch? You must book by January 24 (that's less than a week from now), and the bargain is good only for travel from January 22 through March 23.
Buried in the fine print is the note that, if you are a www.ba.com member (you can always sign up just before booking), you can get an additional $20 off. Also in that fine print are a weekend surcharge of $30, a Saturday-night stay requirement (for the roundtrip air portion; you can pick any nights of your stay on which to invoke the free hotel room), and those unavoidable various airport fees and government taxes of $165 to $240. Also, only two people traveling together get two hotel nights free; solo travelers can also book the deal, but get only one free hotel night.
There does not, however, seem to be any restriction that confines you to stay at that hotel beyond your freebie nights, after which you can either opt to continue your stay there, search out even cheaper accommodations, or take off from London to explore more of Great Britain or Europe -- the only restriction being a maximum stay of 11 months.
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Labels: deals, london, packages
From February 7 to February 24, rooms are had for GBP19 a night at Britain's Travelodge chain
For a quick look at a travel phenomenon, go quick to www.travelodge.co.uk, the website of the British Travelodge chain (not to be confused with Travelodges in the U.S.). In Britain, Travelodge is the equivalent of Motel 6, astonishingly cheap, in semi-industrial settings (sometimes) next to a gas station or a fast food shop, but in some few instances in perfectly proper areas in London. And for stays from February 7 to February 24, it's offering rooms throughout its system for £19 pounds (about $38) per room.The sale kicked off at 6am this morning, but I'm rather certain that all sale-priced rooms will have sold out by the time you read this post. But I mention the oddity simply so that you will keep Travelodge in mind for use on your own trip to Britain later in the year. My daughter, with her family (husband and two children, 8 and 4) stayed in two different bargain-priced Travelodge hotels during their visit to Scotland this past summer, and reported having a totally pleasant experience.
Travelodge in Britain was born in 1985, and only recently began coming to the attention of American travelers. It now operates 318 Travelodge hotels throughout that country and will be opening 40 more this year. Even when the £19-per-room sale isn't on, Travelodge hotels frequently offer rates of £29 ($58) per room for bookings made at least 21 days in advance (such reservations must not only be made and paid in advance but are non-cancellable and non-refundable).
I think you'll get a kick out of looking at various pages on the company's website. It shows that someone in Britain is fighting back against the extraordinary price structure that now prevails in that country -- a level of prices made worse by the current weak value of the U.S. dollar.
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Labels: accommodations, great britain, london
Spirit Airlines has become a mighty force in low-cost travel; always go directly to its website for the best of its bargains
Spirit Airlines began as an oddity, pure and simple, a cut-rate airline flying mainly to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, of all places. And then it caught on. Today, it has countless flights each day all up and down the east coast (from Boston, New York, Atlantic City, Washington, and even Atlanta to and from Florida (mainly Ft. Lauderdale, where it is now the largest airline using that airport, but elsewhere, too), with onward flights to the Caribbean, Mexico and Central America, and still other flights from Detroit to Las Vegas and Los Angeles. (It has still more flights from Chicago to Cancun and Florida).
On each one of those routes, it is a big-time price leader. Its fares sometimes boggle the mind ($9 is one offering) and almost always undercut the rates of other airlines on the same routes (Delta, American, even JetBlue). How do you spot those bargains? By going direct to the Spirit Airways website (www.spiritair.com). Too many of the airfare search engines do not list Spirit's flights, and often you must simply ferret them out yourself.
This week, Spirit announced a major expansion of its fleet and labor force (a 40% jump). It's hoped that those additional personnel will eliminate the lines that often snake from Spirit check-in counters in Florida.
I met a friend last week who had recently flown Spirit from Fort Lauderdale to New York. I asked him to describe the experience, and he responded as follows:
I did fly Spirit to/from NYC in December, and found the in-flight experience adequate (not as good as, say, JetBlue but better than other carriers I've flown); flight attendants were fine and polite enough, cabin condition was unremarkable, service minimal but such is the case on most domestic flights these days anyway. There was a 25-minute delay coming FLL-LGA and a 35-minute delay LGA-FLL. I did indeed opt for Spirit because it was the best deal at the time. At the airport, flying up I was very lucky because the lines at the FLL terminal were monstrous. I finally found an employee and asked him if I needed to stand on line if I didn't have checked baggage. Instead of answering me directly he took me and a small group of other passengers to an underutilized out of the way check-in desk, drastically cutting my wait time. It was never clear, however, if the no -checked-baggage thing was in fact the deciding issue. A friend flew separately and had to wait in a similar line for an hour. No particular lines or hassles at LGA; all the hassle was at FLL, which is Spirit's hub.
Note that in announcing its growth in employees, Spirit has called attention to conditions in Fort Lauderdale and will apparently greatly increase the personnel staffing the check-in counters there. I'd be happy to hear from other readers about their experience with Spirit.
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Jan 16, 2008
Rejoice! There's a great website devoted to understanding credit card fees and foreign currency transactions
Finally, there's a site that does all the hard work when it comes to one of the most dreadfully dull yet vital subjects in travel: crunching the numbers and digging through the details of credit card foreign transaction fees, currency exchange rates, and other money-handling issues.
Travel Guide for Your Finances (www.travelfinances.com), maintained by an American ex-pat living in Europe for the past 11 years, is part resource guide and part blog about the issues of travel finances.
On the resources side, there are charts comparing the various fees for major credit card-issuing banks, links to current currency exchange information, details on dozens of different credit cards and their rewards schemes, lists of fees charged by issuers of ATM cards, and definitions of the various legal and monetary mumbo-jumbo relating to foreign charges and transactions that one encounters on credit cards and bank statements.
It could be a bit better organized, but at least it is chock-full of good information to help you make more informed decisions when choosing a credit card to use on your travels.
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Travel Guide for Your Finances (www.travelfinances.com), maintained by an American ex-pat living in Europe for the past 11 years, is part resource guide and part blog about the issues of travel finances.
On the resources side, there are charts comparing the various fees for major credit card-issuing banks, links to current currency exchange information, details on dozens of different credit cards and their rewards schemes, lists of fees charged by issuers of ATM cards, and definitions of the various legal and monetary mumbo-jumbo relating to foreign charges and transactions that one encounters on credit cards and bank statements.
It could be a bit better organized, but at least it is chock-full of good information to help you make more informed decisions when choosing a credit card to use on your travels.
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A maritime mystery: are those new, gigantic cruiseships too top heavy?
I am about to return to a subject where common-sense doubts continue to trouble me. My concern is whether those giant, new, 19-deck-high cruiseships carrying 3,000 passengers are top-heavy and more prone to drastic tilting.
In July of 2006, the 3,000-passenger, 113,000-ton, 19-deck-high Crown Princess, of Princess Cruises, was moving at top speed off the coast of Florida. A junior officer on duty noticed that the automatic navigation system of the ship was executing too tight a turn. So he detached the automatic pilot, took control of the wheel himself, but in the stress of the situation, turned the ship into the direction of the turn rather than away from it. He went port rather than starboard. And the giant ship, executing an even sharper turn, heeled over by 24 degrees, causing unsecured furniture and furnishings to crash about, sending scores of passengers flying into walls and furniture, and causing severe injuries to many of them.
This past week, after an 18-month investigation, the National Transportation Safety Board issued its findings that human failure was the cause of the incident, chastising both the ship's officers and the cruiseline for lack of training in executing turns. The N.T.S.B., as far as I can tell, made no mention of the design of the massive ship itself, nor has anyone else (other than yours truly) raised a question about modern cruiseship design.
You've all seen photos of these immense mega-vessels. They soar high into the sky, much higher than older cruiseships, and sometimes have as many as 19 decks ascending from the water line. And my question is: does such height, and the weight concentrated so high from the hull, cause the ship to tilt over more when making a tight turn than a normal smaller cruiseship with only six or seven decks? Even making a turn at full speed, would a smaller ship have heeled over by as much as 24 degrees, thus hurling passengers off their feet? Granted that even a smaller ship would tilt over, would it tilt over that much?
That question wasn't answered by the National Transportation Safety Board, but I think it should be asked and answered. Are any of our readers knowledgeable about the subject and able to allay my concerns? Any maritime engineers out there? Has anybody wondered about the radical new designs of massive new cruiseships?
Several years ago, in the wake of the Challenger disaster, the famous physicist, the late Richard Feynman, stumbled upon the cause of that tragedy by simply dipping a section of "O" Ring into a glass of ice water -- and found that the "O" Ring cracked when it encountered near-freezing temperatures. He used his common sense. Heaven knows I'm not a Richard Feynman. But doesn't common sense indicate a problem here? Suppose future cruiseships were built 40 decks high. Would anyone doubt that the ship would heel over to a much-larger-than-normal extent when executing a turn? Are 19 decks too much? Please let me hear from you.
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In July of 2006, the 3,000-passenger, 113,000-ton, 19-deck-high Crown Princess, of Princess Cruises, was moving at top speed off the coast of Florida. A junior officer on duty noticed that the automatic navigation system of the ship was executing too tight a turn. So he detached the automatic pilot, took control of the wheel himself, but in the stress of the situation, turned the ship into the direction of the turn rather than away from it. He went port rather than starboard. And the giant ship, executing an even sharper turn, heeled over by 24 degrees, causing unsecured furniture and furnishings to crash about, sending scores of passengers flying into walls and furniture, and causing severe injuries to many of them.
This past week, after an 18-month investigation, the National Transportation Safety Board issued its findings that human failure was the cause of the incident, chastising both the ship's officers and the cruiseline for lack of training in executing turns. The N.T.S.B., as far as I can tell, made no mention of the design of the massive ship itself, nor has anyone else (other than yours truly) raised a question about modern cruiseship design.
You've all seen photos of these immense mega-vessels. They soar high into the sky, much higher than older cruiseships, and sometimes have as many as 19 decks ascending from the water line. And my question is: does such height, and the weight concentrated so high from the hull, cause the ship to tilt over more when making a tight turn than a normal smaller cruiseship with only six or seven decks? Even making a turn at full speed, would a smaller ship have heeled over by as much as 24 degrees, thus hurling passengers off their feet? Granted that even a smaller ship would tilt over, would it tilt over that much?
That question wasn't answered by the National Transportation Safety Board, but I think it should be asked and answered. Are any of our readers knowledgeable about the subject and able to allay my concerns? Any maritime engineers out there? Has anybody wondered about the radical new designs of massive new cruiseships?
Several years ago, in the wake of the Challenger disaster, the famous physicist, the late Richard Feynman, stumbled upon the cause of that tragedy by simply dipping a section of "O" Ring into a glass of ice water -- and found that the "O" Ring cracked when it encountered near-freezing temperatures. He used his common sense. Heaven knows I'm not a Richard Feynman. But doesn't common sense indicate a problem here? Suppose future cruiseships were built 40 decks high. Would anyone doubt that the ship would heel over to a much-larger-than-normal extent when executing a turn? Are 19 decks too much? Please let me hear from you.
Write and read comments about this post.
Labels: cruise
Homeaway.com has emerged as a leading source of inexpensive vacation homes and apartments
So many large new companies are beginning to offer the rental of vacation homes or vacation apartments on a worldwide basis that it's hard to keep up. Starting some 12 years ago, you had Vacation Rental by Owner (www.vrbo.com), followed soon by several similar but smaller firms, than followed last year by the big Endless Vacation Rentals (www.evrentals.com) (owned by the immense Wyndham Hotels corporation) and even more recently by Zonder.com (www.zonder.com). And, of course, Rentalo.com (www.rentalo.com) is also active.
But the mightiest of them all turns out be a firm of which you may not have heard: Homeaway (www.homeaway.com), of Austin, Texas. Formed in 2005, but not really operating until late 2006, it has recently scooped up the big VRBO.com, merged with it, and today offers far more than 100,000 vacation rentals in the U.S. and abroad. Part of its appeal is an unusually attractive website that's one of the most logical and informative of any in the field. (Take a look even if you're not presently in the market for such a rental).
Since Homeaway now owns VRBO, and presumably has added VRBO's properties to its own inventory, is there any reason any longer to use VRBO? Yes, claimed an executive of Homeaway with whom I spoke yesterday afternoon. Though a large percentage of their respective inventories are the same, the two collections of homes and apartments aren't totally similar, and you can occasionally find a bargain on one site that doesn't appear on the other.
Renting vacation homes or apartments in place of hotels has become standard operating procedure among some of the smartest cost-conscious travelers. Such properties offer advantages of both cost and convenience, in areas ranging from Orlando and other sunbelt locations to Paris and London (where apartment rentals have become almost necessary for groups of four and more persons traveling together). As a test, go to Homeaway's website, click on the state of Florida, then click on several of the locations in the Orlando area, and after accessing several offers, go deeper into the site for the many photographs that are included of each property. Who wouldn't prefer a multi-room home-with-swimming pool to a hotel charging exactly the same?
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But the mightiest of them all turns out be a firm of which you may not have heard: Homeaway (www.homeaway.com), of Austin, Texas. Formed in 2005, but not really operating until late 2006, it has recently scooped up the big VRBO.com, merged with it, and today offers far more than 100,000 vacation rentals in the U.S. and abroad. Part of its appeal is an unusually attractive website that's one of the most logical and informative of any in the field. (Take a look even if you're not presently in the market for such a rental).
Since Homeaway now owns VRBO, and presumably has added VRBO's properties to its own inventory, is there any reason any longer to use VRBO? Yes, claimed an executive of Homeaway with whom I spoke yesterday afternoon. Though a large percentage of their respective inventories are the same, the two collections of homes and apartments aren't totally similar, and you can occasionally find a bargain on one site that doesn't appear on the other.
Renting vacation homes or apartments in place of hotels has become standard operating procedure among some of the smartest cost-conscious travelers. Such properties offer advantages of both cost and convenience, in areas ranging from Orlando and other sunbelt locations to Paris and London (where apartment rentals have become almost necessary for groups of four and more persons traveling together). As a test, go to Homeaway's website, click on the state of Florida, then click on several of the locations in the Orlando area, and after accessing several offers, go deeper into the site for the many photographs that are included of each property. Who wouldn't prefer a multi-room home-with-swimming pool to a hotel charging exactly the same?
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Labels: accommodations, websites
A short trip to a romantic European city over Valentine's Day is something the two of you will never forget
Thursday, February 13, is Valentine's Day, the year's most romantic reason for travel. Almost imperceptibly, the number of people choosing that occasion for trans-Atlantic trips has grown so massive that tour operators now devote several pages of their brochures and catalogues to listing the available options.If you'll go to the website of Gate 1 Travel (tel. 800/682-3333; www.gate1travel.com) and then click on "holidays" and then on "Valentine's Day," you'll discover no fewer than 34 air-and-land packages to Europe priced at unusually low levels for Valentine's Day travelers. For four-night stays overlapping the holiday, in glorious capital cities ranging from Paris to Budapest, Florence, Lisbon, Prague, Madrid, Vienna, Barcelona and more, you'll find prices almost always below $700 per person and always below $800 per person, including airfare, accommodations, daily breakfast -- and best of all, fuel surcharge. The only items not included are breakfast, dinner, and government fees and taxes (the latter usually amounting to around $100 per person).
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Jan 15, 2008
Starting now, you've got rights if you're stuck on a grounded airplane in the State of New York; shouldn't your state pass a similar bill?
To the surprise of many, a Federal district court recently upheld -- repeat, upheld -- the New York Passenger Rights Law which requires that airlines supply food, water, fresh air, and clean toilets, to passengers in a plane stuck on the tarmac for more than three hours. That statute went into effect at the beginning of this month, and all us should be aware of it. If such a delay in taking off should occur to you, at a New York airport, you have a right to demand that the airline send cleaners and supplies onto the plane (hoping they'll simply return it to the gate instead).
The New York law doesn't go nearly as far as some had hoped. I, for one, wanted a less-ambiguous requirement that the airlines must physically return such a plane to the gate and permit passengers to disembark and relax within the airport terminal. But I also feared that even such a weak requirement would be invalidated by the courts on the grounds that New York State was interfering in a federal matter (regulation of the airlines).
Henceforth, when three hours have elapsed, and your head is pounding from the claustrophobia and poor air of an enclosed, non-flying airplane, make yourself heard. Point out that if fresh air, food, water and clean toilets are not brought to the plane immediately, that the airline faces substantial monetary penalties.
And why not contact a member of your own legislature and suggest that they file a similar bill to for your own local airports?
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The New York law doesn't go nearly as far as some had hoped. I, for one, wanted a less-ambiguous requirement that the airlines must physically return such a plane to the gate and permit passengers to disembark and relax within the airport terminal. But I also feared that even such a weak requirement would be invalidated by the courts on the grounds that New York State was interfering in a federal matter (regulation of the airlines).
Henceforth, when three hours have elapsed, and your head is pounding from the claustrophobia and poor air of an enclosed, non-flying airplane, make yourself heard. Point out that if fresh air, food, water and clean toilets are not brought to the plane immediately, that the airline faces substantial monetary penalties.
And why not contact a member of your own legislature and suggest that they file a similar bill to for your own local airports?
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A weeklong air-and-land package to Israel comes to $1,349 per person; that's the lowest price I've been able to find
Tourism has returned to Israel, and in a big way. So many Americans are currently traveling there that hungry tour operators have stopped offering trips for under $1,000 and charge considerably more than winter packages would cost, let's say, to Athens (a near-equivalent distance). And because the roundtrip airfare to Israel is a whopping $999, even during the winter months, the cheapest one-week air-and-land package is being sold at $1,349 per person, including fuel surcharge.
That price is available from Isram World (tel. 800/223-7460; www.isram.com), the largest tour operator to Israel, and it includes round-trip air and seven good-quality hotel nights with full Israeli breakfast daily in your choice of Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa or Eilat, or any combination of these cities. You leave any day, from now until the end of March.
Sorry I can't find an under-$1,000 price, but for a full seven-day stay at a combination of several cities, this seems a reasonable value.
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That price is available from Isram World (tel. 800/223-7460; www.isram.com), the largest tour operator to Israel, and it includes round-trip air and seven good-quality hotel nights with full Israeli breakfast daily in your choice of Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Haifa or Eilat, or any combination of these cities. You leave any day, from now until the end of March.
Sorry I can't find an under-$1,000 price, but for a full seven-day stay at a combination of several cities, this seems a reasonable value.
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How to learn about a legendary sponsor of inexpensive walking tours through Britain and Europe
At a travel show in New York City, which I addressed this past weekend, person after person approached me to urge that I talk about the walking tours of Britain and Europe operated by a legendary British company called HF Holidays (www.hfholidays.co.uk). It was founded in 1913, owns many of the country hotels it uses, operates as a virtual non- profit, and uses volunteers as its tour leaders.Nearly 50,000 people a year sign on for HF Walking Holidays, and as best I can determine the cost is usually no more than $150 a day per person, sometimes a bit more, sometimes a bit less, for accommodations, guided walking for between six and ten miles a day, full English breakfast daily, a picnic lunch, and a three-course evening meal. Most tours run from 4 to 7 days, and they supply an oasis of low cost in the pricey terrain of British tours. I can't sufficiently stress how enthusiastic have been the recommendations for HF Holidays that I've received from trustworthy people.
Why not take a few minutes to scan the website? It's quite a discovery, and more than merits a careful examination of many of its offerings.
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Labels: active, cycling, hiking, tour companies
$999 for an independent, weeklong trip to Peru, including round-trip airfare from Miami, is perhaps the best current bargain in travel
A leading contender for "world's best travel bargain" is the air-and-land package to Peru currently being marketed for a short time by Sunny Land Tours of New Jersey (tel. 800/783-7839; www.peruhoteldeals.com), a prestigious tour company in business for more than 40 years. It's an independent trip on which you can leave any day, round-trip from Miami, to Lima, Peru. And in February and March, on mid-week departures from Miami, the price is an amazing $999 person.
Once there, you first spend two nights in Lima, receiving full American breakfast every morning, and then take a short flight (included in the price of the tour) to Cuzco, gateway to the ancient, hidden city of Machu Picchu. In Cuzco, you spend four nights, receiving full American breakfast daily, dinner and a show, and you can either spend the remainder of your time touring Cuzco and vicinity, or else (and almost everyone will do this) take an optional ($199) tour by train to Machu Picchu, from which you walk to your view of the world famous "lost city of the Incas."
You then fly back to Lima from Cuzco (included in the price of the package) and board a return flight from Lima to Miami.
Even adding the $199 optional excursion to Machu Picchu to the basic $999 cost of the tour results in a remarkable value, especially when you consider that you have flown round-trip to Lima, included in the cost of the tour.
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Once there, you first spend two nights in Lima, receiving full American breakfast every morning, and then take a short flight (included in the price of the tour) to Cuzco, gateway to the ancient, hidden city of Machu Picchu. In Cuzco, you spend four nights, receiving full American breakfast daily, dinner and a show, and you can either spend the remainder of your time touring Cuzco and vicinity, or else (and almost everyone will do this) take an optional ($199) tour by train to Machu Picchu, from which you walk to your view of the world famous "lost city of the Incas."
You then fly back to Lima from Cuzco (included in the price of the package) and board a return flight from Lima to Miami.
Even adding the $199 optional excursion to Machu Picchu to the basic $999 cost of the tour results in a remarkable value, especially when you consider that you have flown round-trip to Lima, included in the cost of the tour.
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Jan 14, 2008
If you're looking for a quick trip to an inexpensive but historic and important city of Europe, consider going to Kraców
Eastern Europe hasn't yet adopted the Euro as its currency, and still endows the U.S. dollar with considerable value. I've noted before that during this period of dollar weakness, a great many travelers are shifting their gaze to Eastern Europe, where Poland -- and especially its touristic standout of Kraców -- is attracting more and more Americans. In terms of art, architecture and attractions, it compares favorably with many of the key cities of Western Europe.
Founded in the 9th century, Kraców was the seat of the kingdom of Poland from 1038 to 1596, then capital of a grand duchy from 1846 up to 1918; in many ways it's still considered the country's cultural and religious capital. All that pomp and circumstance has left this city on the Vistula River, 2½ hours by train or 4½ by road from Warsaw, with some mighty fancy buildings, and its old town is one of the gems of Europe (and a UNESCO World Heritage Site).
The grandest edifices of all are the majestic Renaissance castle and cathedral on Wawel hill, but you'll get even more mileage out of wandering the Old Town, bordered by an impressive fortification wall called the Barbican and with the Rynek Glówny (Main Market Square), the Gothic Cloth Hall and St. Mary's Church, at its center. Meanwhile, the Kazimierz district with its synagogue, museum and narrow streets is one of the best preserved Jewish quarters in Europe (Schindler's List scenes were shot here).
As for don't-miss day trips, a grim but extremely worthwhile bit of Jewish and European history lies an hour's drive south at the infamous preserved Nazi concentration camp near Oscwiecim (and better known as Auschwitz-Birkenau). A happier (and pretty amazing) attraction lies just 20 minutes away: the ancient Wieliczka salt mine with its underground lakes plus statuary and even a cathedral hewn out of NaCl (all local tour operators run excursions to both).
Kraców boasts a good number of fine hotels and restaurants these days, a decent percentage of them quite affordable (there's also a great clubbing/nightlife scene, fed by a vibrant Jagellonian University student population). Throughout your stay, you'll be pleasantly surprised by the reasonable level of prices not simply for rooms and meals but for tours, transportation, and nightlife.
All flights from North America connect through Warsaw and other European cities like London and Frankfurt. North American specialists that offer escorted or unescorted land-air deals to Kraców include Orbis Tours (tel. 800/867-6526; www.orbistravel.com) and Sophisticated Traveler (www.affordablepoland.com). For more info, contact the Polish National Tourist Office at 201/420-9910 or www.polandtour.org, or the Kraców City Hall website, www.krakow.pl/en.
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Founded in the 9th century, Kraców was the seat of the kingdom of Poland from 1038 to 1596, then capital of a grand duchy from 1846 up to 1918; in many ways it's still considered the country's cultural and religious capital. All that pomp and circumstance has left this city on the Vistula River, 2½ hours by train or 4½ by road from Warsaw, with some mighty fancy buildings, and its old town is one of the gems of Europe (and a UNESCO World Heritage Site).
The grandest edifices of all are the majestic Renaissance castle and cathedral on Wawel hill, but you'll get even more mileage out of wandering the Old Town, bordered by an impressive fortification wall called the Barbican and with the Rynek Glówny (Main Market Square), the Gothic Cloth Hall and St. Mary's Church, at its center. Meanwhile, the Kazimierz district with its synagogue, museum and narrow streets is one of the best preserved Jewish quarters in Europe (Schindler's List scenes were shot here).
As for don't-miss day trips, a grim but extremely worthwhile bit of Jewish and European history lies an hour's drive south at the infamous preserved Nazi concentration camp near Oscwiecim (and better known as Auschwitz-Birkenau). A happier (and pretty amazing) attraction lies just 20 minutes away: the ancient Wieliczka salt mine with its underground lakes plus statuary and even a cathedral hewn out of NaCl (all local tour operators run excursions to both).
Kraców boasts a good number of fine hotels and restaurants these days, a decent percentage of them quite affordable (there's also a great clubbing/nightlife scene, fed by a vibrant Jagellonian University student population). Throughout your stay, you'll be pleasantly surprised by the reasonable level of prices not simply for rooms and meals but for tours, transportation, and nightlife.
All flights from North America connect through Warsaw and other European cities like London and Frankfurt. North American specialists that offer escorted or unescorted land-air deals to Kraców include Orbis Tours (tel. 800/867-6526; www.orbistravel.com) and Sophisticated Traveler (www.affordablepoland.com). For more info, contact the Polish National Tourist Office at 201/420-9910 or www.polandtour.org, or the Kraców City Hall website, www.krakow.pl/en.
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Labels: poland
Despite the loss of their dynamic bargain-spotter, White Travel Service is continuing to offer remarkable cruise discounts
For many years, a single-minded executive named Rick White who probably went on more cruises (scores and scores of them) than any other travel pro, caused his company, White Travel Service, to become the source of amazing (he called them "incredible") cruise bargains. Cruiselines knew that if they had several cabins unsold on a particular sailing, they could always rely on White Travel to sell them -- and therefore they funneled those "distress cruises" to Rick, sometimes on an exclusive basis, in the knowledge that he could quietly sell them. In this manner, a purely-local West Hartford travel agency became a national power in cruises.
Rick White died of heart failure about six weeks ago, and I for one expected his agency to fade quietly away. Instead, his sister and mother have seized the reins and are continuing to announce some of the most remarkable cruise bargains ever. This week, they announced prices of:
1) $699 per person, including port charges of $215, on the May 9, 2008, sailing of Alaskan waters on the Celebrity Infinity (an upscale ship of an upscale line), round-trip from Seattle in seven days, stopping (among other places) in Ketchikan, Hubbard Glacier, and Juneau. Deduct the port charges, and you are paying only $480 for a weeklong cruise to popular Alaska, which is an astonishing figure for a ship of this caliber.
2) $1,149 per person, including port charges of $250, on the May 17, 2008, thirteen-night Mediterranean cruise of the Norwegian Jade (a relatively new ship), sailing from Barcelona to Nice, to Livorno (servicing Florence/Pisa), Rome (Civitavecchia), Naples, Sardinia, Malaga, Gibraltar, Cadiz (Spain), Lisbon, Vigo (Spain) and Southampton (England). Subtract the port charges and you are paying only $70 a day per person for a top-quality European cruise.
It's good to see the White family continuing the tradition started by Rick. You can book by phoning tel. 800/547-4790, or by accessing www.cruisewizard.com.
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Rick White died of heart failure about six weeks ago, and I for one expected his agency to fade quietly away. Instead, his sister and mother have seized the reins and are continuing to announce some of the most remarkable cruise bargains ever. This week, they announced prices of:
1) $699 per person, including port charges of $215, on the May 9, 2008, sailing of Alaskan waters on the Celebrity Infinity (an upscale ship of an upscale line), round-trip from Seattle in seven days, stopping (among other places) in Ketchikan, Hubbard Glacier, and Juneau. Deduct the port charges, and you are paying only $480 for a weeklong cruise to popular Alaska, which is an astonishing figure for a ship of this caliber.
2) $1,149 per person, including port charges of $250, on the May 17, 2008, thirteen-night Mediterranean cruise of the Norwegian Jade (a relatively new ship), sailing from Barcelona to Nice, to Livorno (servicing Florence/Pisa), Rome (Civitavecchia), Naples, Sardinia, Malaga, Gibraltar, Cadiz (Spain), Lisbon, Vigo (Spain) and Southampton (England). Subtract the port charges and you are paying only $70 a day per person for a top-quality European cruise.
It's good to see the White family continuing the tradition started by Rick. You can book by phoning tel. 800/547-4790, or by accessing www.cruisewizard.com.
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Labels: cruise, travel agent, websites
Believe it or not, there's also a company that assists you in obtaining certified copies of your birth certificate for passport purposes
Last week, I wrote about a feisty firm called It's Easy (www.itseasy.com), which claims it can obtain a passport for you in 24 hours (they charge, as I learned today, between $95 and $200, depending on the difficulties involved). But if the passport is the first one you've ever had, you will also have to obtain a certified copy of your birth certificate to accompany your application. Although ItsEasy does that for persons who were born in New York State, another company called VitalChek (www.vitalchek.com) can assist Americans who were born in any other State.
The birth certificate offices in the various States are usually quite forthcoming in obtaining and mailing to you a copy of your birth certificate. I once had to phone the state of Virginia to obtain mine (and it arrived in a reasonable time). But VitalChek is obviously familiar with all the personalities involved at those agencies, and can perhaps do the job a bit better than you could yourself.
Just thought you'd like to know about it. Though you should obviously save the money and do the job yourself if you have the time, you might consider contacting VitalChek if an emergency requires faster action.
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The birth certificate offices in the various States are usually quite forthcoming in obtaining and mailing to you a copy of your birth certificate. I once had to phone the state of Virginia to obtain mine (and it arrived in a reasonable time). But VitalChek is obviously familiar with all the personalities involved at those agencies, and can perhaps do the job a bit better than you could yourself.
Just thought you'd like to know about it. Though you should obviously save the money and do the job yourself if you have the time, you might consider contacting VitalChek if an emergency requires faster action.
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Labels: passports
New solutions to take care of Fido and Fluffy during your vacation
In speaking with friends about how their recent holidays went, I was surprised by how many mentioned that they had to alter, curtail, and sometimes even abandon their vacation plans simply to accommodate the schedule of their pet-sitter.
Some people are lucky enough to have a nearby family member who can temporarily adopt the dog, or a neighbor who can stop by the house to care for the cats (and, as a bonus, pick up the mail and water the plants). But what happens if you don't have a trusted pet sitter, or if your usual helper is unavailable, as is often the case around popular holidays?
Many people would rather ditch their travel plans than board their beloved pets in a kennel, where animals typically spend 20 hours or more per day in a small cage (for cats: 24 hours a day) and may be exposed to diseases (including the common and dreaded "kennel cough"). What's more, kennels frequently book up early for popular travel times.
When your choice is between the kennel and canceling you plans, consider using the Internet to find a pet-sitter. The options range from using the un-vetted virtual classifieds of your local version of Craigslist (www.craigslist.org) to signing up with one of the new, specialized services that have popped up.
Fetch! Pet Care (www.fetchpetcare.com), founded in 2002, has 120 franchises offering pet-sitting, dog-walking, private boarding (a kind of "free-range" kenneling), and related services in 32 states. Care.com (www.care.com), founded in 2006, maintains lists of independent pet-sitters, babysitters/nannies, elder care, and tutors across the United States.
With Care.com, though you can view in-depth profiles of care-givers for free, you must pay to become a "premium" member if you want to get the contact information and run background checks (at Fetch!, all employees are subjected to a background search). Fees are $15 registration plus $25 for one month, $45 for three months, or $120 for a year.
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Some people are lucky enough to have a nearby family member who can temporarily adopt the dog, or a neighbor who can stop by the house to care for the cats (and, as a bonus, pick up the mail and water the plants). But what happens if you don't have a trusted pet sitter, or if your usual helper is unavailable, as is often the case around popular holidays?
Many people would rather ditch their travel plans than board their beloved pets in a kennel, where animals typically spend 20 hours or more per day in a small cage (for cats: 24 hours a day) and may be exposed to diseases (including the common and dreaded "kennel cough"). What's more, kennels frequently book up early for popular travel times.
When your choice is between the kennel and canceling you plans, consider using the Internet to find a pet-sitter. The options range from using the un-vetted virtual classifieds of your local version of Craigslist (www.craigslist.org) to signing up with one of the new, specialized services that have popped up.
Fetch! Pet Care (www.fetchpetcare.com), founded in 2002, has 120 franchises offering pet-sitting, dog-walking, private boarding (a kind of "free-range" kenneling), and related services in 32 states. Care.com (www.care.com), founded in 2006, maintains lists of independent pet-sitters, babysitters/nannies, elder care, and tutors across the United States.
With Care.com, though you can view in-depth profiles of care-givers for free, you must pay to become a "premium" member if you want to get the contact information and run background checks (at Fetch!, all employees are subjected to a background search). Fees are $15 registration plus $25 for one month, $45 for three months, or $120 for a year.
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Labels: pets
Fifty years ago, 
Arthur Frommer is generally acknowledged to be the nation's foremost travel authority. He is the founder of the
