Feb 8, 2008
We are about to advertise the delights of visiting the U.S.A. while at the same time adopting constant measures to keep foreigners out
In Washington, D.C. this past week, I heard a lot of talk about the probability that the new session of Congress will set up a public-private organization spending $200 million dollars a year to promote and market incoming travel to the United States. According to various estimates, the United States has lost as much as 20% of the foreign tourists that were visiting our country each year prior to September 11.
That decline has cost us tens of billions of dollars in economic income, nearly similar amounts in taxes, and hundreds of thousands of jobs.
And how would such advertising increase our incoming tourism? Surely, foreigners are already aware of our nation's attractions and of how cheap it is for them to enjoy a stay; the weak U.S. dollar has made us into a staggering bargain. The reason they are not coming here is not a lack of marketing but because we have made the visit into a procedural nightmare.
To visit the U.S.A., most foreign citizens must apply for a visa, in person, at a U.S. consulate in their country, undergoing an interview by a consular official and sometimes traveling hundreds of miles to the consulate. Just to apply for such an interview often takes two months and the payment of $131 per visa, to be paid whether or not the visa is issued. If it is denied, you are out the $131.
In conducting the interview, some consular officials are more concerned with heading off illegal immigration than with thwarting terrorism. In Panama two months ago, I met an educated, English-speaking woman who has a fine job in a Latin American corporation. She has never been able to obtain a visa to visit her sister in California because she fits the profile -- young, single -- of a possible illegal immigrant.
Every month, one or another department in our government erects another barrier to incoming tourism, without consulting any other department having broader responsibilities. The recent increase in the visa fee to $131 was a typical misguided decision by someone in the State Department, who should have been reducing the fee rather than raising it. Not a single terrorist will be deterred by the extra $31 added to the former $100 fee.
This month, the Department of Homeland Security has confronted millions of Canadian motorists with the need to show a birth certificate in order to drive over the U.S./Canada border to go shopping. Not a single terrorist will be thwarted from entering by this need to obtain an easily forged document -- but millions of Canadians will decide that they can put off that shopping trip.
Recently, the Department of Homeland Security has required that even those foreigners who need not obtain visas (because they are in a "visa waiver" country) must provide the Department, 72 hours in advance of arrival, with a proposed itinerary for that trip. What will be done with that itinerary has never been explained, nor has anyone suggested that we have the manpower to check on whether foreigners adhere to their itineraries. After the foreigner provides this wholly absurd piece of paper, they then must be fingerprinted -- all ten digits -- upon clearing U.S. immigration at their arrival airport. Imagine how you would feel if you faced such procedures on a trip to London or Rome.
And I could go on and on. What's needed is not additional marketing dollars, but a dynamic official in our government appointed to a prominent position and given the responsibility of representing our touristic interests with respect to the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security. We need someone constantly questioning whether these random acts of nuisance by State Department and Homeland Security bureaucrats are unnecessarily harming our economic interests while creating no tools at all for combating terrorism.
No one in our government is presently performing that role as a champion of tourism. Instead, we are about to appropriate money to encourage foreigners to visit a country that is working hard to keep them out.
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That decline has cost us tens of billions of dollars in economic income, nearly similar amounts in taxes, and hundreds of thousands of jobs.
And how would such advertising increase our incoming tourism? Surely, foreigners are already aware of our nation's attractions and of how cheap it is for them to enjoy a stay; the weak U.S. dollar has made us into a staggering bargain. The reason they are not coming here is not a lack of marketing but because we have made the visit into a procedural nightmare.
To visit the U.S.A., most foreign citizens must apply for a visa, in person, at a U.S. consulate in their country, undergoing an interview by a consular official and sometimes traveling hundreds of miles to the consulate. Just to apply for such an interview often takes two months and the payment of $131 per visa, to be paid whether or not the visa is issued. If it is denied, you are out the $131.
In conducting the interview, some consular officials are more concerned with heading off illegal immigration than with thwarting terrorism. In Panama two months ago, I met an educated, English-speaking woman who has a fine job in a Latin American corporation. She has never been able to obtain a visa to visit her sister in California because she fits the profile -- young, single -- of a possible illegal immigrant.
Every month, one or another department in our government erects another barrier to incoming tourism, without consulting any other department having broader responsibilities. The recent increase in the visa fee to $131 was a typical misguided decision by someone in the State Department, who should have been reducing the fee rather than raising it. Not a single terrorist will be deterred by the extra $31 added to the former $100 fee.
This month, the Department of Homeland Security has confronted millions of Canadian motorists with the need to show a birth certificate in order to drive over the U.S./Canada border to go shopping. Not a single terrorist will be thwarted from entering by this need to obtain an easily forged document -- but millions of Canadians will decide that they can put off that shopping trip.
Recently, the Department of Homeland Security has required that even those foreigners who need not obtain visas (because they are in a "visa waiver" country) must provide the Department, 72 hours in advance of arrival, with a proposed itinerary for that trip. What will be done with that itinerary has never been explained, nor has anyone suggested that we have the manpower to check on whether foreigners adhere to their itineraries. After the foreigner provides this wholly absurd piece of paper, they then must be fingerprinted -- all ten digits -- upon clearing U.S. immigration at their arrival airport. Imagine how you would feel if you faced such procedures on a trip to London or Rome.
And I could go on and on. What's needed is not additional marketing dollars, but a dynamic official in our government appointed to a prominent position and given the responsibility of representing our touristic interests with respect to the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security. We need someone constantly questioning whether these random acts of nuisance by State Department and Homeland Security bureaucrats are unnecessarily harming our economic interests while creating no tools at all for combating terrorism.
No one in our government is presently performing that role as a champion of tourism. Instead, we are about to appropriate money to encourage foreigners to visit a country that is working hard to keep them out.
Write and read comments about this post.
DC2NY, with its mineral water, free Wi-Fi, and $20 fares, is doing spectacularly between New York and Washington, D.C.
In July of 2007, an executive of the Marriott Hotel Corporation, Richard Green, got permission from his bosses to set up a private business on the side: a classy, hip, but rock-bottom motorcoach operation that would do battle with the Chinatown buses operating between New York City and Washington, D.C. For only a tiny bit more than the Chinatown buses charged, his operation, DC2NY (www.dc2ny.com) would drive you between Gotham and the nation's capital for $40 round-trip (provided you made the booking on the internet), and supply you with a) a bottle of mineral water when boarding, and b) free Wi-Fi for your computer en route.
Sensing something big, I wrote a post about DC2NY without ever having met or talked with Richard Green. Then, this past week, by sheer accident, I met him at an industry function in Washington, D.C. and learned what has since transpired with this non-Chinese outfit doing business in an areas where Chinese-Americans were thought to have the monopoly.
Turns out that DC2NY has done very well, indeed. In 2007, it carried over 34,200 passengers, and spawned a whole industry of new, low-cost bus services operating from various pick-up points in New York City (not just in Chinatown) to various destinations on the east coast: Vamoose, Eastern, DC Tony Express, Washington Deluxe, and others; you can read all about them after searching on Google. "I don't look upon them as competitors," Green told me, "but as collaborators in expanding the market of cost-effective, environmentally-responsible travel."
As for DC2NY, it is about to launch a members' benefits program, and currently is the only service giving its travelers a choice of whether a movie will be shown or not within the bus. It continues to hand out the free mineral water and to make Wi-Fi available. And it has caught the mood of well-educated young people (and older sophisticates) to such an extent that I think we'll soon be hearing more about the extension of America's leading low-cost buses to other routes.
I have written so far about low-cost buses operating in the mid-west, in addition to along the eastern corridor, but I am convinced there must be similar services in other parts of the country. If you know of any, would you alert us to them? It's exciting to find entrepreneurs like Richard Green flinging a challenge to the standard operators of public transportation.
Write and read comments about this post.
Sensing something big, I wrote a post about DC2NY without ever having met or talked with Richard Green. Then, this past week, by sheer accident, I met him at an industry function in Washington, D.C. and learned what has since transpired with this non-Chinese outfit doing business in an areas where Chinese-Americans were thought to have the monopoly.
Turns out that DC2NY has done very well, indeed. In 2007, it carried over 34,200 passengers, and spawned a whole industry of new, low-cost bus services operating from various pick-up points in New York City (not just in Chinatown) to various destinations on the east coast: Vamoose, Eastern, DC Tony Express, Washington Deluxe, and others; you can read all about them after searching on Google. "I don't look upon them as competitors," Green told me, "but as collaborators in expanding the market of cost-effective, environmentally-responsible travel."
As for DC2NY, it is about to launch a members' benefits program, and currently is the only service giving its travelers a choice of whether a movie will be shown or not within the bus. It continues to hand out the free mineral water and to make Wi-Fi available. And it has caught the mood of well-educated young people (and older sophisticates) to such an extent that I think we'll soon be hearing more about the extension of America's leading low-cost buses to other routes.
I have written so far about low-cost buses operating in the mid-west, in addition to along the eastern corridor, but I am convinced there must be similar services in other parts of the country. If you know of any, would you alert us to them? It's exciting to find entrepreneurs like Richard Green flinging a challenge to the standard operators of public transportation.
Write and read comments about this post.
Labels: bus
Another of those two-week-long-plus re-positioning cruises will take you from Florida through the Caribbean, across the south Atlantic, and to England
I can't resist revealing still another of those vacation opportunities for people willing to spend a full 18 days on a ship, including nine days simply at sea. On March 29, the MSC Lirica will depart from Ft. Lauderdale, spend an opening day at sea, then stop at San Juan, St. John, Antigua and Martinique, spend six leisurely days crossing the south Atlantic, make landfall in Vigo, Spain, spend another day simply at sea, arrive at LeHavre, France, and then move on to Dover, England. The entire 18-day journey in inside cabins will cost $1,349 per person, which comes to almost exactly $75 a day. And children under the age of 17 will sail free when they occupy a cabin with their parents.
The MSC Lirica is a medium-sized ship by today's standards (1,500 passengers) and is less than five years old. It will probably be lightly booked for this leisurely crossing of 18 days' duration, and that should add to the appeal that a "re-positioning" cruise has for quiet, contemplative Americans. If you find yourself in that category, you'll want to consider this early spring opportunity, which you can book by simply accessing the cruiseline's website, which is www.msccruisesusa.com.
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The MSC Lirica is a medium-sized ship by today's standards (1,500 passengers) and is less than five years old. It will probably be lightly booked for this leisurely crossing of 18 days' duration, and that should add to the appeal that a "re-positioning" cruise has for quiet, contemplative Americans. If you find yourself in that category, you'll want to consider this early spring opportunity, which you can book by simply accessing the cruiseline's website, which is www.msccruisesusa.com.
Write and read comments about this post.
Feb 7, 2008
United Airline's decision to charge $25 for the second suitcase checked per flight, is the best thing that's happened to travelers in years
We all take too much clothing and other paraphernalia when we travel. We pack every conceivable outfit for every possible occasion and end up devoting half our time to laboriously packing and unpacking multiple suitcases. We become beasts of burden, sweating that luggage into a taxicab, dragging it up stairs and down, paying for porters to carry it. And we discover at the end of the trip that we haven't used 80% of the items we've packed. We have dragged around two heavy cases of unworn, useless apparel.
They travel best who travel light. There is no better travel sensation than the joy of moving from place to place in carefree fashion, with one small suitcase lightly packed. That's why I think -- contrary to the reactions of others -- that this week's decision by United Airlines to charge $25 for a second checked suitcase every time you fly (and $50 if you lug that second suitcase round-trip) is a good thing. It will create happier travelers.
The new policy will undoubtedly be adopted by other airlines; it will bring them a considerable amount of additional income. If what it also does is persuade the smart traveler to travel light, to limit their luggage to one small suitcase, then it will set off a spasm of travel happiness. People will learn they are happier when they travel light, that they become light-hearted and carefree, that they avoid porters and taxicabs, that they are able to shop around when it comes to choosing a hotel; that they need not collapse in sweat at the first lodging they see.
So to all you greedy, fee-charging, profit-hungry execs at United Airlines: thank you.
Write and read comments about this post.
They travel best who travel light. There is no better travel sensation than the joy of moving from place to place in carefree fashion, with one small suitcase lightly packed. That's why I think -- contrary to the reactions of others -- that this week's decision by United Airlines to charge $25 for a second checked suitcase every time you fly (and $50 if you lug that second suitcase round-trip) is a good thing. It will create happier travelers.
The new policy will undoubtedly be adopted by other airlines; it will bring them a considerable amount of additional income. If what it also does is persuade the smart traveler to travel light, to limit their luggage to one small suitcase, then it will set off a spasm of travel happiness. People will learn they are happier when they travel light, that they become light-hearted and carefree, that they avoid porters and taxicabs, that they are able to shop around when it comes to choosing a hotel; that they need not collapse in sweat at the first lodging they see.
So to all you greedy, fee-charging, profit-hungry execs at United Airlines: thank you.
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In a major policy shift, Club Med is offering a "Kids Stay Free" program at several of its family villages in the tropics
It is probably an indication of the slow winter travel season that the Club Med chain has decided to pass up revenue from children's stays at several of its major family villages. Provided you book prior to February 16, for stays prior to June 21, they will waive any charge for children up to age 15 (one per parent accompanying them) at the following four Club Med resorts: Sandpiper in Florida, Ixtapa on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, Cancún off the Caribbean coast of Mexico, and Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. That's a big saving, which you can obtain by accessing www.clubmed.com or phoning tel. 888/WEB CLUB.
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The difficulty of finding affordable accommodations in New York has reached crisis proportions, and calls for innovative planning
A torrent of recent reports about average hotel room rates in New York City in 2007 has found that figure to be greater than $300 -- and sometimes as high as $340. Innocent visitors planning a stay in Gotham are in for the shock of their lives: the prospect of paying three times as much as they normally would.
To avoid paying $300 or $325 or $340 a night for a hotel room in New York, you need a cost-conscious guidebook, or you need to use alternative lodgings that aren't hotels. And can I be blunt about this? A guidebook that does a superb job in ferreting out a number of perfectly-acceptable, cheaper New York hotels is Pauline Frommer's New York. Pauline set out to write an intensely budget-oriented guidebook to New York and she labored long and hard to find such properties and then to assure herself that they were proper to use.
She also devoted more attention than has ever been devoted to alternative accommodations in New York: apartments, in particular; religious retreats; institutional lodgings of various sorts. And her chapter on accommodations is replete with suggestions on how you can enjoy a perfectly comfortable stay for prices nowhere near the average room rate that prevailed last year. In particular, she has described the several local apartment-rental firms that operate in New York and are perhaps your best bet for spacious, comfortable lodgings at an affordable price.
You can also, of course, survey the national apartment-rental organizations when you plan a trip to New York. I've written before about VRBO.com (www.vrbo.com), Rentalo (www.rentalo.com), HomeAway (www.homeaway.com), Zonder.com (www.zonder.com), EVrentals.com (www.evrentals.com), and others. Only recently, I went to Zonder.com and found a two-bedroom apartment in mid-town Manhattan renting for $139 a night. Now that hotel costs have spiraled so high, the internet is bursting with new services for bringing temporary apartment rentals to transient visitors.
But your best bet -- trust me -- is Pauline Frommer's New York.
Write and read comments about this post.
To avoid paying $300 or $325 or $340 a night for a hotel room in New York, you need a cost-conscious guidebook, or you need to use alternative lodgings that aren't hotels. And can I be blunt about this? A guidebook that does a superb job in ferreting out a number of perfectly-acceptable, cheaper New York hotels is Pauline Frommer's New York. Pauline set out to write an intensely budget-oriented guidebook to New York and she labored long and hard to find such properties and then to assure herself that they were proper to use.
She also devoted more attention than has ever been devoted to alternative accommodations in New York: apartments, in particular; religious retreats; institutional lodgings of various sorts. And her chapter on accommodations is replete with suggestions on how you can enjoy a perfectly comfortable stay for prices nowhere near the average room rate that prevailed last year. In particular, she has described the several local apartment-rental firms that operate in New York and are perhaps your best bet for spacious, comfortable lodgings at an affordable price.
You can also, of course, survey the national apartment-rental organizations when you plan a trip to New York. I've written before about VRBO.com (www.vrbo.com), Rentalo (www.rentalo.com), HomeAway (www.homeaway.com), Zonder.com (www.zonder.com), EVrentals.com (www.evrentals.com), and others. Only recently, I went to Zonder.com and found a two-bedroom apartment in mid-town Manhattan renting for $139 a night. Now that hotel costs have spiraled so high, the internet is bursting with new services for bringing temporary apartment rentals to transient visitors.
But your best bet -- trust me -- is Pauline Frommer's New York.
Write and read comments about this post.
Labels: accommodations, new york city
Feb 6, 2008
Bike Tours Direct has announced its program for 2008, and it's an island of reasonable costs in a sea of big-time expense
I've written before about the improbable, Tennessee-based operator of European bicycling tours that represents dozens of local European bike operators in the operation of so-called "self-guided" bicycle tours of Europe. Its prices often are 70% less than what most other American bike operators charge. The company is Bike Tours Direct (www.biketoursdirect.com), and for the equivalent of about $1,200 a week it provides you with accommodations with private facilities in two-star hotels each night, two meals a day (breakfast and dinner), shipment of your luggage from town to town, and detailed instructions on following the itineraries you're given. They take care of all the reservations and every one of your needs other than airfare to Europe, a bicycle -- rentable for about $125 for two weeks--and daily lunch.
While most of their tours run for a week, the trick is to combine tours into either a two- or three-week itinerary. When you do that, the results are magical. My own "dream itinerary" is one that starts in Orleans, France, and follows the Loire through the awesomely beautiful, historic Loire Valley to the Atlantic Ocean, from which you take a train back to Paris. For a 15-day, 14-night tour in 2008 (leave any day), the cost is around $2,400 -- and by bicycling standards (the major U.S. operators often charge $600 a day!), that's a remarkable price.
Bike Tours Direct has now incorporated all its 2008 tours into its website, and some of them are even cheaper than the Loire itinerary, including its most popular tour of 2007 called the "Danube Bike Path." Poland is a new destination for 2008, including five different weeklong tours that begin or end in Cracow. Among other new itineraries are Dubrovnik and the Dalmatian Coast, Amsterdam to Bruges, and tours of the Mosel and Rhine Rivers.
I wish I could announce a lower price for this year's Bike Tour Direct's European programs, but the dollar amounts are due to an exchange rate of nearly $1.50 for every Euro. As long as that exchange prevails, Europe is a fairly pricey place, but Bike Tour Direct is one of the most effective ways to experience the highlights of Europe's countryside and historic villages at a reasonable cost.
Write and read comments about this post.
While most of their tours run for a week, the trick is to combine tours into either a two- or three-week itinerary. When you do that, the results are magical. My own "dream itinerary" is one that starts in Orleans, France, and follows the Loire through the awesomely beautiful, historic Loire Valley to the Atlantic Ocean, from which you take a train back to Paris. For a 15-day, 14-night tour in 2008 (leave any day), the cost is around $2,400 -- and by bicycling standards (the major U.S. operators often charge $600 a day!), that's a remarkable price.
Bike Tours Direct has now incorporated all its 2008 tours into its website, and some of them are even cheaper than the Loire itinerary, including its most popular tour of 2007 called the "Danube Bike Path." Poland is a new destination for 2008, including five different weeklong tours that begin or end in Cracow. Among other new itineraries are Dubrovnik and the Dalmatian Coast, Amsterdam to Bruges, and tours of the Mosel and Rhine Rivers.
I wish I could announce a lower price for this year's Bike Tour Direct's European programs, but the dollar amounts are due to an exchange rate of nearly $1.50 for every Euro. As long as that exchange prevails, Europe is a fairly pricey place, but Bike Tour Direct is one of the most effective ways to experience the highlights of Europe's countryside and historic villages at a reasonable cost.
Write and read comments about this post.
One of the earliest supporters of adequate vacation time for Americans was the late, great Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis
A PBS documentary on the life of the late Louis Brandeis, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, which is now making the rounds of various PBS stations, apparently mentions that Brandeis valued adequate vacation time for all Americans. A friend who recently saw the film has written me as follows:
I just watched a PBS documentary on the great Justice Louis Brandeis. One thing I learned was that he not only stood up for workers' and women's rights, but he also strongly believed in the right of people to have adequate leisure and vacation time so they could rejuvenate and travel. He said he could do 12 months work in 11 months, but not in 12 months, meaning of course that he could do more work in less time if he had a month of R&R each year.Write and read comments about this post.
It made me think of my grandfather, a lawyer in NYC for many years, and certainly of your comments about the right of all people to have adequate leisure time.
Labels: rights
Too many American travelers overlook Edinburgh, unaware that most of its major museums are totally free-of-charge to enter
Just as in London, most of the major museums of Edinburgh charge no admission. You can create a fascinating Edinburgh stay around visits to these amazing attractions, and enjoy the entire experience for a moderate sum.
Free of charge, first, is the National Museum of Scotland, filled with the great achievements of great Scots (like Alexander Graham Bell). You'll also find Dolly here, the world's first cloned sheep. Free of charge, too, is the Museum of Edinburgh, run by the city and located in a prime position on the famous Royal Mile. It tells the complicated tale of the city's story (most of which centers on the Scots' ongoing feud with the English). Free of charge, as well, is the Scottish National Portrait Gallery which displays the face of Sean Connery among its celebrity portraits; the Modern Art Galleries with Warhols, Bacons, Hirsts, and lots of Dada and Surrealism; and the National Gallery of Scotland on busy Princes Street, honoring art from around Europe with an emphasis on Scottish works. Expect high quality works collected by some of Scotland's richest titans of industry, including Rembrandts, Botticellis and Monets. It is conjoined with the Royal Scottish Academy Building (free of charge), which is stocked with much of the same.
And finally, the City Art Center in a towering building overlooking Waverley train station displays some 3,500 works of Scottish art. As the main center for Scotland's visual art treasures, it's always changing the offerings, so you never know what you're going to find there. It charges no admission.
There isn't a cheesy tourist trap in the bunch. Just from that list, it should be evident that in Edinburgh, as in London, you can craft a rich multi-day vacation out of exclusively free things to see and do.
Then, when you've exhausted the list, you can (if you choose) move on to the city's collection of excellent paid historical attractions, such as the Castle, the Queen's official Scottish residence, Holyroodhouse, Britannia, the Queen's famous royal yacht, and Rosslyn Chapel, the romantic and wildly carved sanctuary located in the countryside just south of town. Important sights all, but by no means required for a memorable Edinburgh experience.
Write and read comments about this post.
Free of charge, first, is the National Museum of Scotland, filled with the great achievements of great Scots (like Alexander Graham Bell). You'll also find Dolly here, the world's first cloned sheep. Free of charge, too, is the Museum of Edinburgh, run by the city and located in a prime position on the famous Royal Mile. It tells the complicated tale of the city's story (most of which centers on the Scots' ongoing feud with the English). Free of charge, as well, is the Scottish National Portrait Gallery which displays the face of Sean Connery among its celebrity portraits; the Modern Art Galleries with Warhols, Bacons, Hirsts, and lots of Dada and Surrealism; and the National Gallery of Scotland on busy Princes Street, honoring art from around Europe with an emphasis on Scottish works. Expect high quality works collected by some of Scotland's richest titans of industry, including Rembrandts, Botticellis and Monets. It is conjoined with the Royal Scottish Academy Building (free of charge), which is stocked with much of the same.
And finally, the City Art Center in a towering building overlooking Waverley train station displays some 3,500 works of Scottish art. As the main center for Scotland's visual art treasures, it's always changing the offerings, so you never know what you're going to find there. It charges no admission.
There isn't a cheesy tourist trap in the bunch. Just from that list, it should be evident that in Edinburgh, as in London, you can craft a rich multi-day vacation out of exclusively free things to see and do.
Then, when you've exhausted the list, you can (if you choose) move on to the city's collection of excellent paid historical attractions, such as the Castle, the Queen's official Scottish residence, Holyroodhouse, Britannia, the Queen's famous royal yacht, and Rosslyn Chapel, the romantic and wildly carved sanctuary located in the countryside just south of town. Important sights all, but by no means required for a memorable Edinburgh experience.
Write and read comments about this post.
Labels: culture, edinburgh, scotland
Feb 5, 2008
Telling your airfare search engine that you want to look at flexible dates is a powerful way of securing the lowest airfare
Airlines like American, Delta, Continental and more, all permit you to look at airfares over a range of dates -- you simply click on a feature called "flexible dates" or perhaps a link that says "more options." Trouble is, that they will then search only their own flights -- and not those of other airlines.
So go to an aggregator offering "flexible" searches. Although such services as Kayak (www.kayak.com) require customers to register before doing flexible data searches, the 30 seconds it takes to register is well worth the trouble. Afterwards, the website gives the option of searching fares up to three days before or after the dates selected. I recently plugged in a Chicago-London roundtrip in September with a Friday departure, returning the following Sunday. Within seconds, Kayak retrieved prices from more than a dozen airlines and revealed that by shifting the trip around and leaving a day earlier and returning two days later, I could save nearly $175 compared to the original dates.
Travelocity and Orbitz also offer flexible date searches. But each site has its own glitches. In test searches on Travelocity, the website sometimes retrieved prices only for the exact dates plugged in, never producing the better fares resulting from slight shifts in dates. Orbitz was better at finding a range of fares, but its grid only shows prices -- information regarding airlines, flight times, and stopovers doesn't appear unless you click on a price and the website does a separate search. And, of course, always remember that Travelocity and Orbitz add fees $5 to $10 onto the flights they sell.
Whatever you decide, flexible technology permits you to see more -- and see it quicker -- than ever before.
Write and read comments about this post.
So go to an aggregator offering "flexible" searches. Although such services as Kayak (www.kayak.com) require customers to register before doing flexible data searches, the 30 seconds it takes to register is well worth the trouble. Afterwards, the website gives the option of searching fares up to three days before or after the dates selected. I recently plugged in a Chicago-London roundtrip in September with a Friday departure, returning the following Sunday. Within seconds, Kayak retrieved prices from more than a dozen airlines and revealed that by shifting the trip around and leaving a day earlier and returning two days later, I could save nearly $175 compared to the original dates.
Travelocity and Orbitz also offer flexible date searches. But each site has its own glitches. In test searches on Travelocity, the website sometimes retrieved prices only for the exact dates plugged in, never producing the better fares resulting from slight shifts in dates. Orbitz was better at finding a range of fares, but its grid only shows prices -- information regarding airlines, flight times, and stopovers doesn't appear unless you click on a price and the website does a separate search. And, of course, always remember that Travelocity and Orbitz add fees $5 to $10 onto the flights they sell.
Whatever you decide, flexible technology permits you to see more -- and see it quicker -- than ever before.
Write and read comments about this post.
Pssst! I'm revealing the name of that money-saving website for luxury resorts that insiders confide to one another in whispers
Periodically, I receive letters referring to a mysterious website that allows you to book luxury resorts in the tropics for about a third of what is normally charged. The website is www.saveonresorts.com which does in fact list such resorts at prices that low, and makes no secret of how it does so. It sends you to resorts at radically low prices provided you're willing to attend a 90-minute timeshare presentation. And the reference to those sessions is plainly and clearly stated, without any effort to deceive.
A great many travel insiders will advise you to attend the presentation with closed minds, endure the 90 minutes, and then walk out to enjoy your cut-rate stay. I'm troubled by the ethics of that advice. Though I'm not an admirer of timeshares, I feel there's something underhanded about accepting these offers without the slightest intention of honestly considering the purchase proposals that are made to you.
It's your call.
Write and read comments about this post.
A great many travel insiders will advise you to attend the presentation with closed minds, endure the 90 minutes, and then walk out to enjoy your cut-rate stay. I'm troubled by the ethics of that advice. Though I'm not an admirer of timeshares, I feel there's something underhanded about accepting these offers without the slightest intention of honestly considering the purchase proposals that are made to you.
It's your call.
Write and read comments about this post.
Labels: accommodations, websites
Feb 4, 2008
Paul Laifer has retired and closed his company, leaving a big gap in the operation of affordable packages to Central and Eastern Europe
For years, whenever a reader sought help for a trip to Prague or Budapest, I immediately referred them to Paul Laifer Tours, of Parsippany, New Jersey. Specializing in central Europe, and pricing his services at breathtaking low levels ($599 for air-and-land to Prague, was a recent offer), Paul Laifer was the model for a sensitive, well-motivated tour operator. He loved his work, he enjoyed sending cost-conscious people to cities he loved, and tens of thousands of Americans have enjoyed well-organized, low-cost trips to Prague, Budapest and Vienna because of him.
Paul Laifer, unknown to most of his customers, is in his 80s, and yet remained hard at work into those years, often answering the phone at his office, staying up late to handle emergencies, giving his tour passengers every advantage and edge.
Last week, Paul called me to announce that he is at last retiring and closing his company -- and sure enough, the website has gone down and the phone is no longer being answered. It's a disappointing development, but of course we all wish him well. Looking for a replacement, I would suggest you look up the offerings of Tatra Travel, of Brooklyn, New York (www.tatratravel.com or www.czechvacations.com), whose owner is from the Czech Republic. His specialty is all things Czech, but he also offers combined tours of Prague and Budapest; Prague, Budapest and Vienna; and numerous other city pairings in that area, at competitive prices. I've had good vibes about Tatra from several readers.
Incidentally, a customer of Paul Laifer from maritime part of eastern Canada, Carmel Healey, has sent me the following, touching e-mail about the closing of Laifer Tours:
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Paul Laifer, unknown to most of his customers, is in his 80s, and yet remained hard at work into those years, often answering the phone at his office, staying up late to handle emergencies, giving his tour passengers every advantage and edge.
Last week, Paul called me to announce that he is at last retiring and closing his company -- and sure enough, the website has gone down and the phone is no longer being answered. It's a disappointing development, but of course we all wish him well. Looking for a replacement, I would suggest you look up the offerings of Tatra Travel, of Brooklyn, New York (www.tatratravel.com or www.czechvacations.com), whose owner is from the Czech Republic. His specialty is all things Czech, but he also offers combined tours of Prague and Budapest; Prague, Budapest and Vienna; and numerous other city pairings in that area, at competitive prices. I've had good vibes about Tatra from several readers.
Incidentally, a customer of Paul Laifer from maritime part of eastern Canada, Carmel Healey, has sent me the following, touching e-mail about the closing of Laifer Tours:
While the retirement of Mr. Laifer is indeed disappointing, I am sure he has brought a great deal of adventure to the many travellers who have availed of his service over the years. What a gift!
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Labels: eastern europe, tour companies
Three funky guides that will aid anyone on a drive along the two major routes between the Northeast and Florida
Anyone planning a long car trip in the eastern United States -- or contemplating a drive to Florida at any time -- should pick up a copy of three quirky guides to the major interstates. These spiral-bound books -- one to I-95, from Cape Cod to the Florida border (www.drivei95.com); one to I-75, from Detroit to the Florida Border (www.i75online.com), and one titled "Along Florida's Expressways" (also at www.i75online.com/FLABookInfo.html) -- have a homespun quality, and each are crammed with useful information and interesting historic tidbits.
The guides are divided into two main sections. First are pages of simplified, annotated maps, each covering 15 or 30 miles of the interstate and listing the facilities at each exit. When I say "the facilities" I mean all the facilities, not just the half-dozen for which there is room on the highway's blue gas/food/lodging exit signs.
Refreshingly, in addition to the expected chains of service stations, fast food joints, and motels there are also listings of independent diners, restaurants, and B&Bs that are close to the exit. These are usually presented in red ink rather than black, because there is a full review of each independent business in the second section of the book, an exit-by-exit "tour" of the interstate. This is a cornucopia of travel info: a mix of practical tips, interesting sights at each exit, and a delightful collection of historical trivia that manage to take 1,500 miles and four lanes of unrelenting asphalt and make them interesting.
At the front and back of the books are assorted charts to help make your trip more fun and/or bearable: mechanics, campgrounds, golf courses, and independent motels and B&Bs. The inside back cover lists the toll-free numbers for major motel chains. The inside front cover contains a categorical list of local radio stations in the major cities you'll pass (so you'll know where to spin the dial to get any of 14 categories, including Top 40, oldies, talk/news, country, religious, or sports -- though, sadly, not NPR).
Where do you get these books? From any major bookstore, or by consulting the websites listed above.
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The guides are divided into two main sections. First are pages of simplified, annotated maps, each covering 15 or 30 miles of the interstate and listing the facilities at each exit. When I say "the facilities" I mean all the facilities, not just the half-dozen for which there is room on the highway's blue gas/food/lodging exit signs.
Refreshingly, in addition to the expected chains of service stations, fast food joints, and motels there are also listings of independent diners, restaurants, and B&Bs that are close to the exit. These are usually presented in red ink rather than black, because there is a full review of each independent business in the second section of the book, an exit-by-exit "tour" of the interstate. This is a cornucopia of travel info: a mix of practical tips, interesting sights at each exit, and a delightful collection of historical trivia that manage to take 1,500 miles and four lanes of unrelenting asphalt and make them interesting.
At the front and back of the books are assorted charts to help make your trip more fun and/or bearable: mechanics, campgrounds, golf courses, and independent motels and B&Bs. The inside back cover lists the toll-free numbers for major motel chains. The inside front cover contains a categorical list of local radio stations in the major cities you'll pass (so you'll know where to spin the dial to get any of 14 categories, including Top 40, oldies, talk/news, country, religious, or sports -- though, sadly, not NPR).
Where do you get these books? From any major bookstore, or by consulting the websites listed above.
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Her publishers have now announced that the Pauline Frommer Guides are the most successful launch of a new travel book series in years
The article goes on: "Launched two years ago and written by the daughter of Arthur Frommer, the 17-title series will swell to 29 by 2009. 'Pauline makes no apologies for budget travel. I think she'd argue that the less money you have, the more you see,' says Spring. 'People know there's a voice behind the book -- a travel expert sitting down with them and telling them what they like and don't like'"
The following Pauline Frommer Guides are presently on sale in major bookstores:
Pauline Frommer's New York (named best travel guide of 2006 by a distinguished organization of travel journalists)
Pauline Frommer's London (named best travel guide of 2007 by the same group)
Pauline Frommer's Las Vegas
Pauline Frommer's Alaska
Pauline Frommer's Costa Rica
Pauline Frommer's Paris
Pauline Frommer's Orlando
Pauline Frommer's Italy
Pauline Frommer's Hawaii
Pauline Frommer's Washington, D.C.
...and additional Pauline Frommer titles will be joining them throughout 2008.
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Labels: family, travel guides
Fifty years ago, 
Arthur Frommer is generally acknowledged to be the nation's foremost travel authority. He is the founder of the
