Just Two Days Ago, We Learned What It Is Like to Live in a Country Without a Decent Rail Network
Posted on 01/04/2014, 12:15 PM
Birmingham train depot: First world infrastructure? As I write this, we have gone two days beyond the realization of what it means to have no decent system of rail transportation within the United States. Just two days ago, hundreds of thousands of Americans were stranded in their vacation locales by an extraordinary weather event of blizzards, high winds, and unprecedented low ...
Blowing Into the Windy City: Pauline Frommer to Speak in the Chicagoland Area on January 9 and 11
Posted on 01/03/2014, 4:15 PM
I'm excited--make that thrilled--to announce that the second leg of our book tour, celebrating the launch of the NEW Frommer guidebooks, will kick off in the Chicago area on January 9 and 11. I'm hoping that lots of Frommer's readers will brave the chill to come out and talk travel. I'll be discussing: *Sneaky strategies for saving money on all sorts of travel (from airfares to luxury safa...
A Book-Length Treatment of Touristic Excess is Required Reading for Anyone Interested in the Future of Travel
Posted on 01/03/2014, 4:15 PM
It isn’t likely that your local bookstore will be selling a copy of Elizabeth Becker’s “Overbooked”, a devastating critique of the impact that travel has on certain major destinations. Although it garnered excellent reviews, it is not the page-turner that results in best-sellers. But it is a unique discussion of issues that most travel writers and commentators carefully avoid. So if you...
Some Changes, Large and Small, That Will Confront Travelers in 2014
Posted on 12/31/2013, 4:30 PM
As the recession continues to fade (and that’s a “finger’s crossed” statement), travel companies of all stripes are coming out with new offerings. And more folks are hitting the road—but doing it in slightly different ways. As I stare into my cloudy crystal ball, here's what I see for the near future: 1) More—and often flashier—cruise ships: The coming months will see the debut of six new...
In this Holiday Season, Shouldn't We at Least Begin to Think of Measures that Will Ensure Proper Vacations for Low-Income Americans?
Posted on 12/29/2013, 7:45 PM
Although there isn't the slightest chance that the current Congress will pass such legislation, I continue to yearn for the day when we as a nation will assist the poor to travel. In the spirit of the holiday season, let me set forth the reasons for my dream, repeating much of the same language I composed some 25 years ago. That background is as follows: While most of us ...
Some Reflections on the Lessons That a Life in Travel Has Taught
Posted on 12/25/2013, 7:45 PM
The end of the year is a time for reflection, and I've been thinking of the travel lessons that countless journeys have taught me. Here are a few of the tactics that I regard as essential for a rewarding trip: (1) The need to engage in advance reading: I prepare for my trips by reading about the culture, history and current policies of the places I am about to visit...
Pauline Frommer: Lessons I Learned From My 2013 Travels
Posted on 12/23/2013, 6:00 PM
The more I travel the more I learn. And sometimes the lessons that hit home are about the travel process itself. So without further ado, here are my top head-smacking realizations of the past year. 1) Wacky weather is here to stay. As a frequent traveler, I know in a visceral way that climate change is here now and boy, does it ever affect travel. Weather delays at the airport are just the s...
And Now, For a Change of Pace, Let's Look at All the Good Things That Are Happening in the World of Travel.
Posted on 12/19/2013, 10:45 PM
The holidays are here, and for many, that means counting blessings. So instead of devoting a column to the problems of travel—and there certainly are many—I’d like to celebrate what’s right and fervently hope these trends continue into 2014. 1) Its getting easier and easier to meet locals when you hit the road, thanks to the Internet No, not if you spend all your time away from home texting...
Advocacy Group Files Lawsuit on Behalf of Customers Penalized for Writing Negative Review
Posted on 12/18/2013, 1:30 PM
A few days ago, Arthur Frommer wrote about an incident in which a Utah couple complained their credit was ruined in an act of revenge by a business over a negative online review ("Can You Be Sued for Writing a Negative Online Review for a Vacation Home or Apartment at Which You've Stayed? Amazingly, That's Possible"). Now Public Citizen, the consumer protection group which was founded in 1...
The US to Europe Each Way From $178, Including Taxes and Fees?!? Looks Like Christmas Came Early This Year
Posted on 12/18/2013, 9:15 AM
You may have never heard of Norwegian Airlines but this well-established, budget airline (its akin to Ryanair and previously only flew within Europe) is determined to enter the US market with a splash. How else to explain a fare that undercuts the competition by literally hundreds of dollars? Here are the details: The lowest fares are available for May travel from New York's JFK Airport to ...
