The Low Down on Shore Excursions: What You Need to Know Before Heading Off On An Ocean-Going Cruise
Posted on 02/26/2014, 10:30 PM
Cruising is, for the most part, an easy, breezy style of vacation. Or at least that holds for the time on-board ship. But many cruisers, especially first-timers, find that shore days can be stressful. The crowds in port, the limited time, the many choices for activities and sights--it all can be overwhelming. But it doesn’t have to be. Below are some of the major issues that confront cruise...
Delta's Big Announcement: Mileage Awards Will Soon Be Tied to Money Spent Rather Than Miles Flown
Posted on 02/26/2014, 3:30 PM
Delta Airlines announced a game-changing move today: instead of giving award miles based on the number of miles a passenger has flown, it will link mileage to the cost of the ticket. "The introduction of a new model for earning miles will increase rewards for those who spend more as well as differentiate the SkyMiles frequent flyer program for our premium travelers," said Jeff Robertson, Delta'...
Walt Disney World Prices Hit a New Record: $99 Per Day!
Posted on 02/24/2014, 9:30 PM
It's a new record! Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom has raised its one-day ticket price to $99. The Orlando-area resort's other three theme parks, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, and Animal Kingdom, have leapt to $94 per day. Across the board, that's a $4-per-day increase. (Kids aged 3-9 are $93 and $88 per day, respectively.) It used to be that Disney raised its prices once a year in late su...
Frontier Imitating Spirit, Cuba, Airbnb, and Priceline: Four Important Developments or Opportunities
Posted on 02/23/2014, 6:00 PM
Although the rumor that Spirit Airlines has recently acquired Frontier Airlines is false (Frontier was actually bought by an independent, private equity firm headed by a previous executive of Spirit), there's no doubt that Frontier's new owners are planning to follow Spirit's controversial policies, which is to hit the passenger with every conceivable extra charge and fee. At Denver ...
When's the Best Time to Book Airfares? A Major Search Engine Comes Out With Some Very Specific, And Helpful, Advice
Posted on 02/20/2014, 9:45 AM
It's one of the most asked questions in travel: When should I book my airline ticket? According to the mega-airline search site Kayak there's no one simple answer. Or perhaps I should say, there are dozens of simple answers. Kayak looked back at a year's worth of transactions, and found that the following booking windows yielded to lowest airfares: Travel from the US to Europe: 8-10 weeks ...
A Round-Up of the Small Improvements That Are Making Traveling More Enjoyable
Posted on 02/16/2014, 5:00 PM
We may travel to see the Grand Canyon, the Eiffel Tower or the Taj Mahal—big experiences all. But sometimes it’s the small touches that can make the difference between a happy vacation and one that feels, well, like a bumpy ride. Here are some new, if small, developments that I'm grateful for: 1) Advanced amenities at hotels: We’ve all come to expect hair dryers, shower caps and sewing ki...
Apps That Get You There: Travel Helpers, Both New and Improved
Posted on 02/16/2014, 4:45 PM
Back in the day, hitting the road would mean hitching up your horse, or filling up the car. Today, making sure your smart phone or tablet is adequately juiced is as crucial a pre-trip step. Especially if you have one of the following apps one your device: Waze: The purgatory of traffic jams is avoided, or at least lessened, by this app, which uses crowd sourcing to warn motorists of bottlenec...
Approaching the Final Stop of the Frommer's Book Tour: Denver! We'll Be At the Oriental Theater on February 18 at 7pm
Posted on 02/14/2014, 3:15 PM
Its been a blast seeing the United States on this recent book tour. But all good things must come to an end and the end for the Frommer's 2014 book tour comes this upcoming Tuesday at 7pm. We're thrilled that BookBar (our host) will be putting our event in the Oriental Theater. But as always, the event will be free to all comers and my father and I hope to meet a lot of avid travelers there. ...
The Plight of the Airport Workers at JFK and LaGuardia is Attracting More and More Attention
Posted on 02/13/2014, 2:30 PM
Recent protest demonstrations at New York's major airports have brought attention to the fact that many persons working at airports in the United States are earning sub-human wages. In the same way that, in the late 1960s, the low wages and poor working conditions of grape pickers in California and Florida led to a nationwide (and ultimately successful) boycott of table grapes (and la...
Sochi Hate: Olympics Attendees' Mockery of Russia's Infrastructure Reveals A Lack of Travel Compassion
Posted on 02/11/2014, 10:00 PM
People have asked me what surprised me the most here in Sochi. It's this. Without question ... it's ... THIS. — Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) You might have seen a flood of social media and TV coverage about how messy many of the Sochi preparations have been. You've seen images: open manhole covers on the street, brown water out of hotel taps, public toilets without dividers....
