With the Holidays literally in our lap, it seemed to sneak up on me this year. Maybe because New York City decided to have warm 60 degree plus weather in mid-December... at least until yesterday. There is something really pretty about Manhattan in the snow. Got a traveler on your Christmas list? Here are four great gift ideas for that person who has travel in their blood.
1. City In A Bag If Paris, London, New York or Tokyo is close to your friends heart, you can give a little bit of that city to them! Small wood models of landmark buildings in a bag with a handkerchief map of the city to place the toys on! A fun way to remember that favorite place, and a great deal at just $15. Available at MUJI stores or online from the MoMA store
2. Wet Suit Bag Beach vacations are fun, but if that swimsuit doesn't dry out before you get going, unpacking can be a messy, smelly and sometimes mildewy mess. Flight 001 offers a special bag just for this problem. Specially treated to keep itself clean, its a handy way to keep the wet stuff away from your dry, clean clothes. Just $12 too Available at Flight 001
3. Crown Room Club Membership Maybe your special someone is a road warrior for work. Delays at the airport can make for a miserable time. But having lounge access can certainly help! Crown Room Clubs are good deals too with an open bar for the travelers. And now that three month memberships are available at just $90 a person, it won't break the bank either! Available at Delta.com
4. Travel Why not just give your travel loving friends, the gift he really wants? More travel! You don't need to fork out hundreds of dollars either to get them someplace special, just a little gift here or there to help them along the way. Many airlines sell them, including American Airlines and JetBlue for as little as $50.00! Cruise Lines also offer them as well, like Royal Caribbean and Carnival.
Reviewing Red: A Look at Virgin America's In Flight Entertainment
When Virgin America came to life last year, they promised a brand new flying experience, a premium low-cost experience built around purple lights and Red screens. Red, their in flight entertainment experience, is a powerful system, but still doesn't seem to work all that well - even after a year plus.
First, here's where Red shines the best. Their in flight information is among the best out there. Using Google maps, the system lets you zoom in over particular areas you are flying and seems to update fairly quickly. The best part of the system, is that the bottom pop up bar that can be used to change channels can keep the flight information available to you with just a quick swipe to the screen.
Also, you can quickly and easily order a snack or a meal through their services as well, and with 24 channels of live TV, plus a wide selection of music, movies and foreign language options makes the system very powerful.
There will be some internet connectivity, and the system is set up to have a news reader application although neither of these things are activated yet. It is a touch screen system which could be annoying, but the screens are suitably sensitive enough that tapping the screen won't bother the person in front of you.
A couple of things that need improvement though. The TV reception. On two longer flights, the reception was horrid. At times, none of the live channels got any reception for a seemingly inexplicable reason. For one flight, the satellite seemed totally out of sync as 12 of the 24 channels had 0 reception for the length of the flight. The pop up nav bar is buggy and at times will just stay in view on the screen, obscuring the lower third until you turn the TV off and turn it back on.
Also, the chat feature? Totally not used and not needed. Frankly, it would probably be a better use of system resources to offer more radio stations, games or tv stations. On the whole, the system is powerful and will grow with the airline, but there are some bugs that need correcting. Fixing them will give Virgin America one of the best in flight experiences in the sky.
Denver looks amazing from above. What strikes me the most is the way the western edge of the city just seems to end and really moutainous regions just begin. There's something really stunning about that.
(Picture Taken aboard Virgin America Flt 23, 12/11)
It's about time things got better for the consumer this holiday season. With the cost of oil now 70% below its summer peak, its a really hard sell to keep fuel surcharges in the fare. Last week, the Carnival family of cruise lines pulled the plug on the fuel surcharges, refunding everyone who paid them and is sailing on or after December 18. Other cruise lines have followed suit as well, including Royal Caribbean and Norwegian as well as many other smaller lines in the last week. They all will end their fuel surcharges for sailings leaving January 1, 2009 or later. Will this be a temporary suspension?
We're betting the answer is yes. Carnival Corporation, in their press release says that once the price of crude hits $70 again, its game on with a $9 per day fuel surcharge. Other cruise lines, have the bar set lower at just $65 per barrel. And just because you book now, doesn't mean that if the price of oil jumps again that you will be immune. The press releases seem to be worded with the intent of retroactively charging these fuel surcharges when and if the cost of oil spikes again.
Airline expansion is not exactly the in thing these days. First ridiculous fuel costs, then a deep recession has made contraction, rather than expansion the rule. But this isn't the case with low cost carrier Virgin America which has announced its eighth and only new destination for 2009, Boston.
The five daily flights, to San Francisco make sense for the fledgling carrier as the Boston-San Francisco route is underserved. This could be a little bit of trouble for an already strapped United, and a bit of salvation for Virgin America whose load factors have led to underwhelming performance.
Will this help Virgin reach a break even point in 2010? Only time will tell, but this is long haul expansion that makes sense for the somewhat troubled carrier.
Don't look now, but soon there may be just one or two airlines to choose from. Or at least so it seems. The tough economy has left a lot of airlines easy pickings for the stronger in a relatively weak field to consolidate and grow.
Delta and Northwest combined just a couple months ago, Lufthansa recently completed its acquisition of Austrian Airlines, joining Swiss to its stable of fellow airlines. And now, its sight is set on Alitalia... as the italian bankruptcy mess sorts itself out. Alitalia, before any other airline gets its hands on it, is looking to merge with its rival Italian carrier "AirOne." Air France/KLM has its sight set on Alitalia too, so Lufthansa is taking no chances, setting up "Lufthansa Italia," a six plane airline based in Milan.
In the meantime, British Airways is building its own empire, looking to merge with both Spain's Iberia Airways and Australia's Qantas. Not to mention each of these European players has a stake in US Airlines.
AirFrance/KLM are extremely invested in Delta/Northwest. Lufthansa owns 19% of JetBlue, and has a close alliance with United - which is also cozying up to Continental. British Airways and American are extremely close as well.
So what does this mess mean for you? Maybe not a lot in the short term, but down the road look at less competition and higher fares.
Paris is an attractive city to visit for a lot of reasons, but price is not one of them. Fortunately, it doesn't have to be an expensive place to visit either, by and large you can make Paris a cheap date.
Shelter For people on an extreme budget, St. Christopher's Hostel looks like a good match. With prices as low as 20 Euros per night, if you don't mind sharing a room with ten other people - it might be the right fit for you.
There are a number of cheap hotels available within Paris as well. 50-60 Euro a night rooms are possible to be found once you're there, but they generally are pretty nasty rooms and you'll share bathrooms with the whole floor. If a nice, inexpensive hotel experience is what you're after there is just the right place for you.
Mama Shelter is the place to stay in my opinion. Free internet access and a really nice room and bed. En suite bathrooms and all for as low as 79 Euros a night, which is a steal for a boutique Paris hotel. In the 20th, just off Pere Lachaise Cemetery (Gambetta Stop, Metro Line 3).
Food Cheap eats are everywhere in the city, just don't expect anything fancy. Street food is generally good and cheap, with Panini sandwiches a quick and easy meal nearly everywhere. However, for something sit-down on the fly, the recommendation is L'As du Falafel on Rue des Rosiers. (St. Paul Stop, Metro Line 1) Amazing falafel, and yours for under 7 dollars a sandwich.
Getting Around Metro is the easy way to get around, as Paris is relatively compact. And the cheapest way to do it? The Paris Visite card, allows you access on the whole system for the day for just under 9 Euros.
Things to Do Of course there is the Mona Lisa at the Louvre, but at more than 10 bucks, I'll take the postcard thank you. Paris is full of history and lots of things are worth watching for free. The Notre-Dame Cathedral doesn't cost anything to enter. Pere LaChaise cemetery, is full of interesting sites and also free. You too can plant a kiss on Oscar Wilde's tombstone or hang out with the hippies at Jim Morrison's grave. There are also over a dozen other free places to check out art if that's your thing. Gridskipper has a comprehensive list on that, as well.
In the end, Paris doesn't have to break the budget. For the tight wallet crew, Paris can be just as much fun, if not more.
Some disturbing news in today's USA Today. Oceania's Nautica cruise ship was the victim of a piracy hijack attempt in the Gulf of Aden. The 1000 passenger ship was able to outrun the six armed pirates in speedboats who shot at the cruise ship. Although freight ships have been hijacked with alarming frequency in that region, cruise ships have not been among those affected in the Gulf of Aden.
Probably because many ships don't sail in that region of the world. Cruise ships are extremely expensive pieces of equipment and cruise lines make their money only by having a product thats perceived as both enjoyable and safe. To that end, cruise lines act in an abundance of caution when planning their sailings. For a good example, look at how often itineraries can change in the Caribbean when there is a storm in the area. NCL took a hit a few years ago when a rogue wave slammed against the Dawn. Untrue rumors and accusations even hit the line that they had purposely put the ship in risky waters to get the ship back to New York in time for a television show taping the next day.
This is a rare occasion but not the first. In 2005, Carnival Corporation's Seabourn Spirit also suffered a hijack attempt. Like this week's episode, nobody was hurt and the ship got away unscathed. Will this be a common occurrence? Probably not... at least not until Somalia suddenly becomes the next big cruising destination.
Many adventure travel companies offer easy ways to see the world beyond the big city, fancy hotel method that most travelers are accustomed to. By venturing into smaller cities and lesser known locales, these companies can often give you a wonderful valuable time, and usually for a relatively decent price. But what's with that "local payment?"
On its surface, it sounds like a hidden charge and a way for the tour company to milk a few extra dollars out of you along the way. The truth is that this fee is actually a great way to save money, and a hallmark of a responsible travel company. Local payments stay local, and when the order of the day is putting together an out of the way location, its often the easiest way to get the money to the local hosts and hotels.
"Local payment is common in Adventure Travel," says Robert Sharp of Out Adventures. "It helps keep cash in the local communities and the costs down because the money would otherwise have to be wired over." In many cases, these far and away hotels and restaurants do not have the ability to accept credit cards or bank checks and even wire transfers can be difficult to estimate. "Group leaders pay for meals in smaller locations and keeps cash flowing in the local communities." Sharp estimates that without the local payments, the total cost of the trips would be five to ten percent higher on top of building in the local payments
These payments generally run between 10 and 15 percent of the cost of your travel package. Although it may feel like a hidden cost, in the end its only hiding good things.
With a short layover in Ireland, I experienced what I could in the airport. An authentic Irish breakfast. Sausage, bacon, black pudding, white pudding, beans, egg, tomato, potato and a piece of bread.
It's a nice Irish touch to an airport otherwise devoid of personality.
Happy Thanksgiving to all our readers. We'll be back Friday, or Monday if we haven't shaken off the Turkey coma by then.
In this economy, if there is one part of the travel industry that is actually still growing, its gay travel. In recent years, many large players in the travel business have started to court what some people call the "pink dollar." American Airlines has a gay themed microsite, Continental Airlines showed up at the New York City Gay Life Expo this past month, even major travel agencies have rainbow flags at the bottom of their ads these days. But the focus has been mostly on cruises and luxury tours. And there's only so much of an awakening you can get poolside.
Enter, Out Adventures, a new concept in gay travel. The Toronto based company, still in its first year, offers a dizzying choice of expeditions across the globe in a gay friendly environment, and at a price more affordable than many other gay friendly tour operators, thanks to their partnership with Adventure Travel heavyweight, Intrepid Travel.
So what makes a gay adventure, a gay adventure? Robert Sharp, founder of Out Adventures thinks that a big part of it is being able to travel with your partner in a safe environment. "We’re working with the operating companies to tailor the trips. In the countries when we can, we try to add some gay elements, but for the most part it is travelling in a safe and friendly environment." And using local guides and working with local communities, this can be a challenge, but one that can be rewarding. "We want people to really dive into a culture. Our guides are going through sensitivity training to deal with GL passengers and help to deal with any situations that might come up."
Another appeal to this kind of travel is embracing the local community. "We only stay at small local hotels, small local restaurants, where possible we use local guides so we are supporting the local community," Sharp says. Typical accommodations are between three and four stars which helps keep the price point much lower, sometimes half what other gay tour operators would charge for a tour in the same area but in a fancier hotel and possibly with a non-native tour guide.
Will this new niche work? Obviously, it's too early to know for sure. According to Sharp, adventure travel is one of the hottest trends in gay travel, with 40% of GLBT travelers willing to consider an adventure tour in the next year. So the stars may be aligning just perfectly for Out Adventures.
Attention Tom Hanks: Your Sequel to The Terminal is at Gate 6
Lots of people travel to see weird things... but this situation might take the cake. A Japanese traveler flew to Mexico City a couple months ago, apparently he decided that the terminal food court was the ideal place to spend an open ended vacation. He flew there on September 2, and still hasn't left the terminal. Apparently, by literally living in the terminal, he isn't breaking any laws as long as he leaves when his tourist visa expires, which isn't for another three months.
Mexico has apparently fallen in love with Airport guy as well, with him doing daily features on Mexican TV believe it or not. And apparently he's become a tourist attraction in his own right. It's a funny story, but kind of sad for Mexico when you think about it. How bad is it for Mexico City when one of your hottest attractions is a homeless Japanese guy in the airport?
When air travel is discussed in the American media, it seems that certain buzzwords are thrown out quite a bit. "Legacy Airlines," "Low Cost Carriers," and "Ultra Low Cost Carriers" get thrown around quite a bit. But explanations over what those terms mean seem to come few and far between. So, in a quest to end some confusion, here's a list of the three main types of airlines flying the skies and examples of each.
1. Legacy Airlines Legacy Airlines is a buzzword that has been thrown out a lot recently. These tend to reflect airlines with long histories that have a large route and feeder structures. They also have a tendency to have a large international network and will have at least two classes of service on most flights. These are the big, mainstream airlines that most people have heard of for years. They used to differentiate themselves by greater service on board flights than other airlines, although economic challenges have ended that practice by and large. Part of the challenge that legacy airlines face has to do with the baggage that comes with a long history. Long term loyalty to a business does have some higher costs, as well as retirement and healthcare expenses that can handicap the bottom line as well.
In the US, the main legacy airlines consist of American, Delta, Northwest, United and Continental. US Airways could be a legacy airline, but they are changing their business model (although not necessarily their reach) to a hybrid between a low cost carrier and a legacy airline.
2. Low Cost Carriers Low cost carriers are airlines that offer some limited services, but have limited routes as well. They are able to keep costs lower and as such are able to offer somewhat lower fares than the average airline. Many of these airlines will cap out their highest fares as well. In many cases, Low Cost Carriers actually offer more or better service than their legacy counterparts. Having a limited route network and having fewer stations to service and newer planes make this possible. Many of them offer in seat entertainment across the fleet. Some offer no entertainment but allow you to check baggage for free, something that is now history among the legacy carriers. Low Cost Carriers generally limit themselves to domestic flights or some limited international flights (generally Canada or the Caribbean and Mexico.)
The largest or best known Low Cost Carriers in the US consist of Southwest, JetBlue, Alaska, Virgin America and Frontier. There are a couple international carriers that would qualify for this status as well, Icelandair, which services a variety of Northern and Western Europe airports through its Reykjavik hub and Aer Lingus which does the same through Dublin.
3. Ultra Low Cost Carriers The Ultra Low Cost model is a difficult one to see work. The flights themselves generally don't make money, the money is made in ancillary revenue. On board sales, extra fees, charging for privileges for example. There are very few airlines that have made this model work, and the history books are littered with ULCC failures, most notably Skybus which crashed and burned a mere 10 months after launch earlier this year. Your ticket gets you a seat and nothing else. Need to check a bag? That's extra. Want a specific seat? That might cost extra too. Food or a drink? Get ready to pay.
The only Ultra Low Cost Carrier that has had any degree of success within the US is Spirit airlines which offers fares for as low as $2 plus tax. Add in the extra fees though that you might need and it might not be any cheaper than anyone else. In Europe, Ryanair is the king of the Ultra Low Cost Carriers.
Ryanair has managed to maintain consistent profitability even in times of exceedingly high fuel costs. Fees play a big part of that - for example, a ticket from Dublin to London cost 1 Euro this October. For the American making that reservation, there was a 5 Euro fee to check in because online check-in was only available to EU citizens. Checking bags cost another 20 Euros, and then there was a separate 5 Euro fee to talk to the baggage handler who checks in your bag. All said and done, the flight ran a total cost of about 40 Euros ($55). Still somewhat cheaper than the average flight that day, but not nearly the steal that the 1 Euro fare originally indicated.
The economy is really starting to effect the travel industry. Cruise lines are no exception. Facing a large growth in passenger capacity due to expanding fleets among the major cruise lines, the seemingly deep global recession that is approaching is starting to affect the cruise line's bottom line. The main solution: stay closer to home.
When fuel was the problem, the answer was simple: add a fuel surcharge. But with the price of oil literally one third of its peak this summer, the surcharge looks and feels greedy. Most major cruise lines have at least partially ended that practice. However, operations are getting more expensive over time and revenues aren't exactly increasing. Pricing hasn't increased generally for cruising over the last 15 to 20 years, but the ships have become larger and more expensive. The cruise industry appears to be on its way to have a razor thin profit margin. Billion dollar ships won't pay for themselves with $500 cruise fares. And in a competitive marketplace, postponing improvements and innovations won't work either. In some cases, cruise lines have been experimenting with extra a la carte features, like Royal Caribbean's premium steak experiment in the main dining rooms. But by and large, we're seeing an expansion of port usage in the US, and a reduction of European, South American and Asian itineraries.
For proof, just look at Baltimore. In 2008, fewer than 30 cruises departed from this Northeastern port, serving Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Lines. In 2009, Baltimore sees much more service, jumping to nearly 80 cruises. The Northeast has been a great market for Cruise Lines in the early part of this decade. Norwegian and Royal Caribbean maintain year round service from New York City, where voyagers are willing to pay a premium for service that doesn't require a flight to Florida, California or even further afield. Often times, cruise lines were able to charge more for sailings leaving from the Northeast than the cost for a cruise for Miami plus airfare - especially in the summertime.
Carnival took the hint in a big way this year. The Fun Ship line cut its nascent European schedule in half, and redeploys the Liberty to Miami this summer, instead of the Mediterranean and moves the Pride to Baltimore for regular service this summer. Royal Caribbean is moving out of the South American market in 2009, cancelling a lot of Radiance sailings for the fall and winter of next year and leaving the ship to concentrate on Mexican sailings off the West Coast.
Sailing to exotic ports can have its draw, but for the big cruise lines, whose bread and butter have been the Caribbean and sailings leaving from the US, its a big expense and given NCL's problems in selling South American sailings, there isn't a lot of money to spread around there. Norwegian Sun South American sailings were selling for under $25 a day per person for 19 and 20 night voyages. That's cheaper than many European hostels. If that's what it takes to fill the ships on the most exotic itineraries, it's no wonder that cruise lines are staying closer to home to ride out the recession.
It looks like Southwest, the low cost carrier that grew to enormous proportions based on a strategy of using under-utilized secondary airports is now poised to fully crack the New York City market sometime next year.
According to the Houston Chronicle, Southwest is buying the operating certificate and gates and slots of now defunct ATA Airlines for 7+ million dollars. This will allow Southwest to fly 7 flights a day in and out of New York City proper. Currently, the airline has operations out of Islip on Long Island, but does not fly out of any of the major airports in the New York area. When these flights will start isn't exactly clear. The current slots are leased to AirTran Airways and will be in use through at least sometime in 2009, unless Southwest can buy out those leases earlier.
Also, Southwest is purchasing ATA's operating certificate which may allow Southwest to begin international operations to Mexico and the Caribbean, something that ATA once did and that Southwest is looking into. It makes a lot of sense, and as Brett at Cranky Flier guesses, it is probably great for Chicago bound travelers as it the most likely primary destination for those flights. (It might however come at the expense of Delta's increased LGA-Chicago Midway operation)
The Queen Elizabeth 2 in the North Atlantic, October 2008.
The ship is currently finishing up its run as an ocean liner, having run for Cunard for 40+ years. It served as a transport ship for the British Navy during the Falklands War in the 1980's. It's currently on its way to Dubai where it will be restored and permanently docked next to an artificial island as a luxury hotel.
The greatest cities in the world are often some of the most expensive cities in the world to stay in. However, with a little know how, and a sense of adventure, a great vacation in a world-class city can be made on a tin can budget. This is the first of an occasional series on this world traveler to show just how easy it can be. This week: New York City.
Housing For a city of 8 million, affordable hotel availability seems relatively scarce. Even a Holiday Inn Express can run upwards of $200 a night on any given weekday. Staying across the Hudson in New Jersey might save you some cash, and looking into hotels near JFK airport might also save you some money, even though they are quite far away from most of the sights and scenes of the New York City that is worth experiencing. For the more adventurous, Loftstel might be the right place to stay. No private rooms, all bedrooms are shared with at least three other people, the stay seems like its in its own enclosed NYC house with gorgeous kitchen accomodations, free wi-fi and a lot of other extras. Starting at $25 a night, it might just be one of the best bargains out there in New York City.
Food New York City is home to many of the world's best restaurants and any kind of food can be found here. If there was one thing worth splurging on in New York City, it would be the restaurants. But if the budget is tight, there are a number of places worth visiting.
The best fries in the city are undoubtedly at Pommes Frites off St. Marks. The regular size is extremely filling and affordable. It's possible to get filled with potatoes and any of 40 different frites sauces for under 6 dollars. Strongly recommended: the "Frites Sauce," a danish tangy mayonnaise that's available for free with the purchase of an order of fries.
Dirty water dogs are available at every street corner for about a dollar or two and they are quintessentially New York. They also may get you a little sick. For something that's an NYC hot dog tradition, skip the overpriced dogs at Nathan's and head to Gray's Papaya (3 locations in Manhattan including 37th Street and 8th Ave, just off the A/C/E subway lines at 34th st) for the "Recession Special." Two dogs and a drink for $4.45. Worried that the recession will be over before the visit is possible? No problem, the recession special is even available in boom times.
Looking for something with more bite? Try Oasis, in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Amazing falafel, schwarma and just about everything else. Pricing is extremely reasonable too for a great takeout meal in one of the most happening neighborhoods in the city. (On 7 Street, just off the L train at Bedford Ave)
Getting Around The best and cheapest way to get across New York City cheaply is the subway system. Day passes are available for just $7.50 and this will get you unlimited access for the day. Also, get a great view of the Statue of Liberty without paying to get there by taking the Staten Island Ferry from Manhattan to Staten Island and back. The ride is free and offers some wonderful views.
Things To Do There's so much to see and do in New York City, and much of it is cheap or free. Central Park, Rockefeller Center, Coney Island, Times Square. All those places are worth hitting up and they don't cost a dime. A lot of museums have free admission occasionally as well. The Museum of Modern Art on 53rd Street is free on Friday evenings, and the New Museum on the Bowery in SoHo is free on Thursday nights. Also in more than a handful of spots in the city, ice skating is possible during the winter for just the cost of skate rental.
Looking for nightlife? That's a bit more costly, but there is one spot in Williamsburg where there's always live entertainment and never a cover charge. Pete's Candy Store in Williamsburg (Lorimer Street, off the L train at Lorimer) hosts three or four performance a night ranging from indie rock to poetry readings and spelling bees. Plus $2 drafts for happy hour. It's one of the best values and most pleasant venues in the city.
There's plenty to do for very little money in New York City, enough to easily fill a weekend. NYC can definitely be a cheap date.
Barely registering in most Central American guidebooks, the small fishing village of San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua is home to something truly awe-inspiring; the Olive-Ridley sea turtle. These large, endangered animals literally swim across the world for years, returning to the same beach season after season to nest and rejuvenate their population. Doing so in large numbers, a “grand arrival” is a sight to be seen – where hundreds of turtles are seen just off the seashore, coming in together to provide greater safety in numbers.
“La Flor” is the beach where these masses of turtles congregate each year to nest on a pristine crescent beach off the Pacific Ocean. Just 30 minutes or so by van from San Juan del Sur, this preserve is one of the few select places where these turtles return year after year. And thanks to active efforts by the Nicaraguan government, one of the few places where nesting has not been in decline. In 2007, the beach welcomed roughly 200,000 new nests to its shore.
Arriving at the preserve is an odd sight; the beach is gorgeous and feels similar to the quintessential beach that every tropical traveler dreams of. Howler monkeys screech in the distance, but the only other people on this beach are armed soldiers. In uniform and toting a gun, these men are the turtles’ main line of defense, protecting them from poachers which have been a major factor in the rapid decline of the animal’s population. Although the Olive-Ridley is the most common sea turtle, it is endangered and its population seems to be collapsing on the Atlantic coasts, most likely due to poaching.
The odds for the average Olive-Ridley egg to survive into adulthood are somewhat staggering. In many nesting locations, nearly half of the nests are harvested by local populations, despite bans on disturbing turtle nests. Other factors make it difficult for the turtles to survive. Often during “grand arrivals,” turtles dig nests on top of other existing nests, contaminating both sets of eggs and making it unlikely that any will hatch. Also other natural predators, including the vulture, often go after the freshly laid eggs as a food source.
Once the eggs hatch, a whole new set of factors conspire to do these hatchlings in. The time of day they poke through the surface of the sand, any natural predators on the beach, during their initial 50 yard dash to the ocean, and then environmental factors and a whole new set of predators await them in the ocean. Only 1% of eggs laid by Olive-Ridley turtles ever survive to adult status. Only the strongest ever survive.
Tours are the only way to really get a good handle on how special “La Flor” is. The best tour comes out of the Casa Oro hostel in San Juan del Sur and is available between August and December. In most cases, tours are only given extremely early in the morning, with a 4AM departure time. However, when “grand arrivals” take place, there are so many coming ashore that a late afternoon tour is possible. Starting with a presentation in the hotel, and a quicker one on site, the chance to touch and hold hatchlings may be offered.
Holding the tiny turtles in hand, it is very easy to understand the challenges these babies faced. Without parental guidance, these hatchlings are left to fend for themselves, developed but tiny and extremely vulnerable, weighing just ounces and fitting easily in the palm of a hand. Vultures might scoop them up, but so might a strong wind.
After a while on the beach, watching turtles deliver their cargo and build a nest, those same hatchlings held just a couple hours previous are released on the shore and given a second chance, having been rescued from a certain death the previous day off the hot sand of a beach at midday. It is a fitting end to the tour, watching the nesting cycle come full circle.
First off, I would like to welcome you to my little blog. It seems I broke some news with Cruise Value Center's demise and although its an unfortunate event that brought you here, I hope you can find some advice and some news worth coming back for. In particular, given the reason many of you are here in the first place is because a major travel agency went under. If you aren't affected by this particular mess, you could easily be affected by another as the economy continues to crumble. Here's some information on how you can take steps to protect your travel investment.
Finally, if you are looking for the information about Cruise Value Center, just scroll down or click here.
Norwegian Spirit to get facelift
In other cruise news, "freestyle" cruisers NCL is bringing the Norwegian Spirit in for drydock this month and going to do a top to bottom refurbishment of the ship. Frankly, its about time. I had the chance to take a tour of the ship when it was in New York last summer, and I was less than impressed.
Although the public areas were a little faded, I thought that the space was tastefully decorated and generally OK. Big plus in my mind was the private karaoke rooms that were inexplicably located in their British pub type restaurant. This holdover from when the ship was Superstar Leo was one of the few features that set it apart from any other ship and was a genuine plus. Overall, the Spirit looked and felt generic but serviceable in the public space.
Then we got to the staterooms.
Norwegian rooms look and feel tiny, and on the Spirit the beds certainly didn't help. The comforters appeared somewhat threadbare, the beds seemed as though they were from 1998 and insanely small. Their "twin bed" looked like a kids bed to me. Some inside cabins had a pole through the middle of the cabin as well. Apparently structural, it would clearly prohibit putting the two beds together to make a full size bed.
The balconies felt small, tin-can like and poorly kept and the Penthouse suites were some of the most gaudy things I've ever seen. The bedroom area literally felt like an adult movie set, and the bathroom, inexplicably had no door. There's a lot of work to do on that ship and let's hope they get it right. Although I haven't been on the newer build ships recently, friends of mine who have say that the Freestyle 2.0 concept has made for some really nice accomodations.
The Spirit doesn't have the advantage of being built for freestyle, but any improvement should be a big one in this case. When the ship reenters service in ten days or so, we'll get the idea.
One of Europe's most troubled major airlines, Alitalia, is in a good news, bad news kind of state at the moment. At one point, the beleaguered carrier was within hours of shutting down, unable to pay for fuel on more than a day to day basis. However, a new set of investors appeared that the Italian government could live with, and EU regulators approved the deal this week - with a nice little bonus. They ruled that the 300 million Euro bailout loan that the Italian government gave Alitalia was illegal and therefore doesn't have to be paid back by the new owners.
However, the news isn't all rosy. Alitalia workers upset at the thought of layoffs and restructuring, even though the unions by and large accepted the deal, are sort of on strike. The whole airline isn't shut down, because its not a stoppage strike - but rather a work to rule stoppage. This means that employees are working the bare minimum the contracts require and not a minute more. So far this as resulted in around 200 flights canceled over the last 48 hours or so with more to come.
The good news: your Alitalia ticket, once a risky proposition is probably safer now than it has been in years. The bad news: it might take a couple extra days to use it.
Cruise Value Center folds: 3 Ways to Protect Your Investment
Sources tell me that long time wholesale agency Cruise Value Center went out of business yesterday after about 15 years in business, taking with it about 75 jobs. Apparently the entire office was let go midday yesterday, but the website is still up although there is no longer any answer to their phones. Cruise Value Center was one of the largest wholesalers in the country, placing about 100,000 passengers on cruises and tours annually. Many of these people may be affected. To the extent that they are may not be so clear yet.
However, if affected by this closure or any closure - the following steps can be taken to minimize any loss.
1. Check your reservation with your travel provider (Cruise Line, Tour company, etc.) directly. Your reservation may be paid in full with the travel provider in which case, you're fine. Your trip is still safe and there will be no problems on your vacation - especially if you already hold your tickets or are able to print out your documentation from the travel provider's website. This means that your reservation is considered paid in full and in good standing. Although you may want to review your standing with your travel provider, generally you will be fine. Any additional amenities, however, that were promised with the vacation will probably not materialize.
2. Check your Credit Card statement This is probably the most important part of the equation, especially if your reservation doesn't show paid in full with your travel provider. It is entirely possible that your travel agency charged full or final payment to their account, planning to send net payment due to the travel provider at a later date. If your agency is out of business, this was most likely not done. If your travel agency charged your card within the last 60 days for full and final payment, but the travel provider has not received the payment, don't waste any time at all, but rather call your credit card and dispute the charges immediately. The sooner you can dispute the charges, the sooner you can get that money back. Time is of the essence here, because if the charge is seen as too old, you're stuck with the loss.
3. Ask the travel provider for help directly. In some cases, your cruise line, airline, or hotel may not help you. But given the current economic climate, they may take steps to at least guarantee your reservation if its not paid in full and give you an opportunity to pay the reservation in full with them. It never hurts to speak with them and ask them for these opportunities. Ask for the customer relations department at most travel provider's reservation lines and you'll be on the right track.
Unfortunately, a lot of people might be financially affected by a travel agency closure. As the economy gets ugly, a lot of agencies that thrive on discount rates will come close to calling it curtains. These are three simple tips that might help if this situation occurs but they are by no means gospel on how to handle a situation like this.
UPDATE: 11/13 5 PM- So more information has been dribbling out of this mess as we speak. Apparently up to $4 million of travelers' money never made it to the travel and insurance providers for services purchased. So a lot of people have been affected by this problem.
If you have been affected, you should contact your cruise line. Some of them have separate hotline desks Here's a partial list. Carnival - 1-800-327-9501 for regular reservations: ext 70041, for group reservations: ext 70030 Royal Caribbean - 1-866-562-7625 and ask for resolutions Holland America Line - 1-800-426-0327 (no special desk has yet been set up) Celebrity - 1-800-647-2251 and ask for resolutions Princess - 1-800-PRINCESS and ask for Customer Relations NCL - 1-866-234-7350 and ask for a supervisor. There is no desk yet, but they are assembling one. (NOTE: NCL reservations were booked through sister agency Cruises of Distinction, which also apparently went out of business on Monday so they may have your reservation listed through Cruises of Distinction rather than Cruise Value Center) Prime Travel Insurance - Contact Best Price Cruises' internet department at 1-800-344-0401. They are dealing primarily with passengers who have received letters of nonpayment on their Prime Travel Insurance policies. They will however assist with affected cruises as best as they can, although they may only be able to answer general information questions at this time on existing bookings.
CORRECTION: Apparently even the cruise lines are a bit confused with this fast moving situation and the number Carnival provided me earlier was the insurance hotline number, not the number to call regarding your cruise. This has been corrected with information that Best Price Cruises (the insurance provider hotline) has provided for me. I apologize for any inconvenience.
UPDATE: 11/20 Ten days after Cruise Value Center has shuttered their doors, they have finally made a public notice of some sort on their website, http://www.cruisevalue.com There isn't a lot of information, but they do provide a mailing address should you choose to contact them. They are not taking emails or phone calls at this time apparently.
The most annoying thing about flying can be trying to figure out which items you can take and which you can't when you fly. The liquid ban that the US started a couple years ago and rippled throughout the world has made it difficult to travel with things like bottles of wine, or even shampoo, may finally be drifting off into the sunset.
Apparently, the TSA is planning to ease or eliminate the liquid ban for flyers sometime in 2009. The reason being that screeners now have equipment available to them that can differentiate between explosive liquids and just plain water, or deodorant or toothpaste. In the USA Today last week, TSA Chief Kip Hawley called it "a major step."
Truth is, this always seemed silly liquid explosives on planes are very difficult to use, detonate or even produce. The likelihood of liquid explosives being used in a terror attack is probably close to 0. Even that scare the UK had turned out to be more theoretical than practical. The truth is, I could bring my full size Colgate on the plane today and be no less safe, with or without this new technology. But, regardless of the reasoning, this will lead to shorter lines at security and more convenience for the traveler. So, it sounds like a great plan to me.
Delta finally caves, charges for first checked bag.
For months, Delta stood alone. The last of the legacy carriers to allow passengers to check a bag has finally caved to peer pressure, however, and effective December 5, this policy is no more. Starting next month, any Delta passenger checking a bag will be charged $15 for that first bag checked on a domestic flight. (First Class and Elite frequent fliers are exempt.) However, the new baggage policy and other fee announcements aren't bad news for everyone.
In fact, if you normally check two bags? It's now cheaper to do so on Delta. Instead of charging a fee for each bag, Delta charged a relatively high $50 fee for the second bag checked, inconveniencing roughly 20-25% of passengers who check bags instead of everyone. By spreading the pain around, the second checked bag fee is now going to be $25 instead of $50. Net savings if you pack heavy? Ten bucks.
This does now leave just JetBlue, Southwest and AirTran as the only major domestic airlines to allow free checked bags aboard. Although AirTran may soon change their policy as well.
This doesn't seem to be chiefly motivated by fuel costs, but instead more about normalizing fees across Delta and its soon to be absorbed partner, Northwest which became a part of Delta last month. And although the headline is bad for the consumer, there are other fees which were actually reduced as well. No more $3 charge for curbside check-in, and reduced fees to use a Delta reservation agent instead of their website, dropping from $25 to $20. Also fuel surcharges on frequent flier award tickets are to get the ax as well.
In the end, its mixed news, and mostly negative news at that for the casual flier. But for the frequent flier, in the end it may actually end up a net positive, believe it or not.
The economic downturn is hitting everyone hard, and airlines already challenged by a year plus of high fuel costs are no exception. So expansion isn't something we are normally hearing about in the airline industry.
But Ryanair is again talking major expansion... across the Atlantic, despite tough financial times. If it happens? Who knows. The plans are vague, but they're there. Two to three years from now, Ryanair flies to L.A., New York, Boston, Florida and San Francisco. Starting seat rates? About $15 each way. Sounds great! Except for the actual flying experience, and that it's not terribly likely to happen.
Ryanair's profit fell 47% in its most recent report, and it expects a loss over the next six months. In fact, CEO Michael O'Leary forecasts that in Europe, the only airlines left standing when the economy finally recovers will be Lufthansa, Air France, British Airways and Ryanair. In fact, in order to make ends meet, Ryanair is forcing a week's vacation, unpaid, on the whole staff.
I'd consider this the airline equivalent of vaporware in the computer world. It's promised, but never seen.
Travel costs money. Whether the cost is for a simple one-way flight or an elaborate cruise or tour, what you spend is an investment. In education, enjoyment or business, and it deserves to be protected. As economic times get increasingly difficult, protecting your investment is more important than ever. There are three simple things that you can do to make sure that your travel dollars are well spent and well protected.
1. Take Travel Insurance
Nobody views insurance as important when it comes to vacation. It is. Not just in case you get sick abroad and your insurance doesn't cover you, but also in case unforeseen events prevent your travel. Maybe you've gotten laid off? Travel insurance will have you covered. In the hospital, or stuck in a hurricane? Ditto. Those are obvious scenarios, but there is one that merits more consideration these days. What if your travel provider goes out of business?
Insurance covers that, and if you can't get your cash back from what used to be Skybus, or ATA, or any of the other airlines that folded? If you have insurance, you can get it back and get it back fairly easily. Sure, it costs some money, in many cases between 5 and 10% of the cost of your travel but the protection is worth it.
After all, this year so far saw the end of over a dozen airlines, and the Italian flagship airline - Alitalia got within hours of a complete shutdown. A cruise line, Majestic America said goodbye as well.
2. Use Credit Cards
Although credit cards don't offer the same comprehensive protection that travel insurance does, credit card companies will protect and refund your money if the travel provider doesn't actually provide travel. In many cases, when airlines have given notice to shut down, rather than actually processing refunds, they urge clients to go through their credit cards to be refunded.
The process is complicated, stressful and frustrating but it will ultimately be successful for you in most cases. Did you pay with cash, money order, or a check by phone? These methods of payment may not offer you the same protections a credit card will, because in many cases, the credit card company is withholding a significant portion of funds brought in by credit cards to companies who are in shaky positions financially. 3. Ask The Right Questions
Sometimes the problems aren't with the airline or the tour company, sometimes the problem is with the travel agent that you use. Travel agents can be an incredibly worthwhile resource to use, and able to get you some great pricing and good advice on what to expect on a trip. However, these businesses work on extremely low profit margins and when business turns south, business goes from profitable to marginable and it isn't unreasonable to expect many smaller and mid-size agencies to close their doors during the economic downturn. However, you can avoid problems by asking questions.
Try to use agencies that forward payments to the travel provider directly rather than the agency. If you see an agency that charges itself exclusively for a cruise or a tour, that should be a major red-flag. Doing this is this generally a sign of the agency floating your money before they send payment to a travel provider. Sometimes that money is floated for just a couple days, but in times of trouble, it's not uncommon to see that float last for upwards of 6 to 8 weeks which can put your vacation in jeopardy with the travel provider.
It might be nice to save that extra $50.00 on that cruise, but in the end - the hassle may not be worth it. This is another instance where travel insurance is vital. Your travel provider and your travel agency are not the same things. So if your agency fails, your vacation may still exist - but if the agency floated your money, that final payment on your tour may never be posted to the actual travel provider - leaving your actual vacation unpaid.
This is something that can be managed by the consumer, though. Just ask where the money goes when its charged. Is the cruise line paid directly with your credit card? Or does the agency charge the card themselves and forward payments later? A little research before the charge is made can save you a lot of headache after the fact.
Travel is tempting. And so many ads in the Travel section of your paper make it tempting. Cruises for $199 per person! Fly to Florida for $59! Rarely are these ads as they seem. Travel can still be inexpensive, as long as you understand the hidden costs that many of these deals come with.
Beware the Fuel Surcharge! Taking a cruise? That advertised price doesn't include everything. The federal taxes are not attached to that price, and now cruise lines are hiding fare increases on you as well in the form of a fuel surcharge. Every major cruise line passes these along to you, and they start at $9.00 per passenger per day. When the taxes are included and the surcharge is passed along, that 3 day cruise for $199 can easily jump up between 30 and 50 percent.
Flying? Travel Light or else. It used to be the flight from one place to another was good for you, your backpack and a few soft drinks along the ride. No more. Starting with companies like Spirit Airlines and the now defunct Skybus, American airlines have started to take away every free amenities that used to come with the seat you paid for. Many airlines charge for all bags checked now domestically, the major exceptions being Delta, JetBlue and Southwest who all allow at least one bag checked for free.
Major carriers are even taking away complimentary refreshments, with US Airways and United recently taking away free soda and water and peanuts, replacing them with buy on board option. United is even initiating a pilot program where they are eliminating complimentary meals for Transatlantic flights! Hidden costs are everywhere on flights these days and not knowing to look out for them or to expect them might cause you some major headaches at the airport.
The cruise ship arms race seems to be reaching ridiculous proportions. The ships are getting larger and larger, with more crazy amenities. Celebrity is adding a half acre of actual grass on its new ship, Carnival and seemingly every other cruise line is adding spa class cabins with special menus and restaurants. Royal Caribbean is topping them all with the gargantuan Oasis of the Seas which goes on sale in the next week, featuring among other things, an open air, climate controlled park in the middle of the ship.
Central Park is really the focal point of what will be the largest ship in the world. The outdoor space is actually a public park, bigger than a football field with several dining options and over 250 balcony cabins that face out to the park, instead of the traditional ocean view. They'll also offer a boardwalk with a carousel at sea, and the Royal Promenade that the cruise line pioneered with the Voyager class of ships they began to introduce roughly twelve years ago.
As the ship gets closer to float-out, the cruise line has been introducing more "neighborhoods" to highlight the difference. This week, they've revealed the fitness aspect of the 220,000 ton ship. There isn't a ton new to this ship. Just more of what has proven itself popular. Multiple rock climbing walls, two FlowRider surfing simulators instead of one. Three different pools, including one made to simulate a beach... but the big thing? The zip line. Apparently, you'll now get the opportunity to literally fly over the boardwalk attached to a wire.
Royal Caribbean is pushing to make its ships the destination, rather than the destination itself. Keeping passengers on the ship means more revenue for the cruise line and with higher fuel costs, and increased capacity limiting price increases, that's a good thing!
Carnival Corporation caved on its plan to retroactively charge people for fuel surcharges today, according to USA Today. This move saves the company a lot of future trouble and allows them to back out gracefully of a bad faith $40 million windfall the company had basically extorted out of their consumers.
Here's the back story. On November 7, Carnival announced a $5 per passenger per day fuel surcharge to cover the rising cost of fuel. This is a common way for travel providers to hide a fare increase without having to share the increased fare with travel agents who are often paid commission. What made this particular fuel surcharge so awful, was that Carnival applied the fee retroactively. If the traveler has yet to sail, but has a cabin booked, extra charges of up to $140 per cabin applied. The only exception was for people who were already paid in full by the day before the announcement was made. Thousands of travelers lost, Carnival Corporation won to the tune of $40 million. Royal Caribbean soon followed, reaping $21 million of their own.
Other cruise lines jumped on the surcharge bandwagon, but did so for new bookings only. (Disney Cruise Line is the only major cruise provider not to charge a fuel surcharge.) The move, as you imagine, was not only highly unpopular, but also borderline illegal. After multiple complaints, both Carnival Corporation and Royal Caribbean were being investigated for unfair business practices with the Florida Attorney General.
Royal Caribbean quickly backed off as the investigations started to happen, refunding all retroactive charges. (Fuel surcharges booked after the November start date still apply.) However, Carnival hung tough until today, more confident that the terms of their Contract of Carriage would allow their surcharges to stand. Or maybe they were more confident in the large political donations given to Governor Charlie Crist's campaign in 2006, while he was Attorney General.
It turns out, Carnival approached the then Attorney General about this proposed Fuel Surcharge and got the thumbs up from the Crist machine. Two weeks later, two Carnival subsidiaries - Princess and Holland America Line - sent a check to the Florida Republican party for $125,000 according to the Orlando Sentinel.
Once this came out, rumors had been swirling in the industry that Carnival was about to cave, and today they did - now avoiding both a class-action lawsuit from angry travelers, but also potential pursuit of some real serious action by the Florida Attorney General. But is this story over? Or will it start sticking to Florida's Governor? Stranger things have happened.
Where you sleep when you visit Berlin may just have become political again. According to Bloomberg News, the North Korean government is taking some of its unused embassy space, left over from when their operations were much larger in the former East German capital, and turning a section of their building into a Hostel.
Expected to open in May, Cityhostel Berlin will include a Korean restaurant and a Grand Piano apparently. The cost per night? 20 Euros a night (or roughly $31) for a bed. That's actually on the high end of competitive for Berlin, where even in high season, dorm beds generally run for about 14 or 15 Euros a night. But they don't get the added benefit of funding one of the world's most repressive and horrifying regimes in the process.
Sometimes it makes sense to consider where your travel dollar is going. A lot of hostels in the developing world can make you wonder if the money you are spending is going to the community around you, or going back to the owner's home country. In this case, where the money is being headed is most definitely worth consideration. After all, in this Korean restaurant it might be worth considering that eating Kimchi in this hostel isn't keeping North Koreans from eating tree bark to stay alive, even if the money is going to North Korea.
It's been a difficult couple of days for US Airways. Already burdened with a not-so-good reputation, two unrelated events definitely didn't help matters today, giving the beleaguered carrier another black eye, or two.
First, a piece of a wing fell off a US Airways flight, cracking a passenger's window. The 757 lost about eight square feet of wing in mid-air while en route to Philadelphia. There was some minor damage to the tube, a cracked window, but ultimately nothing terribly serious - although extremely scary. The flight didn't even cut itself short, electing not to divert to BWI. There were no injuries, although at least one passenger did lose her cookies in fright, according to some news reports.
However, the other piece of scary news involves a pilot mistaking his cockpit for a firing range, accidentally shooting a gun while landing in Charlotte this Saturday. Seriously. Nobody injured here and pilots are allowed to carry arms, thanks to some panic legislation in the wake of 9/11. There was no danger to the aircraft as a result of the discharge, according to officials, but the A319 has been taken out of service, at least temporarily.
Does this mean US Airways is unsafe? No, of course not. These are both freak accidents. But having them happen so close together is more than a little unsettling. For the nervous flier, it's not a good sign and just another reason to avoid an airline that doesn't generally have a lot to attract fliers with to start.
Lately, I've been thinking about trains a lot. It might have a lot to do with the fact that I've been reading a lot of Paul Theroux lately. It might also have to do with my impending move to New York City and giving up my car. This means that most of my short to medium trips will suddenly take place on rails rather than tires. I've always loved the train. We lived near the Amtrak rails to Detroit, and the city I lived in revolved around the South Shore Line.
The commuter railroad which runs between South Bend and Chicago is enjoying a renaissance and is now the 10th largest Commuter Rail system in the country, despite having only one rail line. Each year five million passengers take a seat on the silver Japanese rail cars. But when I was younger, the South Shore was a different animal, wheezing on life support and way past its prime.
I remember riding the rails with my mother to the South Side of Chicago when she went to work. We'd grab a donut next to the old station in downtown Michigan City, where the train still rides down the middle of the street. We'd hop in the very old Orange cars, vintage 1910 Pullman, for a slow ride. The train cars had stickers on them that said "The Little Train That Could." This was no joke, these train cars were built to last but after 70 years of daily use, the fact that they functioned at all was a bit of a miracle. I remember summer days, sitting on the ripped up horsehair seats, springs sometimes pushing through the cushion. I remember walking to what seemed like a mail car at the time during hot days, standing by the door that the conductors would leave open, so that there was a chance to cool off when the air conditioners would invariably break down.
For commuters, the South Shore was a nightmare. People avoided it in droves and on several occasions in the 1980's, it almost shut down, eventually being sold to a quasi-public company in Indiana for one dollar in 1989. As the government finally started to step in and help the railroad survive - which even in its worst years was getting nearly a million passengers to and from Chicago - new shiny steel cars that worked were introduced. The magic lessened for me, but its never disappeared. Almost every visit home involves a ride on the South Shore. There's always an odd duck to observe in the car, something strange to see out the window along the industrial remnants of Lake and Cook Counties. The train is special. And for me, it always will be.
"How about some scores?" came from the front seat as the old man I was driving suddenly woke up. Ohio in the dead of night, the Turnpike at 85 miles per hour and I was reduced to trying to find a crackling sports talk station for this guy as we raced back to Michigan. I was simply struggling to stay awake and not crash into a fiery end along I-90.
We were on our way home from Washington D.C. after a disappointing basketball game. One that cut our stay in the city short by a couple nights. What had seemed so promising became grating, annoying and disappointing. But then again, for 63 other teams each year in March - the same feelings and emotions are felt, however differently. I'm a Michigan State fan, and our quest to hit the Final Four for the fourth straight year ended quickly with a loss to some sub-standard state school that was trying to make a cinderella run.
I watched that game in the closest thing to a sports bar that I could find in downtown Washington D.C., sitting next to a bunch of office workers who were slipping out early to get soused while watching hour after hour of College Basketball. Drinking and watching this game was a bit of chance for me. I was working as an audio engineer for a radio station doing a live broadcast from the tournament. We were the voice of the Michigan State Spartans. The deal was that if we won, we got to stay in D.C. for the weekend. If we lost, we had to get back to Michigan... immediately. After our pre-pre-pre-game show was taken care of, I watched the first half from my room. The game seemed charmed. We didn't play well, but the other team couldn't find the basket to save their life. It was something like 30-14 at half time.
I found a bar and decided it was Miller Time. This was the reason I didn't take up the offer to get the ticket for the full weekend. $50 to see six basketball games is a great deal, but without beer to drink at the game (College games are dry,) what's the point? Halfway through the first beer, it was evident the tide had turned for good. The Spartans found themselves behind and dead in the water, getting outscored by 30 points in the second half, and heading home early. Which meant that my drive back home was just beginning. Washington D.C. was fun for the 14 hours I got to visit the city. Walking around the MCI Center, looking for a restaurant late at night in Chinatown.
My driving partner knew the deal. With the station manager refusing to pay for a second night in the hotel, we had to get out post haste. Yet, he hung around - all afternoon - talking and talking and talking. He gets to the room and its another hour before he's ready to go. It's 4pm, D.C. rush hour is in full gear and I just know it's going to suck.
It took three hours to get out of the D.C. area because that's how fast traffic moves there. It was nearly 10 when we stopped in Maryland for gas, just off the Pennsylvania Turnpike. I was motivated to get home, and get to bed. I blasted music to keep myself awake, as my elderly partner snored. Every half hour or so he would startle awake and demand sports scores. And I would oblige. Wearing my adrenaline out trying to find sports scores that wouldn't come on until he had passed out again to my right. So annoyed and in such a rush, I never stopped for gas again until Toledo, Ohio. Well over 400 miles. After a full tank fill-up, I realized that we got off the highway at the right moment, I had .15 gallons of gas left in the tank.
We got home at 5AM to save my manager 200 dollars. Then the other shoe dropped, the University was picking up the hotel tab all along.
The airline known for free TV and Blue potato chips has a dirty little secret. For smart travelers, it's capped its most expensive flights for $250 each way. You just have to know how to look, and be a part of their frequent flyer program.
JetBlue has a pretty average to poor frequent flyer program. TrueBlue doesn't let you keep any points earned longer than 12 months after you've earned them. Unless you have their American Express card, in which case, they don't expire at all. It's a great way to limit award availability on their flights.
The benefit to the program is that earning free flights isn't too difficult. Four roundtrip coast to coast flights and a short one way flight and you've got a free round trip ticket. For someone who flies a moderate amount, awards are acheivable. But this month, they just got more achievable.
Early this March, JetBlue quietly rolled out the chance to purchase points. At least for now, the pricing is reasonable. $50 gets you 10 points, and their website doesn't seem to indicate a limit in points to purchase. This means for $500, you can buy a round trip ticket anywhere that JetBlue flies. Although this won't be cheaper than most JetBlue tickets that are currently available, it can save you quite a bit on some routes.
For example: booking a ticket from JFK to Las Vegas April 4 to April 6 would cost you as much as $648.50 round trip, or 100 JetBlue points. Which you can buy for $500. Obviously, some caveats apply. Before you spend money on points, make sure you can get the flights you want with points... and don't expect this deal to last too long. Generally, these kind of frequent flier "enhancements" are there to primarily benefit the company. When the airline notices lots of 100 point purchases, bets are that limits on point purchases will suddenly materialize.
Cranky Flier has some great info on the other JetBlue news of the week, paying extra for extra legroom.
Lately, I've had a hard time updating this blog. Not that there hasn't been plenty to talk about in the travel world, it's just that there hasn't been much inspiration to share news, tips, tidbits, stories. Probably because this blog is as much an exercise in writing for me as anything else. Writing was a profession for a short time, and it always feel good to shake the rust of the keyboard every few months.
Travel is a passion for me. I don't travel as much as I would like and often I feel as if I'm rehashing the same story over and over again. At the same time, too many travel tips make me feel like the pages of "Budget Travel" which I keep trying to read, and keep finding other things to do instead. A lot of travel blogs either follow this mold, or just snark at everything. Yeah, travel can be uncomfortable - but when the focus of your creative energies is how American Airlines Business Class is more uncomfortable than prison somehow, maybe time has come to channel energy elsewhere. The truth is, there's no passion to write, if I don't think that I'm working towards writing well.
Lately, I've been all about Paul Theroux. The name that's all over the Travel Narrative section at every book store I've visited has been something I've dreaded until I actually picked up "The Great Railway Bazaar." What have I missed? Finally, another writer who understands that travel is a pain in the ass. But it's the best kind of pain in the ass. Sort of like when you bruise your tailbone during a great day of skiing. Yeah, the pain hurts, sometimes well after you're off the slope. But it's a fair trade - because without the pain, there's no high from that chance meeting, that great conversation, that fabulous run down the slope. More than the destination, travel is about the journey - both within yourself and within the confines of your train, bus, hiking boots or plane. Theroux gets that. Most travel magazines don't.
This week, I had the opportunity to attend a presentation from a random Caribbean island tourist board. They were there to sell me on the island. They didn't. It's hard to sell something that there's no tangible connection to. They understood the product, the place, but they didn't share any kind of touching connection that they've made with this island.
"Great beaches," they said.
OK, I have great beaches here. Clothing Optional beaches, even. What makes these beaches special?
*Crickets*
Travel and vacations are more than the individual parts. A good trip has its own soul that reveals itself to you along the way. It's something that most people don't communicate. That most people don't share. There's passion and excitement in the journey. That is what's worth sharing.
Travel Shows are interesting places. People that look like nothing you'd see in foreign places do nothing you'd ever easily see outside of a brochure, or perhaps a resort's "authentic cultural experience." These dancers were at the Puerto Rican tourism booth last month.
Planning a trip used to be so easy. Twenty years ago, it meant a trip to the local travel agent and having an expert to find the best prices and options for you was worth a lot. Today it is a completely different game. There are more options, more products and more services to choose from than ever before. Planning a trip can still be as easy as booking a flight or a cruise and just going, but with all these different possibilities, sometimes it helps to have help. Travel Agents can be a huge difference between a trip that is a royal pain, and one that is a dream. But there are different kinds of travel agents that specialize in different things.
Generally, this can be grouped into three levels of service: Full Service, Discount Service, and Self Service. Each service serves a different kind of traveler, and has its place in the industry. Knowing which one to use puts you well on the way of getting the trip of your dreams for the right price.
1. Full Service The Full Service Travel Agent, is the travel agency that has always been around. Small staffs of experts in the field help you negotiate through what can be a difficult set of options. If a trip requires multiple visas, a combination of hard to find airfare, train trips or remote hotel stays, this is the agent to use. Although the traditional agent you use might not have the full knowledge base necessary to walk through a complicated itinerary right away, the traditional agent knows how to navigate through the industry to find the best options relatively quickly. The traditional agent will do research, will have glossy brochures and will put together the nice itinerary package, but at a price.
Full Service travel agents work on commission and often charge additional fees for their time. This is a fair trade. Good full service agents share knowledge to smooth out future voyages for their clients and it can be a time consuming process for them. Because full service travel agents work with fewer clients and rely on developing relationships for their businesses, full service agents cost more money.
2. Discount Travel Agencies Open up any major Sunday newspaper in the United States and the advertisements for low price travel agencies crowd the Travel sections. Although many of these agencies have a chop-shop mentality, they can actually be a good deal. With the low price, comes less service though. These agencies are good for land packages and cruises especially, and these agencies tend to focus on one or two specific features of the travel world, rather than a full range of services. For example, the agent might sell cruises but not airfare, or land packages but not car rental.
The discount agent might be a better expert on specific aspects of the travel world than the full service agent - but the discount agent is there to sell that cruise, not provide hand holding. Discount agencies operate on volume, so doing research before the phone call is important, and after the sale service generally takes a back seat. It might feel cheap, but that is because it is cheap. In many cases, these agencies are discounting up to 85% of the commission that they would otherwise earn on the booking that is being past their way. So, the same booking that makes the Full Service agency 160 dollars, might only make the discount agency 30 dollars. Small margins also tend to mean change and cancellation fees, so be aware of what the commitment is before booking that cruise.
The discount agent is the best agent to talk to for cruises, provided the booking is simple. Some cruise lines, like NCL and Carnival, will not allow advertised discounts, but call a discount agent, and that 1000 dollar price could suddenly be 900 or 925 dollars.
3. Self Service The internet has opened up a whole new level of travel professionals, the traveler themselves. Thanks to sites like Sidestep and FareCompare, the lowest airfare is available to you with a few clicks of a mouse. Self service is best for ticketing airfare because it's rare (although not impossible) for a travel agent to have a lower rate. Most airlines no longer pay commission for flights booked through agencies, so those agencies tack on extra booking fees that can range from $25 to $60 per ticket. Hotels and Car Rentals can be the same as well.
Some limited service will be given to the Self Service traveler from the Travel Providers themselves, but when using the internet, the phrase "on your own" is especially true. Buyer beware is the rule, and mistakes can be very costly. For example, a misspelled name on an air ticket could basically be a loss of that ticket. So nervous travelers should go full service. The extra money is worth the piece of mind. Also, avoid booking cruises on your own. Discount agencies can get you a better deal and better service with just a few phone calls.
With all the options available to today's traveler, it's no longer a "One Agent Fits All" travel world out there. Choosing the right kind of agent to help with the preparations can make a huge difference both in price and piece of mind.
Passport Rules are changing again. Thanks to some heavy lobbying by the cruise industry, and also a history of long delays for passport processing, the State Department has quietly announced on its website, that passports will not be required for land and sea crossings until at least June 1, 2009. Passports are currently required for all international flights, however.
When the new passport rules were set into action a few years ago, we were all supposed to travel internationally with passports by 2007. Thanks initially to chronic government understaffing and Hurricane Katrina (the national Passport Processing center is in New Orleans), huge delays in passport processing forced the delay of implementing these rules. Finally last year, the first steps were implemented, requiring passports for all international travel by plane. Originally, all land crossings were to require passports by January 31 of this year and cruises would be exempt until the summer. But with some confusing language on the State Department website, both land crossings and cruises were kept exempt from the new passport rules until "a later date."
Most people in the travel industry were still expecting that date to be sometime this summer. Turns out the industry was right about summer, just wrong about the year. Travelers can still use a birth certificate and photo ID for another year. With the Passport Agency having added hundreds of new workers and able to handle an influx of applications better, the people responsible for pushing these rules back further lie completely in the hands of the cruise industry, in my opinion. Which doesn't make much sense to me. If the reason for this is security, why put off extra security for a form of travel where a security lapse could cause hundreds or thousands of deaths, like on a cruise ship? Maybe it's because the possession of a passport doesn't really make anyone more safe. It's just another rule and another layer of red tape to get the right to travel.
The ecological impact of travel is becoming a hot topic these days, and not just with the granola munching, tree hugging set. With climate change becoming an omnipresent topic in almost everything these days, many travel providers are taking note and taking steps to ensure a product that might offer less impact on the environment. One company taking baby steps to ensure a greener traveling experience is Hertz.
True, you can still drive a Hummer with the car rental behemoth, but the Prius and just about every other hybrid is on the menu too. In fact, according to a release by the company in 2007, over 40% of their fleet is capable of getting great gas mileage in excess of 34 miles per gallon. A full two-thirds of the fleet gets at least 28 miles per gallon. On the whole, that's pretty environmentally friendly. And given the current price for oil, pocketbook friendly too.
Hertz has also introduced "The Green Collection." A fleet of over 35,000 cars that get a minimum of 28 miles per gallon and over 10% of these vehicles are hybrid cars, including the popular Prius. At the New York Times Travel Show, in late February, Elliot Friedman, Hertz' Division Vice President for the Travel Industry was there to crow about how much of a success it has been, saying that since it's inception, the Green Collection has been extremely popular, so much so that the program is still expanding, and doing so rapidly. "We're looking to buy just about any hybrid car that we can get our hands on," Friedman said during a panel on Ecotourism at the Travel Show.
Part of the program's success may have something to do with a guarantee. If you rent a Prius, you'll get a Prius. Too often, rental car agencies "upgrade" clients to cars that may not be what's needed. The 45 mpg Kia might have been on the reservation sheet, but all that's on the lot at arrival is the 20 mpg Pontiac. This will not happen with Hertz' Green Collection. You get what you pay for, period. In another nice touch, $1 from every rental in the collection will go to the conservation of National Parks.
Does this mean that Hertz is going green? Yes and no. Hertz is committed to increasing overall fleet mileage, but within categories and "buckets," according to Friedman. In other words, in an abstract sense, yes. But Friedman says there is no overall goal to improve efficiency of its vehicles by a certain amount. Friedman talked about how there are still a lot of people that want their H2 when traveling and Hertz doesn't want to alienate those people either. The Green Collection isn't exactly omnipresent either, available only at 50 airports across the United States and it does cost more than other rentals within the company, but it is a start - possibly to something bigger.
No, this post does not take place in 1999. Over the weekend, Pan Am airlines shut down, again. The airline that shut its two routes down at the end of February was a far cry from the high flying airline that became ubiquitous in airports around the world. Instead of having an international bent, Pan Am "Clipper Connection" was a service of Boston-Maine Airways and flew to Trenton, NJ, Portsmouth, NH and Bedford, MA. At one point, it also flew to other exotic locations like Gary, IN and Sanford, FL.
Even though Pan Am Mark II was nothing like its legendary predecessor, it is sad to see the name disappear. It's also sad to see another smaller airport lose its last regularly scheduled air service, as Trenton Mercer Airport (TTN) now sits without an airline, after Delta Connection (Big Sky) stopped serving the airport last year.
With the price of fuel getting higher and higher, we will likely see the end of other airlines this year. At least one of the big American airlines - United, Delta, Continental and Northwest - will dissolve into another, and other low cost carriers like JetBlue, Frontier and Skybus are facing some serious challenges on the financial front. As air travel starts to get more expensive, and the airlines networks start to contract somewhat, is this the end of the golden age of cheap travel? I hope not. I still have lots of places I want to jet off to. 2008 could be a watershed year for the industry, though, and the next few months will be ones to watch both on and off the tarmac.
Just as NCL has started cutting back its cruise service in one market, Norwegian is expanding its profile in another lucrative market, the Mediterranean. The Norwegian Jade (one of the former Hawaii based Pride ships) will not be sailing back to the Caribbean this winter as originally planned.
Instead, they will keep the ship in the Mediterranean throughout the winter, offering longer 12 night sailing options that will explore the Eastern Mediterranean, including Turkey and Egypt. Given the cool weather that hits the Western Med in the winter time, this is the cheap way to be the only major cruise line in the US to offer year round European cruising.
The ship which was designed for warm weather cruising in the Pacific will not be refitted to make the ship more user friendly for European winters. This limits what NCL can offer in the winter time as without a dome for the main pool area, the outdoor space would likely become mostly unusable throughout the bulk of a Western Mediterranean cruise in December and January. With an average high temperature around 50 in Istanbul in January, but warmer around Egypt, it still could be a very chilly winter for the pleasure cruiser, but probably a better situation than a sailing concentrated in Italy and France where high temperatures would rarely crack the 50 degree mark.
Depending on how the Jade is marketed, this could be a very smart move for a struggling cruise line. They would have a growing Mediterranean market basically to itself for a large chunk of the year, if these cruises are marketed to American cruisers. If NCL chooses to market to a European audience, they could find themselves in a bit more trouble, as there are plenty of cruises for Europeans in the Mediterranean year round and the NCL product is likely to be very different than the European standard which could be very problematic. Although this isn't a slam dunk for anyone, much less NCL which has consistently eluded success in the Hawaii market where it holds a virtual monopoly on the market, NCL does stand a very good chance in grabbing and holding market share in the European market.
US Airways has given you another couple reasons to fly with someone else. Like United Airlines did earlier this month, the Phoenix based carrier is adding a fee of $25 to check a second bag on their flights. Unlike United, however, no consideration to the consumer was ever provided. Also, they've recently announced a big downgrade to their frequent flier program, by cutting the miles earned on shorthaul flights.
With United, if you paid the highest class of ticket, you can check a second bag for free. Elite frequent fliers also are exempt from the baggage fee and the new baggage policy only applies to domestic flights. Although this is a clear case of wanting to maximize revenue based on higher fuel costs, the conditions of the fee seems reasonable compared to how US Airways is applying it.
With US, you will pay the same fee - regardless of the ticket price. International flights? You pay the fee. Elite and first class passengers are exempt, but given the recent frequent flier enhancement on earning miles, it is getting a lot harder for road warriors to acheive that elite status by eliminating the 500 mile minimum award for flying with them. Cranky Flier has good insight on both this change and the new baggage fee.
Will other airlines follow suit? It's possible, but probably with some more customer friendly provisions attached. Given its recent enhancements, and poor baggage handling history, US Airways is quickly becoming an airline to avoid, providing Ultra Low Cost airline service at legacy prices.
My time in Asbury Park is rapidly drawing to a close. I really like living here, and I really like being so close to the ocean... but the apartment, the commute and being so far out in the suburbs is making it impractical for me. This picture is a photo that I took and played with shortly after I moved to the city two years ago.
Forbidden destinations for Americans have been all over the news recently. Cuba's had a change in leadership at the very top. North Korea is opening up Pyongyang to the New York Philharmonic. These countries which, like many others, have had a genuinely poor record of human rights and afford their population a significant lack of freedom. Although the governments are oppressive and generally undemocratic, the allure of these relatively undiscovered and truly and completely foreign lands is undeniable. Although these countries are difficult (and generally illegal) to visit, it is possible, provided the cash and the willingness to jump through a few hoops are there.
But is it right to spend your money in these places? Will your hard-earned dollars go to feeding the masses? Or will it just strengthen the ruling cadre in Country X? There's an ethical equation involved here.
"Ecological Footprint" is a term that is bandied about a lot these days. Referring to the sustainability of your lifestyle or action, determining a "footprint" can be a good guide to determining whether the positives outweigh the negatives in a certain situation. The time may have come to look at the "Tourist Footprint" that travelers leave after a visit.
The "Tourist Footprint" is probably difficult to calculate. One visit may not accumulate to much in the broad scheme of things but it might lead to a number of different things. So when making plans for the next exotic destination, there are some things worth considering.
1. Who Does the Trip Benefit? Some countries have strict rules for travel. By limiting the contact a tourist has with ordinary citizens, there are limits to where that dollar goes. Most of the money spent probably goes straight to a government that might be repressive to its people, or discriminates against people in a way that might not jibe with your points of view. The few hundred dollars that one person might spend may not amount to a whole lot, all things considering, but it is the principle. Better to miss out on a rare experience than support something awful in the process.
2. Where Does the Money Go? When staying at a new destination, does the money stay in the economy? Or does it line the pockets of someone overseas? For example, in Managua, Nicaragua, you can stay at the Intercontinental Hotel or you might decide to stay at the Backpacker's Inn Hostel. Beyond the obvious differences, the money spent in the hotel is most likely not going to anyone in Managua. The hotel is owned by El Salvadorans and the American chain is getting their slice of the pie. Chances are the only Nicaraguans lining their pockets directly from the money you are spending have a last name of Ortega.
On the other hand, the Backpacker's Inn is a small family style hostel run by a person who funnels profits of his hostel into various development projects in the Managua area. There are also plenty of nice, locally owned and operated hotels and guest houses too.
3. What about the Culture? So what about the culture? This is probably a more esoteric measure. The more someplace gets frequented by tourism, the more a culture caters to it... even if the taste of that culture moves on to something less colloquial and more cosmopolitan. There's a trade off here. The more other people visit another area, the less unique that culture becomes. As our world has grown smaller, the differences between many places shrink and shrink. In many ways, a day in Chicago isn't different than a day in New York. This wasn't the case forty years ago. But cross pollenation has made us more the same, even if there still are differences to celebrate.
Learning is a part of travel. But teaching is too. What a tourist learns about a new culture, he often teaches as much about his own to the people he meets on the road. That thought alone keeps me from reverting to the Ugly American role when things get a bit hairy somewhere.
All in all, this is an easy lesson to learn and even easier to forget. Actions have consequences, positive and negative. By figuring out the "tourist footprint," it is a lot easier to remember that even on vacation, everything has an effect. Personally, I feel that being conscious of it only makes the travel experience more rewarding.
Virgin Atlantic trades Jet Fuel for Tanning Lotion
Virgin Atlantic has long been my favorite airline that I never fly. I have to admit, I'm a sucker for the "cool" branding of certain products, and gimmicks that make a company look and feel bigger than they might actually be. Richard Branson's Virgin Atlantic is a classic example of this. When he offered to fly Concorde after Air France and British Airways retired it, I hoped his quest would be a success (it wasn't.) I secretly cheer on the Virgin Galactic project, even though I don't wanna be anywhere near that Spaceship thing. And now, I'm quietly excited as Branson pioneers the use of Bio-Fuels in his jets.
Earlier today, Virgin Atlantic performed a test flight where they replaced Jet fuel with a mixture of Coconut and other oils. Apparently the flight went well, although they aren't sure if the trip ended up acheiving its goal of reducing a jumbo jet's carbon footprint. They won't know for some days. But it probably will help keep the price of flying down, if the project turns out to be a success. And for the average traveler, this is just as important as being more ecologically sensitive.
You can always grow more coconuts, but eventually we're going to run out of oil. Biofuels have helped keep the cost of fuel down in a number of places, because it has reduced reliance on oil production. For example, in Brazil, they have energy independence, meeting most of their traditional petroleum needs at home, and now with half of the cars in the state running off fuel from sugar cane. And the Sugar Cane Fuel (Alcool) runs half the price of regular gas. Biofuels are a real legitimate intermediate step in fighting climate change, and also in keeping energy costs down. And probably necessary to keep the idea of cheap travel alive in the next 30 years.
A couple weeks ago, the President submitted his budget to Congress. Among the thousands of programs to be funded in the proposal, there's a $900 million dollar request for Amtrak.
That sure sounds like a lot of money for a struggling railroad. Problem is, it's about half what the railroad actually needs. And the proposal is almost 50% less than the 1.3 billion that Congress was able to force through last year. The national passenger railroad has never been profitable and probably never will be. But, as critics like to conveniently ignore, there are good solid reasons why.
When the Amtrak consolidation started in the 1970s, big railroads like Santa Fe and Union Pacific started threatening to shut its passenger services down and concentrating on the much more profitable rail routes. The federal government bailed out these railroads by allowing the services to be spun off into a quasi-public service. What a sweet deal for the railroads. No longer beholden to the governments that helped them put their rail operations in place, the old railroads gave up their passenger rights to Amtrak and gets to charge the carrier rent for using its track.
In the meantime, Amtrak doesn't have the funding to maintain its rolling stock, and having to rely on other railroad's track doesn't allow the railroad to improve its on time performance or average speed from stop to stop. Couple this with much of its funding from state and federal government becoming reliant on running unprofitable routes on a regular basis.
Something finally gave in the last year or two, with the train line basically threatening to shut down most of its operations without increased funding, Congress gave in, authorizing 1.3 billion last year, enough to actually allow Amtrak to start working on capital projects and might mean long proposed high speed rail lines between places like Chicago and Detroit may actually inch closer to reality.
Better times may be on the way for Amtrak. If the President gets his way, Amtrak will be returning to its traditional role of being the red-headed whipping boy model of government malfeasance with subpar performance and quality. However, the Senate is aiming to give Amtrak 2 billion dollars in funding. A mere pittance when you consider that the budget is measured in trillions these days. But that 2 billion would be well spent to update its rolling stock and improve the portions of track that it does own in the Northeast.
Bjork sings Birthday with the Sugarcubes, Laugardalshoell Nov 17, 2006.
I've always loved Bjork, but never had the chance to see her in concert. Then I heard about the Sugarcubes Reunion taking place in Iceland. Thanks to Icelandair offering great deals on packages, my friend Eric and I took a weekend in Reykjavik. The highlights included Bjork, almost getting beat down by a Soccer Hooligan, and lots of expensive beer during blizzards. And that's what I did on my November vacation!
What's the difference between a regular strip club and a vegan strip club? Not quite so sure. It probably means all the bikinis are made of Soy. Regardless, now you can finally find out for yourself in Portland, OR. Go Girlfriend has the scoop.
Alaska Airline's website has a new virtual assistant. Cranky Flier likes what he sees. He's amorous. She's kinda hilarious.
Drinking the water in your hotel room? Gadling says, bring your own glasses.
More cruise news is rearing its ugly head this week, this time around from Norwegian Cruise Line with cuts to capacity to its Hawaiian market where it enjoys a near monopoly, and hints they could be pulling out altogether. They're subsidiary, NCL America, was at one point featuring sailings from Hawaii with four ships. Three of which were flagged from the United States, a requirement to be able to sail the ships on a purely Hawaii itinerary.
Last year, NCL retired the Norwegian Wind from the fleet. This year, the Pride of America was repositioned as the Norwegian Jade. Now, this week, NCL America further reduced capacity in Hawaii by announcing that it would be transferring the Pride of Aloha to its parent company, Star Cruises, and targeting the ship to serve the Asian Market. It's a sad story, really.
It makes me wish that they would just send the ship to New York City instead and then NCL could send back the horrific Norwegian Spirit which came over from Asia in 2001 and has never actually been refurbished.
But there is some good news in the offing, the remaining Pride of Hawai'i will stay in its seven day cross state operation for the foreseeable future, having had its itineraries announced through 2010. So NCL America is here to stay for the foreseeable streamlined future. Or is it?
Maybe not so much, according to the Honolulu Star Bulletin. NCL America is heavily backing proposed legislation which would create rules that essentially force other cruise lines to leave the Hawaiian market altogether (like Carnival, Princess, Holland America and others.) The proposed rule would force a ship to stay in a foreign port for 48 hours before being able to port in Hawaii. This would turn the 15 night options that other cruise lines currently offer on a semi-regular basis into 17 night cruises, something that isn't too likely to happen. NCL America seems to think that this is a requirement for their profitability.
The bottom line? NCL America is losing money and is losing out on the Hawaii market to its competitors despite having a huge advantage of not having to cross half the pacific ocean to reach its first port in Hawaii. Because of current Jones Act regulations, NCL America is the only cruise line able to offer purely Hawaiian itineraries and has a virtual lock on the 7 night Hawaiian cruise market. Yet, due to poor staffing, inattentive service, and frankly overpricing the market, the cruise line has struggled for years. Changing cabotage rules to benefit NCL America will not straighten out these core failures.
Reducing capacity by 75% should allow its one remaining Hawaii cruiser to become profitable. But its success could be foiled by the line's relatively poor product reputation. Will NCL America stay in place for the next two years? Probably, but don't be too shocked if in six months, the Pride of Hawai'i says Aloha for the last time.
As security restrictions around US travel continue to get restrictive, the way you travel on cruise ships are changing. Here's a brief summary of three ways that cruising is changing and things to be aware of for upcoming sailings.
1. Passports are Needed Passports are needed. Or they will be soon. The US government is now requiring Passports or Passport Cards for all travelers leaving the US by plane or car at this time. Used to be able to drive across to Canada or Mexico with just a driver's license and birth certificate, but this is no longer sufficient. For some reason (to be read: Cruise Line lobbying money) cruises in the Caribbean, Bahamas, Canada and Mexico are not yet affected by this ruling, but by the end of the year, you'll need to get a passport to get on a ship.
But it's a really good idea to have one now, even if the cruise doesn't require it? If there's an emergency that requires a guest to leave the ship and fly home, it'll be a lot easier to make that trip with a passport which is now the required documentation for international flights. Obviously, the US government will work to accommodate its citizens that need to return in an emergency situation, but having the passport to begin with would make that trip home no more stressful than it already would be.
2. Get To The Ship Earlier Most ships leave Florida around four or five in the afternoon. In order to make the ship, it was generally assumed that you would need to be there about an hour before the cruise left to make it on to the ship without a problem. Due to new federal guidelines that go into effect on Monday, most cruise lines are now requiring that you are checked in 90 minutes prior to departure time for your cruise. Even earlier for some passengers. The reason? The Federal Government is requiring the Cruise Lines to give information of all guests on the ship 60 minutes before the ship is allowed to leave. Not quite sure how the Federal Government will make traveling by ship more safe with this information so early, but that's the way Uncle Sam wants it - so that's the way the cruise lines will do it.
3. Say Hello to E-Documentation Most cruises now encourage the use of E-Tickets rather than the traditional papers and tickets that used to be sent to passengers a month or so prior to departure. In some cases, like Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity, passengers can choose between E-Tickets and traditional documents, provided they have booked far enough in advance. Princess and Norwegian Cruise Lines no longer issue paper tickets and all of their documentation is done directly online through their cruise line websites. Holland America Line is the only major cruise line to currently not offer an e-documentation option. This is probably because of their focus on longer cruises that appeal to a mainly older audience.
However, all cruises allow you to pre-register for their sailings online, using cruise line's websites. And there is a huge incentive for doing so. Failure to complete your preregistration online can mean denied boarding for some cruise lines, especially if you are cutting it close to departure time on the day of sailing. If you haven't completed your pre-registration online, Cruise Lines that will allow you to board, require you to be there no later than two or two and a half hours prior to sailing. Again with new TSA disclosure laws that the cruise lines have to abide by, don't look for flexibility from the cruise lines regarding this new rule.
Long trips on the road in expensive places means getting your kicks by unorthodox means. When I felt the need for drinks, $25 a day budgets aren't going to get you much beer, even if you have a free place to stay. "If only I was a girl," I thought. "Girls always get free drinks." As I pondered my gender jealousy, a revelation appears. "I am gay," I thought, "and reasonably young. Maybe this could work to my advantage."
So it was settled, I'd find a gay bar to flirt for free drinks. This isn't the easiest thing in the world for a guy like me to do. Sure, I was in my mid-20's. But I was still a fat, balding kid - not exactly the most attractive fruit in the basket. I needed a plan... and the answer came to me with one word. BEAR.
BEAR is a gay bar in Berlin. It caters to "bears," or fat hairy men. Balding guys that are overweight and with beards are the ideal of beauty here... so this just might work. I'd go to the bar, find a friendly older gentleman and flirt for some beer. If more happens, more happens, but this should work.
About 11 at night, I walk in the door. The weekend of gay pride I figure might make for a large crowd. Except I was wrong, there was about 9 or 10 people there. I take a seat and order a Beck's at the bar. A man comes up next to me and sits down. He starts to speak with me first in German, then in English as he realizes that I'm American. I keep up the conversation, offering friendship and hoping for a beer.
He leans in. The guy is about 70 or so and oddly reminiscent of my German grandfather. He starts whispering to me a bit, and stinks of buttermilk. He tells me I'm sexy, I'm flattered. He tells me I have nice thighs and I start to get a little weirded out. His buttermilk breath gets a bit stronger as I feel his hand wander into my crotch.
Maybe if this gentleman was a little less forward, or a little younger, I might not have freaked out. Maybe if he just didn't really remind me so much of my grandfather. I jumped out of my stool, through a few Euro down for the beer and ran out of the bar. Shell shocked, and over my head. In my mind I was screaming, and I hit the first train back to the house I was staying in. This ploy worked well across Europe. Paris, London, Amsterdam, Copenhagen. But in Berlin, Europe's capital of smut, I was truly in over my head.
The Mercury Lounge, Manhattan, New York City, Feb 2008.
The stench of hipster was a bit overwhelming. People with "alternative" hairstyles paying 10 dollars to not watch the bands and instead spend 6 dollars per beer that they enjoy while not in the room to watch the bands that are on the stage. In the listening room, The Gay Blades blister through a set, complete with furries.
Sorry about a lack of posting lately, but writing for me has been problematic to say the least over the last few days. There just hasn't been much worth writing about in the last week. So rather than bore you about my Brooklyn discoveries while apartment hunting, none of it particularly exciting or interesting, I decided to say nothing.
However, there is another event coming soon to the New York area that I'll make sure to talk about as it approaches. The New York Times Travel Show. The huge trade show is a great way to see the world through glossy promo folders and the eyes of a travel section in your Sunday newspaper.
But its also a good way to get a sense of the industry in general and some general trends in travel. I am looking forward to it. To explore the show and some of the weirdness it entails, if nothing else.
We were waiting to go through a long tunnel near an Alpen pass and were stopped in front for about 25 minutes while waiting for a bicycle tour to pass through. It turned out to be the "Wiesbader" Tour of Austria bicycle race. Not a terribly well known bicycle race, possibly because it also happens around the Giro d'Italia, a much bigger race in professional circles, but this race had its share of professionals as well. It was quite amazing to see around 75 people fly out of this dark tunnel on bike.
United Airlines announced today its newest customer service initiative. Charging passengers who bring a second bag. It's long been accepted practice for most airlines to accept two bags to place down below in the checked luggage area. United, faced with a competitive environment and higher fuel costs are looking to make that money up somewhere.
First they tried to impose a $25 fuel surcharge per flight segment. With nobody matching, that fee was quietly withdrawn a few days later. Today, they've announced that same fee returning, but only for customers who purchase a discounted fare and check a second bag. This will, by United's own account, affect one quarter of passengers on domestic flights. It's generally assumed that International flights will be unaffected. Also frequent fliers with status will be exempt as well.
They aren't the only carrier with recent changes in baggage. Southwest made their policy for extra baggage more in line with most other US carriers, now only accepting two bags without an extra fee. United's step further gets them just one level above Skybus and Spirit who charge for all baggage.
It starts to make me wonder if there's a good reason for flying the "majors" anymore. Outside of having a larger network, they generally have higher prices, and the same service.
This is a situation I've found myself in. Made a love connection on the road, but finding that private spot to enjoy it is tough when you're sharing a room with 20 strangers. Tim Patterson on Brave New Traveler talks about the best places to share an intimate moment in a hostel.
With the big news of Microsoft trying to takeover Yahoo!, real travelers know the value of Google. Just ask Vagabondish.
What happens when 200 people freeze in place at Grand Central? Improv Everywhere found out and Jaunted has the video.
Gadling has a story about a woman sharing half her seat with a third of the obese lady sitting next to her on Delta. What would you do in that situation?
Going to Russia has never been high on my list. Going to Russia for an enema, even less so. Apparently some tourists do however. More power to them! However, you might want to avoid the spa in Yessentuki, Russia to get your high colonic.
Apparently, they sent about 20 tourists to the hospital this week after administering hydrogen peroxide enemas to their clients. They argued that it was an accident because the liquid looks like water. Which leads to the question of why they're keeping hydrogen peroxide in enema bottles to begin with.
Anyway, the story is here. There are plenty of jokes to be made, I'll leave you to them.
This is part three in an irregular series showing the differences that two years can make in the struggle of a down on its luck city trying to recapture its glory days a resort on the New Jersey shore.
Huge changes happened with the Casino. This is what I saw when I moved to Asbury Park in April of 2006.
As you can see. It's not pretty. The buildings had been vacant for the better part of two decades and were falling apart. This was one of the touchstones of beauty left to rust that gave Asbury Park its nickname of "Debris by the Sea" that it is sometimes referred to.
Here's what the Casino looks like today. And it's a big change!
May not look different at first glance, but notice the blue sky to the left of the Casino? That half of the building wreckage has been completely razed and is scheduled to be rebuilt. The second "before" picture no longer exists. Work is supposed to start in earnest on rebuilding the pier and restoring the rest of the casino this year. Will it happen? Who knows. But at least a degree of progress is being seen in this location.
Hey, ever wanted to fly naked? It's now totally possible! Seriously. For some reason, Germans like to get naked. "Free Body Culture" or FKK as it is commonly known in Germany is fairly popular. This is when Germans do relatively normal things in the nude, for some reason unknown to everyone else. I'm guessing it is some sort of health craze.
Now a travel agency is offering nude flights. Day trips run just 500 Euros (about $750)! Those prices are stripped bare! Expensive? Yes. Rip off? Of course! You have to stay clothed during boarding and before getting off the plane... and the flight attendants aren't allowed to be naked either. Total gyp! If I was gonna pay out the nose to fly "free," I think I would want the pleasure of wandering through the airport nude as well. Would make security checkpoints go a lot faster I'd imagine.
Manuel Antonio Beach, Costa Rica, Dec 2006. Taken by Kevin Cantrell.
"That picture is a snap of the beach outside of Manuel Antonio Parque Nacionale. The beach is located right outside the entrance to this protected National Park. The park consists of a protected rainforest and while beautiful in nature it has been likened to a 'Disneyland' experience. Furthering that description and what you can't see is the tourist trap/trinket hawking behind where I am. There's lots of tourists and people and civilization outside the frame, garbage and trashcans as well. But that shot was serendipitous."
Shock can be an incredibly positive experience. Sure, it runs the risk of hurting you mentally, if not physically, especially if the shock is completely unexpected, but it can also be a true awakening. Shock can be the moment that provides the jolt out of your rut, and open up a perspective not previously seen. When it comes to Culture Shock, with an open mind it helps you respect and appreciate new locales and people more, or at the very least provide you with a newfound appreciation for the way of life that you currently enjoy.
Case in point, it's mid morning in Brazil. Bleary eyed, I stumble off a Delta jet, on my own looking to find my way to Rio de Janeiro. In a country that I've never before seen, and with a language completely foreign to me, Culture Shock hit me hard, strong and in a way before that I've never felt. Riding through the giant metropolis that is so dangerous to the well off that the rich use helicopters instead of cars to avoid kidnapping, it was hard not to feel intimidated as the hundreds of thousands of tin shacks sprawl out to either side of me. In a city that looked both decayed and somewhat attractive in its seeming lawlessness, I sat in relative comfort on a motorcoach filled with mostly Brazilians traveling the same route. The disparity wasn't lost on me, and I felt more than my share of guilt as we sped down the road, with a backpack in the bowels of the bus worth more than a lot of the riders probably made in a week or more.
As I fought off sleep, to catch my first views of South America, I ended up wandering through a truck stop to grab some lunch. My complete inability to communicate at this point making even the simplest meal a chore to grab. Even "Thank You" seemed impossible to say, but slowly, over the bread and meat, I started to grab my bearings. I started to notice the differences and similarities. I started to find my rhythm on the road. I started to love the country I found thanks to a week's vacation and a sale on airfare. I felt hopelessly lost and at the same time endlessly grateful. There was so much to see, so much to learn, so much to do. And as I stuffed the last of the greasy sandwich in my mouth, I was ready to do that. Just as soon as I figured out how to find the restroom.
This post was inspired by a book review, I read at Knife Tricks this week.
I'm growing to love Gridskipper. Every single week, they come up with some off the wall guide that you know people want to have but are afraid to ask. This week, it's all about the best ummm... happy endings in NYC.
What are you scared of on a plane? For me, it's turbulence. For Salon's Patrick Smith, it's birds. And his fear is way more realistic than mine.
On a long trip and need to stay in shape? Vagabondish has got you covered.
Usually the last thing anyone thinks about on vacation is disaster. But on occasion, it can happen. It happened in Las Vegas today, for example, with the Monte Carlo Hotel and Casino. The highest several floors caught on fire earlier today. This is one of the largest hotels in the country, and with 3000 rooms, the possibility for disaster is great.
Initial news is encouraging, nobody trapped in the fire, and so far no reported fatalities. But if it does happen, the need to be prepared is pretty evident. Fortunately, some common sense tips can help you beat the flames and survive a very scary situation.
1. Prevention Most hotels have diagrams in your room showing you the fire exits. Take a quick second to look over the building layout and locate your closest exits in case of emergency. Look for fire extinguishers, and the fire alarm. It never hurts to know where this kind of stuff is.
2. Notification If you suspect a fire, call the front desk immediately. Let them know about the situation, and a call to 911 or your local emergency number probably won't hurt either. Once that fire alarm goes off, the fire department is on their way anyway.
3. Evacuation If there is a fire, there are a number of tips to protect yourself. Stay low to the ground to avoid smoke inhalation. If you can leave your room, be careful when you open your door and make sure that the door isn't hot before you open it. Obviously move to the exit that's away from any smoke or flames. If you can't get out of your room, stay in the room, keep the door as wet and cool as possible... and make sure that someone knows that you are in the room. If firefighters know where you are, it is easier to get you out of your predicament.
The likelihood of a hotel fire is pretty minimal. They rarely happen. But it always helps to be at least a little bit prepared, and it helps to know what to do just in case.
Kevin Coffey has some more in depth description on his website.
Yesterday, I had the joy of meeting with one of my friends from Celebrity Cruises. As a result I got a sneak peek of some of the things coming up on their new ship, the Celebrity Solstice which will start sailing the Caribbean in December. Last week, the cruise line revealed its new grass technology by announcing "The Lawn Club," which simply put is a half acre of actual turf on top of the new ship. But here are some more statistics on the new ship.
The Solstice will be large. 122,000 tons roughly, about 25-30% larger than the current flagships of the fleet (Millennium Class), and about 10-15% larger than the largest Carnival ships. The theme on the ship seems to be more geared towards adults than families, with a country club theme throughout.
Everything is two story, the solarium, the library, even the lido deck has a second level of deck chairs. The designs do look quite smart, and off the main pool on the lido deck, look for a waterfall ending in or near the pool.
Despite the ship's theme being very adult, there is a great new addition to their children's program which is worth mentioning. Thanks to a partnership with Leapfrog Educational Toys, they will be one of the first cruise ships to offer a children's program for kids under 3. They haven't announced a minimum age yet on that, but I'm guessing it'll be a program for 2 year old toddlers. Details of the program have yet to be announced, but it basically looks like a glorified during the day babysitting service, giving parents the option of being adults.
The other great thing with the new ship is the new class of stateroom being offered, Aqua Class. These are spa staterooms. The staterooms themselves are the same size as other balcony but offer upgraded amenities, better access to spa treatments, and in the room - an amazing five showerhead panel in the bathroom, allowing you to get an actual great shower aboard a cruise ship. Also, Aqua Class passengers get their own restaurant called Blu. The focus will be spa menu meals, but will also have traditional fare available. Access to this restaurant will be available to other passengers, but only on an availability basis, and other passengers will be charged as if they were going to be going to a specialty restaurant. No word yet on access for passengers in full suites for this restaurant.
All in all, Celebrity is putting a premium product together for the Solstice class. Their expansion plans are ambitious, putting four of these megaships out between November 2007 and the end of 2010. And for the most part, I think it captures their market well. Things like The Lawn Club, and the Glass Blowing exhibit are a bit beyond me, and I think will be beyond most guests, but the other new features are generally innovative and good. I think this ship will be a success, and hopefully the launch will go more smoothly than Celebrity had with its Azamara initiative last summer.
So what kind of difference can two years make to a town struggling to regain its tourist trade on the Jersey Shore? Let's take a look.
One of the most iconic pieces of Architecture in Asbury Park was the modern Howard Johnson's that lived on the boardwalk for decades. After falling on hard times, the building, part of the "Fifth Avenue Pavilion" had really begun to deteriorate. The HoJo still opened, but it was what you remembered in name only. Possibly the food was the same too, my single experience at the old Howard Johnson made me think they were still using the same meat from the last time they opened it, years before. Here it is in April of 2006.
A new restaurant and a new attitude for this pavilion has shown up since 2006. This is how it looks today.
It's more than a fresh coat of paint too. The building has been rehabbed and the inside gutted and rebuilt. The old Howard Johnson's is now the Salt Water Cafe, an upscale restaurant on the shore. In its first summer it did so well, that the restaurant is surprisingly still open for the winter, despite every other business on the boardwalk shuttered til summer approaches. The one sad thing is that the walkway that hikes up the restaurant's side is still broken. It leads to a second story bandshell that sits atop the pavilion, but is currently unsafe. There are plans to remodel this bandshell and reopen it for events, but this promise has been made for years, with few results as far as the bandshell has gone.
The pull of the open road is a strong one. Just this evening, over pancakes at IHOP, a friend was talking about how the travel bug is hitting her hard and even though she has the time to do it, budget is a serious issue. A stressful job often makes me fantasize about getting out of Dodge, even if it's just for a couple days. As the special transatlantic airfare sales fly through inboxes this January, the allure of a quick getaway seems both attainable and appealing.
After all, its hard to concentrate on what's in work's voicemail in the US, when trying to figure out the exchange rate in Romania after the fourth beer of the night. At the same time, is it worth it to prowl someplace new, knowing that there's just a couple nights at most to sample what City X has to offer?
The blog Less Than A Shoestring talks a little bit about this issue last week, instituting the three day rule. If you wouldn't spend three days there, it's probably not worth visiting. It seems to be a generally good idea but does it apply when you may only have three days? Actually, it probably does.
The biggest thing getting away does is forces someone to slow down and appreciate the environment around him or her. Having a time constraint can force you to just explore a corner of someplace exotic. It might be great to spend a week in Budapest, but if the time just isn't available... some experience is better than none, right? And a couple days, it works to get a sense of the place - and if it is a new destination - a sense of whether or not the perceived destination lives up to the self-induced hype. Three days is enough to sample the local culture. End up in a supermarket, watch foreign TV, grab a coffee and feel helplessly lost in someplace strange - in all the good and bad ways.
Not everything has to be done in those 72 hours. Not every museum needs visited, not every monument photographed. If this new spot is worth a longer stay, that's what the full on vacation is for. And having that taste, gives the chance to come back for more, and the chance to explore a bit farther afield as well.
For myself, I look forward to February and hoping I can arrange that long weekend. After all, Hungary looks appealing - and the price is right.
Everywhere you go, Jesus is a part of Rio. The giant statue stands at one of the city's highest point and hovers over the whole area, visible from miles and miles away. The view from his vantage point is just as stunning, and as you approach it from behind, it almost looks like Jesus is getting ready to take a dive off the mountain, and into the arms of the people he's watching over.
First, a few words about this blog. Friday, we had our 200th post ever. Which is kinda sad because this blog is over 5 years old, but its a nice milestone none the less, so congratulations to us. Since the first relaunch of this blog in May of last year, we've also welcomed over 1,000 page views - the magic number hit in the early part of January. So I hope that you are enjoying what you are reading, and please feel free to continue to do so.
In other news, crazy stuff happening with planes this past week. There was that British Airways 777 that lost power coming into Heathrow and kinda crash landed short of the runway, and then an Air Canada A319 that suffered some pretty severe turbulence. Turbulence Forecast blog has some interesting ideas about exactly what happened to the flight.
Also, less jarring avaiation news was to be had this week as well. Norwegian Air Shuttle will be offering cell phone service on their flights according to Jaunted. So, if I were you, I'd get ready for a whole host of "Guess where I'm calling from!!!" phone calls in the latter half of 2008.
One of my favorite travel writers in blogworld wonders about travel writing in newspapers, check out the thoughts from Knife Tricks.
Finally, I read this great blog post by Clearly Enlight, about travel and the battle between quality and quantity.
Celebrity Cruises has discovered the future of cruising, and starting with the Celebrity Solstice which will be inaugurated later this year, they'll be providing it. Amazing high tech gear will be needed to maintain and showcase this wonderful new attraction to cruisers everywhere. So the future of cruises sits just below this very sentence!
That's right, Celebrity Cruises will be introducing the grass concept to their new ship with "The Lawn Club." One of the public decks will feature about 23,000 square feet of honest to goodness grassy goodness for people to enjoy, walk on, putt golf balls and play bocce on. It's like a piece of that perfect backyard you hope to create at home, for your vacation.
Which begs the question, why would you travel thousands of miles to be reminded of your backyard? Not to be too worried though, Celebrity is making this strange thing a little weirder by offering glass blowing demonstrations and classes as well that you can take on the lawn. Seriously. Celebrity is teaming up with the Corning museum of Glass to bring this show to sea.
I don't quite know what else to say... because I don't really know how to react. Will this get a reaction? Yes. I just don't understand it to be that much of a draw. Celebrity does go for more of a country club feel, so this may work to the cruise line's advantage, but at the same time it's another one of these things I don't get. Much like an ice skating rink on the Caribbean sea, its an interesting idea but not something that would make me jump on a cruise.
I think for most people, the itinerary and service are the big draws to a cruise line like Celebrity. There's a draw to being treated well on a well appointed ship, but this kind of gimmick is more suited to Royal Caribbean or Norwegian who need to put forth these gimmicks to keep the same itineraries on otherwise ordinary ships interesting year after year.
And how interesting is this ultimately? Sail Celebrity, watch glass harden and grass grow. Sign me up!
Kids playing soccer on the beach in San Juan del Sur
There is a city on the Pacific shore in Nicaragua that is becoming more and more popular with tourists around the world. This little, sleepy village is quickly becoming a hotspot of budget travelers as well as people looking for a bit of luxury on a Central American vacation. It's San Juan del Sur, and after four days there, I fell in love with the town.
Problem is that there just isn't a lot of good information out there about it. The Lonely Planet guide gives it just a couple paragraphs, and its visit at the main hostel lasted, legend has it, about four minutes. So I thought I'd share my basic thoughts about the town and tips for places to stay and things to do.
Getting there and Away There is only one expreso that leaves from San Juan del Sur. (An expreso is commonly referred to as a chicken bus. Picture a school bus, filled with people and stuff and people standing in the aisles because all the seats are full.) It usually leaves relatively early. The fastest and most comfortable way to get into San Juan would be by collectivo taxi from Rivas. You'll share the cab with up to four or five other travelers and the cost will run somewhere between 30 and 50 cordobas. ($1.50-2.50) One of the expat bars in the area, Big Wave Dave's, runs shuttles to Managua and Rivas, but they can be rather pricy.
Geography The city is built along the lagoon and a gorgeous beach. This isn't a great place to swim however. The water in the lagoon is fairly nasty, but it is a nice place to stroll along and catch some sun as well. The town itself is fairly small, the bulk of it no more than 1 to 1.5 kilometers square. Most hotels are in the main area of the town, near the beach. Most addresses are given as directions in relative distance from landmarks, like the municipal building, or the central market.
Sunset on the beach at San Juan del Sur
Where To Stay There are a lot of options in San Juan del Sur. Plenty of midrange hotels are available costing in the 50-75 dollar range per night. There are also a couple budget options.
Casa Oro is the center of backpacking life in the town, being the only hostel mentioned in Lonely Planet. My experience is that the hostel itself wasn't that great. There's common space, but the rules are pretty tight and makes it difficult to socialize or even relax. They say they offer a bar, but the bar only sells beer, and only til 10:30 at night. You aren't technically even allowed to bring rum in the hostel. Rates run from $5 a night for a dorm bed to $18 a night for a private room. The private rooms are dark, dank and noisy as they border the street. Also, be aware that the hostel does charge $5 for late checkout (after 11am) so bring a watch if you stay there.
If your budget can afford $10 a night, I recommend Hotel Joxi, less than a block off the beach. For $10 per person, you get your own room with ensuite bath, air conditioning and pirated cable TV. The rooms aren't all that clean, but you're on the beach and for $10 what can you really ask for? The second floor has a charming little common area as well, with hammocks that you can snooze in during the afternoons.
Want something more private? Well, just find the hippy looking guy asking you to stay in one of his houses. Seriously. Nicawoods is the name of the cottages that he owns. They seem quite nice and all have air conditioning and modern amenities. Just no internet. They are just a few minutes out of town and nearby to some of the better surfing beaches in the area. They run about $50 a night last I checked.
If your budget allows you to splurge in the $150+ a night range, I recommend Pelican Eyes Resort. The resort in the hills just past the main town offers stunning views of the ocean and deluxe accomodations. Even the small rooms offer amazing beds, hot water showers, your own patio or terrace, and a kitchenette of sorts including a mini fridge, microwave and more. The bigger casitas and casas even have full kitchens and gorgeous living rooms. Taking a tour of the resort, this is one place where I could get used to luxury. Rooms start at $125 a night and the resort features three swimming pools and an excellent restaurant, if a bit expensive.
Where to Eat If you are looking to eat on the cheap, the place to go is where the locals go. The main market. I had a great Carne Asada dinner there for just about 40 Cordobas ($2.00). It's pretty informal but the food is filling and the price is very right. There are plenty of other, more familiar, options as well. Breakfast and coffee and smoothies are available at El Gato Negro which also doubles as an English bookstore. Prices here though are rather high for the area, but its a very relaxing place to enjoy a coffee and relax with a good book. There's also good bar food available at Big Wave Dave's but again the prices here are higher than average, and the crowd is mostly older expatriates. There are also a few pizza places, one of which offers American style breakfast, and a Subway.
The other place that's both a big nightlife spot for travelers and one of the better places to grab dinner is Club Iguana on the beach. The beer is cold and the Fish Sandwich is among one of the better fish meals I've had in a long time. There are a number of other bars in the area, but my favorite is Republika. This bar just serves drinks and hookahs but is one of the more relaxing spots to spend an evening drowning your memories in rum and beer I've been to. Run by a Canadian named Chris and his Wisconsin native sweetheart, the two have been there for a few months and its a great place to catch hockey games, or basketball, or football or any American sport you might be missing at the time.
The Immaculate Conception Procession, December 2007
Tours and such The big place to go again for this kind of stuff is Casa Oro. The hostel may not be the greatest place to stay, in my opinion, but it has amazing offerings that anyone can attend. From here, you can take canopy ride tours, and you can go to La Fleur preserve to visit the Olive-Ridley sea turtles, and if you are lucky, get to see the endangered species make a nest for its eggs. Casa Oro also offers shuttles to the nearby surfer beaches three times daily. The Sea Turtle tour costs $30 a person and the shuttle ticket is around $15 round trip for the one hour each way drive.
If you're looking to stay in town, there's plenty of shopping that can be done, if you are looking for souvenirs. Quite a few set up T-Shirt and jewelry stands along the beach and there are a few shops along the main drag that are there for this purpose as well. Internet is also widely available, the average cost is about $1 per hour. (20 Cordobas)
All in all, this town seems sleepy at first, but its laid back charms grab you pretty quickly. During a one week vacation, I came to San Juan expecting to spend one night. I spent four days. There's something special yet intangible about this place, but its charming. For how long? Who knows. Cruise ships are starting to find this town. During my short stay in San Juan, three ships ported in the lagoon, so this kind of charm may not be there forever. If you get the chance, savor it while you still can.
This is the start of an irregular series of posts about my hometown, a Jersey Shore resort fighting to get back to becoming an attraction. I will share the changes I have seen over the last two years.
I live in Asbury Park, New Jersey. This was a seaside resort town that has now been dealing with 30+ years of serious problems. Starting with race riots in 1970 and having enjoyed massive endemic corruption, this former jewel of the Jersey Shore was allowed to rot for decades.
Every few years, a redevelopment plan rears its head, promising to make the boardwalk and waterfront shine and bring Asbury Park back to its glory days. The last big push that Asbury Park had before its current fight for renaissance was in the 1980s. The end result was this.
Condos that were never completed and abandoned. The shell stayed in place for twenty years, only being torn down in the Spring of 2006. This photo was taken when I first moved to Asbury Park in April of 2006.
With the current redevelopment plan, condos again were called to be constructed on the same block. And two years later, it looks quite different.
See the change? Yet, the end result is the same. In December, the developer ran out of money and "mothballed" the project. This time only three stories were built instead of 16, but again another abandoned worksite litters Asbury Park, just one block from the beach.
This block was a symbol for Asbury Park and its attempts at greatness, and its results of falling short. Will this new project be resurrected? Will we finally see something nice replace construction blight? The jury is still out.
Last month the highly anticipated news came down from Columbus. The new ultra low cost carrier, Skybus, will be expanding its roster of destinations to include Chicago. Well, sort of. It will be flying to Gary-Chicago Airport, about 15 miles east of the city in Gary, Indiana.
To me this seems like such a smart move. Chicago is currently served by two overcrowded and extremely busy airports, Midway and O'Hare. Gary has no other airlines to compete for gate space with currently, and the airport is literally a couple hundred feet from Interstate 90. Attempts have been made to make Gary a regional airport alternative to the big Chicago mess, but with little success - as Casino Air, Hooters Air and most recently SkyValue have tried and failed to breathe life into the little airport that can't quite could.
This opportunity could be different however. With $10 seats, and a better funded operation behind it, Skybus could make Gary a successful destination for them. Plus, it's suddenly convenient for the million or so people that are considered Chicago area people who live minutes from Gary but an hour plus from the other airports.
The only problem? Skybus is only scheduling one destination for Gary and that's Greensboro, NC. Personally, I'd love to see a Gary to New Jersey route, but that's most likely because I want the chance to fly without the hassle of Midway or O'Hare.
The Consumer Electronics Show was in Vegas this past week. Peter Greenberg tells NBC what the hottest travel toys on showcase were.
Looking to avoid travel disaster? We all are. We talked travel insurance this week, but Go Girlfriend has some tips on how to find the up to the minute travel advisories that might be necessary for you to know about.
Plenty of news about Skybus, the new low cost airline centered in Ohio. Might not be doing as well as they'd hoped. I wager $100 a barrel oil is to blame. And that $100 a barrel oil will make those $10 seats suddenly become $20 seats. Jaunted has the scoop.
Also, look to the left, or just click here. I've decided to share my travel flickr photostream with you. So feel free to look and enjoy!
British Airways made the official announcement this week. They're starting a brand new airline! Starting this summer, the British carrier will be taking advantage of the new US/EU Open Skies agreement to start an airline whose main base of operations will be New York to fly business class passengers to mainland Europe.
These 757 aircraft will fly from New York to Brussels or Paris, with a three class 80 seat configuration. The decision is probably to do a few things. First, like Delta did with their experimental secondary airline, Song, to test out new innovations, services and potentially revenue making service for British Airways transcontinental product. Second, it is to help British Airways take advantage of testing the Open Skies waters to see how profitable it will be to make direct flights between the US and mainland Europe happen. And third, it's there to try to decimate the all-business airlines that are starting to cannibalize market share from British Airways. If the first destination is Paris, that means that they're after L'Avion. The NYC-Paris all business class airline.
That's the part that doesn't make sense to me. Why wouldn't BA go after Silverjet and Eos - since the airlines are direct competition with their NYC to London route? Probably because the risk of stealing their own market share is pretty great. So why go after business that isn't really hurting you?
This is a move, that I don't really understand that much. I can't see the profit in it, it just looks like hubris from an airline that thinks it can be dominant in transatlantic markets, when in reality, it probably can't be.
OpenSkies has a website that's really more of a blog than anything else. It is expected to start flying this summer. And my expectation? It will stop flying sometime next summer, to be replaced with regular British Airways service.
The following was written in July 2003, after a frustrating first evening in London, England.
The passport line at Stansted Airport was long. Very long. Several hundred people long and I'm watching the time tick away until the last train leaves that I have a ticket for, watching 10 pounds waste away in that train ticket. The line moves extremely slowly as there are only two or three passport counters open for the Non EU passengers. In most airports, when the line is exceedingly long, they waive non EU passport holders to the EU line to shorten waits. Not here. It was 12.30 before I got to baggage claim.
Half an hour after the last train to London left the airport. After wandering the airport for several minutes, I found a bus that was to take me to downtown London for just 10 pounds. I was really tired, starting to get cranky, and wished that I could have gotten a better timed flight to get to London. Oh well, hindsight is 20/20. Oh did I tell you I couldn't find a cash machine at the airport either? I'd need to catch a night bus to my friend's house in Brixton once I got to Victoria station. So before I could board the bus, I'd need to get to a cash machine. I got off at Victoria coach station, the bus driver directing me to a cash machine. It was out of order. I wander around towards Victoria rail station... realizing that the night buses leave from the railroad station which is closed, and not from the bus station whose terminal is closed but remains open all night.
After wandering around the area for half an hour, I finally find the rail station and look in vain for a cash machine. It is now 3 AM and I'm hopelessly lost and unable to raise the one pound I need to get on the bus. So, I hire a cab. The first one tells me I can get to Brixton for 8 pounds. I take him up on it but he says that if I want to go with credit card, I have to get a radio cab. Those cost more by the way, and the one I hailed had a broken credit card machine so I still had to stop at a cash machine to pay him. But I did save the 20% credit card surcharge. Total cost of the cab ride? 13.20. This brings my Stansted to Brixton trip cost to nearly 35 pounds, or about 30% more than the cost of the flight from Germany to London. I get dropped off at the Brixton tube station, hiking the quarter mile to Barbara's house where she's waiting for me in her pajamas, sitting under her sunflowers.
At last, I'm home. Able to sleep and able to forget the nightmare of a city commute. My flight landed at Stansted at 11.20pm London time. I reached Barbara's flat 4 hours later. Total distance traveled? About 75 kilometers. Looking back on the situation, I can laugh about it... it wasn't that awful. I did get to see things I've never seen before. I did get to wander around a little bit... even if I was carrying all that weight on my back as I did it. And it did let me have a wonderful night's sleep.
Protect Your Travel Investment! 3 Reasons to use Travel Insurance.
In my real non-traveling life, I work as a travel agent. This means that I get the pleasure of seeing dozens of people's vacations ruined for reasons that they had no control over. The frustrating part about this isn't just seeing that bloc of time that was set aside for their enjoyment ruined, but also seeing a lot of these clients lose money, sometimes a lot of money. All because they thought it would be smart to save the few bucks up front that Travel Insurance would cost.
Obviously, we all hope that the purchase of insurance would be a waste of money for all involved - but there are three very important reasons that go beyond cancellation that make sense for Joe Traveler to pick up a comprehensive policy.
1. Missed/Tight Connections Let's say you're taking a cruise. With the flight scheduled and a four hour transfer time, all should be good to get to your cruise... until weather or a missing part for your 757 gets in the way. Suddenly, you're at the port just in time to see the ship sail off and either stuck in Miami for the week, or left to your own devices to meet the ship at the next port. Depending on the kind of sailing you were scheduled to take, you could be out of a day or two of your cruise, or even for the entire trip! If you had insurance, you'll be alright in most cases. You'll get a refund from your insurance company - or reimbursed for costs to get you to your next port of call.
2. Getting Sick It goes without saying that sometimes that beloved street food, can come back to haunt the next day. Usually, it's nothing that a quick unannounced trip to the bathroom, some pepto and ibuprofen won't fix. But sometimes, it's a lot more serious. Usually, doctors aren't so expensive outside of the US. But, it still adds up. Add in emergency treatment and we could be talking thousands of dollars out of pocket, and sometimes out of pocket immediately. Sometimes, medical insurance will cover these unexpected expenses. But it doesn't necessarily happen all the time. And a lot of times, US insurance companies will be happy to leave their customers in the cold, if the treatment is needed somewhere else, especially in the developing world. Travel Insurance? It takes care of the wallet, when the Blue Cross doesn't extend past that pesky border fence that the US seems so intent on building.
3. Concierge Service No no, that's not a mistake. Most travel insurers have a hotline that you can contact for emergency assistance. For example, if Joe Backpacker needed out of Zimbabwe yesterday, his insurer can help him make the necessary arrangements or get him in touch with someone who can. Others go a step further.
CSA insurance offers a concierge service with their insurance, for example. Which means someone can use their service to get tickets to that futbol match at Maracana that are so hard to find. Definitely a nice plus. Although that's a nice touch, it still pays to be careful about the insurance before a purchase is made. Study the policies and make sure that what needs to be covered is covered. Not all policies cover for getting mugged. Some reasons for cancellation have exceptions with some policies. (For example, National Guard troops are covered if they get called up with CSA, but only if they aren't called up to serve in combat - like in Iraq or Afghanistan. Other insurance policies, including iTravel Insured don't make such exemptions.) There's no way to predict the kind of problems that could come up on a wander, but it always makes sense to be ready for them, whatever they may be.
The music doesn't stop in Reykjavik. Not in people's houses, not in the clubs, not on the streets. This brave anonymous accordion player was pictured on November 18, 2006 at roughly 1 AM. In the middle of a snowstorm that dumped about 8-10 inches on the city.
Christmas time is often travel time, but even though a lot of people were out of the office and away from the computer, still there was plenty of stuff worth reading over the last week.
Rolf Potts' Vagablogging talks about the problems that a lot of Asian's have with translation into English, notably confusing the verb to f*** with to do.
One of the forecasted hottest destinations for 2008 happens to be on my list as well. Trend Central lists the 10 next big things in travel. Number one: my next planned vacation getaway, Buenos Aires. Nice!
Problem one: Tourist flying home to San Francisco needs to get home for dialysis treatment. Problem two: Oversold flight, bumped sick passenger. Problem three: On the next flight, the ill passenger passes mid-flight. Result: lawsuits, of course! USA Today's Today In The Sky has the scoop.
As the year ends, we take time to remember those people and things in our life that aren't there anymore. The Cranky Flier pays respects to airlines we loved and lost this past year.
I'd like to take a moment to complain. I know that I promised that I wouldn't whine about travel, and this isn't about traveling or amenities in a plane and not getting the perceived value I should get for my dollar somewhere. This is about the opportunity to spend my money.
Airports seem to have limitless places for you to waste your money. And before the days of super-tight security, anyone could shop at these places. Sure, you had to go through the checkpoint, but it was worth it if you had enough time to kill. Those days are gone, sadly, and it now a ticket is required to access most of the terminal. Including basically every restaurant and bar in the place at a lot of airports.
Chicago's two airports are very guilty about this. With the exception of International Terminal 5 at O'Hare, there are no places to eat or drink once you leave the sterile zone. It's frustrating when you have friends take you to the airport, because there is no opportunity for the goodbye drink. Or if your ride is stuck in traffic like mine was last November in Midway airport. I spent three hours with a dead iPod outside of security, and with nothing more to eat or drink than a diet Coke and a 1.50 bag of 25 cent chips. And on a day like that, there's nothing I want more than a beer. Or six.
Last night, I flew back to New York City, after a wonderful holiday with my family in the Chicago area. As I was on the train back home, I wonder how much time I really saved - and if the flight was worth it. Door to door, the drive from my house to my parents is 14 hours.
The flight from New York to Chicago is two hours. Seems like it should save a lot of time, yes? Well, maybe not so much. On my drive over to the airport, we hit traffic. So that's two hours. You have to get to the airport an hour early, a three and a half hour delay, 30 minutes minimum to get out of the airport on the back end, and then two hours to get back home in nasty weather in Chicago.
Suddenly two hours just became eleven. 11 Hours. Flying NYC to Chicago is basically an all day affair. Yet it is more convenient.
Now this case isn't necessarily typical. I live a fair distance from area airports, and the closest airport to me is usually the most expensive to fly from (Newark). And the weather was nasty in Chicago.... but I think we have a tendency to fly more out of convenience than anything else. Driving can be fun, but in the middle of the night in December, I'd rather be eating my complimentary JetBlue chips and watching Law and Order SVU on the seatback TV. Even if I only save a couple hours in the process.
With the holiday rush, I'm finding myself off to JFK tonight for a flight home for Christmas. Catching the late flight to O'Hare airport tonight, and back at the tail end of Christmas night for fun and frivolity back at the grind on Dec 26. So for the next few days, my posting schedule may be a bit erratic, but I'll do my best to keep up.
In the meantime, Christmas isn't the only thing that's stressful for a lot of people traveling this weekend. Sometimes it's the travel itself. Here's a few websites that might help put your mind at ease.
Turbulence Forecast is a great website to help you know what to expect on your flight. Check out the latest charts and maps and get a good idea where you might expect rough spots on your flights. You can even get a free personalized forecast for your specific flight!
FlightStats is a great way to find out realtime information about your flight, as the airline reports it to the airport, not as the airline reports it to their website or monitor. Sometimes, you can even get the information about your upcoming flight quicker through FlightStats than by watching the monitor at the terminal.
Finally, if you have friends that worry, point them to Flight Aware and they can track your flight in real time.
One of the pleasures of finding yourself in a place that you know nothing about is that, every so often you'll find out something special that your guide book never clued you in on. When I was in Southern Nicaragua, this happened to me. San Juan del Sur barely registers a page in the Lonely Planet Central America guide book, but it was my favorite spot on my vacation - and nowhere do they mention the turtles.
But they are there. Well, not in San Juan del Sur proper but just south of the town. Olive-Ridley turtles come to a beach every year to lay their nest of eggs by the hundreds of thousands. And they always come back to "La Fleur." It's not for the ambiance but more of a homecoming. According to our tour guides, these turtles were born here.
The Olive-Ridley turtles, like most sea turtles come to lay their eggs at the same place that they were born. It's not necessarily a conscious thing on the turtle's part, but rather an in-born homing signal or GPS. It's worked for them for a long time. Hundreds of millions of years in fact. But now, populations are declining. Environmental concerns shape this problem as do humans. With the breeding grounds limited (for all the thousands of miles that a turtle swims in a year, they only stop at seven unique beaches in the whole world), overfishing and hunting has become a serious problem. Most of these beaches are in decline for the sea turtle population, with the exception of "La Fleur." Thanks to Nicaraguan preservation efforts, turtle deposits are actually increasing, now with about 200,000 turtles coming by annually.
When our tour group hit the beach, in early December, the nesting season was in full swing with 90,000 turtles at the beach, and 5,000 alone arriving the night before. My visit to Nicaragua, was again a happy accident. I had come to the town during a turtle "Grand arrival" which means I would get a very good chance to see a turtle making her nest during the day. A big bonus for me, because truth be told, a 4AM departure time to see a turtle lay an egg? That's not going to happen. Our 3:00 visit would mean a good likelihood of lots of turtles, better light for photos - a perfect storm. Well almost. It was also low tide....
There were a couple turtles making the trip on their own but the grand arrival we were waiting for was several hours off. Low tide makes their job twice as hard because the land travel doubles. A 50 meter journey quickly becomes a 100 meter journey. Pursued by natural enemies the whole time, its not uncommon to see flocks of vulture waiting behind the turtle for her to lay her nest of eggs.
The journey and work is a sight to see. After digging a hole a foot deep, Mama Turtle drops what has to be a most satisfying load, about 100 eggs. These eggs sit buried in the sand and if the nest is left undisturbed, hatchlings pop out of the sand about 50 days later. Sometimes, old nests get dug up. That's bad news for both sets of eggs, because it usually means contamination for both nests and death for all the hatchlings.
At "La Fleur" they are big on nature taking its course. They let the vultures go after the eggs, and the only one predator that they keep away from the nest are humans. They'll also give limited protection for the hatchlings. If they discover the hatchlings popping out mid-day when they sand will scorch them, they're picked up and kept cool until night time when they're set free. We were given this opportunity to do so which was quite incredible.
After dark, during our visit, the park rangers brought us about 75 or so turtle hatchlings to set free. The odds against them were steep. Of all those hatchlings, only one or two were expected to make it to adulthood. So our group decided to name the hatchlings we set free. Why not? A name gives an identity. Identity breeds character. And that's what makes you tough and a survivor. I thought of my four hatchlings as a family. So I named them after another family that faced adversity but after several TV seasons of trying finally got out of the ghetto. They were named Florida, JJ, Michael and Thelma. This way they can always have Good Times.
The announcement finally came down today from the FAA. Get ready to pay more to fly to New York? This isn't the start of re-regulation of pricing and airlines by the federal government, but instead the beginning of traffic caps at the New York airports in an effort to reduce delays at JFK, LaGuardia and Newark airports. The three airports most responsible for traffic delays across the country.
Last summer, almost 100 planes an hour were scheduled to take off from JFK airport. Starting March 15, the FAA will only slot 82 or so every hour many news agencies are reporting today. Exactly what will this mean for the average traveler? It's still a little unclear, but it seems to point to only being late 40% of the time instead of 50% of the time and paying more for the privilege.
In my relatively uneducated opinion, this points to affecting JetBlue and Delta the most, as these two carriers represent the largest share of traffic from the airport and will probably be asked to make the most concessions among all the airlines affected. Least affected will probably be international routings, as these flights are more profitable, and JFK is considered more of an international hub of the three airports in the NY Metro area.
Personally, I think this flight cap (which is only scheduled to last through 2009) is probably a good idea, but executed poorly. Instead of capping just flight departures, the FAA ought to also create seat minimums for flights leaving during peak travel times, particularly 4pm-9pm when the domestic departures are sharing the bulk of its traffic with the overseas rush. If the FAA insisted on a 100 seat minimum for flights in this time, the number of seats going in and out of JFK may actually increase, keeping prices relatively stable as well. (This would affect mostly American and Delta who fly lots and lots of regional jets in and out of JFK.) Unfortunately, this probably won't be a priority for either the government or the affected airlines.
So the end result, fewer flights, slightly fewer delays, and higher prices.
Christmas just days away, shopping season is in full swing. Although, the forecast is a little gloomy for retailers, stores are still awash with crazy shoppers looking for the next big gift. For me, shopping usually means at least one trip to New York City to try to find the slightly left of center gifts that I like to give. Record shopping in the village... fake bags on Canal Street... those places are old hat? Bloomingdales, Century 21? How very 2002. The big shopping spot this year is in SoHo, and its entirely Japanese.
MUJI is the new it shop on Broadway this year. Opened just last month to throngs of folk looking to grab their free "My MUJI" cloth bag and get shopping for simplicity. The relatively small space is filled with plastic and glass housewares and simple, plain clothes. Despite the simplicity of the style, the designs are pretty cunning, including a set of mini speakers built into cardboard boxes that you fold yourself. Like Tokyo, the store is cramped and expensive. The mini-speakers? Cute at $20, too bad they sell for $42.
The other "it" store in SoHo is also Japanese. UNIQLO opened in 2006 and is all about good, fashionable clothes. And at a decent price too. No clearance racks, but quality made clothes suitable for business and fun. Check out the listening racks on the second floor near the front of the store and you can find some of the music that apparently really is huge in Japan.
Also worth a mention, but neither Chinese, nor in Soho - is the Brooklyn Indie Market. In far flung Carroll Gardens - a good half hour by subway out of Manhattan - the small market features about 15 or 20 booths with crafts and clothes and tents overflowing with hipsters. The market is, to my knowledge, open every weekend and currently has extended hours for the holidays. Although I didn't find anything there, the idea of the place is pretty great. Sort of like a co-op for Christmas presents. Especially if your list includes inexpensive jewelry, purses made to look like guitars, and shirts for your dog.
This has been a busy week for travel. A lot of good stuff worth reading online too!
First of all, the good news on the business end of travel. Lufthansa, just bought 19% of JetBlue this week. No immediate changes on either side as a result of this transaction, but I think it really only means good things for both airlines in the future - and possibly the nudge United needs to more aggressively pursue a buyer. The Cranky Flier is all over this and has some interesting analysis as well.
Then there's the bad news. Windjammer Barefoot Cruises? Apparently no longer sailing, but still taking your money. Cruisemates
Let's face it, flying to your destination is often the least fun part of the trip. Sometime endless waits in the terminal, very little to eat on board the plane... creature comforts can be few and far between. Although this kind of thing might be expected in budget adventure travel, I've found few places where the waiting, boredom and lack of amenities to be more annoying than flying somewhere. So far this year, I've flown 13 segments in the air, 6 with Delta, 6 with JetBlue and one with Southwest. Having the most experience with Delta and JetBlue, let's take a look at the Creature Comforts offered, and which has the better product.
In Terminal - Edge: Delta The best way to compare terminal amenities is to do this at their Hubs. JetBlue has Terminal 5/6 at JFK, which is under renovation and is too crowded and although the food is alright and there is good selection, its often hard to find a place to sit. Having free Wi-Fi is a plus though, and its easy to access up to date information on your flight through your cell phone as their mobile friendly website is easy to access.
On the other hand, Delta has lots of different food options in their hubs in Atlanta and New York. JFK's Terminal 2/3 options are actually head and shoulders above JetBlue's. A Bobby Flay restaurant? Balducci's Deli? That's pretty amazing. Also, the sheer number of eateries available to you in Atlanta without leaving your terminal is a big plus. But what takes the cake for Delta is the Crown Room. Granted, the Crown Room costs money to wait in - about $25. But you get a comfortable place to sit, a couple TVs to watch, and the most important part - an open bar. Nothing makes four hours at JFK pass faster than a glass of wine or five. The average glass of wine in a JFK bar costs $13+tip. Two drinks at the Crown Room and you're already ahead of the game.
Legroom - Edge: JetBlue Delta coach - Domestic 31-32", International 31-32" pitch. (Pitch refers to leg room between seats on a flight.) JetBlue - 32-33" pitch on their smaller jets, 34-36" pitch on their A320's. A way roomier ride all the way around.
In Flight Entertainment - Edge: JetBlue Jet Blue offers free TV on every flight. On some international routes, the Live TV does not work so the premium movies are offered for free instead. Jet Blue offers 36 channels. In many of their planes, 100 channels of XM radio is also available - although that is not yet fleet wide standard. Headphones for the system were free, the airline does now charge, however.
Delta has a seat back IFE on some 757 and 737 planes. It offers 16 channels of Live TV for domestic flights, some premium HBO content and also games to play. The games are a neat way to kill time, but my experience was that some of the monitors just weren't working at all, and that not all channels on the Live TV were operational, limiting me to about 12 options. Delta's seat back IFE also offers MP3 listening and the selection is quite diverse. If this was available on a much wider range of planes that Delta uses, this would actually be a better system. The flight tracking channel is also superior to JetBlue's as well. Unfortunately, on other longer haul products, movies are still shown on in flight monitors, that barely work. Audio jacks are often inoperational as well. And on many flights, the only in-flight entertainment is the kid behind you kicking your seat.
In Flight Service - Toss Up Jet Blue offers unlimited snacks, but never a meal. Delta offers meals internationally still, but otherwise offers snack packs. The signature JetBlue snack is Terra Blue potato chips. These are kind of nasty. The signature Delta snack is the Biscoff cookie, which I have a love affair with. Both airlines have had excellent service from the flight crew, so I have no real fault here.
Winner: JetBlue (but just barely) If I'm flying domestic, and I'm flying a long distance, I'm sticking with JetBlue, even it's a little more. The better TV product, the more space to put my legs in wins out over a better terminal experience. However, Delta wins on network. There are very few places that Delta can't get me to, while JetBlue has very little service to the midwest from the northeast, the route I'm most likely to fly.
My friends think I'm a bit of an adventure traveler. However, the more places I see, I don't know that this is actually the case. Quick to eschew the hotel for the hostel and generally seeking the less worn path. I'm not pioneer, but I'm not exactly Hawaiian shirt and fanny pack material either. At least I don't think so anyway. But after meeting some really well worn travelers, I don't know how sure I am of that anymore.
Lounging in a dank, poorly lit spot in Granada, I ran into a group of people who can legitimately called worldbeaters. Every single one of them has been on the road for months. One of them has just a week left before heading home to New Jersey... but it turns out that this is just for the holidays. In January, she's planning on living in Dubai for some time. We talk about our travel, and I sheepishly admit that I can only squeeze out a week on the road at a time. "Oh well..." the response comes, "at least that's something." When the state of the dorm rooms comes up, I mention that I upgraded to a private room. "Oh, well I'm sure if I only had a week, I'd do the same."
What the hell? Was that derision? Jealousy? Or were they looking down their nose at me for taking less shitty accommodations than them? Honestly, I'm not really sure. From memories of my months in Europe a few years ago, I know that a short budget means being long on patience and politeness... otherwise the meaner you get, the quicker your wallet empties. At least with one or two of the people I'm talking to at this hostel, there does seem to be this passive-aggressiveness to their tone, but I let it wash away though. The conversation is the best I've had since I left the states and they seemed otherwise nice enough.
The next day, we're all headed to San Juan del Sur, a little beach village on the Pacific Coast. Dreading the infamous chicken buses, I had plans to take the direct shuttle that a travel agency offers for $20. The van never showed up though, and the agency didn't even open. Which left me the option of a chicken bus. We ended up on the same chicken bus to Rivas, there are no direct routes to the beach from Granada. Although these buses aren't exactly comfortable, I wasn't as scared of that as I was figuring out how to get out of the market in Rivas and into San Juan.
After two hours of being compressed by about 30 Nicaraguans in a school bus meant for half as many kids as there were adults aboard, I got my bag from the roof of the expreso and I get hit with culture shock. There is nothing touristy about the Rivas market. There is very little to help you, and without a knowledge of Spanish, panic started to take over. Fortunately, the people I got to know, saved my ass and got me in a collectivo with a few other Nicas to get me down to San Juan del Sur.
It's funny how things change. I came into Nicaragua thinking that there would be very little that I couldn't handle, I quickly realize that there's a long way for me to go. These travelers who I first got intimidated by, became fast traveling friends - and I was quite sad to leave them when my week ended and I was off to the real world. It has only been a couple days and I miss them already.
Pictures: Mural on the side of the Northern Coridor Highway in Managua, cattle drive seen on the highway from Managua to Granada.
You will need a passport to leave the US soon. And its sooner than you may have thought. The USA Today reported that you'll need a passport to leave the country by any method other than a cruise ship starting as early as January 31. Cruise ships to the Bahamas, Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean are exempt until sometime this summer - they haven't announced that date yet.
Whether its in Germany or on Amtrak, train rides can be a lot more challenging than you've ever thought. Brave New Traveler has some good tips on surviving a long trip on a slow train.
JetBlue is going wireless on its flights. Yahoo IM and Yahoo mail as well as your Blackberry mail will all work aboard one specific JetBlue plane starting on Monday, this news coming courtesy of The Cranky Flier.
I don't know why but it has been relatively difficult to keep this journal/blog active over the last year. Maybe it's because I don't travel much, or I don't write as often as I could for fear of not being at all interesting. It might be some of those things, but it is most likely because I'm lazy. Being a dabbler at heart, it's hard to stay passionate about the same things day to day much less write about them in a coherent fashion.
I'm sitting in a quiet hostel in Managua, Nicaragua relaxing through my last day of an amazing, and somewhat life-changing vacation. I have written quite a bit which I will share with you over the next few weeks. I've always wanted to be a travel writer and discover interesting places and share them with people. I always want to share the experiences I've had and give everyone I know the chance to live them a little myself. In addition to this most recent trip, I'll share stories I've written from past journeys over the last 5 years or so. I hope you enjoy them, and I hope I can keep the energy up to keep giving you these stories.
What I am most afraid of is that I'll stop writing a journal and start becoming a blogger. I always see the difference in the two as between being positive generally, and being negative because you think snark equals wit. I've been reading a couple travel blogs today that just seem like a lot of whining. Here's the truth. Travel isn't always comfortable. Getting to go to places far off is a privileged experience, and the ability to do it should make you thankful at your core. I never want to say how I love to travel and then whine about how my vacation didn't go exactly the way I wanted it to because the ticket cost $50 more here, and I had to stay in a hotel near the airport because to save the money I wanted I had to leave early, and so on.
I just wanted to share that today. We'll talk more next week. As always, comments are welcome. Roger
Sometimes, travel can break your heart. A couple mornings ago, I was enjoying a smoothie in Granada, in this fruit juice shop off the Central Park, and I got to meet Bryan. Bryan is a 17 year old Nica kid and a really nice guy. Speaks English very well and is putting some time in at the juice bar so that he can buy Christmas presents for his family. We spoke for a good 45 minutes and talked about his life, my vacation and eventually the subject came up: America.
Long story short: he wants to go to the US. This is not the easiest thing for people from the 3rd world to do, even if these people are well off. I have a friend, Jorge, who is from South America and is studying for a doctorate in Economics. It allows him to stay in the states legally, but even after living in our country for six years, being fluent in English and having a Ph.D, the government won't grant him a green card. Why? Because he's from the wrong continent.
There's all sorts of talk in the US these days about illegal immigration. With 12-20 million latinos living an undocumented life in the US, there is legitimate concern about being able to have an American identity that isn't being taken over by other countries. People want to build walls, people want to close out immigration entirely. It seems as if it has gotten to the point these days, where the only way to get in our country is to sneak in our country. And that is sad. It brings the people in who we may not want in our country. And keeps the people like Bryan, who have a lot to offer us, out of the US.
He talked at length about his dream to see New York and live with his family there, maybe go to school there. He asked how easy it was to get there, and it broke my heart. How do you crush a dream like that? How do you tell him, that the people in power don't really want you there, unless you go sneak in and work at a meatpacking plant for five dollars an hour with no benefits or insurance? You don't. You tell him that he has a good chance of getting there. You tell him that he should go and make it happen. Even though, deep down inside, you know that the thought of him getting there seems unlikely. And it breaks your heart.
Stomping through Central America with Philip Roth With a trip to Nicaragua looming ever closer, the list of what to pack is rapidly forming in my head. Hiking Boots, check. Festive Hawaiian shirt, check. Camera, check. But at the top of my list on every trip? A couple, good, cheap paperback novels.
The truth is, the paperback novel is the most underrated, and most important item in your day pack on every trip. Because so much of traveling involves waiting. An hour to kill at the bus stop might be a cultural attraction at first, but after 10 minutes or so the realization hits that staring at the tobacco stand won't win you any friends, and there never seems to be a lot to really "see" at the bus station. The truth is that having a book gives you something to do - and something to busy your mind during those long waits, or those overnight train rides where you just can't get the sleep you need, because they never turned the lights off in your compartment.
It's also a great tool to meet people. Seriously, hanging out in the hostel of choice in Rio or Munich or wherever, the book someone's reading at the picnic table comes up for discussion. Followed by what Joe Backpacker is reading on his long train rides. Books get exchanged, ideas shared, friendships made. Much like bumming a light for a cigarette got you that first friend in college, your paperback book can do the same thing for you on the road - and without damaging your lungs. (Unless you try to smoke your book - and in that case, just buy the smokes instead!)
When traveling, a book can be your best friend, and it definitely should be something kept in your bag - at all times.
Why go somewhere when everyone else does? If there isn’t a specific reason to be somewhere - like going to Loveparade, to watch the tour, or samba it up at Carnivale - why bother going to Europe in July or Brazil in February? The only things that generally change in a couple months are the prices. Suddenly travel to Europe becomes much more affordable in September. That room in Rio? You might be able to find it for half price in May. This is the joy of Shoulder Season.
Sure the weather might be a bit spotty on some days, and it might not make for the best beach weather… but the experiences that you get tend to be richer and more personal than when you find yourself elbow to elbow with that guy in the hawaiian shirt and fannypack and Japanese tourists with more cameras than arms to document their experience.
Four years ago, I caught the tail end of the summer in Scandinavia. Sure, I didn’t have the midnight sun in September as I hiked across the Arctic Circle, but I was able to do it on an extremely tight budget and the travelers I met on the way were a different breed entirely. Instead of the traditional backpacker/bar hound that a summer in hostels provide, I found myself with the guy who is busking himself around the world. The African in Helsinki for an IMF conference, the liberal activist from Washington state who’s touring Europe after two weeks in Cuba.
The people I met were nicer too. Maybe, I just found the right people. Or, maybe the people you meet in Shoulder Season aren’t as inundated with tourists and can take the time to help out a confused traveler. Either way, I love travelling a bit off season. Just as much to do, less competition to do it, and a whole lot easier on the wallet.
It's tough to find your bearings in the travel industry. For the last three years, I've been a fairly successful travel agent at a discount travel agency. I'm not terribly happy with where I am there. I've started looking for new work, preferably in the industry, but I just don't really know where to start.
I think the place for me to move into is business development. I'd really like the opportunity to work with one product or product line and help get agencies and agents, like myself, interested and excited in them. I've started sending my resumes to random jobs that I've found available through things like Monster, hotjobs, and travel providers' websites. But the whole job search thing is something I am finding myself completely lost in. Maybe it's about getting a head hunter, maybe it's about knowing the right people. Maybe it's just about flooding the world with my resume. Either way, something's gotta give soon. I want to leave the job I have, I need to find a job I love to replace it. Here's to hoping something comes up soon....
Sunday Blogs of Note Things I'm loving this week online this week are as follows:
Skybus airlines launched this week out of Columbus. Jaunted was there with an entertaining liveblog of the first few flights.
MSNBC reports that Las Vegas tourists are skipping the walking they might get on their vacation for motorized scooters usually reserved for the handicapped.
Has anyone seen the airplane air purifiers that are being sold some places? Hook it up to your little personal air jet thing and it supposedly makes the clean air cleaner or something? They're mostly forbidden, and might start the occasional on board fire - maybe. Fly Away Cafe was on that this week.
I'm fascinated with Knife Tricks. It's my favorite blog of late - all about his recent trip to North Korea. This week, Dog Soup!
Finally, Salon's Ask the Pilot describes the worst airport on earth. It's in Senegal.
Four Crazy Nights: Unexpected Overnight Accommodations
You might be the same way. Love traveling, hate spending money to make it happen. Over the last few years, I've found a lot of different places to catch some shut-eye. Some amazing, some just amazingly bad. Nonetheless, I wouldn't trade these experiences for anything. Except maybe the Larouche cult trying to convert me to their style of politics. But even that was kinda fun, in a Jim Jones without the Kool-Aid kind of way. Anyway, here are some of the crazier, not so savory spots I've slept over the past few years.
1. The Tent - Munich, Germany Is there anything better than a place to crash, hundreds of like minded travelers, and breakfast in the morning for eight dollars a night? If there is, I haven't found it yet. I spent three wonderful nights there in 2003, near the end of their season. The stay was pretty incredible. Meeting up with a lot of broke American backpackers, and a lot of Germans there for various reasons - including a few on business! The place sleeps about 300, all on the floor. They provide bedding, but bring your own sleeping bag. The bedding I got consisted of a foam pad, and four not-so-clean blankets. Including one with gum stuck to it. But when the beer is cheap, who cares where you sleep?
During my stay, I got attacked by Larouchites. Lyndon Larouche, political crackpot of the US, apparently has a political party in Germany and these people were staying there to campaign for their local slate of candidates in the Bavarian elections at the time. Larouchites from all over Europe came down to the Tent to headquarter a big weekend of campaigning. Problem was, none of them knew who the local candidates were. Their campaign consisted of protesting the US Presidency. Somehow this was going to get them votes, for local candidates.... in Germany. By the second night of inculcation, it got annoying, but the free beers I scored were pretty sweet - so I'd call it a wash.
This year the season opens June 15, and goes through early October. Rates for a spot on the floor of the big tent are Euro 7.50 a night. Click here to visit The Tent.
2. Amtrak Need a cheap way to get across the country? And do you have a few days to kill? Than America's attempt at passenger train service is the right fit for you. Travel from Chicago to New York in a break-neck time of just 27 hours! That's only 15 hours longer than driving!
Seriously, though, when you catch sale fares, you can literally get from Chicago to New York for about 10 dollars sometimes. It's definitely an option for the budget conscious. Nights in the coach car, however, leave something to be desired. Seats are comfortable, but I always had the feeling I was one step away from being in a knife fight. Something there didn't feel entirely safe. And the feeling wasn't helped by when I woke up to find someone rifling through my bags directly over my head.
3. Botafogo Easy Hostel - Rio de Janiero, Brazil There are few places I've found more relaxing than the Botafogo Easy Hostel. The name pretty much says it all. And it seems unique from other hostels in Latin America in that the vast majority of people there are actually from all over. So many of the travelers that were there said that in months, this was the first real international hostel they'd stayed at.
In some ways, the place felt like Cheers. There was a little bit of everything there. Cute Gay Brazilians, Drunk Canadians, Homeless French guys, Hot Belgian Women. Well, maybe not quite like Cheers - but close enough. It was a comfortable place to stay and there always seemed to be someone to talk to and pal around with. I don't think my visit to Rio would have been nearly as enjoyable anywhere else.
4. Den Roda Baten - Stockholm, Sweden What better way to see the islands that make up Stockholm then by staying on a boat? Well it turns out, many. I was sick when I stayed there. Unfriendly staff. A Samoan guy picking pockets of the Japanese tourists in my room, bathroom sinks that didn't work and showers without hot water. All for 25 dollars a night! This makes my "Crazy Nights" list only because it was, without a doubt, the single worst hostel experience I've had. People find this place kind of hot and cold though. Some love it, some hate it... and some get bedbugs.
So we're staying at the luxurious "Manhattan" in downtown Prague. The location and price are beautiful. Just 13 Euros each for a double room in the heart of the city. But the place is so less regal than it sounds. Our room has three cots crammed into it and shares a toilet with the floor. The shower is, well, scary. I'm not sure if you'd call it hostel, hotel or flophouse. Our room is actually what appears to have been a kitchen in an apartment.
We didn't know of the place before we got to the city, it was not in Brent's Lonely Planet guide... we were met at the train platform in Prague by one of a few people desperately looking to fill rooms in their hostel. We were met by some crazy guy named Pavel. Now, if you are ever in this situation, it goes without saying that you should be very careful. There's no telling what this guy might really want, and you should use your best judgment. The first five minutes, we followed him and kept a close eye on him. When I realized that we weren't expected to ride in his car or walk down a dark alley to get to his "hotel," I felt more at ease. Pavel talked to us and sort of showed us around as we walked, he also kept pointing to every attractive girl and drooled a little. At one point he nearly walked into one... on purpose and laughed when she got pissed. He almost got hit by a car crossing the street too. He was crazy.
Turns out he didn't own the Manhattan. A friend of his runs the place and he was just drumming up business. Chances are that most of the people that are doing this kind of work are doing it on the side for a commission. When we got to the hotel, we asked to see his cheapest room and we saw it. Cheap was a good word for it. But it was very late, nearly midnight and we had an idea that it would be difficult to find something better in Prague. So we took the room for one night at 13 Euros each.
We asked for a receipt... Pavel told us in the morning, Brent was skeptical and insisted. The reception lady was simply not going to get up and fill out a receipt slip for us... so I had Pavel write stuff down in my blank book and after he took the money, I had to go to the "bathroom" right after he left so I saw him hand our money to the reception lady (who lived on that floor) and saw her give him his 200 crown commission (about 25%).
After a few minutes in the room, party time had arrived. Prague is legendary for its bars and for all the ex-pat Americans and backpackers travelling about. I forgot about the strength of Czech beer and drank a ton of beer. Brent matched me beer for beer until he switched to Absinthe. Crazy. We were in this beer cellar in the city center, where the beer was a bargain, 0.5 liters of Pilsner Urquell for the equivalent of 90 cents. (By contrast a small bottle in America costs about three times that.) After we closed the bar, we stumbled back towards the hotel, deciding to stop in one of the many casinos in downtown Prague. Probably for the best, we were turned away. Apparently, in Prague you have to wear pants to gamble.
"That's an unusual bathroom," my friend said as he returned to the beer I'd been guarding for him as we killed time before meeting some other friends for dinner. "Unusual?" "There were some interesting fixtures in there," he said. Visions of Koehler commercials danced before my eyes. He leans in close. "There was a human toilet in there." I did a double take, and before I could repeat what he said, he just shut me up with a "Welcome to San Francisco."
The blogs worth reading... Every day, I find another travel blog to explore, and there's always a couple things worth sharing. Here's what I loved this week.
The New York Times is all about Weissbier! They took a tour of Northern Germany and explored the different kinds of regional brews that Germany was famous for before everyone learned to love the Pilsner.
Have I mentioned how much I'm loving Knife Tricks lately? My new favorite blog is bringing out piece by piece stories of his visit to North Korea and I'm absolutely enthralled.
Oh yeah, Slate has a great photo essay on Seattle and its architectural revolution over the last thirty years or so.
To me this seems like such a smart move. Chicago is currently served by two overcrowded and extremely busy airports, Midway and O'Hare. Gary has no other airlines to compete for gate space with currently, and the airport is literally a couple hundred feet from Interstate 90. Attempts have been made to make Gary a regional airport alternative to the big Chicago mess, but with little success - as Casino Air, Hooters Air and most recently SkyValue have tried and failed to breathe life into the little airport that can't quite could.
The other "it" store in SoHo is also Japanese. 
Lounging in a dank, poorly lit spot in Granada, I ran into a group of people who can legitimately called worldbeaters. Every single one of them has been on the road for months. One of them has just a week left before heading home to New Jersey... but it turns out that this is just for the holidays. In January, she's planning on living in Dubai for some time. We talk about our travel, and I sheepishly admit that I can only squeeze out a week on the road at a time. "Oh well..." the response comes, "at least that's something." When the state of the dorm rooms comes up, I mention that I upgraded to a private room. "Oh, well I'm sure if I only had a week, I'd do the same."
After two hours of being compressed by about 30 Nicaraguans in a school bus meant for half as many kids as there were adults aboard, I got my bag from the roof of the expreso and I get hit with culture shock. There is nothing touristy about the Rivas market. There is very little to help you, and without a knowledge of Spanish, panic started to take over. Fortunately, the people I got to know, saved my ass and got me in a collectivo with a few other Nicas to get me down to San Juan del Sur.
