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Free E-Book - Hotel Reviews: Finding and Understanding

In the spirit of this economic recession, I have made the decision to give away my e-book Hotel Reviews: Finding and Understanding. I previously charged $12.95 for it alone and it is now yours FREE as a gift.

As a matter of chance, there has been a 'dust-up' recently over reviews posted on TripAdvisor, a source I mention often in my book. It appears Chris Elliott of MSNBC fame has taken TripAdvisor to task over a recent revelation that some reviews are 'manipulated' by hotels. I laughed when I read the whole sordid affair as it was the same thing I mentioned over one year ago in my book! If you would like to see the sequence of comments and the article itself from Chris's blog, look here. (I actually commented on it myself - look for comment from DCR)

If you truly care about hotel reviews and whether or how effective they are, you may also want to read his interview with the CEO of Trip Advisor. I found that interview very worthwhile, perhaps because much of what I wrote is what the CEO says also - not only showing I know my nuggets but that understanding reviews is problematic.

So what have you got to lose (my book is FREE) except a few auto-emails from me till time everlasting (actually a couple months only). Sign up in the column at the right top and download your MP3 or digital e-book immediately!

Shoes for Traveling

One of the important components to traveling happily is to be comfortable. In my Travel Tips book, I write about such things as dressing for where you are scheduled to arrive (not for where you depart from), dressing appropriately (in case of emergencies) and other such items that lend themselves to your being a happier traveler.

I recently came across a great article from a homeopathic doctor that is titled "How to Keep Your Feet Happy When Traveling". I thought it not only had a lot of common sense to it but it added something to the premise of being comfortable when you travel. The doctor advises to wear appropriate shoes so you don't develop blisters or sores at your destination and to make sure the shoes have adequate support. This will avoid sore feet when your trip is over or nearly over.

The one thing I would have added if I wrote the article is to wear shoes on the plane that are appropriate in case of emergency. Wearing high heels may look fashionable but would be inappropriate if you landed in the Hudson River and had to walk on the wet wing of the plane. The same for hiking boots - you would sink to the bottom is case of a water landing if you had heavy boots on. Taking them off is no answer either - in cold water or weather, you would risk frost-bite or hypothermia if only in bare feet or socks.

For that matter, wearing proper clothes is important too but not the subject of this article so I will forego any more 'preaching'. Follow the link to the article to see what advice he offers and you can thank me later!

Hotel Reviews: Who Reads and Who Writes

Many of you (OK, maybe SOME of you) know I write and comment on hotel issues most of the time. That is the reason for my being in fact. Even fewer of you know I wrote a book dedicated to Understanding Hotel Reviews. I have written posts about these topics from time to time and have even posted links to valuable articles or other posts I have discovered when I think they will be of value to you.

I am SO SURE you are all falling down with appreciation also that I post this little tidbit written by a REAL author. John Newton, once of Travel+Leisure and Conde Nast Traveler fame, wrote a short piece that I have included as a link here (if you want to see the whole article) but I condensed his research/knowledge and pass it along because I have a special prize for you who are reading my post. More on that below.

Research has varied on the topic of Hotel Reviews. In fact, I recall a big magazine suggesting that upwards of 2/3rds of all travelers read reviews. Some people have said it is 80%. His passed along research says only 20% do. What is of more interest to me is WHO writes them. I wrote in my book that people are more likely to complain than laud a hotel but in reading hundreds if not thousands, I do have to say there are far more positive responses than negative ones. So his sources are probably right. He notes:

• One in five travelers reports reading reviews before traveling; almost one in ten posts reviews after their trip.
• Travelers who post reviews tend to be more satisfied guests than those who do not and more likely to return to a hotel or resort.
• Luxury hotel and timeshare guests are more likely to post reviews than guests in other lodging categories; casino guests are the least likely to post about their stays.
• Older travelers are more likely to post reviews; younger travelers are more likely to read them.
• Travelers headed overseas read reviews more often than those traveling domestically. Nearly half of travelers headed to Mexico and other parts of Latin America reported reading online reviews before reserving a room.

Since age is not defined (who or what is young or old?) it may not matter but I would have suggested that YOUNGER readers who are more internet and Social Media savvy types would post more than older travelers. But again, the point is moot. I do know this - hotels (ours included) NEVER advises unsatisfied guests to go online and post a review but if they LOVE us, we will give them the name and internet address. It's just good business sense, so don't shoot the messenger!

ALERT! Airfares RISING - at last.

According to several new reports in the last week or so, several airlines have raised prices on travel for this summer. One such notice comes out of Chicago, where the Chicago Tribune posted this article declaring that fares to Europe have more than doubled for travel before September. However, they also note that fares are DECREASING after Aug 15 (when presumably kids go back to school soon) for the same flights to Europe.

Earlier, a leading airline watchdog (FareCompare) noted that American and UAL had raised prices twice in the past few weeks on domestic routes. They were waiting for a third increase (or to see if other airlines followed the increase) before suggesting a new trend was starting. So far, I have not seen any more reports but this Europe fare increase could be considered something of a confirmation.

What does this mean for summer travel?

At the least, rock bottom has been hit perhaps. All the staff cuts and grounding of planes and route reductions have taken the toll they were expected to. The airlines had hoped this would happen BEFORE the important summer season started but the free-falling economy prevented that. Now, they might be seeing the fruits of their labor.

I would caution however that the experts suggest increases will be short-lived. All indications point to an economy that will only SLOWLY recover and travel is not likely to rebound much before 2010. Many analysts suggest fares will be decreased for fall travel so unless you are going to a destination where cutbacks have already allowed supply to match demand, fares will still be at their (now) historic lows and increases only marginal.

My personal opinion is somewhat different - I think fares will NOT decrease in the fall (they may not rise either) because of various factors but I have to report what 'experts' suggest and what the hard evidence shows first. Then I can expound my 'theories' and go out on the proverbial limb.

How to Best Use Priceline and Hotwire

I've cautioned readers before about the dangers of making low-ball offers on sites like Priceline but it probably never hurts to remind people of what they are getting into. This topic was prompted by yet another Priceline report we recently received that shows us how many 'offers' and money we missed out on by NOT participating with them. I suppose this is their way of trying to drum up business - show all hotels what they missed out on.

I'll state again where I see a problem. Admittedly, it may not be a problem for some people but it will be for those who expect a decent hotel or motel room even though they make a low ball offer. Such as the fellow who called me weeks ago and offered me $30 for a room that has a 'sticker' price of $93. He added 'I see it on Priceline for $30' but of course he didn't know which hotel he was really seeing. And therein lies the rub.

The hotel he was seeing rents rooms for $39-44 per night EVERY NIGHT. They end up getting $25-29 net if booked thru a Third Party site like Expedia so getting $23 off a $30 'bid' is nothing out of the ordinary for them. But here are the exact last 5 review headlines for this hotel off of Tripadvisor: 1) "A Cheap Place to Stay", 2) "Price is the Overiding Reason to Stay", 3) "DO NOT STAY HERE", 4) "Worse Than Any Third World Hotel I've Been To", and 5) " I also do not recommend you stay here". Within these headlines, people wrote things like "THe bed and linens were dirty as was the shower stall and carpet", "Bed Bugs devoured my daughter, even though mattress appeared to have a waterproof cover.", " The advertised free internet was way too weak to use in the room. The TV, that I had to plug in, got 4 channels." and "What an unbelievable, decrepit, dump!".

Things You Don't Want To DO on an Airplane

Readers of this blog know by now that I converse regularly with airline personnel, especially pilots and flight attendants. And yes, occasionally we 'rant' about peoples' behaviors on an airplane or once they landed and arrive at their hotel. I recall years ago learning (I admit I did not know this) that attendants are NOT allowed to help passengers with their carry-ons because the carriers do not compensate them if they get injured on the job helping a passenger store their luggage! So not only could they end up on unpaid disability, they could eventually lose their job if they were unable to return to work.

Recently, an article on Yahoo caught my attention. It was titled "7 Ways to Annoy a Flight Attendant". At first blush, it would have all the trappings of a flight attendant gripe session but as I read the article, it made sense to me that EVERYONE should read this because some of it is not stuff we might think about. Such as airplanes having diapers on board for parents who have run out or their being required to move people from or into roomier bulkhead rows due to FAA regulations. (Not in this article but since we are talking about diapers, F.A.s 'hate' passengers trying to hand them dirty diapers to dispose of. These are the same hands that serve your food and beverages! Would you want your attendant clutching a freshly soiled diaper to throw away and then hand you a cup of coffee? Not me!)

The reason I post this is NOT to provide a sounding board for flight attendant's gripes but because some of these points may have impact upon you. Such as passengers putting carry-ons in the FIRST compartments even though they are seated in the back. So in all honesty, I post them to help YOU when traveling so you can avoid these mistakes. Ignore them at you own peril!

Now Is the Time to Book Australia!

You probably do not remember but last Fall/Winter, I announced reductions in fares to Australia for 2009. But I also suggested waiting because of Virgin Australia;s introduction of service to Australia might result in lower fares than what we were seeing in Dec.I noted in November that I saw fares on Qantas of $1160 from LA, though there were sporadic $770 fares available but with 'book-by, fly-by' restrictions.

Just like clockwork, TravelZoo just announced $600 fares (incl. all taxes and fees!) from 'several' airlines serving Australia, also from LA. The better news? The fares are good through ALL of 2009! They did not indicate whether there was a purchase by date but they test booked this fare and found several dates from July through December available. They noted it is best to be flexible with your dates and try to go mid-week for the best savings.

I myself tried Qantas and entered several dates in August and September. While I was unable to get the fare as low as the $601 reported, I easily found rates in the $600s, including on weekends with Sydney as the destination. (Click on the "View Lowest Prices Around This Date" option for the lowest fares) Assuming you get a $49 fare to LA, even paying $725 round trip is as cheap as Australia has been in years. I saw similar fares (albeit higher) for Adelaide, Melbourne, Brisbane, Kalgoorie, etc.

Ironically, V-Australia not only does not have these fares available, I could not even FIND fares from the US on their site. Where it asks for your country and you choose USA, it immediately defaults back to Australia and shows no US destinations or origin cities. So the airline that started this fare war appears to not even be bookable. (What fares I did see from LA in their advertisement is over $900 to boot!)

The Dominican Republic - the New Costa Rica?

While I was researching travel spots in the Caribbean for the Ultimate Honeymoon book we recently released, I came upon something new - at least for me. The Dominican Republic as a valid destination locale. Long saddled with being the neighbor to Haiti, with all the baggage that goes along with that impoverished country, most people dismissed the Dominican Republic as a vacation place, thinking it was a sister country for Haiti. But D.R. has come a long ways and I was very surprised at the world class resorts I found for honeymooners. I was especially appreciative of the prices as well, since they cannot charge the high prices other islands get in the Caribbean until they get more established. This is why I am suggesting it might be the NEW Costa Rica.

You remember when C.R. was all the rage. EVERYONE wanted to go there, expenses were low and it had all the amenities a vacationer wanted; beaches, sophisticated cities, nice hotels, restaurants and resorts and did I mention it was inexpensive too? This is where the Dominican is right now and I suggest it is worth a look if you have been all around the Caribbean and need a new place to go.

One site (DR1.com) has ALL the information you would need to visit the Dominican Republic. Suggestions for golfers, nature lovers, family vacations, bargain hunters, windsurfers and even those in love with alpine mountains (at 10,125 feet, D.R. has the tallest mountain in the Caribbean) are offered on this site. The Dominican even has gambling and of course the real prize: cigars! While this site has a plethora of resorts and hotels to check out, none appear to have room rates available but my earlier research suggested downtown Santo Domingo hotels can run as low as $45 and outer resorts in very tropical locations are only $125.

For more sites will lots of financial information like flights and hotel rates, check out the following.

http://www.godominicanrepublic.com/

http://dominicanrepublic.com/index.php

http://gocaribbean.about.com/od/hotelsandresor2/tp/DRallinclusives.htm

http://www.wheretostay.com/caribbean/dominican_republic/lodging-c55-Dominican_Republic.html

Warning on start-up airline "Jet America"

Usually it is good news when competition increases in the marketplace. The airline industry is one marketplace where that doesn't seem to apply however. Increased competition has meant bankruptcy for some airlines, necessity to merge for others and lay-offs and downsizing for almost all the rest. As airlines struggle to make profits, they have resorted to a strategy of abandoning certain areas or regions - usually the small market regions. This allows them to concentrate their equipment and remaining staff in the higher revenue markets. This was one of the pitfalls to deregulation of the airline business in the 80's - the abandoning of certain markets - because before deregulation, the airlines were being propped up by subsidies to serve smaller markets.

So sure enough, some small regional airports (Spokane for instance) or small large market airports (Cleveland) saw service slashed in many cases. The newest start up airlines (like Spirit or Virgin) tended to either serve the larger markets (New York, L.A., S.F., Florida) and did not completely take up the slack left by the legacy carriers in the smaller market areas (Charlotte, Montgomery, etc), though Spirit did set up Detroit as a hub and offers great fares to and from there.

So it is hoped that into the void steps start up airlines with hopefully lower cost structures to serve the abandoned markets. And that is exactly what is happening with Jet America. A start-up airline (July 2009) that serves airports like Charlotte, Toledo OH, Lansing MI and South Bend IN, which will offer $9 fares to the first 9 people who purchase tickets. (The average ticket otherwise is around $200).

Europe Alert! Low Fares Abound

I love being right. (Conversely, I HATE being wrong, who doesn't) But, I was right on last winter when I wrote my newsletter for 2009 titled 2009 Travel Outlook. In it, I predicted that even though airlines were promoting great discount fares for 2009, it would be best to wait because these fares probably would not lure enough traffic to the airlines so that they would/could RAISE fares for the summer and end the discounts.

Well guess what? Not only have I been blogging about more low fares and more sales since January, it appears the mother of all sales has hit home just as the travel vacation season starts. I still think airfares will be even lower after Labor Day (it's a seasonal thing) but now is the time to book for this summer.

The N. Y. Times In Transit blog notes that FareCompare just reported that sales are bounding to lots of domestic, international and especially European locations. Such as these round trip fares from New York: Paris for $349 (all taxes incl!) Zurich $237non stop, London $529 and Rome $296.00

From Chicago, go to Cancun for $253, Paris for $634 and Frankfurt for $506. And from LA: Paris $825 , Bangkok $703, Frankfurt $521 and London $817. More lower international fares are available also, such as LA - Manila $699, Puerta Vallarta $325, Rio $480, Sydney Aust $591 and Tokyo $598.  

Even if fares dropped some more, how can you beat these prices? It isn't worth the risk of them selling out just to save another $40 so I suggest if you are going overseas, now is the time to buy. As the blog notes, these fares are 50% off what they were just (days) ago. With gas prices surging once again, fares may rise soon (or fuel surcharges raised) and it makes no sense to wait any longer to book these flights.

Beware RyanAir: Europe's Most Hated Airline?

Ryan Air is an Irish discount airline that has generated tremendous amounts of news since its inception. There was a row last year about arbitrarily canceling tickets bought on Third Party sites. Recently, the flamboyant (and often considered annoying) CEO went public with a comment that RyanAir will charge an extra fee for anything they think they can charge for - and boy did they!

Now they are in the news again because less than 1/3rd of registered patrons to their website taking a survey voted 'overwhelmingly' to charge a 'fat tax' on overweight passengers. (Since when is 30% for and 70% against considered overwhelming?) I decided to see what complaints have been registered against RyanAir and while I realize ALL airlines generate hundreds if not thousands of complaints, the nature of RyanAirs complaints brings to mind bait and switch.

Now to be sure, they are far cheaper than the European legacy carriers. People reported a 30 euro cost versus a legacy airlines charge of 300 euros is just one example. But here's the rub, they charge for just about anything common to mankind. Pay with a debit card? 20 Euros. More than one bag? Extra charge. Excess WEIGHT on baggage? up to 280 euros. Want to check in manually? 20 euros. Take a purse onboard? That's considered a bag too: extra charge. Priority borading? Extra charge. One reviewer noted they paid for a beverage with a 20 euro note and NEVER got 10 of their change back 'because the staff "didn't have (and couldn't find) a tenner". So they KEPT the money! A reviewer summed it up this way: "So our 'cheap flight' that cost a reasonable amount to book ended up costing probably more than other airlines who don't fleece you at every turn." You can see this website here and read about many more complaints too.

In addition, complaints have been heard because of the incessant in flight advertising. An article from About.com noted this: "Flying Ryanair can be like watching a home-shopping channel late at night. You’ll be offered all sorts of things at "great prices", including lottery tickets and calendars featuring scantily dressed flight attendants. Depending on your mood and outlook on life this can be amusing or annoying." Even landing in the city you bought a ticket to is dicey - to go to Hanburg, you actually fly into Lubeck! All legal the article noted. Problem is, if you were connecting in Hamburg, landing miles away is not likely to allow you to make your connection.

The article also noted that the CEO has been compared to Simon Cowell - the man you love to hate. No wonder he was able to say what he said about charging for anything and everything - he's outspoken and his airline is somewhat outrageous. In the end, buyer beware seems to truly apply to RyanAir!

Is Expedia's "Biggest Hotel Sale Ever" Really a Sale?

As usual when dealing with on line booking agents, it depends on certain parameters as to whether the 'sale' is really a sale. A New York Times blog apparently doesn't think it is much of a sale and they are SPONSORED by Expedia! So hat's off to NYT for being honest at least.

For starters, they pointed out that the "..up to 30% off" discount only applies when you book 3 nights or more. As a hotel worker for many years, I can guarantee you that less than 2% of our reservations/bookings are for 3 nights or more. In fact, 90% are for one night and maybe eight out of a hundred are for 2 nights and the rest more than 2 nights. So there is little risk to advertise a 30% off sale when few people want that option.

The Times also noted (as I have time and again) that rarely are the prices any lower than what you can get elsewhere, though the blogger noted that often it was CHEAPER than what the hotels own web sites offered. What they failed to mention is that the hotel probably honors any lower price you find on line - just as our hotel does - so there is little to fear about overpaying anyway.

In the end, when you consider that you have to PAY for the booking at time of booking (versus when you check out) and that canceling a 3rd party reservation is a hassle (I was on hold for Expedia last week for well over AN HOUR on a Saturday night) because you can't cancel it with the hotel, it is often easier and just as cheap to book directly. I won't go into the other half dozen reasons it is better to book directly than through a Third Party - I've offered those reasons time and again in blog posts.

So get out the hip boots and waders when you read "Biggest Hotel Sale Ever' when it comes from someone like Expedia or Hotels.com (which the NYT blogger didn't know was OWNED by Expedia!) because something is coming your way and it isn't much of a bargain.

Vacation Home Rentals: The Affordable Alternative to Hotels

Once again, as part of my research for the Ultimate Honeymoon on any Budget book we recently introduced, I investigated alternatives to staying in a hotel. We all know about B&B's, we know for certain vacations you can rent an RV and of course there is my personal favorite; camping. But shlepping an RV around Hawaii or a Caribbean island is not a pleasant thought nor is camping in a winter storm. You would love to have an apartment with a full kitchen but who is going to rent one out for only 5 days?

A not exactly new market emerged in the last few decades that has many travel sites all abuzz, especially when talking about places like Europe or Hawaii, where you are likely to be staying for 2-3 weeks: Vacation Home Rentals. In my personal research, I found numerous sites with available short or longer term apartments and homes in premier spots around the world. Some rent for very high prices - upwards of $10,000 per WEEK - but some were very affordable, such as $650 a week in Hawaii. What mostly dictates the price is of course the location (on a beach, near a major town, etc) and the size and amenities (3-4-5 BR's, with pools, on garden grounds, etc.

But before you consider something like this, read this article about Vacation Homes to see if the idea fits you and your needs. One considerable drawback is that is most places you have to clean the unit befor you leave and many vacationers do NOT want to clean a 5 BR house - that's what they are trying to get away from! So read the article and see if you are a home rental person in the making. If you then want to know some of the sites I found, simply comment here and provide your email address and I will find some suitable options for you. 

The Difference Between Travel Insurance and Travel Protection

I have been a proponent of purchasing travel insurance (under the right circumstances) since I started my blog. I have posted articles about scam insurers and consider it my duty to be a watchdog of sorts for you, my valued reader. I like to pass along advice about what 'protection' to purchase and from who (reputable insurers) so that my credibility is strong. So I admit that I was unaware until I read this article recently that there is a difference between the word protection and insurance in the travel insurance arena.

The premise for the article was a person who took a cruise and had signed up for what she thought was travel insurance in case she got sick on board. Sure enough she did and the doctor/sick bay on the cruise charged her $675 for attention and medications. (Another thing I learned! It COSTS to go to the shipboard doctor!). She came home, filed an insurance claim and here is where the story really deteriorates.

What she (and I and perhaps few of us know) was that she had signed up with a fly by night company that was NOT an insurance company. What they were providing was travel protection and while the output should be somewhat the same, the problem is 'protection' is not regulated like insurance is so if the company refuses to pay, you are pretty much out of luck!

You can read the ending for yourself but it reminds us to be aware of certain things when looking for travel insurance. 1) Deal with regulated, well-known insurers who have been in the business. Like American Express or AIG. 2) Read the fine print and make sure they are selling insurance and not protection. 3) Realize you are going to be reimbursed at some point and are not purchasing health insurance where 'they' are going to "bill the insurer" for you! You will HAVE to pay up front and if you had an accident in Europe say, it could cost thousands out of your pocket until you were reimbursed.

Finally, unless you have health insurance that covers you, keep in mind that travel insurance isn't just for lost bags and cancelled flights - something as simple as picking up a virus on a cruise and visiting the cruise lines sick bay can and will cost you just like seeing a doctor in their office. So if you think "I won't get ill onboard and even if i do, they'll take care of me", that is not true. You may be in the prime of your life but visiting strange new places and eating on the street in an exotic locale is a recipe for a tummy ache and anything more serious could cost hundreds of dollars. So spend the extra few $ to get coverage for such illnesses and rest easier on your trip.

Travel Tip: New Travel Rules Means New Documents

On June 1, 2009 new regulations regarding travel documents will become law. In a nutshell, travel ANYWHERE outside the U.S. will require a passport and no longer will a driver's license suffice to go into or get out of Canada. Most people are already aware of this. But did you know you may be able to get by without getting a passport?

According to an article in Newsday, there are more ways to travel out of the U.S. without a passport than I was aware of. For instance, there is a Passport light, called a passport card. Costing less than half what a passport costs, this card can be used to gain entrance into Bermuda, the Caribbean, Mexico and Canada and lasts just as long as a passport - 10 years. The drawback is it is only for land or sea entry - not flying. (How do you 'drive' to St Thomas?)

Certain border states (like New York) can issue an 'enhanced' drivers license also. Which allows for driving entry into Canada and Mexico but of course not air travel. Also not valid in all Caribbean nations so you would need to check specific countries for applicability.

There is also something called a Nexus card for pre-screened customers. Drawbacks include extensive paperwork, interviews and fingerprinting and is valid for only 5 years. One advantage is that there are now some entry lanes into Canada that are 'Nexus' priority lanes. However, every person in the car needs to have a Nexus card, not just the driver.

You can read the details plus gain more information by reading the Newsday article and its subsequent links. Being informed is half the battle. The other half is being prepared.

How to Handle Air Travel

An excellent article from the Wall St. Journal was recently written titled: The 10 Rules of the Road for Air Travel. While most of their observations are the exact same that I wrote in two of my books, you probably prefer to save the money and read them on the internet for free. So in the spirit of promoting travel and as one ALWAYS wanting people to travel smarter and therefore have a more enjoyable trip, I offer this as public service. In fact, the article itself is only an excerpt from someone else's book so you can't ever say I am only here to promote my products. (Not that you think that now but....)

The only thing I would add to the article is to again suggest people consider travel insurance. I obviously have a link in the margins to a variety of travel insurance companies but whether you choose to throw me a couple bucks or not, look into trip insurance anywhere you choose and seriously consider it. As I recently posted, now we have cancelations due to a number of reasons; Swine Flu, unreast in Thailand a month ago, killings on the border between the U.S. and Mexico before that, the economy.

The very reason for the WSJ's book and article is that it appears something happens to allow for travel disruptions so often now that it is making travel harder and harder. And that means remedies should be offered, which I suggest is insurance if applicable to your needs. If you want a concise assessment of the need for insurance, re-read my post here from last year, where I suggest simple guidelines for whether insurance is cost effective for your circumstances and even offer OTHER insurance providors that are not part of my links. Check it out in conjunction with the above article and I am sure it may save you oodles of money on a future trip.

Good on You DELTA !

I am admittedly one of those who despises overseas call centers. Not only is language (and overall service) often questionable, I question the savings companies get from opening call centers, particularly in India.

Well, finally some sense of sanity seems to have returned and Delta announced last month that it was CLOSING its' call centers in India and bringing those service and reservation calls back to the U.S. While the announcement says that Delta realized a 25 millions dollar savings using cheap overseas labor, I'm going to guess that there were oodles of problems because of the inevitable language issues that had to be resolved, which probably involved managers in the U.S., refunds, displeased and therefore lost forever customers, etc. Delta admits in its announcement that it had a horde of complaints and I suspect some of that 25 million went back into time and labor resolving language issues. Which means they didn't really save 25 million.

I oppose overseas call centers not just on principle but because the logic of even opening a call center overseas is like eating your young. The people who do not have jobs here in the U.S. are not going to be able to fly anywhere. So by saving 25 mil, I suspect it could cost Delta 20 mil in lost revenue from people not able to find work and not able to take trips. How many of the call center agents in India are going to be flying on Delta? I would guess not many. So they get the income, we get the less than stellar service (in my experience at least) and Delta gets the black eye.

I, for one, support anyone keeping jobs here in the U.S. and will attempt to fly or recommend Delta where ever possible just because of their new policy. As they say down under, Good on ya Delta!

Do You Check Megan's List When Booking Hotels?

After seeing this news video from San Francisco, you may just start!

Seems that some hotels and motels in California (and maybe other states?) house released sex offenders by contract with California. Only they certainly don't tell you. If I was staying at a hotel where my kids might likely be walking around or visiting the pool, I would certainly be interested in knowing there was a registered sex offender in room 107. In the case of the hotel in this news clip, there were 8 offenders living there!

As a traveling business person, I may not care. But if I was visiting with my family, it would make ALL the difference as to whether I stayed there or not. One thing that might be a warning flag for you is if the motel is one of the cheaper ones around, or allows for long term guests. (Our hotel will not allow anyone to stay past 30 days) Because the stipend from the state is so small, these released offenders living off general assistance will ALWAYS gravitate toward the cheap hotels.

As one who has commented often about the pitfalls of staying where you find ridiculously low rates, this is just one more reason to be aware of what you might be getting into. The hotel in this news clip has rooms listed on the web for as low as $39 per night - pretty cheap for such an expensive area as San Francisco.

The Ultimate Honeymoon on Any Budget

It was more than 9 months in the making, but our new Honeymoon/Travel book is now available! Spanning over 160 pages, it is filled with hundreds of links to valuable resources concerning the Art of the Honeymoon plus destination ideas for ANY budget. Whether it be $1,000.00 or $50,000.00, we included something for everyone. For instance, for those who wish to avoid the hustle and bustle of Waikiki, did you know you can rent a "yurt" on Maui for only $35 per day? For those "in-the-money", you can rent a yacht for $32,000.00 per week.

We also are including several give-aways for free, which brings our already low price down even more. For instance, I am giving away my Hotel Reviews e-book or MP3 (currently selling for $12.95), a Newlyweds Guidebook, 101 Romantic Ideas e-book by acclaimed author Michael Webb, a "lovers" packing check list and a free honeymoon consultation with me (normally $24.95) for those planning to come to San Francisco.

Highlights of the e-book are the 4 spreadsheets co-author Tim Spooner prepared so you can budget your honeymoon, honeymoon pre-planning exercises, honeymoon timeline and checklist, travel tips and travel ideas for the most sought after honeymoon locales in the world. To name a few: Hawaii, the Caribbean, Canadian Rockies, New York, Africa, Japan, San Francisco, Tahiti, Yosemite, the Bahamas, Jamaica and plenty of suggestions for a European honeymoon of a lifetime. From ideas on how to get married on a glacier in Alaska, to river cruises in Europe, we covered it all.

You can read the first chapter with no obligation - not even your name or email. Just go to http://www.honeymoonsforyourbudget.com/ and click on "View the Chapter". We think even if you are married and need a suggestion for a 2nd (or 3rd) honeymoon, you will be pleasantly surprised at the depth of our research and the ideas we offer. And remember, it makes a great wedding gift as well, since it is something they will re-use over the years and the ability to learn how to book flights and hotels cheaply will be a lesson they can use for a lifetime. It may be the best honeymoon gift they receive!

Overseas Travel Cell and iPhone Alert

Since we will soon be in the 'overseas' vacation time frame (summer), it is our civic duty to remind you how to prevent running up tremendous cell and iPhone bills. I was actually reminded of this from reading another well known travel blog WeJustGotBack. Their posting of several articles about iPhone usage in Europe and fairly cheap alternatives is well worth my re-posting them, even though I posted a warning about this myself last year.

What is so important is that in our rush to visit Europe (or Puerto Rico, the Caribbean, Mexico) for the first time is we pack everything and forget the obvious, like usage of a cell phone internationally. One person apparently rang up a bill of $1229.91 because he didn't turn off the international data roaming. You can read about that here.

The other article suggests ATT has a special plan for only $24.99 a month that you can use with your iPhone when traveling internationally. Be sure to check out the ATT tip sheet found here too. There are other alternatives as well, as I mentioned last year, such as renting a cell phone in Europe or getting a special simm card. A reader of my blog added this comment to my post. "Be very careful when you rent a cell phone in Europe especially if you are going to multiple countries you can really get hit by international phone charges which are huge. First figure out where you will be calling, will you be calling home or will you be calling ahead to your next hotel. Then I personally have bought an unlocked phone for use when I am Europe and will buy a prepaid simm card when I go to different countries.
//AmateurTraveler.com"

No one wants to budget a trip overseas and the return to a cell phone bill that equals half the trip budget so plan ahead when traveling overseas and you won't be unpleasantly surprised after you return.

Where the Airlines Cut Back Capacity

You probably don't remember my post about 8 months ago where I noted the good news and bad news of air travel in 2009. The good news was that fares were dropping like pine cones from a dying pine tree and the bad news was the airlines were canceling routes and consolidating flights at a pace never before seen. The prediction was that prices would eventually stabilize because the carriers were offering fewer money losing seats by contracting their schedules and laying off employees as they mothballed jets.

It was going to take some time to determine how and where those cuts were to take effect - the early word was the Caribbean would be hard hit, the Pacific Rim has seen a few runs cut but mainly the analysts predicted the smaller 'regional' airports would take the hit mostly.

An article just came out a few weeks ago in USA Today detailing where the cuts to the regional airports have fallen. This is an alert to those of you using those airports, as the conventional wisdom is you will have lees choice from now on and that means higher prices OR your being required to shuttle to a major hub to get a discount fare.

According to USA Today, the hardest hit regional airports will be San Antonio Int'l, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky Int'l, Indianapolis and Bradley Int'l in Hartford Connecticutt. You can read the article here.

What may be more ominous for most people however is the ending sentence. Soon to see capacity cutbacks this summer will be (roll the dice now!) Ft. Lauderdale ( a prime spot for catching cruises) and LAS VEGAS. That does not bode well for the Sin City itself which has seen a huge drop in patrons already. So huge, apparently the airlines are pulling out just a year after boosting flights INTO Las Vegas. So the low fares we've seen into Vegas recently may be going the way of the dinosaur (at least for the time being).