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Summer Travel

In 2009, I published/offered a newsletter regarding the landscape for travel in the upcoming year. As I wrote one for this year however, I realized that 1) not many people read the first one and 2) information that is 6 months old does little good.

So I never published the 2010 Outlook but I did decide to write more frequent updates on the environment for travel in the upcoming year. Here is another post along those lines, only I 'lifted' it off the internet (not that I am offering it as my own writing) because it pretty much validated what I wrote last December anyway.

From U.S. News and World Report, this article 8 Travel Tips for the Summer gives clear and concise advice on what to expect this summer when booking travel. Like them, I have known that airfares were rising and hotel rates were still low (excepting in some areas) so it is good to know that I pegged the outlook correctly, even if no one read it!

I think the attached article/post will benefit anyone wondering about how travel will look this summer and especially whether they should book now or later.

Cruise Ship Mishaps

Veteran 'cruisers' already well know what can go wrong once you book a cruise. Changes of ports of call or cancellation of some stopovers are not uncommon, noro-viruses are seemingly ever present and even last minute cruise cancellations are not out of the question.

For the not so veteran cruisers or for those thinking about taking a cruise, you would do well to prepare yourself by looking over this article, titled : "10 Things Your Cruise Line Won't Tell You" from Smart Money magazine. Such things as dress codes affects your experience -especially if you think you will be on a formal cruise and it turns out shorts and T's are the norm. And don't forget the cuisine - from standard fare to gourmet food, you may have one idea and the cruise line another about what is gourmet.

As the article points out, there are so many new ships coming into the marketplace that terminology is sure to be different from a Norwegian Line to a South American based line. So do your homework before you get disappointed and start that homework reading the Smart Money article!

Travel Info for One and All

I write about travel and various destinations myself but I am not above passing along a good resource when I come across one. I am doing just that now, as I came across a Travel Guide from the L A Times that I think many people may enjoy.

Titled Travel Guide 2010, it is not only a site with information about places like San Francisco, Hollywood, Brazil, Thailand and Europe but there are numerous articles about cruising, contact information for hotel,s airline, car rentals, etc AND guide books for Mexico, Las Vegas, Hawaii and California to persue through.

You can find the site above and I would bookmark it for future use, since you never know if you will need a weekend getaway idea down the road.

What Travel 'Experts' Expect in 2010

I have prepared a 2010 newsletter on what I expect to happen in the coming year but I may not end up offering it when all is said and done. In its place, I offer this USA Today article citing certain travel experts as to what they think will happen in 2010. And just to be fair, I also found travel columnist and travel author Ed Perkins views for the 2010 outlook and offer them here courtesy of the Baltimore Sun.

Most of my readers know I am not impressed (to say the least) with Third Party travel sites so when the article starts off citing a Travelocity 'expert', I cringed to think what I would read. All in all, none of the advice (or opinion) offered is bad and after all, it really is only opinion. Mine is no more valuable than any others and I would add my acknowledgment that the advice offered is good enough. No one expects 2010 to be much better than 2009 - my problem is I think a rebound will happen sooner than most experts think, so I think expecting 'more of the same' in 2010 may not apply by summer time.

But I'll cross that bridge when we come to it. For now, read these three expert opinions and make your decisions yourself.

Honeymoons to Match Your Budget - Pt 2

The average honeymoon cost $6,011 in 2007. This wrap-up of my honeymoon budget posts explores honeymoons around that figure and above.

The general consensus is you can take any of the ideas presented in the previous post and simply stay longer to approach this budget level. But that is not the only thing you can do. When you increase your budget from $4,000 by 50%, you can now explore more exotic locales like Fiji, Samoa, the Caribbean or one night in Paris. (just kidding) My suggestion is to choose a location agreeable to both of you and then spice it up once there by taking cruises or overnight tours. Touring the Caribbean in a charter yacht for a week should not cost more than $1200-$1500, so once there, simply use the money you would spend in a hotel and rent a yacht. You can explore all that Alaska has to offer with a budget of $6,000 as long as you don't stay more than 2 weeks.

With budgets approaching $10,000, consider visiting several countries in Europe. Once there, you can explore exciting options like barge tours or cruises on all the major rivers, perhaps getting married in a castle or renting a room in a castle at the least or taking a cruise from points in Greece like Santorini or Athens.

For those with even more income to dispose of, consider renting a yacht in Europe or in the Caribbean. Some yachts you can rent alone, others take 8-12 passengers. You can also easily honeymoon in Japan with an expanded budget and perhaps stay in a resort near Mt. Fuji. Other ideas include renting private planes, taking month long cruises or even going over the 'pond' from Europe to New York on one of the new liners plying the ocean.

If you would like a detailed e-book outlining literally hundreds of options for every budget, go to http://www.honeymoonsforyourbudget.com and order your download. Great as a gift too!

Alaska - Everything You Want to Know

My brother has an idea for me next summer - fly to Oregon, where he lives, and then we embark on a quick trip to Alaska in June in order to see almost 24 hours of daylight just once in our lives. Sounds like a great idea and I may do it too. Just to get ready though and start planning properly, I went through the resources I had used about Alaska to write my honeymoon budget book. One of the sites is worth seeing just for basic (and more involved) information about what is available in Alaska.

Including yacht charters, tons of cruises, Denali tours, air and water taxis, bus tours, railroad trips - the list is almost endless. It is called AlaskaOne and is a fantastic website/resource. For instance, here you find informatuion about flying to Anchorage or SouthCentral Alaska and then rent an RV. They have lodging information about every area of Alaska - Prince William Sound, Valdez, Copper River Valley, the Kenai Peninsula just to name a few. There are salmon (boat/excursion) rentals, glacier tours and cruises, wilderness lodges and much more.

If you have never thought about vacationing in Alaska, this site just may spark your interest.

A Cruise Ship 5 Times the Size of the Titanic

You have probably already heard of the largest cruise ship ever built - the Oasis of the Seas. I

 
remember seeing shows on A&E or the History channel that documented this behemoth as it was being built. Yes, 5 times larger than the Titanic and it sails with 5 times the passengers (not including staff). It is 40% larger than the next largest cruise ship.

Well, it left its home near Helsinki and is making its way toward Florida in order to get last minute fittings. (Such as 12,000 PLANTS). From there, the first cruise is scheduled out of Ft. Lauderdale in December and there are a few staterooms left if you are interested.

This mega-ship actually has 'neighborhoods' on it - such as Central Park, Boardwalk and the Royal Promenade and each neighborhood has so much of its own entertainment, you may never venture into another 'neighborhood' while on board. The ship boasts an ice rink, golf course and outdoor amphitheater. (I'm surprised it doesn't have a 'subway' from one neighborhood to another!) 

You can read about the ship on the Royal Caribbean website or this story from the AP out of Helsinki.

Thanksgiving Sales

While most people are preoccupied with serving Thanksgiving meals and/or flying cross country to loved ones homes for the holidays, most airlines find the exotic destinations going begging. So, it is not unusual to find higher airfares for domestic flights near Thanksgiving and cheaper fares to Europe or the Caribbean. Or Vermont. OK, not so exotic but there is a great sale for a luxury Vermont resort anyway.

From Travelzoo comes this pre-holiday arrangement of sales on certain hotels, cruises and air fares. What is required is a person or persons desperate to get AWAY from Thanksgiving with family and willing to go on a 7 night Mediterranean cruise. Or to the Cancun for $79 per night. Or get 30% off a 6 night Ireland Stay and Drive package. Look no further.

View the Travelzoo report here.

Cargo Ship Cruises

Many people already know that certain cargo ships not only take passengers but covet them. But many people also think the only way to take a sea cruise is on a cruise line, so this post may be news to them. It is at the least informational even if you were aware of freighter opportunities as a way of travel.

ABC News on line presented a fascinating in depth look into the world of cargo ship travel in an article called "Will Work for Travel:Cargo Ship Cruise Vacations". Though they state the obvious (there is NO on-board entertainment, gambling or varied dining areas), there is much to learn from this article. For instance, some ships can take up to 5 months to reach your port. So if time is of the essence or you pine for formal dining and drinking and dancing, you may want to think twice about a freighter.

My two cents worth is added here. A couple of drawbacks that should be strongly considered are possible language and food barriers. Though some ships are of American registry, most freighters are not and the crew (which you will be mingling with perhaps) can be from Taiwan, Lithuania, Japan, the Philippines, etc. Also, the food may be of a similar ethnicity that you are not prepared for. For the most part alcohol is not available, though I am not sure what the restrictions would be for taking your own on board. Lastly, with the recent downturn in the economy and with luxury cruises slashing prices, freighter travel is not all that much cheaper. The article suggests you should plan for $100 per day (generally) which in my opinion is quite prohibitive if you were planning a one or two month cruise. I suggest rates for longer trips should be vastly cheaper than $3,000 for a month cruise where entertainment and swimming and shows are not provided, so I suggest you shop around.

Things That Happen When Traveling

Most travelers know the drill already - traffic makes you late for a flight or you cut the timing too short and security is backed up and you miss your flight. Or you arrive at your hotel and there is no record of your reservation. Or, you get sick overseas or are robbed and need immediate attention. These are almost things you THINK you might encounter and you already have some idea of what to do in those events BEFORE they even happen.

But what about swimming in a beautiful fresh-water lake in Argentina and coming down with a life threatening bacteria? Or being quarantined simply for being NEAR someone with flu-like symptoms while traveling to China? Or playing with a friendly dog at a hotel in Anytown USA and developing rabies?

After reading a Fox News article (Deadly Travel Dangers You Didn't Think Of), you may not want to travel anywhere anymore. All of the above are examples of the oddball, little thought of things that can happen when traveling. Are the odds high of anything happening? No, no more so than the odds of you being hurt or stranded by your own hand. But they give pause for concern for anyone traveling to a strange new continent, country or land. For where you might feel safe in a mountain lake in the Sierra Nevadas and think ALL mountain lakes around the world are safe, it simply isn't true.

And it MAY take a blood test upon your return to tell!