Travel Blog: News and Briefs
Cutting the Cord on Expensive Hotel Internet Service
by Alexander Basek | 02.05.09 | 4:01 PM ET
Thank you, Shangri-La Hotels, for breaking the cycle of expensive internet access. The hotel chain announced that it’s offering free Wi-Fi throughout its 60 properties as of, oh, right now. It’s about damn time—not at Shangri-La specifically, but for hotels in general to start offering this “service” for free, as it should be.
What’s galling is how the higher-end properties love to tack on this charge, while smaller one-off properties tend to give it away for free. It’s shortsighted and unrepresentative of how people travel: wouldn’t you prefer to have free internet access as opposed to free access to, say, Headline News? Not that we don’t all love Nancy Grace. Besides, I’m probably preaching to the internet choir here.
Still, it’s hard to forgo the internet when you work while you travel. I paid exorbitant internet fees many a time in 2008, and I’m sure it’ll happen again in ‘09. At the top of my list: a $15-a-day fee at the Grand Hotel Pupp in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. It’s a beautiful, historic hotel—James Bond even stayed there in Casino Royale—but it’s tough to feel as suave as Daniel Craig when you have to trudge downstairs for an ethernet cable first.
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Yahoo! BuzzBuyer Beware: Worst. Deals. Ever.
by Eva Holland | 02.05.09 | 1:54 PM ET
Here’s an unexpected bit of fun (not to mention a refreshing dose of honesty) from travel discount aggregator, DealBase.com: a collection of the very worst non-deals in their system. Check out this Special Rate for Government Associates at a Denver hotel, for instance; as DealBase’s trademark “Deal Analyzer” points out, this “special rate” actually tacks on an additional $94 per night, or an unlovely savings rate of -171 percent. (Given that the “deal” is for government only, maybe we can call it a political protest of some sort?) DealBase is a relative newcomer to the online bargain-hunting scene, and it’s nice to see that it brought its sense of humor to the party.
Would You Like the Chicken, the Fish or the Dead Hamster?
by David Farley | 02.05.09 | 12:20 PM ET
Oh, airline food. Always getting the bad rap. We love to hate airline food. The hate brings us together. It’s airplane conversation starter. I might be one of the few people who doesn’t dislike airline food. Consider the context: you’re eating 30,000 feet above the earth. If I were sitting in a Michelin-starred restaurant, eating soggy croquettes out of a tin tray, I’d probably be a bit disappointed. But on a plane I’m captive. Which is why I watch (and actually enjoy) Drew Barrymore movies while I’m flying. I fork the rubbery chicken into my mouth and like it.
Then there’s this guy. The Virgin Atlantic frequent flyer who had had enough. Food, that is. He wrote a scathing—and humorous—letter to Sir Richard Branson, Virgin’s founder and CEO, about his latest meal on the London-to-Mumbai flight. An excerpt after the jump.
Falcons, Gulls and Clams at Kennedy Airport
by Rob Verger | 02.05.09 | 11:21 AM ET
There’s been a lot of press lately about airplanes and bird strikes, but the story I’ve found most interesting comes from John F. Kennedy International Airport—it’s the only U.S. commercial airport that uses falcons as a means of controlling the local bird population. It’s an effective way to deal with the bird issue, for the simple reason that while birds can get used to noise, they never habituate to having a natural predator in the area.
The project is run by Falcon Environmental Services, and in addition to JFK, the company has contracts at two U.S. Air Force bases, and a few airports in Canada. At JFK, from May 1 to the end of October, sunrise to sunset, two teams patrol the airfield in covered pickups with falcons on perches in the back.
To learn more about the project, I called up John Kellerman, the manager of operations at JFK for Falcon Environmental. He’s a retired New York City Police Sergeant, and has been working as a falconer at JFK for four years. He spoke to me over the phone from his home on Long Island.
I asked him what kinds of birds they usually encounter. “It depends upon the time of year,” he said. “When we get there in May, we have large flocks of cormorant going by, we have large flocks of geese going by, brant in the early season. Then during the course of the summer we have gulls—herring gulls, laughing gulls, black-backed gulls—they’re offshore feeding.”
Rome: All the ‘Angels and Demons’ You Can Handle
by Eva Holland | 02.05.09 | 10:04 AM ET
As we’ve noted before, expectations (and concerns) are high for Dan Brown-related tourism in Rome as the release of the big-screen adaptation of “Angels and Demons” draws nearer.
The movie isn’t due out until May, but that hasn’t stopped Roman tour operators from getting an early start. In fact, as Jessica Spiegel points out in a post at WhyGoItaly, “Angels and Demons” themed tours have been popular with visitors to Rome ever since the Dan Brown phenomenon really took off a few years back. She’s got the details on six different tours on offer in the Eternal City (Six! And people say nobody reads anymore), along with a stern warning to anyone who might be planning to bring a chisel along for the ride. For those so inclined, the movie trailer is after the jump.
Morning Links: Americans Behaving Badly, Disappointing Attractions and More
by Michael Yessis | 02.05.09 | 8:47 AM ET
- Tamaulipas declared itself bilingual, the first Mexican state to do so.
- Ben Groundwater lists his picks for the world’s most disappointing tourist attractions.
- Aeroflot apologizes for pilot’s “slurred preflight announcement,” but denies he was drunk.
- McSweeney’s reveals what happens when “the 4-year-old crash-lands in the Andes.”
- The sites of London can be compressed into “just four handy photographs,” writes Matthew Summers-Sparks.
- Trains, slum rooftops and Google Earth all factor into this art project in Kibera, Kenya. (Via Daily Dish)
- A man was caught at customs in Melbourne with birds beneath his trousers.
- Here’s where Americans are getting arrested abroad. Not surprised at all by the top spot: Tijuana.
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Destination: Anywhere (in Las Vegas)
by Alexander Basek | 02.04.09 | 3:49 PM ET
The New York Post’s recently released Destination Guide to Las Vegas is out, and it’s worth a read. Think of it as the first Vegas guide that addresses our new reality, both for visitors (who are now more budget-minded than ever) and for properties (who really, really want you to come to the desert, no matter what it takes).
Hotels in Las Vegas are in an interesting spot these days. Hotel companies there can make money outside of their rooms—it was their business model for many years—so properties are slashing prices left and right to get warm bodies in the beds. To anyone that can make it over there, especially during midweek, it means way more money to spend at Bill’s $3 roulette table. Yay! As for specific sleeps, the Post gives a now de rigeur nod to the Flamingo’s GO Rooms—they first discovered them, after all—as well as busting the Venetian as the hardest place to navigate on the Strip. No kidding. During my last visit I had to have a little old lady selling hotel-branded credit cards ferry me to the exit. Next time, I’m bringing a GPS.
Fly the ‘Green’ Skies With Camelina (and Pond Scum)
by Joanna Kakissis | 02.04.09 | 10:41 AM ET
OK, OK ... it will be many, many years before camelina and algae replace petroleum in jet fuel, but I’m glad the aviation industry is at least exploring environmentally responsible options. Last week, Japan Airlines became the latest carrier to test biofuels on one of its jets, circling a Boeing 747 powered by mix of camelina, jatropha and algae oil over the Pacific Ocean.
By all accounts, the one-hour flight went smoothly, as did previous biofuel test flights by Virgin Atlantic (powered in part by coconut and babassu oil), Air New Zealand (jatropha oil) and Continental (jatropha and algae oil). Greenvolutionaries have been hating for years on traditional (read: fossil-fuel-based) jet fuel, a major contributor of greenhouse gases. So energy companies such as Arizona’s PetroSun and Montana’s Sustainable Oils are loving the good vibes and (so far) good results in developing clean, next-gen jet fuels.
The Finns have predicted that all planes will be running on biofuel by 2093. I know, that’s like 84 years away, but since oil reserves are only expected to last a few more decades, I really hope they’re right.
New York’s Restaurant ‘Week’: Now a Money-Saving Misnomer
by Eva Holland | 02.04.09 | 9:58 AM ET
New York’s famous restaurant week—that heady few days in late January when Manhattan’s priciest meals become, er, somewhat less pricey—has been extended through to the end of February, making it more like Restaurant Month-and-a-Half. Semantics aside, though, we’ll take it. This is a great chance for more budget-conscious travelers to see the way the other side eats. So step out of the queue at Sbarro, book now at one of 150 restaurants, and you’ll land a three-course fixed-menu lunch for around $25 or an equivalent dinner for $35. (Via NewYorkology)
World Hum Party and Meetup in NYC
by World Hum | 02.04.09 | 9:32 AM ET
It’s at 7 p.m. this Thursday, Feb. 5, at Lolita Bar in New York City. If you’re in town, come meet some fellow travelers, and help us celebrate our redesign.
Morning Links: Australia’s Great Ocean Road, LEGO N.Y. and More
by Michael Yessis | 02.04.09 | 8:21 AM ET
- World Hum contributor Tony Perrottet drives Australia’s Great Ocean Road.
- Scott McCartney: “Perhaps no other consumer-service business is so rule-bound as the airline industry.”
- Travelers can now link Delta and Northwest frequent flier accounts.
- Arjun Basu meditates on the size of airports.
- Photos: The making of an Interstate highway (via Coudal)
- Slate calls Aung San Suu Kyi “the world’s most effectively sidelined leader.”
- These baggage handlers at Edinburgh Airport “played tig” while waiting for planes to land.
- I LEGO N.Y. is currently the most emailed story at the New York Times.
- Video: Did you know Steve Martin was on Flight 1549?
- I’m fantasizing about a future of travel that involves this.
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German Tourists Detained for Changing in Public in Brazilian Airport
by Rob Verger | 02.03.09 | 4:30 PM ET
The AP reports that two German tourists were detained in Brazil after allegedly changing their clothes in public in Salvador’s international airport. According to the AP: “Police inspector Maritta Souza said the 66-year-old man from Koenigsberg and his 64-year-old friend from Bad Bevensen said they thought it ‘was normal’ to change clothes like that in Brazil, especially in a beach city like Salvador.” The article also quotes a witness: “I went there and asked if they would like to see other people taking their clothes off in front of his wife or in front of kids,” Paulo Goes told Globo TV. “They just laughed.” (Via Today in the Sky)
The article notes, “They said that they were late for their flight and needed to change into new clothes because one of them got wet during a boat trip and the other felt sick and vomited during the same trip earlier in the day.”
Come on, folks. I can understand being late for a flight and wanting to fly in dry clothes, but still: How about a little common sense and respect? Brazil, by the way, is more conservative than stereotypes of that country suggest. While bikinis might be normal on the beach, there is no nudity—not on the beach, the street, or in an airport lobby.
Filmed Here: ‘When Harry Met Sally…’
by Eva Holland | 02.03.09 | 3:47 PM ET
Movie tourism: to some, it may be an embarrassing, empty and needy exercise. But to me, it’s at worst a harmless detour from more weighty travel fare, and—in a best-case scenario—can even be a surprisingly illuminating way of looking at the world. By chasing the spots where ghosts of film crews past still linger, you can find yourself stumbling on unexpected treasures, or seeing well-worn landmarks in a new light.
I’ve dabbled in the practice before, but this year I’ve decided to get serious. During my present stay in New York City, and beyond, I plan on seeking out some major movie-making landmarks, and (naturally) sharing my findings here.
And where better to open an occasional series on movie tourism hot spots than Manhattan’s Katz’s Deli, of When Harry Met Sally fame?
‘A Zen Level of Patience’: Matt Gross on Air Travel
by Rob Verger | 02.03.09 | 2:47 PM ET
When I fly, I follow a simple rule: I always ask for a window seat as far towards the front of the plane as possible. I love to stare out of the window, and I prefer the front of the plane because it’s a smoother ride (the tail bounces more) and, once the plane arrives, you get to deplane sooner.
But I was curious to find out what rules and feelings about flying another traveler might have, so I called up World Hum contributor Matt Gross, the man who writes the Frugal Traveler stories for the New York Times. We caught up while he was on assignment—on a train, to be precise—in Europe. He estimates that he’s been on about thirty flights in the past year, all of them in economy.
He told me he loved flying.
“How can you not love flying? You get on a plane somewhere. You sit down; you try and relax. I relax relatively easily. You know, four to twenty-four hours later, you’re somewhere else. It’s pretty cool. I like the anticipation of it as well. The trip has not yet been ruined,” he said, laughing. Gross laughs a lot, a good quality for a traveler to have. “Hopefully it hasn’t yet been ruined.”
“You’re about to go somewhere. You have all this time to gather your thoughts and emotions and everything and get ready for the adventure,” he added.
The Music Lives on in Lubbock (Sort Of)
by Sophia Dembling | 02.03.09 | 1:51 PM ET
Photo by Sophia Dembling Eva has gotten the conversation rolling about today’s big anniversary—it was 50 years ago today that a plane carrying Buddy Holly, The Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens crashed. This is particularly poignant here in Texas, where we feel possessive of our homegrown icon.
Holly’s death was, arguably, the most tragic in rock history. His sound is unique, he was a pioneer in recording technique—that’s a cardboard box providing percussion in “Not Fade Away” and he plays his knees in “Every Day.” Holly influenced our greatest rock legends and his legacy continues. (Marginally related, Mac Davis, who also grew up in Lubbock, Texas, once told me that he would see Holly driving through town with a car full of girls and decided he wanted some of that. And then he went on to write, “Happiness Was Lubbock Texas in My Rear View Mirror.”)
We are much poorer for never hearing what Holly might have produced as he matured.
Rock fans should be required to make a pilgrimage to the excellent Buddy Holly Center in Lubbock, Texas, which takes his music and legacy as seriously as he did. (Those are the glasses he wore the night he died—they’re on display at the center. They sat forgotten in the desk drawer of a sheriff until the 1980s.)
I’d post a video for you, but Holly also was a pioneer in protecting his intellectual rights and his estate continues to maintain tight control. I respect that. We’ll settle for this right now:
