Travel Tips

In the kitchen, you hear crashing sounds and smell burning onions as your nervous brother and sister-in-law host their first Thanksgiving dinner. Grandma stands in pearl-clutching horror as she observes the latest tattoos of the younger generations. Grandpa, still too stubborn to get hearing aids, complains that everyone mumbles. Your mother runs around the house... 

If hotel room walls could talk, there’d be no shortage of juicy material for a best seller; ask a housekeeper sometime. Hotels are full of history. They’re also full of the “stranger” element.  And there’s something creepy about that.  Movie makers know this and have long exploited it, with the infamous Bates Motel in Psycho... 

The holiday travel season is coming, and airports will be teeming with heavier crowds. If only there were a way to transport your body Star Trek style– to get someplace in a flash—and bypass airport security, lines, delays, cramped planes, cabin crew members who think they’re Grace Kelly or seatmates you wish were riding in... 

Your European River cruise is canceled because rivers are flooded. Your parent is hospitalized after a stroke, and you must cancel your Peruvian tour. You break your leg while adventure traveling in a remote Brazilian jungle far away from medical help. Travel Insurance typically covers such things as the cost of lost baggage and canceled... 

IATA (International Air Transport Association) recently had the brilliant idea to further restrict the size of carry-on luggage passengers are allowed to bring aboard the plane.  They were recommending, what they aptly called, the “Cabin OK” ‘guideline’ dimensions of 21.5 x 13.5 x 7.5 inches.  Amazingly (not at all!), passengers revolted en masse – particularly... 

Gustave Flaubert said Travel makes one modest. You see what a tiny place you occupy in the world. Should your luggage likewise occupy a small, modest place in the world? Most experienced travelers would raise one eyebrow and then recite the first commandment of travel: thou shalt NEVER check thy bag. Unfortunately, you can’t always... 

When we travel, we become captivated by the culture, food and customs of our vacation destination.  We desperately want to capture some of the wonderful experiences we’ve enjoyed, in more ways than with mere photos taken on our cellular phone! Like Carol Burnett in her famous Gone With the Wind skit, we see souvenirs “hanging in... 

If you’ve done any traveling over the past couple of years, you are sorely aware that most, if not all, airlines charge travelers for every checked piece of luggage.  Revenues accumulated by airlines from these fees are in the BILLIONS of dollars – so they won’t be disappearing any time soon! To avoid paying the...

“To Exchange or Not To Exchange….That IS the Question” You’ve scrimped and saved and are finally able to make that long-dreamed about trip to Europe!  Good for you!  Now, you need to decide how you will pay your expenses as you travel: Traveler’s checks?  – They have pretty much gone the way of the dodo...

The Rolling Stones sing, “Time is on my side, yes, it is” – and, since they’ve been around for what seems like 125 years, they just might be right about that!  But if reaching your vacation destination involves crossing the International Date Line and flying through several Time Zones, you might end up feeling that... 

“To Insure….or Not to Insure”….that is the question! “Expect the best, plan for the worst” is perhaps the best advice there is when it comes to travel.  Included in your ‘plan for the worst’ may be the purchase of a travel insurance package in the event of incidents and accidents that can occur when you’re... 

Airports and flights have lost nearly all of the romantic appeal they once held for passengers.  So many airports are massive in size and making your way from the check-in counter to the luggage drop-off area and, finally, to your gate can feel as challenging as going through a corn maze!  Patience, good manners and...