There are some deals that I only become aware of via email. So I have become a bit of an addict for subscribing to the deal sites of airlines and travel companies. I have some rules though: I make sure the organisation I am subscribing to actually has decent deals or information before subscribing Set up a yahoo or gmail account that is dedicated specifically for travel news deals or have a travel deal folder set up on your email account with a filter rule set up that sweeps any deals into the folder( (I have done both at different times)…
Travel Tips (Monday)
Category Archives for Travel Tips (Monday).
Considering Carry On
I was standing at the check in counter for Lufthansa at Frankfurt. The check in agent asked the passenger next to me to present his carry on bag so she could weigh it. “why? It’s just carry on” “yes sir. I need to weigh it. Sir it weighs 12kilograms. You must check it. ” “the last airline let me carry it on” “You have to remove items or check it in sir” “this has nothing to do with safety. You just want to make money. Get me your supervisor” The customer then berated the supervisor.…
Switch off that Phone????
As the announcement to switch off our phones is broadcast. I watch some people settle back in their seats content or smug, they have complied. Some will discover upon landing that their phone wasn’t actually off! In fact the Airline Passenger Experience Association and the Consumer Electronics Association found 30 percent of passengers accidentally left an electronic device turned on during a flight -61 percent said it was a smartphone. Another group will get up and check in a panic, only to find they have indeed already switched their phone off. On a recent flight,…
Stay Well En Route
After my post, last Wednesday, about the students who flew home ill from Chile last week, thought I would share some tips to stay well. Getting sick is part of the joys of travel, so be prepared! Feel free to add your suggestions. Before Travel Get all appropriate vaccinations for the area you are travelling to Get your up to date flu vaccination Make sure you have appropriate travel insurance coverage Take a travel-size bottle of hand sanitizer Carry medication for headaches, toothaches (it can happen) and diarrhea Have mosquito repellant When Flying I drink a fresh squeezed…
How to close an aircraft overhead compartment
I love the sounds of an aeroplane. The roar of the engines, the bang of the wheels retracting, the motors running that extend the wing flaps for take-off and the wind whistling past etc etc Of all the aircraft noises I hate the most, it’s the sound of slamming overhead bin doors! Some passengers, some airlines and some cabin attendants get it right. Others don’t and there is a cacophony of slamming hatches. Its fast and supposedly efficient -but irritating. Slam! Slam! Slam! Slam! To keep me happy: With one hand, hold the latch open.…
Rethinking Hotel Clubs
I have a wallet full of Hotel Loyalty Clubs. I have a philosophy that if the program is free to join and I am going to be staying in the hotel anyway, I join. I then get my bright shiny cards and take them with me on the road. In the USA in 2010, there were almost 2.1 billion Hotel membership cards floating around the wallets, pockets and drawers iof travellers. A study by Deloitte in the US with 4000 travellers found there that only eight per cent of travellers stayed loyal to one hotel brand. Of high frequency travelers, almost 42 percent…
Spanish Train Crash Information Contacts
Thinking of all those affectd by the High Speed Train crash in Spain.
Car Rental Clubs
I had a last minute flight to Auckland, New Zealand which arrived at close to midnight. On arrival at the airport, I headed to the Car Rental counters to find every car in Auckland was already out on loan. I explained I was not thrilled especially as I was a member of the Car Rental Company’s Club. As soon as I said this, the woman behind the counter looked more closely at my booking, confirmed my membership and moments later I was driving out of the airport in a shiny new hire car. Being a member…
All about laptop travel
Laptops are a great boon for travel. They allow you to blog, capture photos, send emails and skype cheaply and make travel plans as you go. They are also a time waster, can cause you to not engage with whats happening around you as you travel. Think carefully before a trip as to whether you need your IT. If two of you are travelling consolidate your electronics! It amazes me when I see couples carrying multiple smartphones, two laptops, two (or more) iPads, two kindles, and two cameras. Check that your insurer covers damage and…
Ten tips to not leave stuff behind
It is a horrible feeling to realise that you have left something important or valuable in a hotel room, on a bus or in a taxi. I have lost a small amount of stuff over the last 49 years of travel. Some steps to reducing: Take less stuff Avoid travelling with valuables- assume you can and will lose whatever you take and ask yourself “is it worth the risk” Label stuff with your name and email/phone Place a shoe on top of or right next to your hotel safe. This will make you think twice before forgetting stuff…
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