Spent a couple of weeks on the road, perturbed at the behaviours of some of my fellow travellers. If you want to be a jerk, stay home. Seriously, it should not be that hard to be respectful: of the country you are visiting- yes the coffee may be better back home, or the showers are hotter or the internet is faster but telling people ad nauseum will not earn you a welcome. I was in a store in Sydney, Australia, when a tourist wandered in, pointed to a camera and said “how much“. when told, he…
The CEO of Nevada based online retailer Zappos has reiterated that he has flirted with the idea of running an airline following customer requests. For those who do not know, Zappos started as a shoe retailer and grew annual sales from one million to one billion dollars in eight years. Zappos is known for their obsession with customer service and their desire to blur the line between work and play: We seek to WOW our customers, our co-workers, our vendors, our partners, and in the long run, our investors. The company recruits new staff based on how…
There are a few destinations in the world that immediately spell party. These include: Bali, Ibiza, Miami and Porto Heli (Greece). The list also needs to include the small southern Thai island of Phuket which is invaded by 14 million tourists every year. They come to get massaged, swim, snorkel, eat, drink and dance. Many do not know why they go to Phuket, just lured by its reputation as a fun place. I first came to Phuket just after the 2004 Tsunami had ripped through. It did not capture my heart! I came back this week to…
Would you watch a 5 hour boring movie for 2500 frequent flyer points? Virgin America has created “BLAH AIRLINES FLIGHT 101”, a boring, beige and dull five hour and forty-five minute flight set in real time on a flight from Newark to San Francisco. The passengers aboard seem pretty creepy, the pilots bored and tired and the flight attendants over perked. The film’s trailer can be viewed here: Already almost one million people have already watched the film on YouTube since the film was uploaded in October, 2014! (Did they skip parts of it -like…
Today, I was one of three “farangs” (foreigners) on a Nok Air 737 completely full of Thai people travelling from Bangkok, Thailand to Phuket. I could not work out if this was a random coincidence or do most foreigners not choose Nok? Me? I have wanted to fly the bright yellow Thai “Premium Budget” carrier for some time and today’s flight gave me that opportunity! Nok is the 90th airline I have travelled with since I started flying in 1968! Nok means bird in Thai. They are largely a domestic operation with an international flight to Myanmar. Booking:…
With my travel tips I generally work on the dos of travel. For the next six weeks, however, I will be focussing on some don’ts. My first one will be “Don’t be an A### hole” and will be published next week: 13th April, 2015. I am happy to take suggestions on other Don’t tips! Related Posts 93 Free Travel Tips Don’t let the Bedbugs bite Travel Tip: Don’t Check in baggage
In forums and conversations since the tragic Germanwings crash, people have been lamenting that flying has become more dangerous. One person sad to me “you hear of all of these crashes and you wonder of its safe to travel anywhere” The word “hear” is an important one. I am old enough to remember Entebbe in 1976 when terrorists seized and diverted an Air France plane. The astonishing crash between two 747s in 1977. In 1985 there were multiple hijackings, bombings and crashes including the horrific Japan Airlines 747, crash into Mount Osutaka which killed 520 of 524…
In Thailand Nok means bird. “Premium low cost” domestic carrier Nokair after ten years of operation commands a healthy 27% chunk of the country’s domestic market and a healthy profit margin. Nok has not expanded internationally with the exception of a couple of routes. This was due to change this year. Nok has joined with Singapore Airline’s low cost arm Scoot, to form low cost international carrier called imaginatively NokScoot with the slogan: Fly Awesome. Literally the name means: Bird leaves suddenly and quickly! This new venture is 49% is owned by Scoot and 51% owned by Nok. The carrier aims to link China, Japan…
Learn these seven basic phrases of the native language(s) of the place(s) you are going to: Hello (eg Bonjour, Hola, Guten Tag, Salaam, Namaste, Sawadee Krub- (French, Spanish, German, Arabic, Hindi, Thai) Thank you Merci (FR), Gracias(SP), Danke (GM), Shukrun (AR), Dhanyavaad (HI), Krob Khun Krub (TH) Good bye Au revoir (FR), Adios (SP), Auf Wiedersehen (GM), Ma’a as-salāmah (AR), Namaste (HI), Byebye (TH) Restroom Les toilettes(FR), Baño(SP), Toilette,Toilet or Privy, Alhammam, Hong Nam (TH) Help Au secours (FR), Socorro, Hilfe (GM), ilHaʿni, Maḍaḍ, Chûay dûay (TH) Yes Oui (FR), Si (SP), Ja, Iewa, Haji, Shy (TH) No Non(FR), No (SP), Nein (GM), la, Nahin, My (TH) It…
On many of my flights, I have watched the pilot come out of the cockpit to use the lavatory. On some airlines, as he or she has emerged, a member of the cabin crew has replaced him. On others, the pilot or co pilot has left their colleague alone in charge of the plane. The U.S.A had rules before last Tuesday’s Germanwings crash requiring airlines to have two crew members present at all times during the flight. Many other countries allowed airlines to set their own policies. And this has always bothered me. I have always…
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