Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label travel. Show all posts

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Travelography #117: US-UK Border, Quake-Lakes, and Best Travelers

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Stories discussed in this podcast are from the Travelography Twitter Blog for the week of 23 June 2008:

  1. US and UK border agencies agree to expedite travel

    the Global Entry pilot program builds upon other trusted traveler programs, such as NEXUS (with Canada) and SENTRI (with Mexico), designed to facilitate and expedite the entry process for pre-registered low-risk international travelers into the US.

  2. China to turn dangerous 'quake lakes' into tourist spots

    "The scientific development of the quake lakes will be an important part of the rebuilding plan of new Beichuan," Chen Xingchuan, head of the Communist Party's Beichuan Rebuilding Committee was quoted as saying.

  3. Beijing tourists to France drop 70 percent, ambassador says

    According to a recent survey cited by the China Daily, many Chinese have developed negative feelings toward France after the Paris leg of the international Beijing Olympic torch relay was thrown into chaos by pro-Tibet protesters in April.

  4. Hoteliers vote Japanese world's best tourists

    They rated the travellers on manners, willingness to learn the local language and sample the cuisine, tidiness, generosity and stylishness. The Japanese won top prize for being overall best tourists...American tourists came in at number 11 overall.

  5. Lyndhurst [NJ] is suing travel websites for its local hotel tax

    ...the internet travel sites negotiate room prices with hotels at a wholesale rate, then charge travelers who book through their websites a higher retail rate. However, the companies remit taxes only on the lower wholesale rate, the lawsuit charged.

  6. State panel kills cruise safety bill that would have put peace officers aboard ships sailing from California ports

    It would have been the most stringent regulation in an industry that victim-rights advocates contend is governed by a vague web of federal and international rules that allows crime and crime reporting to fall through the cracks.

  7. Bush-Wacked! President Causes 40K Delays

    Nearly 40,000 travelers will remember U.S. President George W. Bush's stopover in London. Their flights were canceled or delayed at Heathrow Airport to accommodate him, according to British Airways.

Friday, May 23, 2008

TGPodcast #61: Dubai World Tourism Conference in 15 Minutes

This is a Geography for Travelers Podcast related post This is a Travel Geography Podcast related post (click on the title above to download the .mp3 file)

This is a soundseeing (sst) tour from the World Travel and Tourism Council Summit in Dubai (20-22 April 2008) that I attended. It includes three elements:
  1. About 5 minutes from an Intro to Dubai city tour,
  2. A short and interesting segment of a presentation from the conference, and
  3. A segment of the Gala Dinner, which closes with my visit to a fortune teller (entertainment for the dinner guests).
The whole presentation is about 20 minutes due to my introduction section. The actual Dubai part is 14 minutes.

SOME PHOTOS:

The conference site was adjacent to the Burj Al Arab (literally, 'the Arab Tower') - the self-described 7-Star Hotel, with daily rates running US$1,200 to $12,000 a night.


The Dental Spa - near the area where the tour guide talks about houses owned by Emerati that are rented out to expatriate workers.


Fortune telling, henna, and Arabic calligraphy were some of the entertainment for guests at the conference's Gala Dinner.


More Dubai photos can be found on my Flickr site at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/alew/sets

Wednesday, April 09, 2008

Travelography #112: Airline Bankruptcies - Global Implosion

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Bankrupt Airlines to date: Maxjet (December), Aloha, ATA, Skybus, Adam Air (Indonesia), Oasis (Hong Kong) - all in these past 2 weeks. Coming soon: Champion Air (pretty much confirmed), and Mesa and Go (rumors on the last two). My prediction: look for the airline bankruptcy disease to spread internationally in the coming months.

Experts see regional airlines at risk now (SF Chronicle)

Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Travelography #106: Hyrdofoils Collide, Tourists Molested & Selling the USA

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.


Three stories from Singapore's Straits Times newspaper from last week:

Two hydrofoils full of tourists collided in fog between Hong Kong and Macau, sending many to the hospital.

India starts a campaign to protect foreign female tourists from sexual molesters -- mostly groping, which seems to be a major problem in that country.

The US is still trying to gain back the international tourist arrivals that it received prior to 9/11. To do this, an increasing number of states and cities are running advertisements for the first time in Europe.

These stories came from the local newspaper in Singapore. I found the links above by searching online for similar stories.

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Travelograph #105: Airplane Hotel, Philippines Downgrade, + Webcam Traveling

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

Stories in today's Travelography podcast include;

- An old, abandoned airplane in Stockholm is to become a budget hotel -- the first of more to come.

- Philippine Airlines is downgraded by the US FAA due to lax flight safety standards. And the US Embassy in the Philippines recommends that other airlines be used instead.

- The proliferation of webcams is providing a glimps of a future of virtual travel.


Saturday, January 05, 2008

Travelography #104: Travel and Tourism in 2008

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

What will 2008 hold for Travel and Tourism?

New technologies and new planes will be tested in 2008, but wont really affect travelers until 2009. Open air agreements will expand air travel across the Atlantic, which will help to continue the year-on-year record growth in international travel. The high cost of travel to Europe will encourage many people to go elsewhere, benefiting many new destinations and special interest niche tours around the globe. Climate change will also affect where people go and how the travel and tourism industry develops.

Links to stories in Travelography #104:

Sunday, December 30, 2007

Travelography #103: Prostitutes and Pilgrims

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

Links to today's stories:

Well, at least I put a tech story between the Amsterdam's brothels and the Vatican...

  1. Amsterdam to clean up famed red light district

  2. Denver Airport offers 802.11n Wi-Fi for free

  3. Higher fares don't deter holiday fliers
p.s. - I had some problems with the new PodcasterNews.com interface and was not able to upload this until December 31st when my problem was fixed. -- Alan

Friday, December 28, 2007

G4T/TGPod #61: Utterz from Northern Finland and Sweden

This is a Geography for Travelers Podcast related post This is a Geography for Travelers Podcast related post (click on the title above to download the .mp3 file)

Travel Geography Podcast #61

The December Travel Geography Podcast is a compilation of mini Utterz.com podcasts that I posted during my trip to Finland and Sweden. The trip was from November 28 to December 10. Utterz.com is a free podcasting service on which you can post unlimited mini-podcasts -- sort of like an audio Twitter. The Utterz episodes that I have have compiled here include:
  1. My first impressions of being in a place with only 4 hours of sunlite
  2. A noon time walk on the University of Oulu campus to find the sun
  3. Report on our post-conference field trip to Santa Claus Land at the Arctic Circle and to the World Cup Ski competition at the Ruka Ski Resort near the Russian border
  4. A report on my job as a Ph.D. "Opponent" and the party that followed
  5. Some thoughts while in transit back to the US, and my jetlag after returning to Arizona, and
  6. A weather report update and news story about a new tourist attraction in Sweden
The sun never get very high above the horizon. Above is about 1 pm.


Me, standing on the Arctic Circle line in the Santa Claus Land shopping mall in Finland.


World Cup Ski Jump competition at the Ruka Ski Resort in Finland.


Wild (?) reindeer on a snow-packed road in Finland.

All Photos: Creative Commons Copyright: non-commercial, attribution, share-alike

Wednesday, December 26, 2007

Travelography #102: 2007 Travel News In Review

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

In today's podcast I give a summary of the major themes that were covered in the Travelography World Travel News podcast in 2007.

Links to new stories in today's podcast:

Tuesday, December 04, 2007

Travelography #100 - Theme Parks Boom, Gorillas Grow, and Air Hostess Games

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

Today's Stories:
- Amusement parks are doing well world wide
- Mountain gorillas bring high end tourist money to Uganda
- Women compete for airline hostess positions on a new game show in China

Links:
Amusement park and attractions business to grow in Asia and Europe but will go steady in US
Rare mountain gorillas prepared for tourists
China's airline clones

Travel Geography Podcast (this website)
Travelography News on Ning
Travelography News on Twitter
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Monday, November 26, 2007

Travelography #99: T-Day Travel, HI Superferry, and Japan Whales and Fingers

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

Today's Stories:

- Weather, among other factors, help make for smooth traveling during the Thanksgiving weekend in the US.
- Hawaii's Superferry to re-start on December 1st between Honolulu and Maui.
- Travel boycott called against Japan as it dramatically increases its whale catch.
- Japan starts fingerprinting all foreign visitors to prevent terrorist attacks.

Story Links:

Sunday, November 25, 2007

NaPodPoMo - Travelography 2.0 - Daily Podcast Challenge - Week 3

Week 3 of National Podcast Post Month (NaPodPoMo)

I joined NaPodPoMo a few days late, but you can find my posts week 1 (Nov 7-9) here and for Week 2 (Nov 11-19) here. Nov 10 + Nov 19 were my regular weekly Travelography podcast.

For 25 November 2007

For 24 November 2007

  • Turkey Congee - I am amazed by all of the traffic heading north from Phoenix this weekend! And I talk about our traditional post-Turkey Day meal of turkey congee (rice porridge). Here is one of many turkey congee recipes available online: http://esyurl.com/2pj - also check out: http://napodpomo.ning.com/ For 21 November 2007

For 23 November 2007

For 22 November 2007

For 21 November 2007

  • Angkor Wat and Ha Long Bay - I talk about a couple of places that many people (especially Americans, I think) do not know about, but really should be on their must visit someday list of places: Angkor Wat in Cambodia and Ha Long Bay in Vietnam.

For 20 November 2007:

Monday, November 19, 2007

Travelography #98: Turkey Day Air Travel, Fuel Surcharges, and Forever Travel

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

Stories covered in today's podcast include:
- The US government institutes policies to reduce Thanksgiving air travel -- we'll see if it works!
- Airlines and cruise companies adopt new fuel surcharge fees to cover increasing costs.
- Are you a potential Forever Tourist?

Links:

Saturday, November 10, 2007

Travelography #97 - Great Wall of Sand, 750 mi. Golf Course, and Cold War Tours

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

Stories in today's podcast include: (1) Growing sand storms are eroding away the Great Wall of China; (2) Australia building 750 mile / 1200 km long golf course; (3) US National Park Service offering nuclear reactor tours in Washington State; and (4) New tour of life in a Communist town in Poland.

Main Story Links:

Saturday, October 27, 2007

Travelography #95: Global Warming Challenges for Travel and Tourism

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

Stories in Today's Podcast:
- Global warming to alter when and where we travel.
- Honolulu's Waikiki will be under water within 100 years.
- UN and travel industry executives look for ways to reduce tourism's carbon footprint.
- Environmentalists protest the enlargement of London's Heathrow Airport.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Travelography #94: Nepal Maoists, Resorts Protest in India, and Monkey Attacks

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

Stories covered in this weeks podcast are:
  1. Nepal's Maoists politicians try to calm the nerves of the tourism industry as they demand the overthrow of the monarchy.
  2. Kerala's fisherwomen protest against new beach resorts that limit their access to the India's southwest coast.
  3. Cambodia puts a bounty on monkeys who are attacking tourists in Phnom Penh.

Saturday, October 13, 2007

Travelography #93: China's Golden Week and Hong Kong Disneyland Struggles

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

Lot of tourism news from China and Asia...
- China, Hong Kong, Macau and Malaysia are leading Asia to a record tourism year in 2007
- Huge numbers of tourists during China's National Day holiday causes some to question the value of Golden Weeks
- Over 1500 foreign tourists get lost in the mob of domestic tourists at China's Tiananmen Square
- Hong Kong Disneyland is under-performing as visitors say it it too small and culturally insensitive

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Travelography #92: The Summer of Flight Delays, and Two New Attractions

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

- 30% of US Airline Departures were late this summer, up from 25% last year, and passenger complaints against airlines have nearly doubled.
- AvoidDelays.com lists the airports, airlines and flights to avoid month by month
- Delta's is offering business class seats and meals, in downtown Manhattan
- Larry Craig's restroom at the Minneapolis airport has become the country's newest tourist attraction.

Monday, September 24, 2007

Travelography #91: China Web Bookings, Flight Attendants, + Europe's Disabled

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

Online bookings in China lag far behind much of the rest of the world due to thin travel agent profit margins. Flight attendants have one of the toughest jobs in travel. The Europe Union passes new laws to protect disabled air travelers.
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Links:

Saturday, September 01, 2007

Travelography #88: Tourism Challenges for Hawaii, the Caribbean and Europe

This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post This is a PCN Travelography Podcast related post. Use the players on this page, or click the title above to listen to this podcast.

Hawaii's June tourist arrivals are slightly down from last year, while the Caribbean has seen a 5 to 10% drop for a variety of reasons. US travel to Europe remains strong, through the high costs for Americans is forcing them to live more on the cheap.

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