7 Days; 7 Travel Stories
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1. Warming Trends

Global warming has its negatives and positives. On the downside, many ski resorts are being forced to build lifts higher in more snow-reliant zones as glaciers recede and less snow falls. Some resorts are being forced at put in air conditioning to contend with the heat. On the upside, the golfing season in Antalya, Turkey has been lengthened by more than one month. Golfing used to begin in March, but tourists from Britain and Germany are now coming in February. NY Times

2. For the Stressed-Out

Find your inner peace and your outer glow. At the Kohler Waters Spa in St. Andrews, Scotland, the Cooler-Near-the-Sea treatment can leave you both hot and cold for $152. A Therapist first warms you up in a heated Vichy shower, then dowses you with cold water. After a few cycles, the therapist gently rocks you to calm the body and promote better circulation.

At the Aspira Spa in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, for $145 you can take the Sacred Waters Massage where the healing water is heated and put into deerskin pouches, then placed on chakra points along the back to untangle those deep muscle knots. At Pure Maui in Kihei, Hawaii, the AquaCranial Therapy starts by submerging you in water, where the therapist touches spots along your spine and skull to improve circulation. In winter, you can have the treatment performed in the ocean along side whales. It’s part of the surf/yoga package priced at $6,800 for six nights. NY Times

3. To Hell and Back

http://www.flightsfromhell.com/
http://www.dinnersfromhell.com/
http://www.cruisesfromhell.com/

4. Green Dreams

Travel + Leisure's November issue is devoted to “responsible tourism.” Inside is a list of 15 green hotels which were selected from an assessment test developed in conjunction with Conservation International. Among the points of evaluation: water and energy conservation, waste reduction and supporting local communities.

Properties on the list are Grenada's Spice Island Beach Resort; the Maldives' Soneva Fushi Resort & Six Senses Spa; Sri Lanka's Heritance Kandalama; Australia's Voyages Longitude 131, located in the Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park; Bahamas' Tiamo, on the South Andros Island; Switzerland's Whitepod, near Aigle in the Alps; Colorado's Devil's Thumb Ranch in Tabernash; the Philippines' El Nido Resorts in El Nido, Palawan.

Also, Chumbe Island Coral Park in Zanzibar, Tanzania; Egypt's Adrere Amellal in the Siwa Oasis, a Berber community in the desert; Kenya's Campi Ya Kanzi a Masai-owned lodge in Chyulu Hills; Nicaragua's Morgan's Rock Hacienda & Ecolodge on Playa Ocotal, San Juan del Sur, on the Pacific Coast; Jamaica's Hotel Mocking Bird Hill near Port Antonio; Tenuta di Spannocchia in Siena, Italy; and England's Strattons Hotel in the town of Swaffham in Norfolk.

5. Travel Diaries

Estonia has more meteor craters per square mile than any other country. The name of the country of Niger comes from “niger,” the River Ger. Mt. Etna in Sicily has been active for more than 2.5 million years and has erupted 111 times since records began. During the first World War, parrots were kept on the top of the Eiffel Tower because parrots have excellent hearing and were able to warn of the approach of enemy aircraft.

The guillotine was invented in Halifax in Yorkshire in the 16th century. The French Revolution’s Dr. Gilloutin never said he invented the device, rather he merely recommended its use to the National Assembly. His ancestors changed their name to avoid being associated with the machine. Manchester Daily Telegraph UK

Eight members of the Nordic chapter of Hells Angels Motorcycle Club were deported from Iceland on Saturday on grounds of being a threat to public safety. The Icelandic police has twice before denied Hells Angels access to the country. ETN

Baghdad's Green Zone is a lovely place to spend a vacation according to a Visitors Guide, which details 20 local landmarks in this 5.5 square mile strip. Among the 20: Little Venice, a neighborhood between the former US Embassy complex and the U.S. Chancellery building named for its many cement waterways, bridges and fountains that adorn its streets and park. ETN

Those Goo Goo Googley Pries...Google has installed travel related search tools on gasoline pumps manufactured by Gilbarco-Veeder-Root. Testing for the new service begins at 3,600 stations across the US next month. The search tools will enable motorists filling up to find a place for lunch, get printed directions, find hotels and attractions, and learn about in-store offers. Bloomberg

Top rated public bathrooms from Hotels and Resorts Insider... Kawakawa, Bay of Islands, New Zealand, designed by the famous architect, painter and print maker, Friedensreich Hundertwasser. John Michael Kohler Arts Center in Sheboygan, Wisconsin featuring a rich blend of art and modern technology. Valhalla at the Shoji Tabuchi Theatre, Branson, Missouri, emphasizeing antiques and old-fashioned hedonism. Singapore Zoological Gardens which are surrounded by beautiful plants and flowers.

The Alexandra Hospital, Singapore boasts a mini water fountain, timber walls and automatic cleaners. Central West Antarctica and their soothing fragrance. The Victorian styled toilets at Rothesay, Isle of Bute, Scotland, UK, with their mosaic floors, enameled alcoves, shiny copper pipework, marble fittings and glass-sided cisterns. 3-D Gold Store in Hong Kong featuring a bathroom wrapped with gold in its entirety. The ceiling is all embedded with precious stones, about 6200 diamonds, rubies, and other valuable jewels.

6. Wheel of Fortune

Higher than both the London Eye and the Singapore Flyer, which opens in March, the Beijing Great Wheel will tower 208 metres (682 ft) when finished in 2009. The giant ferris wheel will have 48 air conditioned observation capsules, each of which can carry up to 40 passengers, and on a good day even the Great Wall is expected to be visible in the mountains to Beijing's north. "The wheel will stand in eastern Beijing's Chaoyang Park, where beach volleyball events will take place at next year's Olympics. Total cost to build: around 200 million euros (139 million pounds). Ticket Pricing: about 100 yuan (6 pounds) a head. YahooNews

7. Up and Away

With prices for airfare, hotel rooms and rental cars increasing, the traditional push and pull between travel buyers and suppliers has intensified. Companies are looking to tightly control costs in an uncertain economy, while suppliers are battling rising energy costs and trying to leverage a seller's market. As a result, the average cost of a domestic trip in 2008 is expected to rise 6 percent, or $63, to $1,110, according to research by American Express Business Travel. Overseas trips are forecast to rise 7 percent, or $205, to $3,171.

The growing costs have caused corporate travel managers to think creatively about ways to save. In a survey by the National Business Travel Association, 16 percent of travel managers reported that they would restrict business-class airline tickets. That's up from 8 percent who said last year that they would limit the premium-class tickets. Suppliers are also employing more sophisticated technology to make sure they're getting the highest price for their product.

La Quinta Hotels, for instance, has invested in sophisticated property management and reservations tools that enable hotels to juggle as many as 16 prices each day. Airfare discounts have also gotten more complex as carriers create more pricing tiers. "You can have as many as 10 to 15" fare types, said a spokesperson who oversees travel forecasting services for clients of Travelocity Business.

A spokesperson for Southwest Airlines says the airline's biggest challenge remains tapping into small and medium-size businesses, many of which don't have a formal travel program. Southwest has put more energy behind its corporate effort, boosting its sales team from five members to 15 and signing a deal to publish its fares on Galileo's central reservations system. Dallas Morning News

Rich’s Weekend Reader is published by AndTyler222 Communications. All rights reserved. Information from various sources and mostly rewritten. andtyler222@verizon.net