7 Days; 7 Travel Stories
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1. Priciest Restaurants in America

Forbes Magazine recently compiled a list of America’s priciest restaurants. At the top of the list was Masa at the Time Warner Center in New York City where the 30-course Omakase dinner special costs at least $400 per person. The price of the meal can easily exceed $1,000 when you factor in the tax, tip and one of the restaurant’s superior sakes. View the complete list at: http://www.forbes.com/2007/12/06/restaurants-expensive-us-forbeslife-cx_pl_1206food_slide_2.html?partner=yahoo.

Zagat’s Survey of America's Top Restaurants concludes that New York City continues to be the most costly U.S. city in which to dine out, with an average tab of $39.46. By comparison, Zagat's national average is $33.29. New Orleans and Austin were the least expensive cities to dine at $26.18 and $25.30, respectively. U.S. restaurants cost roughly half of what their peers do in cities such as London ($79.46), Paris ($74.24) and Tokyo ($69.58). Yahoo

2. Down Mexico Way

Don’t forget to bring your ice skates when planning a trip to Mexico City this winter. An enormous rink, possibly the largest in the world, has been constructed in the City’s historic central square where Aztecs once made sacrifices to their gods and Spanish viceroys ruled New Spain. The rink measures 133 feet by 253 feet, with 46 miles of tubes running underneath the ice to 10 truck-size chilling machines each capable of freezing a small rink itself.

The rink opened on December 1 at a cost $1.5 million and is free to all comers during the month of December. On the first Sunday in December, more than 12,000 people took to the ice in 45-session intervals while 50,000 crowded around to watch. Don’t worry if you didn’t bring your skates. The rental shop has more than 2,400 pairs in stock. The rink is part of a campaign by Mexico City’s to bring fun to a city known for its smog and traffic. Last summer, the City trucked in sand to build artificial beaches at seven public pools. On Sundays, the City’s main avenues are closed for cycling and roller skating. NY Times

3. Online Buzz

Wired Magazine says Yahoo’s FareCase was the best of the new travel search engines to find a low air fare. The magazine conducted eight test searches, comparing FareChase, Farecast, SideStep, and Kayak, and found pricing varied by as much as $100.

IgoUgo and sister company Travelocity have launched a voluntourism community forum where users can share their trip experiences, http://travelforgood.igougo.com/. Travel Weekly

New Website, http://www.fabsearch.com/, scours trendy magazines for where-to-go info. Search by location or by publication.

Guided video tours of destinations around the world created by local filmmakers: http://www.geobeats.com/.

4. Taxing Experiences

Some of the taxes you might encounter when purchasing an air ticket using, as an example, a ticket with a base price of $228 for travel within the US, or to Canada and the UK.

Fuel Surcharge: 140.00
Canada Airport Improvement Fee: 23.55
US Transportation Tax: 30.20
US Agriculture Fee: 5.00
US Passenger Facility Charge: $3 to $18
US Federal Customs Fee: 5.50
US Flight Segment Tax: 3.40 per segment
Canada Quebec Sales Tax: 1.22
Canada Goods and Services Tax: 1.41
UK Passenger Service Charge: 29.20
UK Air Passenger Duty: 81.67
September 11 Security Fee: 2.50 per flight segment
US Immigration User: Fee 7.00

Travel in Europe: Countries signing the Schengen agreement this week: Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia. The Schengen agreement, created in 1985, eliminates internal passport checkpoints between member EU countries. It also places heavy restrictions on non EU citizens, especially those living and working in a country illegally. Under the agreement, foreigners are not permitted to stay in the Schengen zone for more than 90 days within a rolling six-month time frame without a valid work permit or visa.

In other words, foreign travelers will not be able to renew their 90-day tourist visas by simply crossing the border from one country to the next, a popular way for expats teaching English language courses in many Central and Eastern countries where demand for teachers is high. Already in the zone: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden. Boston Globe

Five Unusual travel fees from analyst Henry Harteveldt:

-- An executive officer for a government organization in Washington believes she has found one of these perfect fees. It's listed as a $5-a-day "GOVT ADMIN RATE SUPP" on her staff's car rental bills.

-- A traveler checked into an Embassy Suites property in Atlanta, ordered dinner in her room, and paid a 20 percent service charge along with a $2.25 tray fee.

-- When checking out of the Hilton Trinidad & Conference Centre, a traveler found a mysterious $1-a-day surcharge--a donation directed to a charity favored by the then-prime minister.

-- A traveler received an overnight envelope at the Las Vegas Marriott Suites along with a $5 fee for envelope delivery.

-- Checking into the upscale Greenbrier resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, can set you back $400 a night with an added $36 a night for turndown services, where the housekeeper pulls down the bedspreads, drops a chocolate on your pillow and draws the curtains. Tribune Media Services

5. Some of the Top 07 Travel Stories Courtesy of MSNBC

January—In an attempt to grab some of its neighbors’ tourism dollars, Cambodia renovated and reopened an unused airport built more than 40 years ago by the Soviet in the port town of Sihanoukville. The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) went into effect, requiring all passengers flying into the U.S. to carry passports upon entry and reentry. Southwest Airlines nearly killed a hepatitis-C patient awaiting a liver transplant because he refused to purchase an extra ticket (due to his weight). Southwest later apologized and issued a refund.

February--JetBlue stranded passengers on a runway for 11 hours spurring the need for Traveler Rights legislation.

March--Las Vegas strip symbol Stardust Resort & Casino was razed to make room for a new casino.

April--Google's My Map's enhancement debuted, which enables anyone with basic Web-tech skills to create custom maps and embed them on their own Web sites.

May—Avis added a Wi-Fi feature for its car rentals.

June—In response to passport processing delays, the US relaxes border controls allowing citizens to reenter the country without a passport as long as they had already applied for one.

July--On 7-7-7 the new Seven Wonders of the World were announced. One day later, Boeing introduced its new Dreamliner 787, claiming it was the most environmentally friendly aircraft in the world.

August-- Richard Branson's Virgin America debuted with a goal of becoming America’s transcontinental version of RyanAir, the Irish airliner that shuttles Europeans across their own continent for outrageously cheap fares.

September--The colossal Venetian Macau opened in China. The death of an over-excited passenger in the Phoenix airport caused some to question the use of extreme force by security personnel.

October--the executive director of the UN's Environment Programme told conference-goers in Davos, Switzerland, that "the tourism industry is both challenged by climate change and a contributor to greenhouse gas emissions." The Airbus 380 finally took its first commercial flight, from Singapore to Sydney on behalf of Singapore Airlines as a transit strike crippled Paris.

November--Japan unveiled new border controls, including new biometric scanning and fingerprinting for all incoming foreigners. The dollar caved against the euro, reaching an all-time low.

December—Availability of inexpensive air tickets to Florida from the snowbound northeast.

6. Land Was Created For Boats To Visit

Last month a near mutiny occurred aboard the Sapphire Princess, a 2,600-passenger cruise ship on a 16-night voyage with scheduled stops in Singapore, Shanghai and other Asian ports. Two late-season typhoons severely disrupted the trip, canceling port calls in Vietnam, Okinawa and Taipei, and unhappy passengers rushed to Internet stations to tell the world. Some claimed they were on the verge of mutiny while the ship was still at sea.

In January 2006, a mutiny took place aboard the Queen Mary 2 when passengers organized sit-ins and alerted the news media of their grievances by sending e-mails and making cellphone calls from the ship. At issue was a broken propeller that hobbled the ship and forced the cancellation of three port calls which infuriated passengers to the point where they held tense onboard meetings with the embattled ship captain. NY Times

7a. New Travel Inspiring Books To Get You Going in 08

Women seeking vacation ideas should consider reading, "100 Places Every Woman Should Go," Travelers' Tales, by globe-trotting author Stephanie Elizondo Griest ($16.95; ISBN: 978-193236147-6). Griest has selected 100 travel destinations and written about them from a woman’s perspective. Among the destinations she has chosen that are notable because of their deep association with women in history: the tomb of Hatshepsut in Egypt, Sappho's island of Lesbos in Greece, Joan of Arc's grave in France, Frida Kahlo's cobalt blue home in Mexico and the childhood home of Flannery O'Connor in Savannah, Ga. Chicago Tribune

Looking for the offbeat? Try "100 Greatest Trips," from Travel + Leisure magazine ($20). The guide features offbeat itineraries in familiar places like New York where you can go shopping in Harlem at Atmos, the Japanese sneaker store, and N, a designer emporium. In Mexico, follow the tequila trail in Jalisco. In London, eat your way around Borough Market.

Lonely Planets "Bluelist: The Best in Travel 2008," ($23) includes sections on events around the world by month and exploring travel in Muslim countries. The book also offers a list of "bests" — from "best-value destinations" such as Nicaragua and Laos to "best brews" — beer headquarters from Pottsville, Pa. (Yuengling), to the Mussel Inn, New Zealand's "remotest boutique microbrewery." Visit www.lonelyplanet.com/bluelist to submit your list of must-see places. Seattle Times

7b. Final Takes As We Enter 08

So how do ticket brokers get those tickets for sold out events? They use specialized software to make multiple online purchases of tickets, circumventing the four-ticket-per-customer limit that the rest of us must abide by. The “How” is described in supplemental documents filed in Ticketmaster Versus. RMG Technologies, asserting that the defendant’s automated ticket-buying software violated the Ticketmaster Web site’s user policies. The documents describe a subterranean world of software designed to enter Ticketmaster’s online ticket-purchasing system at will and scoop up tickets without limits. NY Times

A 121-year-old law, commonly known as the Jones Act, could significantly impact the Alaska Cruise trade and has the Juneau Chamber of Commerce worried. The story begins in Hawaii with a request by the U.S. Department of Maritime Administration, concerned about foreign competition, to ensure that U.S. Customs enforces current regulations. At issue for Alaskans is the Passenger Vessel Services Act of 1886 which could be reinterpreted by the Department of Customs and Border Protection in a way that requires all foreign ships sailing the lucrative Seattle to Southeast Alaska routes to stop longer in Canada and effectively reduce the number of cruise passengers visiting Juneau. The Juneau Chamber claims the city would loose 368,370 potential shoppers and tour customers if the new criteria goes into effect. ETN

Luxury travel trends from a marketing consultancy in Miami...Mature affluents are gravitating to “stealth wealth.” They seek luxury travel products that express personal interests and style, and prize uniqueness. They want new, exciting experiences; to be intrigued, entertained and enlightened. And, most important, they will spend top dollar to be first, or reach the most remote, exotic places.

More trends you should be aware of in the luxury travel market--A recent survey of American Express travel agents revealed a significant rise in luxury travel among families; 82% wanted high-end hotels with kids programs and 56% were traveling with nannies.

Time saving services will rule the day. Enter the concierge to manage the overload. Enter services such as Virgin Atlantic’s Upper Class Wing - a fast track security channel to get passengers from limo to lounge in ten minutes or less. Enter name-brand stores at airports targeting the power spender on layovers. Heathrow’s Terminal 5, set to open in March 2008, will have a two-story Harrod’s department store, stocking only luxury brands.

Today’s wealthy want to believe their consumption is helping to save the planet or has an altruistic motive behind it. The operative words are: truth, transparency and trust.

Health, well-being and looks are the magic words fueling expansion of spa and medical tourism. Enter the mobile spa, macho spas for men, and spas for pets. Five star hotels are increasingly offering medi-healthy packages in alliance with neighboring medical facilities. Age management programs will help the rich look and feel young.

Contemporary music composer John Cage once said: “the greatest luxuries are time and space.” Leave it to the airlines to try outdoing each other in offering the world's largest airplane bed. Top hotel suites will get larger and pricier too, appealing to the super wealthy accustomed to homes of 10,000 sq.ft. or more.

Rich’ Weekend Reader is published by AndTyler222 Communications. All rights reserved. Information from various sources and mostly rewritten. andtyler222@verizon.net http://www.itinarod.com/