Remember when...

...you wrote letters, sent postcards to stay in touch?
...you carried rolls of film when you go on a trip?
...you brought bulky cassette tapes for a long flight?

Well take a step back in time, into The Travel Group Archives.

Tuesday, September 27, 2005

The Right Seat , Part I


If we were to survey our clients or any group of frequent-flyers, I am sure that the number one most important issue related to flying is THE SEAT. Generally, the more a traveler flies, the more savvy they are about airline seats, and the more demanding. So, what are the best economy seats on a plane? Which airline has them? And, how do we get them?

In the first of two parts, this article will explore which airline seats are considered to be best—by our clients and other experts. When you talk about economy seats there are many issues. For example, everyone wants either an aisle seat, window seat, or exit-row seat. There are customers who will specifically ask to be kept away from “screaming babies,” which typically inhabit the front or bulkhead rows. Without a doubt, however, the most important issue for frequent flyers is leg room, or as the airlines call it—“seat pitch.” Pitch is defined as the distance between the rows of seats from the back of one seat to the back of the seat behind when measured from the same point on each seat. Got all that? In other words, it’s “leg room.” Pitch differs from airline to airline and from one aircraft type to another, sometimes quite dramatically. While there are other issues governing seat comfort—the width and shape of the seat, for instance—pitch is the thing that preoccupies most frequent travellers, especially with all of the publicity about DVT.

This is such a big deal to “road warriors that there are many web sites devoted to the subject of seat pitch. The best is SeatGuru.com. It offers excellent, easy-to-read seat charts on all of the aircraft operated by the major airlines. In the case of Air Canada, for instance, you can view the seat plans for 15 aircraft types, including three different versions of Boeing 767s and seven versions of AirBus. One word of caution, however: it is sometimes difficult to find out from an airline which version of aircraft is being used. I recently called Air Canada reservations about a flight, but their reservations agent was unable to tell me which model of Boeing 767 was operating.

The seat charts on SeatGuru.com are excellent. Not only do they give you the exact pitch for various types of aircraft, each chart identifies, using colour-coding, which seats to beware of, to definitely avoid, and to try to get. They also tell you about seat width, which is also an important, often overlooked issue.

Exit row seats are universally considered the best seats on the plane because of the extra leg room they offer. Exit rows must be wide enough to accommodate quick evacuation of the airplane in an emergency. There are some things to be aware of about these much sought-after seats, however. For instance, when there are two rows of exit seats, watch out for the first one. Usually, the seats in this row do not recline! (For safety reasons, they must not block the exit row behind.) Still, if you have no other choice, this row is also a good choice because of the better leg room.

In many aircraft, there are two truly deluxe seats to look for. These are the window seats located immediately behind an exit row. In some cases the window seat from the exit row in front has been removed to make room to operate the emergency door. This feature offers the passenger sitting behind a nice window seat with incredible leg room. Always look for this option.

One more point about exit row seats: they are almost never assigned in advance. The airline is required to ask if you are “willing and able to help in the event of an emergency.” Passengers must be at least 15 years old, have the strength to open the emergency door, and have full mobility. Some airlines, such as United, Continental, Northwest, and US Airways do allow their top tier fliers to pre-select exit seats. (If you are Prestige or better on Aeroplan, United recognizes your status and will offer you preferential seat selection, including the exit row seats. Air Canada, on the other hand, does not pre-assign these seats to anyone.) Always ask for exit row seats (assuming you qualify and are willing to help out) at check-in; they will often be available because of these restrictions.

Another set of seats that are often good are the bulkhead seats, which are located immediately behind the dividing walls between cabins. A big word of caution here, though. Sometimes, leg room is worse in bulkhead. It depends on the aircraft configuration. Other negatives: there are no foot rests, there is no storage under the seat in front of you (because there isn’t a seat in front of you), your seat will be narrower than the rest because the meal tray must be stored under the arm rest rather than in the seat ahead of you, you may find yourself near to the restrooms or the galley (ie. kitchen). And finally, you are likely to have babies—doing all those charming baby things—for company. If you can get beyond these issues, have one of our agents check on the leg room issue. Again, as with the exit rows, bulkhead seats are usually not open for pre-assignment unless you have high tier status or are travelling with an infant. And, finally, even if you do find the perfect bulkhead seat, be prepared to be “bumped” by the airline if it needs to accommodate a parent with baby at the last minute. This is one case where babies overrule even the most elite of frequent-flyers.

Okay; so now we know a little bit about what are the good seats on airplanes; and we definitely know we want to be flying on planes and airlines that offer good seat pitch. Which airlines are these? To answer this, go a website by Skytrax. Skytrax is an organization that rates airlines on various issues, leg room being one of them. Their site provides a handy chart for comparing all of the major airlines—domestic and international—on the basis of seat pitch. You will find that regular economy ranges from a measly 28 or 29” for certain charter airlines to a generous 34” on airlines such as American, South African, Thai, and a few others. Most airlines fall in the 30-32” range. Again, note that seat pitch will vary dramatically from one type of aircraft to another; and even within the same plane there will be differences. (Often the first 10 or so rows in economy, which are reserved for elite passengers, have better leg room. You may request any seat that remains available at check-in.) Careful research is necessary if you want to pick the best seat. For more precise information, go back to SeatGuru.com or have one of our agents investigate for you.

Where does Air Canada and WestJet fit in? For Air Canada, it ranges from a scary 31” on many of its narrow, regional jets to a decent 34” on some rows of its AirBus330-300s and Boeing767-300s. WestJet used to offer only about 30 to 32” of leg room, but their new 737-800 series jets offer 34”. So, Canada’s two major airlines compare very favourably to their U.S. competitors.

Our agents are acutely aware of how important leg room and a good seat are to our customers; and they are trained to do everything possible to make your flight as comfortable as possible. In our next newsletter, we will look at what are some of the tricks for getting the good seats. Our agents know them all; now we will share some of our secrets with you.

Topaz Study Finds Agents Offer Best Value


In the spring of 2005, Topaz International conducted its fifth study in a row to find that corporate travel agents get better airfare deals than the Internet. The study found that on average, agencies found fares that were $80 less than those booked on the Internet. Agents were able to secure a lower fare 93.5% of the time. "With millions of fares in the market and thousands of changes daily, travel agents use sophisticated search tools and skills to find the perfect fare--and it is checked continuously for potential fare, seat or routing improvements right up to the day of departure," said Malcom Read, president of a large travel agency chain. Bradley Seitz, president and CEO of Topaz, said that even though large corporations are better able to negotiate the corporate airline discounts, "even for the smaller corporations, agency fares continue to be less expensive on average."

This isn’t a surprise to our clients, of course, who use our travel services for any number of reasons, such as efficiency, safety, reliability, and convenience; but, finding the best price is certainly important to everyone. Travel agents have a vast arsenal of resources and experience to tap when they look for best fares. According to The Travel Insider, an Internet newsletter on travel, “to truly find the very best possible fare, it is necessary to do the same things that a travel agent would do. There are fourteen different things to consider when finding the 'lowest fare'. A travel agent can, should, and, depending on the preferences of their client, usually does evaluate all of these things in only a few short minutes.”

For more information on the Topaz study, click here.

Monday, May 2, 2005

AUTOMATIC INSURANCE



For you “road warriors” who spend a lot of time out of town, did you know that you can buy hospital/medical insurance coverage that will automatically protect you no matter how often you travel? What’s more, you can expand the policy to cover your entire family.* Whether you are travelling on business, doing a bit of cross-border shopping, or headed out on a vacation, our travel insurance’s Annual Medical plan will provide constant and automatic protection.

When a travel emergency occurs, many of us assume that we will be covered by BC Med, credit cards, or a company group plan. But there are some major gaps in these plans. For example, typically, BC Med and employee benefit plans provide limited payments for emergency medical expenses abroad. Furthermore, BC Med and many other extended plans do not:

• Pay up front
• Cover a number of important risks, like emergency travel back to Canada
• Offer easy-to-reach, real time emergency assistance 24/7

We recommend you never leave the province without adequate hospital/medical insurance coverage; and if you have a group plan or extra credit card coverage, check with these companies to find out what major “loop-holes” they have. You will probably be surprised.

To add in an extra layer of safety, consider buying one of our multi-trip annual plans. You’ll never again worry about crossing the border forgetting to purchase insurance. Your options are either a standard annual medical plan or an all-inclusive annual package, which covers, in addition to emergency medical, cancellation and interruption, baggage, flight, and travel accident insurance. Either way, these plans make travel simpler, safer, and cheaper than the pay-as-you-go approach. Call your agent for a quote on the plan that is best for you.

*Includes spouse and/or unmarried dependent children under 21 years of age, or under 26 years of age if full-time student or mentally or physically handicapped and over 20 years old.

MOTORCYCLE DIARIES

In her younger days, Shirley Jackman, one of The Travel Group’s owners, travelled all over Europe with her boyfriend on a motorcycle. Twenty-two years later, we thought it would be interesting to revisit the experience. Here is our interview:



TTG: When did you & Bob go on this adventure?
SHIRLEY: 4 months, June to September, 1983. An eternity ago.

TTG: Why did you pick Europe and what was unusual about the way you chose to see it?
SHIRLEY: We had never been to Europe and it was the "in" thing to do. Wardair and CP Air had charters to London and Frankfurt and they were offering an incredible deal to ship a motorcycle across the pond. Bob had an 1100cc Honda Gold Wing motorcycle at the time, so he thought it was the perfect way to get around. The cost to ship the motorcycle was $250.00 return, cheaper than the cost of one Eurail pass!

TTG: What was the stupidest thing either of you did?
SHIRLEY: Well, the dumbest thing I did was misread the map, I thought the rivers were roads and to this day Bob has not let me forget that. I have since become a much better navigator. The dumbest thing Bob did was lose his travellers checks. Fortunately, there was an American Express office in the town and he was able to make a claim and receive a full reimbursement.

TTG: What are some things that have changed from the 80's in terms of travelling around Europe?
SHIRLEY: Certainly security is a big issue now, and it has become so expensive to travel in Europe. In 1983 the southern countries, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece were very inexpensive and you got great value for your money.

TTG: So, did you stay in hostels?
SHIRLEY: We had every intention of using hostels. We bought a Hostel card and took the proper sleeping gear with us, etc. At our first hostel stop we discovered that we could not stay together as they had separate dormitories for men and women. Consequently we never did stay in a hostel.

TTG: Do you have a language/communication story?
SHIRLEY: A lot of people think that if you speak in a loud voice or move your hands as if you are playing charades, they would understand you better. When looking for a place to stay I would go ahead and check out the rooms to make sure they were okay and then our next concern was where to park the motorcyle. Early in the trip I checked into a small hotel in Evora, Portugal. When Bob came into the hotel he started to move his arms and body as if he was driving the motorcyle. While he was doing this his voice got increasing louder and he kept repeating the words "grande moto, park eh, grande moto". The check-in agent and I looked at each other and started laughing as he replied in perfect English, "You can park around the corner in front of the Police Station, my brother works there and he will keep an eye on the motorcycle." We all had a great laugh over that one.

TTG: What surprised you about Europeans?
SHIRLEY: A few things. Everywhere we went they assumed we were Americans and they thought we were rich because of the type of bike we rode. At that time, the Europeans were driving 250hp Suzuki type bikes. Nobody had the large touring bike except for tourists like us. Also, when we were in Spain they warned us about the Italians, the Italians warned us about the Greeks and so on, yet we never had a single problem with theft or vandalism.

TTG: Any motorcycle stories?
SHIRLEY: Well, first of all we never had a single problem with the bike: it never broke down or ran out of gas or anything like that. But, everywhere we went we drew a crowd as they were not used to seeing that type of bike. They always wanted to know two things, how big the motor was and how much money it cost. What really surprised me was how respectful they were, they would never sit on the bike or touch our things. They took pictures and admired it from a distance. One hotel we stayed in were so worried that someone would steal the bike that they made us park it in the lobby at night so they could keep an eye on it. We have pictures to back up that story.

TTG: How about a foreign food story?
SHIRLEY: One morning in Quateira, Portugal we were craving some good home-style bacon and eggs for breakfast. We spotted a sign that said English spoken so we decided to give it a try. As it happened, the family that owned the restaurant were from 100 Mile House (BC)! We had a wonderful breakfast and some great conversation. We had quite a time adjusting to the late meal times in Southern Europe. Quite often we ended up sitting on the sidewalk outside the restaurant waiting for it to open. We would be too tired and too hungry to do anything else, but it was always worth the wait.

TTG: Would you two ever do anything like this again?
SHIRLEY: Yes, I would definitely travel around Europe again, but a Mercedes is more my style now. I'm a lot older, maybe a little wiser, and a tad spoiled!

TTG: How did this trip change your life?
SHIRLEY: I can't say it changed my life but it certainly influenced me. It was an incredible experience to see all the historical places that I had only read about in school or seen on TV. I met so many wonderful people and discovered so many different cultures. To this day I still think about and talk about those experiences.

In spite of fond memories bumming around Europe, Shirley’s online bio states that her favourite place is “onboard a cruise ship, anywhere.” Did she mention she was spoiled?

AGE AND EXPERIENCE

None of us want to brag about our age, especially those who can remember things like Ed Sullivan, the telex machine, or “Trudeaumania”. But, when you have a nice chunk of experience in the travel industry, maybe that is something worth bragging about. One of the things that distinguishes The Travel Group from most agencies is our consultants’ wealth of experience—297 years of it! In fact, most of our agents have been in the business of travel consulting for more than 10 years. Our agency boasts an average 16 years of experience per agent.


Just for fun, we recently polled our agents, asking them how many years they have been in the travel business. Here’s what we found:

Annie – 25
Corene – 7
David – 25
Denese – 6
Grace – 18
Jason – 16
Jay – 3
Linda – 7
Lindy – 5
Marie – 31
Martha – 31
Maureen – 9
Michele – 29
Regine – 17
Tara – 2
Shirley – 24
Mickey – 31
Teresa – 11


So, when you come up with a seemingly insolvable problem, there is a good chance that one of our people has been there before and knows what to do. When a hotel that you are viewing on the Internet looks good, but so temptingly cheap, an experienced agent will know that this is worth investigating more carefully. Or when you are wondering if a particular airfare is a good deal or not, our people will know. In travel, there are so many risks and so many occasions where you can be tricked into spending too much money or booking the wrong thing, it is a great idea to have an agent with savvy and experience.

Thursday, March 24, 2005

ROUND THE WORLD IN 130 DAYS

He brings new meaning to the phrase, “Road Warrior.” A senior sales position with a large, successful software firm in Burnaby for many years, our client Buzz Hemphill flew to all sorts of crazy spots in Canada and the U.S. So, when he decided to take a sabbatical, what did our road warrior decide to do? Fly round the world, of course—attempting to visit every country and continent you could possibly squeeze into STAR ALLIANCE’s special round-the-world airfare. Buzz ended up flying to 27 cities in 130 days, and he covered a lot more territory by boat, train, car, etc.

You can read more about Buzz’s adventures in his entertaining blog, www.buzzwords.ca , but we thought it would be fun to interview him now that he’s back.

TTG: So, most important question first, Buzz. What country has the best beer?

Buzz: This is an excellent question and I can tell you I took my investigation very seriously. By “serious” I mean I drank a lot of beer! The hands-down winner is Ireland. It is hard to beat Guinness, Kilkenny, Murphy’s, Smithwicks, and many, many more. Mmmmm, beer.

TTG: Did you get mugged, drugged, or hugged (inappropriately) on your trip?

Buzz: When you go on a trip, you just accept that a few nasty things are going to happen. I am not sure if it was my paranoia or “spider-senses” but nothing too horrific happened to me.

That being said, scams are the same everywhere. I think I saw this one in “Paper Moon” (starring the young Tatum O'Neill in her Oscar-winning performance): I was walking along when this guy started walking beside me. He was wearing a fancy suit, very clean and walking very straight. It was a little too perfect. Then from behind someone rushes quickly between us bumping us both. I of course throw my hands to my pockets immediately as I do anytime I am bumped but nothing was missing. Suddenly two 1000 ruble bills drop to the street at our feet. These bills were also too perfect - like they just came out of the cash machine; these were definitely not mine. The well-dressed man started his spiel. "Why, what do we have here?" I took off. Buzz rule: anytime you don't know what is going on; get the heck out of there.

TTG: Sage advice, Buzz. You say in your blog that South Africa is a country you’d definitely want to visit again. Why is that?

Buzz: Cape Town is a stunning place. If I didn’t live in Vancouver I would have serious city envy. The people were amazing everywhere I went in South Africa (please note that I kept a safe distance from Johannesburg at all times). There was so much to do there and I only scratched the surface: tour of the Cape, oggle the penguins, make fun of the ostriches for being big and dumb, petting cheetahs, spelunking, great beaches and of course safari. I could easily spend another month there.

TTG: I remember one of your goals was to check out Oktoberfest in Munich. How did that go?

Buzz: A huge success as measured by beer consumption, injuries, dead brain cells and giant pretzels. If you are a wallflower, you probably wouldn’t have a great time there. However, if you are a bit extroverted this is the place for you. It is exactly what you want it to be: an obstacle course of dancing Germans in wacky get-ups swinging insanely large beer steins at your head singing/yelling in some incomprehensible language (German) while hypnotic “oompah” music dulls your senses ( think it was the music that was dulling my senses!)

TTG: What’s the best airline you’ve ever flown?

Buzz: Singapore airlines certainly knows how to treat you. The attitudes, food and amenities were all top notch. This could be a result of the staff being such huge fans of Buzz but they seemed to treat everyone this way. Who am I kidding? I am sure it was because they were fans of Buzz.

TTG: Any nifty hotels you want to mention?

Buzz: The Imperial in New Delhi was colonial opulence at its best. This should be the mould for all five star hotels. Every luxury you could imagine was at hand. The staff doted on me to such a degree that I began speaking with an affected British accent and quoted conversations I had with “the Raj”.

TTG: Do you have any language barrier stories?

Buzz: Using a Greek payphone proved pretty challenging. My problems began when I realized they don’t take coin, cash, or credit cards; you have to have a pre-paid card. Oops. I managed to convince a Hungarian, who spoke no English or Greek, at the phone next to me to give me his phone card. I like to think I am a smart guy, but I couldn’t figure out how to make this crazy phone and card work. I got the Hungarian to make the call for me, but he had no better luck

New strategy required. I flagged down a cab driver, because they always have cell phones. Of course, he is also not so good with “The English”. Through a serious of grunts, points, mime, and a moving rendition of dance of the bumblebee, I managed to communicate my dilemma. He made the call to the agent. After only another 45 minutes of miscommunication and confusion, I figured out where I had to go.

UN-TANGOING AIR CANADA AIRFARES

What do the words tango, fun, latitude, and freedom have in common? Are they words from a Brittany Spears song? Well, no. They are the names Air Canada dreamt up for its new, “simplified” fares. And to give Air Canada their due, they have made things somewhat better for us all by dispensing with the old, senseless “stay-over-a-Saturday-night” roundtrip airfares. In their place, Air Canada now sells exclusively one-way airfares in its North America market. Thanks to them, the U.S. airlines are grudgingly following suit, at least on many of their trans-border fares.



These new “simplified” one-way fares are not without their complications, however. For starters, all the silly names (mentioned above) are hard to keep track. So confusing were they, apparently, that Air Canada has just “simplified” things a bit more (effective April 1), by renaming Fun fares as “Tango Plus” and renaming “Freedom” fares as “Latitude Plus.” In addition to the semantic confusion, there are some important new issues to be aware of.

Here is a summary of the new one-way airfares that Air Canada now sells for travel in Canada and trans-border. The first two are their premium fares—“Latitude” and “Latitude Plus (formerly “Freedom.”) Both offer free changes and are fully refundable. “Latitude Plus” fares are the most expensive economy brand. They come with some perks, including access to the Maple Leaf lounges (in Canada only), executive class check-in, and 25% bonus status miles (ie. what you need to earn Prestige, Elite, and Super Elite status). “Latitude” fares also offer considerable flexibility, but no perks. Both fares qualify for upgrades if you have upgrade certificates.

The second group of airfares are the non-refundable ones. They have restrictions and penalties. The higher-priced of the two is called “Tango Plus” (formerly “Fun”). Changes are cheap at $30, but this is misleading. First of all, because these are classified as one-way fares, the change fee applies to each part of your trip. For example, if you want to change a roundtrip ticket completely, you will wind up paying double—ie. $60 ($30 per direction). On top of this, the rules state that you have to pay any fare difference when changing to a new flight. This means that you will often be paying for a higher airfare, since prices climb the closer you get to the departure date. Generally, the more last-minute the change is, the higher the cost. This can easily add up to hundreds of dollars. So much for the $30 change fee! Like the two “Latitude” fares, these qualify for upgrades, but only if you are Elite or Super Elite and have certificates.

Finally, we come to the most controversial of Air Canada’s new airfares—the “Tango” fares. Named after the airline’s big embarrassment, Tango Airlines, which quietly disappeared after a couple of lackluster years, this airfare is designed to compete with WestJet, CanJet, Skyservice, and other low-cost airlines in Canada and trans-border. It is Air Canada’s cheapest line of airfares. So, what’s the problem? For starters, it offers no status miles. For the business traveller, this is a big deal. One of the perks business travellers enjoy is high tier status with their favourite airline. This entitles them to upgrades, preferred seat selection, priority waitlists on sold-out flights, and VIP treatment. When a frequent traveller learns that he/she is not going to earn status miles on these cheap fares, the conversation can get pretty “intense.”

Another irritant is that “Tango” fares only earn 50% “flown” miles on Aeroplan. And, finally, unless you pay $15 per direction (ie. $30 roundtrip) extra there’s no advance seat selection! Apparently, Air Canada’s rationale for this is that it is the same treatment you would get (or rather, not get) if you flew WestJet or one of the other low-cost airlines. Air Canada claims to be just offering a comparable product. This is not technically correct. WestJet, for instance, offers Air Miles in most cases. And some of the discount airlines do offer free advance seat selection. Furthermore, although WestJet does not offer advance seat assignment, they also don’t oversell their flights. Provided you get to the airport at a reasonable time before departure, you’re likely to be able to get a decent seat. This is not necessarily true with Air Canada, on the other hand. They do over-sell their flights, and since they offer advance seat selection on all of the other airfares, guess what seats are left for the Tango passenger? The dreaded middle seat. For this reason, and the danger of being “bumped” from an oversold flight, we strongly recommend you pay the extra $15 per direction for seat assignment when you buy a Tango ticket.

So, are these new fares a good thing or bad? Over all, I think they are a great improvement over the old style “stay-over-a-Saturday-night” roundtrip fares. They recognize the reality of the new world populated by low-cost, “point-to-point” carriers like WestJet, SouthWest, and JetBlue. For business travellers, who have never been happy with the idea of spending their weekends away from home just to get a reasonable airfare, these new fares are a fantastic development. Generally, we have found that the cost to make changes is lower now than in the old days. So, in spite of some concerns, especially about the Tango fares, Air Canada’s new brands of airfares are a good development. For more on Air Canada’s new “simplified” airfares, go to:
Air Canada Simplified

MOTORCYCLE DIARIES

In her younger days, Shirley Jackman, one of The Travel Group’s owners, travelled all over Europe with her boyfriend on a motorcycle. Twenty-two years later, we thought it would be interesting to revisit the experience. Here is our interview:

TTG: When did you & Bob go on this adventure?
SHIRLEY: 4 months, June to September, 1983. An eternity ago.

TTG: Why did you pick Europe and what was unusual about the way you chose to see it?
SHIRLEY: We had never been to Europe and it was the "in" thing to do. Wardair and CP Air had charters to London and Frankfurt and they were offering an incredible deal to ship a motorcycle across the pond. Bob had an 1100cc Honda Gold Wing motorcycle at the time, so he thought it was the perfect way to get around. The cost to ship the motorcycle was $250.00 return, cheaper than the cost of one Eurail pass!

TTG: What was the stupidest thing either of you did?
SHIRLEY: Well, the dumbest thing I did was misread the map, I thought the rivers were roads and to this day Bob has not let me forget that. I have since become a much better navigator. The dumbest thing Bob did was lose his travellers checks. Fortunately, there was an American Express office in the town and he was able to make a claim and receive a full reimbursement.

TTG: What are some things that have changed from the 80's in terms of travelling around Europe?
SHIRLEY: Certainly security is a big issue now, and it has become so expensive to travel in Europe. In 1983 the southern countries, Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece were very inexpensive and you got great value for your money.

TTG: So, did you stay in hostels?
SHIRLEY: We had every intention of using hostels. We bought a Hostel card and took the proper sleeping gear with us, etc. At our first hostel stop we discovered that we could not stay together as they had separate dormitories for men and women. Consequently we never did stay in a hostel.

TTG: Do you have a language/communication story?
SHIRLEY: A lot of people think that if you speak in a loud voice or move your hands as if you are playing charades, they would understand you better. When looking for a place to stay I would go ahead and check out the rooms to make sure they were okay and then our next concern was where to park the motorcyle. Early in the trip I checked into a small hotel in Evora, Portugal. When Bob came into the hotel he started to move his arms and body as if he was driving the motorcyle. While he was doing this his voice got increasing louder and he kept repeating the words "grande moto, park eh, grande moto". The check-in agent and I looked at each other and started laughing as he replied in perfect English, "You can park around the corner in front of the Police Station, my brother works there and he will keep an eye on the motorcycle." We all had a great laugh over that one.

TTG: What surprised you about Europeans?
SHIRLEY: A few things. Everywhere we went they assumed we were Americans and they thought we were rich because of the type of bike we rode. At that time, the Europeans were driving 250hp Suzuki type bikes. Nobody had the large touring bike except for tourists like us. Also, when we were in Spain they warned us about the Italians, the Italians warned us about the Greeks and so on, yet we never had a single problem with theft or vandalism.

TTG: Any motorcycle stories?
SHIRLEY: Well, first of all we never had a single problem with the bike: it never broke down or ran out of gas or anything like that. But, everywhere we went we drew a crowd as they were not used to seeing that type of bike. They always wanted to know two things, how big the motor was and how much money it cost. What really surprised me was how respectful they were, they would never sit on the bike or touch our things. They took pictures and admired it from a distance. One hotel we stayed in were so worried that someone would steal the bike that they made us park it in the lobby at night so they could keep an eye on it. We have pictures to back up that story.

TTG: How about a foreign food story?
SHIRLEY: One morning in Quateira, Portugal we were craving some good home-style bacon and eggs for breakfast. We spotted a sign that said English spoken so we decided to give it a try. As it happened, the family that owned the restaurant were from 100 Mile House (BC)! We had a wonderful breakfast and some great conversation. We had quite a time adjusting to the late meal times in Southern Europe. Quite often we ended up sitting on the sidewalk outside the restaurant waiting for it to open. We would be too tired and too hungry to do anything else, but it was always worth the wait.

TTG: Would you two ever do anything like this again?
SHIRLEY: Yes, I would definitely travel around Europe again, but a Mercedes is more my style now. I'm a lot older, maybe a little wiser, and a tad spoiled!

TTG: How did this trip change your life?
SHIRLEY: I can't say it changed my life but it certainly influenced me. It was an incredible experience to see all the historical places that I had only read about in school or seen on TV. I met so many wonderful people and discovered so many different cultures. To this day I still think about and talk about those experiences.

In spite of fond memories bumming around Europe, Shirley’s online bio states that her favourite place is “onboard a cruise ship, anywhere.” Did she mention she was spoiled?

WHILE THE CAT'S AWAY



When your house is empty while you are away on vacation or business trip, who keeps an eye on things for you? If you’re like me, you try to enlist a neighbour or friend to drop by to collect the mail and make sure nothing has blown up; but when you plan to be away for longer than, say, a week, you probably feel reluctant to impose on other people. Our agency now has an exclusive arrangement with a company that will check on your home for you while you are away. Phoenix Home & Property Care will do everything your neighbours would, and a whole lot more.*

“Just about the only thing we won’t do,” says owner Peter Rosen, “is look after pets”. (They will drop off and pick up pets from boarding facilities to synchronize with your departure and arrival home, however.)

In addition to a wide array of standard services,* they will do things like water indoor plants, forward mail, drop off and pick up dry cleaning, to name a few. They will arrange for emergency services in the event of broken windows, burst pipes, hot water tank breakdown, and other minor disasters. They will even supervise other contracted services such as gardening, window-cleaning, maid services, etc.

One unique service Phoenix offers is to take a complete set of digital photos of your home before departure. Should a burglary or other damage occur, they will take photos of the effected areas for insurance purposes.

“Our mission at Phoenix Home & Property Care is to give our clients complete peace-of-mind while they enjoy a vacation or business trip away from their Vancouver or Richmond home,” says Rosen in his web site, www.phoenixpropertycare.com. Contact Peter at 604-263-2161 or homecare@phoenixpropertycare.com, and make sure you mention The Travel Group referred you.


*Standard Inspections Services:

Check all windows and doors
Check appliances for proper operation
Check and flush toilets
Check water heater for leaks
Check smoke detectors
Check electrical panel box and breakers
Check security system for proper operation
Run water faucets and check for leaks
Check and replace indoor and outdoor light bulbs as required
Remove any direct mail and community newspapers from property
Open and shut curtains and blinds
Liaise with customers via email or fax if required
Serve as a security company contact

AIRLINE SPECIAL MEALS

If you ever want to liven up a conversation, start talking about airline food. Everyone has a bad-food story to tell. As tempting as it would be to write about this subject, we’re going to deal with something a bit less controversial, but more important—airline “special meals.”


Vegetarian Meal on Qantas - Economy Class

First of all, special meals must be ordered at least 24 hours in advance, no last minute decisions permitted. And, you can’t just order anything you want as if you were in a restaurant. (I’ve had people ask for fish & chips or a cheese burger!) Special meals are standardized and are based on dietary, health, or religious restrictions. On the other hand, no one is going to cross-examine you to make sure you are Muslim if you order a Muslim meal or check out how fat you are if you request a low-fat meal. You have every right to order these meals; just don’t expect them to be “made to order.”

A typical large airline offers about 25 special meal types, ranging from Asian vegetarian to—believe it or not—bland meal. (That implies they offer something other than bland!) There are meals catering to religious restrictions, such as Kosher or Hindu. And there are dietary choices, such as low-fat, low-purine (ie. low caffeine), and gluten-free. There can be up to seven varieties of vegetarian meals. Note, however, that not all airlines and not all flights will offer anything close to 25 special meals. Small regional airlines such as WestJet offer nothing except peanuts (although often you can buy food on board). And many of the small airlines that do offer food will have few or no special meals. Even on the larger airlines, certain kinds of meals, such as Hindu or Asian vegetarian, are only offered on international flights, and sometimes only on specific routes. Your travel agent will verify if your choice has been confirmed or rejected, so that you will have a chance to choose an alternative meal if necessary.

Okay, so let’s say you’re not a vegan or Muslim or diabetic, but you just want to avoid the typically abysmal food served on planes. What should you order? If it’s offered, try ordering seafood or fruit plate. Failing that, low-fat is a good bet—it will at least eliminate the greasier offerings. Or, you might want to experiment with some of those more exotic meals such as Asian Vegetarian or Oriental meals if you are taking an international flight.

So does this mean we’ve found a loophole in the airline food racket? Probably not. Even though most major airlines seem to offer a large number of special meals, they cheat a bit. Typically, the vegetarian meal is the same as vegan, high fiber, non-lactose, low-fat, low calorie, and diabetic meals, among others. Usually, there really aren’t that many choices. Also, just because the meal is “special,” don’t assume it will be tastier than standard fare. Sometimes it is, but it could be worse—something I have learned in my food-ordering experiments. Keep in mind that airline food is prepared about 8 hours in advance. How good could it be?

With these warnings, if you still feel adventurous, here are some tips*: · Low-cholesterol is not the same as low-fat. The low-cholesterol meal may include some fat. Sometimes the vegetarian meal has less fat than the low-fat meal. On the other hand, some airlines will treat low-fat and low-cholesterol as the same.· Your definition of “low-fat” may not be the same as the airlines’. Eg. You might get chicken and margarine instead of beef and butter—-not necessarily what you had in mind.· The Hindu meal is just a non-beef meal; if you want Indian vegetarian meals, make sure you request Hindu vegetarian.· If you want a vegetarian meal be sure to specify whether it is “strict vegetarian” (ie. vegan) or lacto-ovo vegetarian (which includes dairy products and eggs. Also, be prepared for unsatisfactory offerings, especially from some foreign carriers, where vegetarian might mean a meat dish with the meat removed or a dish made up of nothing but vegetables.· If you are gluten-intolerant, or have an allergy to peanuts, you might not want to take chances. I have had a client hospitalized on more than one occasion, for example, when she ate a supposedly gluten-free meal. Better to pack your own food!· Even if the food is what it is labeled to be, there is also the danger that it just doesn’t show up (or someone else accidentally claims it). Again, if the meal is important for health or religious reasons, consider packing your own. Ordering a special meal could prevent you from being upgraded. Airlines often by-pass passengers with special meals ordered when looking for someone to upgrade on an over-sold flight. They do not want business class passengers seeing economy meals (ie. the special meal that had been pre-ordered) served up front. It’s bad P.R.

For your reference and amusement, below is a list—copied directly from our reservations computer—of the most common special meals available on the major airlines, complete with their silly airline codes:

** MEAL CODES **
AVML - ASIAN VEGETARIAN
BBML - BABY MEAL
BLML - BLAND MEAL (NOT RECOGNIZED BY UA)
CHML - CHILD MEAL
DBML - DIABETIC MEAL
FPML - FRUIT PLATE
GFML - GLUTEN FREE (NOT RECOGINZED BY UA)
HFML - HIGH FIBRE
HNML - HINDU MEAL
IVML - INDIAN VEGETARIAN (UNITED AIRLINES ONLY)
KSML - KOSHER MEAL
LCML - LOW CALORIE MEAL
LFML - LOW FAT/LOW CHOLESTEROL
LPML - LOW PROTEIN
LSML - LOW SODIUM
MOML - MOSLEM MEAL
NLML - NON-LACTOSE (NOT RECOGNIZED BY UA)
ORML - ORIENTAL (ASIAN)
PRML - LOW PURINE (LOW CAFEINE)
RVML - RAW VEGETARIAN
SFML - SEAFOOD
SPML - SPECIAL MEAL (NEED FREEFORM)
VGML - VEGETARIAN
VLML - VEGETARIAN LACTO-OVO

Now that you know the story, the next time you book a flight consider jazzing things up a bit and try out a special meal. Or, alternatively, pack something interesting of your own, just to make your neighbouring passengers jealous.

*From FAQ: Air Travelers’ Handbook. For more tips on special meals, see
Making your In-flight Meals Special,” “Low-Carb Friendly Meals,” and a web site exclusively devoted to the subject, “AirlineMeals.net.”

TRAVEL TIPS BY THE EXPERTS

No question about it: travel agents get around. Most of us joined this crazy business because we wanted an opportunity to travel—lots and cheaply. So, who better than travel agents to offer some sound and useful travel tips? Here, stolen directly from our web site’s “About Us” page is the accumulated wisdom of our staff and agents. For a bit about any of our agents, just click on their name.

Keep track of your photos by pre-labeling your film canisters. This will save the cost and aggravation of having 72 pictures of an iguana eating a banana. Also: read historical novels about the places you are going to visit. Annie.

Always carry basic picnic essentials. Cathy.

Always take an small, empty, foldable bag with you in your suitcase to carry home all your purchases - even if you don't think you'll do any shopping. You just never know what treasures you'll find! Corene.

A friend of mine went backpacking in Europe with a nuclear symbol patch sewn to his pack. He was also carrying an alarm clock that beeped. When checking into the Paris airport, the alarm clock went off and because of the nuclear symbol Paris police ripped his pack apart looking for a bomb. Moral of the story, don't backpack with a nuclear symbol sewn to your pack. Denese.

Unless you're headed to a beach where weather does matter, always travel in off-season. That way you avoid the line-ups, the tacky-touristy atmosphere, and inflated prices. Ignore all restaurant guides printed for tourists (usually found in your hotel room), as they are just paid advertisements. Ask store clerks and other locals for restaurant recommendations. They will usually lead you in the right direction. David.

Take half the clothes and twice the money! Grace.

Always pack a spare jar of Vegemite in case you find yourself in an uncivilized country! Jason.

Travel with an open mind, a positive attitude, and respect for other cultures. Jay.

If you are in a non-English speaking country, learn some basic words first before you go and the rest takes care of itself. Otherwise, trying to find the public washroom in a strange country can be challenging! Linda.

Always photocopy your passport and important documents before you leave home. Leave a copy at home, and take a copy with you in case of loss. Laura.

Don't use the public toilets in Europe. There is something about having to pay to use the facilities that just goes against my grain -- especially when they are so dirty. I just went into the pubs and asked to use the toilet. They were clean and free. Not once was I refused. Lindy.

Carry at least $20.00 in US dollar bills for tips; and photocopy your passport. Margaret.

Leave your valuables at home; just who do you think you're impressing anyway! Marie.

Always expect the unexpected. Be determined to have fun, no matter what. Martha.

If you ever get one of those rooms in the tropics that only activate the air-conditioning when the key card is placed in a special slot, try inserting an unimportant plastic card (eg. phone card) from your wallet. That way, the air-conditioning stays on when you leave, and you don't have to return to a sweltering room. Maureen.

All work and no play makes you boring: take a vacation! Michele.

When travelling the back roads of the Lone Star State at night beware. The big gray rock-like impediments in the middle of the road are really slow moving turtles, and the row of armadillos on either side of the road are waiting until they can see your headlights before they start their nocturnal games of "red rover". If you should see a skunk scuttling across the road, avoid it at all cost: your sense of smell may never recover from a close encounter with one of those little guys!" Mickey.

Always take a change of clothes in your carry-on, just in case your bags wind up in Timbuktu. Bring lots of film. Regine.

Take twice as much film as you think you need (the cost of film abroad can be exorbitant!) If you plan to snorkel or scuba dive, bring your own underwater camera.
Shirley.

When you pack, leave room for the shopping you bring home. (“I had to buy a duffel bag in London to fit all of my purchases.”) Tara.

Pack small items inside your shoes for extra space. Roll up your clothes. If you have to fold items, do it where they will naturally crease, like the elbows, knees, etc. Bring small gifts to leave for the housekeeping staff. Always buy travel insurance. Teresa.


A few extra quotes from friends of ours:

The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page. ~St. Augustine

I love to travel, But hate to arrive. ~Albert Einstein

Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness. ~Mark Twain

The traveler is active; he goes strenuously in search of people, of adventure, of experience. The tourist is passive; he expects interesting things to happen to him. He goes "sight-seeing." ~Daniel J. Boorstin

Travelers never think that they are the foreigners. ~Mason Cooley

I travel a lot; I hate having my life disrupted by routine. ~Caskie Stinnett

Like all great travellers, I have seen more than I remember, and remember more than I have seen. ~Benjamin Disraeli

Venice is like eating an entire box of chocolate liqueurs in one go. ~Truman Capote


The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco. ~Mark Twain

Vacation used to be a luxury. In today’s world, it has become a necessity. ~Anonymous.

We hit the sunny beaches where we occupy ourselves keeping the sun off our skin, the saltwater off our bodies, and the sand out of our belongings. ~Erma Bombeck

And, the last word on the subject goes to a nice commercial web site, www.freetraveltips.com, which is nicely organized just like any good traveller should be and has truly useful recommendations.

Wednesday, January 19, 2005

MARATHON FLYING

So you think you’re a “road warrior?” How does a 19 hour flight sound? That is the time for the new longest commercial flight in the world—Singapore Airlines’ Singapore to New York non-stop service.



Using a specially configured A340-500 jet which was built to seat 313, Singapore’s version carries only 181 passengers. They have eliminated first class, which uses seats that are too bulky and heavy (and are seeing lower demand these days anyway), created a more deluxe version of business class (with fully lie-flat sleeper beds and an advanced entertainment system offering 400 audio/video options, added an “Executive Economy” class (with spacious leg room and a 2-3-2 layout), and expanded legroom in the regular economy cabin. The result is a very comfortable, uncrowded, and (most important to the airline) light plane.



How does Singapore’s crew pull off such a long flight? Sleep is, of course, the most important issue. Each A340-500 operates with two full flight crews. All four pilots occupy the flight deck during takeoff and landing, then one captain and first officer remain in the cockpit while the other two retire to specially equipped bunks—one forward and one aft, below decks. They rest for 3 hours, then return to the cockpit to relieve the other crew. Later, both crews have a second rest break, lasting about 5 hours. The captain and first officer who are the “command crew” on the outbound leg serve as the backup crew on the return sector. Flight attendants are scheduled between 4 and 6 hours’ rest in the 8 bunks below the passenger deck. Crews do not work for 3 to 4 days before and after an ultra-long-haul trip. There is a two- or three-day layover in L.A. or New York.



Leading up to the launch of this new service, Singapore Airlines brought in experts from around the world to teach them about fatigue management, circadian rhythms, and rest patterns. They showed them how to use diet, sleep, and exercise to prepare for the flights, and how to combat boredom while on duty. This includes superbly designed crew beds and an in-flight entertainment system to help them relax.



So, what is it like to be a passenger on the world’s longest flight? After flying the inaugural flight, one passenger reported, “I drank, I ate dinner, I took a sleeping pill and slept for seven hours—and when I awoke, we still had nine hours left in the flight!”



Source: Airways, Nov. 2004

WHAT DO YOU WANT?

What does the business traveler want from a travel agent? Visionistics, a Vancouver consulting firm surveyed 1000 travel agency customers to find out. “The top three reasons…clients bought from a travel agent are that they liked the person they spoke to, they trusted the person they spoke to, and were offered alternatives they hadn’t thought of.” This survey related specifically to leisure clients, but I think the same three factors apply to corporate travel.



Business travelers definitely value a close, long-standing relationship with their agent. (The mega-agencies that force their clients to deal with a “team” of rotating agents forget this.)



Secondly, business travelers need to have a high level of trust in their agent. Just as you would not want that all-important vacation blown by bad advice or carelessness, the businessperson wants the assurance that they will make that appointment on time, the meeting room will be booked properly, and all of the details of the trip will fall into place neatly and as expected. Similarly, the owner/manager needs to trust that the travel agency will always be looking after his/her interests.



Finally, business travelers want choices—both to save money and to find improvements in their schedules. Just because, say, United Airlines is the traveler’s preferred airline, it doesn’t mean they don’t want to hear about a faster, more direct route on Northwest. On the other hand, the busy traveler usually is not looking to be bombarded with information the way it is often dished out on the Internet. This is where relationships, trust, and choice coalesce. A good travel agent who knows the client well, a client who trusts the agent’s judgment, and skill make a winning combination.



What Do We Think?



We polled our own agents to see what they think makes a good corporate travel agent. Here are some of their answers:


“A good agent has experience with airline routings and can pinpoint the best hotels closest to the client’s destination, all with the view of saving the customer money.”



“A good corporate agent understands loyalty and frequent-flyer programs. He knows how important these are to clients, and can help them maximize points earnings, book free trips, and secure frequent-flyer upgrades.”



“Good agents maintain excellent working relationships with all important hotel chains, car rental agencies, and airlines; so when a client needs help, the agent is able to work effectively as his customer’s advocate.”



“A good agent understands complex airfares, is able to find alternative airports and routes, is aware of small regional airlines, uses the web and many other resources, and has enough experience to find creative ways to save the client both time and money.”



Conclusion:



Interestingly, customers seem to value the “soft” issues, such as trust and choice, while their agents think the technical issues are most important. Let’s leave the last word on the subject with you. Send us your comments about what makes a good corporate travel agent, or why you like your favourite agent. Simply click here and send.





OUR POINTS EXPERT

Long ago we realized that if we were to be a successful travel agency, we’d have to pay attention to what our clients really want from us. One need that stands out is our clients’ wish for someone to help them with their points bookings. Most travel agencies seem to just wish these pesky frequent-flyer programs would go away; but The Travel Group offers a specialist in mileage plans. Our expert is Tara. Our clients love Tara because she is knowledgeable, thorough, and persistent in her efforts to secure the best points seats.
We thought that you might be interested in what her job is like and what tips she can offer.


1. What is it like handling all of the frequent-flyer bookings for The Travel Group?

It's a challenge! And a bit like a puzzle: if I can’t find the seats on the preferred airline, I have to figure out what other partner airlines or combination of airlines might work. Generally, the frequent-flyer desks are not very helpful (their reservations agents are often not that well trained), so I’m usually on my own to find something that fits a client’s needs.



2. What is your biggest frustration?

Hold times. Sometimes they can be 45 minutes or longer. That adds up to enormous chunks of time to spend without being able to take calls from our clients. I guess my clients would say, “Better you than me!”



3. There seem to be endless changes in frequent-flyer programs and their rules. How do you keep up?

Whenever I have a moment (usually while I am on hold!), I visit airline websites and review their frequent-flyer pages. For 2005, I see there are quite a few changes in store for some programs, including Aeroplan.



4. Obviously Aeroplan is the biggest plan for our clients. Which program is second biggest?

I would say that American Airlines’ AAdvantage Program would be the second most significant plan for our clients. It is a partner on several Gold credit card programs, so it often comes up as a good alternative to Aeroplan.



5. Who has the best plan in terms of ease of redemption and availability?

Aeroplan is best. I know that some will disagree, but because it is part of the Star Alliance network, Aeroplan offers a lot of excellent partner airlines to choose from that cover the globe. The runner-up is definitely Alaska Airlines’ Mileage Plan. It compliments Aeroplan nicely because of its range of airline partners, which are mostly from the competing One World Alliance.



6. Which plan is the most complicated and/or difficult to handle?

British Airways is the most difficult. They are not very travel agent friendly, meaning that unless you have set up your frequent flyer account to allow us to have access, BA will not let us handle your points booking. Most of our clients are very busy people who would rather pay an expert to do this difficult job than handle it personally. Unfortunately, British Airways just doesn’t get it.



7. Do you have any tips for frequent-flyers?

Book early and buy Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance. I recommend the latter because points tickets are almost never changeable once you have started your trip. If you have to make an unexpected change to your return trip, you will almost definitely have to buy “full fare” tickets, which will cost a fortune! Cancellation/interruption insurance is designed to reimburse you for these expenses in many cases, such as for medical emergencies and family medical situations.



8. What is the craziest points trip you've ever booked?

It was a last minute trip. Our client needed to fly to the east coast of Canada, and the only way to get him there was with two connections plus an overnight in each direction! He actually booked it.



9. What is the toughest points booking you've ever successfully completed?

The toughest would be an Aeroplan booking for three business class tickets to Vietnam, with a stop in Singapore, in peak season. I only had a couple of months lead time, and for those of us in the points game you know you just can’t get business class seats, let alone three of them, to Asia unless you book 10 years in advance. I still can’t believe I pulled that one off!



10. Where is the most exotic place you’ve ever booked on points

Well, I can’t say what the most exotic place is, but in the past six months I’ve found seats for clients to Bogotá, Kuala Lumpur, and Ho Chi Minh City.



11. How can you tell if I am using my points wisely or frivolously?

We have a little formula: we estimate that a frequent-flyer point is worth 2 cents a mile. If you can’t buy a ticket for that value (or less), then you are using your points wisely. The best value of all is for business class. Of course, those are the most difficult to come by. Business class to areas such as Asia, Africa, or South Pacific would be the absolute best way to spend your points, because these destinations do not ever seem to have discounted business class fares. You either pay full fare, or use your points.



12. Is Aeroplan really as bad as most people think?

No, I don’t think it’s that bad. I believe people get frustrated with Aeroplan because seats often are not available for when and where they want. Aeroplan has millions of members and, like any other frequent-flyer program, only a limited number of points seats allotted per flight. The trick is to book well in advance and use a specialist like me.



13. What’s the best and worst part of your job as frequent-flyer program manager?

Best: I get to book travel to fascinating destinations all over the world and I get to have great conversations with our clients. In addition to booking the free tickets, I get to research these interesting places and book tours, car rentals, and hotels.

Worst: Travellers seem to want to go to the same places at the same time, and that makes it tough to find free seats. I don’t like to disappoint a client.

TOP TEN AIRLINES

At the end of the year, everyone seems to come out with their Top Ten lists for just about everything, so we might as well do one of our own, for airlines. We don’t presume to know who is the best. Instead we will turn to several prominent organizations that conduct their own annual surveys. They are Conde Nast Magazine, Travel & Leisure Magazine, OAG, and Skytrax Research.



First, though, let’s cut to the chase, and reveal what is the world’s best airline for 2004.



According to the readers of Conde Nast Magazine, the best is Singapore Airlines for international routes and JetBlue for “domestic” (ie. U.S.). The criteria the magazine uses is pretty comprehensive, including ticketing/ground services, cabin comfort, cabin service, entertainment options, and food/beverages (in the case of international). Note, however, that food/beverage is excluded from the “domestic” U.S., thus stacking the deck in favour of the low-cost carriers. In fact, this year four out of the ten top domestic airlines were budget, no-frills airlines. For this reason, and the fact that most of our clients are based outside of the U.S., we will stick to looking at international carriers (which include U.S. airlines, of course.)



Travel & Leisure Magazine agrees—Singapore Airlines is the world’s best airline for 2004.



OAG, the publisher of the airline guide used world-wide by travel agents and airlines, stages an annual awards event for best airlines. The OAG Airline of the Year Awards actually hosts an annual gala dinner and awards ceremony to recognize and celebrate the very best in global air travel. This event, often called ‘The Oscars of the airline industry’, is now in its 23rd year. Votes for the award categories are polled from OAG’s world-wide customer base of business travelers, and therefore it has a corporate travel bias.



This year’s winner stunned the airline industry—Continental Airlines. It is the first U.S . -based carrier to win the title since the awards were established 22 years ago. Continental also won the Best Executive/Business Class category and was voted Best Airline based in North America in the OAG awards, and was short-listed in three other categories.



One other organization weighing in on the subject is Skytrax Research, a London-based aviation market research company. Their survey is perhaps the most comprehensive and thorough one, which looks at factors such as competitive performance, passenger loyalty, passenger satisfaction analysis, and brand-awareness. Skytrax calls its “Airline of the Year” selection the global barometer of airline passenger opinions, and it claims to be free of any outside or financial influences. It also claims to be the only airline survey that is truly worldwide in perspective, taking in more than 90 different passenger nationalities. Billing itself the world's "largest" passenger survey, it was conducted over a 10 month period - from June 2003 to March 2004 - the total number of eligible survey nominations being 10,821,215.



Their “Airline of the Year 2004” is (surprise!) Singapore Airlines.



Now, for our Top Ten List. This is a consolidation of the four surveys mentioned above. The top ten airlines of 2004 are:



1. Singapore

2. Cathay Pacific

3. Emirates

4. Thai

5. Virgin Atlantic

6. Qantas

7. Continental

8. Malaysian

9. British Airways

10. Japan Airlines








So once again, the best airline of 2004 seems to be Singapore Airlines. It has won the top spot in Conde Nast Magazine’s readers poll 16 times in 17 years! According to Business Traveller, Singapore has become “the standard by which all other international airlines are judged” (Business Traveller – Asia Pacific, 1997a, p. 3). This airline is consistently profitable, even through tough times, boasting a continuous profit streak since its inception 56 years ago.”

CLUB MED FOR DUMMIES

Not all Club Meds are alike; some are designed for families, some for couples, and some are good for everybody. As you peruse a Club Med brochure or browse their web site, you will find a bewildering array of choices. We wanted to make it simpler for you to choose the right one, so we asked our experts to give us their top picks. Here is the list:



Top Club Med Family villages:



1. Punta Cana, Dominican Republic - Number one for adults & kids, this all-suite village is awesome, offering 75 acres of everything your family needs to relax, romp and roam.



2. Ixtapa, Mexico - Ranked among the top family vacations spots by The Travel Channel, this village is packed with every experience your family could imagine.



3. Sandpiper, Florida - America’s only warm-weather all-inclusive family vacation spot. Endless activities provide the perfect adventure for parents and kids alike.











Top Club Med Villages for Adults:



1. Cancun, Mexico - As one of the very first resorts in Cancun, Club Med laid claim to this premier beachfront location. Here, every moment of partying, playing, dining, dancing, and lounging takes place along the unequalled beauty of the Gulf of Mexico.



2. Turkoise, Turks and Caicos - Explore one of the Top 10 dive spots in the world, or simply kick back and relax. Whatever you decide to do here, get ready for some serious fun!











Top Club Med Villages for Everyone:



1. Columbus Isle, Bahamas - Pristine beaches, sailing, windsurfing, scuba-diving, waterskiing, volleyball, archery. The list of activities seem endless. This is considered the most elegant of Club Med’s villages.



2. Bora Bora, Tahiti - Now for something really exotic: blankets of white sand and intriguing Tahitian cuisine create a romantic atmosphere that floats over the peaceful, crystalline waters.









Top Club Med Total All-Inclusive Ski Villages:

(and yes, that means full day ski/snowboard lessons and daily lift tickets)



1. Crested Butte, Colorado - The U.S.’s only totally all-inclusive family ski vacation. Ranked as one of the top Super Ski Resorts for Families by Child Magazine.



2. Val Thorens Freestyle, France (adult village) - For skiing, snowboarding, fitness, mountain-climbing, weight training, and après-ski, nothing beats this magnificent setting.



3. Les Arc Freestyle, France (adult village) - The ski slopes are just a stone’s throw away from the dance floor. For 24-hour fun, this is THE place.