Chatty Seat Mates More Irritating Than TSA

Business Travel Survey from Carlson Hotels Reveals the Reality of Travel
When it comes to airlines, 75 percent of business travelers surveyed said last- minute flight cancellations were their most frustrating travel experience. Delays, "lack of communication" and "sitting on the tarmac" also ranked high.

International business travelers are surprisingly more irritated by screaming children (61 percent) and incessant talkers (47 percent) than by confronting the hassles of airport security (32 percent).

Snow Train - A Breathtaking Journey - Ontario

This is a truly unique look at Algoma Central country, clad in its mantle of snow and adorned with sparkling diamonds of ice. Gone are the greens of summer and the fiery colours of fall, the brilliant white of winter is everywhere.

Your journey begins at our depot in downtown Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada. As the train pulls away from the depot you will pass through the city's industrial area, but within minutes the forests will begin to take over, offering a very unique contrast.

As the train winds its way northward, a rugged winter wonderland will unfold before you. Snow laden trees will give way to panoramic views, towering trestles, snow-choked rock cuts, frozen lakes and waterfalls transformed into fantastic ice sculptures by the cold breath of winter.

Your tour is narrated and our on board tour attendants will share some of the history of the region and the Ojibway, miners and loggers who called this rugged wilderness home. They will also make sure you have plenty of time to get your cameras ready as the many scenic points of interest roll past your window.

At mile 102 you will begin to descend 500 feet over the next twelve miles to the floor of the famous Agawa Canyon, where the locomotives will be switched for the return trip. Unfortunately, due to low temperatures and snow accumulation, passengers are not able to detrain at Agawa Canyon .

You will experience all of this, nestled comfortably in your reclining seat as the warmth of your picture-window coach keeps 'old-man-winter's' subzero temperatures at bay.

Whether you've travelled with us in a warmer season or are joining us for the first time, we are sure this unique one day rail excursion will leave you in awe of the majestic power and beauty of a Canadian winter.

Source and more information: www.agawacanyontourtrain.com

Flying within the Caribbean´s gets cheaper

Caribbean Community (CARICOM) ministers responsible for civil aviation, transport and tourism on Friday said they had arrived at a formula which, once approved, will make intra-regional travel less complicated and expensive and will attract more international flights to the Caribbean.

They concluded a one-day meeting here Friday ahead of Sunday’s official opening of the 30th annual Caribbean Tourism Conference (CTO) schedule for the Puerto Rico Convention Centre from October 21-24.

"We will be paying attention to a structure in which regional carriers can all collaborate with each other, and given the size and population of the region, make our region more affordable by jointly agreeing to streamline international regulations which do not apply to our area but only make access to international airlift more expensive and complicated," Chastanet said.

He said that the ministers accepted the fact that regional carriers such as Air Jamaica, Caribbean Airlines and LIAT have their place within the region and agreed that issues such as airspace and the civil aviation international transport environment cannot be handed over to foreign carriers.

"We have accepted the position that for social, political and wider economic reasons we need to have our own airlines," the CTO chairman noted, in response to the view that there needed to be one Caribbean airline.

Read the full article >>>

Source CBC.BB

Canada: Strong dollar spurs record trips abroad

Canadians are heading abroad in record numbers with their robust dollar. While the United States remains the most popular destination, overseas trips in August surpassed the 600,000 mark for the sixth month this year, Statistics Canada figures show. Before this year, the 600,000 mark had never been reached.

Spain, Italy, Croatia and Ireland are popular this year, with particular focus on Mediterranean cruises, travel agents said. In recent weeks, bookings have shifted to sun spots such as Mexico and the Caribbean.

Where once Canadians opted for cheaper package tours, now they're willing to book hotels and air separately.

"We've been on an increase since the dollar's been going up for the past year," said Allison Eaton, Vancouver-based spokeswoman for the Flight Centre. "I definitely attribute a lot of that to the strong dollar."

read more >>>

A place for cheap airline tickets: www.Skytours.ca

Half Chinese travelers want to scrap 'golden weeks'

BEIJING -- Half of Chinese travelers want to abolish all "Golden week" holidays, except Spring Festival, according to a survey released by Ctrip on Thursday.

The survey of 2,200 travelers with annual salaries above 60,000 yuan (8,000 U.S. dollars) found most wanted to retain the seven-day Spring Festival holiday when Chinese celebrate the lunar new year and a very important occasion of family reunion, the Beijing News reports.

Ctrip is the largest consolidator of hotel accommodation and airline tickets for China's individual travelers.

About 14 percent of the respondents supported scrapping all three "golden week" holidays and 49.4 percent wanted to scrap or change the May Day and National Day "golden weeks" and retain the Spring Festival holiday.

If the government scrapped one or more week-long holidays, 60.1 percent favored compulsory paid vacation in their place to allow every worker to arrange their own holidays, the survey found.

The government began the week-long holidays on the National Day, May Day and Spring Festival, which usually falls in January or February, in 1999.

Millions of Chinese flocked to national parks, scenic spots and world heritage sites on "golden weeks", overloading service facilities such as transportation, hotels and restaurants.

The government initially hoped the week-long vacation would stimulate consumption.

However, 53.3 percent of respondents believed the biggest advantage of the "golden weeks" was "the right to rest and take a paid vacation".

Tang Yibo, director of Ctrip's tourism business, said compulsory paid vacation would better distribute tourism demand, making travel packages cheaper and services more comfortable.

Paid vacation has been implemented in some joint ventures in big cities, like Beijing and Shanghai, by which workers arrange their holidays in accordance with the employer's situation.

However, many experts, including national political advisor Cai Jiming, said compulsory paid vacation would be difficult to implement for several years as Chinese employers had no conventions for the practice.

Shao Qiwei, director of the National Tourism Administration, revealed that concerned departments are considering perfecting the holidays to allow services to meet demand after this year's National Day holidays when 146 million travel fares were sold.

(Source:Chinadaily)

JetBlue City Guides!

Check out JetBlue´s new Blue City Guides, where local experts and JetBlue crewmembers share their insider tips for some of your favorite destinations. Find out from Amanda Keegan, one of our incredible Inflight crewmembers, where to go and what to do in New York City, our hometown. Boy, you wouldn't want to depend on me for tips… I barely get out of Queens, where our offices are based. I can tell you that Redwood Deli on Queens Blvd. is always a good deal when you're hungry for a turkey on wheat. They deliver, too. We have tips for Houston, Orlando, Pittsburgh and San Francisco, too – and we want to hear YOUR tips! What's the best place for an early dinner? Feel free to leave your comments on our crewmembers' blogs – anything that you think someone would appreciate knowing about our destination.

Higher fares lift US airlines

Higher fares and fewer empty seats helped lift US airlines' profits, even as the industry endured record fuel prices and calls for improved service. Southwest Airlines and Continental Airlines joined rivals AMR and Delta Air Lines in reporting better third-quarter results, with both carriers boasting their fullest flights for the period. Airlines have pruned costs and limited growth to the industry's domestic capacity, helping assure profits rise just as the US economy's outlook deteriorates.

(Source:ft.com)