When travelling, it’s hard enough to remember where you were yesterday, let alone the phone number of that fabulous girl you met in Hong Kong, or the postal address of your Uncle Bertie.
But now there’s no excuse for losing touch, with Planet Reunited a website with the ambitious aim of keeping travellers connected,. With as many as 4 out of 10 backpackers losing their address books or diaries while travelling, it’s the ultimate travel accessory to keep in touch with old and new friends.
The Effects of Logging on the ‘Pygmies’ in the Congo Basin Congo Basin, presentations and launch of a major new photographic exhibition on the Ba’Aka ‘Pygmies’ of the Republic of Congo at The Royal Geographical Society.
Date: Wednesday 28th April 2004
Time: Doors open and reception 6.00pm
Address: The Royal Geographical Society, 1
Kensington Gore, London SW7 2AR
Admission: £10.00
Tickets: Freephone: 0800 970 1014
Web: Rainforest
Foundation
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Be warned – if you are planning on flying with Ghana Airways, be warned. Ghana Airways allegedly has something of a reputation for overbooking and not refunding money for seats that are not ultimately available.
Questions were asked in the Ghanaian Parliament about overbooking of seats on Ghana Airways. It was said that whereas overbooking is a normal practice in the airline business to allow for no shows, over sale was an illegal practice employed by travel agents to extract money from customers and inconvenience them in the process – and that there is a difference between over booking and deliberate over-sale of non existent seats
It was explained that in the case of overbooking, the ticket was usually not confirmed so the customer was aware that there were chances of him/her not getting a seat, but with over-sale the Travel Agent usually assured the customer of a seat without consulting the airline.
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A growing number of U.S. airlines and online travel companies are outsourcing customer service jobs overseas in a bid to reduce costs. United Airlines is about to source a customer call centre in Nova Scotia. Travelocity will outsource about 300 jobs to India over the next year and expects to save $10 million in 2004 as a result of the change. American Airlines, Northwest Airlines, Continental Airlines and US Airways said they do not redirect any calls from U.S. customers to call centres outside the United States. Delta Air Lines, which outsourced nearly 1,000 jobs last year to three call centres in Bangalore, Bombay and New Delhi India, says it is aware of the potential pitfalls.
The Beetle’s own experience of speaking with e-bookers, a travel booking organisation that has been outsourced to India has not been good. The operatives are charming and polite, but pushy and lack in-depth travel knowledge. They also returned calls at 10pm!
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The Burmese government has given the go-ahead for the creation of the world’s largest tiger reserve. The reserve is planned to add to the existing Hukawng Valley reserve making the area some 30,000 sq km, which is about the same size as Belgium.
The news has pleased conservationists who were alarmed when a 2003 survey revealed only 150 to 200 tigers left. Conservationists say that work must be done to train rangers and stamp out the lucrative trade in tiger body parts and new avenues of income will have to be found for local people so they do not succumb to the temptation to profit from the growing regional demand for tiger products. At $200 per kilo, the profits from even a small tiger could be equivalent to 10 years of income for many in this area.
Tiger skins, heads and claws are often prized as trophies, while bones and internal organs are used in Asian medicines. China is the largest market for the trade.
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Holidaymakers are supporting the Travel Foundation, a new charity that is trying to help manage the travel industry more sustainably.
Since the charity’s launch in November 2003, more than three-quarters of holidaymakers who booked a winter or summer holiday with UK operator First Choice have agreed to pay a voluntary donation to the charity.
The Travel Foundation is aiming to raise £1 million a year by 2006, which it says it will spend on projects that help tourism make a positive contribution to holiday destinations.
First Choice is asking its customers to donate 10 pence per adult, and 5 pence per child per holiday booking. Other UK operators, including The Adventure Company (formerly Travelbag Adventures) and Hidden Greece, will soon be providing similar fundraising schemes. Sunvil Holidays is already asking its customers to match its own donation of 50 pence per booking.
The Travel Foundation has already supported sustainable tourism projects in The Gambia and in Cyprus, where all the main tour operators are now offering excursions to the less well-known rural areas to help contribute to the livelihoods of local people. It plans to support similar tourism-related projects in other popular holiday destinations, including Mexico and Tobago, to help tourism make a greater contribution to the local people, environment and economy.
Further information, see thetravelfoundation.org.uk or telephone 0117 9273049.
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Azores Express has announced expanded Spring and Summer service from Boston Logan Airport to Portugal beginning in June 2004. Azores Express will offer direct flights to São Miguel, the main island in the Azores archipelago, on Wednesdays (starts June 23rd), Tuesdays, and Fridays. A Saturday flight is offered from Providence, Rhode Island starting June 12, 2004.
The Azores Islands, an autonomous region of Portugal, are the closest point in Europe to the United States, just four hours east by plane from Boston.
Situated 2,000 nautical miles from New England, the archipelago of the Azores was discovered during the first half of the 15th-century by Portuguese navigators. Today, gothic churches and majestic baroque manor homes mingle with sapphire blue and emerald green lakes, rolling prairies, volcanic cones and craters, and colourful hydrangeas and azaleas to enchant visitors. This inviting land enjoys year-round mild temperatures (between 57°F and 71°F).
A direct service from Boston to the historic island of Terceira will be offered on Sundays starting June 13th with a return flight every Tuesday. Non-stop flights to Portugal’s capital of Lisbon will be available every Thursday (starts June 24) and Sunday (starts June 6). Connecting flights to Madeira, Lisbon and Porto are also available from São Miguel. Inter-island flights are offered to each of the nine islands in the Azores. Roundtrip airfares start at just $579. Upgrades to business-class are just $150 each way to the Azores, and $200 each way to Lisbon. For more information and reservations, contact your travel agent, or Azores Express at 800-762-9995, www.Azores-Express.com.
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The first passenger train linking the Adelaide and Darwin in Australia made its debut at the beginning of February. The journey will stretches 1,420 kilometres (882 miles), and cuts through Australia’s outback. The 43 carriage train is called the “Ghan”. named after Afghan camel drivers who traditionally ran the route after European colonisation. The 400 or so people on board included invited guests, the media and regular passengers. Adult fares start at A$440 (US$334). The Ghan has been travelling between Adelaide and Alice Springs since 1929 and it was always the intention to extend the line to Darwin in the north.
How did you do at our little Beetle quiz based on capital cities. See how many you got right!
0 out of 5 – you need to get out more!
1-3 – not bad
4 – Very good! You are a Globetrotter!
5 – Are you sure you didn’t sneak a look?
Under 30? A member of Globetrotters Club? Interested in a £1,000 travel award?
Know someone who is? We have £1,000 to award each year for five years for the best submitted independent travel plan. Interested?
Then see our legacy page on our Website, where you can apply with your plans for a totally independent travel trip and we’ll take a look at it. Get those plans in!!
Around 400 air passengers are thought to have been stranded abroad after Irish low-cost airline Jetmagic announced it is to cease trading. Jetmagic launched in April 2003 and flew to destinations throughout Europe including Alicante, Barcelona, Nice, Nantes and Milan. It has reportedly lost £7.5 million and more than 100 workers are facing redundancy. On the company’s website www.jetmagic.com all booking facilities have been replaced with a statement explaining that the company is no longer in operation.
Travellers who have booked tickets with Jetmagic can
obtain a refund from:
Jetmagic
Refunds Department
5100 Airport Business Park
Cork Ireland.
icelandexpress.com/ is a low cost airline that flies to Iceland, and goodness knows, Iceland is expensive, so the more you can save by getting there cheaply, the more there is to spend.
An American tourist from Pennsylvania was prevented from entering Brazil because he poured water over a baby that had been crying during his flight from the US to Brazil. His bad behaviour started in the US and caused him to be refused boarding access on his flight from Miami to Sao Paulo, and again he was kicked off a flight from Brazil (after having spent a day in police custody in Brazil) back to Miami. Police said later that he was drunk.
This is the second incident involving a US citizen at Sao Paulo Airport in January 2004. Two weeks ago, an American Airlines pilot was arrested and fined almost $13,000 after making an obscene gesture while being photographed by immigration officials.
Cuba has received the first group of Chinese tourists since China designated the Western Hemisphere’s only communist nation as one of its tourism destinations last year. A group of 20 tourists from Beijing arrived in Havana for a four-day stay and planned to visit the beach resort of Varadero.
Tourism has become Cuba’s main source of hard currency since the collapse of the former Soviet Union. Havana is hoping to draw increasing numbers of the 16 million Chinese who travel abroad each year, Cuban officials said.
An eagle eyed Globetrotter wrote in to say: I just found out that starting March 1st, US citizens will be required to have a passport to enter Barbados. Perhaps this will set a precedence for other Caribbean islands.
The International Maritime Bureau says that more than 20 sailors were killed by pirates in 2003 – twice as many as the previous year. Seventy are missing, presumed dead. The Malaysian based organisation says piracy is increasingly becoming an Asian problem, with Indonesia the most dangerous area.
South and East Asia recorded twice as many as the rest of the world put together. More than a quarter of the world’s piracy took place in Indonesian waters, and without action from the Indonesian Government, the figures will not drop, the board said. Bangladesh is also a piracy hot spot where incidents almost doubled last year over 2002. Nigeria, Vietnam and India all have serious problems.
Other trends are also emerging: ships are now less likely to be hijacked for their cargo; attackers, possibly from militant groups, are seizing ships and ransoming their crew. Another concern is that oil tankers have become a common target and security experts fear a tanker could be used as a floating bomb to attack a city.
The United States recently disclosed that it may soon allow US citizens to visit Libya using American passports and to spend money there, reflecting Libya’s decision to give up weapons of mass destruction.
A 2 km long oil spill, blamed on sabotage is threatening Milford Sound’s nature reserve. Milford Sound, one of New Zealand’s most spectacular fjords is home to a number of dolphins, seals and penguins Most of the oil spill is expected to disperse naturally, but some will line the nearby harbour and shores. Teams of people are involved in trying to clean up the area.
Karrimor are pleased to announce to all Globetrotters Club members (please note, club members only) a 25% discount through their factory shop (– not available on sales goods). They offer a mail order service and all products can be found on their website www.karrimor.com
Further details of this and all other discounts avalible to members are available in Globe or our online member’s area.
The winner of last month’s Frommer’s Guidebook on England guide is: Diana Lovelace – congratulations!
This month, win a Rother Walking Guide to the Azores. See www.rother.de for info on Rother.
Some people have said the quiz is difficult, we say do some research: try google.com or Ask Jeeves, if you need help with the answers.