Travelers' Intercom
‘Wonderful’ guide in Mexico
During a visit to Zihuatanejo, Mexico, in January-February 2017, my husband and I used the services of Ketavi Tours (Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo, Mexico; phone +52 [755] 55 9 30 23, ketavi.com) for airport transfers and a scenic tour to several of the beaches north of Zihuatanejo, including Playa Linda and
Around the world in (almost) 80 days
Early in my life, I learned how much fun it is to travel. I’ve decided that a love for travel must be a genetic condition; my mom and dad both loved to travel.
Online tickets pros, con
I cannot agree more with Rick Steves’ advice (Nov. ’16, pg. 53) regarding how to avoid waiting in line at various attractions throughout the world.
Caucasus with Kutrubes
My husband, Gerald Liedl, and I made a trip to Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, Oct. 5-15, 2016, with Kutrubes Travel (Boston, MA; 800/878-8566, www.kutrubestravel.com).
‘Great service’ from Tour Beijing
Two family members and I had a long layover scheduled in Beijing, China, on Nov. 28, 2016, and we wanted to pack in about eight hours of local travel in the city. I tried arranging transportation with several companies, but their rates and availability were all over the place.
Breaking a leg in the bush
Nearing the end of a 50-day African holiday, my husband, Roger, and I arrived at Ruaha National Park in Tanzania on Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016.
‘Locomotives International’
A publication that covers truly offbeat railways, focusing on historic places and equipment, is the British bimonthly magazine Locomotives International (Wiltshire, England; phone +44 1275 845 012, www.mainline andmaritime.co.uk/pages/welcome-to-locomotives-international).
‘Sunny Portugal’ with Collette
I booked “Sunny Portugal” through AAA Vacations (800/922-8228, ww1.aaa.com); the 10-day tour was run by Collette (Pawtucket, RI; 800/340-5158, www.gocollette.com). Its cost, including air, single supplement, insurance and optionals, came to $3,854.
La Cité du Vin in Bordeaux
If you appreciate wine, especially fine wine, visiting France’s Bordeaux region is likely one of your travel aspirations.
Earning miles on partner airlines
Now that most US airlines’ point programs have switched to the amount paid for tickets instead of miles flown, I wondered how someone could verify that the points are accurate when earning miles through partner airlines.
RuMeID luggage tags
My wife, Patti, and I ordered two luggage tags from RuMeID (Centennial, CO; 303/799-4256, www.rumeid.com) on the TripAdvisor store, and they have a unique feature: each RuMeID tag comes with a QR code that helps you be reunited with your bag if it’s lost.
Hotels versus B&Bs
My, oh, my! After reading the readers’ letters about Airbnb (Nov. ’16, Dec. ’16 & Jan.
New Zealand hospitality
It was 1983 and our first trip to New Zealand. My wife, Carol, and I were wandering around the South Island in a motor home when we noticed a sign for strawberries. We pulled over, walked to a shed and asked about the strawberries.
Harpa + other Iceland highlights
We made it to Iceland and back! The trip my husband, Ted, and I took was a 5-day package called “Hot Springs & Northern Lights,” which we booked with Icelandair (www.icelandair.us) for Nov. 13-17, 2016.
Tibet, China, with Ceylon Express
China had been on my list for a while, but it wasn’t until my husband, Jerry, saw a Viking Cruises brochure that included Tibet that we became inspired.
Acquiring Uzbekistan visas
Uzbekistan was included in a trip to the ’Stans that my husband and I were planning to take in April 2016, so we applied for visas from the Uzbekistan Embassy in Washington, DC, mailing our applications and passports to them via the US Postal Service (USPS) on Jan. 27.
No-fee Chase debit card
I was issued a Visa debit card through my Chase Private Client account in January 2017. The accompanying material definitely said that the card could be used at any ATM anywhere in the world with no foreign transaction fee (FTF). An ATM fee might be charged, but Chase would reimburse me for that fee.*
Cash-back cards better than miles
The airlines have continued to decrease the value of their mileage programs by requiring more points for rewards, changing the way points are earned and making it more difficult to use points to book flights on desirable days.
‘Extraordinary’ guide in Costa Rica
While staying in Costa Rica for a month in January-February 2017, my husband, John Doellinger, and I spent the first week on a tour with Natural Habitat (Boulder, CO; 800/543-8917, www.nathab.com). For weeks three and four, we rented a condo in Playa Langosta, Guanacaste, through Airbnb.