Travelers' Intercom
Entering Uruguay & Paraguay
My wife and I visited Uruguay and Paraguay, spending five days in each country, Dec. 5-17, 2016, and wanted to share some border entry improvements we encountered.
Guide in Marrakech
My family and I attended a wedding in Marrakech, Morocco, in October 2016. A few weeks before leaving, I found a private tour guide, Kharroubi Youssef (y.kharroubi@yahoo.com), through TripAdvisor.com. After reading the reviews, I contacted him through TripAdvisor.
A ‘solo travel’ moment
While in Bolzano, in May 2016, I went looking for a restaurant I had seen earlier, Cucina Casalinga Toscano, or Toscano Doc (Via Cappuccini 8A, Kapuzinergasse, Bolzano, Italy; phone +39 0471 181 20 78).
Italian hospital praise
After reading the “Discerning Traveler” column about hospital conditions and treatments in Naples, Italy (Sept. ’16, pg. 51), I felt I should report on a very positive experience that my wife, Mary, and I had at the public hospital in Puglia, Italy.
Benefits of a Travel Agent
Rebecca F. of Brownell Travel When my wife and I began overseas travel in the 1970s, one of the few ways we were able to get airline tickets was through travel agents. This was especially true for us, since we lived in a very small town.
Jazz fest and more in Havana
I attended Cuba’s 31st Annual Havana International Jazz Festival, which was held in 2015 on Dec. 11-19.
Belize with BZM Tours
An organized tour that my wife, Annaloy, and I would take in Belize did not include the Caracol ruins, so, in February 2016, before joining the group tour, we took an independent tour in San Ignacio that turned out to be excellent.
Dining in southern Italy
My wife, Victoria, and I have been visiting Italy for more than 50 years, but very rarely have we gone south of Rome.
‘Pleased’ with Trip Mate
Having read the travelers’ upsetting trip-insurance experiences in the July and August 2016 issues, I wanted to share one that was positive.
Indochina Odyssey Tours
Having only two weeks to spend in Cambodia and Vietnam, my husband, Paul, and I decided to do an independent tour rather than a group tour.
St. Petersburg independently and visa-free
While planning a trip to St. Petersburg, Russia, I read Nylah Chilton’s letter about visiting that city for two days with Viking Ocean Cruises and not needing a Russian visa so long as she was on the cruise-tour operator’s organized shore excursions (July ’16, pg. 46).
On transportation in Sicily
Before my wife, Ging, and I visited Sicily in July 2015, friends of ours who had visited told us the following regarding transportation there: • Local, internal airlines often operate on “Italian time,” meaning late, very late and domani (tomorrow).
Italy with Villa Vita International
I took my daughter and son-in-law on their first trip to Italy, Sept. 10-22, 2015. I worked with an agent to design a private tour, including Rome, the Sorrento area, a train to Florence and some time in the Tuscan countryside.
International roaming with T-Mobile
T-Mobile (t-mobile.com) is wonderful. Our service plan with T-Mobile includes unlimited data for our two phones for $120 a month and for our tablet for another $20.
Meeting giraffes and elephants near Nairobi
At the end of a stay in Kenya in July 2016, the flight my wife, Sandra, and I would take from the game camp was to arrive in Nairobi around noon, but our KLM flight home wouldn&
Kenya with Moriah African Tours
My wife, Janet, and I and our 16-year-old granddaughter Ginny booked a conservation trip to Kenya for August 2016, but in order to broaden Ginny’s knowledge on various levels, we also wanted to give her a one-week safari experience prior to the trip.
Madeira Flower Festival
“Colorful” is an understatement when describing the Portuguese island of Madeira’s annual Flower Festival.
Impressed with MedjetAssist
In September 2015, my husband, Dan, fell and broke his hip in a hotel in Paris. He was taken by ambulance to the public-assistance hospital. It was a very scary time, as I know little French.