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June 2008 issue

Air France ‘friendly’

We are fortunate to have an Air France flight available from Philadelphia to Paris. Taking advantage of the irresistible advance-purchase fares offered in May ’06, we flew Philadelphia-Bordeaux that November, from Philadelphia to Amsterdam that December and Philadelphia-Nice in March ’07. Our most recent Air France flight, to Paris, was in March ’08.

Air France’s Airbus is comfortable, clean and well equipped. The individual entertainment systems offer a variety of eye- and ear-catching choices.

The cabin crews are unfailingly friendly, accommodating, efficient and...

February 2007 issue

Telestial cell phone

I am sharing with ITN readers my satisfaction with Telestial, Inc. (1804 Garnet Ave., Ste. 385, San Diego, CA 92109; phone 858/274-2686, fax 2757 or visit www.telestial.com), the international cell phone and prepaid phone card company. I’d say Telestial rates a 10 out of 10 for continuing customer support after purchase. Knowledgeable humans (!) assist politely and patiently. They even return calls.

I purchased my first mobile and international phone, one and the same, from Telestial about 10 days before a 7-week trip to France in 2006. The phone arrived promptly and, in the few...

September 2007 issue

Baggage tips

All luggage seems to be on wheels today. It’s great on ﬂat surfaces, but now we have all these new weight restrictions, and wheelers weigh seven pounds or more. Is it important to you to have wheels or to be able to carry seven more pounds of your stuff? It’s your choice.

Wheels can be an absolute liability on the steep escalators in the London underground. In downtown Oslo, on the way to the hotel from the railroad station they’re an absolute nuisance as the bag tips over every few feet on the cobblestones.

Always buy a suitcase that is waterproof rather than water resistant...

January 2007 issue

‘India isn’t a trip for everyone’

In regards to the article “India: Enjoying Your Visit While Leading a Group Tour” by Judith Anshin (Oct. ’06, pg. 22), she wrote only about the upside of her trip to Rajasthan and none of the downs. India isn’t a trip for everyone.

I spent a month in Rajasthan and Kashmir, India, on the “Rajasthan Adventure” by Intrepid Tours (Venice, CA; 866/847-8192, www.intrepidtravel.com), July 24-Aug. 14, ’06, and had a much different experience than she did.

India has an atomic bomb but seems to do nothing about the filth, open sewers, air pollution and poverty. Two friends of mine each...

July 2007 issue

Add in tour’s extra costs

Our latest venture with Grand Circle Travel, a 2-week Extended Vacation in Italy in September ’06, provided the high-quality foreign experience we have come to expect from that company. It was an interesting but leisurely itinerary through beautiful Tuscany and Umbria, with a superb guide, excellent (if not great) accommodations and meals, and arrangements along the way that went like clockwork.

But the trip had troubling aspects, rooted in current travel industry conditions, which all American travelers, particularly those to European destinations, need to be aware of and to...

May 2007 issue

Swiss Pass a bargain

On a 2-week Christmas trip to Switzerland, Dec. 23, 2006-Jan. 4, 2007, my wife, Anita, and I had a wonderful, exciting time while using the Swiss Pass (www.sbb.ch) exclusively. We had read in ITN and other sources about this remarkable bargain but previously had always rented a car.

The cost for two traveling together for 15 consecutive days was $548, and we opted to add reservations on the Glacier Express (on Dec. 24th, no less), bringing the total to $598.

Considering that we used this pass every day on main rail lines, assorted lifts, funiculars, narrow-gauge lines, postal...

February 2007 issue

For first-time travelers to Slovenia

At the conclusion of our October ’05 trip to Slovenia, my wife, Paula, and I felt that it was the most beautiful and photogenic of the 18 countries we had visited. Here are some resources and tips we would like to share from that trip.

PLANNING — Guidebooks we used included “Lonely Planet Slovenia” and “Rick Steves’ Best of Eastern Europe,” and we highly recommend both. It’s hard to beat the comprehensive Lonely Planet guidebooks for detail nor Rick Steves’ for practical guidance about European destinations.

There are also numerous Slovenian websites with a surprising amount...

September 2008 issue

Kuala Lumpur’s Petronas Towers

On a trip to Malaysia, my significant other, Frank, and I spent a night in Kuala Lumpur where, if a visitor does nothing else, seeing the Petronas Twin Towers is a must. Guided by the spirals, and with help from a watch compass, we walked there from our hotel (the Alpha Genesis Hotel (formerly Allson Genesis), approximately $65 in March ’07).

Joined by a bridge at the 41st floor, the towers herald K.L. as an industrial and cultural center. This world-famous glass-and-steel structure of 88 floors dominates yet blends with surrounding buildings.

We were struck by their scale....