Travelers' Intercom | International Travel News

January 2011 issue

Car rental experiences

I agree with the travelers who take digital pictures of their rental cars upon picking them up (Sept. ’10, pg. 40). I do so, myself, and although I have returned cars with a scratch or two it has never been an issue.

I have found that rental cars tend to be inspected more thoroughly at London’s Heathrow and Gatwick airports than they are at the less-well-known airports (e.g., Bristol), where the return inspections have been cursory or nonexistent. I do get a “prerental” damage description from the rental agent.

We rented a car at and returned it to Heathrow in June 2010. The...

March 2010 issue

Swimming with whale sharks

My wife, Gail, and I are both snorkelers, big time, and had read about divers swimming with whale sharks. We had the opportunity for such an experience during an eight-day tour of the Philippines in March ’09.

Whale sharks are not mammals like whales but are, instead, fish, belonging to the shark group. However, whale sharks are not predators; they feed mostly on plankton sieved through their gills as they swim. It is the largest fish in the world, growing to over 40 feet and weighing some 39 tons.

Local fishermen in the small coastal fishing town of Donsol, located on the...

January 2005 issue

Delightful Viterbo, Italy

The delightful town of Viterbo, Italy, was founded by the Etruscans and eventually taken over by Rome. Although heavily damaged in the Allied bombing of WWII, Viterbo’s Old Town is beautifully preserved. (A portion of this medieval quarter is shown here.) At its center, the Piazza San Pelegrino is said to contain the finest group of medieval buildings in Italy. — DOROTHY & WILLIAM DEVOTI, Sheffield, MA

April 2010 issue

Seoul rejuvenation

Returning to the US from Vietnam back in December ’08, I had a six-hour layover at the Seoul, South Korea, airport. Inside security, near the short-time hotel, I discovered an upstairs area with six very comfortable lounge chairs. I spent most of my layover time in one of them. Very quiet!

Nearby were several free computers with Internet access. Also nearby was a small children’s play area and a takeout counter with reasonably priced food.

VAUGHAN PARKER

Santa Barbara, CA

March 2004 issue

Transit visa needed on Warsaw-Moscow train

As part of a journey through east Central Europe in July ’03, a friend and I boarded a train in Warsaw headed for Moscow, about a 25-hour rail trip. Part of the route entailed traveling through the country of Belarus, thus a stop was made at Terespol, the border town between Belarus and Poland. Here, as part of routine passport inspections, guards boarded the train.

When one made it to our compartment, I handed him my passport and waited while he browsed the pages. I had been informed to acquire a Russian visa beforehand so thought everything was squared away for the trip. Turns out...

July 2005 issue

Australian visas online

I had seen a couple of mentions (Dec. ’01, pg. 33 & Feb. ’02, pg. 111) about getting Australian visas electronically for a fee of $15 (visit www.eta.immi.gov.au). I don’t mind paying the fee, but the website did not seem to me to be secure, as I did not see any padlock.

For a trip to Australia in May ’05, I called the tourist office in Los Angeles (310/695-3200) and was told that the Australian Embassy in Washington, D.C. (888/990-8888), is the only office that issues visas in this country. I called the embassy and was assured that the website was perfectly safe, with the...

April 2004 issue

Given insufficient connect time

In March ’03 we took a trip to India and around Africa with Orient Lines, which arranged all flights. Our troubles began early on.

When we received our tickets, we realized that only one and one-quarter hours had been allowed for connecting flights from San Diego to London and from London on to Delhi. We contacted the cruise line, asking them to correct the situation, but to no avail.

Needless to say, we missed our connection at London’s Heathrow Airport. We were sent to Bangladesh, where we found the airport wait most uncomfortable, and then to Delhi. We arrived so late that...

May 2004 issue

Stood up by Blue Train

I enjoyed reading Dr. Wagenaar’s account of his journey on the Blue Train through South Africa (March ’04, pg. 99). One fact which may be of importance to ITN readers, however, is that the Blue Train apparently can cancel its train journeys at any time. This happened to my wife and me, who were scheduled to begin a Blue Train journey from Cape Town to Pretoria June 21, ’02.

That the entire train could be canceled at the last minute due to a shortage of other passengers had not been disclosed to us. (The shortage was caused when a major group canceled its booking.)

While our...