Destinations
Jamaica Kincaid’s Antigua
How do you get to know this island? Go off-season, to Carnival, and use the writer’s books as your guide…
— New York Times
Hong Kong's urban jungle is real, not a metaphor for concrete and steel
This is exactly what I imagine hiking in Scotland or Wales to be like. Every so often, a piece of a craggy mountain breaks through the fog, so thick it feels like I'm walking through cotton balls. On a high point, a hole opens and my friend Jeremy and I glimpse the roiling ocean a couple thousand feet below. The view is spectacularly moody and lasts less than three minutes. The air is so saturated with moisture that dew collects on Jeremy's eyelashes. Thigh-high grasses are bent sideways by the wind…
— Chicago Tribune
Exploring the rugged beauty of Newfoundland, Canada
As so often happens when travelling, the best story came not from the tour guides or a bronze plaque beneath a celebrated monument, but from a local. Nancy, no-nonsense like most of the women of Newfoundland, wanted to be sure that those who “come-from-aways” understood what makes her place special…
— Escape
Tours and Activities
The ultimate Berlin street food
An iconic dish in a city of strange things, Currywurst “could only have been invented in Berlin because this is a city of openness and open-mindedness towards experimentation”…
— BBC Travel
Here, here, ears: Capping off popular Disney hats
Mickey Mouse is not the top cheese when it comes to headwear sales at Walt Disney World. He's not even in the runner-up slot…
— Sun Sentinel
Cruise
Monaco's Princess Charlene names 'most luxurious cruise ship ever'
It was a big day for cruise fans and royal watchers alike Wednesday in Monaco as the tiny country's Princess Charlene christened what's being billed as the most luxurious ship ever…
— USA Today
Carnival Corp. Opens €75m Cruise Safety Training Facility in The Netherlands
At a dedication ceremony in Almere, The Netherlands, Carnival Corp. officially opened its new €75 million cruise safety training facility, dubbed the Arison Maritime Center. Named for Carnival founder Ted Arison and son Micky, who currently serves as Carnival Corp.'s board chairman, the 110,000-square-foot center will offer training for the bridge and engineering officers who operate ships across all of the corporation's brands, including Carnival, Holland America, Princess, Cunard and Costa…
— CruiseCritic.com
Transportation
Study: Flying east is tougher on us than flying west
A flight from Paris to New York is easier on the brain than one from New York to Paris, according to a new study that finds jet lag is based not only on distance traveled, but also the direction of travel…
— Fox Travel News
Bombardier's Wide-Seat Plane Takes Off for Delta and Swiss Air
A new jetliner with wider passenger seats is wowing airplane fans at the Farnborough Airshow in the U.K. this week. A Bombardier C-Series CS-100, operated by Swiss Air, is taking to the skies for a demonstration flight at the annual aerospace showcase Monday. According to Bombardier, the window and aisle seats in the plane are 18.5 inches wide, while the middle seat is 19 inches wide, offering nearly 2 inches more room than found on similar-sized planes built by Boeing and Airbus…
— NBC
The Sabre Could Get You From London to Sydney in 4 Hours
At the Farnborough International Airshow, taking place just outside of London on July 16 and 17, the most diehard of aviation geeks congregate to gape at the latest in air travel, from the real and immediately viable (like the jet lag-ending Airbus A350) to the seemingly insane concepts that could change the world as we know it. The Sabre, a revolutionary engine concept from U.K.-based Reaction Engines Ltd. (REL), which blends elements of hypersonic air travel as well as rocket-fueled space travel, falls decidedly in the latter camp…
— Condé Nast Traveler
Lodging
Zetter Townhouse Marylebone brings a country-house vibe to London
Finding a cozy, characterful hotel in the midst of a sprawling metropolis is no mean task – especially in London. The Zetter Townhouse Marylebone, ideally positioned in the fashionable and well-located shopping district, creates the atmosphere of a boutique, country-house hotel in a throbbing area of London…
— Globe and Mail
Debit card, credit card or cash: how to pay for a hotel abroad
If you have one of the very rare debit cards that has no charges for use abroad, then by all means use it – but assuming it is like the vast majority of cards, you will be paying dearly for the privilege…
— The Independent
Other and Odd
Jordan Peele Teaches Us All the Importance of Caring for Your Passport
Comedian Jordan Peele learned the hard way that even a slightly damaged passport can spell trouble for international travel. The comedian wasn’t allowed to board his flight from Los Angeles to London after a TSA agent said his passport was too damaged to fly…
— Travel Leisure
Tourists are the perfect target for terrorists - but should we be worried?
We don’t yet know the final death toll from last night’s appalling attack in Nice, but it is certain that many of the victims will be foreign visitors as well as local people…
— Telegraph (London)
U.S. Often Issues Travel Warnings, But Lately The Tables Are Turned
The State Department regularly issues travel alerts for U.S. citizens. Now U.S. gun violence has led other countries to urge their own citizens to show caution when visiting the U.S.…
— NPR
Today in History
The Rosetta Stone
In the summer of 1799, soldiers in Napoleon Bonaparte's army in the Nile Delta were demolishing a wall to increase the area of an existing fort. Clearing away debris and overgrowth, one of the soldiers spotted an unusual stone used in the wall's construction. On the slab was an inscription. As a team of scientists and historians examined the inscription, part of it was recognizable as Greek and part as Egyptian hieroglyphics…
— Travel Research Online
Agent Perspectives
Toni Anderson, Cruises by Toni
by Susan Schaefer
Friday July 15, 2016
When you live c lose to a major cruise port, cruising is a natural niche for your agency. Travel Agent Spotlight recently spoke with Toni Anderson about her agency Cruises by Toni, as well as her perspective on the travel industry.
Travel Research Online (TRO): What was your career path before getting into travel, and how did you enter the travel industry?
Toni Anderson (TA): In January 2007 I started to work for a vacation rental company. They told me that selling vacation rentals was required before becoming a travel agent. Of course that didn’t pan out, and I eventually found a host agency in Florida. I was with them for almost two years before getting my own TRUE number through OSSN (now CCRA) in October of 2008,…
— Travel Research Online
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Reading Between the Lines
Hot Button Marketing: Accessibility is Key
 “Make your website user-friendly and likeable.”
Hot Button Marketing by Barry Feig, page 186
Here is an exercise I would like all of you to participate in in the next few days: Google the phrase “travel agencies.” Put quotation marks at the beginning and end of the words. I just did this, and instantly received 19,600,000 responses. That is a lot of…
— Travel Research Online
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TRO and The Travel Institute Scholarship Program
TRO believes ongoing training is important to the health of the travel professional. Therefore, we have partnered with The Travel Institute to assist travel agents to earn their Certified Travel Associate designation. TRO will be awarding a $100 scholarship to at least one attendee of TRO webinars each webinar. If you want to be considered for the scholarship you need only to register here:
http://www.thetravelinstitute.com/troscholarship/
…and then attend TRO’s webinars. Winners will be selected and notified immediately after each webinar!
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