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Monday August 29, 2016

 

Destinations

What To Do (And Eat) With 10 Days In Taiwan
This past April I was lucky enough to be able to travel to Taiwan to visit my husband’s relatives. His family members were the best tour guides during the 10 days we visited and there is no way I would have seen and experienced the things we did if we didn’t have local guides to our adventures. So hopefully this can be your guide to your tour of Taiwan…

The party atmosphere of Havana, without the hassle
In a crowded bar everyone's sitting listening rapt with attention to a guitarist strumming a passionate folk song when a woman suddenly rises to her feet. Her back is as straight as a rod, her head is held high and her arms move up in a graceful arc, with her wrists bent and her hands rotating outwards…


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Tours and Activities

England's 15 least popular attractions
These are the least visited attractions in England, according to last year's figures. Drop by this Bank Holiday weekend - they'd love to have you…

The world’s secret hideaways
A 19th-century wartime bunker on the Dutch waterways might not sound like the most obvious holiday rental, but two years ago it was turned into exactly that. Inspired by Le Corbusier’s holiday home in the south of France, architects B-ILD came up with inventive ways to make the most of the small space, from custom-made wooden furniture that could be stowed away when it’s not in use to beds that fold up against the wall…


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Cruise

New Carnival route: Los Angeles to Alaska and back
Cruise giant Carnival has announced plans for a voyage from the Los Angeles area to Alaska and back -- a first for the line. The Miami-based cruise operator says the 2,124-passenger Carnival Miracle will depart Long Beach, Calif. on Sept. 2, 2017 on a 14-night, roundtrip sailing that features stops in Juneau, Skagway, Ketchikan and Sitka in Alaska as well as Vancouver, British Columbia…

New Itineraries, Inclusions and a Ship Coming to Uniworld in 2017
The luxury river cruise line Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection is changing things up for 2017, adding new itineraries, a brand-new "super ship" and more inclusions to its sailings…

Ovation of the Seas a quantum leap in cruising
Most simply jump in feet first as soon as they cross the gangway and get lost in a schedule of there not being a schedule. For others, it may take a day or two to put down their phones, disconnect (or get their sea legs*) but eventually the smell of fresh sea air, a blue horizon in every direction, the lure of rattling ice cubes in the bottom of glasses, dozens of sun beds, banana lounges and the prospect of burying yourself in a good book, is overwhelming and overpowering…


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Transportation

Beautiful photos of deserted metro stations
The daily commute is the most mundane and often the most frustrating part of city living -- but photographer Chris Forsyth wants us to appreciate the beauty hidden in our transit systems…

Why Airlines Love Baggage Fees (and Maybe You Should, Too)
Ever since the airline industry introduced baggage fees in 2008, passengers have been grumbling about the fee-less golden years of yore. But according to a new study out of the University of Kansas, baggage fees are not entirely bad for passengers: They have contributed to fewer departure delays for U.S. airlines…


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Lodging

In Mexico City, a Modernist Hotel and Temple to High Design
In the lively (and lesser-known to tourists) Colonia Juárez neighborhood, the Hotel Carlota, which opened in June 2015, is a temple to high design. Built by the prestigious local firm JSa Arquitectura and “art-directed” by Cadena…

Snowdonia's 5 best luxury hotels
Opening this week, Grade II-listed Palé Hall has had a substatial refurb since it was a private home that once hosted the likes of Queen Victoria and, later, Winston Churchill…


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Other and Odd

We Just Made the Ultimate Travel Dopp Kit
Finding TSA-approved sizes of the best-of-the-best beauty products isn't always easy, and having full-size favorites taken at security puts a real damper on the start of a trip. (Been there, lost too many lotions.) But, this month, Traveler and Allure editors have hand-picked travel-sized essentials and packed them into the ultimate dopp kit. With more than $150 worth of product, the limited-edition beauty box—which just went on sale yesterday —includes everything a traveler needs on long-haul flights to keep skin moisturized and avoid that "just endured a six-hour layover" look…

These travel hacks just don't work
Philip Pragados thought he'd discovered a perfect travel hack: sharing his TSA PreCheck number, also called a "Known Traveler Number," with a friend. "She used it and was sent to the PreCheck line," says Pragados, an IT consultant who lives in Washington…

Today in History

Ishi
In 1865, white settlers in California killed more than 40 Native Americans in what has become known as the Three Knowles Massacre. The remnants of the Yahi tribe fled into the forest and hid. For the next forty years, the last of the Yahi lived in the woods and gradually died off…

Editorial Musings

So, why are you a travel agent? Here's my six reasons

Everyone has their up and down days; both personally and professionally. There are days when you want to throw in the towel,  and others that make it all worthwhile. If you need proof of that, just read some of the entries in our Travel Agent Diaries series.  Last week an acquaintance (not a client) in town asked me why I continued to operate in a dying industry.  After I schooled him on the fact that we are indeed not dying, I gave it some thought and came up with six reasons why I keep doing what I do!

This is a happy business. When I go to work, I know that in some way I am making someone's life better. Maybe I am helping plan a dream vacation. Maybe it…
  — Travel Research Online
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Reading Between the Lines

Selling Your Services: If You’re Going to Say Something, Say it Loud

“I’ve always felt that if I’m going to write something, I may as well publish it as an article in that it reaches a wider audience.”

Selling Your Services by Robert W. Bly, page 64

Whoever said writing is a lost art knew exactly what they were talking about. With the introduction of the Internet coupled with the computer, it seems that pen and pencil have gone the way of the Ooga Horn. (Look it…

  — Travel Research Online
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Publishers Corner

Niche Marketing: Grabbing Travel's Long Tail

Way back in October of 2004, Chris Anderson published an article in Wired Magazine called "The Long Tail."  Anderson later elaborated the concept of the Long Tail in his book The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business Is Selling Less of More. The theory is that while every industry has its blockbuster products, there is a "long tail" of product sold in much smaller quantities that, collectively, is often larger than the most popular items.  Anderson went on to explain how technology, like online access to thousands of suppliers by millions of consumers, was making it possible for niche businesses to thrive in the new economy.

Does travel have a long tail? It does indeed.  If you look at the cruise industry, for example, the mass…

  — Travel Research Online
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One-to-One Interviews

Sharon Flax-Brutus, Director of Tourism for the British Virgin Islands Tourist Board

Veteran tourism professional Sharon Flax-Brutus is the Director of Tourism for the British Virgin Islands Tourist Board, a statutory body serving as the guiding unit for the development, marketing and promotion of the destination’s image, tourism product, and training.

Sharon Flax-Brutus’ confirmation to one of the Government’s top economic pillars is characteristic of her 30 plus years of experience garnered from working in diversified posts within the tourism industry in the British Virgin Islands, the Caribbean region and the United States. Sharon has achieved notable accomplishments as the Director of Tourism that have been pivotal in strengthening and developing partnerships within the tourism sector regionally and internationally. Her portfolio includes sustainable and economic development initiatives along with the teaching

  — 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!


TRO Webinars: Short video based learning and training webinars from industry experts and suppliers.





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