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Monday May 22, 2017

Destinations

Shillong: The Indian Town Obsessed with Bob Dylan
Shillong, the capital city of the scenic northeast Indian state of Meghalaya, thrives on music. The town has earned itself the moniker of India’s rock music capital – even if cynics say the title is self-anointed – thanks to its various music festivals and local bands like Soulmate, which have now made a name for themselves across the country…

A Look Inside Saudi Arabia as it Prepares to Open its Doors
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia — four times the size of France — is one of the world’s least explored countries. For a single reason: It gives out no foreign tourist visas, except for Muslims traveling during the Hajj to Mecca and Medina. At least for now. But that promises to change in the near future…

Ipoh, Malaysia: A Cultural and Culinary Guide
Sometime after the tin slump of the 1980s, Ipoh earned a reputation for being a retirement destination, or just a pit stop on the way to Penang. These days, it's going through a tentative revival, thanks to the recent crop of hotels, cafes, museums and street art in the historic center…

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Tours and Activities

True or ‘Valse’? Eccentric Art Museum Features Genuine Fakes.
All is not quite what it appears to be at the Valse Kunst Museum in Vledder, a Dutch farming town with neat brick houses and coiffured peony gardens nestled among griddle-flat cornfields and dairy farms in north-central Netherlands. The museum, ensconced in Vledder’s former town hall, showcases nearly 100 paintings…

SeaWorld and Sesame Workshop to Build New Theme Park
SeaWorld Entertainment announced a partnership extension last week with Sesame Workshop that will include the development of an additional Sesame Place theme park. SeaWorld and Sesame Workshop have been working together for 37 years, and plans are in place for a second Sesame Place theme park to open no later than mid-2021 in a U.S. location to be determined…

10 Things To Do In Tbilisi
What is it about Georgia lately? The country (not the US state) seems primed to be one of the hottest tourist destinations for 2017, as travellers are freshly obsessed with the fashion, the mountain trekking, the architecture, and the good eats. Here are our top 10 tips for what to do in Tbilisi…

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Cruise

Princess Cruises $1 Cruise Deposit Sale, One Day Only
Princess Cruises is offering cruise deposits for only $1 on Monday, May 22, 2017 on all cruises outside of final payment. There has never been a better time to reserve your next cruise on Princess Cruises…

You Can Pay for Extra Pleasures by Booking the 'Ship Within the Ship' on Many Cruise Lines
Aimed at upscale passengers, it offers one-percenters the amenities of a luxury cruise combined with the options and activities available on a mass-market ship. If you're a ordinary passenger on one of these cruises, you may not even know about the luxury-class passengers who are dining at special restaurants, swimming in private pools, enjoying large suites with extra perks and using the services of private butlers…

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Transportation

Skiers Petition Eurostar to Add Another Weekend Train to the Alps
More than 600 people have signed the petition on the Change.org website, which asks Eurostar commercial director Nick Mercer to launch a new Sunday daytime service to the French mountains, in addition to the current Saturday trains and special February half-term service…

Is That New Basic Economy Class Right for You?
When you fly one of those ultra-discount airlines like Spirit or Frontier, you know you’re not in for a luxury experience, but at the least it's relatively cheap, right? That’s the same idea behind Basic Economy seats now being offered on American, Delta and United. But is it right for you? For some yes, others no; only you know what you need on an airplane and what you can live without, but this can help you decide…

Portugal's Douro Presidential Train: The World's Tastiest Rail Journey
Dappled sunlight gleaming off its regal blue livery, Portugal's Presidential Train glides out of the medieval heart of Porto towards the Douro Valley on the start of a new addition to Europe's selection of luxury rail journeys -- a nine-hour gourmet excursion through one of the most beautiful wine regions…

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Lodging

Hotels Add Plugs, Ports for Device-Laden Guests
Many older hotel rooms have outlets hidden behind nightstands and desks. But hoteliers are listening to travelers such as Delaney and thinking carefully about the "plug-ability" of new properties when designing them and retrofitting older ones to handle multiple devices…

A Peek Inside Gran Hotel Manzana Kempinski La Habana, Cuba's First New 5-Star Hotel
The Gran Hotel Manzana Kempinski La Habana opens June 7 in Havana, Cuba, marking the first time a new five-star luxury property has opened in Cuba since travel restrictions were lightened during the Obama administration…

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Other and Odd

Traveling Abroad this Summer? Here is How to Stay Safe and Informed
Preparations can range from a number of things travelers don’t even think about, Christensen said, like whether their medications are legal in other countries or if they left stray bullets from the shooting range in their bag (which happens to a “surprising” number of people who end up arrested overseas, she said). The Miami Herald spoke to Christensen during her visit to Miami earlier this month about what precautions travelers can take before they set out this summer…

With Eco-Friendly Travel More Popular than Ever, Approach Green Claims with Skepticism
A survey by the Singapore-based online travel agency Agoda.com found that 58 percent of hotel guests preferred staying at an environmentally friendly property. Nearly 40 percent said they’re willing to spend an extra $10 a night to sleep in a sustainable resort…

Today in History

Aer Lingus is Founded
On May 22, 1935, Aer Lingus was founded as the flag carrier of Ireland. In Gaelic, Aer Loingeas means "Air Fleet"…

Press Releases of Interest

2018 Touring Season Launches Today With Top 10 Most Popular Tours - Backroads Touring Co.
On May 22, Today, we will be releasing our Top 10 tours for sale…

Editorial Musings

Giving out free advice? Some say it’s a bad move; I disagree!
by John Frenaye
Monday May 22, 2017

I got a call the other day inquiring about pricing on our “upcoming group trip to Antigua.” Seems pretty routine, right? Well, the catch was that we did not have a trip to Antigua. I assumed she got her wires crossed and meant to call someone else, but she was insistent. In the end, we discovered she stumbled across an article I wrote in 2004 for MSNBC where I referenced a trip that we had done in 2003 to…Antigua. We shared a little laugh and then I got to…

  — Travel Research Online
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Mike's Morning Missives

How to Respond To Negative Customer Feedback

If you are a business owner, you’re eventually going to get some negative feedback from your customers or other people you work with or for.  While your initial reaction is probably to get defensive and mad or upset, negative feedback is actually a good thing.  It means that your customers are giving you an opportunity to improve your business.

The most important thing to remember when getting negative feedback is to not over react.  Sure, getting mad could potentially give you an energy burst to be more effective and get more things done, but it’s more likely going to get you worked up over nothing and make you waste time (I understand that at the moment, this is a lot easier said than done).

There are two…

  — Travel Research Online
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Publishers Corner

What do YOU want?
by Richard Earls
Sunday May 21, 2017

The question "<em>What do you want" can sometimes be one of the most difficult to answer. It's an odd psychological quirk we often find it far easier to say what we don't want. Perhaps you have had one of these conversations:

"Where do you want to eat…

  — Travel Research Online
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One-to-One Interviews

Ted Sykes, President and COO of American Queen Steamboat Company

With over 20 years of travel industry experience, Ted Sykes knows cruising. Before coming to American Queen Steamboat Company he had previously been CEO of eWaterways, as well as CFO of Viking and The Vantage Group. Ted made his entry into deep sea cruising by launching the cruise shipping division of Saga Group in England, where he served as CEO from conception to full operation. Holding a B.B.A in Finance from the University of Wisconsin, Ted Sykes got his start in the travel industry through finance; before diving head first into travel he was a partner with Young & Rubicam, Inc. In 2012 Ted became President and COO of American Queen Steamboat Company where he…

  — 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!


Upcoming Training Opportunities


Find the Ungoogleable!

Find the Ungoogleable!

Thursday, May 25, 2017 at 1 pm EDT/10 am PDT

Find the Ungoogleable!

Register Now ➠


Goway's Germany

Goway's Germany

Wednesday, May 24, 2017 at 12 pm EDT/9 am PDT

Join Goway Travel as they take you on a journey of Germany. Discover more about this popular destination and learn how Goway can assist you in getting your clients getting beyond the gateway cities.

Register Now ➠







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