From Russia with love and other exotic destinations

Our latest podcast feature Bob Rech talking about some off the beaten path destinations and non conventional cruising with National Geographic.


To listen to our podcast click on this link

Planet Travel Podcast for November 6, 2013

Bob, Alice and Don from Planet Travel talk about the TSA know before you board program, where are clients are going, some exotic and some not so exotic and why we like Sandals. 

Now is the time to book last minute travel.


Click here to listen to our podcast.

Planet Travel Insider Podcast

Hello world.  We are up and running.  Sorry about that rather annoying buzz.  Our technical wizard took the day off.  But here is some good  information from your friendly Planet Travel Travel Geeks.



Click here to listen to this episode

Wash Your Hands Often and Drink Lots of Water

Marketwatch recently published a list of  "Ten Things Cruise Lines Won't Tell You."


Including:

3. “We’ve got a drinking problem.”

As the abundance of phrases like “three sheets to the wind” (meaning very drunk) and “splice the main brace” (an order to drink, delivered by a commanding officer) suggests, drinking and sailing have long gone together. And they continue to do so today. “Cruising is vacation,” says Colleen McDaniel, managing editor of consumer site CruiseCritic.com. “People like to relax, try the drink of the day, sample some wines or enjoy some celebratory champagne.

While some small luxury cruise lines like Regent Seven Seas, Seabourn and Chrystal Cruises are essentially open bar, mass market lines treat booze as big business. Since on most cruise lines, food and some nonalcoholic beverages are included in the ticket price, it’s that much more urgent that they make some profit off the booze. Ships sell drinks with restaurant-style mark-ups or through all-you-can-drink packages. (Carnival’s Cheers program costs $42.95 a day, although they do cut people off after drink number 15.) When CruiseCritic polled readers in 2011, more than a fourth of respondents said they typically spend more than $200 on drinks per cruise. (The average cruise lasts seven days.)

The trouble with drinking on a ship, some say, is that many cruises have instituted policies that prohibit passengers from bringing aboard bottles (either from home or purchased ashore). That means passengers are stuck paying the ship’s prices. Royal Caribbean, for instance, does not allow guests to pack beer or liquor. While it does permit two bottles of wine per room, a $25 corkage fee applies for each bottle consumed in a public area. Experts say some passengers have responded to the policies by trying to sneak past them. But when contraband is found, typically when bags go through the security screener, it’s confiscated.

Royal Caribbean didn’t respond to requests for comment. The Cruise Lines International Association says such policies help crews make sure overzealous passengers don’t end up too drunk. 

Read more by clicking on this link. 

We miss the peanuts

Yahoo just listed this Readers Digest/ABC report:  "13 Secrets Airline Pilots Won't Tell You"


The safest and most comfortable seats are over the wings.  Turbulence won't cause a plane to crash.  And you should try to fly early in the morning.


Read more by clicking on this link.

When it the best time to buy domestic air ticket? 49 days in advance

From Yahoo finance.


Bargain-conscious travelers have been trying to answer the question for years and are still stymied: How far in advance do you have to book to get the best airfare?

According to new research by CheapAir.com based on the travel site's review of 560 million airfares, the optimal time to book a domestic flight is 49 days in advance. If you're flying overseas, you should book almost three months -- 81 days, to be precise -- before you travel.



Read more by clicking on this link.