WE ARE PLANNING A MEMORABLE FAMILY VACATION IN FRANCE. WHAT ARE THE MAJOR ‘BEHAVIORAL’ RULES TO KNOW?
Q – Although our planned trip to Paris and Bordeaux with our grown kids and their three children is still eight months away, we are wondering if there are a few cultural rules we ought to start drumming into everyone now? In other words, what does it take to be a successful “tourist” in the…
ANXIOUS TO STAY IN THE COUNTRY THEY SAY DOES NOT EXIST? SO WHERE IS IT?
Q – (9.7.24) This one may be a wild goose chase but a fellow golfer was bragging that he was planning to visit a country that really “does not exist”. But he claims he can still go there and intends to add that nation notch to his rather wide belt. Does this ring a bell…
IS IT TRUE? IS THERE REALLY AN AIRLINE THAT CATERS TO DOGS
Q – (9.4.24) I heard it but I won’t believe it until I hear it from you. There is now an airline that caters exclusively to dogs? Is there a “just cats” airline as well? A – There have been several budget airlines that cater to “mutts” but, yes, BARK Air is now flying. Nothing…
OFF TO BRUSSELS AND BRUGE IN APRIL, 2025. WILL WE NEED TO GET ETIAS PASS?
Q – (9.4.24) – Our trip for ten days will take in some fine dining in Brussels and some boating through the center of Bruge in Belgium. But I read that there is this new kind of Passport called ETIAS that is now required for all Europe-bound Americans. Can you let us know the latest…
READY TO TRAVEL AND NEED FEEDBACK ON A 32-DAY VIKING CRUISES AUSTRALIA CIRCUMNAVIGATION
Q – Good to see that you are keeping up this site. There is really nothing else like it. After some downtime, we are ready to travel with you again. This time, we are thinking about a 32-day itinerary on Viking, recommended by friends, that does a full circumnavigation of Australia. Love to know what…
How Do We Find the Best Travel Insurance Information that Isn’t Biased?
Q – We have been doing mostly vacations in the West and Southwest – two exotic parts of the world given that we live in South Burlington, Vermont. But now that I have tried my last case I think we are ready to do some intensive travel. I am an information gatherer and am ready…
HEADING TO HAWAII AND PLANNING TOURING BY HELICOPTER – IS IT SAFE?
Q – My husband and I have been to Hawaii twice before. We went up in a helicopter in Maui once and we were rather pleased although a tad nervous when the wind drafts carried us upward. Now, we are going back to Hawaii for three weeks, in part, because we want to help the…
SHOULD WE SWITCH OVER OUR CURRENT REGENT BOOKING TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE NEW ROUND-TRIP LIMO THAT IS INCLUDED WITH AIR?
Q – We are fairly new to the cruise game – so forgive us a rather basic question. We are, or were, happily booked on a lovely Regent Seven Seas Cruise to Japan in 2026. We live in Arizona and were thrilled to discover we could receive free air with our cruise in Business Class,…
REQUESTED AGENCY REFUND FROM HOTEL BUT HAVING TROUBLE GETTING AIRLINE TO RETURN TRAVEL AGENCY COMMISSION
Q – Thank you! Amazing how much of the “travel truth” escapes media interest given the huge ad spending stats from the industry. My wife and I are in our early forties and we are waiting to travel internationally until we get a bit closer to retirement age. We do most of our own planning,…
GOING ON A LONGER SEABOURN CRUISE AND WONDERING IF THE DOCTOR’S SERVICES” COME WITH THE FARE?
Q – (5.14.24) I won’t bore you with my medical history. I am going to be 79 and I have type-2 Diabetes along with several other maladies – some related, some not. We are going to be going on a 54-day sailing on Seabourn in Asia that combines several shorter sailings. Can you confirm that…
IS IT TRUE THAT AMA WATERWAYS HAS BEEN SOLD AND HOW MIGHT THAT AFFECT OUR BOOKING ON TH MEKONG NEXT JANUARY?
Q – (5.12.24) We can’t wait to sail the AMA Spirit to Vietnam and Cambodia. But a friend who follows social media more closely than I ever will, just advised us that AMA has been sold and that it is no longer an American company. We’ve sailed with them twice before, once on the Duoro…
FREE TIME IN THE SUBURBS OF BUENOS AIRES
Q – (5.13.24) My partner and I enjoy your fresh take on the waves of travel nonsense that is produced by social media each day. And that, sort of compliment is coming from a team that produces some of that noise for a wide variety of corporate clients. We are, in fact, off next week…
IS IT TRUE THAT WE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO GET AMERICAN MILES WHEN WE BOOK EITHER CELEBRITY OR BACKROADS TOURS?
Q – We had a long weekend, so my wife and I planned out a cruise we will be booking on Celebrity Cruises to Europe next summer, which we will follow with a Backroads Walking Tour of Spain. We spoke to our travel agent who knows that we always fly American out of Charlotte. I…
We Have Friends Who Sailed on Regent and Did Not Receive their Luggage Until They Returned Home
Q— (5.5.24) Our friends recently returned from a Regent Cruise sailing out of Athens. They were booked on a pre-cruise program. Their flight out of New York was canceled, and they ended up with a new schedule that required several flight changes. They arrived in Athens after 38 hours of flying. According to the Apple…
GETTING A RESERVATION AT ONE OF THE TOP FIFTY RESTAURANTS WORLDWIDE
Q – As my wife and I work, almost continuously, on our Five-Year Travel Planning, we find ourselves drawn to the list you published several months ago of the World’s Top Fifty restaurants. Fine dining seems as good a reason to visit a country as anything else, so we are trying to use two or…
WE ARE BOOKING THE GORING HOTEL IN LONDON BUT HOW DO WE KNOW IF WE ARE GETTING THE BEST RATE AVAILABLE?
Q – It would appear that The Goring in London meets with your approval. We work with a TA and she is a member of one of the major consortium groups. However, I was able to call the hotel directly and get an extremely competitive rate with no hassles. We are collecting countries, 73 to…
IS SUNDAY STILL THE BEST DAY OF THE WEEK TO BOOK A DOMESTIC AIRLINE TICKET TO SECURE THE BEST FARE?
Q—I have a guidebook that says Sunday is the best day of the week to book a flight within the USA. Prices seem to go up on Monday. This sort of makes sense but it also seems too simple to be true. Is there a time of day when the average air ticket is lower?…
IS STOCKHOLM STILL THE COOLEST CITY IN SCANDINAVIA WORTH A ONE WEEK WINTER VISIT?
Q – We are three friends – all in our thirties, all financially comfortable, and all working for West Coast architectural firms. We ski and take lots of photos, but we travel primarily to be stimulated by new ideas in urban planning, architectural design, and lifestyle planning. We like to go where the world’s happiest people…
IS THERE A SHORTCUT TO FGURE OUT WHAT US AIRPORTS HAVE NON-STOPS TO A CERTAIN DESTINATION?
Q – I travel for business and my husband and I travel as much as possible overseas for pleasure. Inb our early forties, we are somewhere in the world about 60% of any year. But trying to really figure out flight schedules is terribly frustrating. Just wondering if there is a website or specific source you…
WHAT IS THE DEAL WITH AN OCTOBER CRUISE TO JAPAN? ANY SECRETS TO CLEARING A WAIT-LIST?
Q – This is a rather fascinating site. As a resident of Manchester U.K. I must admit that some of the cryings about travel displeasure seem uniquely American in nature. I have been planning my own travels with few issues for about twenty-five years. But I have just recently run into a stone wall trying…
DON’T LIKE SURPRISES? MUST I GO TO DINNER DRESSED AS A PENGUIN?
Q – We are planning on doing a 14-night Regent Seven Seas Cruise to Australia and New Zealand next winter. I was wondering if you could tell us how many formal nights there will likely be so we can plan on packing. A – There will be zero formal nights. Sorry if this is disappointing….
HOW DO I KNOW IF MY FAMILY IS SAFE AS WE WALK OUT OUR HOTEL FRONT DOOR AT NIGHT IN WARSAW, PRAGUE, AND BUDAPEST?
Q – We are planning a visit to Europe in the Fall that will include Warsaw, Prague, and Budapest. We are not budget travelers at all, so quality hotels are not an issue. But we wonder about making certain that the areas around a hotel we might choose in these cities are safe at night….
JUST FOR THE RECORD – IN 2024 WHICH CRUISE LINE RANKS # 1?
Q – (1-26-24) I just received my issue of Travel & Leisure, and I counted eight cruise lines that were touting the fact that they had won “World’s Best” Awards. Viking claims they have won top line in several categories including Riverboats and Cruises. As we are in the New Year, I wonder if there…
THIS MAY SEEM LIKE A WEAK EXCUSE TO VIST PARIS – STILL AGAIN!
Q – (1.26.24) – Just so you know ……….there’s Fodor’s, AFAR, TripAdvisor, Travel + Leisure and 10,000 blogs that deal with Parisian Bakeries. But, in good faith, we are coming to you in the hopes that you will take our question sort of seriously. My wife, Marie, is of French background. I have childhood memories…
WE ARE WONDERING WHICH DESTINATIONS SEEM TO BE BENEFITTING FROM WEATHER CHANGES DUE TO GLOBAL WARMING?
Q – (1.12.24) We are, as we write this, sitting at a table piled with travel brochures we’ve been collecting. We are trying to figure out where we should be headed this coming summer in Europe? This led to some discussion and we are wondering what trends you are seeing at traveltruth? Have people changed…
SHOULD WE BE BOOKING OUR FUTURE TRAVELS ONLINE?
Q – (1.12.24) My husband’s Dad passed away a few months ago and we have inherited enough money to do some serious travel going forward. We live in Colorado and we are skiers so we have not felt the need to travel overseas more than once. But as we get older, we want to see…
LIKE THE QUESTION ANONYMITY BUT WONDERING WHO IS MINITORING CRUISE OFFERS?
Q – (1.12.24) – Have enjoyed discovering this one-of-a-kind site. Kudos for forcing all questions to be on subject and anonymous. It surely helps eliminate 90% of the BS encountered on other travel platforms. We cruise at least three times a year since my retirement. We have, I must confess, done Royal Caribbean with the…
13 CRUISES LATER – LOOKING FOR SOMETHING REALLY DIFFERENT
Q – While we would enjoy boring you with the details, you are well aware of the cruises we have booked over the course of our eleven-year relationship. We are ready to commit to something new and exciting for 2024 but we are looking for something completely different – a destination of true exploration where…
ROME VERSUS BOCA – BEST NIGHT FOR DINNER?
Q – We are going to be headed to Rome and points south for two weeks in early October. (I know you are aware of this). May I suggest that you try to include more coverage of questions related to food and dining both in the US and abroad? Here is an example: My sweet…
