IT HAPPENED AGAIN: MINI-BAR OUTRAGE

Q – Like most of the folks on this site, we’re extremely well -traveled and we tend to stay in one of the three best hotels in every city we visit. I love the treatment we receive and the benefits we get from our agent’s consortium group. But one thing just drives me crazy  and…

LOOKING FOR CHIC, NEW, SMALL AND WELL-LOCATED IN ISTANBUL?

Q – We have heard that the Four Seasons in central Istanbul is small and quite nice and we’re ready to book. Thought we should run this past you first. We’re from New York, fashionionable and style-minded, we like to explore the latest hotels and restaurants when we travel and we blog for friends only….

CONNECTING THROUGH GERMANY: HOW LEGAL IS LEGAL?

Q – My work will be taking me to Germany at least six or seven times in the next year. I missed my connecting flight last time because my nothing on Expedia seems to tell you that the lines for security can be long and that even passengers in transit may have to clear security…

THREE NIGHTS IN VENICE BUT DON’T WANT A HOTEL FILLED WITH TOURISTS

Q –  We will be in Venice for three nights before taking a cruise for a week. We have only been to Europe twice, once on business but we know enough to know what we don’t like – large hotels that cater to tourist groups on the main drag, which in Venice, I imagine, means…

WHY DON’T YOU MENTION THE HORRIFIC CRUISE ON THE ANTHEM OF THE SEAS?

Q – This is a web site that appears to be unbiased. But I wonder why you have been strangely silent on the matter of the horrible conditions endured by passengers on Royal Caribbean’s Anthem of the Seas. The Captain made some serious mistakes and people thought they were going to die in a storm…

WHAT DO WE REALLY NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ZIKA. WE ARE HEADED TO SAN JUAN FOR A WEEK IN TWO MONTHS FOR A LONG-PLANNED VACATION.

THE LATEST UPDATE 2.15.16 The Zika virus is spreading rapidly across South America, the Caribbean, and portions of the southern United States. Zika is a mosquito-borne viral infection which is transmitted by the same type of mosquito linked to dengue and chikungunya. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared a state of emergency this week and the Centers for Disease Control…

IS THERE A NON-TOURISTY TEMPLE OF GASTRONOMY IN VENICE, ITALY?

Q – Love the site but really wish you would include more unbiased recommendations for restaurants. I am not sure that some of the “critics” are willing to pay for fine dining on vacation. We will be in Venice in July. We’re working with a fine agent but she does not seem to have any…

ANY HOTEL RECOMMENDATION IN INDIA’S GOLDEN TRIANGLE?

Q –  We’re planning a getaway to India and want to stay for a few days in the area of the Golden Triangle so we can take day trips to both Agra and Jaipur. From there, we really want to do one, or possibly two, of the best luxury trains within the country. Can you…

YOU’VE SCARED US: SHOULD WE AVOID THE CARIBBEAN

Q –   This Zika thing is scary, especially since we’re scheduled to spend the week  at the Four Seasons Nevis, one of our favorite resorts, a place we’ve enjoyed a half dozen times in the past. My wife and I are in our fifties and forties (you can guess which is which) and, unless…

INTRIGUING DINNER CONVERSATION ABOUT BEST COUNTRY ON PLANET

Q – We were out to dinner last night with two couples at Nomad.PDX here in Portland and a fascinating topic came up that I wanted to share with traveltruth. Our friend, the radiologist, asked us how we would respond to  the question “What is the Best Country in the World”. That led to a conversation…

DOING A WORLD CRUISE SEGMENT THIS YEAR: POSSIBLE?

Q – I have been interested in doing portions of a world cruise this year or next. But it seems as though the lines want their customers to book the full 90 days and only certain longer segments remain. I was wondering if there is any way to buy a section of a world cruise…

WHO HAS THE BEST BIKES AND THE BEST BIKE-RIDING DESTINATIONS?

Q – We want to pull the trigger on  a river cruise in 2017 but no one seems to be able to answer our question as to which of the various boats have the best bicycle riding program. We’re in our early sixties and, while I’ve ridden a bike from time to time at home…

WHY HAVE YOU HIDDEN GLOBUS?

Q –  I Did not find Globus River Cruises in your ratings.  Where do they stand?  I found that they operate on most of the rivers that the rated river boats cruise on. A –  Globus is a large, well-established, affordable tour operator based in Zurich. They own Avalon River Cruises. Their river boats all…

SHOULD WE CANCEL TRAVEL TO THE CARIBBEAN BASED ON LATEST ZIKA VIRUS NEWS?

Q – We are booked on a Silverseas Cruise calling at a number of ports in the Caribbean next month. My wife has had some past medical issues including two bouts with cancer. I called the line to inquire about changes in itinerary and getting our money back and they referred me to a web site…

PLANNING VACATION TO CARIBBEAN BUT MY GIRLFRIEND IS AFRAID OF ZIKA

Q – I am just hearing about this Zika virus on the news. It sounds pretty bad and absolutely awful for pregnant women. We’ve booked a vacation in Puerto Rico in 30 days and I have some concerns as I suppose my girlfriend, and soon to be fiance, is in the “pre-pregnancy” stage of our…

BOOKED ON PRINCESS AND ALSO WONDERING ABOUT CALLS IN TURKEY

Q – We’re in a similar situation to one of your recent letter writers. We’re booked on Princess Cruises and we’ve really not heard anything yet about major itinerary changes, refunds etc. involving Istanbul.  You seem to always miss Princess in your Q & A as well as your reviews and I wonder if you…

BOOKED ON REGENT SAILING OUT OF ISTANBUL: IS IT SAFE?

Q – It is now six months prior to our scheduled cruise in Europe – our first ever, and we’re getting a little nervous since the attack in Istanbul. That happens to be where our cruise begins and we’re scheduled to go in a day early. We’ve done everything through the cruise line, Regent Seven Seas,…

ARE YOU GOING TO TELL US TO LEAVE THE LADS AT HOME?

Q – Great resource – thanks. We’re a family based just outside of Philadelphia and we are thinking about taking our kids and my mother-in-law on a river cruise next June or July in Europe. Probably the Rhine but we’re open. We’ve had friends go on Uniworld and they were extremely pleased with virtually everything….

I DON’T SPEAK DOUBLE-TALK: CAN YOU EXPLAIN VIKING RIVER’S INSURANCE?

Q – We’re sitting here reading the Viking brochure we had to download because our agent didn’t have any. We’ve asked about insurance and she told us that Viking has a cancel for any reason policy since we took out their insurance at the same time we just made our deposit. Did we make a…

LOOKING FOR HEAVEN IN BORDEAUX

Q –  After a good deal of research on this intriguing site, we’ve pretty much decided to book Scenic’s 21-Day “Gems of the Seine and Breathtaking Bordeaux.”  I retired in May and we’re now set to start working our bucket list which I’d love to have your team help us with. We don’t really want…

ANY SUCH THING AS A RIVER CRUISE FOR HIP MILLENNIALS?

Q – My boyfriend and I have read most of your site and while there is some interesting stuff I wonder why you don’t talk more about boats that cater to people like us. We’re in our late twenties, have already been to Europe four times, and we’re active and rather hip when it comes…

HAS CROISIEUROPE FOUND A WAY TO BEAT THE LOW-WATER PROBLEMS?

Q – Our TA is pushing a CroisiEurope river cruise on the Loire next May because she feels that their boats “will not have a water issue”. She generally knows what she is talking about but we use her primarily for ski trips and Disney. We want a great experience with no worries about all…

CAN WE HANDLE UNIWORLD’S DECOR?

Q – We have friends, he’s a lawyer and overly critical, who just got off a Uniworld Cruise. We’ve been waiting for their comments as we’re planning our first riverboat trip next August which we hope we can do through you. They really loved their Danube experience but they said we might find the design…

WHY DOESN’T VIKING HAVE THE GUTS TO CALL ME BACK?

Q –  I receive emails and brochures from Viking Cruise.  I called on 12/30/15 about a promotion set to end on 12/31/15.  The agent was very nice and friendly.  However, we were wanting/needing the standard stateroom.  After being on hold for about 5 minutes, she came back and said the company had not even opened…

IS THERE AN EMERALD IN OUR FUTURE?

Q –  Your site is amazingly thorough and helpful. Thank you. I found an answer to a question about how you would rate Emerald but I’m not sure how long Emerald had been in existence at the time of your answer. You appeared to not say a whole lot but were overall very positive and,…

CAN YOU RECOMMEND A SMALL, WELL-LOCATED HOTEL ON PARIS’ LEFT BANK?

Q –     Since the attacks in Paris, we’ve changed our vacation plans from Ireland to France, our token measure of support for the French. We’d like to see if we could spend no more than $600 per night at a boutique property on the Left Bank that will put us close to the city’s…