The rest of Q&A

Q – We are booked on a tour that will concentrate on the history of Persia (Iran). Yesterday, my local newspaper announced that several women have been attached by having acid thrown in their face for not dressing in the proper Islamic fundamentalist manner. The trip is in three weeks and we are seriously thinking of cancelling. What does your staff think we should do? Appreciate any help with this.

A – Clearly travel to Iran has its inherent risks.   Eight  women were harmed in the acid attacks, 1 of them died and several were blinded.  They were all in or driving cars and had stopped to make a phone call or drop a friend off and two men came by on a motorcycle and threw the acid.  

If it was us, we would still go…  but we would stay with the group and keep our wits about us.  The risk in and around hotels which cater to westerners and tourist sites are not being targeted.   They will be traveling by bus, so the MO of the attackers would not be possible – plus authorities believe they have the assailants in custody.

The US and Australia have not posted travel warnings other than to say stay away from the borders with Afghanistan and Iraq.  The UK’s language is stronger, but refers more to UK nationals being arrested in Iran for political reasons.

Likely, these resent attacks are the result of a new piece of legislation coming down on morality police/militias as the new regime tries to move in a more secular direction.

But please note our fundamental (oops sorry – perhaps the wrong term) feeling that if you are truly fearful about a trip you should cancel it immediately. A vacation ought to be something you look forward to, not a game of Survivor.  

Q – We have been debating cancelling our planned trip to South Africa next August. We read the comments from the fellow whose wife is spooked – you advised them to cancel their trip. But I am sure many of your followers would like a simple, up-to-date summary of where the Ebola problem stands in terms of future travel to Africa. We are from Manhattan and we don’t scare easily. And my wife is even more anxious to go than I am.

A – We are not going to give you the same advise we offered to the gentleman whose wife had real concerns about their trip. We think the following summary from Abercrombie & Kent summarizes the situation quite well:

• Africa is a vast continent. The Ebola outbreak in West Africa is thousands of miles from safari destinations in East and Southern Africa and there are no direct links by land.
• Commercial flights between West Africa and East Africa, and West Africa and South Africa have been suspended.
• Major European carriers – including British Airways and Air France — have suspended flights to West Africa so their planes are not picking up travelers from the region.
• East African and Southern African countries have introduced restrictions on entry for those who have passed through Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia.
• There have been no cases of Ebola in East or Southern Africa including Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
• Senegal and Nigeria have been declared by World Health Organization as free of Ebola virus transmission. Both countries had victims in the current outbreak of Ebola, but vigorous quarantine and contact tracing proved successful in halting the spread of the disease.
• Dakar, Senegal, is closer to New York (3,818 miles) than it is to Nairobi (3,865 miles) and Cape Town (4,100 miles).
• It’s important to keep in mind that Ebola is not transmitted through casual contact, but by direct contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person.

Every situation, every traveler, is unique. The ground operators in Africa will, of course, try to put the best face on it. But the facts speak for themselves. How interesting that Nigeria has eradicated the disease, but we’ve had two cases in the United States. Our problem is that many low-income individuals use local clinics or small rural hospitals in the United States. They are less well-trained in the handling of a serious epidemic than big city hospital centers with close ties to the CDC. People feel they want to run away from “Ebola” to be safe. The fact is that the United States does not qualify for the list of the world’s safest places – not even close. Other than “travel paranoia”, a disease you have not yet caught, we can;’t come up with a single good reason to cancel your upcoming trip.

Q – We were going  to sit down with a travel specialist and then we discovered traveltruth. I am Slovenian and I have had a rather charmed corporate life. I want to take my wife, who happens to be from Nicaragua, to Lake Bled, a place my father spoke about for years. I am sad to confess I’ve never been there. Rather than a tour, I would love to go on one of the small group Private Jet trips  where everything is included. I do suffer from mild coronary disease and wonder if doctors go along on these trips? Is there anything you can recommend next year that would include Lake Bled.

A – You need to look carefully at TCS Expeditions Eastern Europe and Beyond by Private Jet Program departing from London on September 17th next year and returning to London on October 6th. This tour spends two nights in Ljubjana and you have the opportunity for a full day trip to Lake Bled. This tour visits Prague, Riga, Krakow, Moscow, Kotor, and Baku in Azerbaijan.  The price, a relative bargain given the quality of the hotels being used, is $59,950 per person. And, yes, there will be a physician accompanying the group, something that is not automatic on around-the-world-by-private-jet tours. Private jet tours are easy on the body, much easier, than traditional commercial aircraft, train, or bus travel. You will see nine countries in 20 days and your longest flight segment will be two hours and forty-five minutes. Take care of yourself and hope this works out for you.

Every year thousands of tourists travel to Tanzania and Kenya in the hope of getting a glimpse of one of nature’s greatest phenomenons. It is one of the most spectacular sights you will ever witness, but it is one that is unpredictable and can vary wildly from year to year. The migration traditionally describes the movement of wildebeest from the Serengeti in Tanzania to the Masai Mara in Kenya, however climate has a big impact on the behaviour of these animals and their path is not strictly defined. To know more about wildebeest migration, you can check out on wildebeest migration map.  The wildebeest move in relation to the availability of food, which is largely dependent on rainfall. During the rainy season, they are typically found on the plains in the south east of the Serengeti, moving to the woodlands in the north west during drier times.

Q – A co-worker turned me on to this site yesterday and I hope you can help me even though I am not a client. We’re booked with a well-known agency in Los Angeles. Our plans are to go on a safari taking in Kenya the Serengetti and the Masai Mara. We booked with a reputable travel agent through a very well-known tour operator and we are scheduled to leave in less than 90 days.

Our travel agent keeps telling us that travel to Kenya is not a problem and that it is a long way from the West African nations affected by Ebola. What would you do.   We have been told we can still get out of it, but our agent insists it is safe. My wife is really worried about this and will be most anxious to read any reply you might provide. I have been pushing her all along to go on this trip.  We understand that you are under pressure to say we should not try to get out of it.

A – Actually, we’re not. You don’t see any safari providers advertising on this site. In fact, our feeling is that you should postpone this trip. If you were sitting across from us, that is what we would advise.

Your travel agent is giving you generally correct information. The game parks in Namibia, Kenya and Tanzania remain free of any Ebola-related dangers. Namibia private luxury safari tours are advising you not to go for two specific reasons:

First, you are saying that your wife has anxiety and is worried. Case closed. A vacation is supposed to be totally enjoyable. Sure, there is nothing wrong with pushing your limits, but if you both can’t enjoy the pre-trip “high” that should precede any vacation, we think it is time to cancel. Your travel agent can come back and earn her commission another day. When it comes to vacation planning “Happy Wife – Happy Life” takes on some specific meaning. Don’t plan on going anywhere unless your wife is enthusiastic about the choice.

The second reason has less to do with Ebola than it does with some serious security services warnings about imminent danger in Nairobi from anti-western groups related to Al-Queda. This is just not a particularly safe part of the world. We do not have faith in the government’s ability to interrupt planned attacks on western interests or tourists.

Understand that ours is a minority view within the travel community. You might want to solicit other opinions.

Think about changing your itinerary to southern Africa where security is stronger and the game opportunities can be just as rewarding. Look at Botswana and Namibia in addition to South Africa. Travel safe.

Q – We are looking to celebrate my recent retirement from Citibank with a trip that has only one major requirement: We wish to visit the world’s most beautiful beach. There is little interest in visiting the second best beach or the third. We certainly understand the subjective quality of this question but, “Is there a beach that you would recommend that might satisfy our two decade-old obsession?

A – We have our favorites but the beach of your dreams may well be Anse Source d’Argent, a lovely boulder-studded oasis on the lovely island of La Digue in the Seychelles. In terms of credibility, this beach has been named the world’s best by National Geographic in their book “The 10 Best of Everything”.

Closer to home, if you don’t mind about a hundred or so fellow visitors, you might want to check out one of our favorites, the Soggy Dollar Bar on White Bay on the small island of Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgins. Yacht-owners know it well.

Q – My husband and I are making our second trip to London and we are scheduled to fly a 777 on American. The model is a 300, whatever that means. We have asked for aisle seats across. Our travel agent says this is a great plane but we know that sometimes the information on this site is more accurate. My husband is a large man and 6’4“. Would you spend the extra money for the more leg room economy seats?

A – The 777 is a really comfortable ride, provided you are seated in the front of the aircraft. The 777-300ER holds 304 passengers, 220 of whom are accommodated in coach. The seat pitch is 31″ and the aisles are notoriously narrow. It is virtually impossible for a passing passenger to walk past you without knocking into your arm. The window seats on this aircraft produce a curve that can cause neck pain. The newly designed seats are narrower and less comfortable than some AA seating on other aircraft.

Given the health issues of having your knees pinned back for a protracted period of time, we would certainly recommend that you invest in “Main Cabin Extra”, which will get you additional leg room. If that is unavailable, we would say you should consider springing for Business Class. Follow this strategy when you travel until your husband ages enough so he begins shrinking.

Do consider getting g a credit card that will get you the miles you need to upgrade on your next trip.

Don’t look at Business Class in terms of seat comfort. Look at it as a kind of health insurance when you travel.

Q – Forgive me, but I just don’t get it. My wife wants to bring the grandkids, ages 8-16 on a seven-night Disney cruise. I’ve heard they do some special things but have no sense of the experience. Wouldn’t the family have just as good a time on an adult line like Princess that also offers kid’s programs?   I never bought into the mouse and the characters. It all seems so juvenile. If I see a fake pirate running around the ship I’m liable to shove him overboard.

A – But you won’t – because that would be juvenile. Then there’s the matter of “the hook”.  If the cruise is really for the grandkids, and you’re not just bringing them along to accompany you on vacation, Disney is as good as it gets.

You will do rotational dining with the  same waiter throughout. In Animator’s Palate, you draw characters that come to life onscreen. The Aqua tube is a big hit and it runs efficiently. Every cabin gets use of a cell phone/walkie talkie. You’ll always know where the grandkids are. The electronic wristbands for kids participating in the kids program works well and the staff can pinpoint the location of each child on a screen. The shows are professionally produced and truly memorable. The movies are fun and Disney puts their latest on the ships.  The only nudity will be a quick shot of Tinkerbell.

Yes, you have to buy into the concept and yes, there is lots of cross-selling of toys that kids find hard to resist. But Disney is all about families while other lines realize that too many kids will adversely affect the number of adult cruisers they will be able to attract. That is the crucial difference and the reason that we have to rate Disney as the ultimate experience for cruisers whose primary concern is the well being, the joy, and the memories, their children and grandchildren will take away from the experience. Oh, and do remember to bring a suitcase filled with Purell.