The rest of Q&A

Q – Having just received my retirement “papers”, my wife and I are off to see the world for the next twenty years. That is of fate, my knee joints, and arthritis, all permit it. The few trips that we’ve done abroad were a mixed bag, and we found that so much is determined by the quality of the guide. Love this site and but we’ve never heard you address this issue. Do you get better guides on escorted tours or when you pay for more deluxe private arrangements.

A – Excellent question. Generally speaking, you will get the very best guides on a higher-end escorted group tour. Here’s why: Almost all guides are contracted. If they can secure work with a well-known tour operator who is going to be doing multiple departures of the same tour, they can depend on a full season of work. Most of the better guides prefer looking after groups because the tips they receive from a happy bus load of guests can be many times greater than the tips they would receive from just one couple.

There is, of course, another view. Some of the better tour guides think it is below them to escort groups of folks and to play to an “audience”. It is sort of like bragging to your friends that you just had a great dinner at Applebee’s. Guides love to brag to other guides that they just showed Justin Timberlake around the Medina. They prefer customizing their commentary and really getting to know one or two couples at a time. The best guides can receive both salary and tips and the very best book up months in advance and can get you around crowds and bureaucracy.

If you would like the best possible, genial overview, we think one of the guides associated with one of the Top Ten rated escorted tour firms will best meet your needs. If you detest crowds and have a particular sightseeing agenda, private guides can absolutely make a trip exceed your expectations. o note that every escorted tour member evaluates their guide in writing. The bad ones are quickly weeded out, a comforting thought given your investment. Have a wonderful retirement.

Q – Now that the Iranians have promised not to build nukes and the Syrians are dismantling their nerve gas depots, it is time for a family cruise to Israel we’ve been putting off for close to 20 years. We’re not worried, if you’re not worried, about taking our teens, 15 and 17, to Israel on a cruise this summer. Before we start our search, please tell us what we should be looking for in terms of ports in Israel. It appears there are several places a ship can stop and we want to see as much as possible.

So first, would you bring your children to Israel right now and what port is the best for a family that wants the best bang for the buck?

A –  Actually, you might want to consider taking your kids to Israel and leaving them there for a few years. They will find an absolutely lovely country carved out of the desert, with history, great schools, a serious culinary environment, and a people dedicated to squeezing every moment out of each sun-drenched day. Of course you should go – you should not have waited this long. Travel in Israel is far safer than in many areas of the US and the Israelis are better drivers. As driving accidents are the most serious danger in virtually any country you visit, the statistics on Israel are quite good. By the way, Tel Aviv, is a hip, beautiful city, with an incredible night life that attracts travelers from all over the world.

There really are two major ports in Israel. Ashdod is on the West Coast, in the middle of the country within driving distance of Jerusalem and the Dead Sea on the eastern border. Tel Aviv is north of the port, along the coast.

The second port in Israel is Haifa which is in the northern portion of the west coast. The Golan Heights are due east on the other coast. Haifa is an easy ride to Nazareth.

The bottom line is that Ashdod is the preferred port.

Q – We are really excited to be going on one of the first scheduled tours to Cuba. We just signed up but we had two immediate questions. Will our iPhone work in Cuba and what do we do with our Passport? Will we be carrying it with us?

A – You will be able to use your iPhone and you will not need a converter. Service people in the hotel or even in restaurants will be able to charge the hone for you, if necessary, Carry at least one full copy of the picture pages of your passport with you, including photos copies stored on your phone. You will leave your passport in the hotel safe. All Cuba “People to People” Tour Operators provide full documentation as your departure approaches. No worries. Just expect a more-or-less regimented tour experience led by a “true believer.” One important cultural note: Duck Dynasty is now quite popular in Cuba, and if you get cable in your hotel, highly likely, you will be able to watch Uncle Si dubbed in Spanish.

Q –  We are going to be attending a conference  in London next  month and we’re trying to figure out whether we should be booking our air on American or United out of Chicago. The seating in Business Class is really important to us and we are wondering which of these has beds that will allow us to stretch out? It looks like we will be flying a 777 on United or a 767 on American.  Are the beds all the same?

A – We were in a great mood here until you asked about airline seating. It is a rather upsetting topic because they are definitely not the same. There are no industry rules or even “norms”.  Airlines buy a “shell aircraft” and then customize it with seating that meets their needs. Financial needs almost always come ahead of aesthetic needs. When flying, you can analyze exactly what your seating options are going to be. We keep a book on our desks that we constantly update with seating stats on every aircraft operated by every one of the world’s important airlines. It is currently 47 pages.

The American 767-300 offers a seat width of only 18.5 inches. We would expect that in coach – not Business Class. The aircraft does not have lie flat beds. American has equipped this aircraft with Angle Lie Flat beds. That is a big difference. On any flight over five hours, we think you should look for true, 360 degree horizontal, lie-flat seats. Frequent travelers report that angled beds that do not allow them to lie flat, as you would at home, are far less desirable than true “Lie flats”. Airline marketing lingo tries to confuse the consumer as each seat has “Lie Flat” in its nomenclature. The question you need to ask is “true lie flat or angled lie flat seat?”

The United 777 200 Series will give you true Lie-flat beds plus 20 inches of seat width. But beware, one version of the United 777, the V3 model, has Recliner Seats in Business and doesn’t even have beds. On your routing, however, you will have better seating on United in Business Class.

One caveat. If you are flying American overseas on a 777-300 ER Series aircraft, you will have true Lie-flat seats as well as 26 inches of seat width, clearly preferable to United’s configuration. So it all boils down to the exact type of aircraft you are flying.

One more – final caveat. Our experience tells us that airline reservation agents are not always a good source of accurate information about seating details. Do not try to get comparative seating statistics directly from the airlines.

Q – Our family of five is booked on a Crystal Cruise to New England and Canada in top suites in Mid-October. We booked this cruise largely based on the traveltruth ratings, the most honest we’ve found. But given our substantial investment for two doubles and a single all upper decks, I am concerned about my lack of ability to cancel close in should a hurricane be forecast. Two questions – how likely is this possibility during mid-October and how do I best protect my investment?

A – Long-term weather prognostication is a dying art. There are just too many exceptions to the old weather rules since we’ve started to see the effects of major weather pattern changes (our conspiracy  nutjob readers hate it when we say “global warming”) Theoretically you should be safe cruising the coast of the Atlantic in Mid-October. But storms are possible. You can protect your investment by taking out one of the “cancel for any reason” riders offered through your consultant from Travelex or TravelGuard, two of the better travel insurers.

Q – My boyfriend and I are professionals in the fashion industry in New York and we are in dire need of a Caribbean getaway sometime in December, perhaps over the Holidays. We like hip resorts with progressive food and rooms with modern design touches. We also have rather high expectations about service, a rare commodity, from what we understand, on the islands. I’m a Vegan, if that makes any difference. We’d be bringing along some work, but mostly, this is a vacation for soaking up the sun and relaxing with a little Buddha music in the background. Any suggestions?

A – First, do this so you are home by the 18th of December. You will save a great deal of money, more than enough to pay for a second vacation, and you may actually be able to get some seats on an aircraft. The resorts we are recommending are either sold out or close to it for the Holiday period.

We think you should concentrate your search on Parrot Cay or Gransevoort in the Turks & Caicos. Check out Jade Mountain or Ladera on St. Lucia. Finally, you might love the vibe at the Eden Rock on St. Barts. Have your consultant get you the actual hotel inspection reports of each of these properties so you can make an educated decision. And please, be back by the 18th. The “amateurs” start arriving on the islands that afternoon.

They have vegetables in the Caribbean. In fact, Bob Marley used to smoke them. No worries.

Q – My husband and I have just returned from a week in Paris. We were rather amazed at the number of homeless people on the streets. We had been there in 1994 and it was nothing like this. The smell of urine is everywhere and people are just setting up cots on the sidewalks all over the city.  You should tell your readers about this as it really impacted our memories of Paris on this trip. You go to Paris for the perfume – not this! Any idea why this is happening?

A – It is a problem, but we still rank Paris as one of the planet’s most beautiful cities. The fact is that homelessness in France has doubled in the past decade, the result of a shrinking economy and an influx of poor immigrants who can’t find work. Our experience is that most of the homeless are in the main tourist areas looking for handouts. Part of the explanation as to why this is more of a problem in Paris than it is, say, in London has to do with cultural attitudes toward begging and homelessness. Under London law, you cannot stay in one place in the street all day and sleep there in a tent etc. It is against the law. There is no criminalization of homelessness in Paris. In fact, studies in Europe have shown that the French are the most tolerant of the down and out because they have this deep-seated feeling that it could, one day, happen to them.

Q – Hi – I have spent some time on your site, and I have to thank you for the effort you put in, and the advice that you provide – it is a great resource. I have seen a couple of comments or recommendations in regards to cruise vacations that I would like you to expand on, if you could.

The first is that for ‘air-fare included’ cruise lines, a client would be better advised take the credit and book their airline tickets directly. Can you really do better than the cruise line (and is the credit they offer really enough to let a client do so?) The second is that a client should deal through a travel agency, rather than booking directly with the cruise line. Why – especially with the “miracle pricing” you have alluded to – isn’t that only available when you deal direct?

A – Thank you for visiting www.traveltruth.com  We have been gratified with the response worldwide given that we have never sent out a press release announcing the site. You asked two questions that would require lengthy responses. But for now, we hope this suffices:

 01 – The question regarding air is “It Depends”. Every cruise line air department operates differently and each negotiates its air contracts differently. The top lines normally negotiate better fares than are available online. But they may negotiate these fares more than a year in advance of your actual cruise date so they have no way of knowing of their offer will be “average”, “outstanding”, or “terrible”. They can only guess. We’ve seen, for instance, round-trip Business Class airfare offered for $1990 per person. That s a savings of more than $2,000 off the prices we are currently seeing on most European routes. For coach fares, most studies have shown that internet sites are actually higher than the airlines own corporate sites. Air strategy is something you always need to discuss with your consultant. There are a great many variables and every air scenario is totally unique.

 02 – There are numerous reasons why you never want to book directly. When you book a cruise directly with the cruise line you are always charged the travel agent commission even though you are not using a travel agent and you are not receiving the services implied in the fee.  You receive nothing for it. In fact, you specifically do not receive the consortium benefits offered to member agencies.

Personally, we don’t much care to pay for something we do not receive. In that sense, charging direct booking clients the travel agent commission is, in our view, gross misrepresentation.

As to your point about miracle pricing – no, in our 31 years in this industry, we’ve never seen a price offered to a client by a direct sales heatset at a cruise line that was not available to any professional travel agent. It just never happens. If a line did that, they would likely lose the support of the agency community they depend on.

 There are lots of other reasons involving advocacy if there is a problem etc. But let’s leave it at that.

Q – We will shortly be taking our first cruise aboard the Celebrity Eclipse. Do you like and recommend this ship and Celebrity generally? Also, we read on the internet that you are supposed to bring a set of magnets on a cruise but we have no idea why nor does our travel agent. Any advice would be appreciated.

A – You should love it. Have modest expectations as Celebrity, despite its advertising, is not a Five-Star inclusive experience. However, we believe that the Celebrity brand provides the overall best big ship, pay-as-you-go experience currently available. You are going on one of their newest ships with all manner of bells and whistles. Do dine in the additional charge restaurants and you will have some memorable meals as well as service similar to that you would receive on a higher-rated line. For a first cruise, we don’t think your travel agent could have made a better recommendation.

Your question about the magnets made us smile. This is a sort of insider tip known to experienced cruisers. Cruise cabins are most metal, as opposed to being built using cement walls. If you bring some magnets with you, you can stick any invitations you receive up on the walls. Some cruisers feel this is a great way to keep track of their special classes and activities. We prefer our iPad mini.

Q – We are heading to Jamaica for a vacation that will involve a great music festival in Kingston. We’re foodies but know little about dining in Kingston. Any recommendations would be appreciated. Our air fare and hotels are set. Know you will provide trustworthy advice.

A – While Jerk Chicken is everywhere, we would suggest you seek out locally caught fish. The best restaurant in Kingston is Norma’s on the Terrace, a place that will give you a contemporary take on classic seafood preparation.

But we want you to be very careful about your transportation to and from Norma’s or anywhere else you go in Kingston at night. Kingston, Montego Bay, and several other popular tourist destinations ion Jamaica have serious crime problems and they carry a stern State Department Warning. Naïve Americans walking about at night in search of a restaurant or a taxi are potential targets. You can enjoy some wonderful nightlife and some really good Caribbean cuisine, but we’d feel better knowing that you had arranged secure transportation through the Hotel Concierge. For the record, we do not send our clients to Kingston under any circumstances.