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Health & Fitness

AUGUST – TRAVEL INSIDER TIPS

Abercrombie & Kent Cancels all Egypt Departure

A&K has cancelled all its scheduled  all its departures to Egypt for July, August and September in wake of the State Department’s issuing a strong travel warming for Egypt. They have waived all cancellation penalties and are in the process of contacting travel agents and clients to make alternative arrangements to postpone travel until the current situation is resolved. If the client decides to travel in 2013, the company will cover the change fees but the customer must pay for any difference in fares.

India’s Go Air to Employ Lighter Female Flight Attendants

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A private air line in India has decided to recruit only female flight attendants in future so its aircraft will burn less fuel carrying them than their heavier male counterparts. They estimate that it will save around 329,000 million pounds per year in fuel costs.

E-Ink Airline Bag Tags to be Tested on British Airways

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Designworks has partnered with BA to create a re-useable e-ink luggage tag. In addition, the small device officially called a Bag Tag will do away with printing paper based tags reducing paper usage. The small device features an electronic ink display which looks like paper and uses virtually no power. Perhaps the best part for the individual flyer is the ability to pull up the necessary bar code on the bag tag using a smartphone eliminating the need to stand in long lines to get a printed tag.

Hertz Debuts 24/7 keyless hourly rental service

Customers will be able to enter neighborhood parked vehicles for hourly rentals. Customers will be able to pick up the vehicle at one location and drop it off at another. You will rent a car via your smartphone and access the car via a key fob given to 24/7 members.  Hertz says 500,000 of its vehicles will be rentable thru Hertz 24/7 by 2016.

EasyJet cuts size of bags allows in overhead bins by a third

On busy flights, larger luggage will be taken away at the boarding gate and put in the hold.

US Border Control  Implements New Technology to Reduce Long Lines

Launching first in the Vancouver International Airport and then followed by Chicago, the technology will allow for passengers to skip the traditional filled out documents in favor of the now ubiquitous e-kiosks.

Automatic Passport Control will eliminate the declaration card by placing all the necessary questions on the kiosk.  Travelers will then receive a printed receipt and show the receipt rather than the hand written card. Travelers then show their passport, kiosk receipt and any other travel information to the customs agent. It can take you two hours to get thru customs. Now the Alaska cruise season has started the Vancouver airport will be a madhouse for those returning to the U.S.

Holland America is Changing the Name of their Alaska Tour Business

The name will now be Land + Sea Journeys.  Program changes will be in 2014. For example, the motor coach trip between Fairbanks and Dawson City which took up to 2 days will be replaced by a one hour flight.

The AMAWaterways offers a Theme Cruise for Knitters   

The cruise will feature luxury yarns, forums on fashion trends and classes on stitch patterns and techniques.  Textile expert Barry Klein, owner of Trendsetter Yarns in Los Angeles will host the knitting sessions.   He is recognized as one of the top ten most powerful people in the world for knitting.  Mr. Klein is past president of the National Needlework Association and has designed patterns for Vogue Knitting, Interweave Knits and Knitters Magazine. 

The cruise will be from December 27, 2014 to January 2, 2015, route, Linz Austria, Vienna, Bratislava, Slovakia, Budapest including an in depth tour of the Benedictine Abbey in Melk, Austria, a New Year’s Eve celebration including music, dancing and a champagne toast.  All Horizons Travel in Los Altos has blocked space for the unique cruise.

American Airlines Tentatively Awarded New Brazil Route

Service begins in the fall, Los Angeles to Sao Paulo. It is hoped they will get approval to fly from Chicago also. 

Wireless Maritime Services Announces New 3G Royal Caribbean Contract

A four year contract has been signed to allow cellular at sea wireless services to guests on RCI, Celebrity and Azamara Club Cruise brands.  Guests  will be able to use their own mobile devices to access email, use applications on their smart phone and surf the web at greatly increased speeds. Prices range from $30 to $120.

Maureen Jones is president of All Horizons Travel  at 160 Main Street. Members of her staff are experts in business travel, cruises, and all types of leisure.

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