International Travel News

Columns

September 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Over-age-70 drivers in Ireland, driving Mediterranean islands

Steve, I have heard that a driver over 70 years of age cannot rent a car in the Irish Republic. I called the Irish tourist office and their representative did not seem to know much about it but said it was probably “an insurance thing.” What can you tell me about this? Is it the government, the rental car companies or the insurance companies — or all three — that are behind this age discrimination? Are there any exceptions? Could we rent a car in Belfast, which is in the U.K., and then...

September 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Calling abroad made simple

By Philip Wagenaar

(Second of two parts, click here for part one)

In last month’s issue, I discussed two categories of subscriber telephone numbers (SN).

The first one uses a National Prefix (Nat. Pref.) for domestic calls and has the configuration z-bbb-xxx xxxx, where the “z” is the Nat. Pref. (the long-distance prefix, which is a “1” in the U.S.), the “bbb” is the area/city code (AC) and the subsequent digits comprise the local number (LN).

The second category uses no National Prefix....

September 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Cruises, new roads, retirement abroad

Free air, shore excursions and much more!

For U.S. travelers traveling to South America aboard the 5-star MS Deutschland, Peter Deilmann Cruises is implementing an array of enticements. Among them are free airfare from New York City, free shore excursions worth up to $796, free reserved Carnaval tickets and transfers, and free airport-ship transfers.

In addition, there are very low-cost air supplements from up to 40 U.S. gateways, ranging in cost from $50 to $200. Air rates...

September 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

The ancient mosaics of Tunisia

Moreen and I love to browse in Mediterranean bazaars and Middle Eastern suqs for small, locally made items. In Tunisia, we especially enjoy looking at the multicolored ceramic jars, plates and tiles for tableware use and, yes, tourist souvenirs.

Occasionally, in this small North African country, we’ve found beautiful mosaic items made by die-hard craftsmen who cling to the ancient tradition of using geometric and calligraphic designs, especially in green and yellow. The green is made...

August 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Boarding Pass

By David Tykol

Dear Globetrotter: Welcome to the 366th issue of your monthly overseas travel magazine.

98.5% of ITN subscribers have passports. (With your fellow readers, you’re in good company. No other magazine can claim such a high percentage.) So for most of you, the following reminder will merely be something to tell your friends.

If you’re scheduled to take a trip that has you, on or after Dec. 31 of this year, returning to the United States by air or sea from Canada, Mexico, Central...

August 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

A cruise director for all nations

By Lew Toulmin

Frederic Jansen is the tall, handsome, energetic and always upbeat cruise director of the Star Clipper, which sails in the western Mediterranean, the eastern Caribbean and transatlantic. He has delightful manners and a charming sense of humor. I interviewed him in January ’06 on board the vessel, which is one of three tall ships in the Star Clippers (U.S. office in Miami, FL; 800/442-0551 or www.starclippers.com) fleet; see last month’s column.

Q: Tell me about yourself, Frederic....

August 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Addressing a cruise line, single share rates, tour shopping stops

Steve, I am enclosing an exchange of correspondence I had with Princess Cruises some months ago. I consider the response from the Passenger Relations Specialist inadequate and, basically, insulting. Although he stated that my letter was being referred to others within the Princess hierarchy, I received no further response. My question to you is twofold: is there any logic to my position on the change in the manner in which repeat passengers attain different levels in the Captain’s Circle...

August 2006 issue | Appears on page 0

Sun and fun

We all love a sunny day, especially when traveling. The sun lifts our spirits, gives us vitamin D, warms us, lights our way and gives life. But the sun is a double-edged sword; it can cause sunburn, dehydration, heat stroke, drug reactions, premature aging of the skin and skin cancer.

The sun can do all this through electromagnetic radiation, primarily ultraviolet radiation, or UV. Most of the sun’s radiation is blocked by the ozone layer present in the Earth’s atmosphere, but as the...