Mike FriedmanWe’re back with my favorite way to start the weekend: Notes on the odd and ostentatious that we’ve seen in the world of travel for the week. This week, we’ll discover some cruising activities that you should avoid, compare the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow airplane with the efficiency of a choo-choo and visit a hotel where you really don’t need air conditioning.
Eleven (Nine) Ways To Get Booted From A Cruise
The most impressive exit that I’ve ever witnessed took place while I was on a Disney cruise several years ago. Early in the morning, there were a bunch of announcement and activity on the port side of the ship. Over the course of the day, the news began to spread: After we had arrived in port, a guest on another ship had fallen into the water and our ship picked him up. It’s not as benign as it sounds: A fall from any height on a cruise ship could be enough to do some serious damage. But it wasn’t until later that the real dirt came in. An employee with whom we’d become friendly gave us the rest of the story: Apparently, the passenger had been a little tipsy and tried to recreate the “I’m the king of the world” scene from Titanic. He missed.
Anyway, here are eleven other ways to get kicked off a cruise, although #4 and #5 appear to be missing. Double secret probation?
Added bonus: there’s a slideshow on the page listing eight items that you shouldn’t eat at a ship’s buffet. If you never learn anything else from me, learn this: No dessert on a cruise line is worth the calories. Get a cup of berries.
Trains, Planes And, Well, That’s All…
As a Boston resident who does a lot of traveling on the Northeast corridor, I’m often faced with the choice of whether I should take the train or plane to cities like New York. Amtrak is kind of evil, but there’s no question that it’s a faster way to get from city center to city center, particularly since La Guardia has turned into something out of Dante’s Inferno.
This article talks a little about the train vs plane conflict and, while I’d love to write some clickbait headline along the lines of “Six Amtrak Routes That May Shock You. Don’t Miss #4!,” there is, in fact, nothing in here that will shock you. Even with all of Amtrak’s “idiosyncrasies,” the train is often simply a better option for people who don’t care about their miles, since Amtrak’s loyalty program is simply awful.
“I Can See Santa From My Living Room”
Even wanted to visit your Elf on the Shelf in the off-season? Now’s your chance, with the opening of the North Pole Igloo Hotels, a collection of luxury domes at the North Pole. And yes, you will have a private bathroom, but it comes at a high price: 95,000 euros, for what appears to be a 3-night stay. And only one of those nights is at the Igloo Hotels. What a rip-off! Don’t have the cash? No problem. Just wait a couple of decades and it will be 85-degrees year-round, anyway.
What Do You Prefer?
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Bonus…. Bonus | World of Travel
Added World of Travel – HVAC bonus: You won’t need air conditioning at the igloos (yet) but you’ll probably want it elsewhere. Trouble is, the hotels often set their thermostats so they can’t go below a certain temperature. But you can often solve that problem. Here’s a video on how to jailbreak one of the most common types of hotel HVAC systems:
This Week at LVA Travel
Find Luxury at…a Baseball Game?
