Travel developments can combine to make a big impact
Several small developments in travel may have a direct bearing on your next vacation:
1. Mexico is fighting back against the tendency of the U.S. Department of State to issue travel advisories warning Americans not to travel to particular Mexican locations whenever a violent incident occurs. Arguing that the tourist rarely is affected by such events (like a feud between drug operatives), Mexico’s secretary of tourism has demanded that these advisories be dropped. This protest probably is why the State Department recently withdrew its advisory against travel to Playa del Carmen, which is near Cancun. The advisory relating to Los Cabos (a resort location at the bottom tip of the Baja Peninsula) likely will be withdrawn as well.
2. Europe’s airplane manufacturer, Airbus (the equivalent of Boeing), has just announced that it is planning to place sleep capsules in the cargo holds of its aircrafts, which permit passengers to stretch out at full length for sleep. Since none of us ever expected that passengers could be placed in such holds, they now will undoubtedly be heated, lighted and supplied with fresh air. If that happens, Airbus will have created a powerful lure to buy the planes it manufactures.
3. For the first time, many big-city American hotels (like those in New York City) have begun adding “resort fees” of $30 or more to the prices they total on your bill. They do this despite the fact that there is no “resort” feature whatsoever listed in their services. The next time you learn the costs of a stay at a particular big-city hotel, add the “resort fee” before you make your final decision to book.
4. In an amazing order sent to the various shipbuilding companies of Europe, Viking River Cruises has purchased the construction of 24 new river-cruise boats, which will be added to the 65 river-cruise boats they already operate. Brilliant TV commercials apparently have triggered such passenger demand that Viking has quickly reached a capacity of 100 such ships. With such an increase, the price of a river cruises possibly will remain within reasonable bounds, and an ever-greater number of Americans apparently are choosing this method of experiencing Europe.
5. Atlanta’s airport, Chicago’s airport and New York’s multiple airports apparently have lost their position as the world’s largest airports. The latest ranking of giant airports states that the Indira Gandhi Airport of New Delhi and the Beijing Airport are the two largest. Sadly, our children and grandchildren may live in a world where the United States is not equal in importance to these countries (India and China), with their populations of more than a billion people apiece.