Let's hear it for generous older travelers who roam the globe

Here are three things you should know about older travelers:

* There are a lot of them. Between Jan.1 and Dec. 31of this year, more than 7,000 of the nearly 78 million American baby boomers, born 1946-1964,  will turn 65 every day.  Those statistics come from AARP.

* They are traveling and spending. More boomers are turning to travel as a top leisure activity and they     are outspending their younger counterparts by an average of 74 percent on their vacations. That's the word from suddenlysenior.com.

* They are a generous lot. The Grand Circle Foundation  is  working with an organization that serves orphaned children in earthquake-ravaged Japan. The foundation sent an e-mail to travelers one night this week between 7-11 p.m. and as of yesterday at 5 p.m., $62,853 in donations had come in from 615 donors -- which, combined with the $25,000 match by Grand Circle Foundation, brought the donation at that point to $87,853.  Donors are Grand Circle and Overseas Adventure travelers, associates in Boston and around the world, as well as trip leaders and program directors.

Grand Circle Travel, along with sister group Overseas Adventure Travel,  is a favorite of older travelers. (The fellow in the accompanying Grand Circle photo is meeting the terra-cotta warriors in Xian, China.) So it's no surprise that this week more than 1,000 seniors are participating in Boston meetings to talk about, and hear about, overseas travel.  As we indicated, there are a lot of older globetrotters out there ...  and I'm proud to be one of them.

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Trivial question

 The lily is the symbol of which country? (Answer somewhere below.)

Stay at these hotels and get your airline baggage fees back

InterContinental Hotels Group will be extending its Check It Free promotion through April 30. Guests can now get back up to $100 in checked baggage fees for each round-trip flight with a two-night weekend stay at any of InterContinental’s 4,500 hotels worldwide including InterContinental Hotels & Resorts, Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts, Hotel Indigo, Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Club Vacations, Holiday Inn Express, Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites.

Worth quoting 

“To travel is to discover that everyone is wrong about other countries.” -- Aldous Huxley

Take 10% more off Nantucket inn's sale rates

People who stay at the Jared Coffin House on Nantucket now through May 18 will get an additional 10 percent off the inn's Hot Dates, Cool Rates sale. Those cool rates start at $125. 

Fascinating fact

The Himalayas have 19 of the 25 highest mountains in the world (but don't ask us to name them from memory). 

Royal Caribbean rolling out an alcohol-buying package
USA Today reports that Royal Caribbean Line is beginning to offer a package rate on buying alcoholic beverage. The offers range from a Beer and Wine Package for  $29 per person per day for all beers, house wine by the glass and a 25% discount on all other wines and liquors, to a Premium Package, at $49 per person per day for a whole lot more, including cocktails. Ah, but the offer will first be available only on selected ships that cater mostly to European customers.The full story is here.

So who says gasoline is getting expensive anyhow?

 Last-chance spring special in N.H. for $99

Snowy Owl Inn & Resort in Waterville Valley, N.H., has this offer for the first 100 bookings only: a $99 inclusive rate from now until the end of April for almost any room in the house. Book online using promo code JUST99 at www.snowyowlinn.com; the phone number is 800-766-9969. That price includes taxes, there are 10 room types to choose from, and the offer is even valid Easter weekend.

Trivial answer

The lily is the symbol of France.

 

What to bring to make your travels more pleasant

Last week we presented advice on stretching your travel dollar from Teri Gault, who as  CEO of  GroceryGame.com has traveled many, many miles. This week, we present her advice on what to bring with you when traveling. These are a few of her favorite things:


Hand sanitizer: Gault says that people have between 2 and 10 million bacteria between the fingertip and elbow -- areas that you frequently, if accidentally, end up touching. She recommends Veripur hand lotion. (You, of course,  might have your own favorite among germ-fighters or other products she mentions.)

Sneakers: Bring running shoes in your carry on, if you are changing planes. If you miss a connecting flight, you may be stuck in the airport for a day or more. So if  you’re running late on the first flight, before it lands, take off your slip-on shoes, and put on your running shoes. "I have literally run to a flight, and wouldn’t have made it any other way, many times," she says. (Isn't travel fun?)

Bottled water:  Bring at least one water bottle on the plane, or better yet two. After you go through security, go straight to a vendor and buy two overpriced water bottles, even if your flight is going to be short. Why? "On a short flight from Memphis to Phoenix last week, we were stuck in the plane for an hour and a half before takeoff. Once out on the tarmac, the flight attendants cannot serve any beverages. The plane was hot; unless you are at the gate, there is no air." Meanwhile, when in a hotel don't buy water --  use an empty bottle or the one you bought at airport and fill it up at the gym. It is cold, free and filtered.

Bed bug spray: These days it pays to be prepared. Her choice is Stop Bugging Me! 

An iPad : It's Gault's favorite and most necessary item when traveling. Mine, too. You can check  email, watch movies, and kill time reading blogs like this one. The iPad has great battery life and is relatively light to carry. (The iPad 2, to be announced this week, may be lighter yet.)

 Snacks: You'll avoid those airport prices. Gault's favorite high protein travel snack is raw almonds.

 Zip-lock bags: The practicality of zip-lock baggies such as Tili Bags when traveling is unmatched by any other travel accessory, says Gault.   

Trivial question
What does the sign on Mount Lee in California say? (Answer somewhere below.)

Springtime in Lisbon -- for under $1,000

This spring, Lisbon -- Portugal’s capital on the Tejo River --  is promoting  a host of new museums, restaurants and cultural venues and hotels.  Azores Express/SATA has a weeklong package from Boston, with six nights' lodging and air starting at $969 per person. 

 Packages from Boston to Lisbon (via the Azores) depart Tuesdays and Fridays mid-September through the fal, combined with six-night stays at a choice of four hotels. For Tuesday departures, packages range from  $969 to $1,619 per person, double occupancy (plus tax). All packages include daily breakfast. Travelers can choose a package that combines a stay in São Miguel in the Azores for the same $969 base price. Children under 6 pay child’s airfare while children under 10 pay 10% of the hotel rate, plus airfare.
 New this year is the modern Tivoli Oriente, a 4-star hotel in the newest part of the city, the riverfront Nation’s Park, and near the Oceanarium.  The other featured hotels include  Hotel Azores Lisboa, a modern 4-star hotel in the city’s business and shopping district; the downtown Tivoli Jardim, set near major sites and shopping; and the Hotel Mundial, right in the city’s center. The Mundial, recently restored, was famed as a center of espionage during World War II.For more information or reservations, call 800-762-9995 or visit  www.sata.pt.

Worth quoting

“I told the doctor I broke my leg in two places. He told me to quit going to those places”. – Henny Youngman

Ski and stay in N.H. from $60 a person-- or even less

A ski-and-stay package that includes lodging and lift tickets at New Hampshire's Waterville Valley Resort can be had from $60 per person a night, quad occupancy. Package guests also receive half  off rentals, all day Kids Venture Kamps and Child Care. The deal is being offered midweek in March plus the weekends of March 25–27 and April 1–3.

New this winter is a Wicked Long Ski Weekends package, which offers guests the option of checking in as early as 12:30 p.m. on Friday, with a 3 p.m. checkout on Sunday. Free skiing on Friday afternoon is included. The price starts at $89 a person per night, double occupancy, in December, and $158  in January, February and March. Meanwhile, guests can ski on St. Patty’s Day (March 17) for $17 and stay the night for $17 a person, quad occupancy. Then there is an April Fool’s Day package: Stay March 31 or April 1,   and ski April 1 from $51 a person, double occupancy. The package includes a $50 dinner certificate.

Call 800-GO-VALLEY or visit www.waterville.com.

Fascinating fact

Aiea, Hawaii, may be the only U.S. community whose name contains just vowels. (If you know of others, feel free to tell us.)

Choice Hotels now offering $50 gas cards

Guests who stay two separate times at a Choice Hotels property, March 3 – May 4 can receive enough Choice Privileges points to redeem them  for a $50 gas card. Travelers, in fact,  can earn more than one $50 gas card during this promotion. To be eligible, they must book at ChoiceHotels.com or by calling 800-4CHOICE.

Trivial answer

The sign on Mount Lee reads HOLLYWOOD and is, in fact, one of the world's most famous signs.

Fun, fun, fun at Curious George Festival in N.H.

 You've got to love Curious George. New Hampshire's Waterville Valley certainly does -- so much so that the 4th Annual Curious George Cottage Family Festival returns  Aug. 13-15,  featuring a weekend full of family-friendly activities including a banana pancake breakfast, a family nature walk, a Fireman's BBQ lunch, photo opportunities with George and the Man With the Yellow Hat, a traveling barnyard, face painting, games for kids, a Curious George story hour and movie viewing, planetarium shows, and a family spaghetti dinner. Whew!

Headlining the festival will be musician Steve Schuch, and storytellers Rick and Carolyn Hunt Schuch will sing "Songs & Tales of the Earth," celebrating nature in all its diversity. Rick and Carolyn, better known as The Laughing Couple, combine Native American storytelling and improvised art into one program for audiences of all ages.

Wristbands for the 4th Annual Curious George Cottage Family Festival are $28 per person for a 3-day pass. Children two and under get in free with a paying adult. Limited tickets available at the event. While in Waterville Valley, families can also enjoy swimming and canoeing on Corcoran's Pond, walk along Waterville Valley's many hiking trails, skate at the WV Ice Arena, or play a game of tennis at the WV Tennis Club.

Participating hotels are offering  festival packages, which include Friday and Saturday night  lodging, a round of golf per day at the WV Golf Club, a Festival Wristband, and a Curious George souvenir.  (That wristband includes admission to the Fireman's BBQ Lunch, Photo Opportunity with Curious George, Petting Zoo, Live Music, Mad Science Show and Fun Station, Storytellers, Face Painting, Games for Kids, Curious George Storytime, Movie Viewing, Planetarium Show and Nature Walks). Additional fees are charged for the Banana Pancake Breakfast and Curious George Spaghetti Dinner; tickets  can be purchased with wristbands.
   
Curious George, a sweet simian who is now featured in books, movies and television,  was born in the imaginations of H.A. and Margret Ray, who spent their summers in Waterville Valley.
For more information about the area and the Reys, call 1-800-GO-VALLEY or go to www.visitwatervillevalley.com.

Trivial question

On average, how many people are airborne over the United States at any given hour?  6,100? 61,000? 610,000? Or 61,000,000? (Answer somewhere within this posting.)

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A memorable free travel exhibit in Boston

 To celebrate their  passion for travel, Grand Circle Corporation Chairman and Vice Chairman Alan and Harriet Lewis have accumulated an extensive collection of vintage travel posters dating from the early 20th century up to World War II. They are now sharing their collection with the public through the Grand Circle Gallery, which opens to the public Friday in Boston.
In addition to vintage travel posters, the gallery will feature the breathtaking photography of their late friend,  Bradford Washburn, who also was a founding honorary director of Grand Circle Foundation, their company’s charitable organization.

The gallery will also include the Lewises'  black-and-white photography—some travel-related, like the vintage images of Europe photographed by George Daniell, and some reflective of times of historic world change, like the dramatic portrayals of the civil rights movement captured by photographer and filmmaker Danny Lyon, and photographs of the 1960s by Elliott Erwitt, including a portrait of Jacqueline Kennedy at her husband’s funeral in 1963.

Grand Circle Gallery is housed in Boston’s Fort Point Channel district, in a historic 19th-century brick building whose first tenants were Chase & Co., a confectionery company that patented America’s first candy machine in the early 1800s.  Today, it is the headquarters of Grand Circle Corporation, parent company of Overseas Adventure Travel and Grand Circle Travel. For more information on the gallery, click here.

Fascinating fact

American Airlines saved $40,000 in 1987 by eliminating one olive from each salad served in first-class. Or so legend has it anyway.

A luxurious lake stay in Missouri

A Day on the Lake Package is being offered by Chateau on the Lake Resort & Spa in Branson, Mo. Featuring an Ozark mountaintop setting overlooking Missouri’s  Table Rock Lake, the AAA Four-Diamond resort features a full-service marina that the resort says offers more water sports activities than any other resort in the Midwest. Offerings include watercraft rentals, such as ski boats, fishing boats, waverunners, catamarans, paddleboats, sea kayaks, and canoes. Parasailing, guided fishing excursions, scuba diving, and snorkeling are among other options.

 

In addition to accommodations for two nights in a lake view room, the package includes a $150 credit for the Chateau Marina to be used toward one of the water sports offered, as well as a picnic lunch for up to four people. The package, which is available through Sept. 30, begins at $570 per room, plus tax, and is based on availability. For reservations or for more information, call 1-888-333-LAKE (5253) or (417) 334-1161 or visit www.chateauonthelake.com.

Trivial answer 

 On average, 61,000 people are airborne over the United States at any given hour.

These questions have a kind of magic all their own

Photo by Walt Disney Co.

There's nothing temporary about the Contemporary Resort, near the Magic Kingdom.

Guests at Disney's Magic Kingdom sometimes ask the strangest questions. Here, from the book "Realityland: True-Life Adventures at Walt Disney World," are some of the questions that give a new meaning to the term "no-brainer":

* "Are you part of the scenery or do you work here?"

* "When will they tear down the Temporary Hotel and build a permanent one?" [Er, the hotel's name is actually the Contemporary.]

* "Is this bus going to the Polyester Hotel?" [Er, that's the Polynesian.]

* "This place cost over 400 million? Do you have any idea what that is in dollars and cents?"

* Is that the Fairy Godfather's Castle?

* "Just look at the water on that lake!"

* And, my favorite: "Can you show me the way to Toilet Land?"

Fourth of July will sizzle in Chicago ...

Chicago will be an excellent place to spend the Fourth of July weekend, with lakefront fireworks on both July 3 and July 4, the annual Taste of Chicago dining event and many fun and free family activities such as the Lincoln Park Zoo, Millennium Park, and Buckingham Fountain. For those who want to stay in style, the Four Seasons Hotel Chicago, steps from Lake Michigan, and scenic Lake Michigan – has an Experience More package that sort of pays you to stay. Guests get a $100 to $200 room credit per night, based on room category, The credit brings room rates down to a starting point of $295 per night . Still not inexpensive, but this is the Four Seasons after all.

Call 312-280-8400 or click here.

... and sparkle in New Hampshire

New Hampshire's Waterville Valley Resort will have an old-fashioned New England Fourth of July with a town-wide parade on Sunday, July 4, a free outdoor concert and a fireworks display over Corcoran's Pond. And on July 3 at Packard's Field, there will be games, crafts, a 100-foot obstacle course, fireman's BBQ, band and dunk tank. A holiday deal: two nights' lodging, parade flags at check-in, a free glow necklace, and a host of included activities. Prices start at $46 per person per night, quadruple occupancy.

Go to www.visitwatervillevalley.com or call 800-GO-VALLEY.

Worth quoting

“Don’t tell me how educated you are, tell me how much you traveled.”

-- Mohammed

Fall trip prices are expected to jump

With many airlines expected to cut capacity later this year, Travelocity.com says consumers are likely to see price increases as early as fall, making trips this summer a relative bargain. A Travelocity report shows average domestic airfare is $299, down 17 percent from last summer, and the average price of hotels is $142 per night, a decrease of 14 percent. For a family of four, that represents a savings of $374 on accommodations and airfare for an average six-night domestic summer vacation. Similarly, with both average international hotel rates ($197) and airfare ($690) down 14 percent compared to last year, a family of four can save an average of $847 on airfare and hotel for a typical 13-night international vacation.

Time for a (very small) chuckle

A sobbing hotel guest phoned the front desk to say she couldn't get out of her room. "I don't understand," said the clerk. "Why not?"

"Well, the guest said, "there are only three doors in here. One is the bathroom, one is the closet, and one has a sign on it that says, 'Do Not Disturb'!"

Vermont luxury lodge offers a deal for its birthday

Vermont's Stowe Mountain Lodge is celebrating its first birthday with a package with a package deal that is good through Sept. 30, but must be booked between 12:01am on Sunday, June 21, and Tuesday, June 23. A rate of $299 per night to include a choice of one a 50-minute pure results facial, a 50-minute massage of your choice, a 50-minute body treatment. a three-course dinner for one plus wine pairings, a one-hour guided hike followed by a royal foot treatment in the spa or a $100 gift card to be used in Stowe Mountain Lodge's retail shops. This represents a 30-50 percent discount, and although there are blackout dates, there is still room for July 4 weekend.

Visit www.stowemountainlodge.com or call 888-4-STOWE-VT and refer to booking code BIRTHDAY.

Answer to Friday's trivia question

The United States and Canada are the two countries that border three oceans -- the Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic.

Families can save at a YMCA that is hardly typical

Most people might not make the YMCA their first choice for a family vacation. But there are affordable Y cabin and lodge vacations still available in Colorado, and they appear to be nice indeed.

Both the YMCA of the Rockies Estes Park Center in Estes Park, Colo., surrounded on three sides by Rocky Mountain National Park, and at Snow Mountain Ranch in Winter Park, situated in beautiful Grand County, near Winter Park Resort offer:
* Buy two, get the third night free packages.

* Free activities on-site, from miniature golf to night hikes.

*  Accommodations including fully equipped mountain cabins or comfortable lodge rooms.

* Two free adult breakfasts per lodge room.

At Snow Mountain Ranch, package rates start at  $109 per night in a lodge room that can sleep up to six adults, and includes two adult breakfasts per day. At Estes Park Center, package 
rates start at $164 per night in a lodge room that can sleep up to five adults. Both offers include two adult breakfasts per day.

Visit www.ymcarockies.org or call 800-777-9622.

Fascinating fact

The Taj Mahal took as many as 20,000 workers and 20 years to complete. (But the results are quite nice.)

Hurry, hurry: Virgin is having a one-day sale

Virgin Atlantic is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a 24-hour sale today for flights from Newark Liberty Airport to London, with fares starting at $186. Book by midnight for travel starting on July 1. 

Visit www.virginatlantic.com.

Monkeying around in Waterville Valley

We're giving you plenty of notice on this New Hampshire event. Waterville Valley Resort’s Curious George Cottage Family Festival will take place Aug-7-9.  The Margret and H.A. Rey Center will be host, and among family events will be a Curious George character lunch, nature walks and hikes, children’s games, a lobster bake, Curious George movies, and astronomy and star gazing. Why, there will even be banana pancakes. A lodging package features Friday and Saturday night lodging, admission to the Fireman’s BBQ Lunch, a photo op with  George, a petting zoo, many activities and  a Curious George souvenir. Prices start at $56 per person per night (based on quad occupancy).

Visit www.ReyCenter.org. 

You deserve a cruise, along with extra savings

Through Aug. 31,  members of the Cruise Lines International Association -- both travel agents and the cruise lines themselves --  are staging a You Deserve a Cruise promotion, with savings and  incentives. After all, says Terry Dale, the association's president and CEO, "Now more than ever, a vacation is what people really need." We agree. 

Read all about the offers  here.

You also deserve a chuckle, of sorts 

Two men are engaging in the old debate on whether Hawaii is pronounced "HaVaii" or "HaWaii." 
They ask a passerby, who answers, "Havaii."
"Thank you," says the  first man.
"You're velcome," replies the passerby.

Trivia answer: The statue is in Ireland

Yesterday's mystery photo (see it below) was taken in Cobh, Ireland. The seaport community, once called Queenstown, was  the departure point for 2.5 million of the 6 million Irish people who emigrated to North America between 1848 and 1950. The statue depicts  girl named Annie Moore, and her brothers. Annie Moore was the first person to be admitted to the United States through the new immigration center  at Ellis Island, New York, Jan. 1, 1892. For the honor of being first, she was presented with a $10 gold piece. It was her 15th birthday.

Oh, those wise-cracking flight attendants!

Illustration by Boeing

Flight attendants must get tired of making the same announcements and instructions several times a day, so some attendants give them a new twist. Here, from a variety of online sources plus the evidence of my own ears, are some announcements heard (or allegedly heard) on planes:

* There may be 50 ways to leave your lover, but there are only six ways out of this airplane.”

* Please turn off all BlackBerries and also blueberries and raspberries.

* You'll find the smoking section on the wing of the aircraft.

* Be sure to take all of your belongings. But if you're going to leave something, make it something we'd enjoy having.

* We hope you enjoyed giving us the business as much as we enjoyed taking you for a ride.

* Weather at our destination is 60 degrees with broken clouds, but we'll try to fix them before we arrive.

* We thank you for flying with us, and the next time you get an urge to go blasting through the skies in a pressurized metal tube, we hope you'll think of us!

All-in-one summer fun in Waterville Valley, N.H.

In New Hampshire, Waterville Valley Resort's all-inclusive Summer Unlimited package lets  visitors to selected accommodations  pay one fee for a range of activities. In June, prices start at $37 per person, for a family of four. Included are two hours of mountain biking daily, a ride on Snow's Mountain Chair Lift, unlimited tennis, unlimited use of the White Mountain Athletic Club, unlimited ice skating, daily golf, unlimited transportation, boating on Corcoran's Pond, and gym programs. There are also a-la-carte optional programs.

For more information or reservations, go to www.visitwatervillevalley.com or call 800-GO VALLEY (468-2553). 

Fascinating fact

There is one slot machine in metropolitan Las Vegas for every nine residents. The area has about 200,000 slots and approximately 1.8 million people.

Eloise packages at NYC's Plaza Hotel

Do children still read the "Eloise" books. Apparently so, because come June 1, the Plaza Hotel in New York is going to offer Live Like Eloise and Live Like Eloise Slumber Party packages in honor of its most famous and mischievous fictional guest, Kay Thompson’s Eloise. Neither is inexpensive. The Live Like Eloise package includes overnight accommodations in a Deluxe Rose Suite, a complimentary upgrade to the next available suite category at time of booking, a copy of the Eloise book, a Super Duper Sundae from in-room dining, and Eloise postcards with complimentary postage. Rates are from $895 a night. And if you think that's pricey, try the Slumber Party package for up to six guests, which includes overnight accommodations in a Plaza Suite, a copy of Kay Thompson’s "Eloise Guide to Life: or How to Eat, Dress, Travel, Behave and Stay Six Forever" (would that we could),  Super Duper Sundaes from in-room dining,  Eloise postcards with complimentary postage, and an assortment of Eloise DVD’s accompanied by Eloise’s favorite movie snacks. Rates begin at $3,595 a night.

For details on both packages, click here or call 888-240-7775. For hotel information, visit www.fairmont.com/theplaza. 

Ride 'em Elvis: Graceland opens its stables

Beginning today, Graceland in Memphis will open its stables to the public. Elvis, you see,   "was happiest when riding horses," says ex-wife Priscilla. Among the equine attractions is Maxc From Maine, age 3, who was rescued from being euthanized, and Sun's Reflection, a relative of Elvis' golden palomino Rising Sun. Elvis Presley's Stable Tour at Graceland costs $8-$15.
For details on this and other Graceland tours, click here.