Travelers' Intercom

June 2009 issue

Extending your air miles’ expiry date

I have been dealing with a few airlines lately in the matters of protecting or using frequent-flyer miles.

It goes without saying, but it’s worth saying again: book as early as possible and be as flexible as possible, as the number of seats open for miles redemption is steadily decreasing.

Check the expiration date of miles frequently. Don’t get caught unawares and lose your hard-earned miles.

As to protecting them as the expiration date moves closer, don’t panic. Although not widely known, with most airlines all you need is an “activity” to extend expiration — and you...

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October 2009 issue

Coping in Cuzco

In the article on Peru and Bolivia (Aug. ’09, pg. 23), the elevation of Cuzco is given as 14,000 feet. This is incorrect. The altitude most often quoted for Cuzco is 11,150 feet.

I write because an altitude of 14,000 feet could definitely discourage people from traveling there. 11,150 is high but is more manageable.

Many hotels in Cuzco serve coca tea. Where we stayed, the Novotel, oxygen was also available from the desk as a free service. A new mask was provided for each user.

Additionally, Cuzco is well equipped to deal with high-altitude sickness. On our tour in...

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July 2011 issue

Port times cut short

I read with interest the subscriber’s letter “Assigned Cabin Too Small” (March ’11, pg. 26), about his experience with Hurtigruten (Sunrise, FL; 866/552-0371). We took the line’s 14-day trip along Norway’s coast (Bergen-Kirkenes-Bergen) Aug. 15-26, 2009, also aboard the Richard With, and I must disagree with one of his observations. He said that “time is available for walking in each port.” That did not correspond with our experience.

While, in general, we enjoyed the trip, there was a major problem in that the ship was on a very rigid ferry schedule and the captain insisted on...

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November 2011 issue

Turfantastik for Turkey

I am so grateful to ITN subscriber Nancy Anderson (Feb. ’07, pg. 67), who told of her excellent experiences with Mehmet Ozbalci, owner of Turfantastik (Millet cad. Inan Is Hani No. 5/610, Aksaray, Istanbul, Turkey; phone [90] 212 589 33 25). I had kept her article, as I knew I wanted to visit Turkey.

When I Googled Mehmet’s name and saw that he was the tour operator retained by several well-known US, Canadian and Australian photo-tour companies, I was even more anxious to have him as our guide, as my husband, John, really enjoys photography. It ended up being one of the...

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September 2009 issue

Kerala backwater beauty

While in southern India in March ’09, my companion, Frank, and I traveled to the town of Alappuzha, formerly known as Alleppey. We had read about an exquisite estuary of interconnected canals, rivers, lakes and inlets where fresh water meets seawater from the Arabian Sea. Backwater tours originate from Alappuzha, three hours from Trivandrum, accessible by air and train.

We had planned an overnight on a kettuvallam, a floating cottage with a wooden hull and a thatched roof. We arranged this through our hotel about a hundred miles away in Kovalam, the Best Western Swagath Holiday...

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June 2009 issue

Comforters out of place

My wife, Verne, and I took a tour to Egypt and Jordan in November ’08, staying in a number of excellent hotels. In each hotel as well as on our Nile riverboat, the beds were fitted with thick comforters. We were not comforted. We found it difficult to maintain an adequate temperature during the night, being either too hot with it on or too cold with it off.

Comforters must be more difficult to maintain than sheets and blankets, yet they now seem to be widely used in Southeast Asia, South America, the Middle East and even at many hotels in the United States.

Can anyone tell us...

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February 2009 issue

Island volcano, NZ

White Island, in the Bay of Plenty 30 miles off the coast of Whakatane on New Zealand’s North Island, is an active volcanic site. On a December ’07-January ’08 tour, my wife, Eva, and I arranged for a helicopter tour to the island with White Island Volcano Adventure (Box 10, Waimana, Whakatane, North Island, NZ; phone/fax +64 7 308 4188 or, toll free in NZ, phone 0800 804 354, www.vulcanheli.co.nz).

This is a “must see”! You walk about, and the scenery and colors are fantastic.

Note: the airport is small and quaint and easy to miss; there is a sign just before you get into...

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August 2009 issue

Transiting London

Since ITN printed my offer of help to anyone planning a trip to my hometown (Dec. ’08, pg. 11), I’ve made contact with a number of interesting people and have even met some, so it has been an interesting and enjoyable experience which I hope will continue. It has been a learning curve for me as I become more aware of my limitations and travelers’ expectations and preconceptions.

Having recommended London TravelCards, as issued by Transport For London (tfl), and the “London 2 for 1” deal on many attractions, offered to those who travel by rail, I should emphasize the following.

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