COVID travel Page 14

On the Sunday, June 13th, 2021 edition of The Travel Guys… In the Travel News, Southwest will add flights to Palm Springs and Kona this fall and we have the latest episodes of "people behaving badly on planes." In our Smarter Traveler segment, Hawaii's governor has spelled out when the testing and quarantines might be relaxed; cruise ships are getting back in the ocean - with one already reporting positive COVID passengers on board; and the CDC has changed the regulation on vaccinated travelers on SOME forms of public transportation...but don't throw away the mask quite yet. Chris Elliott, America's foremost travel consumer advocate, joins us to talk about vacation rentals. Seems owners of vacation home are getting quite creative on the fees they are adding to rentals. Chris updates us on what to look out for. Hint: The bottom line may NOT be the bottom line. Mark went to Oregon with a group of 30 travelers last week, on the heels of a trip to Nevada. How are the two states different? How are rising numbers of travelers impacting the system at airports, restaurants and the like? Mark has some observations.

On the Sunday, June 6th, 2021 edition of The Travel Guys… In the Travel News, Florida governor Ron DeSantis has an interesting Catch-22 on his hands. The cruise lines can't sail from Florida, even on test cruises, until they reach 95% vaccination for passengers and 98% for crew. But DeSantis has declared no one will have to give out their vaccination status in Florida. So how do the cruise lines meet those thresholds? Mediation has broken down, cruise lines are furious. United Airlines is giving flight attendants three days off if they get vaccinated. Interestingly enough, flight attendants are not required to be vaccinated. In our Smarter Traveler segment, we are joined by Gwen Duncan of Cordially Yours Travel to talk about the cruise situation. Gwen loves to cruise and sells many of them. She presents Gov. DeSantis' reasons for his position. Mark still thinks there will be a compromise which allows both sides to claim victory. Gwen says she would love to go on a cruise, but she wants to know the people she is sailing with are safe/vaccinated. Both concede there is a small number of people who cannot be vaccinated for various reasons. Beach Blanket Babylon ran for over 3 decades at the Club Fugazi in San Francisco. Now, a new show is set to open in the theater this fall. It will have a circus theme. We have an advance look at this new entertainment extravaganza. The Pageant of the Masters in Laguna Beach is back in business this summer. The unique cultural arts event featuring "living pictures" runs for two months in the summer. Our special guest tells you more about the festival and its accompanying art show.

On the Sunday, May 30th, Memorial Weekend edition of The Travel Guys… In the Travel News, cruise ships are getting approval to begin the process of sailing again, and a Sacramento flyer will never board a Southwest plane again after attacking a flight attendant. Vaccine passports are becoming a reality in many international countries. Want to travel? You may need one, like it or not. We'll give you an update in our Smarter Traveler segment. Plus, Airbnb is getting a LOT of pushback on the number of fees owners are adding to rentals. What do they plan to do about it? Ed Perkins is a travel writer and journalist who has been reporting on travel for nearly half a century. He regularly fills us in with his wisdom on travel issues. We'll ask him about those pesky vaccine passports, about when reduced hotel service might come back and get his input on the restart of the cruise industry. Cruise ships are really in the news. Our own expert, Gwen Duncan, stops in to tell us where the deals are and what you need to know to get them. Hints: sign up for updates from cruise lines and get a good travel advisor.

On the Sunday, May 23rd, 2021 edition of The Travel Guys… Mark is live from Oracle Park in San Francisco, Tom is in studio in Sacramento. In the Travel News, Spain says if you’ve been vaccinated, welcome; as we predicted last week, at least half of the Alaska cruise season has been salvaged, and the Canadian and Mexican borders remain closed for another month - but there's a glimmer of hope. In our Smarter Traveler segment, we tell you which hotel chains have dropped mask requirements and/or enforcement, and which ones still want you protecting yourself and other guests. Mark relates being a part of a freak snow storm in Virginia City this week and how you need to be prepared for unusual weather when you are traveling. In a recent interview, Chris Elliott's advocacy firm got an "F" from the Better Business Bureau. Chris has the story and it's a good one. (replay) Tom had the chance to talk with Jesse Colin Young, a rocker from not so long ago, in an Entertainment Guys feature. (replay)