international travel Page 9

On the Sunday, October 17th, 2021 edition of The Travel Guys… In the Travel News, vaccinated international travelers will soon be welcome in the US, an international airline (SAS) is ditching the mask requirement for some flights, and Captain Kirk soars into space. Our Smarter Traveler segment talks about United Airlines extension of many travel credits/vouchers, and an update on the Southwest meltdown from last week. Ed Perkins, travel journalist and advocate for travelers, talks to us about the fight against resort fees. Turns out Ed was the first to write about the evils of the fees when they first reared their heads three decades go. Reporter Clayton Whitehead attended the new show Dear San Francisco: A Love Story, at the Club Fugazi in San Francisco last week. This new show replaces the long-running Beach Blanket Babylon.

On the Sunday, October 10th, 2021 edition of The Travel Guys… In the Travel News, Southwest Airlines had another meltdown this weekend, with flight cancellations numbering well over 1,000. Depending on who you speak to, it was either due to bad weather in Florida, a shortage of staff and crew, or the alignment of the moon. Canada is telling travelers you must be fully vaccinated. This is for international AND domestic travelers, arriving by flight, train or cruise ship. Many more countries are announcing reopening post-COVID, including Australia, Viet Nam, India and a number of others. Entry requirements vary. Our Smarter Traveler segment addresses airline vouchers. Many travelers have them because of COVID cancellations, and they have been around a long time. What's the one thing you don't want to do with airline vouchers? Try to resell them. We invite listener call-ins, to discuss travel questions of the day. Have you resumed traveling? Do you dine comfortably in crowded restaurants, are you a "to go" tipper? Are you tired of hotels blaming the lack of services on COVID, or are you willing to be understanding a bit longer?

On the Sunday, December 1st, 2019 edition of The Travel Guys… In the Travel News, Uber has run a fowl of the transportation authorities in London and has "lost" its license to operate in the city.  The penalty is suspended however, giving Uber a small window in which to fix their regulatory issues, including passenger safety.  The Travel Guys highlighted Uber's safety record and policies in a recent program...  Airlines don't have a lot of healthy options when it comes to buying on board, but Alaska Airlines has been determined to have the most healthy food on board.  Hawaiian is at the bottom of the list. The US Department of Transportation is expected to announce new, stricter rules for non-service dogs on planes, following a recent string of incidents.  In addition, several veterans with legitimate service dogs have been denied boarding with the animals, in part because the serviceman or woman's disability wasn't obvious to the airline staff.  The rules are obviously being interpreted differently in different situations  We at The Travel Guys say it's about time pets are taken out of the cabin.  The airlines need to reduce the charge for handling pets and increase the level of safety for those animals, reducing the need to "game" the system. Our smarter traveler segment reminds you there is one really important thing you should have on your phone BEFORE traveling out of the country: The emergency phone numbers in the country or countries you will be traveling in.  Clayton Whitehead is sitting in for Tom on this holiday weekend and he has the scoop.  Find a list of the numbers here. Chris Hart of the Sacramento River Train joins us to tell everyone about their special holiday trains for the family this month.  The Magical Christmas Train and the Holiday Dinner Train are two great options. Clayton is just back from New York City, where he led an annual excursion which included shows, a chance to see the Macy's Parade and sightseeing in The Big Apple.  He has tips for why or why not to take a visit to New York City around holiday season.

This Sunday, on the February 2nd edition of The Travel Guys... In the Travel News, we'll tell you how you can win a cruise while you are watching the Super Bowl; why the super cold weather they experienced in the east last week is really bad for your phone; and a British newspaper issues a warning about a possible eruption at Mt. St. Helens. But the warning is 15 years old. * In our Smarter Traveler segment, Mark explains why the first flight of your outbound trip should be the longest flight. Logic: The closer you are to your final destination, the more options there are to get there (more frequent flights, trains, buses, rental cars - all may come into play when you are 400 miles from your destination, but may not when you are 1,000 miles away). The guys talk about a new list of the most ethical places to visit. The Travel Morality Index, found here, is the subject of the conversation. Finally, the guys dig into the travel mailbag to answer some of your questions. If you have a question for Tom and Mark, fill out the form below. Mark tries to personally answer as many as he can, and some are answered on air. Send us a Question [contact-form-7 id="1269" title="Contact form 1"]