Love to travel, but hate tours? This blog offers insight on how to go it alone, from safe accommodations to seeing the best, and maybe the worst. After all, independent travel is an adventure. Flexibility and traveling on a budget are critical. No five-stars or all-inclusives. So hop aboard. Learn to enjoy travel at your own pace and price. Meet other adventurers like yourself and mingle with the locals. Remember: You may travel alone, but you wonʼt be lonely. gloria.independenttraveler@gmail.com
Gloria Maschmeyer
I've been a traveler since I can remember. I spread my wings as a flight attendant at age 20, then married a traveling man and we've never stopped. While based in Anchorage, we've ventured to India, Peru, Bali, Morocco, Burma, Tunisia Singapore and Ecuador. I love ferreting out places off the beaten path. And when things don't go quite as planned, that's just part of the adventure.
Gloria's videos
Plan your trip
BEST TIME OF YEAR
www.myforecast.com
Click on "almanac," then on "historical climate" and plug in the city you wish to check.
CURRENCY RATES
www.oanda.com
For more information on currency exchanges and helpful hints, read my blogs, "Should I change" and "I've decided to change."
TRAVEL WARNINGS
www.travel.state.gov/travel
This site can help you determine the type of crime that goes on in foreign countries against visitors. It also will tell you areas of the country you should avoid.
WORLD TIMES
www.worldtimeserver.com/
Features the current time anywhere and weather. Helpful when you need to call for reservations or want to call back home while away.
WHAT TRAVELERS SAY
www.tripadvisor.com
A favorite sites to see what other travelers have to say about places to stay and visit worldwide
CAR RENTAL
www.hotwire.com
A good site for finding the best deals on renting cars anywhere in the world
TRAVEL INSURANCE
www.squaremouth.com
Web site that compares costs of travel insurance between companies.
An ancient land studded with thousands of temples and pagodas, Bagan, Myanmar (Burma)...
- 2/13/2012 12:07 am
All that glitters is gold in Rangoon, Burma, site of the world famous Shwedagon Paya (temple)...
- 2/8/2012 3:23 am
Unique waterfalls outside of Luang Prabang, Laos...
- 2/4/2012 7:41 pm
Buddhism and Laos, religion first and foremost...
- 2/3/2012 1:34 am
Luang Prabang, Laos, a respite in Southeast Asia...
- 1/28/2012 7:46 pm
Thailand is synonyms with Temples...
- 1/23/2012 5:21 am
Bangkok street food, I gave it a try!
- 1/21/2012 1:51 am
Check these travel spots for your 2012 Travel Bucket List…
- 1/1/2012 4:53 pm
full archive »
TravelFlash: Coming to an airline near you? Holiday “miscellaneous surcharges”.
Posted by indietraveler
Posted: September 29, 2009 - 7:36 pm
The airlines have this little nickel and dime game going on to increase the cost of flying without officially raising ticket prices. They started with charges for a second bag. Then graduated to charging for the first bag too.
Next came the insane when Ireland’s Ryanair threatened to charge for toilet use. What’s next?
Miscellaneous surcharges over the holidays.
This past week, American Airlines led the way announcing it will charge an extra $10 "miscellaneous surcharge" for travel on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, Nov. 29 and for flights on Jan 2 & 3. Delta, Northwest, U.S. Airways and United Airlines quickly followed suit. As of this posting, Alaska Airlines is staying out of the fray.
This recent charge has many of us asking, why not just raise the cost of a ticket and stop the piddly charges for this, that and the other.
You’d think that the extra work of agents making annoyed passengers pay for a first or second or both bags would have taught managers a lesson, but not! Management seems to lack logic or worse gets perverse satisfaction in making customers unhappy.
So beware of holiday surcharges and if you haven’t booked yet, now is a good time to make reservations on a carrier that isn’t taking the coward’s way out.
Important warning about e-mails purporting to be from the adn.com staff.
