The Travel #Ripoff – Legal Maybe, But Ethical?
This week, I found a $20.42 charge on my credit card bill from American Traffic Solution in Arizona. Wondering what in the world it was for, I called their phone operator and learned that on a recent Hertz car rental from the Palm Beach Airport, I was being charged a "convenience fee" of $4.95 per day for having a Florida Toll Tag on our rental car. When asked if that amount...
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Virtual Reality Getting Real for Travelers
Since the 1990 release of "Total Recall," the Paul Verhoeven film starring Arnold Schwarznegger as a man who buys a virtual vacation to Mars, the travel industry has been anticipating the commercial development of virtual reality (VR) technology. More than 20 years later, when Facebook announced the purchase of VR headset maker Oculus for $2 billion, everyone began saying VR would be the next big...
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Demanding? What Europeans Want From A Luxury Family Brand
The Martinhal Luxury Family Brand Event took place March 24, 2017 in a contemporary space at the Martinhal Cascais Lisbon resort, where floor-to-ceiling windows overlook a children’s play area. Martinhal Family Hotels & Resorts, a hotelier catering to that elusive “luxury family” market with four stylish properties in Portugal, invited...
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A Culinary Revolution in Colonial Virginia
There was a time not long ago when a family visit to Colonial Williamsburg meant living a, shall we say… dated lifestyle. Many parents, especially those with tweens and teens who bore easily, pushed off a visit to Virginia’s Historic Triangle until their empty nester years. That’s no longer necessary. Thanks to the surge in gastronomic tourism (71% of travelers...
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CityPASS Helps Families Take A Staycation
A weak economy drives families (and all travelers) to seek value-driven vacations, which often means a Staycation, or travel in one’s own back yard. On the positive side, this kind of travel fosters a sense of community, lets people "vacation" more often and discover their own city, while saving money. We think the best way to enjoy a Staycation is with...
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These Trends Will Impact 2017 Vacation Plans
Why would families leave the comfort of home after a year marked by terror incidents, volatile currencies, global refugees, the Zika virus and extreme politics? You might expect parents, who cite safety as their number one concern when planning a vacation, to avoid the turmoil of travel this year, but there’s lots of evidence to the contrary. Young Families More Eager to...
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Where Families Will Go in 2017
After reviewing the latest travel research and trends, Family Travel Forum, the vacation planning resource trusted by families since 1996, is presenting its view on where families will go in 2017 and, more importantly, why. Here are the Top 10 Destinations plus an old trend –...
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Travel in the Machine Age: Robots Join the Frontline Workforce
Since HAL and his offspring, C-3PO and R2-D2, first entered popular culture, humans have grown accustomed to the notion of benevolent robots being trained to serve them. And while some high-end novelty shops have been selling household robots as a fun toy, most travelers had few practical examples of their utility. That's rapidly changing as the travel and tourism industry embraces robots,...
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Experiential and Heritage Trips Top Teen Travel Trends in 2016
The Family Travel Forum Student Travel Trends Report finds teens prefer cultural explorations and heritage travel while “vacations” diminish in popularity. (New York, December 12, 2016) - Family Travel Forum, the global family vacation planning resource, has released findings on student...
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China Launches Action-Packed Adventure Park
Coinciding with the 2016 Year of China-U.S. Tourism, Discovery Communications has launched its first branded “outdoors” theme park in China. The Discovery Adventures Moganshan Park, developed in partnership with APAX Group, brings challenging recreation to Mogan Mountain in Deqing, Zhejiang Province, only 13 minutes by high-speed train from scenic Hangzhou. The international...
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