|
 |
 |
Travel & Outdoors 
««« Click HERE for Recent Travel & Outdoors 'Voluntourism' on the Rise
Dave Carpenter
 More Americans are searching out vacations with a charitable or humanitarian purpose, where they can build housing or schools, collect field data or work at a refugee camp, orphanage or archaeological dig.
Grounded Mexican Airline Leaves Hundreds of Tourists Stranded
Wolfy Becker
 The Mexican government has suspended operations of low-cost carrier Lineas Aereas Azteca on Monday because of safety deficiencies, financial problems, administrative and technical procedures, leaving hundreds of traveling customers stranded.
2 Fall Off Cruise Ship in Gulf of Mexico
Associated Press
 A man and woman fell overboard from a cruise ship in the Gulf of Mexico early Sunday, but both were rescued after a four-hour search and appeared to be in good condition, a cruise line spokeswoman said.
Travelling Well
Valerie Gregg
 Knauft learned an important lesson the hard way: You can never be too prepared when you travel overseas. And simple solutions that minimize risks are often the best.
Book Offers Tricks to Bring Mexican Style Home
Claire Whitcomb
 The hothouse colors, the hand-painted tiles, the lazy drift of hammocks and mosquito netting: If you visit Mexico, it's hard not to fall in love with the look and the lifestyle. But unlike a craft or curio that you can pack in your suitcase, Mexican style isn't always easy to bring back home.
Mexico Without a Passport
Associated Press
 Using just your driver's license or birth certificate, Americans can cross the border and spend a day buying trinkets and even a bottle of tequila to take home from one of Mexico's dozens of bordertowns. Or, if you have a long weekend and want to explore farther south, you can take a bus or drive to old mining towns that seem untouched by time.
Costly Fares, Hotels Crimp Spring Trips
Marilyn Adams
 The cost of spring break travel is soaring, and travelers are responding by taking shorter trips. For the first time in six years of tracking its bookings, Travelocity this year has seen the average duration of spring break trips fall below five days.
Need a U.S. Passport Fast? Be Prepared to Pay
Jane Engle
 Margarita in hand, you are lounging on a stretch of sand near Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Not a care in the world. Except this: That's your dream, but the reality is that you don't have a current passport, and you're due to fly to Mexico in a month. Uh-oh.
Things Mexico Taught Me
Nick
 I have just returned from 5 amazing weeks in Mexico and want to get some thoughts out while they are still fresh on my mind. Here is a listing of what sticks out:
Mexican Hertz Charges $500 for Flat Tire
autoblog.com
 Imagine you're on vacation. You rent a car for your month-long stay in Mexico. You feel pretty comfortable passing on the optional insurance and go along on your merry way. All goes well until one stormy evening.
Ancient Tombs Found in Nayarit
El Universal
 Mexican archaeologists found more than 100 bodies in 29 different pre-Hispanic tombs dating back about 2,000 years in Nayarit.
Festival Indigena 2007 - A Curious Mix of Ancient and Modern Cultures
Kathy Taylor
 The Festival Indigena 2007, which continues through March 25th at Plaza Caracol, is an oasis of culture and ancient civilization in extreme contrast to the contemporary atmosphere, merchandising and entertainment found in this ultramodern mall.
Is There a Doctor in the House?
PVNN
 When you are on vacation the last thing you want to worry about is your health, so it's good to know that in Puerto Vallarta there are modern hospitals with bilingual doctors offering high-quality medical services and emergency care to tourists.
ExProTur Vallarta 2007
PVNN
 Plans are underway for the 12th annual ExProTur Vallarta, an International exposition for tourist industry service providers in Western Mexico, scheduled to take place from May 31st-June 2nd at the new Puerto Vallarta Convention Center.
Traveling to Mexico? Know the Law
Brady McCombs
 The sandy beaches, warm weather and cold beer won't be any different for spring breakers heading to Mexico in the coming weeks, but some requirements for re-entry into the United States have changed.
A Wondrous Statue?
Jennifer Smith
 Apparently you can never have enough wonders. A campaign to name the new seven wonders of the world touches down in New York City, where the Statue of Liberty is one of 21 finalists whose wondrous status will be decided by an Internet vote.
"Narco" Taxi Tours Profit on Mexico Drug War Chaos
Reuters
 Streetwise cabbies in northern Mexico are cashing in on the chaos of a violent drug war by whisking wide-eyed visitors about town in macabre tours of seized narco properties and famous murder scenes, Mexico City's Reforma newspaper reported on Sunday.
Thrill of the Chaise
Nancy Keates
 With the spring-break crush on, hotels in resort areas are arming themselves with new policies to combat "chair hogs," the scourge of vacationers who stake claim to prime spots early in the morning and then don't show up again until after noon.
Spring-Breakers Party on Amid Acapulco Drug War
Gunther Hamm
 U.S. spring-breakers are guzzling beers and slamming back tequilas in the Mexican Pacific beach resort of Acapulco, unfazed by a violent drug war that has killed police and left body parts strewn about town.
You Don’t Cruise, You Lose
PR.COM
 Cruises to Mexico aren’t what they used to be…they’re much, much more. Whether you’re single or married, gay or lesbian, with or without children, on a low-carb diet or abandoning it, blind, a nudist, or just a die-hard Disney fan, Mexico has the cruise for you.
Most Serious Travel Maladies Can be Prevented
Susan Heinrich
 Travellers looking for the simple pleasure of a week's holiday in the warm tropical sun are being given a chilly reminder: Even a short getaway to the Caribbean or Mexico can bring with it the risk of serious illnesses such as malaria and dengue.
2 Men Charged for Cuban Travel Fraud
David Fischer
 Two men were arrested and charged with using fake religious organizations to get thousands of people permission to travel to Cuba, prosecutors said Thursday.
Critics Slam New Airport Scanner
UPI
 A new U.S. airport scanner called a backscatter X-ray is drawing fire from critics who call it another blow to personal privacy. CBS says X-rays penetrate clothing of the passenger standing in front of the scanner, generating a silhouette-like image.
Canadian Travellers Plan to Avoid Mexico, Poll Finds
Jack Aubry
 Mexico as a vacation destination has suffered in the eyes of Canadians because of recent unsolved crimes that many blame on incompetent police and a corrupt legal system, a new poll reveals.
Accessible Vacations Open Up the World
Paul Rendine
 It is quite encouraging that even people with disabilities now have an accessible tour option that they can partake of in a vacation location that was, seemingly, only usable by fully able-bodied people. The world really is opening up more to people with disabilities.
Access Makes Puerto Vallarta a Perfect Snowbird Perch
Tom Kelly
 Snowbirds usually are able to be away from home for long periods of time, often can afford to purchase a second home and have even been known to use their primary and second homes for creative tax purposes and income streams. By definition, snowbirds take flight for the sun.
Festival Bahia de Banderas 2007
Sue Fornoff
 This year's International Festival de Bahia de Banderas features a lineup of activities sure to interest everyone. There are sporting events for participants and spectators, a whale photo contest, a ceviche competition and plenty of entertainment.
Mexican Surf Camp was Heaven; Resort was Hell
Robin Summerfield
 There's something about a beach holiday that makes people lose their heads. They do things they wouldn't dream of doing on home turf. Streaking naked into the ocean with a video camera rolling comes to mind, as does hitting the bottle by 9 a.m.
Capital Gov´t Woos Tourists
Kelly Arthur Garrett
 Mexico City´s new government is wooing tourists with renewed zeal, offering international visitors free emergency medical care, beefed up police presence in tourist areas, and multilingual crime-reporting centers.
Surf’s Upscale as Sport Reverses Beach Bum Image
Matt Higgins
 For $10,000 a day, you can have the ultimate surfing sojourn in Indonesia aboard the 110-foot Indies Trader IV, a sort of floating hotel with 15 cabins, a helipad and three-course meals with wine. A motorized tender takes you to the waves.
Travelocity Coins 2007 the “Year of the Savvy Traveler”
Business Wire
 Travelocity’s latest data reports reveal several signs that travelers are evolving to meet industry changes in stride, beginning with this year’s spring break travelers.
Malaria, Dengue Warnings Given
Mary-Jane Egan
 So, your bathing suits are packed and you're off to the airport to escape the deep freeze. The last thing on your mind is the threat of malaria or dengue fever - two mosquito-borne health dangers now lurking in the Punta Cana region of the Dominican Republic, in Puerto Vallarta in Mexico and in Kingston, Jamaica and Cuba.
Where Are The Worst Crime Areas In Mexico?
CityNews
 It used to be a place Canadians associated with warm vacations for a relatively cheap price. But now Mexico is gaining a different kind of reputation as a potential danger spot for tourists.
Spring Break Is Closer Than You Think
Michelle Higgins
 Planning a spring break getaway this year? Better start booking. Travel agents say reservations for spring break vacations are well ahead of those last year at this time, with the usual ski resorts and beach destinations filling up fast.
Viva Aerobus Aims to Start U.S. Flights by August
Lori Ranson
 New Mexican low-cost carrier Viva Aerobus has started the process to gain FAA's approval to launch flights to the U.S., in hopes of starting the service in July or August.
Death Cools Tourism in Acapulco
Jorge Barrera
 Canadian tour firms and Acapulco hotels are starting to feel the economic sting of the public backlash over the death of Ontario's Adam DePrisco. Some Canadian tour operators have been forced to suspend or reduce weekly charters to Acapulco as a result of slumping sales.
Can Mexico Fight its National Nicotine Craving?
Edward M. Gomez
 Observant travelers know that Mexico, France, Italy, Japan and China are some of the most (cough!) smoke-filled countries on the planet (choke!). In recent years, the Paris subway system has banned smoking in its stations, and, starting tomorrow, French workplaces, hospitals, schools and stores will prohibit smoking.
Man Sues Airline in Parental Abduction
Kansas City Star
 A former Kansas City man sued an airline this week, alleging that it negligently allowed his ex-wife to take their daughter to Mexico against his wishes. The mother and 3-old-daughter remain missing in Mexico, said Didier Combe, who filed the suit in federal court in Massachusetts.
| 
 | |
 |
 |
 |
|