In general I have been a fan of Delta… until today. My girlfriend reserved a week in the Dominican for my birthday, and because I have a lot of Delta miles I thought we could use my miles to fly there. One of the great things about the Delta website is that if your dates are flexible they give you a calendar which can help you determine which days require less miles.

Last week I made a reservation which had to be completed by this weekend. So a couple of days later I decided to complete my reservation online. I went through the entire process on the Delta website and entered all of my information… Uh-oh.. I get the following message

Call Delta to Complete Reservation

We are unable to complete this reservation online at this time. Please contact Delta immediately and provide your reference number to complete this reservation. Call 888-750-3284, or the number on the back of your SkyMiles card for assistance. Non-U.S. based customers, please call the Delta Reservation Sales office for your country. You must call within the next 4 hours to confirm your reservation. We apologize for the inconvenience.

I called the reservation number- thinking, this shouldn’t take long- after all, I had a reference number. The person took all of my information, my reference number, and my credit card number (for the taxes)… confirmed my address… and I waited… Then I was asked for a different credit card- so I gave them one… and I waited some more… the person I was dealing with came back and asked me to stay on the line.. then put me back on hold… for over an hour!!!

I didn’t want to hang up and have to start all over again but after 75 minutes I was worried that my cordless phone was going to die on me so I called the reservation number back from my cell phone, and sure enough, while explaining everything to the second person the first person came back on the cordless phone. They had finally worked it out, but in the process have given me two seperate reservations for my flights.  

I don’t know if it due to the fact that I was making a Skymiles redemption but my total time on the phone was 88 MINUTES!!!

Seems to me like Delta is making it complicated to redeem miles.

It’s interesting that I never had to wait that long to reserve a regular ticket.

A couple of months ago while I was in Las Vegas I was given a chance to get $150 Cirque du Soleil tickets for $35. The only condition was to listen to a Timeshare presentation.

The next day- after a three hour presentation and tour I ended up buying a timeshare property at the Grandview Las Vegas.

I have spent the last couple of months thinking over my decision- sometimes pleased and sometimes kicking myself…

Here is what I know so far about the pro’s and cons of timeshare ownership. 

Disadvantages

• Some people talk about timshare as an investment. This is totally wrong. it is like buying a new car- the value of timeshares goes down over time- you cannot look at it as an investment, it is more of a luxury purchase
• I did one of the worst things which is to buy from the developer- if you are considering timeshares look into buying on the resale market where you can easily save 50-70%.
• You are locked into paying maintenance fees on the unit- whether you use it or not. My maintenance fees are over $600 per year
• If you do buy from the developer- watch our for the financing. The financing which is offered is VERY expensive- avoid it at all costs. The one I was offered was to pay 50% down and 50% over the next 12 months at 0%, or 10% down and 90% over the next five years at 17%!!

Advantages

• If you take a lot of vacations (as I do), or if you like to go to the same place every year- you can save money compared to staying at hotels.
• If you are member of a network such as RCI you have many different places which you can trade for.

I haven’t used my timeshare yet- but as I take two or three vacations each year to different places, I am hoping to save some money on my yearly vacations.

My best advice- whether you own a timeshare or not- for the best information on the net about timeshares, go to the Timeshare Users Group. It is an excellent resource which I wish I had known about before buying- there is a ton of free information on the site.

I have just taken my first camping trip of the year so I thought I would share some of my ideas to make the most out of camping

• If you are car camping- bring as much as you can. Food is usually more expensive close to campsites- and even things that you would not expect to cost a lot of money do end up costing a lot. Our example was firewood. We spent a total of sixty dollars for two nights worth of firewood!! If I had a fireplace at home (which I dont), we could have saved that expense.

• Check the weather before you go. Nothing is worse than waking up in torrential rain.

• Get a tent which is easy to set up. There is a wide range of prices and quality of tents- but the most important factor is how the tent is set up. I have an inexpensive tent which I can set up myself in under 5 minutes.

• Do not bring uncooked chicken or pork to eat- whether you are cooking on a camping stove or directly on a fire it is common to cook food unevenly. You do not want to be eating raw chicken or pork.

Let me know if you have other ideas…

Having returned from my second trip to Las Vegas, I thought I would share what I best like about the city of sin. I strongly recommend that everyone go there at least once.

There is no easy way to understand Vegas until you have been there. I guess I consider it a Disneyland for adults.

What are the best parts?

• Choice. Whatever you want to do- it is available. From gambling, dancing, drinking, shopping- whatever you want to do for fun, you can find it.
• Restaurants- there is an incredible variety of food at all different kinds of price levels.
• Atmosphere- I guess because most people are there on vacation everyone is friendly and fun.

What don’t I like about Vegas? There are a couple of things:

• Walking- there is just waay too much walking neccessary, even to go to a hotel which is nearby
• It is very easy to spend a lot of money- especially when you can take cash advances from your credit card without even your pin number
• Be very careful of the fees you pay at machines- I took out money three times while in Vegas- the first two times I had a fee of 4 dollars which I consider high but acceptable. The last time I made a withdrawl the fee was an unbelievable 24 dolars!!! I only noticed when I got the printout of my transaction.
• The TV channel selection in my hotel room was horrible. I know the hotels want you out of the room and in the casinos but they could at least have a couple of decent channels.

If you are planning a trip to Vegas and are on a budget, don’t miss

• Half price show tickets at the big coca-cola bottle next to the MGM- this could save you a lot of money. The only catch is that they do not have seats for all shows.
• The free magazines in every hotel list all of the attractions of all hotels and they also have coupons at the back.
• If you are tired of walking the bus can take you the full length of the strip for only two dollars. If you are staying on the strip this is just as fast as a taxi for a fraction of the price.
• If you are wanting to drink but don’t want to pay a lot, sit and play at a penny lot machine. At most casinos it does not take long for the waitress to come around. Don’t forget to tip her though.
• Free attractions- the hotels on the strip are attractions in themselves, but there are many other attractions which are free such as the volcano at the Mirage, the fountains at the Bellagio, the moving statues at Caesars, etc…

For more Vegas info, the best site I have seen is Cheapo Vegas

Well, I just had an interesting weekend. On Valentine’s day my girlfriend announced that she was taking me to the Ice Hotel, I knew this was going to be a very different experience.

The Ice Hotel, as the name implies is made of completely of Ice. It has around 30 rooms for guests, two bars, a chapel, and an area with a sauna and hot tubs for the hotel guests. During the day- until 8 o’clock, visitors are allowed to walk through the entire facility, but after 8 the guest rooms and sauna area are off limits.

Once you have checked in, you are given an information session which explains how the sleeping works.  When you enter your room you find a bag which contains four items: your sleeping bag, a pillow, a blanket, and another thin nylon bag. First, you get into the nylon bag, then you get into the sleeping bag.  Then you go to sleep. The sauna and hot tubs are open all through the night so if you do need to warm up you can go back there.

In each room there is a bed made of ice. On top of this is a thin mattress, reminiscent of a gym mat. On top of the mat there are a couple of furs. That’s what you put your sleeping bag on.

I slept very soundly. The combination of fresh air and the warmth of the sleeping bag were magic. My girlfriend on the other hand did not fare so well. She woke up several times complaining about the cold. Then finally, at around 6 am, went to the hot tub.

Would I recommend the experience- yes. Would I do it again? Not for a while…

Check out my photos of the place here.

For the hotel website go to http://www.icehotel-canada.com/

Here are a couple of ideas related to planning and booking your next vacation, as submitted by one of my faithful readers:

1. I try to always book hotels directly on their own website once I have been to expedia to check out hotels and prices in the area I’m going to. The BIG advantage is that your credit card is not charged until you check out of the hotel. All the travel companies charge the credit card immediately.
2. Another tip is to use google earth to see exactly where the hotel is especially for holidays as “on the beach” can be a stretch. This way I choose the location first and then find hotels in the vicinity. Also I always check a hotel in a new location with Tripadvisor.com as they normally have comments from guests that are current.

Thanks to my father for these tips.

Having done a lot of international travel, my first question before planning a trip to a foreign country is do I need a visa?

Here are the steps you need to follow in order to get your visa.

1. Find the Embassy of the country you will be visiting located in your own country- these days, many of them have websites so it should be easy to find.
2. The website will have a section called Consular services- or something similar. Go to that section to find out the exact requirements you will need
3. Print out the requirements. It is very important to follow them exactly. If you submit your package with any single omission it is likely that it will be refused.
4. As an additional precaution- call the Embassy to verify the requirements. Fee structures sometimes change without notice.
5. Submit your documents to the Embassy with the appropriate fee. Note that most embassies do not accept cash or personal cheques.

Some countries, such as Russia, will require a letter from a tour operator. If you are not going on an organized tour, don’t worry, check around your local travel agents and online to see how to get such a letter. They are usually available for a fee. I have used the website Visa to Russia to get invitation letters sent to me for visits to Russia.

Other countries, such as Libya, will have special requirements such as requiring your passport to be translated. For this kind of service it is best to call the embassy to ask how to get it done. The last time I had it done someone met me outside the embassy and with an an official stamp, made the translation- for a fee.

Prior to my last trip to Moscow I was in line at the Russian Consulate in Montreal and the person in front of me was very frustrated, telling me that this was the fourth time they had come back. The only reason that this would happen is if something was missing from the package. Once again you must have everything required or your application will be refused.

For those of you wanting to enjoy your travels off the beaten path, iExplore (www.iExplore.com) announced today the list of Top Ten World Travel Destinations as determined by the vacation purchases of its adventure and experiential travelers.

Take a look at the article to give yourself some ideas of the many possibilities.
I have had the good fortune to visit a few of the places on the list. Unfortunately in my case the travel has mostly been for business but I have had the chance to ride a camel around the pyramids in Egypt, and take a safari in South Africa, both experiences I would highly recommend.

See some of my photos from South Africa here

Just a reminder, the United States will have new requirements for Canadians traveling into the US. Starting January 23rd, 2007, you will need to bring a passport with you (previously you only needed a piece of id such as driver’s license).

I think that this does make sense. If the United States government wants to implement this then we have to respect their rules. For me it does not make a big difference as I always have my passport when I travel. In any case the passport is a standard document and it will make customs officials’ jobs a little easier. But it will make a difference for some people who are used to driving to the United States.

Last year I was going to Mexico and the person behind me in line was actually travelling with only his drivers license. He was complaining that he had to get a letter signed by a commissioner of oaths to prove his identity. He didn’t have an answer, though, when I asked him why he didn’t get a passport.

The additional requirements are making me think again about joining the NEXUS program.

I had the unfortunate experience of not being able to start my car last week.

The car battery had died and I could not get it started so I called and joined CAA.

One thing I did not realize when I joined is that there are all sorts of discounts you can get with your membership. Some of these are travel related, but others are for everyday items.

For example, with this card I can get a 2% discount at any Couche Tard (a convenience store)- including those with gas stations. I don’t spend very much money at convenience stores- but I do buy around $60 in gas every week.

I am going to take a close look at what else I can save with the CAA card.

So you are thinking about visiting Canada? Where can you get the best information?

We have here many different regions which offer different activities, cultures, and sceneries. In fact, each canadian province has its own flavour.

The best way to get good information is though the various websites of the province you will visit. On each of these sites you can get lots of information. And you can even sign up or call them to send you a free package full of maps and attraction information.

To make it easy, here are the links to each of Canada’s province and territory tourism associations:

Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, Nunavut, Northwest Territories, Yukon

The best advice I can give when you are planning out a vacation is to contact the tourist information of the place you will be visiting.

The best place to find this information is the website that the local government puts together- here you can often sign up to get sent a package of information which can include maps, hotel and restaurant discounts, and a lot of information about the place you are going. Best of all, the information package is free.

I have done this prior to a vacation across several provinces in the maritimes last year, and found it to be incredibly useful. This year, we were planning on taking a trip across western Canada, so I did the same thing and I received several packages of free information mailed directly to my house.

Tomorrow I will provide a list of the major links for tourist information in Canada

One of the things I always tell people is to always keep some cash on you while traveling, because you never know when you will come across a situation when you will need it.

I broke my own rules today.

I wasn’t traveling- but I am leaving on a one week business trip tomorrow. I usually keep some cash on me but in this case I thought to myself never mind, I will use credit cards today, and for the rest of the week I will be in the United States so there is no need for Canadian cash.

This afternoon we decided to go and find a small honey farm outside of Montreal. The farm sells over 40 different kinds of honey, and when we went to pay they said sorry, we only take cash. I had seen a back one kilometer back down the road so I excused myself to go and get some money. The machine was not working. The problem when you are out in the country is that you really don’t know how far the next bank is going to be, and I had never been to this area before so I just started to drive. I passed a couple of gas stations and considered going in and asking where the nearest bank was but, I am a man, and in any case, I know what banks look like so there was no real need to do that, it would waste valuable driving time. I eventually found a street which looked like it had commercial buildings and I found my bank machine and made my way back to the honey farm- my entire trip to get some cash taking me 40 kilometers and close to an hour.

This is a prime example of why you should always keep some cash on you.