San Francisco is proud of its cultural diversity. And the airport, port and city is busily launching a new advertising program in seven (more…)

I was reading Portfolio this morning and came across this interesting comment by Joe Brancatelli who writes a “Business Travel Column” for Portfolio, an excellent magazine.

According to Brancatelli hotels pay maids 1/2 cent per square foot to clean a hotel room. I don’t know about you, but over the years I’ve stayed in hotel rooms that would (more…)

Almost 3 million time-share owners are bartering their time share weeks, both on a direct basis as well as indirectly. There are 4,000+ time-share resorts in 81 countries around the world.

Given the figures states you can see their is now an enormous “time-share exchange industry” in place for you to utilize, (more…)

In any economy companies of every size should take a hard look at expenditures, and search for the maximum yield for the minimum dollar amount. Here’s a quick look at how incentive travel, on trade, can be an excellent way to build your company’s cohesiveness.

Many companies are aiming for a tighter alignment within their organization by re-evaluating priorities, readjusting qualifications and integrating more education. And there’s a new understanding of how they can use incentive travel to its full potential—as an investment, not just (more…)

If you’re planning a summer vacation there are ways you may be able to use the tax code to help subsidize that summer trip to some popular tourist haven. Here are some possibilities:

• Mixing vacation with business. One ticket to tax-deductible summer travel is to tack some vacation onto a business trip you’re scheduled to take this summer. If the primary purpose of your trip is business, you can deduct the cost of getting to and from your destination.

For example, say you have a (more…)

Delta Air Lines has introduced a new program that is aimed at keeping their customers, who have accumulated a lot of frequent-flier miles, happy.The plan is definitely a step up in flexibility and offers frequent fliers a choice.

The new program, “Pay With Miles” will enable members of its SkyMiles program who have a (more…)

If there’s an economic slowdown in your life don’t consider taking action that you might regret later on-–like canceling your vacation. That practice should carry a Surgeon General’s warning: Canceling your vacation is dangerous to your health.

If you are considering canceling a vacation, and if you have a choice in the matter, don’t do it. A growing body of research links long-term vacation habits and health.

A 14-year study of 13,000 men, published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine, found annual vacations sharply (more…)

The Japanese government wants its citizens to spend more money traveling abroad…today the Japanese would rather work than travel.

Last year, 80 percent of all salaried workers in Japan refused to take all their vacation time. Japanese unions are dropping wage demands and asking for more holiday time to cooperate with the government’s plan. A strong traditional work-ethic practice, honed over centuries, may not be easily replaced.

But with the support of Japanese government and unions, and with major companies rounding up tourists (a new long-range business plan), there is a good probability of long-term success. And the ultimate effect on the international travel industry would be dramatic.

Consider the following situation (more…)

I came across a site that some young entrepreneurs have developed, and reading how they view the world, their thoughts, etc. were interesting and worthwhile. I found myself chuckling as I read their article on how to do business in Ghana …never having visited that country. (It also reminded me of some of my travels in South America some forty years ago.)

And whether you will ever visit Ghana isn’t the question. Rather, the point is that every area/country around the world has local customs and ways of thinking, and acting, that are different than ours. It’s one of the reasons why traveling to different places is so exhilarating! And I might add (more…)

Well-known travel journalist Shirley Linde writes
of unique voyages and special offers of ships all over the world.

You can see cruise information every day (more…)