Free trip to Mayan Riviera...Richard Gere's Hotel...Blackbox headphones test run

The Toronto Star's Wonderlist has launched a great contest this week. From now until Thursday, Feb. 18, Wonderlist is partnering with Bel Air Travel and giving away a trip for two to the Mayan Riviera.

Winners will enjoy one week, all-inclusive, at the Five-Star Riu Playacar in Mexico. For information, go to www.wonderlist.ca and click on the link to enter.

CELEBRITY HOTELS

You know about (well, probably) about Robert DeNiro's Greenwich Hotel in New York. The lads behind U2 are behind the Clarence Hotel in Dublin, Ireland.

Now comes word that Richard Gere, and, no, I'm not putting him in the category of Bono or Bob, has opened a hotel in tony Westchester County, New York (just north of NYC) called the Bedford Post. Apparently Esquire magazine gave one of its restaurant three thumbs up, so it sounds like he and wife/actress Carey Lowell (never heard of her but I don't get out much) have done a nice job.

It's only an eight-room place, so that seems pretty smart. And a boutique hotel in Westchester sounds just a smidge better  than operating a Red Roof Inn at the Cleveland Airport.

DIRTY HOTELS PART II

I wrote yesterday about dirty hotels, and how tripAdvisor reviewers had said that six of the 10 dirtiest in Canada were in Ontario. Well, my employer, the Toronto Star, and it never hurts to give the boss a pat on the back, sent a couple reporters out yesterday to check out the Howard Johnson's Toronto East and the Arkona Motel in NIagara falls. They didn't find them all that bad for the price.

Either way, it's a good story in the GT section of today's Toronto Star, so check it out.

BLACKBOX HEADPHONES

Had a chance to try out some new, noise-cancelling headphones from a company called Blackbox. They're very sleek and very portable, and they do a reasonable job of cancelling airplane noise. You can still hear the annoying interruptions from the pilot telling you they're now cruising at 35,000 feet (do I care if it's 35,000 or 36,000 feet or 35,700 feet, or what runway we're taking off from; honestly, we get way too much information on our flights from pilots who must figure, hey, there's a radio so I oughta talk to the folks squished into economy back there). Sorry, where was I? Oh, right, these are a lot better than my regular iPod headphones, for sure.

The sound was quite good, especially on my new Beatles in Mono CD's, where you can really hear Ringo bashing away on the drums and pick up more of McCartney's melodic bass lines. My favourite feature is how the part that fits over your ear swivels, allowing you to fold them up nicely and stow them in a sleek, round, two-inch-high container that also fits your iPod. It stashes away quite nicely in my backpack; much better than my old headphones.

Blackbox headphones are made by Phitek System and are available at Future Shop locations across Canada.

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FREE INTERNET DEBATE

Surprise - not everyone agrees with my rant about hotels making us pay for the Internet. I got a comment from a reader named John yesterday who took issue with my suggestion that we shouldn't have to pay for hotel Internet.

Why should I have to pay extra in my room rate if I don't use the Internet," he argued. "I don't watch pay per view movies in the hotel room either, should they also build those in to the room rate? What about breakfast? I tend to eat out because breakfast at the hotel has generally sat under a hot plate all morning. What about car parking? Not everyone at the hotel requires this. So why should all these extras be built in. User pays, I say!!!!!"

I happen to think Internet is different from breakfast or pay-per-view movies, especially in this day and age. But he's got a point.

Dirty hotels in Ontario...Hotel Internet fees; arrgh...Jim's deals of the day...

TripAdvisor today issued a list of the 10 dirtiest hotels in Canada, and there are going to be some pretty upset hotel operators here in Ontario.

The list, which is based on reviews by TripAdvisor travelers, includes six hotels/motels in Ontario; two in the city of Toronto, two in Niagara Falls, one in Barrie and another on Gore Bay, Manitoulin Island.

We're not judging the accuracy of the results, but here's their top 10 list of Canada's dirtiest places to stay:

1. Arkona Motel, Niagara Falls

2. The Bay Street Motel, Toronto

3. Gordon's Lodge, Gore Bay, Manitoulin Island

4. Howard Johnson Inn & Suites, Toronto East

5. Drumheller Inn, Alberta

6. Hotel Eureka, Montreal

7.  Admiral Inn by the Falls, Niagara Falls

8. Howard Johnson Hotel Edmonton

9. Howard Johnson Express Inn, Barrie

10. Battery Hotel and Suites, St. John's, Newfoundland

That's three Howard Johnson properties, for those keeping score at home, and that can't be good for public relations.

CRAZY HOTEL INTERNET FEES

Spotted a good piece in USA Today Travel this morning, where Barbara De Lollis was talking about a new survey of Internet usage in hotel roms in the U.S.

She reports that a study by iBAHN, which provides Internet service for 2,200 hotels around the world, found that guests spent 60 per cent more time on the web in 2009 than the year before, and dowloaded 50 per cent more data. Apparently a lot was to do with downloading videos from YouTube or music for their iPod and, yes, probably a little porn, she writes.

Business folks have been clamouring for major hotel chains to provide free Internet. I was at a hotel in Key West recently, the Casa Marina, where they charge $12 a day or so for the Internet, but I was told it would soon be folded into the daily resort fee because people expect free Internet.

Yes, we do expect free Internet. Jack up your rates if you have to, but don't nickel and dime (or 10 and 12-dollar) us with Internet fees.

Hotels don't charge us (yet) for toilet paper or towels, why charge for Internet? Using the web is as much a part of daily life as soap and water (hey, considering some folks out there, maybe more). It should be free. End of story.

IBAHN says hotel operators have no choice but to charge because the files being downloaded are so large. Okay, Internet costs them money. But charge more for the rooms and don't hit me with extra fees. Quite often folks are busy making last-minute plans, especially business people, and they don't always have time to check out every kind of fee before booking a room. If we book a room and it says $149, then leave at it $149. Don't go adding more and more charges like they do in the airline industry, fergawdsake.

The Star booked several rooms at the Carmana Plaza Hotel for the coming Winter Olympics. The rooms were booked through the Vancouver Organizing Committee, and I thought they'd make sure Internet fees were included. The rooms are quite reasonable (organizers need media to come to the Games and they don't want lots of stories about hotel gouging), but now I'm told it'll cost our reporters $15 a day to sign on to the hotel's Internet.

It's just wrong.

VANCOUVER BARGAINS?.

Maybe there are some decent deals out there for the Olympics after all.

A report from Home for the Games says folks can go to www.homeforthegames.com and find homes in Vancouver starting at $100 a night, with proceeds going to charities tackling homelessness. Home for the Games is a non-profit, web-based system that "matches Winter Games visitors with Metro Vancouver hosts for short-term stays, with half of the nightly fee directed to charitable organizations."

Accomodations range from entire houses down to single rooms.

Also on the accomodation front, the folks at Norwegian Star say their cruise ship is offering special sale rates as low as $275 U.S. per night, based on double occupancy. The rate is good until Feb. 5.

Officials say the deal is even better because it includes three meals a day, although you'd expect folks might miss a couple of meals each day by being out and about in Vancouver watching Olympic events, which is kinda the point. Folks also get access to spa and fitness facilities on board, nightly entertainment, gift shops (gee, really? Thanks, guys!) and more.

For more information, go to www.vancouver2010cruiseship.com.

Of course, many folks don't care about affordability. They're simply worried about the effect the Games will have. Recent studies have suggested there's no great long-term effect by having the Games, which brings up a point I've made for years. If you want to do the Olympics, do them right. Rework your city like Barcelona did, and leverage the Games for improvements from senior levels of government. If you try to do it like Atlanta, you're left with damn little to show for your efforts and no lasting legacy.

A group called Pivot Legal Society in. B.C. is asking city council for permission to give out red tents for homeless people to sleep in during the Games, a move they no doubt hope would raise awareness of the city's homeless issues (although how anyone with a brain isn't already aware is another story). They want the tents to have stickers that say "housing is a right" and "end homelessness now."

Well intentioned, but I can't see city government allowing it go ahead.

SKIP THE SEA TO SKY

Here's a thought. Instead of sitting in traffic on the Sea toSky Highway from Vancouver to Whistler, folks at Sea to Sky Air suggest you take daily flights to Whistler. Mind you, the cost is "as low as" $339, and let's put "as low as" in giant, BOLD italic print. Geez, guys, that ain't much of a deal if you ask me.

On the road front, the next phase of street closures in downtown Vancouver go into effect this week in preparation for the Games, which start Feb. 12. Officials say a record number of commuters took public transit to get into downtown Vancouver last Friday. No doubt those numbers will increase as more road closures take effect.

Folks in Olympic cities always grumble about transportation planning, but, in the end, things usually work out just fine. L.A. was a ghost town during the 1984 Summer Games, and things seemed to work quite well in Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008. Of course, in Beijing the government was able to pretty much do whatever it wanted. It's a little trickier in a democracy.

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PORTER TO SUDBURY

Porter Airlines is introducing year-round flights between Sudbury and Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (that's still a real mouthful, guys), beginning March 31. There will be a daily, non-stop flight, with one-way fares starting at $99, plus taxes. Go to www.flyporter.com for more information.

Porter earlier added Thunder Bay to its roster of cities, and they're also adding Myrtle Beach, South Carolina in the next couple months.

I've yet to try them, but these guys obviousy are doing SOMETHING right.

Protocol advice for Vancouver 2010 draws howls...No sex please, we're Kiwi's...

This is one of the things I love about covering the Olympics.

There's a big fuss out Vancouver way over a city of Vancouver protocol report that outlines everything from proper dress and hand-shaking advice to dealing with dignitaries who make unusual requests (gee, ya think?).

I took a half-hour to read it this morning and nearly coughed up my Tim Horton's coffee. Some of it serious, of course, including a small bit about how some dignitaries could be targeted for assassination. There's no doubt that it's important to greet Prime Ministers the right way and to treat the Canadian flag with respect, but I had to laugh out loud at some of the advice. Apparently brightly coloured shoes aren't allowed, which means I'll have to ditch the yellow crocs I was going to wear to the Opening Ceremony (not really. I'm not going to the Opening Ceremony). And socks are supposed to match the colour of one's pants, as well as not show embarrassing skin.

Here are a few I really enjoyed:

- "Avoid playing with your hair, tie or jewellery, biting your lip, drumming fingers unconsciously, snapping the clip on a ball-point pen and jiggling coins or keys in your pocket."

- "Try not to be chatty. Conversation about the weather is acceptable and doesn't have to be cliche. 'Yes, our climate is generally mild year-round.'" This section left me confused. Is the bit about the year-round mild climate in Vancouver considered acceptable conversation or is that the cliche?

- "Avoid topics such as politics or religion, personal health issues, marital problems, rumours or gossip." I was disappointed. This being a Vancouver document, I half expected the following sentence: "Rubbing your hands together with glee and saying 'Don't those Toronto Maple Leafs really SUCK'  is a perfect introduction to almost all visiting sports dignitaries."

- On a section about shaking hands, folks were told to "make eye contact and extend your right hand with your thumb facing up." Really? I've been doing it wrong all these years? Also, "don't use a loose, limp grip." Not even when meeting figure skating judges, apparently.

- There's a great section about awkward situations and "balancing the protocol scale." One bit mentions that folks should consider the organization's finances. "If a dignitary asks for a ticket to the Games Opening Ceremonies, the cost is $1,100. If they want a ticket to the China/Finland hockey game, the cost is $75."

- Another bit talks about how workers shouldn't accept money from dignitaries. Um, aren't there going to be a bunch of International Olympic Committee members in town? Hasn't the money distribution pattern been the other way around most of the time?

- "Advise dignitaries who you're assisting that public transportation will be the most efficient way to get around." Okay, Mr. Putin, just step right onto this SkyTrain and we'll have you at the airport in no time.

Apparently, security types did a practice run and pretended that former British PM Tony Blair came to town and showed up at a venue without accreditation. Organizers were able to get him a ticket in a non-secured area but he had to go into the arena with the riff-raff (could've been worse, they could've stuck him with the media). They also made the fake Blair pay for his ticket. (Excuse me, Mr. Blair, can we get your American Express number?)

Great stuff. The Chinese got flack in advance of the 2008 Summer Games for telling flight attendants how to dress and advising taxi drivers not to hack and spit. I'm not so sure this is all that much better.

AIR CANADA EXPANDING

Air Canada today said they're adding more U.S. flights from Toronto, including direct flights to Orange County, California, San Diego, Portland, Oregon, Portland, Maine, Cincinnati, Syracuse N.Y. and Memphis. The flghts begin at various times, mostly in April May and June of this year.

They're also adding direct summer flights to Barcelona, Athens and Copenhagen, with flights to Brussels via Montreal without changing planes.

"Today's route announcement is great news for passengers flying between Canada and the US," according to Pamela Griffith-Jones, Vice President, Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer for the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA). "We have worked with our airline customers' needs in mind to create opportunities for route expansion. We are very pleased with Air Canada's continued commitment to using Pearson as a connection point with the US, and as a gateway to connect passengers to destinations around the world."

KEEP IT CLEAN, FOLKS

Spotted an item on Travelmole that says economy class "lie-flat beds" are coming later this year on AIr New Zealand flights.

Apparently the airline will install what's called the "Skycouch," a specially designed row of three seats that can be arranged into a flat space;presumably without arm rests clanging you on the head and not so many big bumps and all like you usually get if you try to commandeer a row of empty seats in coach.

Twenty two sets of the seats will be available; the first 11 window rows in economy on the new, long-range Boeing 777 plans coming in November. Two adults will be able to purchase the Skycouch, paying regular price for two seats and about half-off for the third, and that seems like a damn good deal to me ... or anyone who's been stuck on a 12-hour flight. Great idea.

The service apparently will be available between Auckland and London and Auckland and Los Angeles. They're also promising better food options and food that can be cooked from scratch and not just reheated, which sounds intriguing.

"For the past three years we have been designing a new long-haul experience that will reignite the passion of today's travelers," said CEO Rob Fyfe. "For those who choose, the days of sitting in economy and yearning to lie down and sleep are gone. The dream is now a reality, one that you can even share with a traveling companion - just keep your clothes on, thanks."

Spoil sport.

WOMEN TAKE CONTROL

Friday Feb. 5 is the day when villages in Spain honour Santa Agueda, or Saint Agatha, by giving women the chance to take control of men in special parties.

For those unaware (guilty), Saint Agueda was a Christian martyr who was tortured and killed and even had her breasts brutally cut off. She strongly believed in chastity, but things have changed and now, while Spanish women in villages such as Formigal in the Spanish Pyrenees celebrate her strength of character, they also celebrate by letting ladies remove the shirt - or other items of clothing - from whatever man they choose. I don't think many men are going to have a problem with this, but that's just a guess.

The story I saw said that as a final honour to her sacrifice, desserts served on the night of Friday the 5th are two round cakes with cherries on top, and, no, I'm not making this up.

BRITS ARE TWITS (Sorry, Tweets)

I see where the VisitBritain folks want to take advantage of the 2010 Summer Olympics with a major tourism marketing strategy that includes mobile technology and social media such as Twitter. They'll use five core themes: dynamic, luxury, classic, generation Y and gay/lesbian, with social media at the forefront.

 

The Breakers in Palm Beach; heavenly brunch...Jim's deals of the day

PALM BEACH, Florida - I don't think there is such a thing. But I hereby nominate The Breakers hotel for the Sunday brunch hall of fame.

Wow. It was quite the spread on the weekend. There's the usual breakfast stuff; pancakes and waffles and eggs benedict (not in a million years for me) and sausages and bacon and all that, plus bagels and toast and made-to-order omelettes and even chocolate or glazed donuts. That's pretty standard. Then they had lamb chops done to perfection, several types of sushi, king crab legs as long as Chris Bosh's arm, lovely shrimp, broiled grouper, moist, tender, honey-glazed ham and beef tenderloin in a pepper crust that I actually cut with the BACK of my butter knife. There were two or three types of pasta, and two types of caviar, which the Eastern Europeans snapped up by the bucketful.

On top of that, you get all the refills you want of champagne or champers and o.j. or bloody mary's. And it's all served impeccably in a giant, circular dining hall with enormous arched windows, a stunning chandelier and painted frescoes of Mediterranean scenes. Oh, and a guy playing the harp.

You'd think it would be formal, but there were folks dressed in NFL jerseys and shorts and flip-flops, as well as a woman in a pink cowboy hat who looked to be dining with a cast member of the Sopranos. Delightful and fun and absolutely the most incredible display of food I've ever seen.

Oh, forgot to mention the desserts; flourless chocolate cakes and ice cream with sprinkles and creme brulee on a spoon and the best of the three varieties of key lime pie I tried on the weekend in south Florida. And a lot more I'm forgetting about. Just crazy. If you can manage it someday, it's definitely going to be a culinary highlight of your life.

The hotel, of course, is a stunner, and no, that's not my car in the above picture. I'll have more on the resort in future pages of the Star. Suffice to say that even with not-so-great weather, I managed to enjoy myself thanks to the remarkable amenities on site. It's a truly classic resort in a great part of Florida.

Didn't get much of a chance to see Palm Beach due to rainy conditions, but I did have a nice lunch and a brief stroll around the City Place development; kind of a shopping mall but laid out in a grid with lovely landscaping and a big fountain and all.

There was a bit of a scare at Miami airport on the way home owing to a suspicious package, and they wouldn't let Air Canada workers go to the check-in counter until two hours prior to the flight. But we took off only 20 minutes late and arrived more or less on time.

So why is it that it took the bozos at Pearson 27 minutes to get the first piece of luggage onto the carousel? The airport was practically deserted and customs was a breeze, yet it took nearly a half hour to get our bags. Honestly, guys, you have the WORST baggage service of any major airport I've ever flown into. Not sure if it's Air Canada or the GTAA, but somebody is doing a TERRIBLE job.

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More Key West...Cheeca Lodge in the Keys...Coconut Grove ceviche spot...

SOUTH FLORIDA – Forgot to mention a crazy bit I heard on a Key West radio station on my way down last week. The female disc jockey said she was new in town and was challenging Key Westers (Key Westites? Key Westonians?) to name the southernmost place in the United States.

Lots of folks think Key West is it, which is understandable given all the goofy hotels and inns around here (and probably sex shops, who knows) that proclaim themselves the southernmost in the U.S.) Key West is the southernmost town in the CONTINENTAL U.S. but it’s not even close to being the southernmost in the U.S. overall. Anyway, the d.j. challenged folks to get the right town and it took about 10 minutes for someone to get the right answer, which makes me think folks down here haven’t discovered the Internet yet or maybe had too many margaritas at Sloppy Joe’s bar. One person guessed a town in Texas. The next person at least had the right state, Hawaii, but wasn’t close by guessing Honolulu.

The correct answer is Naalehu (pronounced Na-ah-lay-hoo) near the southern tip of the Big Island of Hawaii. Infoplease.com says it’s at 19 degrees, 3’57”, while Key West is WAY up at 24 degrees, 33’81”.
Someone got it right, and even pronounced it correctly. So what did he get? Fifteen bucks at a local restaurant. I couldn’t believe it.

Fifteen bucks? Why not $14.75 or $17.24? Couldn’t they at least round it up to an even 20? Geez.

CHICKEN RUN

Wild chickens are all over the Hawaiian island of Kauai. Tahiti, too. And now I see they’re a force to be reckoned with in Key West, as well. “They’re protected,” one local told me. “They keep away the snakes and the scorpions.”

AND PAUL McCARTNEY LIVES JUST DOWN THE ROAD

There's a small island off-shore Key West, just opposite Mallory Square, with lots of nice looking homes. Someone told me Oprah Winfrey has a home on the island. I can’t remember the last resort I was at where someone didn’t say Oprah owned land next door. Really. The woman must have 1,000 places to live.

RAINING LIZARDS?

Crazy windy and half-sun/half-cloud in Palm Beach on Sunday, where the beach was closed due to Portuguese man of wars on the sand and riptides in the water. But it was pretty warm; up around 25 or 26 Celsius so no complaints.

When I stopped for lunch at the newly-renovated Cheeca Lodge and Spa (see photo) in Islamorada on Saturday, the server at lunch said she couldn’t believe how cold it was a couple weeks ago.

“The iguanas were falling out of the trees,” she said, which must have been interesting for anyone sitting poolside. “Excuse me, waiter, there’s….”

Anyway, iguanas can’t handle the cold and basically fainted from lack of body heat. Apparently they were okay once it warmed up, waking up like they’d been hibernating or some such.

The Cheeca Lodge is a sumptuous spot; about halfway between Key West and Miami. They spent a fortune rebuilding after a New Year’s Eve fire in 2008, and it’s been redone with a Tommy Bahamas/tropical feel that’s quite exceptional. Very private, with luxurious gardens and good food, as well as a small, nine-hole golf course, man-made lagoons and a nice beachfront.

COCONUT GROVE

Lovely weather in the Keys on Saturday, but by the time I pulled into central Miami around 5 p.m. it was raining cats and donkeys. An hour later, of course, it was over, and at least I managed to spend a bit of money at Coco Walk, the upscale shopping centre in Coconut Grove.

I’ve read a ton of Florida detective novels, and they almost always seem to mention Coconut Grove as some kind of bohemian refuge. It’s gone high-end, of course, not unlike Queen St. West in Toronto. But there are still a couple inexpensive bars and funky shops and cool restaurants.

I had dinner at a place called Jaguar Ceviche Spoon Bar, which is a wonderful spot. You can order small porcelain spoons with various types of ceviche; raw fish that’s cooked in lime juice or other juices. There’s a basic swordfish with red onion, jalapenos, olive oil, cilantro and lime, or you can get more exotic with tuna mixed with soy, ginger, jalapenos, shallots, cilantro, lime, grape seed oil, avocado, cucumber and sesame seeds or calamari, all served around a small pile of roasted corn nuts. Some are Peruvian, others more Mexican style. All of them are good and a couple are simply superb.

They also have a full menu, including an average Argentina strip steak with chimichurri sauce and awesomely perfect scallops.

Florida Keys, Mallory Square sunset and a fabulous Key West restaurant

KEY WEST - Pretty cool town.

Had a bit of a hike from Miami, of course. And the signs on the road don't always make it easy, at least not Thursday as I came south from Miami and got turned onto a strange toll road in the midst of nowhere. But ultimately I found Key Largo and kinda figured I was going in the right direction.

I was surprised at the size of Key Largo and taken aback by all the touristy-looking stuff. But I guess I was looking for something from the 1950s or 60s. Anyway, found a great little spot for lunch called Snook's, where they serve a spicy grouper sandwich out by the water and nice wraps. Not to mention cold Corona's. They were just getting ready for the weekly pig roast, which sounds like a blast.

I was expecting miles and miles of bridges over open water but I don't think there was more 20 minutes of that sort of thing the whole way. Most of the road goes along the keys, themselves, which are a lot more developed than one would like. Still, there are lovely keys and some stunning stretches of green and blue water and plenty of enormous pelicans swooping down over your car; seemingly getting ready to drop a fish - or something else - onto your head.

Of course, I had to have a convertible (sorry, boss). I mean, it's FLORIDA, right? When I picked up the car at the Thrifty counter in Miami, I asked the girl for an upgrade to the convertible and she looked right at me and said, "Driving to the Keys?"

Damn.

Anyway, it worked out fine and I rolled into town just in time for a quick dip in the ocean and a really fast swim at the Casa Marina, an old-style hotel that underwent a multi-million dollar renovation and is now part of the Waldorf-Astoria group, and yes it's pretty la-de-da.

Then comes the fun part. Yes, Duval Street is tacky and unrefined and filled with young people who buy beers at t-shirt shops or from stands right on the road and head to Hard Rock Cafe's and other bars you might find anywhere in the world. But it's a great time and fabulous for people-watching. And near the end of Duval and down a bit you'll find Mallory Square, where folks gather to cheer the sunset every night.

It's not everyone's cup of Joe, but I enjoyed it. Grabbed a terrific margarita (to go, of course) from a great bartender at the jam-packed Sunset Pier (absolutely NO sign of a recession down here, folks) and chatted with a guy from Pennsylvania about the merits of driving an SUV. The sunset was wonderfully colourful and smoky and, yes, folks clapped and cheered when it finally sunk below a thick layer of cloud on the horizon. There were the usual singers and magicians and astrologers gathered along the square and folks mingled and had a great time.

After that it was time for a great dinner at Blue Heaven, which used to house a boxing rink where Ernest Hemingway practiced, not to mention an upstairs brothel that he may or may not have taken advantage of.

There's some great outside seating under the stars and the giant ficus trees and palms, with either a patio underfoot or sand or mulch. Cats whisk by under your feet and wild chickens bark in the distance and, last night, anyway, a wild parrot cawed continously in a tree high overhead. They do a really nice snapper in beurre blanc and last night had yellowfin tuna on a bed of chorizo sausage, corn and asparagus pudding. Very Caribbean/Mexican and very, very, tasty. They're also famous for their key lime pie, which comes with a meringue mountain that's probably four inches high.

Yum.

More sightseeing today, so I'll let you know on Monday how it comes out. Key West isn't everybody's thing, I'm sure, but I'm loving it. 26 degrees and sunny doesn't hurt, of course, and sorry about that.

Security at Pearson...Heading to Margaritaville (Key West)...Vince's wedding pic

 

The new security scanners promised by Transport Canada appear to be up and running at Pearson International Airport.

 

I can't say for sure they're the new ones promised, but there was a large scanner in place at security at Pearson today that I'd never seen before.

 

There were a half dozen security lineups with the usual x-ray style machines, but there also was a lineup at one end of security with a large machine that folks were being told to step inside. Once inside, they were instructed to raise their hands high in the air for a couple seconds.

 

Nobody appeared to be raising a fuss and the lineup seemed to be moving normally.

 

This was my first flight to the U.S. since the Christmas Day incident over Detroit, and there was a huge security contingent at Pearson this morning, with dozens of uniformed workers and supervisors in suits managing the process. The lineup to get to U.S. customs was two or three hundred metres long, at least. Once inside, it was situation normal and people went through U.S. customs in the regular fashion. But after that, at security, they had people step on mats and follow a green sign that pointed folks to the proper security lineup.

 

It was the usual shoes and laptops out of your bag. But what was different than usual, or at least different from the pre-Christmas period, is the care they took going through my knapsack. They leafed through my travel magazines, checked out my laptop and unzipped all the compartments to check everything from my sunglasses case to my lip balm. They ran swabs over my laptop and over my knapsack and then put them through a machine, likely to test for explosive residue.

 

After checking all the bags for all passengers, most folks were being asked to stick their hands into their pants or tuck them under their belt and against their stomach and again deep into their pockets, then remove them and have their hands checked for illegal substances.

 

Folks were told they could bring a carry-on bag in addition to a personal item such as a purse or knapsack; a move announced earlier this week by Transport Canada.

 

Quite the procedure. And to think we used to read our kids a book called "Flying is Fun" whenever we were getting ready for a plane trip. Sigh.

 

JIM B IN THE LAND OF JIMMY B

 

Been a lot of cool places in the world. And spent a lot of time in Florida, what with covering the Blue Jays all those years and making it to golf tournaments for the Star and taking family trips to Orlando, Naples, Miami and Dunedin/Clearwater/St. Pete's.

But I've never been to Key West, and you can't really act as Travel Editor at Canada's largest paper and not see Key West, right? Well, you could. But I'm not.

Transport Canada and U.S. customs and Air Canada willing, I'll be in Miami around 9:30 a.m. after a 3 a.m. wakeup call, a 4 a.m. ride to the airport, a 4:30 a.m. check-in and a 6:30 a.m. flight. From there, it's over to the rental car counter and then south and further south and further south. Okay, and west, too.

Can't wait to drive over the keys. I know folks say it's dull but I can't imagine anything being all that dull if it's sunny and 22 degrees and you can see the water and roll down the windows and let the wind blow back your hair and crank up Jimmy Buffett and the Beach Boys, and if that's a cliche, well, so be it. I'll have my Hawaiian shirt on; probably the blue one with the creme-coloured hibiscus, and maybe my straw fedora-like hat but more likely a Twillingate, Newfoundland ball cap I really like. Guess I should wear some pants, too. It's Florida, but even down there they kinda like drivers to wear pants, I would think. You can probably carry a gun and drink a beer, but you best be wearing pants.

It sounds touristy as hell, but I'm gonna drink in the sunset (so to speak) at Mallory Square and wander Duval and probably taste a margarita or three. But I really want to get away from Duval and explore some funky backstreets, and just soak it all in.

So there you have it. I'll check things out and report back on Friday and again Monday of next week. I'm also heading to Palm Beach on the weekend to check out the Breakers hotel, where I was briefly a few years ago on assignment for the Star, covering Toronto Raptors' star Vince Carter's wedding (mostly from behind some bushes across the street from the church, where the media was NOT welcome). I don't know that the Star ever published a photo I took of young Vince, so here you go. I don't think he knew I was with the Star or he might have done a Hedo Turkoglu and had my photo erased from my camera.

I also plan to check out Coconut Grove in Miami. It sounds pretty touristy, as well, but it's always mentioned in the crazy Florida detective novels I enjoy so much so I'm going to see for myself.

Those crazy Brits...Pay to pee rears its head again..."Fat fee" for Air France?

Busy day, folks. Still hard to believe Japan Airlines had to declare bankruptcy. Yes, things are improving. But there's still a long way to go for travel to get back on its feet.

In the meantime, here are a few reasons to make a trip to Great Britain this year. I got a list of some of the goofy festivals that will take place in GB this year, and some are pretty hilarious:

- The world coal carrying championships go April 5 in the village of Gawthorpe (great name), West Yorkshire. Men carry 50kg of coal over an uphill course more than a kilometre long, while ladies carry 20kg of coal.

- The annual nettle-eating contest is June 12-13 at The Bottle Inn in Dorest, with some 30 challengers trying to choke down the most nettles. Even better than the Star cafeteria, I bet.

- The world toe wrestling championhship runs at the Bentley Brook Inn pub in Derbyshire in August.

- The world snail racing championships are July 17 in Norfolk, where 300 snails "slug it out" for the title of Fastest Snail in the World. Which is kinda like George Carlin's joke about jumbo shrimp.

- Finally, the biggest liar in the world competition goes in November at the Bridge Inn in Cumbria. Actually, it's June in Sussex. No, really, it's March at the Abbey Road studios in London and Paul McCartney will judge with the help of Heather Mills.

Elsewhere on the Euro front, I spotted something where Ryanair is said to be once again floating (sorry for the graphic visual, folks) the idea of making people pay to use the loo on some of their flights. It seemed to be simply an attention-grabbing, fake-out of the press when it came up last year, but there are reports in The Irish Times that say the airline will "press ahead with plans to charge passengers to use its aircraft's toilets."

In a Bloomberg news report today, Ryanair officials are quoted as saying they'll have to raise prices for the first time in four years; likely on April 1. April Fool's Day - how good is that?

The toilet idea, of course, is absurd. But, hey, at least Transport Canada has told us we can take a carry-on bag (not just a personal item like a purse or knapsack but a REAL carry-on bag) on board flights to the U.S., starting yesterday, apparently.

I see also where TripAdvisor says The Rudding Park Hotel in Harrogate took honours in a travellers' poll on the UK's Best Hotel. The Charterhouse Hotel in Torquay was given the honor as the UK's Best Service Hotel. But there wasn't a single hotel in London that made it into the rankings for Top 25 hotels in the UK, which I find weird.

"With the Olympics just two years away, it's worrying not to see a single London hotel in the Top 25 UK list," said Alison Copus, TripAdvisory Europe marketing vice president. "Come 2012, all eyes will be on our capital city, and London hotels are clearly going to have to raise their game to make sure they provide world-class accomodation."

I had a lovely stay at Brown's Hotel in London a year ago. But I haven't stayed in nearly enough hotels in the UK to pass judgment on the TripAdvisor list.

I do, however, find it annoying that their UK web site, www.traveladvisor.co.ukappears to have lists of the top 25 hotels in Europe and in Spain, the UK, France, Italy and other places, and in the U.S. But nothing about Canada. So much for the Commonwealth, eh?

AIR FRANCE DENIES ATTACK ON CHUBBY PASSENGERS

Got a press release from Air France today to say that, contrary to reports in the press (they didn't say which publication they meant), they have "no intention of making corpulent passengers pay for a second seat."

 

The press release said they are, however, making a change to their policies as of Feb. 1, "which is to refund corpulent passengers the cost of a second seat in economy" if they have purchased one, providing Economy isn't fully booked. That seems to make sense.

 

The company says its has been offering corpulent passengers the possibility of buying a second seat on the airplane to ensure optimal comfort and safety, and that the second seat is sold at a 25 per cent discount.

 

But the information from Bloomberg news is entirely different. Their report today said Air France-KLM Group is standing by its policy of asking obese passengers to pay for a second seat.

 

"The airline will continue to charge outsize passengers for a second seat, with a 25 per cent price reduction," Bloomberg saidk quoting a Paris-based spokesman for Air France. "The only change is that the airline will begin refunding the second seats from Feb. 1 whenever the flights aren't full.

 

France's Secretary of State for the Family, Nadine Morano, had said the idea of making people pay for two seats was "shocking." But an Air France spokesman said that if an "extremely corpulent passenger can't fit into one seat and they don't want to pay for a second, then they can't fly."

 

So, guys, who's right here?

 

JIM'S DEALS OF THE DAY

 

$28 - Toronto to Fort Lauderdale, last-minute return; $258 w/tax

http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2232

 

$349 - Toronto to New York City, Valentine's Day weekend getaway ($468 w/tax)

http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2230

From $139 - Fallsview Deluxe Suite package at the 4* Niagara Falls Hilton: more than 30% off

http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2231

 

TURKEY PRICES ON THE RISE?

 

Turkey is one of those places that seems to make everyone's "hot list" these days. With a real east-meets-west feel, a long coastline and a great culinary tradition, it's a logical spot for tourists. They also use the lira instead of the Euro, which has made it a better option economically.

 

But I saw a report today on travelmole.com that said a new "Post Office Worldwide Holiday Costs Barometer" - a table put out by the Royal Mail in the UK - reveals Turkey has dropped 14 places to 22nd out of 30 worldwide destinations in terms of cost. That makes it more expensive than Spain, the report said.

 

A spokeswoman was quoted as saying that their 2010 "shopping basket of eight tourist staples indicates that Turkey is now 68 per cent more expensive than Spain."

 

This is for folks visiting from the UK, so some of this has to do with valuation of the pound. It might, therefore, not be wholly appropriate for Canadians. But it's still interesting.

 

Top destinations for Brits looking to stretch their pounds? Jamaica, Egypt and Dubain, according to the Royal Mail.

 

Travel on the Rebound...Rude American Customs Agents..Jim's Deals of the Day

Good news out of Madrid, where the head of the United Nations World tourism Organisation is suggesting travel is rebounding better than expected.

 

Speaking at a news conference in the Spanish capital, UNWTO Secretary General Taleb Rifai said global tourism should grow 3 to 4 per cent this year following a strong recovery in the final quarter of 2009. Growth was especially good in Asia, the Pacific and the Middle East in the final three months of last year, he said.

 

The global economic crisis and the H1NI flu pandemic "turned 2009 into one of the toughest years for the tourism sector," he said. "However, the results of recent months suggest that recovery is underway, and even somewhat earlier and at a stronger pace than initially expected."

 

Rifai said Europe and North America are lagging behind other regions. Europe tourism was down a full 6 per cent in 2009, compared to 2 per cent for the year for Asia and the Pacific, he said.

 

Other encouraging words were coming from Carnival Cruises, which said it's returning to Europe. The cruise giant abandoned Europe during the economic downturn of the past two years, USA Today was reporting.

 

But Gene Sloan wrote on his cruise blog that "Carnival will announce today that its next ship, the 3,690-passenger Carnival Magic, will be based in Barcelona afer it debuts in May, 2011." It's said that the Magic will sail seven, nine and 12-night cruises to Monte Carlo, Rome, Naples, Messina, Palma, Marseilles, Venice and Dubrovnik - which sounds like a pretty nice roster of towns doncha think?

 

RUDE AMERICANS?

 

The Economist, or at least readers of the publication, say the U.S. has by far the rudest and most unpleasant entry process in the world.

 

"Americans are, by and large, a courteous bunch," according to the publication's Lexington column. "Interactions with strangers are typically sweetened with a generous frosting of “Sir”, “Ma’am” and “Excuse me”. Yet in a survey commissioned by the travel industry, more than half of visitors found American border officials rude and unpleasant. By a two-to-one margin, the country’s entry process was rated the world’s worst. This is not a problem only for whingeing journalists and other foreign riff-raff. It is also a problem for America."

The author goes to say that conventions don't want to go to the U.S. because some people might be barred from entry.

"An immigration policy that didn’t aggravate some innocent would-be entrants would probably be too lax. But America appears to have leant too far in the opposite direction—and its image is suffering as a result."

Interesting stuff.

I'LL TAKE A 40-OUNCER OF RYE TO GO, THANKS

 

Spotted an item from Sunwing the other day that said folks can now pre-order their duty-free items at www.sunwing.ca. Instead of waiting in line at the duty free shop, you just go to the web site and order in advance, even as much as a couple weeks before you fly.

 

Officials said customers can even get a reminder email sent to them just before their flight so they don't forget their favourite booze. Or perfume or smokes. They deliver your stuff right to your seat, and they won't charge your credit card until you fly.

 

Gotta admit that sounds pretty tempting.

 

JIM'S DEALS OF THE DAY

 

$169 - Toronto to Cancun, last-minute round-trip flight ($442 w/tax)
http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2192

 

$269 - Toronto to Atlantic City, 3-day getaway ($398 w/tax)
http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2193

 

$397 - Toronto to Isla Margarita, Venezuela, 1 week last-minute all-incl ($754 w/tax)
http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2194

The Great Wall of Chocolate and World's Biggest Hummus Plate; silly travel!!!

You gotta love the Chinese. Well, you don't HAVE to, but I admire their go-big-or-go-home travel approach. Two years ago it was the Olympics, and this year it's Expo 2010 in Shanghai.

But while we wait for the gates to Expo to slide open in May, here's the latest report from Reuters; the great wall of chocolate. It seems there's something called the World Chocolate Wonderland exhibition and trade show opening in Beijing later this month, and to celebrate the Chinese have constructed a 10-meter long replica of the Great Wall made entirely of chocolate. Not to mention 560 chocolate replicas of the famous Terracotta Warriors.

The Reuters story says it took 80 tons of chocolate to make the displays. Which is pretty staggering.

Apparently chocolate isn't as big a deal in China as it is here, so the exhibition is part of a plan to boost sales. Selling hummus, of course, isn't so tough in the Middle East, where a new Guiness World Record was set last week for the largest serving of hummus.

The dish weighed a whopping, 8,992 pounds and was spread into a 20-foot satellite dish, apparently beating a record set in Lebanon two months ago.

I wonder what they do with these displays once they're finished. It seems like quite  a waste. I suppose the chocolates can be kept cool and given away or sold, but how many pita chips would it have taken to get rid of all that hummus?

COUGAR CRUISE

Carnival hosted what was called the first "cougar cruise" earlier this year, giving older women a chance to meet up with younger guys. It was a three-day cruise that had great demand, but Carnival decided to take a pass on a second sailing.

That left some folks disappointed, but I saw the other day that Royal Caribbean is picking up the slack, so to speak, with a sailing in May on the Mariner of the Seas. The trip is being sold by Singles Travel Company, and it's said that cabins start at $399 per person, based on double occupancy (that shouldn't be a problem). The price doesn't include taxes or fees or, apparently, condoms.

JIM'S DEALS OF THE DAY, provided by Travel Alerts

$387 - Toronto to Cayo Coco, Cuba, 1 week all-inclusive vacation ($591 w/tax)

http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2182

US$549 - 7 night cruise from Brazil to Argentina (US$682 w/tax)

http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2183

HAWAII TREAT

One of my favourite hotels in the world, the Napili Kai Beach Resort on Maui, has some special deals. From Jan. 6 to 29, March 6 to March 26, April 10 to June 18 and Aug. 21 to Dec. 17, you can get a fifth night free after paying the rack rate for four nights in a row, or you can get a sixth and seventh night free if you pay five days with the rack rate. Kids also eat free if accompanied by a paying adult.

The Napili Kai is on what I consider the best beach in the world; a lovely crescent called Napili Beach with only low-rise condos, a nice bodysurfing section and a calmer section with good snorkeling. The Napili Kai has one of the best beachfront restaurants in Hawaii, the Sea House. They also do weekly Hawaiian music shows, often with legendary slack key guitar player George Kahumoku. A real treat.

The hotel sits out on a lovely point and has wonderful landscaping and barbeques, not to mention fabulous sunsets and great views of the islands of Molokai and Lanai. And it's a two-minute walk to Kapalua Beach if you want something different. Or you can take a short drive to lengthy, Kaanapali Beach or down to the wonderful town of Lahaina.

For more information, go to www.napilikai.com.

OPEN SKIES CUBA?

Spotted an interesting Canadian Press story the other day out of Ottawa that said the federal government had reached a new deal with Cuba that "will give Canadian airlines expanded access to the Caribbean island's sunny skies."

CP said the new deal will allow four Canadian charter airlines to fly between multiple locations after landing in Cuba, meaning Canadians would be able to fly on Canadian carriers to destinations within Cuba. The deal is supposed to be announced this week, so stay tuned.

NEW VANCOUVER HOTEL

Lots of new hotels coming up in Vancouver as they get down to the deadline for the start of the Winter Olympics; less than four weeks away! The 20 storey, 220-room Coast Coal Harbour Hotel opened last week in downtown Vancouver.

Located at 1180 West Hastings, it's a $60 million, four-star property with rooms that average 340 square feet and come equipped with 32-inch LCD TV's.