Air Canada/WestJet helping in Haiti...Tiger too..Twitter coverage of Haiti is A-1

Everybody's jumping on the Haiti bandwagon, and I don't mean that to sound snarky.

The latest post I saw from Associated Press was quoting a guy from Tiger Woods' foundation (remember him?) as saying they wanted to help. There was a rumour of a $3 million donation but I don't know if that's true. Apparently Tiger wants to help kids in Haiti.

He's done good things with his foundation. And it's smart of his agents or him to make a gesture like this, especially with his sponsors treating him the way Hedo Turkoglu of the Raptors treats fans with digital cameras.

Air Canada sent out a release today to say it was sending a plane and volunteer crew to Haiti at 6:30 a.m. Saturday, from Montreal to Port-au-Prince. The plane will be able to carry 14,800 pounds of people and material, including some 100 search and rescue technicians from Quebec.

The return flight will carry evacuees.

WestJet, meanwhile, said it's donating $100,000 to the Canadian Red Cross and is challenging its employees to do even better. In addition, they'll send a charter from Toronto to Port-au-Prince with "much needed supplies provided by World Vision Canada."

I got a note on my blog earlier today - thanks! - from a marketing agency working with Royal Caribbean. The note said Royal Caribbean, which owns a private island called Labadee off Haiti's north shore, has teamed up with a group called Food for the Poor to help out. Anyone interested in assisting can make a donation at http://foodforthepoor.org/royalcaribbean.

TWITTER ROCKS ON HAITI

I gotta admit I was a tiny bit unsure about Twitter when I heard about it back in the summer of 2008. The Star signed me up to "tweet" from Beijing, where I was coordinating the Star's Olympic Games coverage.

Twitter was definitely in its infancy, as I probably had 60 or 70 followers by the time the Games were over. Heck, there are weekends (well, not quite but you get the point) now where I can pick up 60 or 70 followers. It's an amazing service. For those of you who don't get it, check it out at www.twitter.com and at least give it a couple days.

Yes, there are idiots telling me they don't like onion bagels and others who muse about television shows. But if you go to twitter and type in #haiti in the search category, you'll get thousands upon thousands of "tweets" from folks around the world talking about the situation. There are miniature novels being played out all over Twitter today, and it's absolutely fascinating.

Here's a small sample of what I picked up in just a few seconds this morning:

- @yywhy wondered: "They keep talking about blocked roads. Are all our helicopters in Iraq and Afghanistan?"

- @sophie_choudry had this to offer: "Wanna help Hait? Text YELE to 505501."

- @francosarmy, on the other hand, posted this: " #HAITI SITUATION IS JUST GOING TO GET WORSE. MORE ARE DYING EVERY MINUTE. 44 EARTHQUAKES HIT HAITI SO FAR THE LAST ONE AT 3:56 AM FRIDAY 4.7So, in the space of a just a few seconds,."

- @CRSnews posted this: "Some market activitity on outskirts of Port-Au-Prince. Merchants selling lemonade and shaved ice."

- This also was quite useful: "Do you have family and/or friends in Haiti? @abc7 wants to talk to you. Please tweet back or call us at 818-803-7600."

Another respondent had this to say: "AMERICAN AIRLINES ARE NOT TAKING DOCTORS/NURSES FOR FREE"

I have no idea what this person is on about, but I also spotted this: @MRUIZHP: What the Mainstream Media Will Not Tell You About Haiti ... http://bit.ly/5lqRcA

And finally, a sobering thought, as if there aren't enough: @klustout: First 72 hours *critical* for saving people trapped in the rubble. More than 63 hrs have passed. Precious lives are at stake. #haiti

Powerful, powerful stuff. More to come if I get a chance.

 

Sunwing deal okayed...Dominican Republic pitching in...Vegas rising..

Just got this from openjaw.com; thanks guys.

"Further to their September announcement that Sunwing Travel Group and First Choice Canada had reached an agreement to amalgamate their Canadian tour operator businesses, the parties have announced that all necessary regulatory approvals to close the transation have been received.

Johan Lundgren, Managing Director, Northern Region, TUI Travel PLC stated, "We are very pleased that we have received all approvals and have now completed the deal with Sunwing. We continue to believe that First Choice Canada will have greater future opportunities as part of a combined Sunwing business."

Stephen Hunter, who will be the Chief Executive Officer of the combined venture headquartered in Toronto, said: "This is an exciting time for everybody at Sunwing Travel Group and we look forward to continued growth and profitability and to providing Canadian travellers with great holidays."

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC LENDS A HAND

The Dominican Republic Ministry of Tourism has issued a statement saying it is "deeply saddened by the tragic loss of life and extensive earthquake damage to the people of Haiti," its neighboring country.

"The Dominican government is providing a relief effort staging area at some of the international airports located on the Island," the ministry said.

Officials said the DR did not experience any damage from the earthquake and that all transportation systems, communication systems, tourism businesses and medical facilities are operating smoothly, making the country available to offer support to the relief effort in any way needed.

“The DR is making available its medical facilities for earthquake victims and is providing international relief organizations access to Haiti through the airport and seaports. Our transportation systems, communications systems, hotels, resorts, beaches and natural environment suffered no damage here. We are grateful and with deep concern open our hearts to our neighbors and will continue to do everything we can to help them and reassure global travelers that the DR is receiving visitors.”

The DR shares the eastern third of the Island of Hispaniola with Haiti. Punta Cana, the major global tourism destination in the DR is located approximately 400 miles (633 kilometers) east of Haiti’s capital, or a 10-12 hour drive, with numerous mountain ranges separating the two countries.

Officials said all eight of the DR's international airports are open and operating as normal, as are its cruise terminals and all its hotels, resorts, beaches and tourism businesses. No flights or group tours to the DR have been cancelled.

I spotted a headline this morning that said Royal Caribbean has suspended the docking of its ships at Labadee, a private island it owns off the coast of Haiti. But I haven't been able to confirm that just yet. I was on a cruise with RCI a few years ago and they suspended the Labadee stop due to weather; we ended up docking in the Bahamas instead.

Speaking of cruises, I spotted a USA Today story about a retired businessman who has taken 37 Carnival cruises in 15 MONTHS! That's stunning, ain't it?

VEGAS REBOUND CONTINUES

Nevada officials say gaming revenue in November climbed 4 per cent ro reach $873.2 million. On the Vegas strip, revenue climed 8.3 per cent to $473.8 million.

(Doing some mental arithmetic, that shows that only about one-half Nevada's gaming revenues come from Vegas. Most of the rest would be Tahoe and Reno. Still, I would've thought Vegas would have a larger share.) Anyway, it's certainly good news for Vegas and Nevada.

Not so great news, however, for Atlantic City. TheStreet reports Atlantic City saw its gaming revenue fall 9.9 per cent in December, while Illinois was down 5.1 per cent and Missouri down 1.6 per cent.

Are there any states left that DON'T have casinos? I think so. Hawaii doesn't, I'm pretty sure. Which is perhaps one reason Hawaiians LOVE Las Vegas. It's probably the vacation of choice for most Hawaiians, who probably lap up the desert atmosphere. Not to mention the food and the shows and the gambling.

FAIRMONT AND HYATT EXPANDING

The folks at Toronto-based Fairmont say they'll open seven new hotels around the world this year as the travel scene gradually improves.

Topping the charts for Fairmont is the reopening of the Savoy in London. They spent two years and more than $150 million redoing the old gal from top to bottom. The Savoy Grill will return under the operations of Gordon Ramsay Holdings. It's supposed to reopen by summer.

Also newly restored is the Fairmont Peace Hotel in Shanghai; scheduled to open sometime between April and June; just in time for the May start of Expo 2010.

Closer to home, the Fairmont Pacific Rim will open in the next couple weeks; just in time for the 2010 Winter Olympics, which you may have heard something about. It's a 377-room luxury hotel with 175 residential condos on the edge of the water; close to the Vancouver Conference Centre and with views of Stanley Park and the North Shore Mountains.

Others opening this year are the Fairmont Beijing, Fairmont Pittsburgh (a city that's done a lot of renovation itself), the Fairmont Zimbali Resort in South Africa and the Makkah Clock Royal Tower in Saudi Arabia.

Over at Chicago-based Hyatt, they're crowing about the opening Monday of their new Andaz hotel in lower Manhattan . It's only the second hotel in New York for Hyatt, which is surprising. Also a bit of an eye-opener is that, according to the Wall Street Journal, Hyatt has only two hotels in London and three in Paris.

"We do believe there will be opportunities to acquire properties or maybe even a brand at some point," Hyatt Chief Executive Mark Hoplamazian said.

There are plans for a second New York Andaz in midtown Manhattan in the coming months.

Hotelnewsnow has a good story on future Hyatt endeavours. They also have an interesting piece about how Caribbean hotels are making upgrades due to an expected travel upturn.

JIM'S DEALS OF THE DAY

$29 - Toronto to Orlando, non-stop return flight this winter ($259 w/tax)
http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2162

 

Up to 40% off: $1498 - Toronto to Australia, return flight with a stopover in New Zealand
http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2163

 

$397 - Toronto to Varadero, 1 week all-inclusive vacation ($601 w/tax)
http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2164

 

 

 

Haiti earthquake fallout...Tightened Canadian security...More Turks/Caicos

The situation is obviously terrible in Haiti. It's not bad enough these poor people are plagued by one of the worst governments in the world and live in abject poverty; now they have an earthquake that appears to have killed thousands.

I'll leave it to the news wires to keep you up to date on Haiti itself, but suffice to say aid is coming from Canada and other places. The Caribbean Tourism Organization says it, too, will offer financial and other aid.

The earthquake struck near Port-au-Prince, the capital ofHaiti. It was felt in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and there were reports of people fleeing Santo Domingo buildings in panic. But there were no reports of damage in the DR, and it doesn't look like tourism will be affected in one of Canada's favourite getaways.

That's no consolation to Haiti, which has been making attempts to nurture its own tourism brand despite desperate conditions. There was a great story in the September issue of Conde Nast Traveler by writer Amy Wilentz, who painted a lovely portrait, with beautiful swimming holes, incredible landscapes and tons of interesting locals.

At some point the country will return to whatever it's normal situation is and tourists will be welcome. You want to do some good? Make a donation now, but also make Haiti a destination once the country is back on its feet.

HEIGHTENED SECURITY

I got a note from my boss on my way to the airport in Turks and Caicos to say Canada is already getting its first shipments of the new “naked scanners,” although there appears to be no set date to have them installed just yet. There also was news of heightened security at airports in Canada, which made it an interesting day to fly home.

 

It was a pretty normal check in in Providenciales, but my check-in bag was singled out for a random search. No problem, although I felt sorry for the girl going through my boxers and sweaty sandals. To be honest, she didn’t do a very thorough search; opening some zippers but leaving others alone. Maybe she knew what she was doing, but it seemed awfully cursory to me.

 

Next stop was the x-ray machine with my knapsack, which was pretty standard. But then, after grabbing a ham and cheese sandwich at the bar (not much to write home about, just for future reference) next to the American Airlines gate, all carry-on bags were looked into. Again, not very thoroughly. The worker checked out my bag – a bit. She even thumbed through my hardcover book on Mark Twain. She took apart my “rocket stick” for checking the Internet, but didn’t ask what it was and didn’t pay attention to the power cords in my bag. She opened the zipper that has my sunglasses case in it but didn’t open  the case to see what was in it.

 

Mind you, it would’ve taken hours to go through everybody’s stuff in detail, and the point likely was simply to let people know they’re being looked at. Finally, I got the pat-down before being allowed to get on board the flight to Miami.

 

There wasn’t much of a sign of anything serious in Miami; just the normal “shoes off, keys out of our pocket” stuff at the x-ray machine. And there was no sign of anything unusual at Pearson upon our arrival at 1 a.m., except I got my bag in a reasonable amount of time, which is surely the sign of something strange.

 

Actually, I'm forgetting something. They didn't give me a U.S. customs form in Turks/Caicos, and I forgot to ask owing to the fact I was blushing about the girl going through my Hawaiian-flower and hula girl boxers. The only customs form they had on my American Airlines flight was in Spanish. The steward said I could probably figure it out but I said I'd wait til I got to Miami. So I get to Miami and go to the customs guy and say, "Do you have any arrival forms."

 

He looks at me and says, "Do you speak German?" "No," I said. He grinned. "Neither do I," he said, and handed me an English form.

 

You think Canadian customs agents ever have that kind of fun with folks? Not too often, I think.

 

DAMN, ANYONE GOT SOME McNUGGETS?

I was getting a ride to the airport in Providenciales, Turks and Caicos on Tuesday from a lovely girl who was born and raised in Montego Bay, Jamaica.

 

“I remember when I first came here (Providenciales), somebody said we were going to drive through downtown. We drove for a minute and I said, ‘Where’s the downtown?’ And they said, ‘You just missed it.’”

There’s not much of a town, to tell the truth; just a few scattered buildings and a gas station or two and what looked like a nondescript municipal government structure; all of it taking up a couple square blocks or so.

“When I first got here, somebody told me to look for the KFC,” my driver told me. “So I found the big red KFC sign, but underneath it in big, black letters it said “No Chicken.” I couldn’t believe it. They had everything but chicken.”

As it turns out, folks down that way aren’t into North American fast food. Apparently they’ll line up for grits and peas and boiled fish and they love to go out, especially on weekend mornings, but they prefer tried and true places where they’re served by local “grannies” rather than sitting down at the Golden Arches or Buger King. Good for them, I say.

 

Searching for sun in the Turks & Caicos...Amanyara resort is outstanding

PROVIDENCIALES, Turks and Caicos – Talk about optimism. It’s been blustery and cool and windy and cloudy and nearly miserable here for the last two days.

No sun since early Sunday, a run of nearly 72 hours. You'll laugh back home, but 20 Celsius with no sun and a howling, 35 mph wind is nothing to sneeze at down here, where folks are dressed in warm sweaters and hoodies. Even a Canadian journalist who shall remain nameless was forced to wear a thick towel over his exposed legs during lunch at the beachside restaurant on Monday due to the fierce wind whipping off the water.

It’s not a huge deal to me, of course. But to folks who invested their hard-earned money into what should’ve been a warm holiday, this cold snap is a giant pain. It was, however, a good day Monday for the folks running the spa at the sumptuous Amanyara Resort here, as the pool was deserted and the beach a dead-zone. It seemed pretty dismal all around, but when I got to my room after a 4 p.m. massage (yeah, I know, tough life) there were two small bottles on my work desk; one of sunscreen and another of after-sun care. Suddenly my heart raced. Had they seen a weather forecast I hadn’t? Would we get a wee bit of sun after all?

It was too much to bear. I pretty much chalked it up to naivete, but when I left the hotel restaurant after dinner I looked up and saw…stars. Not clouds, but stars. The wind had died down and you could see big breaks in the clouds. This morning it’s back to cloud. But much less of a thick heavy cloud than the last few days, so maybe the sun can break through a bit and keep the tourists happy. It now looks like there are a couple of bright spots, and it's definitely warmer than yesterday. Hopefully it's the same in Toronto.

We don’t hear a lot about Aman hotels/resorts in Canada. They have a property in Jackson Hole, Wyoming and another that just opened on the Utah/Arizona border, apparently RIGHT on the border with different time zones for different parts of the hotel? (At least that’s what I heard last night). Their only other property in North America or thereabouts is this one, tucked way up on a corner of Provo, as folks call Providenciales.

It’s very minimalist and very, very, very private; with independent villas set among the local vegetation. Very spread out. But beautiful, beautiful rooms and public buildings and the best hotel food I think I’ve ever had.
I had a terrific (but small) serving of rack of veal with mushroom risotto and crispy Serrano ham one night. For lunch yesterday it was an incredible beef rib that tasted like it had been slow-cooked since 2008. You could’ve cut it with a feather – or maybe by holding it up in the wind. Asian-inspired, it also had a great Thai dipping sauce. And on the side was coconut rice with slices of fried garlic; an incredible combo.

On Monday they encouraged me to try the Chang Mai chicken curry. And I damn near died of happiness. It had big chunks of chicken in a creamy yellow curry with coconut milk, lemongrass, kaffir lime, fish sauce (I think), chiles and coriander; smooth and rich and spicy and sweet and savoury and utterly delicious. Apparently the head chef used to buy a curry mix from Miami but now makes his own base, which is the key.

If I’m ever put in front of a firing squad, I want this as my last meal. (Sorry, honey; I still love your lasagna.)

SPEAKING OF WEATHER

They're having big problems at Cypress Mountain in Vancouver due to warm weather and rain. Usually that's not a big deal, but Cypress is where freestyle skiing and snowboarding will take place during the Winter Olympics, WHICH START ONE MONTH FROM TODAY.

Apparently they've shut the mountain down for today. Folks say they can make snow if they have to, but they still sound more than a little concerned.

More than 60 millimetres of rain fell Monday on the North Shore mountains. Another 30 is expected today. Yikes.

The final phase of the Vancouver/Whistler transportation plan is supposed to be unveiled today, as well. THAT should be interesting, especially for locals.

FEAR OF FLYING

A USA Today/Gallup Poll taken Jan. 5-6 reveals that 27% of those who've flown round trip at least twice during the past year are more likely now than in the past to travel by car, train or another mode of transportation to avoid the inconveniences of flying.

Not surprising given all that's happened lately. I'm flying from Providenciales to Miami today so we'll see how that goes.

Scanner column fallout...Long Island, Bahamas...Mark Twain kicks butt...

Well, THAT struck a nerve.

I’ve written probably thousands of stories over the years, and maybe a few dozen columns, but nothing I’ve done has sparked anything near the response of my Saturday column about how people should “shut up” and stop whining about body scanners at airports.

Okay, the “shut up” part was excessive. But I still think people are making WAY too big a deal out of the scanners. I don’t see it as some kind of massive privacy invasion or as big brother reaching into my soul. But a lot of you do. And boy, are some of you pissed off.

I’ve had a number of letters of support; probably more than I expected when you consider that most times it’s only the people who really disagree with a columnist that bother to write in. Still, it seems most of you think I’m stupid or naïve or even a tool of fascism. Not to mention a certain part of the body reserved for expelling waste material.

But, hey, that’s what happens when you take a stand. And I have to say I’m thrilled that people are reading the paper and are involved and angered or stirred up enough to write. And, just to be fair and keep the debate going, I’ll put some of the responses into this coming Saturday's Travel section. (Sorry, I originally said Thursday but Saturday works better for us). So check that out later in the week.

BAHAMA BEAUTY

Spent the weekend on Long Island in the Bahamas. Friday was beautiful, with the most enjoyable plane ride of my life thanks to Joel Friese of Stella Maris Resort on Long Island, who flew me and his mom and dad from Nassau to the Stella Maris airport. Spent Friday night at their resort (see photo),  
which is over on the Atlantic side of the island. A fine dinner and a powerful rum punch on Friday, then Saturday morning had some time to check out the small beach and wander over the tide pools.

Then I got a ride Saturday over to Cape Santa Maria Resort, which is on the Caribbean side and has a smashingly long stretch of fine, powdery beach. Not as striking as the Atlantic side, but perfect for beach-goers and for sunsets. And it’s owned by Robert Wright, a Victoria resident who made his fortune with a string of fishing lodges up and down the coast of British Columbia.

They’re both really nice places to say, with different feels and different geography. Look for more in a story on Long Island coming up in a few weeks. Sadly, even the Bahamas can get some nasty weather and it turned quite cool Saturday afternoon. The locals are running about in hooded sweatshirts as the temperature has dipped below 20 Celsius and there’s a fierce north wind that’s whipping up whitecaps on usually serene bays.

I caught a flight Sunday from Long Island to Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos as I’m staying a couple nights at Amanyara resort, which is a relatively isolated spot a half hour from the hotels and condos of Grace Bay. Aman is consistently rated as one of the top hotels in the world, and this is their only Caribbean property so I thought I’d check it out.

The weather’s still not great, but the hotel is a stunner. More on that in Tuesday’s blog.

JIM'S DEALS OF THE DAY

$83 - Toronto to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, non-stop return flight ($405 w/tax)

http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2103

 

$388 - Toronto to Cayo Coco, Cuba, 1 week all-inclusive vacation ($593 w/tax)

http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2102

 

COMPLETELY BESIDE THE POINT

This has nothing to do with anything, except it’s travel-related. I’m reading a collection of Mark Twain’s travel writing; a book my son got me for Christmas called “The Chicago of Europe, and Other Tales of Foreign Travel.” I got to the seventh sentence of his first story, called The Lure of the River, and I read a sentence so beautiful and pure that I almost feel there’s no point in trying to write anything any more.
After a few sentences setting talking about the “eloquence of silence” one gets during a summer sunrise on the Mississippi, Twain writes how he hears birds piping a “jubilant riot of music.” Lovely stuff. But the next sentence just slays me: “You see none of the birds; you simply move through an atmosphere of song which seems to sing itself.”
I honestly don’t know how I can go on after reading that sentence. It might be the single most beautiful thing ever put on paper.
If I ever write a book, and lord knows I’d love to try, I’ll name it “An Atmosphere of Song.”

Scanner column sparks reaction...Nuts on planes... China rising

Im an idiot.

No, wait, I'm a genius.

My Saturday Travel column on scanners in airports is posted on our website already, and I've already received dozens of emails; both pro and con. I'm not used to the attention, I gotta say. But I feel strongly about the issue. And so do you, which is great.

So, rather than listen to me rant any more about shutting up and getting scanned, I'll put together some of your thoughts in the next few days and post your comments online and in the paper. Sound fair?

I don't particularly like being called a moron, but that's the price you pay when you stick your neck out. And I've heard worse from my family over the years, so that's fine.

NUTS TO YOU

Interesting that Air Canada might have to provide nut free zones on planes. Guess it makes sense. I have a mild nut allergy but I understand some folks have it much, much worse.

Sill, you gotta wonder where it will end. Personally, what I want is a "no kids kicking the back of my seat" zone and a "no slamming your seat back into my lap and spilling hot coffee on my only good pair of pants" zone. But that's just me.

CHINA RISING

Spotted this on travelmole, and it only goes to show what incredible opportunities there are for folks involved in China tourism, as well as selling cars and cement and potash.

"Total revenue in China's tourism industry is expected to grow 13 percent to hit US$205 billion in 2010, as the country rolls out favourable policies to back the industry, said the China Tourism Academy in a new report.

Chinese tourists are forecast to make 2.1 billion domestic trips this year, up 12 percent from 2009.

The number of inbound trips by overseas tourists would reach 136 million, up eight percent from a year earlier, while outbound trips by Chinese tourists would advance 15 percent to 54 million.

The Chinese government posted guidelines last December to promote the development of the tourism industry, vowing to lower market threshold and simplify approval procedures for tourism enterprises, and encourage local authorities to attract overseas investment, opening the domestic tourism market to foreign companies.

Canada recently signed a sort-of "most favoured nation" tourism deal with China, which will mean more Canadian flights into China and, hopefully, more Chinese tourists coming to see the wonders of Canada. It's an enormous opportunity.

China, of course, has done more than its share to attract foreign dollars - preferably Canadian given our surging loonie - to its shores. The Olympics last year were a huge success. On a personal note, I was overwhelmed by the architecture and the scale of the changes.

I was part of the Star's Olympic team for the 2008 Games, and the city was absolutely jumping. There were flowers strewn all over highways and condos, the people couldn't do enough for you (kinda like your average Torontonian) and they threw money at everything. The Birds Nest stadium was awesome and the  Water Cube was great and everything worked like clockwork; enough to make the Swiss envious.

I can only imagine that the Shanghai Expo this summer will be equally remarkable. They say Shanghai is China's Montreal, with plenty of style and capitalism chutzpah, so it'll be fascinating if I can get over there and check it out.

 

Vancouver gets ready for the Olympics...Whistler hotel ($$$$)...Deals of the day

They're putting up the first of 6,000 festive banners to welcome folks to the Olympics. Hotels are slapping on fresh coats of paint, while others are getting ready to open.

The 2010 Olympics start five weeks from tomorrow, and there's no end to the preparations and polishing. Funniest thing I spotted was yesterday, when the good people at the Vancouver Organizing Committee sent out a press release suggested drivers "start practising their Games-time travel plans" now.

A bunch of roads will be closed, of course, during the Games. And there will be road restrictions. Officials hope to reduce overall vehicle traffic by 30 per cent during the Olympics.

But to ask people to start practising now? Yeah, right. I can see just see a guy living in Richmond VOLUNTEERING to add 10 minutes to his drive a month before he has to, just so he can practise taking alternate routes.

Admirable thought but remarkably naive, doncha think?

On the hotel front, the Vancouver Sun reports there's a ton of work going on to get ready for the influx of visitors.

The 220-room Coast Coal Harbour Hotel opens at 1180 West Hastings a week from tomorrow, the same opening date as the 105-room Pinnacle Hotel at the Pier near Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver.

The 377-room Fairmont Pacific Rim, located downtown near Canada Place, will open by the end of this month, although the Sun reports it doesn't look that close to being ready.

The Fairmont's fully booked for the Olympics, and the first guests are supposed to arrive early next month.

“Every hotel opening is the same,” general manager Randy Zupanski said. “Things get pushed right to the wire.”

That they do. I remember going to a playoff baseball game at Candlestick Park in San Francisco to watch the Giants play back around, oh, 1973. My friend and I had seats in the outfield and the stadium was being renovated at the time (ruined, actually; seats added to make way for the 49ers). We laughed as we walked into the park and said, "watch, they'll be putting our seats together." Sure enough, we climbed up the stairs and there was a guy with a huge set of tools around his belt, fastening the seats together with huge bolts. We didn't sit down until the second inning. True story.

There ARE still some rooms available for the Olympics. But it'll cost you. The Fairmont Chateau Whistler the other day said it still has rooms for the Olympics, which run Feb. 12-26. But they said most rooms require a 3-night minimum stay and that the best rate was, ahem, $899 per night.

I also spotted an "exclusive invitation" to the Games from Hudson's Bay Co., an offer of $3,622.50 US for a hospitality package that includes downtown Vancouver accomodation, breakfasts and ticket to top sporting events. It's based on double occupancy.

AND NOW, LET'S ALL TAKE PITY ON CALIFORNIA

I get some strange things crossing my desk. One came along this week, stating that cheapflights.ca is advising Canadians to travel to places that have been hit hardest by the recession. It's not without its merit, but I found the list of spots a little strange.

Instead of flying to, say, Burma or Paraguay they talked about Ireland, Iceland, Oregon, the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas and California. Nothing wrong with selling those locations, but has it really come to this; that Canadians are so wealthy that we can hop on a jet and fly to L.A. for a weekend just to help Governor Arnold and his fellow residents put a shine back on the Golden State? Do you think they'd meet us at the airport?

"Hey, look, Ma; the Canadians are here. Maybe we can move back into our house!"

JIM'S DEALS OF THE DAY

From $38 one way - Worldwide Seat Sale with WestJet. (Last day to book!)

http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2095

US$99pp - 60% off 4* all-inclusive Gran Melia Cancun + free golf. (Our favourite summer game!) 

http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2093

$297 - Toronto to Puerto Plata, 1 week all-inclusive vacation ($617 w/tax) (Sunshine is calling!)

http://www.travelalerts.ca/ccount12/click.php?id=2094

 

Suck it up and stop crying over scanners..Now you can't take a book to the U.S.?

Gee, it's a good thing they made big announcements yesterday to clear things up.

Transport Minister John Baird said yesterday we're getting new scanners at Canadian airports, ones that were brought in after security devices in Europe failed to notice that a guy had explosive material on his body. So what do the reports in the papers today say? That the so-called naked scanners WHICH I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH (see my rant below) will be used only if someone buzzes as they go through the metal detector!

I've read that in two stories this morning. But it makes no sense. The whole point is to detect plastic explosives and such that metal detectors can't see. On the other hand, I've read some comments that say everyone will get the secondary, naked-screen or a pat-down and not just folks who make the metal detector go "beep." It seems that either the powers that be can't explain things properly or they don't understand themselves what it is they're proposing. Let's hope it's the former.

As I was saying yesterday about the new scanners, if you don't like it TOUGH LUCK.

 

If you wanna fly you gotta be safe. And you have to make people around you feel safe. I'm no fan of Transport Minister John Baird's Tories, but if they can invest a few million bucks and make people safer in the skies and, also an important factor, make us FEEL safer in the skies and keep travelling and help the hotel and restaurant and airline industries survive, then this is the cost of doing business.

 

Yes, these machines produce a three-dimensional body image. It seems you might be able to make out the vague outline of someone's genitals. Do we think airport workers will get their jollies by looking at the faint outline of an insurance salesman from Belleville?

 

Even checking out a female's image seems pretty silly for a male airport worker who could walk into any milk store in Toronto and buy hard-core pornography. Do you really think airport workers are gonna sit back and examine a fuzzy outline on an airport scanning machine in the middle of their work day? I don't think so. And if somebody "cheats the system" and does so, well, that's unfortunate. But it doesn't make the end goal of keeping us safe any less valuable or lessen the use of the machines.

 

Maybe the real smart terrorists already are hatching up other plots. But if these machines catch one person or make several people think twice, they're worth the piddly amount of money they're gonna cost; about $250,000 per unit.

Of course, there's still lots of things we don't know. It was disturbing to read a small item in the Globe today that says book publishers have been told people can't take books on board a plane from Canada to the U.S.

Canadian authorities in late December told us we could take laptops and medical devices, even musical instruments and cameras, on board. But they didn't mention books. It never occurred to me that they'd be banned. But the Globe quotes book industry types as saying they've been told the only books or magazines people can take on board a plane to the U.S. are ones they purchase after going through security.

What, are they made of flammable material or something? But the books they sell after customs are fine? Don't they put books through the x-ray machine? And aren't books a lot less likely to go boom than a laptop or camera, which has mini-computers and all sorts of electrical components?

I don't get it.

More than anything, what I want is for someone, ANYONE, in Ottawa to lay out a press release that explains EXACTLY what is being done. When, where, how, why, etc...

Is that too much to ask?

I wrote yesterday that I don't care if they take scans of my body; I just want to be safe. Interesting that the Star interviewed six people at Pearson on Tuesday and they all agreed. Every one of them.

JIM'S DEALS OF THE DAY

 

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From US$36 O/W - Buffalo to Boston, Chicago, New York and more: 2 days left

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$129 - Toronto to Orlando, 1 week family vacation near Disney World ($345 w/tax)
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Security scanners invasive? Too damn bad...Big tourism #'s for the Big Apple

Waaah, waaahhh.

 

The news is coming that Ottawa will outfit major Canadian airports with 44 new scanning machines that can see through people's clothes to try to determine if they're smuggling illegal material onboard. Already, some folks are labelling the machines "naked scanners" and suggesting they're an invasion of privacy.

 

YOU KNOW WHAT I SAY? TOUGH LUCK, FOLKS.

 

You wanna fly? Then you gotta be safe. And you have to make people around you feel safe. I'm no fan of Transport Minister John Baird's Tories, but if they can invest a few million bucks and make people safer in the skies and, also an important factor, make us FEEL safer in the skies and keep travelling and help the hotel and restaurant and airline industries survive, then this is the cost of doing business.

 

Okay, these machines produce a three-dimensional body image. It seems you might be able to make out the vague outline of someone's genitals. Might, that is, if you're that hard up for amusement that you're an airport worker and you wanna get your jollies by looking at faint outlines of some insurance salesman from Belleville.

 

Do you really think airport workers are gonna spend time on this when they can walk to the terminal and pickup an adult magazine that leaves NOTHING to the imagination? Are these people that low-life?

 

These aren't x-ray glasses, folks. Nothing about the images I've seen resembles anything from an adult magazine; or even a non-adult magazine or your average television show or movie.

People's lives - and livelihoods - are at stake here, so if we have to have a machine take a quick scan at our bodies as we go through the airport that's the way it is. So bring them on, and the sooner the better.

 

“We’ve got to stay ahead of the terrorist elements,” Transport Minister John Baird said Tuesday in announcing plans to buy 44 of the $250,000 machines.

Other countries, including the U.S. and the United Kingdom, have announced similar plans to boost the number of full-body scanners at their airports. The scanners will be used for now only on flights to the U.S. and Transport Minister John Baird said passengers will be given a choice of going through the scanners or being subjected to a full-body physical search.

 

A survey found that 95 percent of the passengers who underwent the scan preferred it to a physical search, said Rob Merrifield, Canada’s minister of state for transport.

"I think for many Canadians the idea of going through an electronic machine is far more comfortable and less invasive," Baird told reporters.

While I say bring on the machines, I will sound a cautionary note: Sun Media says it obtained a CATSA report on the Kelowna pilot study and found that authorities felt the scanners took more time to process travellers than a regular pat-down. More important, they said the machines left blind spots over the head and feet. Which is pretty disturbing...

Anyway, today's news from Ottawa isn't just about scanners. Officials also say they'll set up 

an airport watch system to look for suspicious passengers and tab them for enhanced screening.

U.S. President Barack Obama met with American security experts and then launched a few broadsides. Obama said U.S.officials had enough information to foil the attempted Christmas Day bombing near Detroit but that the intelligence community "failed to connect the dots."

He said such a failure is not acceptable and added, "I will not tolerate it."

Meanwhile, there appears to be a lot of confusion overseas. (SURPRISE!) I read a report out of Lebanon that said things are absolutely normal there and that there were no visible changes in screening. Ditto for Syria and Libya; countries the U.S. has expressed concerns about.

The U.S. on Sunday outlined 14 nations for new security measures: Afghanistan, Algeria, Cuba, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Those countries are deemed to be "state sponsors of terrorism," and the U.S. wants heightened security on flights from those countries, as well as for anyone with passports from those countries.

Some Canadians have expressed alarm because they were born in one of those 14 countries or have passports from those countries and, therefore, may undergo more invasive security checks.

It's all changing pretty quickly, so I'll be trying to keep an eye on things over the next couple days.

NEW YORK NUMBER ONE?

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has announced that NYC was the most popular tourist destination in the U.S. in 2009; the first time it managed the feat since 1990.

I haven't been able to find firm figures from U.S. tourism folks, but Bloomberg said the Big Apple received 45.25 million visitors last year. That's a decline of just 3.9 per cent from the year before; well ahead of the expected 10 per cent drop.

NYC officials say they expect a 3.2 per cent hike in tourism this year; to 46.7 million in all.

New York finished behind Orlando in 2008, but officials said it was NYC in the number one position for last year and Orlando in the silver medal spot. I haven't been able to find Orlando numbers for 2009 just yet....

NYC, meanwhile, has kicked off its Real Deal Winter promotion, with more than 200 special offers for hotels, museums, theatres and other attractions. For information on the program, which runs through Feb. 28, go to www.nycgo.com/realdeal.

JIM'S DEALS OF THE DAY

$146 - Toronto to London, England, non-stop return flight ($542 w/tax): save $400
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$175 - Toronto to Las Vegas, 4 day getaway at the 4* Luxor hotel ($416 w/tax)
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US$699 - Save 49%: 9 night 4* Canary Islands cruise (US$813 w/tax)
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Giant Dubai tower now open...UK security boost?...Dominican renovations...

The latest "world's tallest building" is now open.

The Burj Khalifa, (it was Burj Dubai until a few minutes ago, so this could be confusing for a while) is some 200 stories (818 meters, 2,684 feet, more or less), will be the world's tallest structure. It's also got an observation deck on the 124th floor, which sounds like fun.

Adam Schreck of Associated Press reports the exact height will only be revealed at the evening inauguration.

The Wall Street Journal has a blogger on site, who says she can see Iran from the top and also the manmade islands that have been built; symbols of better economic times in Dubai. The tower is so huge that one reporter said the shadow is like a sundial on the face of the city.

Luxury apartments are said to have been going for $2,855 per square foot at the peak in 2008 but have since dropped to less than half of that, AP says.

"The developer’s chairman said it cost about $1.5 billion to build the tapering metal-and-glass spire billed as a "vertical city" of luxury apartments and offices. It boasts four swimming pools, a private library and a hotel designed by Giorgio Armani, according to Schreck's report.

Cleaning crews were busy scrubbing windows and sweeping the plaza at the tower’s base just hours before festivities began.

Meanwhile, it was announced today that the Armani Hotel Dubai, the first hotel to open under the collaboration between Giorgio Armani S.p.A. and Emaar Properties PJSC, will be officially launched on March 18, 2010.

"Exclusively housed in the distinctive Burj Dubai tower, the world's tallest building, the Armani Hotel Dubai is the first of a series of hotels, resorts and residences designed by Giorgio Armani to be opened around the globe and marks fashion maestro Giorgio Armani's debut in to the world of hospitality," officials said in a press release. "Defined by its unique location, highest standards of aesthetics and service excellence, the Armani Hotel Dubai will be the most exclusive destination in the city."

The online bookings for the Armani Hotel Dubai will go live on late January 2010, and prospective visitors can register online at www.armanihotels.com to receive further details about the hotel.

UK SECURITY BOOST

Travelmole reports that full body scanners are to be introduced at UK airports. The measure has been demanded by prime minister Gordon Brown in the wake of the foiled bombing of an aircraft flying from Amsterdam to Detroit on Christmas Day.

Increased security covering travellers from 14 countries to the US has also been introduced. But critics of Brown claimed the kneejerk response to the Detroit incident would do little to prevent terrorists passing through airports carrying sophisticated explosives strapped to their bodies.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC RENO JOB

Travel Weekly reports that Casa de Campo in La Romana, Dominican Republic, debuted 80 upgraded, elite-category guestrooms and refurbished public areas on Dec. 30.

The $30 million upgrade included a new lobby, a redesigned pool complex, a fitness center, gardens, shops and a business center. The new La Cana Restaurant & Lounge by Il Ciro is managed by the Maccioni family, owners of New York’s La Cirque restaurant.

Amenities in the new guestrooms include a terrace, one king or two double beds, WiFi, a dressing area, glass-enclosed showers and a deep soaking tub, according to the Travel Weekly report.

The resort, which opened in 1974, offers 265 guestrooms and 100 villa homes, four Pete Dye-designed golf courses (one a private membership course), a 350-slip marina, the Altos de Chavon artist cultural village, and the Casa de Campo/La Romana Airport.

JIM'S DEALS OF THE DAY

 

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Plan a staycation instead! ‘Unwind Wednesdays’ at Le Scandinave Spa

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