Tagged With "Brand USA"
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Re: Canadian snowbirds: Don't clip our wings!
The current Canadian plan covers only a fraction of the billed amount the snowbirds might encounter with an emergency medical problem in the USA, Mexico or Caribbean. Most of the snowbirds I know have a supplemental travel policy that protects them fully in case of emergency.
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Re: Sweden jumps into night-train market
My Amtrak night bedroom trips were all up and down the eastern USA mid and south Atlantic.
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Re: Portland, Maine: A Big Little City
Excellent piece of History and Interest on Portland. Maine. Perhaps when I've finished my exploration of Smalltown USA I'll add the Big Little Cities to my list. Portland looks so familiar. Is it close to Cabot Cove ?
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Re: Oct. 3, 2016: Old Store & Post Office, Evinston, FL
A very cool destination! I love old places like this, especially ones that still work! You don't stress it, but they have a nice display of Elvis memorabilia. Makes me wonder if he stopped by long ago when he was touring the southeastern USA>
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Re: Shunpiking Through Northern Ohio
I enjoy your journeys around " Small Town USA". The US has such a wealth of history. You should write a book so that Brits like me know where to search for new ventures - ready for my next trip across the pond. Thank You.
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Re: Crashing the geocache
Hello TatToo, I live in Europe especially Germany. I do know Geocaching and of course the game is known here. If you don't have a GPS device with a European card in it you can use your mobile phone as long you have the geocaching app. Before your son goes to Europe just with that mobile phone, make sure he looks for geocaches in areas he will be first and download the map and the cache itself. Even if you don't have an Internet connection they can use it via GPS. I did it in USA and it has...
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Re: How'd We Live Without Travel Apps?
Google Translate was indispensable when my teenage son came down with a throat infection while in Bangkok. I typed in his symptoms, translated it to Thai, and showed the pharmacist. Ten minutes later he had a regimen of amoxicillin and some throat lozenges. I like XE Currency app for my tablet and iPhone. Also Groupon - there are franchises in foreign countries and right now I'm keeping an eye on Dubai Groupon for an upcoming trip. Finally I like Yelp when I'm traveling in the USA.
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Re: Finishing college. Need help planning trip to U.K,
Staying in the UK is no more expensive than being a tourist in the USA. You wont get a month in London. Same as me travelling from the UK to New York. Silly Prices ! So decide on what you want to do over here and start planning, Have a look at the YHA web site. Youth Hostels Association. Forget the Youth reference. My Kids aren't Youths anymore. And I use them too! They are used by Travellers like yourself - and me - across Europe. They are Family groups and Ramblers ( Countryside Walkers)...
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Re: Traveling for Local Food
The best resource for good "american food" while on the road that I know of is www.roadfood.com . The website focus on quality non-chain restaurants, often mom and pop places, with good and often unique menu selections. Check it out. Not only can they help you in Colorado, they're useful throughout the USA. Just about the best tip to give someone traveling in the USA.
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Re: The Valley Island of Maui: 2) Haleakala National Park
US Immigration is a bit of a hassle, although most Canadians receive about a smooth a ride as possible. In most Canadian airports, you can actually clear immigration within Canada, rather than the USA (infinitely preferable because the lines are so much shorter). Not sure if that's true of Montreal, though. Thank you for your kind words about the Hawaii blogs. Hawaii is a special place. I've always gone and explored it by myself, so in this setting I tend to drift to isolated places that are...
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Re: A Visit to Ireland: Part 1) An overview of the Country and its People
I didn't know that there were so many Irish in Liverpool. There are certainly many of them in Canada and the USA as well. One wonders how many more Irish live abroad than on their home island.
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Re: Sri Lanka: A Land Like No Other. (Part 5) The Elephants of Pinnawala
Thanks, PortMoresby! And we've not even been to the sacred tooth relic in Kandy, the medieval ruins of Polonnaruwa, the beautiful hill country filled with tea plantations and "The World's End", a wildlife safari at Yala National Park, nor any of the nice beaches (but keep reading -- reports on these are coming). Sri Lanka is a great destination, especially now that the civil war is over. I was doubly lucky to not only be able to visit a dear friend there but to have time to leisurely explore...
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Re: Do you Like these Hotel Tipping Tips ?
I find that typical of Europeans, Garry. And it makes sense as in Europe most restaurants include an automatic service charge of about 10%. That is not the case in the USA or Canada (with the exception of large parties of 8 or more in some cases). Most waitresses don't earn anything except minimum wage plus tips, so I do tend to tip some for all but the absolute worst of service. But certainly EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE makes me feel very generous, as it does you.
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Re: Do you Like these Hotel Tipping Tips ?
I certainly understand GarryRF's comments completely. A guest has a right to expect a good quality meal with good service. That should be part of the dining experience. That said, because I was raised and have lived in Canada/USA my life, I have a sensitivity to food service employees not being paid well and being stressed by their employers. So I tend to follow Dave B's guidelines (thanks for outlining these, Dave!) If I see a waitress is trying hard, I'll leave the 15% tip (and don't come...
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Re: United's Award Chart: Premium Award Cost Goes UP
I think you'll find reward trips from the Western USA are harder to get for European travel than from the East coast. But if your schedule is flexible, you could be lucky.
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Re: AAA Premier a Good Idea for Budget Travelers
I've use the towing service several times over the years, as well as their locksmith service. Excellent service always. And I actually use a ton of their travel books and maps when planning my domestic trips (USA and Canada). Yes, you can check them out but this way you can mark them up and cut out what you need. In Canada, a AAA (CAA) offers a 10% discount on a national parks pass (annual), and their travel agents can help you plan out a road trip with great advice -- all for free if you...
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo? (#130)
None of it looks familiar to me. I am curious where this is. Southwest USA?
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Re: Grizzly Paw Brewery and Restaurant, Canmore, Alberta
Thanks for the comment, Jonathan. This would be a good place to watch the Grey Cup. For non-Canadians, that's the Canadian Football league's equivalent to the Superbowl, but with perhaps 1% of the popularity of the Superbowl. Football is not a big sport in Canada. Here it's all about Hockey! Hockey in Canada is about as popular as football and baseball combined in the USA.
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, Nov. 16, 2014: American Golden Plover
Yes, Arctic birds are common in southern USA, Central and South America and further north during migration. But to see them in their beautiful breeding colours, you need to go to the Arctic in spring or early summer. This plover had already changed to grey by mid-August.
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Re: JetBlue makes its fans blue: Less space, more fees
This is very disappointing news. I was hoping JetBlue would stick to its "customers first" mode of business operation, but obviously management has sold us out. That leaves only Southwest in the USA that has a different business model, and hopefully they'll stick to their principles and not succumb to these pressures.
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Re: Happy Independence Day!
One thing foreign travel shows us is how much the USA has to offer too. I get as much of a thrill being welcomed back home as I do going on my trip.
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Re: Gallery: A visit to Cuba
Thanks IslandMan, There are many resorts in the Varadero peninsular. The Christmas/New Year season is kind of full. But other than that, still unspoiled to me. The tour guy told us that currently 80% tourists are Canadians. I can imagine if sanctions are lifted, there will be lots of tourists from USA, they are much closer in terms of distance.
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Re: Air Canada Launches Free Layover Program in Toronto
I'm not sure why they're limiting it to people from the USA. Vancouver to Toronto is a 5 hour flight. A layover might be enjoyed by people traveling overseas. A few months ago a dedicated train service from Pearson airport to downtown Toronto began and this has greatly improved access to the city. And also reduced the cost of reaching downtown dramatically. http://www.metrolinx.com/en/pr...press/upexpress.aspx
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Re: Iran: Friendliness, Culture, Modernity - So Far Away From The Clichés!
That's a fascinating look at a country rarely visited by people in North America. I especially enjoyed your lovely photos, which share so vividly the experience with all of us. I have two specific questions: 1) What is the tourist infrastructure in Iran like? Easy to find hotels or hostels? Restaurants? Public transit? 2) I've always enjoyed those Iranian people I know, but I'm not sure if the bulk of our readers (Mostly from the USA and Canada) would receive the same welcome from the...
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Re: Iran: Friendliness, Culture, Modernity - So Far Away From The Clichés!
Hello Dr. Fumblefinger, Thank you for your Feedback! To answer your questions: 1) The infrastructure is good to very good, and it is extremely easy to travel within Iran: there are lots of buses and excellent trains, there is a wide range of hotels, from simple guesthouses to world-class 5 stars hotels, restaurants going from street food stalls to fine dining, ... I have read that with the very fast development of tourism, the high-end category of hotels is the one that might get overbooked...
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Re: Dollar Strength Making World Travel Cheaper for Americans
Of course there is a corollary to this story. While a strong dollar may be good for American travelers going abroad, it's bad for American businesses. Foreign travelers will have to pay proportionately more to travel to the USA, and will be looking to go elsewhere where their Euros and pounds and ruppees will go farther. Less visitors, less revenues, less jobs, less good for the USA economy.
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Re: San Antonio’s Historic Missions Receive UNESCO World Heritage Status
That is truly excellent news! Thanks for sharing it, Marilyn. I love these old missions and I'm glad more USA sites are finally being recognized. Seems the UNESCO committee views North America as it's "Orphan continent".
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Re: U.S. plans big increase in "pre-clearance" sites
If you've ever used one of the foreign country based US customs clearances, you know that this is easy to do. So this is a wonderful idea and will help improve tourism to the USA>
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Re: World's most attractive libraries
A followup to attractive libraries are great bookstores. Fodors just released 16 of their favorites in the USA, which you can find here . I've visited a number of these and enjoyed them. I would like to add two other stores that I know of. 1) Univ. of Washington bookstore. While mostly a student store aimed at textbooks and supplies and such, it has an excellent collection of fiction and non-fiction as well as frequent author readings and book signings. 2) Auntie's books in Spokane,...
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, October 27, 2015. Flaming Gorge Reservoir
I'm sure people in the Southwestern USA would love to get their hands on all that water!
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Re: Canada snowbirds fight travel health cut
Many -- probably most -- Canadians already buy or have supplemental health coverage when they travel abroad because of the already poor reimbursement provided by their provincial health plans (eg. these plans often pay less than 10% of emergency medical bills one might encounter in the USA or Mexico). Many of Canada's larger employers provide these plans as a perk for their employees. As provinces wrestle with rising health costs due to an aging population and new technologies, I expect that...
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Re: Family Fun in Kent County, Delaware
I'm visiting Delaware next month so I'll add Kent County to my list of small town USA . Love the Delmarva area. Full of Markets, History and hands on exhibits.
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Re: TSA strands 450 overnight: could it get worse?
What a mess. The very agency that is to protect citizens from terrorist activity is creating an environment wherein "tent communities" are springing up at America's airports. How embarrassing is that. Talk about a target rich environment for the bad guys. The TSA's funding, even with "cuts", is about US$ 7.3 billion for 2016. In contrast, Canada, which has 1/10th the population of the USA, has an airport screening budget of about CDN $0.56 billion, and Transport Canada acknowledges it has...
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Re: Possible second Viking site found in Newfoundland
I wouldn't be surprised if they made their way up the St. Lawrence River some, and down the coast past New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and to the Northeastern state regions of the USA. It seems their earlier explorations were at a time of warmer weather and that what might have limited their travels and caused them to pull back was the beginning of a spell of cold weathers, perhaps even a mini-ice age. Iceland used to be a forested country, but it didn't take but 200 years or so until the Vikings...
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Re: Has anyone used their Enhanced Drivers License to travel to Canada or Mexico?
Most of the people I know who have this license are those who don't want to travel internationally and who live near the Canada-US border. There are a number of town literally split by the border and people migrate across daily to visit friends or work. I think these licenses are intended for them. Same for the Mexico USA border. If you travel internationally and have a passport, no point paying extra for the license for most folks. Passports have become more sophisticated and if you read...
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Re: Emirates cuts U.S. flights, blames 'Trump Slump'
It is likely that all passengers would be rescreened in the UK -- at least that's my experience traveling from Canada and the USA. I'm not sure if the same applies to the checked baggage, but the current threat seems to have to deal with personal electronic devices. These would obviously pass through the UK's screening process.
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Re: Getting to know Canada's hidden gems
Yes, there is some evidence of early man in Canada and the northern USA, mostly a few bones found accidentally here and there, some dating back thousands of years. No large human findings, at least not that I'm aware of, but in places with large collections of bison bones at the base of jumps (places they chased a herd over a cliff to harvest meat). Canadian natives were mostly nomadic people living in tents and temporary shelters they constructed, not so much in caves. And of course there...
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Re: Finishing North of the Arctic Circle
That's an exciting conclusion to fascinating travel tale! Most of us will never get to visit remote parks like Gates and Kobuk Valley, but you've certainly given us a sense of what it's like to go there. Your entire quest, to visit the 59 National Parks in the USA has been fun, exciting, and for me inspirational! Thank you for sharing some of these adventures on TravelGumbo. You may get tired of getting asked this, but "what will you do for an encore?"
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Re: Gumbo's Pic of the Day, October 24, 2015: Poppies -- Weeping Window at Woodhorn
PHeymont -- perhaps its something I missed then, but in over 30 years of living in the USA I never once saw a poppy on a lapel.
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Re: Where in the World is TravelGumbo (#112)
We're in the southwestern deserts of the USA somewhere....but they're vast.
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Re: Survey: U.S. is 2016's top vacation destination
I'm a little surprised that there's so much interest in the USA given the relative strength of the US dollar currently. But it is regarded as a fairly safe place to go and airfares are cheap now, so that may be the driving force behind this.
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Re: Boston Public Library (Where Gumbo was #150)
And lets not forget Melvil Dewey - a Librarian in the North-East USA who invented the Dewey Decimal System (1876) which is now used in more than 135 Countries ! A wonderful collection of photo's. Love architecture.
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Re: U.S. Airlines put in their bids for Cuba flights
UPDATE: USA Today has published a complete list of the airline filings .
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