Further info about TV & Movies having an influence on travel…

After I wrote my post yesterday, I got home from work this afternoon only to find the following news article about ‘Brokeback Mountain’ and the impact that it is having on people wanting to have the ‘Wyoming Experience’ even though it was filmed in Canada!!!

Anyway, just thought that it was a bit of a coincidence…here is the link - enjoy!

BrokeBack Mountain - Yahoo Story

Do tv and movies influence your holiday?

After watching Lord of the Rings while I was living in Canada it really made me want to go back to New Zealand and visit where they filmed it…the scenery was so beautiful - was it really like it was in the movie??

Once I moved back to NZ, I discovered that a lot of small tour operators specialising in Lord of the Rings destinations have started purely because of the amount tourism that was generated by the movie.

But this is not the only movie that has had this reaction. There are also tv shows such as Home and Away (Palm Beach, Sydney, Australia), Sex & The City (New York, USA) and X-Files (Vancouver, Canada) that have had a great impact on tourism. I have also heard of the same thing happening in Asia with popular tv shows and movies.

Does this mean that there is a new genre in tourism just for the film and television fans that will do anything to see where it is filmed?

I think that we will be seeing a lot more of this type of tourism in coming years…

Corporate Meetings and Conferences - do they have to be in an office?

I came across a post on Godot.com about using resorts as the perfect place for a corporate meeting or conference and I must say that I totally agree.

I have organised groups that prefer to stay at ‘out-of-the-way’ places as there are less distractions and the meetings / conferences are more productive. Plus there are always great opportunities to do team building exercises.

I have seen this trend in the industry becoming more and more popular and as it is becoming less expensive to travel, it is an alternative to sitting in a stuffy boardroom or conference centre.

Another trend is using resorts / wilderness adventures as rewards for staff…for example the top 5 sales staff get to go on a week-long paid trip to Mexico. This is not only a reward for the staff but they also come back revitalised and ready to start selling again, plus it is a great incentive for the rest of the staff members.

I can really see incentive trips & conferences/meetings being held further and further abroad and the travel industry should be taking note!

Funicular Railways aka ‘cable railways’ - a must for rail enthusiasts!

I know not everyone is into Funicular Railways but not knowing what they were I decided to look into it a little further and came across a 'top 5' list of the best ones in the world and to my surprise I have actually been on one. A Funicular Railway is defined as 'a cable railway on a steep incline, especially such a railway with simutaneously ascending and descending cars counterbalancing one another'.

I'm sure all you rail buffs would know that! Then I thought, people that love trains must go on tours of railways around the world? Maybe the travel industry should look into organising big train trips for train buffs to places such as The Ghan (Australia), The Rocky Mountaineer (Canada) and the China Orient Express (China). I'm sure there must be people out there that would love to do a trip to these destinations??

Anway, here is the 'top 5' list of Funicular Railways around the world:

1. Gelmerbahn, Switzerland
2. Victoria Peak, Hong Kong
3. Wellington, New Zealand
4. Salzbergbahn, Austria
5. Scenic Railway, Australia

For more information check out…SMH.com.au - they ran a great article and it has detailed information on each one and also prices and booking agents!

I have been on the Scenic Railway in Katoomba, Australia (2.5 hours west of Sydney in the Blue Mountains) and I thought that it was one of the scariest things I have ever done but I definately recommend it!  

London - great city, pity about the prices and filth…

Well that is what Lonely Planet are saying in their new book…apparently it hails London as one of the greatest cities in the world despite it being extremely expensive and filthy.

Honestly I think that London is a great city and yes it is a bit on the pricey side but the filth??? I just didn’t see it when I was there…sure there was your average amount of garbage on the sidewalk or in the nightlife areas but nothing that makes you think “ewww, London is sooo dirty”. It just isn’t true.

London is a great city….lots of sightseeing, lots of views, lots of restaurants and bars and the people are friendly!

Please don’t let comments like the ‘filthy’ one stop you from checking out London…

Fancy a holiday where you don’t harm the environment?

I was recently reading this post from a great website called SeasonsTravel.com.au and I it is all about Eco-Tourism in Australia.

http://www.seasonstravel.com.au/2006/01/26/ecotourism-in-australia/trackback/

Their post reminded me about a destination that I went to as a child and how much it has changed since I was there - the destination is Fraser Island off the coast of Queensland on Australia’s eastern coast.

Fraser Island is an island made out of sand and it is on the World Heritage list with half of the island being a National Park. When I went there years ago there were brumbies (wild horses), dingos, turtles, sharks, fish and much more wildlife! It was amazing!

With all of that natural beauty it was only a matter of time before it became a ‘hot spot’ for eco-tourism. And guess what…there is now a Eco-Resort and eco-tours available.

The accommodation is Kingfisher Bay Resort and they definately take care of the environment. It is good to see that tourism doesn’t have to be destructive and that the money spent by tourists is then spent on the environment. There should be more eco-tourism places in the world and it is definately becoming a trend in the tourism industry!

Why is flying through Hawaii more expensive than Asia?

A couple of months ago I flew from Vancouver, Canada to Christchurch, New Zealand and I was surprised to find that the price of the airfare was a lot cheaper if I flew through Asia instead of Hawaii…why is this?

Going via Hawaii was so much more expensive even though it was a more direct route and used less fuel. Yet going via Asia is a fair way off the track and it was a lot cheaper.

How can airlines such as Air Canada & Qantas (via Hawaii) get away with charging more than anyone else for this route? Simple answer - people are willing to pay for it!

Imagine if everyone decided to go via Asia and not Hawaii, I don’t think that the airlines would be too happy and maybe they would re-think how much they charge? There is no chance that they are going to lower their prices anytime soon, but I bet there are a lot of people that wish they would - just like me!

 

Are walk-in travel agencies disappearing?

With the internet becoming more and more popular, will there be a day when retail agencies are non-existent? Maybe…

With sites such as Expedia and Travelocity that make booking your hotel and airfare so easy why would anyone visit a travel agency these days?

Simple…could you imagine trying to plan a 2 month holiday with 13 flights, 8 different hotels, sightseeing in each place you stop at, visa requirements, transfers and anything else you might want to book? This is what the future will be for retail travel agencies as this is quite difficult to do yourself unless of course you are in the industry or you are an avid traveller who knows what they are doing when planning their holiday.

The other type of people that use travel agencies are the older generation, that aren't really 'into' the internet and still like the one-on-one customer service of a real person that is sitting behind a desk where they can explain exactly what they want to do and go through options with brochures, flyers and pictures.

Then you get people that really just do everything online and they are the people that threaten the industry as we know it. As more people trust the internet and are happy to book, confirm and pay for everything online, the walk-in customer will slowly disappear along with the retail agencies.

So does this mean that retail travel will become an even more specialised industry and what will the next generation of travel consultants be - retail or online?? Who knows…

Organized holidays v’s Doing it Yourself?

Having experienced an organised tour and a holiday I organised by myself, I realised that I much prefer to organise my holidays and plan what I do on a day-to-day basis, then it came to me…perhaps I’m not the only person that likes to do everything by myself?

But having enjoyed my organised tour as well, here are some pros & cons for both sides of the arguement…

Organised Holidays
Pros
 - you can never get lost
 - it isn’t stressful
 - it is all planned for you
 - no need to think, just sit back & relax
Cons
 - early mornings
 - you can’t stop when you want to
 - you are told when to do things and what to eat (if food is included)
 - not much time to do what you want to do.
 - can be rushed, not much free time

Do It Yourself
Pros
 - you can do what you want to do, when you want to do it
 - you can meet the locals
 - no early mornings
 - you get to really know the area you are staying in
 - you get to discover everything for yourself
Cons
 - there is the possibility of booking something incorrectly
 - you can get lost
 - you will probably be a little stressed
 - your accommodation may not be as good as you wanted
 - lots of research to do before you go  

So with lots of choices out there to choose from…hopefully these will help??

Internet access at Caravan Parks!

Since I was little I was always camping with my parents and family friends and a recent show on tv got me thinking… Are caravan parks and holiday parks just for older people or are they the perfect alternative for the younger generations that want an affordable holiday?

These days caravan parks are modern, clean and cheap plus some of them are even hooking up wireless internet to cater for the Baby-Boomers and the younger 20/30/40 somethings that want the modern conveniences while they are away.

Take my parents for example…they love camping with their RV but they also like taking their laptop away with them so that they can email photos and stories back to us kids. They recently went to Canada and were impressed by the number of caravan parks that had internet access and that got me thinking…is this the way that people will choose what parks they stay at by whether or not they have internet access?

I know I choose my hotels by whether or not they have free internet access so I guess the same will go for people choosing caravan parks. I find it interesting that once upon a time the internet was only something that the military used and now it is a way of life and if a hotel or even a caravan park doesn’t have it, then they better get it because that is how people are choosing a place to stay for their holidays!