Posted by Andrew Hickey on Feb 7, 2010 in
Travel Site of Super Bowl XLIV: New Orleans Saints v. Indianapolis Colts
I am going with the Saints to win tonight over the Colts 34-31
Tags: dolphin stadium, florida, indianapolis colts, miami, new orleans saints, super bowl xxiv
Posted by Andrew Hickey on Dec 6, 2009 in
Travel 
White sand beaches and tropical scenery that is Key West, Florida
Tags: florida, key west, united states
Posted by Andrew Hickey on Oct 7, 2009 in
Travel 
Well yesterday’s article was pretty revealing. I mean we had some very sinful travel experts get a lot off their chest. In fact it got so bad that I needed to close down the confession booth for 24-hours. But I am back with even MORE travel confessions.
I will try to keep it a little cleaner today I promise. When most travelers confessed to me, one topic seemed to come up quite a bit and that was “I have never been to…”. Below are some places that these vagabonds have yet to mark off on their “to see” list.
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Johnny Jet, a man you would think has touched every inch of this planet, has yet to make his presence felt at the Grand Canyon.
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Nomadic Matt is another globe-trotting individual that has also seen most of the world. He also runs one hell of a travel blog. But Matt confesses that he has not yet rolled the dice in “Sin City” Las Vegas.
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Stephanie Yoder of Twenty-Something Travel visited Amsterdam, but skipped the Red Light District. That is like going all the way to New York and not trying pizza! Stephanie also mentions here why she has yet to walk the streets of Paris.
Have you ever visited a popular destination and wound up being extremely disappointed? You’re not alone. Two such travelers shared their dismay with a certain Italian destination that millions of vacationers flock to each year.
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Andy Murdock of Lonely Planet told me, “I’ve only been to Venice once, and all I wanted to do was leave as quickly as possible. It was the height of summer so it was hot, filthy, smelly and just crammed full of tourists and hawkers selling tacky trinkets at every turn, and the geography makes it really difficult to escape the hordes. I hate telling this to people because they’ve either been and loved it and try to convince me to go back and give it a second shot, or they haven’t been and hold romantic notions of the city that I don’t especially want to dash because of my one bad experience. Maybe one day I’ll return off-season, but for me it’s like an expensive restaurant that everyone else loves but gave me food-poisoning: why should I spend the money and effort to go back when there are so many new places to try, not to mention places I would love to return to?”
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Gary Arndt ,who runs the extremely popular travel blog Everything-Everywhere.com, also did not enjoy his time in Venice. Arndt confessed, “My first reaction when I arrived in Venice was ‘Wow. This looks just like EPCOT Center!’.”
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The Elite Travel Gal herself Stacy Small has been to many great cities around the world, but one seems to keep getting away from her. Small told me that she has never been to New Orleans. “I had a few trips planned,” Small stated. “But I always had to cancel due to inclement weather!”
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Mike Barish, contributing travel writer to Gadling.com, expressed that, “It took me 30 years to get to Paris. Still haven’t been to London. Yet I’ve been to India twice.”
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Sarah Schlichter from IndependentTraveler.com told me that she likes to keep it simple for accommodations and that, “I never stay at luxury hotels. They’re too pretentious, and I don’t feel like I belong there. Give me a B&B or a mid-priced guesthouse any day.”
Wow! The confessional’s line is out the door. I am going to have to shut it down for today. Check back tomorrow for part 3/3 of travel confessions.
Tags: amsterdam, australia, cruises, england, florida, france, grand canyon, italy, japan, johnny jet, Las Vegas, London, lonely planet, louisiana, mexico, mexico city, nevada, new orleans, nomadic matt, orlando, Paris, red light district, sydney, tokyo, travel confessions, venice
Posted by Andrew Hickey on Sep 29, 2009 in
Travel
Overhead view of Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport. This November both Virgin America and JetBlue will debut here within a 24-hour span.
Some people get all worked up over the new fall season of television shows premiering, certain individuals get excited about a new motion picture hitting the silver screen, while others might get overstimulated by the combination of baseball playoffs and the return of the NFL football. But yours truly could care less about all of those distractions. Why? Because the announcement of new airline routes tops them all. While my wife (and a few of you) may think I am a loon for caring so much about the debut of new itineraries at airports, I just can not help myself.
Living in such a busy area like New York, with major airports like JFK, Newark, and La Guardia, I guess you can say that I have pretty much every city in the world available at my fingertips. But what I look for is an airline adding service to my area. My reaction to the news of Southwest debuting at La Guardia a few months ago was easily comparable to a sports fanatic finding out that his beloved team just acquired the number one draft pick or received a great new pitcher as a result of a multi-team trade. Yeah pretty pathetic, but I admit to being a 100% “Grade A” travel nerd.
But that doesn’t make me a bad person does it? Well I do get some rather odd looks from the wife when all I can talk about over dinner is how JetBlue is now jetting to the Caribbean and Virgin America is possibly thinking of flying in and out of Chicago soon. In any event, here are some new airline routes debuting within the next few months. Enjoy.
JetBlue:
- Barbados (BGI) and New York (JFK) starts October 1, 2009
- Saint Lucia (UVF) and New York (JFK) starts October 26, 2009
- Kingston, Jamaica (KIN) and New York (JFK) starts October 30, 2009
- Fort Lauderdale (FLL) and San Francisco (SFO) starts November 17, 2009
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Virgin America:
- Fort Lauderdale (FLL) and San Francisco (SFO) starts November 18, 2009
- Fort Lauderdale (FLL) and Los Angeles (LAX) starts November 18, 2009
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Southwest Airlines:
- Milwaukee (MKE) and Tampa Bay (TPA) starts November 1, 2009
- Milwaukee (MKE) and Phoenix (PHX) starts November 1, 2009
- Milwaukee (MKE) and Orlando (MCO) starts November 1, 2009
- Milwaukee (MKE) and Kansas City (KCI) starts November 1, 2009
- Milwaukee (MKE) and Baltimore (BWI) starts November 1, 2009
- Denver (DEN) and Reno/Lake Tahoe (RNO) starts January 10, 2010
- Denver (DEN) and Spokane (GEG) starts January 10, 2010
- Denver (DEN) and Boston (BOS) starts January 10, 2010
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United Airlines:
- San Francisco (SFO) and Kansas City (KCI) starts October 25, 2009
- Chicago (ORD) and Duluth (DLH) starts December 17, 2009
- Chicago (ORD) and Asheville (AVL) starts December 17, 2009
- Denver (DEN) and Midland/Odessa (MAF) starts December 17, 2009
- Denver (DEN) and Louisville (SDF) starts December 17, 2009
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American Airlines:
- Miami (MIA) and Charleston (CHS) starts November 19, 2009
- Miami (MIA) and Knoxville (TYS) starts November 19, 2009
- Miami (MIA) and Treasure Cay, Bahamas (TCB) starts November 19, 2009
- Miami (MIA) and Governors Harbour, Bahamas (GHB) starts November 19, 2009
- Miami (MIA) and Eleuthers, Bahamas (ELH) starts November 19, 2009
- Los Angeles (LAX) and Santa Fe (SAF) starts November 19, 2009
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Continental Airlines:
- Houston (IAH) and Edmonton, AB Canada (YEG) starts November 1, 2009
- Houston (IAH) and Frankfurt, Germany (FRA) starts November 1, 2009
- Houston (IAH) and Washington DC (IAD) starts November 1, 2009
- Cleveland (CLE) and Washington DC (IAD) starts November 1, 2009
- Honolulu (HNL) and Guam (GUM) to Nadi, Fiji (NAN) starts November 1, 2009
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Delta Airlines:
- Memphis (MEM) and West Palm Beach (PBI) starts December 17, 2009
- Philadelphia (PHL) and Paris, France (CDG) starts October 5, 2009
- Atlanta (ATL) and Brasilia (BSB) starts December 17, 2009
- Atlanta (ATL) and Fortaleza (FOR) starts December 21, 2009
- New York (JFK) and Kingston, Jamaica (KIN) starts December 12, 2009
- New York (JFK) and Freeport, Bahamas (FPO) starts December 18, 2009
- New York (JFK) and Puerto Plata, DR (POP) starts December 19, 2009
- Detroit (DTW) and Punta Cana, DR (PUJ) starts November 21, 2009
- Minneapolis (MSP) and Punta Cana, DR (PUJ) starts December 19, 2009
- Cincinnati (CVG) and Punta Canada, DR (PUJ) starts December 19, 2009
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AirTran Airways:
- Atlanta (ATL) and Aruba (AUA) starts December 19, 2009
- Orlando (MCO) and Aruba (AUA) starts February 13, 2010
- Orlando (MCO) and Key West (EYW) starts December 17, 2009
- Fort Lauderdale (FLL) and Harrisburg (MDT) starts November 5, 2009
- Milwaukee (MKE) and Pittsburgh (PIT) starts October 6, 2009
- Milwaukee (MKE) and Indianapolis (IND) starts October 6, 2009
- Baltimore (BWI) and Indianapolis (IND) starts October 6, 2009
- Baltimore (BWI) and New Orleans (MSY) starts October 6, 2009
- Fort Lauderdale (FLL) and Flint (FNT) starts November 4, 2009
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US Airways:
- Phoenix (PHX) and Montego Bay (MBJ) December 17, 2009
- Philadelphia (PHL) and Barbados (BGI) starts October 1, 2009
- Charlotte (CLT) and Honolulu (HNL) starts December 17, 2009
- Charlotte (CLT) and Rio de Janeiro (GIG) starts December 15, 2009
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Alaska Airlines:
- Atlanta (ATL) and Seattle (SEA) starts October 23, 2009
- Oakland (OAK) and Kahului (OGG) starts November 9, 2009
- Oakland (OAK) and Kona (KOA) starts November 10, 2009
- Portland (PDX) and Chicago (ORD) starts November 16, 2009
Tags: airtran airways, american airlines, aruba, atlanta, baltimore, brazil, california, colorado, continental airlines, delta, Denver, detroit, dominican republic, florida, fort lauderdale, georgia, indianapolis, jamaica, jetblue, jfk airport, key west, kingston, los angeles, maryland, memphis, michigan, milwaukee, minneapolis, minnesota, new york, orlando, san francisco, southwest airlines, spokane, tennessee, united airlines, virgin america, washington, west palm beach, wisconsin
Posted by Andrew Hickey on Aug 11, 2009 in
Travel 
Another Southwest sale is upon us my friends. I feel like I am writing about a SWA sale every other week around here. Well this one is good for travel through November 1, 2009 and tickets must be purchased by Thursday at 11:59pm Pacific Time. Some cities Southwest flies to include New York, Las Vegas, Chicago, Denver, and starting this Sunday Boston. Click here for more information on this 72-hour sale.
SPRING BREAK!!!!!!!!!!!! Okay, maybe not exactly what you would hear people screaming in late Fall around Fort Lauderdale (FLL), but starting November 18, 2009 you can fly to this popular Florida city from Los Angeles (LAX) and San Francisco (SFO) for $99 one-way (with taxes and fees that comes to $109.60). That is one hell of a sweet deal. So maybe when you arrive Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, you can walk off the plane and scream FALL BREAK!!!!!!!!!
Or maybe not. In any event, click here for full details on Virgin’s latest offering.
UPDATE (4pm): Just got word from the good people at Gadling.com that JetBlue, upon hearing the VA Florida news, has announced that they too will start service in November between San Francisco and Fort Lauderdale. Announcing this news on the same day as your competitor is both brilliant and devilish…well played JB, well played indeed. You will even be able to “jet” between the “City by the Bay” and the “Venice of America” one day sooner. Yup that’s right, JetBlue will begin their new route on November 17, 2009. Meow JetBlue!
Tags: boston, chicago, Denver, florida, fort lauderdale, Las Vegas, los angeles, new york, san francisco, southwest airlines, virgin america
