What is your adventure travel story?

What does adventure travel mean to you? I’d imagine for some the mere word “adventure” conjures up thoughts of skydiving or perhaps bungee jumping off the nearest bridge. For me, adventure travel means kayaking on the nearest river or setting up camp in northern Wisconsin and hiking around natural waterfalls to enjoy nature at its finest. Adventure travel can take many forms – from risky to simply awe-inspiring.

The fact is, adventure can truly be in the mind of the traveler and can encompass a mixture of emotions and experiences — pure terror, raw adrenaline or utter amazement and joy. Perhaps what unites adventure travelers of all types is the sheer mystery of venturing into the unknown or embarking on an experience that few dare to take. It’s finding yourself in a whole new way and sometimes realizing the magnitude and tragedy of nature itself.

One of my best adventure travel experiences happened while kayaking on the gently flowing Wisconsin River. I was with friends — all weaving in and out of islands with our personal boat — admiring nature and the occasional rumble of thunder in the distance on a hot summer day. One word of advice… admire the thunder but heed its powerful warning. We were about a half mile from shore when the squall line moved in and the once gentle river became a swirling pot of raging water, threatening to topple us all into the recently revived undercurrent. Whether we were truly paddling for our lives or in a state of pure awe-induced adrenaline to simply fight the wind torrents and choppy waters back to the nearest dock is anyone’s guess – but we made it. The story went down in our friendship’s history as the day we fought the water and won.

While my story might not be nearly as epic as some, it was my personal adventure. What’s your best adventure or outdoor travel story? We’d love to hear it!

What’s your favorite travel gadget?

 In our fast-paced and ever-changing world, technology has become our constant companion. If you travel, chances are you either own the latest technology or will be traveling with someone who does. Whether you are a gadget guru or just want a more convenient way to travel, here are a few of the latest travel gadgets that may come in handy on your next trip.

SteriPen Ultraviolet Bacteria / Pathogen Killer: If you’ve ever been to a third world country, you know that the water supply can often be contaminated. That’s why there’s the SteriPen. Hold this ultraviolet “magic wand” in a 16 oz glass of questionable liquid for 48 seconds and the water is then considered safe to drink.

The Clear Card: Ever wish you could skip the security line at the airport? You can. It’s called having a “Clear Card”. While it’s only used at 20 airports around the U.S., flashing the card allows you to rush right by the security lines and onto your plane or into the waiting area. Click here to learn more.

Stash Sandals: Picture this: you are on a family vacation and want to do some sightseeing or take a trip to the beach and stop for a bite to eat. What do you do if you don’t want to carry a purse or wallet with you? Purchase a pair of Stash Sandals! These handy sandals have a secret compartment that slides out to stash your cash, hotel key or other personal items.

Powerbag Sling: Smartphones, tablets, laptops… on-the-go gadgets take a lot of power. Fortunately, the Powerbag Sling can charge up devices quickly while you are literally on the move. It’s a sling with an internal battery that charges gadgets on the go. Need a variety of USB or other connectors? No problem. This device has them all.

Swiss Army Knife with USB Drive: So you can’t take this one on a plane, but it’s still perfect for traveling if you are planning a road trip to your travel destination. Even more perfect if you are a tech junky who also likes to get a camping fix. This gadget lets you have a flashlight, USB drive, scissors, pen, knife, nail file and screwdriver all in one.

Got other travel gadget ideas? Share them with us!

Protect Yourself from these Travel Scams

Do your travel plans include using a cab to get around or getting to know the locals and asking them about places to go and things to do? Do you plan to travel to a tropical destination and enjoy local culture? While these are all seemingly normal and fun things to do, be aware that scammers and pickpockets are great at using everyday occurrences to their advantage – and the traveler’s misfortune. Here are a few of the latest travel scams and how to keep you from falling victim.

When the Cabby Grabs
Sure, cab drivers can take the long way to a destination to make more money, but their behavior could be worse. Watch your bags and yourself whenever you get out of a cab so that the driver doesn’t purposely speed away with some of your belongings and your hard-earned money. Pay attention to your cab driver during your transaction and only pay the driver once every bag you have is out of the car.

Credit Card Scams
You may have heard of this one: Pizza flyers are placed under each door at a hotel. A tired and hungry family comes back to their room after a long day and just wants to relax and unwind, so they call the pizza place and give their credit card number out over the phone. Unfortunately, the pizza never arrives. The family has been scammed and someone now has their credit card number to use at their disposal. The solution: Never give your credit card number out over the phone. The same goes for the hotel front desk calling you to verify credit card information – go to the front desk and verify yourself.

Good Samaritan Tourist Advisors
They may pose as Good Samaritans willing to lend a helping hand or offer directions, but these seemingly ordinary people are not helpful advisors – they only pretend to assist while taking advantage of the opportunity to get close and pick your pockets. Worse yet, sometimes they offer wrong directions to your destination, thereby sending you down a path to get mugged. To keep this from happening, get directions from an app on your Smartphone, from your own tourist guide or the concierge at your hotel.

Con Monkeys?
If you are traveling to an exotic location, beware of monkeys. In some locations around the world (like Bali) monkeys are allowed to roam free and some people train them to retrieve personal belongings such as wallets. While there are no hard and fast solutions, it pays to hold purses and wallets very close to you and minimize valuable contents.  

The Crowded Market
Many marketplaces around the world can become quite crowded. Beware of a technique called “the squeeze” where a crowd presses in around you and you feel so crammed you cannot move your arms. Many pickpockets use this opportunity to empty a traveler’s pockets. By the time the crowd dissipates, the traveler finds that their pockets have been emptied and the thief is nowhere in sight. While market place crowds can be unavoidable, make sure you watch yourself in crowded areas. Keep your wallet and purse very secure and hidden. If you see a crowd starting to form, try to stay away from it.

Chatty at the checkout: While the person behind the counter in a shop might seem overly friendly and chatty that may be all an act to steal your cash. The cashier will seem to be speaking on the phone when you hand her your credit card. However, that phone’s camera could be used to snap a photo of your credit card number. Head this off by asking the cashier to get off the phone before processing the transaction or just pay with cash.

While these can be valuable suggestions for not becoming a victim while you travel, there are many more things a traveler can keep in mind to stay safe. Do you have any travel safety tips you’d like to share with us? Feel free to post them below.

2012 Spring Break Travel Trends

Spring is one of my favorite times of the year. With warmer weather it’s the perfect opportunity to take some time off from work and recharge.

So what’s happening this spring break season? Travel Guard recently polled some of our travel agent partners to learn where their clients are traveling this season, whom they’re traveling with, and where they will likely be staying. 

When are they booking? Many agents mentioned their clients are planning ahead when it comes to spring break travel. Forty percent of agents who responded reported that most of their clients booked spring break travel four to six months in advance of departure, while 29% saw the majority of clients booking two to three months ahead, and 24% had clients booking one month or less in advance.

Who’s going? Travel Guard also learned that most people with children try to make spring break a family affair.  Sixty-eight percent of agents surveyed responded that the majority of the spring break travel they booked for 2012 was for parents and their children. In contrast, 10% of agents polled saw most of their spring break business from empty nesters.

Where are they staying? As far as the type of accommodations spring break travelers are seeking out, most had booked an all-inclusive resort (52%) although cruises were next in line (15%), followed by full service hotels (13%), limited service hotels (8%) and vacation rentals (7%).

What’s most important? The price of accommodations (38%) isn’t necessarily the determining factor in a spring vacation this year. Thirty-two percent of agents responded that the range of available activities was the determining factor, followed by perceived value (22%).

What’s your spring break destination this year? Tell us about it!

Ever lost your luggage? What do you miss the most?

Lost Luggage – it comes in all shapes and sizes. From unworn wedding dresses to that lost set of golf clubs, an ancient artifact from Machu Picchu and more – when your luggage never turns up, where does it END up? My first guess might be an obscure loading dock where it waits for years in hopes that someone might claim it before it meets an untimely death in an incinerator. But, as I quickly found out, that couldn’t be farther from the truth – well except for the obscure part.

So where is the final resting place of your lost luggage? As it turns out unclaimed and lost luggage ends up in Scottsboro, Alabama – at the Unclaimed Baggage Center. My first thought? “No way! There is such a place?” Turns out there is, and you can find almost anything there at 50-80% off the original price. According to the Unclaimed Baggage Center clothing accounts for 60% of lost luggage sale items in the store, while electronics, sporting goods, jewelry, glasses and books take up the rest of the shelf space. While most of the items make a great glorified rummage sale, some things can be so noteworthy that people travel across the country to visit the store. What might those things be?

• Egyptian artifacts from 1500 B.C. (including a shrunken head)
• A 40.95 carat emerald (can someone please tell me how this was not reclaimed or placed in a heavily-guarded carry-on)?!
• A 5.8 carat diamond
• A Muppet from the movie Labyrinth.¹

Though most items that are lost on a flight are returned to their rightful owners, it is a fact that about 7 of every 1,000 bags are mishandled.² A travel insurance plan can help with tracking down your delayed or lost luggage and return it to you so that it doesn’t end up being sold in Scottsboro.

Have you ever lost your luggage? If so, what do you miss the most?

 ^{1http://science.howstuffworks.com/transport/flight/modern/lost-luggage1.htm
2 Department of Transportation}

 

 

How to Find a Babysitter While on Vacation

If you’re a parent, you might be excited about taking a spring break trip with your family this year. And though treating your kids to time away from home is certainly something to look forward to, having your own “adult’s vacation” within your family vacation is often equally appealing.

But how can you find a babysitter for your upcoming vacation?

If you’ll be staying at a resort, many have built-in childcare available. Call ahead to find out what their hours of service are and to schedule time in advance so they’re not fully booked before you arrive. Another option is to check with the concierge desk at your hotel for local childcare providers or placement agency referrals.

If you stay in a hotel or vacation rental property, you can also contact an online agency such as Sittercity.com or Care.com. Both agencies conduct background checks, screening and even let parents access the sitter’s profiles, references and contact information on their website.¹ To get in on the online option, post the job at least two weeks in advance to allow yourself a better chance at getting the right sitter. The post requires the date and time the sitter is needed, the responsibilities the sitter will have, the range of pay and a short blurb about your kids. After applicants for the babysitting job come rolling in, you will be able to narrow down sitters by reviewing cover letters, profiles, background and references. To be certain the babysitter is one that you’d like to hire, sometimes a video interview via Skype is helpful so you can pick up mannerisms and personality.

Go ahead and enjoy your family and time away from home. Make sure you enjoy some personal time with your significant other as well by planning ahead for a grown-up’s night out. If you have any vacation babysitting tips you’d like to share, please post a comment below.

 

¹http://todaytravel.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/11/28/9070000-finding-a-baby-sitter-while-on-vacation

Despite the mild winter, are weather-related delays still a concern for you?

Despite having experienced the fourth warmest January on record*, many travelers are still concerned that weather-related delays and cancellations could potentially disrupt remaining winter travel plans. Recently, Travel Guard surveyed customers and found that weather-related flight interruptions are still a  top concern for 42 percent of travelers this winter. Read on for statistics on the 2012 winter travel trends.

Top Concerns: Twenty-one percent of travelers were also concerned that unforeseen circumstances might disrupt their travel plans while 15% were concerned they may have to cancel a vacation due to personal reasons. Surprisingly, less than one percent of those polled noted lost luggage as their biggest worry. In an effort to prepare for interruptions like these, 93 percent of respondents purchased a travel insurance plan.

Travel Trends: An astounding 86 percent of travelers polled said that the unseasonably warm winter has not affected their travel plans. Of those traveling, nearly half (46 percent) are sticking with their original plans because they take an annual trip this time of year. Deals and discounts drove 14 percent of respondents to book a winter vacation, while three percent chose to book a winter escape due to improved financial stability.

Destination Desires: Even though freezing temperatures have been a rarity, 34 percent of those polled are still seeking the sun by heading to tropical climates. Popular vacations include cruises (35 percent,) beach escapes (34 percent,) and exotic destinations like South America or Africa (22 percent.) Slightly less than ten percent of respondents are planning to hit the slopes, while just four percent plan to see the sights in a major city.

No matter the time of year or the destination, there is always a chance that unexpected circumstances will derail even the best laid travel plans. While it has been relatively smooth sailing this winter, flight delays, cancellations, lost luggage and medical emergencies are disruptions that can occur regardless of the weather. The best way to be prepared is with a comprehensive travel insurance plan.

Questions about travel insurance? Just log on to www.travelguard.com or give our 24-hour World Service Center a call at 800-826-1300 or ask your travel agent.

*According to the National Weather Service.