Girls Gotta Travel

Still planning your summer vacation? Procrastination may be costing you in airfare, but you’re in luck with hotel rates. Orbitz is offering a 15% discount on hotel reservations online. Just enter the promo code EMSAVE15 at checkout. Any type of hotel. Any type of location. Any dates, as long as you book before May 26 for summer travel before July 31.

So go book a room now, then hop over to kayak and book your flights before fuel surcharges rise even more.

There are only so many back issues of Marie Claire and downloaded TV shows on my iPod that I can watch before going a little batty at the airport, which is basically where my mental state was at around 6:40 last Friday night. The weather in New York was horrible, nearly every flight leaving JFK was delayed, and I was out of things to do. So I began to wander, past the pizza stand, past the bookstore, and right inside one of my past airport boredom buster tips: the Oasis Day Spa in Terminal 6 (the JetBlue terminal) at JFK.

It wasn’t quite as easy as I’d written about and imagined; in fact, although the salon was nearly empty I still had to make an “appointment” to get a manicure later on in the night. I say appointment with quotes, because really all it was was the front desk guy telling me to come back in a half-hour and me giving him my first name.

But away I went, and one smoothie later I was back at the salon, choosing the deep blue nail polish that would eventually end up on my tips. Aside from what shape I wanted my nails, one of the first questions the manicurist asked was what time my flight left, a first for me in a nail salon. When I said it’d leave in an hour I thought she’d start hustling, but that’s not how it works at Oasis. For good (or in my case, almost bad) the staff take their time and leave you to keep an eye on the clock (which is featured prominently on a main wall in the salon).

As far as basic manicures go, I’ve had better and I’ve had worse. And although $26 for a basic mani is super-steep in my book, it seems fair when you compare it to the inflated prices of everything else in the airport. The 45 minutes my appointment took really were the quickest 45 minutes I’ve ever spent in an airport terminal, and certainly not the most expensive. (One trip to the bookstore for some candy and magazines will usually cost me more than that.)

On the downside, I literally almost missed my flight. While this isn’t necessarily Oasis’ fault (they do have a giant clock, after all), it seems like a manicurist working in an airport salon would keep better track of time. I’ve read similar reviews online, and keeping track of time would become an even more major issue if I’d been getting a massage or anything else that required me to close my eyes.

So will I be getting manis at the airport on every trip now? Probably not. But will I think about forking over $26 to help time fly on a never ending layover in the future? You can bet your ragged nails I will.

More:
Boarding Area Boredom Busters [GirlsGottaTravel]
10 Things to Do When Stuck at the Airport [HolidayGolightly]
Passing Time in Airports [Intelligent Travel]

When it comes to your carry-on “personal item”—the purse, briefcase, or laptop bag you can bring on board along with your one piece of luggage—there’s a fine line between what counts as an extra-large purse (allowed) and extra small baggage (not allowed).

Every airline and every airport is different, but the goal of finding the largest tote possible that’ll still fit within that “personal item” size-range remains the same.

Luckily, New York magazine has a handy little guide to the best totes around, all of which are perfectly reasonable to carry on as a personal item and can easily be stowed under the seat in front of you. You can find their full list here, or click Keep reading to see my favorites.

Keep reading →

You get a sort of empty, boring blog for the weekend. But have no fear (or anger), I have a bunch of info on new JetBlue policies, a review of the spa at JFK, the best airport food options, opinions on Virgin America’s red-eye service from Cali to New York, and a whole bunch more, so just keep watching and checking back over the next couple days.

[Joits/Flickr]

Last month I wrote a goal-oriented post about my desire to move to France and the steps I was going to make to get there. Obviously, moving to Europe isn’t the kind of thing that can be done in a day, but I thought that for myself at least—and maybe for anyone else out there thinking about making the jump abroad—that I should post more frequently about my progress in that department.

I could focus on the negative things and my lack of progress in the language or the financial department, but instead my plan is to focus on the positive.

So in the last couple weeks I’ve been reading more and more about finding an apartment in Paris, either to buy fully, in a partnership, or just having a lease. Ideally, the hospital fellowship program my husband gets into over there would have their own housing of some sort, but it’s still fun to look online and daydream.

Apartments in Paris are cheaper than in New York, but once the exchange rate of dollars to Euros is taken into account, they become much more expensive. (Which is why I’m hoping for the hospital-owned housing.)

I’ve also been thinking about job opportunities in France, and I was thinking that even if I can’t find work there, I could always go to grad school. At the American Graduate School of International Relations, I could get a MA or PhD in International Relations, and the classes are taught in English. The program’s costs are comparable to costs of universities in the U.S., and it doesn’t look like getting a student visa would be a problem. In fact, I was thinking that getting a degree in France might even make it easier to land a job there after classes are done.

Another option would be to work as a blogger for a company in New York, but just write from Paris. This would be a flexible job, but it definitely wouldn’t pay as well, especially since my paycheck would be coming in dollars.

Okay enough rambling for today… back to planing.

Just a few days ago I posted about how books can inspire travel. Well news flash to everyone—myself included!—movies can inspire you too.

There’s no telling why this didn’t dawn on my sooner, but there’ve been dozens of movies in my life that have led me to certain destinations. Most are embarrassing, but because there’s a level of anonymity here sitting in front of my computer, I feel I can confess:

I went to Amsterdam after watching Oceans 12.

I came to New York after watching Sex and the City. (Yes, it’s a TV show but it’s thisclose to being a movie too, so it counts in my book.)

I went to Rome after seeing Gladiator.

I went on a train through Europe after watching Before Sunrise, one of my favorite films ever.

I went to France after seeing The Da Vinci Code. (Ok my tickets were already booked when the movie came out, but it did get me extra excited to see the Louvre.)

The LA Times recently did a list of their own, focusing on Paris specifically. Here’s some of their favorites:

Ratatouille: Who knew a cartoon could inspire greatness? Apparently the little rat that could has inspired an exodus to the Paris dining scene.

An American in Paris: Older romance films always inspire travel, if for no other reason than because we think we all find that same passion if we could just get to that one perfect spot in the world.

Love in the Afternoon: Another oldie (it was released in 1957), ask anyone standing outside the Place Vendôme whether they’ve seen it, and they probably have.

Le Divorce: Why would a movie about something as depressing as divorce inspire travel to the most romantic city on Earth? Don’t ask me, I’ve never seen it.

Funny Face: Fred Astaire. Audrey Hepburn. Enough said.

Gigi: Was every film in the ’50s filmed in Paris?

Breathless: The title itself sounds hot, but there’s something about the description—running from cops on the mean streets of Paris—I’d like nothing to do with.

Keep reading →

Don’t tell customs officials, but over the past couple years I’ve been guilty of sneaking just about every substance back into the U.S. after trips overseas.

Foods, alcohol, coffee beans, random European souvenirs—I’ve brought it all back with me without ever getting anything taken away. Of course, part of the reason I’ve never had trouble is because I’ve never technically declared any of it.

I’m not trying to be sneaky—I swear!—I just don’t know what I’m supposed to declare and what’s ok to bring back. What’s the worst case scenario anyway, I get the item taken away? It probably would have been taken away had I declared it in the first place, so no loss there.

Or, I should say, that’s what I thought the worse case scenario would be, before I found out customs officials can also impose fines as high as $10,000 if you don’t declare the right things. And thinking of parting with my savings account is an easy way to get me to shape up.

So in the interest of national security—aren’t I noble?—I did some searching and found some answers. Here are some tips for making it back home with all of your stuff.

• Keep everything in its original packaging.
• Don’t assume anything bought at the Duty Free shop is a-ok. It’s not.
• If you’re bringing home wine, wrap it in plastic and keep it in your checked bag.
• Don’t assume it’s ok to fly with meat products (like fancy hams) just because you’re coming home from Hawaii. All of the U.S. islands (including Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands) are subject to border regulations.

I’m still not sure what I should have done with the bottle of absinthe I brought back from Barcelona in January, but the best tip I found online is just to take the time and do the research on what’s ok and not ok to bring before heading to the airport in the first place.

More answers can be found on government websites like U.S. Customs and Border Protection, help.cbp.gov and U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Q56 Fresh Fruits and Vegetables Reference Database.

More:

Think twice before stuffing your suitcase [USA Today]

Friendly Reminders: Do Your Homework Before Going On Vacation Or Customs Will Seize Your Goat [Consumerist]

Traveling with booze: Policy clarification and changes [Upgrade: Travel Better]

Declare what at customs? [Lonely Planet]

I’ve written about it before, but one of the first things I do after I’ve decided where I’m going on my next trip is head on over to TripAdvisor to get ideas on hotels. In my experience, finding a hotel that’s the right price, style, and cleanliness for my tastes and the specific trip I’m going on—because the type of hotel I’d stay at on business is completely different than the type I’d stay at on a romantic weekend with the hubby—is at best a real challenge and at worst a nightmare.

TripAdvisor has been my best single resource for real traveler opinions on properties across the globe, but I also know not everybody feels this way. A couple months ago I even saw an in-depth report on the topic on 20/20 of all places, where a reporter was questioning whether hotel managers themselves write many of the reviews you read online.

But even after that report aired, and after a number of other articles on the topic started popping up online, I’m still an avid user. I’ve had 100% good luck using TripAdvisor (yes, 100%) and this is why: I know how to navigate the system and cut through the bullshit. This is how I do it.

• Skip the best reviews and the worst reviews. Throwing out the outliers gets rid of property owners masquerading as guests (i.e. “Everything about the property was absolutely perfect!”) and grouchy guests whose beefs with the hotel are freak accidents or overly picky (i.e. “The weather was bad, but the hotel staff said it was going to be nice when I booked my room six months ago.” Or “My room service took two minutes too long to reach my room.”).
• Instead, skim over the first page of reviews of a hotel to look for a consensus. No hotel is perfect, so there’ll always be some kind of trend you can see, most commonly that’s a rude staff or unclean rooms.
• Once you get the consensus, decide whether that’s a deal breaker for you. For me, an unclean room is a deal breaker, but a rude staff is not. (I’m from New York, I can handle rude.)
• After that, check out the average price people paid and compare it to the price the hotel’s offering for your trip. If it’s much higher, score. If it’s much lower, start looking for a better deal.
• Finally—and most importantly!—look at the photos travelers themselves have put up. These are the single biggest determining factor for me, and you’ll be startled at how different these photos are from the photos you’ll find on sites like Expedia or Orbitz.

From there I’m usually read to either book the hotel or keep looking for another.

Above all else, once you’ve booked the hotel, don’t ever look it up on TripAdvisor again. Especially if your room is pre-paid or nonrefundable, all you’re going to do is psyche yourself out focusing on the negative reviews. So stay away, and enjoy your stay.

More:

Update: Should you trust travel writers? [On the Go: Travel]
The truth about hotels rating systems [Peter Greenberg]
Avoid the gross hotels [The Geeky Traveller]
Web: User review aggregation=hot [On the Go: Travel]

The Budget Travel blog, This Just In, has been running a really cool series on making Europe affordable this summer. This have bloggers positioned across the continent weighing in on everything from lodging to lunch, and giving advice I haven’t read anywhere else. Whether you’re heading overseas this summer or not, you should definitely read this now.

Series: Affordable Europe [This Just In]

Jake Gyllenhaal may have been going undercover and getting celeb-worthy treatment at LAX last week (when was the last time you got a private escort at the airport?), but he’s probably worth is because he’s so hot and incognito.

Just don’t give that celeb treatment to Tara Reid, or I’ll be mad.