Talk About Travel: Transcript Hosted by Craig Stoltz Washington Post Travel Editor Monday, April 12, 1999

Craig Stoltz The Washington Post

OFallon, Illinois : I am trying to find an agency that rents studio-type flats in European cities on a monthly rate rather than a weekly rate. I have been unsuccessful in finding anyone who will quote a monthly rate. Do you know of any for England, France, Holland, Germany, and-or Italy?

Craig Stoltz: Two places to start, cribbed from our recent article on flats in London [The Skinny on Flats, 25 October '98]: Euracom http://www.euracom.co.uk and John D Wood Co., 011-44171-436-6666. Anyone else know agents for European flats?

Woodbridge, Va.: Have you ever heard reports of the Europe through the back door tours? They seem to offer a good mix of unguided exploration and guided stuff.

Craig Stoltz: I've never take a Back Door tour, but I've met Rick Steves and know the firm's deal pretty well: superb resource for low-budget (hostel and cheap hotel) independent touring of Europe. They tend to draw a young and playful crowd, and the guides really know their stuff. Don't expect luxury, and do expect to walk a lot. Any one out there with first-hand Back Door experience?

Alexandria, VA: My husband and I have traveled to the Caribbean several times. Now we are thinking of a trip to Bermuda this summer. How similar-different are the two? We are looking for a quiet, relaxing get away, so nightlife is not important.

Craig Stoltz: Quiet, relaxing is the right set of expectations for Bermuda. Bermuda's visitor base for a long time have been the country club set--moneyed, comfortable, seeking elegance. Unlike many Caribbean islands, you can explore all of Bermuda without dipping into pockets of poverty or hostility. There are lots of cruise ship dockings. Weather's much more mild--it's in the Mid-Atlantic, off the coast of North Carolina. Expect to pay more for the privilige than you would for a similar time and resort in the Caribbean. Air costs more, too. Great place if you're into golf or tennis.

Thunder Bay,Ontario: Hi Craig....In Mar98 I believe Carolyn was on the Royal Princess sailing between Manaus and Buenos Aries,working on a review of that cruise,she interviewed my wife and I as we have cruised alot.Did the story ever get done?Thanks..Tim Waite

Craig Stoltz: Writes Brown: "Tim, nice to hear from you; enjoyed meeting you both on the cruise. The story did appear in the Post, on October 4; it's on our web site (click on travel, then "archive of travel stories," then, under '99 World Cruise
Roundup, click on Amazon Basin). How was the transatlantic leg? What did you think, ultimately, of the Royal Princess voyage?"

Annandale, VA: Craig -- My wife and I are thinking of spending a long weekend in Cape May this summer. Any suggestions for places to stay such as favorite Bed & Breakfasts?

Craig Stoltz: In Cape May, as you probably know, there are tons of bed and breakfast inns--much of the town's historic structures have been so transformed. A couple of good ones, based on our own travels, include Inn on Ocean and Angel of the Sea but there are many others worth recommending (try www.capemay.com). Another good place if you like Victoriana -- but with fewer tourists -- is the town of Spring Lake (www.springlake.net). It's just above Atlantic City. A couple of nice inns there include the Normandy and Sea Crest b&b;

Burke, Va.: I'm traveling to Seattle for a convention in early July and I'm thinking about making a side trip so it can be a genuine vacation -- any suggestions? I was thinking Vancouver.

Craig Stoltz: Lucky you. Seattle's a great summer trip. Vancouver is a fascinating city, almost more Asian than Canadian. Also fun is Victoria which is located (confusingly) on Vancouver Island. This is a very British town, a 90-minute ferry ride from Vancouver; good first-visit attractions include
shopping at the arty boutiques downtown, a walking tour of Buchart Gardens (very pastoral, lovely!), and tea at the Empress Hotel. Closer to Seattle, a day-trip from the city, is Mt. Rainier--not to be missed.

Arlington, VA: My husband and I would love to go to the Carribbean in the fall -it's the only time we can get away-, but are concerned about hurricanes. We were specifically thinking about Puerto Rico. Should we just avoid the region altogether? Is late fall safer than early fall? Is Cancun out of the usual path?

Craig Stoltz: Go later in the fall (November better than Sept or Oct); try the ABC Islands (Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao); they're off the hurricane belt. Cancun is less exposed than the Windward Islands, but it still gets rapped, so I wouldn't consider it very safe. Puerto Rico gets wallopped a lot. Percentage wise, not a good choice for that time of year. Great deals, though!

takoma park: Here's one of those "popularity" questions - as in, everybody says the ring of kerry in Ireland is really beautiful, and that same everybody says that it's so crowded in the summer that you can't quite enjoy its beauty. An old joke -that place is so crowded nobody goes there anymore- or true? Any alternatives for summer travel to Ireland?

Craig Stoltz: It's true that the Ring of Kerry is swamped by tourists in summer. Consider Northern Ireland--beautiful, less explored, and many tourists keep their distance for reasons related to The Troubles. If you want to avoid any fear at all, hunker in the N Ireland countryside, which is just as beautiful as the Republic's. Particularly the areas around Derry, Enniskillen and Strangfordloch.

Columbia Heights, DC: Hello Craig and the Post Travel gang! Thanks for hosting these great discussions.

My wife and I will be visiting Ireland, Scotland & North Wales during late May and early June. I've managed to persuade her that we don't have to have advance reservations for every single night. In order to be flexible on the road and not be slaves to an itinerary, I want to just book ahead a day or two, which is a service I know many of the tourist offices offer. Am I making a big mistake? Are we likely to find nowhere to stay in the places we want to visit? Most of the places w-o reservations will be in the country -- we have friends in Dublin and will book ahead in Glasgow.

Another question. We'd like to do some sailing there -- hire a little boat like the Flying Scots we're used to here. Any advice on how to locate places that will allow that? Maybe if yer man Angus is around, he can help me with that. Also, are they likely to allow me to hire a boat without a Red Cross card? I have a little card from the sailing school I attended here, but never paid my $20 and took the test.

Thanks!

Craig Stoltz: As for advance reservations, make a couple nights' reservations, particularly in big cities. Otherwise, you can spend a lot of your valuable travel time on the phone, driving from inn-to-inn, etc. Having a couple nights nailed down will be some insurance. Find a place you like? Stay there and use it as base to explore the area.

As for your second question: We don't have a clue. Any Scottish skippers out there to provide some advice?

Boston, MA: How do you become a travel writer for a paper? What kind of experience-background do you really need -i.e. do you need a journalism degree-?
Thanks.

Craig Stoltz: A degree is only slightly more useful than a millstone. A bad childhood helps. If you find yourself going into dangerous credit card debt to travel, you may have the right stuff. Studying and polishing your writing for your entire life helps, as does learning how not to be embarrassed by asking impertinent questions. If you like to relax when you travel, forget it.

Gaithersburg, Maryland: Hi Craig,
Where has the great bargains for Hawaii gone to. In 1979 I took Grandma to Hawaii for 10 days, 3 Islands with a car for $640 each. In 1982 Mom, Grandma and I went for 2 weeks for $599. It was the Wainwright fling for $499 a week, and $100 to extend for another week. Airfare & Hotel included in these packages. Also in 1984 It was $640 for 10 days. I have not found a reasonable package deal in ages to go to Hawaii. I miss those Islands...but I don't want to pay $800 for air fare alone....HELP!!!!!

Craig Stoltz: Most of the Hawaii deals are on the ground, not in the air. The economic trouble in Asian has really hurt Hawaii tourism. High-end properties are doing well with rich Americans, but the vast middle of the market is discounting with two free days when you buy three, etc. Air service is indeed being cut back as demand is flat, so you won't find many great package deals from the East Coast. Get yourself there, however, and bargain hotels and meals should be easy to find.

Fairfax, VA: Greetings Craig -
My mother and aunt are interested in going on a 'Literary Tour' of New England - visiting the authors' homes and famous settings of American lit, such as Nathanial Hawthorne, Robert Frost, et al.

Any suggestions on where to get resources or package deals for this?

Thanks in advance...

Craig Stoltz: A good first place to start is literarytraveler.com, which breaks the world into regions and identifies literary resources in each area.

Indianapolis, IN: Hello there! Love your travel hour.

I will be getting married in Indiana this fall and then going to Cyprus for my honeymoon. After touring Cyprus for a few days, we'd like to visit the surrounding countries such as Egypt -the Aswan area AND Sinai's Sharm El-Sheik area, Jordan's Petra, and a few other areas including Turkey and-or Greece if it is still safe to travel in the fall there. How can we combine so may destinations without being in one of those touristy bused tours which I can't stand -being like cattle on a bus with frequent stops doesn't sound romantic to me!!- Is there another way to do this without having to organize it all ourselves?

Thanks for your help

Indy 500

Craig Stoltz: We turn this one over to our readers. Anyone out there done these locales with smaller tours or independently?

Chantilly, VA.: Can you comment on, or do you know any valid reason-s- for, the greatly increased air fares from Washington to the American Virgin Islands as compared to 2 or 3 years ago? My wife and I would REALLY like to re-visit St. John, but the recently quoted round trip prices of around $700 -to St. Thomas- make it impractical. Thanks.

Craig Stoltz: American Airlines, the dominant carrier to the islands, recently reduced its service to many of the islands, saying it could make more money deploying the aircraft elsewhere (Europe). USVI was hit especially hard, as it lacked a national or secondary carrier. The USVI folks hold out hopes for some charters--but those, of course, are almost always packaged with hotel deals.

EBartz--Akron, Ohio: My family is planning a vacation for the first part of August. I remember going to Mackinac Island back in 1976 and wondered if you--or any other readers--knew if things were still the same there--Grand Hotel, no cars on the island, lots of bicycles for traveling around the island.

Craig Stoltz: I visited Mackinac Island myself a couple summers ago. Still the same, though there's plenty of development along the Lower Peninsula shoreline now. Yes, the grand Grand is still going strong, yes, you can still ride bikes around (but those hills!). And of course forays into the UP are just wonderful in August. Bring mosquito repellant!

Sterling, Virgina: Have you heard anything about the Grand Cayman Marriott? I am going there in August. Thanks.

Craig Stoltz: It's a Marriott: Lots of towels, nice mini-bars, cable TV! Marriott keeps its franchisees on a much tighter leash than many, so you can be sure of a consistent experience. That, of course, is both the upside and downside. Not much local charm (though, to be fair, most folks don't go to the Caymans for local charm--mainly hotels and the ocean and the beach).

Washington: Craig, I was talking to someone recently about travel in general in first half of 2000. She argues that air travel will probably get really expensive for a while, due to anticipated air traffic control snafus vis a vis technology. Any thoughts or have you heard anything similar?

Craig Stoltz: I suspect that's baloney. It's hard to imagine the mechanism for how snafus (of which I'm sure there will be many--planes that are delayed and needing service, caterers running behind, that kind of stuff) would affect pricing. I do expect that those places that have some organic relation to the Millennium--Israel, Italy, parts of Europe, maybe Paris and London--will do well in 2000, but I don't think there will be anything like the gouging we're seeing for New Year's Eve. I do think lots of folks may take long-delayed once-in-a-lifetime trips in 2000, but not enough to clog the system.

WDC: Craig, if you had a choice of int'l destinations for a long weekend, where would you go, say this weekend?

Craig Stoltz: Paris. It's spring.

Washington, D.C.: I am studying abroad in Florence for five weeks this summer. I am planning to travel on the weekends and wanted to limit my travels to Italian cities, as opposed to international travel. With so many rail passes to choose from, which would you recommend? I am looking for the least expensive one that would permit me to travel -within Italy- about 7 or 8 days over a 5 week period.

Craig Stoltz: Says Carolyn Brown: "What a great base for weekend trips. In Tuscany, try Pietrasanta (a great magnet for working sculptors; Michaelangelo got his marble there, and there's a funky downtown); also Lucca (beautiful walled city; you can hike the rim of the wall, as wide as a running track); and Sienna, Bologna, even Fiesole (a bus ride from Florence). As for rail options, we turn this over to our vast clicking audience. For single trips, you can pretty much just show up at the station and buy your ticket.

Washington, DC: Do you have any suggestions for good day trips from DC?

Craig Stoltz: Carolyn Brown recommends her hometown of Chestertown, on the upper Eastern Shore. Wilmington, in Delaware's Brandywine Valley, is full of museums and funky restaurants. On the ocean, try Lewes, a sane, small, historic community near Rehoboth. Western Maryland has some great hiking and fishing in some manmade lakes, out near Cumberland Way; and in West Virginia, you can use Berkeley Springs as an outpost to explore the mountains. Springfield Mall is also nice this time of year.

Washington, DC: My husband and I have a week off at the end of June and would like to take a trip then. Any ideas on a neat place to go that has budget-priced airfare and accomodations? We're open to all sorts of ideas--the beach, the mountains, etc. but would like to rejuvenate.

Craig Stoltz: I'd follow the low-fare lines. Metrojet and Southwest are giving us lots of inexpensive, unexpected cities for cheap getaways: Manchester, N.H. (lake and mountain areas; check out Squam Lake); Cleveland (the lakefront, Rock and Roll, of course, the Flats nightlife area); Providence, R.I. (great history, Italian restaurants, near the ocean). Memphis, cradle of civilization, is the latest low-fare battle zone. Expect to fly from BWI or Dulles. Asheville, N.C., artsy and mountainous, is going for $210 recently. . . .

Washington DC: Actually, Spring Lake NJ is about 1 1-2 hours at the least -not including beach traffic- from Cape May. I grew up there and go home often in the summer so I highly recommend the bed and breakfasts there.

Craig Stoltz: Thanks, D.C.

Gaithersburg, MD: For Akron, here is the website for the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island --
http:--www.grandhotel.com- I love that part of the world!

Craig Stoltz: A Gaithersburger 'Gander! Thanks!

Arlington: For your railpass questions. Two good web resources run down all of the pass options. They are: www.railpass.com and www.raileurope.com It looks like the deal for this person would be the flexipass that's good for 8 days out of 30. It's $202 for 2nd class and $302 for 1st

Craig Stoltz: We can always depend on you, Arlington!

St. Joseph, Mo.: Day trips from D.C.: Staunton, Va. is two hours away -roughly-. Hilly town with lots of great architecture and antique stores and Lexington is within 30 miles of there, which is also nice. Beautiful downtown. Charlottesville is great, too, for the same reasons, only C-ville is bigger, has Monticello and stuff. That's about two hours, too. I liked hanging out in Fells Point in Baltimore when I lived in Balto. or going to the zoo there. I'm sure most clickers know about that area.

Craig Stoltz: How St. Jo. Missouri knows our area so well is one of those unexplained facts of life. . . .

Arlington: In response to the daytrip question...if you do decide to go to Wilmington, don't go on a Sunday. I did and just everything downtown was closed.

Craig Stoltz: To clarify: We're not all that up on downtown Wilmington; we were recommending the valley and suburbs. . . .

McLean, VA: I am planing a trip from McLean to Maine, can you suggest some places along the way that I might be interested in. Something unique that.

Craig Stoltz: Be sure to check our upcoming guide, published on May 30, on driving the whole godforsaken route from D.C. north to Maine (and beyond). It's the companion piece to last fall's story about the route from D.C. south.

Specific ideas: In Rhode Island, check out the cottages in Newport. Salem, Mass. can be interesting. In the southern part of Maine, look for Ogunquit (old timey Maine without the Kennebunkport pretention and crowds). A nice beach for families is Orchard Beach, a couple minutes along I-95. Old York is a collection of historic buildings right off 95. And we love Camden.

Gaithersburg, MD: My husband and I have 3 weeks to spend in mid-late September. We enjoy history, the outdoors, hiking, canoeing, etc. We've seen a large % of the US, so we are thinking about going somewhere in Europe. Any suggestions?

Craig Stoltz: You're headed for the South of France--from Lyon south, along the Rhone. Beautiful country, historic towns, aqueducts, wineries, great restaurants, Avignon--and with perfect weather and very few crowds. Can we go with you?

Annandale: Any tips on when -and where- to buy tickets for a fall trip to England?

Craig Stoltz: Look for airlines themselves to offer package deals once they've already sold summer--i.e., July, August, for travel in September, October. Don't try it now--you'll do better to wait.

Buffalo, New York: I have some friends who will visiting from Spain this summer for about three weeks. they want to tour the U.S. in a rental car. Of course I'll show them Niagara Falls, but where would you recommend they go? They want to see authentic American locations, i.e., no big cities with ethnic European populations. I thought of Nashville and country music, but where else? Thanks.

Craig Stoltz: In your part of the world, we like Rochester, Cinncinati, Baltimore, Cleveland, Philadephia, Memphis. Most have big ethnic populations, but hey, that's America. You got a problem with that?

Reston, VA: ON the list of day trips from DC, let's not forget trips to Loudon, Fauquier and Jefferson -WV- Counties: Leesburg, Middleburg, Purcelville, Upperville, Harpers Ferry, Charlestown, Martinsburg, Shepherdstown, etc..... Something for nearly everyone in these areas.

Craig Stoltz: Thanks, Reston--good to hear from a loyal Virginian. . . .

Columbia Heights, DC: For the Gaithersburger with 3 weeks -- if France fails you, try North Wales! The history of the area is incredible and very visible in the ruins of 11th-13th century castles, some of which are big tourist attractions and some of which are just hanging on hillsides all alone. The terrain is rugged and provides excellent day hikes and longer treks. Mt. Snowdon, in Gwynedd, is where Hilary trained for Everest. There's also a whitewater center in Snowdonia.

The landscape is absolutely captivating for those that love that desolate, lonely feel.

Craig Stoltz: Yes, thanks, Columbia Heights. Our own Linton Weeks had a memorable trip to Mt. Snowdon; the hiking/trekking is spectacular.

Washington, DC: Hi Craig...
I have the opportunity this summer to spend three months in Beijing. I've pretty much done Beijing's sights, and wonder what other Chinese cities you recommend. -any veteran responses are welcome!-

Craig Stoltz: Gary Lee of our staff recently had a delightful time in a "resort" area--full of temples, tea houses, country walks--called Hangzhou, a two-hour train ride from Shanghai. Not hard by Beijing, we understand, but still. . . .The story ran August 2, 1998.

d.c.: Is there any hope of getting reduced air fares to Rome in August ?

Craig Stoltz: No.

Craig Stoltz: And with that, we reluctantly sign off. Thanks again for all your questions--and especially for your answers. See you again, next Monday at 2 p.m. Next Sunday's special feature: Yes, you can find inexpensive, charming places to stay in Paris. Our correspondent recommends 14 of 'em, scattered all over town.