Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has released its 20th annual beach report, and it shows that among the 50 states, New Hampshire beaches are the least polluted, while Louisiana reported the most contamination.

Nationwide, 7% of beachwater samples violated health standards in 2009. The worst offender was the Great Lakes area, with a 13% contamination rate.

The least contaminated beaches were in New Hampshire (1%), Delaware (2%) and Oregon (also 2%). The worst beaches were in Louisiana (25%), Rhode Island (20%), and Illinois (16%).

These results were for 2009, but report also touches on the oil spill impact on Guf Coast beaches. The report says there were 2,239 beach closings, advisories, and notices in the Gulf region this year (as compared to 237 last year).

NRDC is maintaining a regularly updated map of current Gulf oil spill beach closures, advisories, and notices - www.nrdc.org/energy/gulfspill/beaches.asp.

NRDC Testing the Waters report - Download (pdf)

Posted on July 29th, 2010 by PLing
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When Hollywood ‘heavy weight’ Kevin Smith got booted off a Southwest plane for being too fat to fit into one seat, he caused a big stink for the airline.

Southwest has now over-compensated by kicking out a petite 5 ft 4, 110-pound Sacramento woman, and giving her seat to an overweight passenger who needed two seats.

It was a flight from Las Vegas to Sacramento, and the sales rep who got booted was flying standby. But she had paid the full fare and was already on board the plane. 

Being asked to get off a plane is bad enough. Even worse that it was because her seat was required as an extra seat for a fat person. And worse yet, the fat person was a 14 year old girl.

This will likely set off the same media frenzy as the Kevin Smith incident, with an added element of child obesity to the debate.

The names of the sales rep and the overweight girl are being withheld to maintain their privacy.

If you’re overweight and planning to fly Southwest, better check out their Customer of Size policies.

Photo courtesy Southwest Airlines

Posted on July 27th, 2010 by PLing
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Story 1: Hard to tell if President Obama is coming or going, as far as family vacations are concerned.

1. Obama family to Martha’s Vineyard for summer vacation Aug 19 - SouthCoastToday
2. Obama family to Panama City Beach for Gulf Coast vacation Aug 14 - Politico
3. Obama family in Bar Harbor for weekend vacation July 16-18 - OnlineSentinel

Story 2: Dam collapse in Delhi, Iowa sends catastrophic wall of water into nearby towns. Residents of Hopkinton had 5 minutes to flee before the flood water hit the town. 2-lane highway atop the dam collapses. The dam is 45 miles north of Cedar Rapids.

1. 300 foot section of Lake Delhi Dam caves - Fox News
2. Delhi dam photo gallery & downstream flooding - Des Moines Register
3. Iowa Gov Culver: Immediate danger in Delhi has passed - Des Moines Register

Here’s the rest of the week’s travel news:-

Gamer’s guide to Comic-Con 2010 - Hard OCP
Drinker’s guide to Comic-Con 2010 - The Quietus
Girls’ guide to Comic-Con 2010 - Baltimore Sun

Miami best summer vacation destination for singles - Match.com
Arlington, VA is top-spending city for travel & entertainment - Bundle.com

Paris Hilton detained at airport for carrying pot - TMZ
Paris Hilton named ‘Perfect Vacation Buddy’ - WENN

IHG first hotel company to reward loyalty points for geolocation check-ins - Press release
Marriott first hotel company with LEED green hotel prototype - Press release

132 evacuated when Harry Potter ride breaks down - WESH
1 dead, 42 injured as Swiss tourist train derails - AP

Photo - public domain (source)

Posted on July 25th, 2010 by PLing
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Both President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama have been encouraging people to vacation in the Gulf Coast, inspite of BP’s oil spill. The Obamas have now decided to put their vacation where their mouth is.

The White House is saying that the Obama family will be spending their August vacation in Florida, in the Gulf Coast.

The exact destination hasn’t been disclosed yet. Also, only the President, First Lady and daughter Sasha will be vacationing in Florida. Malia Obama will be away at camp.

On her recent July 12 visit to Panama City Beach, Fla., Mrs. Obama had said that “one of the best ways that fellow Americans can help is to come on down here and spend some money.”

She eat ice cream and walked barefoot on the beach. Given the positive vibes and good media coverage for the First Lady’s visit, it’s possible that the Obamas might choose to visit Panama City Beach for their vacation. 

The Obamas just returned from their 3-day vacation in Bar Harbor on Mount Desert Island, Maine.

Photo - Public Domain (source)

Posted on July 23rd, 2010 by PLing
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Chelsea Clinton, daughter of Bill and Hillary Clinton, is getting married to investment banker Marc Mezvinsky in Rhinebeck, NY.

Rhinebeck, founded in 1686, is a historic town on the banks of the Hudson about 100 miles north of New York City.

For tourists, Rhinebeck offers 437 National Historic Register sites, some boutiques and shops, and cozy B&Bs, and inns.  

The best place to stay in Rhinebeck is The Beekman Arms built by Arent Traphagen. It opened in 1766 and is the oldest inn in America, and part of the Historic Hotels of America.

The hotel’s lobby has a framed newspaper cutting of Bill & Hillary Clinton having lunch at the hotel. The Beekman Arms has 23 rooms and the Delamater Inn one block away has 50 rooms. 

The Sixteen Mile Historic District in Rhinebeck has thirty back-to-back aristocratic riverfront estates. Chelsea Clinton’s wedding is likely going to be held on July 31 at Astor Courts, an estate on River Road. 

Places to visit in Rhinebeck include the FDR Home & Library, Vanderbilt Mansion, Culinary Institute of America and the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome which has vintage World War I planes and a museum. You can even take a ride in a biplane.

Rhinebeck’s Town Landing in Rhinecliff offers waterfront views and a boat launch. The Rhinebeck Community Center has a swimming pool, tennis courts, playground and ballfield.

Chelsea Clinton photo - Kyle Cassidy; Astor Courts photo - Canon in 2D

Posted on July 20th, 2010 by PLing
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Story 1: President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, daughters Malia and Sasha, and First Doggy Bo Obama take a 3-day vacation in Bar Harbor, Maine.

They checked-in at the Bar Harbor Regency hotel, checked-out Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park, and enjoyed a dinner date at a restaurant called Havana. 

They visited the Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse, took a boat ride in the harbor, played tennis at the Bar Harbor Club and hung out at the pool, dined at Stewman’s restaurant and eat coconut ice cream at Mount Desert Ice Cream.

First family enjoys tennis, sights on Maine coast - AP
Shifting Politics in Presidents’ Vacations - NY Times

Story 2: With the BP oilspill finally capped after 85 long days, Gulf Coast beaches are packed again and reservation hotlines for vacation homes are ringing off the hook.

Prediction: Florida tourism will increase - CFNews13
Who’s making money from the oil spill? Newsweek

Here’s the rest of the week’s travel news:-

CTA analysis: Hidden airline fees - ConsumerTravelAlliance.org
GAO report: Disclosure of airline fees - GAO.gov (podcast)
House Panel: Regulate airline fees - Politico

Erin Andrews sues hotels for enabling peeping tom - E! Online
Jennifer Lopez facing $40m Cyprus hotel lawsuit - LA Times

Bulldogs top the list of dogs that die while flying - AJC.com
Top 10 dog-friendly resort areas in the US - Dogfriendly.com

NAACP moves to make Neverland a state park - SacBee
125th anniversary of Niagara Falls State Park - Niagara Gazette

Whitehouse photo by Pete Souza

Posted on July 18th, 2010 by PLing
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When Shermans Travel published their list of America’s top 10 boardwalks, Atlantic City tourism officials were very happy to find themselves at the top of the list.

Many of California’s famed boardwalks, including Santa Cruz and Venice Beach, found themselves dumped at the bottom end of the list.

1. Atlantic City, NJ
2. Coney Island, NY
3. Kemah, TX
4. Mission Beach, CA
5. Ocean City, MD
6. Rehoboth Beach, DE
7. Santa Cruz, CA
8. Venice Beach, CA
9. Virginia Beach, VA
10. Wildwood, NJ

Turns out it’s not because AC has the best boardwalk in America, or because the guys who cooked up the list have something against Venice Beach or Virginia Beach. It’s just that the list was alphabetically sorted, and no one knew that.

Maureen Siman, VP marketing for the Atlantic City Convention & Visitors Authority, tells PressofAtlanticCity.com that AC is hoping that everyone will start doing these lists alphabetically. Wildwood, NJ might have something to say about that.

AC Boardwalk photo - LancerE

Posted on July 17th, 2010 by PLing
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Planning a summer road trip on the cheap? Here’s one way to get started with the freebie hunt - Lonely Planet is giving away one free itinerary every week.

The itineraries are from an upcoming Lonely Planet publication - USA’s Best Trips: 99 Themed Itineraries Across America (available Sept 2010).

Ones which have already been made available for free download so far are:-

1. Route 66: Monitoring the Mother Road
2. Pacific Northwest Grand Tour
3. New Jersey Diners: Open 24 Hours

Itineraries you can get for free in the next few weeks until Labor Day include:-

4. 60 Lighthouses in 60 Hours
5. Green Chile Adventure
6. Skyline Drive to the Blue Ridge Parkway
7. Up the Inside Passage
8. Wet & Wild West Coast
9. Tripping Through Grand Teton & Yellowstone
10. Lake Lovers’ Trail

Photo - KB35

Posted on July 15th, 2010 by PLing
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Hard to say whether Pensacola, Gulf Shores and Panama City Beach need to be envied or pitied. On the one hand, they’ve been harrassed by tar balls and oil slicks.

But on the other hand, they just had a super weekend filled with celebs and spectacular events that drew record crowds.

The July 11 free Jimmy Buffett concert on the beach at Gulf Shores drew 25,000 raving parrotheads who filled up the hotels and restaurants.

Although CMT had given away 37,000 free tickets for the concert originally scheduled for July 1, the concert had to be postponed due to a hurricane.

Even so, 25,000 people packing it in over the weekend at an oilspill impacted beach community is extraordinary.

Even more good news for Alabama (and Gulf Shores in particular) is that the concert was paid for with BP funds, and Alabama Tourism has decided to hold more free concerts in the same spot - also paid for by BP. Faith Hill has agreed to do the next one for free.

For Panama City Beach, the good news came in the form of an endorsement and personal visit by First Lady Michelle Obama on July 12.

The First Lady talked to the local bigwigs, eat a chocolate hurricane at the Pink Pelican Ice Cream Bar, and said that “this is a wonderful place to visit.”

As for Pensacola, huge crowds came in to watch the Blue Angels at NAS Pensacola perform their flying maneuvers on July 10. Officials estimate that Pensacola tourism businesses raked in $25 million over the weekend.

If the Gulf Coast can keep up this steady drumbeat of celebrities and high-wattage events, maybe no one will notice the oil, until it goes away eventually.

Photo credits (from left) - 1, 2, 3

Posted on July 13th, 2010 by PLing
Filed under: Travel News | 1 Comment »

Story 1: In TV ad, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi urges Italians to vacation in their own homeland of “skies, sun and sea.”
1. Magica Italia - Youtube
2. Silvio Berlusconi’s Italy Tourism ad and its spoofs become popular- WSJ

Story 2: Queen Elizabeth II visits New York - addresses UN, lays wreath at Ground Zero.
1. Queen Elizabeth II at Ground Zero - Youtube
2. The Queen: What price a global superstar - Telegraph UK

Here’s the rest of the week’s travel news:-

HB444 veto leads to calls for Hawaii boycott - KHON2.com
Arizona tourism leaders seek to bolster industry - AZBiz.com

Galveston fights tar balls with PR - KVUE.com
Blue Angels warm up crowd for big Pensacola weekend - PNJ.com

Kids in 20s, 30s vacation with mom & dad - NY Daily News
Global air travel hits pre-recession levels - Dallas News

Miami gets ship of Epic proportions - Miami Herald
LeBron means big bucks flow to Miami - Miami Herald

Netanyahu visits DC, Luggage lands in LA - NBC LA
UPS offers luggage boxes as alternative to checking bags - LA Times

Posted on July 11th, 2010 by PLing
Filed under: Travel News | No Comments »