Jim’s Travel Tips

Rail passes are a good way to travel when your travel plans are not set in concrete.  You will also save costs over specific point to point tickets. TIP: go to http://www.railpass.com/ This site includes access to regional passes, system passes and even country passes. These are not limited to just Europe.

I have previously provided a link to various subway maps. Here is an additional resource that I find very useful. TIP: go to http://www.amadeus.net/home/triptools/index_gb.html and click on the subway maps tab on the left.

Travel insurance is something that most people don’t use for “everyday” travel. However, when a cruise is involved, the topic usually comes up. The cruise companies may offer or include it as an option. I can tell you from experience that you can usually get better coverage, and less expensive coverage, by purchasing your cruise insurance from a third party. I just went through this process and saved some considerable money. I used a web site that gives you easy comparisons to choose from. TIP: go to http://www.squaremouth.com/travel-insurance/index.pl

This web site works very easily. I called the 800 number on the site with a question and actually got a real person without going through a series of number options – that’s what I call service!

Airport maps and information can be helpful if one is traveling to a new city or connecting through a large overseas airport. This web site can help you find both airport maps and information. http://www.amadeus.net/home/triptools/index_gb.html

Just click on the airport guides tab on the left.

I regularly traveled to São Paulo, Brazil. I liked to stay at the airport Marriott, very friendly staff and very accommodating to your schedule, but that’s another story. I arrived at the airport late one night from an interior Brazilian city and needed to catch the Marriott shuttle bus. I had done this previously, mind you (in the day light). I walked up to the curb area where I thought the bus left last time. A van was there and a driver standing outside of it. I approached him and said MARRIOTT? He replied back in his Portuguese accent MARYART – I again said MARRIOTT and he shook his head yes. I boarded the van. The van quickly filled up over the next 15 or so minutes and off we went. As we sailed by the Marriott going about 100 kilometers/ hour I realized that I was on the wrong van. I was in the back of the van and no English speaking people around me, so I just sat back and enjoyed the ride. About 10 kilometers later we pulled into a small hotel and everyone got off the van but me. I went to the front of the van with a copy of my MARRIOTT reservation in hand. The driver had quite a heated discussion in Portuguese with the bellman at the hotel, and off we went back to the airport at 120 kilometers/hour. When we arrived back at the original starting point the driver walked me up the walk about 50 feet and pointed to the word MARRIOTT on the van waiting there. I thanked and tipped him for his trouble. One of my travel tips is be sure to show the written copy when asking for directions or in this case, shuttle vans. (See that post here: Foreign Travel Tip)

On a recent trip to the Phoenix, Arizona area my wife and I took a Segway “tour” in the desert around our resort. In a word – fantastic! The learn curve to maneuver these devices is extremely easy. We thoroughly enjoyed every second of our 90 minute experience on these 2-wheeled “personal transporters”. TIP: Try it if you have the opportunity. It’s a blast!

The link to Segway Tours : http://www.segway.com/includes/guided-tours.htm

The link to city Segway tours is: http://www.citysegwaytours.com

I wanted to close out my section on Hong Kong with a couple of additional resources I have come across. I hope you’ve enjoyed my advice on the beautiful location of Hong Kong.

Two more good Hong Kong sites: