Do you remember the good ole days of air travel? Well, back in the day the airlines used to offer complimentary meal service on all flights of more than 2 hours in duration plus a variety snacks and beverages. There even used to be a separate section for smokers in the rear of the plane. Cough, cough!

Fast forward to the present…

The good - all the airlines have adopted a no smoking policy. Hurray!

The bad – In the USA, the airlines have discontinued complimentary meal service on all domestic flights because they are losing monies and are trying to trim expenses – instead the airlines give the passengers the option to buy meals. From what I have heard, the quality of the meals is substandard and overpriced. Ugh! The alternative is to brown bag it! Thank G_D, on oversea flights to Europe and Asia (I don’t know about South America), American carriers still provide complimentary meals to their passengers. However, I‘ve flown on Alaska Airlines twice to Manzanillo in Mexico (a 3½ hour flight) during the last 12 months and there was no meal service. Complimentary snacks like a bag of peanuts or pretzels and free nonalcoholic beverages are still offered though. That policy could change …

As far as foreign carriers go, to my knowledge they offer complimentary meal service on the majority of their long haul flights, however a new breed of discount carriers in Asia have popped up in the last couple of years – Air Asia, One to Go, Nok Air etc - and meals are at additional expense to their passengers. C’est La Vie!

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If you have been following Calypso Island Chronicles, you may remember a post I made about a trip I took to Peru late last summer. The highlight of my trip (and perhaps the most memorable travel experience I have ever had) was an arduous four-hour hike to the top of Waynu Picchu, where at the summit there are magnificent views of the famed Machu Picchu archaeological site. With these wonderful memories still fresh in my mind, I took a special interest in an article that recently appeared in the travel section of San Francisco Chronicle by John Flinn, the travel editor. Entitled The Other Inca Trail, Mr Flinn chronicles his recent experience on a five-day trek on the Salcantay trail to Machu Picchu.

As noted by Mr. Flinn, the Salcantay trek to Machu Picchu is an excellent alternative to the famed Inca Trail, which in recent years has become too popular for its own good - the famous trail has become so heavily traveled and littered with garbage that the Peruvian government has stepped in and imposed strict quotas on its usage. In addition to having far less traffic, the Salcantay trail is higher in elevation, affords more spectacular views and is considered slightly more difficult than the Inca trail. Another option is the Lares trek.

On Mr. Flinn’s trip, there was an upscale twist to the basic trek theme - instead of camping out and eating basic camp grub, the tour group’s accommodations were in small comfortable lodges located along the trail and they dined every night on haute Andean gourmet cuisine to the accompaniment of fine Chilean wines and Pisco sours. Situated at 12,500 ft up in Peruvian Andes, the 12 room Salcantay Lodge - the most deluxe of the hotels on the trek - even had a Jacuzzi, where tour participants could soak their weary muscles after a day of hiking.

The 7 day/6 night ‘luxury’ trek package is offered thru Mountain Lodges of Peru – includes 5 days of hiking with guides and support crew, all meals and accommodations, a guided tour of Machu Picchu and return transfer to Cusco from Aguas Calientes by train/ bus. Cost is $2500 per person double occupancy.

Note: Tour participants should be physically fit as this trek covers 35 miles of walking/hiking in high elevation, mountainous terrain over a period of 5 days

Not too long ago, I received an e-mail from Air Asia, a discount air carrier based in Malaysia, on a special “free seat” promotion they were offering. As the ad copy stated:

As the truly low-fare carrier, Air Asia is offering a ground-breaking promotion that will get you coming for more. Flying International is now FREE! You can now go on that long awaited holiday with your family and friends.

An amazing deal only for you - save more on your holidays! Hurry down to airasia.com and grab as many free seats as you want!

Basically, this promotion required that you book between May 14-16, 2008 in order to travel to any number of international destinations including Australia, China, Thailand and Philippines from one of Air Asia’s six travel hubs. However all travel had to take place between January 12 – April 30 2009. What a deal! (not)!

What kind of sleazy advertising is this? First of all, only a very limited number of these so called free seats were up for grabs on any specific flight (maybe 4-6 seats per flight). Can you imagine the online buying frenzy for one of these “so called free seats”? Many people will probably come to the conclusion that “booking a free seat” is akin to looking for a needle in a haystack! Thwarted in their attempt to get a ‘freebie’, I am guessing a lot of customers end up buying a normal discount ticket. Furthermore, these seats are not really free, as passengers still have to pay for a variety of miscellaneous taxes and fuel surcharges. As an example, if you’re able to get a free seat from Bangkok/Kuala Lumpur R/T, the taxes and fuel surcharges would have been $85USD. From what I understand, Air Asia came up with this stupid promotion to be competitive with Air Malaysia sub zero fare promo. Many Asia carriers have resorted to this type of marketing – Nok Air, a Thai air affiliate, as recently as last year had a 3 baht promotion.

This type of promotion is very slick marketing as it generates a lot of publicity for the airlines and enhances their name recognition. After one of these free fare promotions, can you imagine the number of people talking about it to their friends, family and co-workers.The downside is that the consumer gets conditioned to buy airline tickets only when the airlines offer one of these absurd “free seat sales”. But it is not really free!

Remember to read the fine print

Flights and fares are subject to availability. Seats are limited and may not be available on all flights, public holidays, school breaks and weekends. Other terms and conditions may apply.

As a footnote, Shortly after United Airlines announced their 2nd bag fee of $25, Air Asia instituted their own checked baggage fee program. Get this – you’ll save 40% when you pre-check baggage online (instead of paying 50 baht per bag, you’ll pay only 30baht). In addition, you’ll save up to 20% when you pre-book your meals online. Sorry, I will brown bag it!

For me, Mali in West Africa is by far the most exotic place I have been to. The subtropical landscape of this landlocked country is eerily beautiful - strung along the banks of the Niger River that traverses Mali from north to south are small villages and towns surrounded by date palms and lush greenery. The capital city of Bamako, located in the southern part of the country reminds me superficially of Palm Springs, a popular resort in Southern California. The country is primarily Muslim and the official language is French but the majority of the people speak Bambara, one of the many African tribal languages spoken in Mali.

Walking through Bamako and the Tourist Mecca of Mopti, I saw many people (especially the ladies) adorned in some very colorful African cloth - the outfits worn by the men and the women are known as boubous and dashikis. The people here move so gracefully and effortlessly unlike people in the Western World – it is as if they are being carried by the rhythms of their ancestral tribal music.

I could never get a grip on the culture of Mali - a unique synthesis of African, Western and Muslim traditions and beliefs - but I did sense a certain degree of tolerance among the people, who for the most part are very friendly and very poor. The strange indigenous mud walled architecture, the ornate and peculiar looking mosques, the diverse mix of peoples and cultures – including the nomadic Tuaregs, rulers of the desert and the Dogons, an animist tribal group (farmers by occupation) whose settlements are in the rugged cliffs of the interior – and the sinuous, rhythmic qualities of modern Malian pop music all add to the exotic, spellbinding appeal which is Mali.

Ghana, Costa Rica and Thailand are my honorable mentions.
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The rising cost of oil has severely affected the travel industry. The airlines in particular have been hurt really bad – major airlines in the USA have cut back on their routes and have trimmed their work force. As usual, the airlines have passed on the increased cost of operation to the consumer by raising tickets prices and tacking on hefty fuel surcharges.

Desperate times call for desperate measures - Well it was only about a month ago that United Airlines instituted a policy of charging $25 fee for a passenger’s 2nd checked bag on all domestic flights. Shortly thereafter, all major American carriers followed suit. Just today, American Airlines made big news by announcing plans to start charging passengers a $15 fee to check their first bag each way, or $30 round-trip, if they are flying on a discounted fare. Elite frequent fliers, full fare and international passengers will be exempt from this new checked bag fee. Of course, it will only be a matter of time that all major airlines in the USA institute the same policy.

Now this is pure speculation, but the airlines may consider the follow measures if oil prices continue to rise and eat into their bottom line :

• A surcharge for all window and aisle seats
• An additional fee will be assessed for headsets for economy class passengers
• Additional fees for carry-on luggage

In the not too distant future, the airlines may resort to selling ad space on their air tickets and food tray tables in order to raise additional cash. You know that the airlines will have sunk to the lowest common common denominator when they start charging passengers 25-50 cents to use the onboard restrooms. Now that will be some bad shit!

For an interesting take on this new baggage fee, check out this article.

If you have followed the exchange rate for US dollar to Thai baht in the last year or so, I’m sure you’ve got to be shaking your head with dismay. The exchange rate has fallen somewhat precipitously from a rate of approximately 40 baht to 1USD (Jan 2006) to a low of 29.4 baht to 1USD - the latter rate was as recent as January 10 of this year. This is not a surprise as the Dollar, at one time one of the strongest currencies in the market, has taken a beating not only in Thailand but around the world.

Ok, I know you may be asking so what’s the Good News? Well, it seems that in Thailand (at least), the dollar seems to be making a steady comeback. Two Sundays ago (May 10), as reported in the SF Chronicle Travel section the dollar traded at 31.91; this past Sunday (May 17), the dollar traded at 32.27. Not convinced? Well, all you have to do is look at a graph of the historical exchange rates between the Thai Baht (THB) and US Dollar (USD). Now I don’t pretend to be rocket scientist so I cannot really explain to you the market forces behind the temporary strengthening of the US Dollar – but as a regular traveler to Thailand, I’m hoping that this trend will continue.

One of the most miserable travel experiences happened to me when I was in Mexico. It was December 1973 and I had just spent an action packed week in Puerto Vallarta over the Christmas Holidays. As this was my first real trip to Mexico – previously I had only traveled to the border towns of Tijuana and Juarez – I decided to extend my stay an extra 14 days to explore the country. The plan was to take the bus from Puerto Vallarta on Mexico’s Pacific Coast to Merida located in the Yucatan Peninsula. The bus trip itself was very enjoyable as I got a chance to see Mexico’s many tropical landscapes – from the jungles of the Pacific Coast to the mountainous interior of central region to the lowland rainforests of the Yucatan Peninsula. To break up the long journey I stopped over in Guadalajara and Mexico City – Mexico’s two largest cities - and on the long final leg from Mexico City to Merida I layed over in Villahermosa, the capital city of the state of Tabasco.

After a long and arduous 14-hour bus ride from Mexico City, the bus arrived in Villahermosa at about 9:00PM. As soon as I stepped off the bus, I started sweating bullets. The weather was unbelievably hot and muggy even though late December is traditionally one of the more comfortable times of the year. In addition to the unbearable humidity, the air was thick with the smell of oil. Built on top of reclaimed swampland, just recently Villahermosa had become a major oil refinery center and this Gulf city was becoming a real boomtown.

Checking into a budget hotel in the middle of the downtown area, I was immediately greeted by a couple of bloodthirsty mosquitoes when I entered my room. To say that the room was infested with mosquitoes is an understatement. Walking outside into muggy evening air, I decided to look for accommodations at a first class hotel – I had to escape from the mosquitoes. I didn’t have much luck, as all the better (and more expensive) hotels were all booked up. That first night in Villahermosa was total misery – my room was like a sauna, and it seemed that the whole night I was occupied with swatting mosquitoes. I must have killed at least 20 of those bloodsuckers.

The following morning, I checked out of my hotel. Hopping into a taxi and asked the driver to take me to a decent hotel. Driving along the highway which leads out of town, I ended up at a lowrise bungalow affair which was surrounded by profuse tropical vegetation. After touring La Venta, Villahermosa’s famous archaeological park in the afternoon, I returned to my hotel. I didn’t fare any better in my new surroundings, as the problem with mosquitoes was just as bad as the first night. After another sleepless night of swatting mosquitoes and getting sucked, the next morning I was enormously relieved to catch a bus out of Villahermosa to Merida. Needless to say, I will not return any time soon.

Believe it or not, this morning I bought an air ticket on Cathay Pacific’s website from San Francisco to Bangkok, departing November 11, returning Dec 12. The price for the economy class ticket was $975. If you followed my prior post, the fare yesterday was $925. Can you imagine by delaying my purchase for 12 hours, the price went up by $50? When I questioned a Cathay Pacific agent about this, they told me that there are different class of services available in economy class i.e. K, M, Y etc. and apparently the class of service on the return flight that would have enabled me to get the ticket for $925 was sold out – call it inventory control, hence I had to pay the higher fare. Hard to believe there's many people buying tickets 6 month in advance like me! What are the odds that the fare will come down? Hard to say - but if Cathay Pacific’s inventory is not moving 2 –3 months before departure, there may be a sale. Then again, with the increasing cost of fuel, maybe the prices will go up further yet in which case I was smart to buy the ticket now. Your guess is as good as mine.

Today I was searching for the best possible air itinerary/airfare to Bangkok from San Francisco for travel in early November. Going into the search, I admit I was leaning towards flying again on Eva Airlines in their deluxe economy “evergreen” class as I have been very satisfied with their service on my last three trips to Thailand. When I checked the fare on Eva’s website, I was shocked to find out that it was $1456USD including taxes. Now compare that to how much I paid before on EVA (evergreen class) – Nov. 2005…$1061, Nov. 2006…$1121 and Nov. 2007… $1107 - and you can see what I mean.

I know that airfares across the board are significantly higher this year due to the increase in the cost of oil and airline fuel, but to pay $350 more than I did the past two years is a little bit too much for me. So it was back to the drawing board. I did some research a number of airfare comparison and airline booking websites including Expedia, Kayak.com, Zuji.com and the Yahoo travel site. Looks like the best bang for the dollar is on Cathay Pacific in coach class for $925. Good deal! I’ve flown Cathay Pacific before and they offer excellent and efficient service. The flight schedule is ideal – the flight leaves from SFO at 12:05AM and arrives in Bangkok (after a change of planes in Hong Kong) the following day at 10:50AM; the return flight from Bangkok leaves at 12:00PM. The only drawback is that seating in coach class – like all Asian carriers - is very cramped.

The best alternative was a fare I found for Northwest Airlines on Best Travel Store for $1039. Northwest has very comfortable leather seats and better than average leg room. The problem is the flight schedule on NW is undesirable – the flight arrives at 12:30AM in Bangkok (ugh) and the return flight leaves Bangkok at 6:00AM in the morning. With this flight schedule, you lose a good 1 ½ days. So bottom line, I thing Cathay Pacific is best overall choice - just have to drink something powerful to knock me out.

All airfares quoted in US dollars

If you’ve followed my African Follies series, I’m sure you’re ready for RETURN FROM AFRICA, a unique musical travelogue that celebrates a memorable 6-week adventure to West Africa that I embarked on in December 1995. I distinctly remember landing at the airport in Accra, Ghana sometime after midnight - stepping out into the arrival area, I was greeted by a rousing reception of Ghanaians who were stationed behind the chain linked fence, then whisked off to my hotel by my friend. It was the start of a very momentous journey!

Although I had experienced African culture in the Diaspora while traveling extensively in the Caribbean, nothing in my past experience really prepared me for this trip. My eyes (and my mind) were wide open as I traveled to metropolitan cities and out into the African bush passing thru colorful marketplaces, artisan villages and dirt poor rural villages. On this journey, I learned a lot more about the history and diversity of cultures in West Africa than I had in my studies at the University. Traveling is definitely the highest form of education - you learn so much about yourself, the world and about different cultures and peoples.

Of the four countries that I visited, Ghana by far was the friendliest and most westernized and Mali was the most exotic and intriguing. My only regret was lacking sufficient funds and time to make it to legendary Timbuktu in Mali.

I have so many wonderful memories from this trip - of the people that I met and of the many exotic places that I visited. I will never forget this journey - someday soon I will Return to Africa!