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Are you rethinking travel plans?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Travelers who book flights will now pay more to fly.
Blame rising fuel costs. Delta Air Lines, for instance, has increased its fuel surcharge $20 for most domestic round-trip flights, according to an AJC article
In recent months, most carriers have announced a wave of fuel surcharges.
“It’s important we price our product to keep pace with our costs,” Delta spokesman Kent Landers said earlier this week. Delta isn’t alone. Other airlines have increased surcharges as well.
With the summer travel season approaching, how are airline ticket prices affecting your plans? Are you booking early to avoid the possibility of even higher fees or are you rethinking the trip? Will you drive instead or stick close to home?
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Take a break without breaking the bank on a camp-out
How do you get away from it all on the cheap?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Nothing makes you feel like you need a vacation more than knowing you can’t take one. With gas prices what they are and the costs of air travel soaring higher than some commercial jets, many of you have said traveling right now is out of the question. Still, everyone needs a break now and again.
So what’s a cash-strapped, oil-dependent Georgian to do? Unless OPEC members suddenly get misty for $15-a-barrel oil or we all learn to apparate like Harry Potter, travel costs aren’t going to wane any time soon. But we are fortunate to live in a beautiful part of the country, where the great outdoors can be enjoyed many months out of the year. If you can wrap your head around camping as a vacation, then you’ve got a world of holiday options right here in your own backyard.
Other than summer camp and a couple of Girl Scout outings, I was never really a camper in my youth. I began to realize the value of the tent and sleeping bag when I was in college. It was among my college friends that I truly learned to camp - pick a site, build a fire, pitch a tent, etc. I also learned how NOT to camp. Best lesson learned: Never go camping in the north Georgia mountains in late November with only a windbreaker, a light sleeping bag and a bottle of Old Crow.
Today, my husband and I like to go camping a few times a year. We usually camp as “old school” as possible with three young kids in tow; meaning we opt for tents, but we stay in state or national parks with well-defined camp sites. (The wilderness is not quite ready for an overnight with the Still girls.)
If you’re not into sleeping on the ground, many state parks offer basic cabins for a small fee. Or you can bring a pop-up camper or RV to any number of public and private campsites. This adds to your costs a little bit, but will still be far less than flying and staying in a hotel.
Not sure you will take to camping or aren’t ready to invest in the equipment upfront? Some businesses like REI, campsites and camping organizations will rent tents, sleeping bags, camp stoves and even RVs.
So tell us…would you be a happy camper on a camping vacation? Where do you prefer to camp and why? Share your favorite camping stories or scare us with your nightmare adventures. Even if camping’s not your thing, we’d love to hear your alternatives for inexpensive vacation ideas around our region.
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Run for the Roses in Louisville
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’m not a huge fan of watching things race round in circles (sorry NASCAR), and I learned long ago that I’ll never get rich based on my gambling prowess. Even so, I have to admit that I love the annual Run for the Roses at the Kentucky Derby.
Growing up, my family kept horses on our small farm, and I was your typical horse-obsessed girl. Horse posters graced the walls of my room long before Rick Springfield earned the honor, and I imagined Churchill Downs was a majestic castle in some mystical place called Kentucky. Needless to say, I felt the enormity of the occasion when my family took its first trip to Louisville to visit some distant relatives.
Back then, I had no idea that the Kentucky Derby meant anything other than beautiful horses and colorfully-clad jockeys racing for a place in the winner’s circle. It wasn’t until college and then my years in Washington that I understood the Derby was much more than a horse race. It was a major event with a proud, long-standing tradition.
In addition to the horses and the bets, Derby-goers are surrounded by mint juleps in cold Derby glasses; hundreds of elegant and funny hats; good ol’ Southern seersucker suits; all sorts of big wigs and celebrities; as well as many fashion dos and fashion don’ts. In DC, Kentuckians who couldn’t make it home for the race would throw their own Derby Day parties to mark the occasion, complete with potent mint juleps and outrageous attire.
The 134th running of the Derby is this Saturday, and events surrounding the race are going on all week. Unless you procured tickets and lodgings well in advance, you won’t likely be able to stay in Louisville or watch the horses from the grandstand seats. But you can arrive early for general admission, enjoy the races and still soak up every bit of the Derby Day atmosphere.
Tell us about your Kentucky Derby travels. What makes a trip to Louisville or the Derby special? What are the best Derby festival events to attend? Any tips on the best places to stay while you’re in town? How do you make the most of the event? If you’re Derby bound this weekend, feel free to check back next week with your stories from this year’s races.
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What kind of spring fest draws you out of town?
Are you heading to any of these festivals?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
With Spring in full swing and May just round the corner, metro Atlantans have just a few weeks to (comfortably) appreciate the beauty of our region before the South’s sweltering heat settles in for the summer. To make it easy for us to get out and enjoy, it seems that just about every Southern town and city will be throwing some kind of festival between now and the end of June.
Some of these are your general arts and crafts-type festivals, where you can stroll the streets, get a taste of the local arts scene, hear new music and perhaps take in a fair. Others celebrate local homes and gardens or traditions like storytelling and musical heritage. Still others revolve around one of our region’s favorite pastimes - eating barbecue, eating catfish, eating crawfish, eating Vidalia onions…well, you get the idea. Even music fans who shudder at the dollar-to-euro and dollar-to-pound conversions can take in their own Glastonbury-style fun in Tennessee at Bonnaroo in June.
One festival that I wish I could get to this weekend is Oxford, Mississippi’s Double Decker Arts Festival. If we didn’t already have 96-hours of activities scheduled for this 48-hour weekend, I would be heading west this Friday afternoon. Oxford is a charming town, and I haven’t been back for a visit since our friends moved away from there years ago.
Sadly, this weekend’s crazy schedule will also prevent our family from making it to the Vidalia Onion Festival in Vidalia, Ga. to celebrate the harvest of our official state vegetable. But the festival season is in top gear and we are already looking ahead to the next few weekends’ worth of festival options.
Check out these sites for upcoming festivals in Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Alabama.
Then tell us…Will be skipping town for one of these festivals over the next few weeks? Have you been to any of these in the past? What’s your favorite spring festival in the Southeast?
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A capital tour in our nation’s capital
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Because we worked on Capitol Hill, friends often seek our advice when it comes to making the most of a trip to Washington, DC. In the past few weeks, we have had three such inquiries. DC, it seems, is on a lot of our friends’ minds at the moment. When’s the best time to go? Where to stay? How to get tickets to major attractions?
Each season has its upsides -colorful autumn leaves against the white marble buildings; the Capitol blanketed by winter snow; spring cherry blossoms along the Tidal Basin; fireworks lighting up the Mall on July 4th. And each season has its downsides - crowds; heat; humidity; piles of dirty snow blocking limited parking spaces.
But I have to say that my favorite time to visit DC is right now - election season. I know… it’s always election season in Washington, but the city seems more alive and exciting during a presidential election year - even if the candidates themselves are off in North Carolina, Indiana or Pennsylvania.
With that said, here are a few tips for planning a trip to DC.
Contact your Senators and Representative as soon as you know your trip dates to set up Capitol tours, White House tour tickets, Washington Monument tix, and House and Senate gallery passes. Offices get a limited number of these tickets to hand out on a first-come basis, so the earlier you call, the better. Try to get gallery passes on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, which are the busier legislative days.
Ask the constituent services staffer about a Capitol Dome tour. These are rare, because you must have a Member of Congress take you personally, but it’s always worth asking about. A tour takes you up many, many stairs to the breathtaking (and vertigo-inducing) top of the Capitol Dome - inside and out.
Many of the best sites in DC are free and require no tickets of any kind — including most in the neighborhood of the Mall like the Smithsonian museums, the Lincoln, Jefferson, and the war memorials. You can walk or pay to ride one of the tour trolleys.
Eat a casual dinner atop the Washington Hotel terrace for great views of the city.
Take a drive through the “rest of DC”, and see where the Vice President lives, Embassy Row, the National Cathedral, the National Zoo and many smaller memorials and cool neighborhoods.
Don’t sleep in the District. Hotel prices can be much higher there. Find a hotel in Virginia or Maryland near a Metro station. We stay just across the Potomac in Crystal City, Va. The Metro is a good way to navigate the city, and it beats finding a parking space.
What are your tips for taking in our nation’s capital? Do you have a favorite place to stay? A favorite thing to see? How far do you stray from the District itself when you visit, and how long do you feel you need to fully explore the area?
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The astronomical inflation caused by the continuing spike in oil prices will have a terrible impact on the travel industry. I, like most, will barely be able to make it to destinations in the US, let alone Europe. My company, <a href="http://www.walki-talki.com"... read the full comment by walki-talki.com | Comment on Are you rethinking travel plans? Read Are you rethinking travel plans?
I went to the Breeder’s Cup at Churchill Downs in November 2006. It was awesome, but they lost a horse, Pine Island, in one of those races, too. He was put down right on the track. And don’t forget Barbaro. I love horse racing, but time to... read the full comment by Brill | Comment on Run for the Roses in Louisville Read Run for the Roses in Louisville
I am sure you notice the change in customer service at other services such as the gas station, supermarket, etc. when their prices go up. Please. Oh, and yes, the other services also send you a email before their prices go up. Get real.... read the full comment by Larry | Comment on Are you rethinking travel plans? Read Are you rethinking travel plans?
I am sure you notice the change in customer service at other services such as the gas station, supermarket, etc. when their prices go up. Please. Oh, and yes, the other services also send you a email before their prices go up. Get real.... read the full comment by Larry | Comment on Are you rethinking travel plans? Read Are you rethinking travel plans?