My grandfather, a man steeped in the ways of the old country, was my favorite sage. Once after visiting a relative he remarked, "I didn't feel particularly welcome."

Such things can escape the palate and attention of a 10-year-old boy, especially where milk and Oreos are involved, but if you're a sage, nuance is everything.

For my grandfather, the allocation of everyday dishes, a half-pour of coffee and store-bought cookies meant we should keep our visit short.

Travel seems to be a lot like that these days; the door may be open, but the hug seems perfunctory.

Clearing immigrations is a perfect example, having evolved into a gauntlet of checks that can leave the most seasoned traveler unsettled and thinking of home.

Certainly security takes center stage and there's no denying the importance of safe travel and secure surroundings, but be prepared for the next step in travel security requirements: biometric identifiers such as electronic fingerprinting or iris scans. (My money's on the fingerprint.)

It will likely be the norm for all international travel within a few years.

The United States has been requiring biometric identifiers for visa applicants and visa waiver program travelers since 2004.

At the time, the BBC asked U.K. travelers how they felt about being fingerprinted upon entry to the U.S. The dialogue was spirited; read comments.

Fast forward to 2007, the U.K. now requires fingerprints for visa applicants from over 100 countries. By April 2008, fingerprints will be required for every foreign national applying for a British visa.

Beginning November 23, 2007, all foreign travelers to Japan will be photographed and fingerprinted upon landing in Japan.

The Immigration Bureau of Japan has produced an informative and equally entertaining online video outlining the program and fielding FAQs.

And while some well-intended dubbing adds to its charm, the real star is not the question-asking, deliciously-abrasive American; it's the process itself.

Take a look at the video if you're interested in seeing the future of international travel security. Rest assured, your fingers will remain ink-free and no one will say, "Book 'em, Danno!"

The video is in English on the Japan Immigration Bureau site: view now.

What's been your experience going through immigrations?

Safe travels,

 Tom

Posted by Tom at 11:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

It's been six years since 9/11 changed the way we travel. While airport security became the responsibility of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the private sector is being tapped to find a commercially viable solution to speed passengers through security. It's known as the registered traveler program and MSNBC checks in to see where things stand: Speeding up security checks comes slowly.

Are you a registered traveler or would you be interested in the program? What are your thoughts about the registered travel program?

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Who doesn't love the New York Times? (Folks residing 100 miles from a coastline need not answer.) Truth be told, I used to feel guilty reading it online, paying nary a cent to relish its content, wallow in its brilliance, and glean copious amounts of recipes from its Wednesday edition. Everyone needs to know how to make a Ramos Fizz or the right ingredients for a cornmeal-herb dumpling, especially after trying to catch up on why Vladimir Putin thinks he needs a new missile defense plan. 

Of course all good things must come to end, as did access to much of the content in the online New York Times. Like Cinderella at the ball, you only had so much time to check it out before the clock struck midnight and the remarkable readings would be sealed away in the pay-per-view vault called Times Select. (Hey, I understood; a paper's got to make a buck and God knows I wasn't paying for a reporter on the Left Bank or Mark Bittman's videographer.) 

That's when I broke up with the Times; well actually it was more of trial separation because Maureen Dowd was placed on permanent Times Select status. I took it personally. Was there a cookie tracking my daily reads and re-reads of my favorite Pulitzer Prize winning columnist? (If we could get clowns like this to pay for it, the money will roll in! ) Subscribe or pay for dog food; it was a choice decided by man's best friend. Out of my hands and discretionary income budget and into the paws of the needy.

Posted by Tom at 10:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Shanghai and (Beijing) Surprise

The year was 1982; the movie: Blade Runner. It left me speechless just thinking about the prospects of the future and the environment in which we’d have to live, at least according to director Ridley Scott and writer Philip K. Dick. One element of the movie continues to haunt me to this day: the part architecture played as a character in the film. My imagination was hard-pressed to come up with something better or more ominous for a twenty-first century cityscape than that of Blade Runner’s Los Angeles of 2019.

This week, I may have found its 2007 counterparts: Beijing and Shanghai. When I came across Budget Travel’s coverage of traveling in China which included Reflections on Rapidly-Changing Beijing, I saw cities like no others.

Unlike Dubai, where intense development and dramatic architecture have redrawn the city’s skyline, Beijing and Shanghai’s new architecture is unfamiliar, foreboding and inescapably futuristic. While Dubai still seems to hold hands with a few vestiges of the last century, the images of China portend a juggernaut of change unrealized before.  I found it both invigorating and unsettling at the same time. 

• Take a look at Budget Travel’s Beijing slideshow
• More China photos from Tony Law
• Shanghai Building Updates
  Beijing Building Updates 

Update Entry: Greg Girard, Phantom Shanghai

One of my Expedia compadres sent me the link to a fascinationg slideshow by Greg Girard of Vancouver, B.C.  His Shanghai images are haunting, the title of his book spot on. Take a look at the CBC's slideshow and listen to Mr. Girard's explanation of his subject and process.

Go to Phatom Shanghai slideshow

Posted by Tom at 11:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Q: I recently purchased a ticket and then ended up canceling the trip. The cost of the ticket can be applied to future travel, but I am told that if I do not use the total amount of the ticket all at once that I will "lose" the balance. (For example, unused ticket was worth $700, and new ticket is $400. The $300 unused will not be "banked" for future tickets -- it will be forfeited.) Is this correct? Appreciate your help.
— Stacy M.

A. Stacy, that's a great question. For a little background, in the old days (pre-2000) when we held paper tickets, it really represented currency. Losing a ticket was like losing cash as it held a designated value.

Nowadays with e-ticketing, the computer generated and stored ticket still holds value, but in the dark recesses of cyberland. (not a techical term).

An airline ticket usually holds its value for a year from the date issued, though a few airlines make it 90 Days. While most tickets are nonrefundable, you can still apply the value of the unused ticket toward the purchase of a new ticket.

For some airlines, the value of an old ticket can only be applied to one ticket in your name. You must use it in its entirety or lose the value remaining, which in your case was $300. (Use it or lose it, so to speak.) And then some airlines will reissue the ticket and apply the remaining value to a Miscellaneous Charge Order or MCO for future use on another ticket, so you realize the old ticket's full value.

Now let's talk about penalties (you knew this was coming). The airline will charge a penalty of $50 to $100 for the exchange (more for international flights). And again some will allow you to take the penalty value out of the old ticket's value while others will not.

You have a few options to use the entire value in a case where the airline won't issue an MCO:

1. Reissue the value for a higher first class ticket or business class. (If it's a business trip, be sure to clear this with your Travel Manager or the next trip you book will be to the doghouse.)

2. Expand your itinerary to include another city. Perhaps to visit a branch office, meet with a new client or inform a prospect (or my favorites: take in a show, shop, eat and sightsee).

3. If you have several future trips planned, make sure you reissue the old ticket against your highest cost itinerary.

In the future, you may consider buying a refundable ticket if the price difference is negligible or if history tells you the trip's status is up in the air or on the verge of cancellation.

Posted by Tom at 1:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

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1. Online Booking
2. TSA Airport Security
3. Airline e-tickets
4. Roll-aboard luggage
5. Smoke-free flights
6. Boutique hotel chains
7. Airports as malls
8. Indian casinos
9. GPS car-navigation systems
10. Self-service ticketing kiosks
11. Airbus A380 Super Jumbo
12. Airline code-sharing
13. Seat-back entertainment systems
14. Yield management
15. The Mirage, Las Vegas
16. Westin's Heavenly Bed
17. Trip Advisor
18. Flights without meals
19. Sovereign of the Seas
20. Ascent of low-cost airlines
21. Affinity credit cards
22. High-tech roller coasters
23. Queen Mary 2
24. Flying beds
25. End of commercial supersonic travel

I'd have to say my favorites are:

Any travel changes you'd like to add or comment on? Share your thoughts here.

Take a look at the USA Today list with accompanying summaries: 25 changes in the way we book travel

Have a question for Tom?
Tom Conway, who is not pleased with the change in his passport photo over the last 25 years, looks forward to your questions, comments and tips below.

Posted by Tom at 3:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

It's unlikely we'll ever see a ATM onboard an aircraft, and we know how flight attendants bristle at the mere mention of making change, so this next development will likely be embraced by the airline traveler. American Airlines is testing a cashless proposition on its San Francisco departures for the next three weeks and will only accept major credit cards or debit cards for onboard purchases, including headsets, snacks, light meals and alcoholic beverages.

The cashless test will help American determine if passengers in the main cabin prefer to pay for onboard items with plastic. The test will include more than 700 scheduled flights between Sept. 10 and Sept. 30 and receipts will be provided to passengers upon request. 

I see one problem for me, though a boon to American; I spend more when I brandish a credit card. Oh wait...now I get it.

Posted by Tom at 10:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

So I had my first experience with video on-demand a couple days ago on a Delta flight back from East Coast.

The flight was delayed two hours getting out of JFK so it came in pretty handy. If you haven't seen this yet, here's how it works: It's a touchscreen set-up located in the seat back. On the screen it gives you a pretty straightforward interface that lets you select from movies, TV shows, video games, music or the interminable flight progress screen that shows you the the little airplane icon that never seems to move.

Much of the quality content is on a fee basis, but there was a fair amount of decent free material available. The TV programming was provided by Dish Network so it was pretty cool to sit back with shows I'd watch at home such as Survivorman. There was a Survivorman marathon happening during my flight so I think I watched about 4 episodes of the show -- including an entire episode while we sat on the ground.

You can use your own headphones or you can buy a pair on the plane. Keep them handy because since the technology is integral to the plane, you can be watching TV at times that it's not otherwise OK to use personal electronics.

It felt very revolutionary to be watching my choice of entertainment during the flight. Odd that just watching TV felt luxurious. The biggest downside was the signal was not stable. There was a lot of freezing and picture-scrambling during the flight. Something about it being just regular TV changed my expectations of having a clear signal somehow. Somewhere in the middle of the flight the signal cut out completely. Must have been out of satellite range or something (odd since you're way up in the air!). Once we got closer to Seattle the TV flickered to life again. Fortunately the music choices were actually pretty decent and that's coming from a music snob. I didn't spend any money on premium programming, but if I was on a long international flight, that $5 charge probably would have seemed like nothing.

All in all, great progress and I look foward to the day when video on-demand is standard on all flights. Just a few kinks to work out, but this was way better than another detailed reading of SkyMall.

Posted by Nicholas at 10:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Metric Lesson: 5 Liters of Vodka = 1.3 Gallons of Vodka