Joomla! site syndication http://www.travelingtoportugal.com Sat, 17 May 2008 03:23:35 +0100 FeedCreator 1.7.2 http://www.travelingtoportugal.com/images/M_images/joomla_rss.png http://www.travelingtoportugal.com Joomla! site syndication http://www.travelingtoportugal.com/tips-for-travelers-to-portugal/tips---dont-stow-it-ship-it.html If ease of travel is your main concern and money is no object, you can ship your luggage with one of the growing number of luggage-service companies that pick up, track, and deliver your luggage (often through couriers such as Federal Express) with minimum hassle for you. Traveling luggage-free might be ultraconvenient, but it’s not cheap: One-way overnight shipping can cost from $100 to $200, depending on what you’re sending. Still, for some people, especially the elderly or the infirm, it’s a sensible solution to lugging heavy baggage. Specialists in door-to-door luggage delivery are Virtual Bellhop (www.virtualbellhop.com), SkyCap International (www.skycapinternational.com), and Luggage Express (www.usxpluggageexpress.com). Notiportada - Tips for Travelers to Portugal Sat, 13 Jan 2007 18:33:59 +0100 http://www.travelingtoportugal.com/planning-your-trip-to-portugal/getting-through-the-airport.html With the federalization of airport security, security procedures at U.S. airports are more stable and consistent than ever. Generally, you’ll be fine if you arrive at the airport 1 hour before a domestic flight and 2 hours before an international flight; if you show up late, tell an airline employee and he or she will probably whisk you to the front of the line. Bring a current, governmentissued photo ID such as a driver’s license or passport, and if you’ve got an E-ticket, print the official confirmation page; you’ll need to show your confirmation at the security checkpoint and show your ID at the ticket counter or the gate. (Children under 18 do not need photo IDs for domestic flights, but the adults checking in with them do.) Notiportada - Planning Your Trip to Portugal Sat, 13 Jan 2007 18:30:29 +0100 http://www.travelingtoportugal.com/planning-your-trip-to-portugal/getting-there.html BY PLANEFlying from New York to Lisbon typically costs less than from New York to Paris, Amsterdam, or Frankfurt. In today’s marketplace, one airline proposes a fare structure, and another airline follows with a competing and perhaps different fare structure. The competition might or might not result in uniform prices for all airlines flying to that particular country. It all adds up to chaos—but often beneficial chaos for the alert traveler willing to study and consider all the fares available. The key to bargain airfares is to shop around. Flying time from New York to Lisbon is about 6 hours; from Atlanta to Lisbon is about 6 1/2 hours.MAJOR AIRLINESWhen it was established in 1946, TAP (800/221-7370; www.tap-airportugal.pt), The national airline of Portugal, flew only between Lisbon and Angola and Mozambique (then Portuguese colonies). Today TAP flies to four continents and has one of the youngest fleets in the airline industry—its aircraft have an average age of only 4 years. Its U.S. gateway is Newark, New Jersey. In Portugal, it flies to three destinations, the most popular of which are Lisbon, Porto and Faro. Notiportada - Planning Your Trip to Portugal Sat, 13 Jan 2007 18:20:41 +0100 http://www.travelingtoportugal.com/planning-your-trip-to-portugal/the-21st-century-traveler.html INTERNET ACCESS AWAY FROM HOMETravelers have any number of ways to check their e-mail and access the Internet on the road. Of course, using your own laptop—or even a PDA (personal desk assistant) or electronic organizer with a modem—gives you the most flexibility. But even if you don’t have a computer, you can access your e-mail and even your office computer from cybercafes. Notiportada - Planning Your Trip to Portugal Sat, 13 Jan 2007 17:59:00 +0100 http://www.travelingtoportugal.com/planning-your-trip-to-portugal/planning-your-trip-online.html SURFING FOR AIRFARESThe “big three” online travel agencies Expedia.com, Travelocity.com, and Orbitz.com, sell most of the air tickets bought on the Internet. (Canadian travelers should try expedia.ca and Travelocity.ca; U.K. residents can go to expedia.co.uk and opodo.co.uk.) Each has different business deals with the airlines and might offer different fares on the same flights, so it’s wise to shop around. Expedia and Travelocity will also send you e-mail notification when a cheap fare becomes available to your favorite destination. Of the smaller travel agency websites, SideStep (www.sidestep.com) has gotten the best reviews from Frommer’s authors. It’s a browser add-on that purports to “search 140 sites at once,” but in reality it beats competitorsfares only as often as other sites do. Also remember to check airline websites, especially those for low-fare carriers whose fares are often misreported or simply missing from trave agency websites. Even with major airlines, you can often shave a few bucks from a fare by booking directly through the airline and avoiding a travel agency’s transaction fee. But you’ll get these discounts only by booking online: Most airlines now offer online-only fares that even their phone agents know nothing about. For the websites of airlines that fly to and from your destination, go to “Getting There,” below. Notiportada - Planning Your Trip to Portugal Sat, 13 Jan 2007 17:41:51 +0100