amkruger's blog

Argentina Here I Come----hopefully

Mon, 01 Dec 2008 18:35:32 -0500

In tracking the current global travel news, I have learned a great deal. In the international travel market, many countries are feeling the impacts of a decline in their tourism sectors. One article reports a huge decline in growth for international travel. Although usually, international travel grows at an average rate of 5.7%, recently, the numbers have declined to almost 2%. However, South America is not feeling the impact as much, which for me, is both good and bad. From my perspective, if South America were feeling a strong decline in tourism, although the economy of Argentina could potentially be hindered, reducing my personal costs of travel, I will probably be more likely to find an internship or other opportunity in the country if the economy were to remain stable. In addition, a falling economy would trigger a lower level of safety, which is the last thing that I want when I am abroad. After reading another person’s travel strategies, I have learned a bunch of very important tips that will hopefully help me in my upcoming excursions. First of all, the author traveled to more than 40 countries, and seeing that I only intend to travel through 5 or 6, I clearly do not have to worry about as many factors as he did. Some of his tips that I may employ would be staying in hostels, and packing light.

In doing so I will have much more options in my accommodations’, and being more mobile will enable me to accomplish more in a shorter amount of time. Hopefully, in few months I will be in South America, where if I am lucky enough, travel costs will fall right before I book my flight, and rise right afterward.

Not only in the U.S.

Sun, 30 Nov 2008 18:22:40 -0500

In planning my travel for this summer, I have been doing a great deal of research on how travel differs internationally, and comparing it to what I am used to domestically. As prices rise for travel at home, it is interesting to look at the international effects. Travel throughout the UK has also become more expensive with rising costs, and the government has begun to impose many new taxes on travel. On the contrary, in the U.S., it is not the government that has begun to charge the consumers fees, but rather the travel industry itself. Many airlines have begun to add baggage fees, seat selection fees, and random minuscule surcharges, which end up increasing the travel costs by a great deal. However, it is estimated that travel costs for the beginning of 2009 will not increase, but rather level out, and consumers have learned how to combat these costs by traveling lighter, and being more flexible with their options. Luckily, I do not plan on going to the UK this summer, where road fees, and other green taxes have started to take form. But with taxes such as this arising, it makes me concerned about what will happen to other countries in the near future. All around the world, people have begun to combat the rising travel costs by booking their vacations during weekdays when they are in resort-areas, and on weekends when they are in destinations that cater mostly to businesses. In the upcoming summer, I will probably have to do the same, and my goal will be to travel throughout South America.

Hopefully their travel industry has not been facing the same problems as the industries in the UK and the US have been. Only time will tell--but based on the current global trends, it seems that my summer plans may be altering.

Contrary to Popular Belief

Thu, 20 Nov 2008 17:32:36 -0500

Although over the past couple of months, it was estimated that with our economy's current downfall, that a large decline in travel was soon to occur, this will no longer happen. Americans are doing whatever they can to insure that they spend time with their loved ones during the holiday season. I personally will be flying to New York, since the trip is much more affordable than going back to California. I will be spending time with family, but not my immediate family, but with a price difference of almost $500, the price clearly outweighs the trip back home. Still, like most Americans, I will not be spending the holiday season alone. There are many ways that Americans are taking action to make sure that they are still able to travel. One of these ways is to go through agents and buy last minute tickets. If there is an empty seat on the flight, the plane will still obviously fly, so in last-minute scenarios, airfare prices are going down. However, although fuel prices have declined, the average airfare price has risen 8%.

Many people have turned to all inclusive vacations, cruises, and other means of travel to avoid having to pay for the everyday costs that are incurred on vacation. Some companies have realized this change in demand, and have begun to cater to a different type of consumer. My family is one of these families, so for the holiday season, although travel is expensive, we have employed the same all-inclusive cost cutting strategies that will hopefully pay off in the end. As for the summer, studies still show that it is less expensive to buy flights far in advance, so the earlier I can plan to travel abroad, the better chance I will have of being able to afford it.

Combating the Economy

Sat, 15 Nov 2008 17:16:17 -0500

As the economy worsens, more and more Americans are finding out that their travel plans may not be as feasible as they had planned. Seeing that the demand for travel has declines this year, many airlines are having trouble meeting their costs. However, as the economy worsens, many travelers who stubbornly cling to their holiday vacations have begun to use other means to turn their vacation dreams into realities. American Express, one of the most widely used credit cards for travel rewards, has seen these effects come into play. Credit card travel agents from their company report almost 87% of their vacations are being used with more reward points/miles, compared to a value of 70% from last year. Personally, I have begun to budget my miles in hopes of traveling abroad this summer, and my family personally, in hopes of still traveling over break, have used our miles to pay for our upcoming vacations. In addition to using reward points, many consumers have begun to focus on traveling closer to home, and vacations to locations such as Florida have risen in popularity, as the more expensive locations such as Hawaii, have seen declines. But with our falling economy, a key factor has been the drop in oil prices.

Many airlines, although being forced to work with a very unstable market have begun to realize the decline in oil prices, and some airlines are trying to see how they can use the money saved on current flight costs to reinvest in the airlines themselves which may pay off if prices rise again. I plan on still traveling abroad this summer, and selfishly, I hope that the economy does a comeback slow enough that it does not increase the price of my summer travel.

Travel Reduction

Tue, 11 Nov 2008 09:41:18 -0500

The holiday season is the time of the year with the greatest revenues. Throughout Thanksgiving and Christmas time, stores sell the most goods, hotels generate the greatest revenues, and the most flights are sold. This year however, the economy is in a recession. People are pinching their pennies at every turn, and flights sales are greatly down. In order to combat this decrease in demand airlines are taking action. This year alone, it is estimated that airlines will reduce the amount of flights flown per day by 2500-3000 flights daily. This is the estimate for U.S. carriers alone. Although revenues will still be greater than those throughout the rest of the year, this reduction is still quite dramatic. Airlines are battling with the economy just as are the consumers, and to remain in business, they must cater to the decrease in demand. But with such a large reduction in flights, will prices remain the same, or will quantities simply fall to keep prices from dropping? The impact of the economic standstill is not only affecting U.S. carriers. Worldwide other airlines are faced with the same dilemma. China Eastern

, the 3rd largest carrier in China, is battling bankruptcy due to the change in the economic status of the average consumer. The company is cutting flights by 10% this season just to stay in business. Traveling is becoming more relatively expensive as people has less disposable income, but as companies are faced with a decrease in demand perhaps prices will have to fall to keep the consumers coming.

Travel

Sat, 18 Oct 2008 17:58:37 -0500

Ever since I was younger, one of my favorite things to do is to travel. The idea of being somewhere so foreign and exotic is exhilarating for me. Each year as technology increases, the world becomes smaller and smaller. Each year it becomes easier and easier to get from one place to the next. Technology has revamped the travel industry and has made such large world so easily accessible. In my parent's generation, travel planning was done based on books you would find, stories you would hear of, and agents that you would speak with. Nowadays the industry has drastically changed. Everyone has the ability to access an unlimited amount of information, and with every second that passes, more information becomes more readily available. If someone needed ideas on traveling, they could visit a blog or a website made to provide ideas and evaluations on traveling overall. If you needed ideas for traveling with your family you could use a site like Away.com. A site like this helps people start from square one. What type of trip do you want to go on? With whom? Luxuorious or outdoors? With endless possibilities it is crucial for those of us who love to travel to stay on top of our game, and utilize our resources as consumers to their fullest potential. With the current economic changes and worldwide economic instability, people have begun to reduce the amount of money they spend on travel costs. Traveling is becoming less expensive every day--you just have to know where to look. Almost all businesses involved in the travel industry are feeling the blow of the current economic fluctuations, and are creating promotions, and reducing prices left and right to try and inspire people to travel more. I have been given the opportunity to travel to places I never thought I'd be able to afford to travel to at my age, and I hope to share the resources that I find with those who read this blog.

Test

Tue, 07 Oct 2008 10:29:43 -0500

Hello, World! http://www.umich.edu