Fact: Each month, London Gatwick Airport receives up to 30 forgotten stuffed animals. That’s one airport alone. The loss of a furry friend can be devastating for a child, and unfortunately, the chaos of travel leads it to happen way too often.
To help combat the problem, Thomson Airways has created the “teddy bear check-in.” The program allows kids to check in their stuffed animals at the airport’s front desk. Each furry friend will receive a special boarding pass, which can be exchanged for a “Very Important Buddy” (VIB) tag at the gate. The idea behind the unique check-in is for children to pay closer attention to their toys when flying.
“As a family-friendly tour operator, we like to make a fuss of children travelling on our holidays, both in resort and on their flight,” says Carl Gissing of Thomson Airways. “We know that kids will love checking their toys in and taking home the VIB tag as a souvenir.”
While we’re not so sure this will really help cut back on the amount of lost teddy bears, it is a fun idea.
Do you think this service will help kids keep track of their toys when flying?
Tomorrow, Saturday, June 9, is the 5th annual National Get Outdoors Day, an event, which has been created to encourage Americans to head outside and spend some time connecting with nature. Throughout the day, more than 130 locations across the country will be celebrating the occasion with a host of outdoor games, events and activities.
It’s no secret that Americans in general are spending less time outdoors and to some degree it is a bit disheartening to think that we need a specific day to remind us to do just that. On the other hand, anything that inspires people to get off the couch and get active is a good thing in my book. So with that in mind, why don’t you plan on dusting off that old bike tomorrow and taking it for a spin. Or better yet, gather up some friends and family and head to a local park for a hike and a picnic. Remember that tent you bought three years ago because you swore that you were going to go camping? How about dragging it out of the garage and setting it up in the backyard? It doesn’t matter what inspires you to go outside, what is most important is that you actually do it.
And don’t forget, all of the National Parks are completely free tomorrow too. That means that the more than 130 parks that normally charge for entry will be completely gratis. If you live near any of those parks, tomorrow is the perfect time to go out and enjoy them.
Earlier this week, Wyoming Senator Mike Enzi introduced a bill to congress that seeks to make the bison America’s “national mammal.” The bill, which is officially titled the National Bison Legacy Act, was brought before lawmakers at the request of the Wildlife Conservation Society and seems to have wide support from both sides of aisle.
If the act becomes law, the bison would be granted a similar status as the bald eagle, the oak tree and the rose as official national symbols of the United States. Beyond that there would be very little direct effect, although that doesn’t deter the sponsors of the bill. They see the bison as an important part of American heritage dating back to a time when only Native Americans occupied the region.
The bison is the largest land animal in North America and their vast herds once numbered in the millions. At their peak, those herds covered the Great Plains, ranging from the Rocky Mountains to as far east as the Appalachians. But as settlers moved west the animals were hunted for their meat and fur, bringing them to the brink of extinction. In the early 1900s President Teddy Roosevelt, working with several conservation groups, played an instrumental role in saving them from that fate. Today the bison population is estimated to be in the hundreds of thousands, some of which are domesticated, and healthy herds can be found in places like Yellowstone and Grand Tetons National Parks.
Although this piece of legislation doesn’t carry much weight, supporters say that it will still make American’s more aware of the role the bison has played in the country’s history and will help create support for further protecting the creatures and their natural environments.
America’s national parks will once again waive all entry fees next Saturday, June 9, in celebration of National Get Outdoors Day. Visitors to any one of the more than 397 national parks, memorials and monuments across the U.S. will be granted free entrance all day long.
National Get Outdoors Day was created five years ago as an effort to encourage more Americans to go outside and enjoy nature. The event has become a collaboration between federal agencies, nonprofit organizations and the recreation industry who all work together to promote a variety of outdoor experiences. While these efforts are aimed at the U.S. population as a whole, the focus is on getting first time visitors to take advantage of public lands, as well as reconnecting young people to the outdoors.
Even if you aren’t able to visit a national park or take advantage of one of these events, remind yourself to get outside on June 9. Summer is here and it’s the weekend, so there are no excuses for not participating.
This is the last fee-free day at the national parks until September 29, so take advantage of it while you can. For a complete list of the parks that will waive the entry fee on June 9 click here.
Often believed to be the travel choice of the newly wed or nearly dead, the nature of cruise vacations has evolved in recent years. At one time, a cruise vacation meant shuffleboard, never-ending buffets and a few thousand older, overweight passengers on a spin around the Bahamas. Now, the old iconic activities, dining options and even older passengers are being replaced with an active lifestyle and options for adventure travelers.
As new ships come out, cruise lines are careful to build in an ability to be flexible and cater to the traveler of today. Relevant dining options ranging from lifetime event dining, like a steakhouse dinner to celebrate a graduation at a fraction of the cost on land, to comfort food dining, like Macaroni and Cheese in the ship’s main dining room, reflect an evolving passenger’s taste.
Pinpointing that taste and satisfying it, cruise lines are more rabidly focused on capturing the attention of would-be passengers with far more than low prices and bonus offers. Branded experiences ranging from an infusion of DreamWorks characters into the Royal Caribbean fleet, a Nickelodeon influence on Norwegian ships and even Apple products in iLounges on Celebrity Cruises are proving popular. Off the ship, adventurous shore experiences often put cruise travelers on a path similar to that suggested by popular travel bloggers going it on their own.
Along with this “give-them-what-they-want” focus comes a branding effort designed to jumpstart the infusion of trendy, relevant elements to the onboard experience on older ship as well. Royal Caribbean has a Royal Advantage program being rolled out to older ships, replacing tube sets with flat-screen TV‘s, adding new trendy dining venues found on the newest of ships and upgrading other elements of the onboard experience as well.
On Carnival Cruise Lines some travelers may lament the near extinction of the party-going frat sailings (AKA “booze cruise”) but don’t have to look far for new, different venues that are becoming the place to be at sea.
Inspired by what is popular while traveling, Carnival unleashed its FunShip 2.0 initiative in New York last October. The $500 million enhancement program includes partnerships with popular celebrities and leading brands.
Funnyman George Lopez and celebrity chef Guy Fieri along with Miami Heat‘s DJ Erie are doing more than simply lending/selling their well-known names and star statuses to the Carnival brand in an attempt to draw a new breed of cruise passenger. Each has worked with Carnival to create experiences that fit the brand and infuse their own unique style.
The Food Networks Guy Fieri is working with Carnival to offer a dining venue called Guy’s Burger Joint, featuring the Food Network star’s (really amazing) hand-crafted burgers and fresh-cut fries with special recipes created exclusively for Carnival.
Different, from previous product upgrades that have happened throughout the years, cruise lines are listening and communicating with passengers and targeted travelers, speaking their language. Also, reflecting a degree of transparency, cruise lines are letting us in behind the scenes to see what goes into bringing something new on board as never before.
At a press conference in New York, Fieri manned the outdoor grill most of the afternoon, making soon-to-be signature burgers and answering questions. When asked why he got involved with the project, straight-talking Fieri told us, “…because these people at Carnival really care about their customers. It really means a lot to them that the people who sail on their ships have a good time. I wanted to be a part of that.”
It’s funny how you can hear something like that from a cruise line a million times and think nothing of it, but let those words come out of a popular icon in the world of food and all of the sudden they have meaning.
Fieri’s influence goes beyond the burger recipe too and gets really detailed in its execution on board. Condiment stations will feature a suggested menu developed by the chef to show guests what condiments and toppings they can use to build a specialty burger. In addition to burgers, Guy’s Burger Joint will serve fresh, hand-cut French fries prepared on board. We sampled (OK make that “inhaled”) both in New York and agreed with most others that it was one of the best burgers ever.
Carnival is also teaming up with comedian and TV personalityGeorge Lopez who will become the cruise line‘s “creative director for comedy” as Carnival introduces the Punchliner Comedy Clubs Presented by George Lopez.
To become the cruise line’s curator of comedy, acting as a consultant on the vetting and hiring of comedic talent for the line’s existing fleetwide comedy clubs, Lopez will play an active role in the securing of top up-and-coming comedic talent, utilizing his vast resources within the North American comedy scene.
“Carnival’s ships offer a huge audience that truly appreciates comedic performances and the on-board clubs are fantastic,” Lopez told us. “I intend to help build and nurture an understanding among up-and-coming comedic talent that these ships represent a phenomenal environment to work and gain experience.”
Through the partnership, Carnival ships will feature a Lopez comedy routine shown on in-cabin televisions fleetwide and pre-recorded introductions by Lopez at comedy club shows, as well as a new Punchliner Comedy Brunch that will be offered on sea days. Lopez will also partner with the line on a comedy-themed consumer contest in 2012.
“Carnival’s guests absolutely love comedy which is why we are already the cruise industry leader in fleetwide comedic programming and, in fact, we host more guests in our shipboard comedy clubs than any land-based comedy chain in the U.S.,” said Gerry Cahill, Carnival’s president and CEO. “By partnering with George Lopez, an exceptionally talented, respected and popular comedian, Carnival’s comedy offerings will be taken to an entirely new level.”
Lopez is seriously into the comedy concept too, much like Fieri and his cooking. In an interview with CruiseRadio‘s Doug Parker and Matt Basford, Lopez detailed his involvement saying “I will bring people from television and movies and that will make it better. You start to see people on the ship that you have seen in movies and that makes it fun, that’s a great surprise,” adding, “I will be performing on the ships occasionally myself which I am excited about.”
DJ IRIE, song master to the stars and the official DJ of the Miami HEAT, will develop a first-of-its-kind DJ academy at sea that will train all Carnival DJs across the “Fun Ship” fleet. The DJ IRIE Spin’iversity promises to bring an exciting and relevant new vibe to the line’s legendary nightclubs, deck parties and beyond.
“Miami HEAT games are known for their high-energy and non-stop fun created by DJ IRIE and we want to tap into his unique skills and passion for music to create an unforgettable atmosphere on board,” Mark Tamis, Carnival’s senior vice president of guest operations told us. “Music is the soundtrack of our lives and our goal is to create an emotional experience for our guests through the right mix of terrific music and a DJ with a unique personality who can energize a crowd.”
Whether spinning in clubs in Miami or Las Vegas, at a sporting event or hosting his popular South Florida radio show, the internationally known DJ IRIE has mastered the art of bringing a crowd to its feet and pumping up the energy and excitement – much like Carnival had done for 40 years.
But through his new comprehensive training program, IRIE will train Carnival’s DJs how to read a crowd and tailor song selections from every musical genre, appealing to guests of all ages. He will also instruct DJs on how to make maximum use of their own personality and energy to create their own persona and build popularity among guests to develop a fan following.
An important point to note: none of this costs extra. This is Carnival reinventing the at-sea experience, adding more options than ever, all included in the price.
The onboard experience is changing in other ways as well. Big name entertainment is lending their name to new cruise ships as Godmothers, or just to be were the entertainment action is.
Off the ship too, cruise lines are taking a good hard look at what they have for travelers once ships reach their destinations. Taking a page from travel bloggers, cruise line “excursions” are far more than a busload of tourists complaining if the air conditioning is not cool enough.
Today we’re seeing cruise passengers getting off the bus and on to kayaks, scuba diving, surfing, hiking and climbing trails, viewing history, arts and culture up close in any given port. At the end of the day some ships may stay in port late or overnight before moving on to their next stop.
Always a solid reason for cruising, travelers get to see and sample destinations they may or may not want to return to later, for a longer land-based vacation.
No, today’s cruise vacations are not your parents’ idea of a good time, they’re yours, whatever that may mean.