Greenland’s newest tourist attraction: Water!

by Neil Woodburn on

It’s not so often that a radio station showcases a photo gallery. But times are changing and NPR is stepping up its already stellar website with some cool video and slide shows.

I point this out because of a recent story that NPR did on the melting of Greenland.

“So what,” you might say, “ice melts. But when ice melts in Greenland, the rest of the world needs to be concerned. According to the story, ocean levels will rise 20 feet if Greenland completely defrosts.

The good news, however, is that Greenland’s melting ice makes for some wonderful scenery and great tourist opportunities as warming temperatures create rivers and lakes where there were none before. And, it’s all eerily beautiful. That’s why NPR reverted to the visual medium to share some amazing shots of this newly born, crystal clear water that has been trapped for centuries in an enormous ice sheet.

Armageddon never looked so good!

Another round of “top travel picks” for 2008

by Aaron Hotfelder on

Every section in every decent newspaper out there can squeeze two feature stories out of the Earth finishing another revolution around the Sun– one that takes “a look back at 2007” and another with predictions on the “hot new things” for 2008. And travel writers are notorious list-makers, so, well, here’s another one. London’s Times has come out with its 40 travel trends and trips for 2008.

In its “Where in the world to go” section, the Times jumps on the Argentina bandwagon, citing the still-favorable exchange rate. It also mentions China because of the upcoming Olympics, and Egypt because of a brand-new five-star resort for people who make a lot more money than I do.

The list also looks at some of Lonely Planet’s forecasts for the new year: “The guidebook publisher highlights two big themes in travel for 2008: travelling to Muslim countries and seeing endangered wildlife. It recommends visiting “countries of the crescent” such as Brunei, Mauritania, Tunisia, Turkey and Uzbekistan to “debunk [the] myths and stereotypes” surrounding Islam. Trips to see endangered animals – often helping to contribute to projects to protect wildlife – include seeing Komodo dragons in Indonesia, Siamese crocodiles in Vietnam and giant armadillos in Bolivia.” Lonely Planet recommends them… Obey! (Only kidding, LP!)

Whole thing here. The NY Times 2008 list– already covered to death– is here.

A country you’ve never heard of

by Jerry Guo on

Would you guys want to read a magazine article about this destination? It’s a place that I definitely want to make it to in my life-time and write about. Unfortunately a few years ago someone beat me to it, in the pages of the New York Times Magazine.

Anyways, for a brief moment in the 1970s, Nauruans were the second richest people in the world. That’s quite a feat considering their island is roughly the size of downtown Manhattan (it’s the third smallest country after Vatican City and Monaco). For over a century, 95% of their economy depended on a single export: phosphate, a key ingredient in fertilizer. While other South Pacific nations have found their niche, such as Fiji and its successful tourism industry, now that the phosphate’s gone, Nauru is floundering in the sea. The country has become a modern-day Easter Island-a cautionary story highlighting the consequences of environmental exploitation taken to an extreme.

Nauru has recently marketed itself as an anything-goes offshore banking destination and as a satellite penal colony for Australia. For $25,000, you can set up your own bank; Russian gangsters laundered $70 million in one year alone. Other substitutes for strip-mining include selling passports and recognizing Taiwan, for which they receive $13 million a year. But by far their most lucrative cash cow has been holding Australian asylum-seekers, for which they’ve been paid $100 million since 2001. The detention camp currently holds 82 Sri Lankans, none of whom can leave the premises because of a recent alleged rape.

If for nothing else, I’m intrigued here by the cultural experience of growing up in a country of that size. If you’re intrigued, tune in next week and I’ll post some more.

“See-it-while-it’s-there” tourism

by Aaron Hotfelder on

It used to seem like the environmental movement might just be a passing fad, like the Cabbage Patch Kids, the Chia Pet, or our obsession with the two Coreys. (I preferred Haim, what about you?) But apparently that environmental- consciousness aesthetic is here to stay, and its even made its way into the travel sphere.

A new article in London’s Telegraph documents an interesting new trend among travelers. Tourists are flocking to locations such as the Arctic glaciers, Mt. Kilimanjaro, and the Great Barrier Reef because of concerns that, because of global climate change or other environmental circumstances, such destinations may not last for long.

I guess I have two questions in response to this:

1) Are the polar ice caps, Mt. Kilimanjaro, and the Great Barrier Reef in such great danger that we all must visit them now or lose the chance forever? I realize that the answer to this question might be yes.

2) Is flying to these destinations, and thus emitting even more greenhouse gases, not just making the problem even worse? The article addresses just this concern, quoting the head of a conservation group who says, “It’s hard to fault somebody who wants to see something before it disappears, but it’s unfortunate that in their pursuit of doing that, they contribute to the problem.”

Perhaps the most telling part of the article is a quote from a tour company spokesperson, who says, “People who travel to the [the polar ice caps] are keen to help fight global warming. They go home and tell their friends they’ve got to do something.” (italics mine) I imagine that conversation with their friends as going something like this: “Hey, friends. I just flew a gas-guzzling jet halfway around the world to take a look at some melting glaciers. Please help me do a little something about global warming.” Something about that doesn’t sound right.

A look back at the year in travel

by Aaron Hotfelder on

Over at MSNBC.com, Sean Moriva recaps a very busy year in the travel world.

The beginning of the year saw Southwest Airlines almost kill a passenger, while Jet Blue was merely stranding them on runways. As the year progressed, Richard Branson’s Virgin America airline made its debut, and the behemoth Airbus 380 took flight for the first time. Surprisingly absent from the year-end wrap-up was the mid-flight freakout that turned one man into a YouTube star. I think I speak for everyone when I say, I just hope being famous doesn’t change him.

As for the year’s biggest trends? Google Maps continued to revolutionize the way we look at the world, eco-tourism continued to grow in popularity, and WiFi continued to expand into every nook and cranny of our lives. I, for one, welcome our new wireless overlord.

Check out the full recap here, and Forbes Traveler’s slide show of the Top 10 Travel Stories here.