Travel Trends: Pet travel

by Gadling Staff on

From doggy daycare to feline pampering to gourmet food and beyond, pet owners in the United States shower their furry companions with a healthy dose of attention. Although this affection is shown through lots of play time and generous ear scratching, it’s most easily recognizable by the billions of dollars spent every year in the pet industry.

Since 1994, the American Pet Products Association (APPA) has kept track of just how much Americans spend on their pets. The data verifies that with every new year, U.S. pet owners have spent increasingly more on their four-legged counterparts. In fact, within the 10 years between 1994 and 2004, the spending literally doubled from $17 billion to $34 billion. Fast forward to 2010, a mere 6 years later, and that number has skyrocketed to approximately $47.4 billion.

While money spent on pets includes vet fees, food and other typical expenses, a large chunk of that is devoted to leisure-related activities like pampering and lodging. This increased amount of spending is partially due to a growing trend in the pet industry that has owners toting their pets along with them on vacation.

The Travel Industry Association of America (TIA) released data in January of 2009 that said the most popular animal that pet owners bring with them on vacations is a dog. This is likely due to the canine’s happy-go-lucky attitude and ability to adapt to new environments quickly. Coming in at second place are felines at 15 percent, followed by birds at 3 percent and “others” at 2 percent (other includes ferrets, fish, rabbits).

As for how pets travel, transportation via cars is by far the most common. And, according to a the same travel poll conducted by TIA, only 6 percent of animals travel with an airline and 10 percent travel in a recreational vehicle.

Once a pet and its owner have finally reached their destination, finding a place to stay is the next detail to figure out. As of 2009, 32 percent of travelers stay with someone who they already know, such as a friend or relative. Twenty nine percent stay in a hotel, 16 percent opt for a recreation vehicle or tent and the final 10 percent stay in a cabin or vacation home. This information is also based on data gathered by TIA.

This discussion “begs” the question: do you travel with your pet(s)? No? Then be sure to check out “Ask Gadling: How to prepare for not traveling without your dog.”

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Leona’s opens at the New York Helmsley

by Annie Scott on


The iconic Leona Helmsley is no longer with us, and who knows what her dog is spending all that dough on, but her brand identity continues to grow with the launch of Leona’s, a new restaurant at the New York Helmsley Hotel.

What you may once have known as Mindy’s has been redesigned to celebrate the art deco neighborhood and renamed Leona’s. The lighting is soft, the ceiling is vaulted, and the color palette includes lush browns, white onyx and blue tile.

The menu by Executive Chef Brian Wieler features modern classics like Crab Cakes, Caprese Salad, Sesame-Crusted Tuna and Veal Tenderloin Napolean with entrees priced at a reasonable $21 – $29. No need to tip; a 19 percent gratuity is added to all checks. We think Leona would have liked that.

The well-known Harry’s Bar, also at the New York Helmsley, has also undergone a renovation. Basically, even if you’ve been before, it’s time to go back.

Universal Studios Hollywood to open new King Kong attraction July 1

by Leigh Caldwell on

He’s big, he’s back, and he’s angry. Universal Studios Hollywood will open King Kong 360 3-D on July 1.

The new attraction will take you to Peter Jackson’s version of Skull Island, right into the middle of a battle between massive dinosaurs and one very misunderstood giant ape.

Following the 2008 fire at Universal Studios Hollywood that destroyed the King Kong attraction, it was rumored that Kong would not return.

However, Universal officials tell me Steven Spielberg was at the studios before the fire was even out, discussing how to improve the King Kong attraction, and Peter Jackson signed on almost immediately for the update to match his 2005 film.

“As a filmmaker, you’re hoping to have the audience step inside your movie and become part of the experience. It’s only within a theme park attraction like this that you have the opportunity to do that,” Jackson said.

King Kong 360 3-D will use technology never before seen in a theme park setting. A pair of seamless, compound curved screens – each 187 feet wide and 40 feet high – will form a complete circle around guests.

The attraction’s film will run at 60 frames per second, delivering significantly more detail than the typical 24 frames per second rendered in a feature-length film. Universal Studios Hollywood promises “visceral special effects” to enhance the experience.

This summer, Universal Studios Hollywood is also opening 13 city blocks of production facilities in area of the Universal backlot that burned in the 2008 fire, including four acres of newly built New York street locations.

National Geographic announces 2010 class of Emerging Explorers

by Kraig Becker on

National Geographic has announced the latest class of their Emerging Explorers, an annual award handed out to young men and women who have been especially exemplary in their field of study while still early in their careers. Recipients are generally from the Society’s traditional arenas, such as anthropology, archaeology, photography, space exploration, earth sciences, and mountaineering, amongst others. The award includes $10,000 to help fund their continued research in their area of expertise.

The list of winners includes environmental scientist Saleem Ali who works as a professional mediator for companies, governments, and other organizations involve dealing with environmental conflicts. He is joined on the list of Emerging Explorers by agroecologist Jerry Glover, who is helping to create genetically engineered plants, such as wheat, rice, and maize, and turn them into perennial crops that can meet the food needs of emerging nations. Marine biologist Jose Urteaga is recognized for his work in protecting the habitats and hatcheries for several species of sea turtles, while wildlife researcher Emma Stokes gets the nod for helping create a nature preserve for lowland gorillas in the Congo.

In all, 14 scientists, explorers, and adventurers earned the distinction of being called a National Geographic Emerging Explorer for 2010. These brilliant and talented individuals come from diverse fields of study and work in all corners of the globe. They exemplify NG’s mission to inspire others to care about the planet, while working very hard to change the world in their own way.

The Emerging Explorers will be officially introduced in the June issue of National Geographic magazine, on newsstands soon, but you can read more about them now by clicking here.

Congratulations to all the winners.





Scientists question safety of airport full body scanners

by Scott Carmichael on

As soon as the underpants bomber was caught, the US department of Homeland Security started a rapid deployment of full body scanning equipment. These new scanners can see under clothes, and are designed to check for bombs or other suspicious items.

The technology is by no means new, and the Transportation Security Administrations has been using similar technology for years, but only on a very limited basis. Since the first of these machines made it to an airport, the TSA has been very vocal about telling the traveling public that they are 100% safe, and that we have nothing to worry about.

Except for the risk of too much exposure to ionizing radiation that is…

Scientists at the University of California, San Francisco are disputing the claims that the machines are safe – and have presented their own research on the effects of the radiation from a trip through a whole body scanner.

According to the researchers, the calculated amount of radiation was based upon an average over the whole body – but the number that actually gets deposited in your skin may be higher – though they don’t know by how much.

Rapiscan, who build the majority of the machines being installed around the nation refused to comment on the findings, but the TSA repeated that travelers would need to go through the machines thousands of times just to reach the radiation levels you receive when you get a chest X-ray.

David Brenner, head of Columbia University’s Center for Radiological Research also aired his concerns – “There really is no other technology around where we’re planning to X-ray such an enormous number of individuals. It’s really unprecedented in the radiation world”.

I’m not sure about you – but those findings don’t sit too well with me. I’m obviously not against technologies that can prevent terrorism, but there are limits to what the traveling public should be subjected to. When the scanners were first tested, their purpose was for secondary scanning procedures, not for mass scans of every passenger.

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(Photo credit: Getty Images)