Travel Tips

Is a restaurant open at Keflavik Airport at 4:30 am?

9/4/2020 12:52:40 PM Update: I originally wrote this answer long before WOW airline ceased operation. With it gone, morning traffic in KEF starts about 1 hour later. The basic point remains, though, that restaurants are open during the ‘connection period’ between European and North American flights. However, during COVID this may not be accurate. Yes, […]

Traveling with my 5 year old daughter (as the father) without the mother from Germany to Mexico

4/1/2019 3:44:29 PM I’m surprised no one mentioned it but in addition to the documentation that @o.m. listed, I would also include a copy of the child’s birth certificate. Hopefully this document includes the OPs legal name which would be a good document to show their legal relationship to the child. I have traveled multiple […]

Carrying Metal gifts to USA (elephant, eagle & peacock) for my friends

10/24/2016 9:09:34 AM According to the U.S. Customs and Border Protection: As a visitor to the United States what are my exemptions on gifts for family and friends? As a non-resident, you are allowed up to $100 worth of merchandise, free of duty and internal revenue tax, as gifts for other people. To claim this […]

WOW air has ceased operation, can I get my tickets refunded?

4/30/2019 6:47:20 PM WOW air has provided new information on reclaiming your money through the liquidator yesterday: Passengers may also be entitled to compensation from WOW AIR, including in accordance with European regulation on Air Passenger Rights. Since WOW Air has been declared bankruptcy, claims can be filed to the administrator / liquidator. In that […]

Where can I travel with a Norwegian Convention Travel Document?

10/20/2016 2:54:52 AM With a 1951 Convention refugee travel document issued by Norway, you can: Use the travel document to travel to other countries in the Schengen area for up to 90 days in any 180 day period without a visa. Use the travel document instead of a passport to apply for visas, and travel […]

Does the US Government Shutdown affect my ability or the speed at which I can receive a passport?

1/16/2019 11:13:12 PM Passports are not currently affected by the government shutdown. The passport service is, I think, not dependent on federal funding to operate. I suspect that the rules here are the same as for USCIS services — the majority of the budget for providing the passport service comes from the application fees rather […]

My hotel "blocked" 5,000 dollars when I arrived and now is taking again the money

7/25/2018 7:09:09 PM This is pretty normal in my experience with Hire Car companies and I expect that Hotels do the exact same thing. Upon arrival, they get a pre-approval or pre-authorisation for an amount expected to cover the eventual bill. With Hire Car companies, sometimes that is enough to cover the expected eventual bill […]

What is the shortest segment of high-speed rail out of Barcelona where trains reach the maximum speed?

10/18/2016 9:09:36 AM Trains (especially trains designed with that in mind) don’t need that long to accelerate, this document from Siemens states that it takes 148 seconds (a little more than 2 min) for the Velaro trainsets used in China to reach 200 km/h. The Velaro trains used by RENFE are not exactly identical and […]

Munich to Rome by train (avoiding tunnels)

Munich to Rome by train (avoiding tunnels)

12/18/2018 5:19:58 PM In case the comments to the question disappear if the OP is happy to pass through tunnels while asleep the NightJet from Roma Termini leaves at 1858 which for most of the winter is dark and arrived at München Hbf at 0819 the next day. It would be best to book a […]

What is the intended use of the water hose in Indian restrooms?

10/30/2018 5:50:43 AM It is a Bidet Shower. A bidet shower (bum gun, bidet spray, bidet sprayer, or health faucet), is a hand-held triggered nozzle that is placed near the toilet and delivers a spray of water used for anal cleansing and cleaning of the genitals after using the toilet for defecation and urination. The […]

Hotel search engine that allows to search for rooms with a desk?

10/13/2016 5:03:39 PM I’m not aware of any hotel search engines that allow you to search for a desk, or filter on a desk. However, in my experience most hotel rooms have a desk. (at least in well known brands) I usually stay in hotels from known brands (Marriott, Hilton, Best Western, Choice hotels, Radisson, […]

A visa to visit the island that switches countries every six months?

1/31/2018 9:39:45 AM To enter in Spain or France, one needs the proper authorization. But the question has much to do with the “idealized” world where there are “(virtual) walls” in boundaries, and custom and immigration control at every entry point, and exactly at boundary point. This is false. There are several kinds of boundaries, […]

I secured a visa for the US. What happens once I arrive at a US port-of-entry seeking admission into the country?

10/25/2016 6:35:26 AM First, during your flight to the United States, you’ll be given a US Customs declaration form. Bring a pen in your carry-on. You can see a copy of the form online, along with instructions, so you know what to expect. If you have a specific question about the form, you can ask […]

Bought connection tickets with not much leeway – am I guaranteed to board?

9/24/2018 11:37:58 AM As others have stated, you are not guaranteed to board the flight on your booking; you are not even guaranteed to board any flight at all – the airline may decide to deny you boarding (although this would be very unlikely in your case). What you should really ask about is how […]

Are there ATM fees in the Azores?

10/13/2016 9:47:20 AM Azores are Portugal. I do not see any reason why it would be different than in continental Portugal. Anyway: if you will have to pay a fee, the fee amount will be displayd on the ATM screen (there is a EU directive about it) and you can always take your card and […]

Travelling in the EU with a national identity card – no longer possible?

9/23/2018 3:02:12 PM Your passport card remains fully valid across the EU/EFTA (and most other European countries for that matter). Your Danish friends say otherwise because Denmark has never even had a national ID card, and so they cannot relate to this. How to discover hidden gems beyond the "top 10" attractions? 9/23/2018 2:55:10 PM […]

How to discover hidden gems beyond the "top 10" attractions?

7/20/2018 6:58:04 AM For finding out what’s going on in a specific place, I have often successfully googled: “what’s happening in shenzhen” or “what’s happening in shenzhen today”. I got quite a few interesting results but one was particularly useful, I think: https://www.thatsmags.com/shenzhen/event. It shows a very wide variety of things to see or do […]

Which safety features of the German Autobahn make it possible to have no speed limits as opposed to every other country?

7/24/2017 9:45:24 PM One thing I haven’t seen mentioned yet is that the sections of the Autobahn with no speed limit have well-spaced interchanges (both on and off), compared to the roads in other countries. A common example I hear is that the Autobahn may have segments of 20 or 30 KM without any interchanges, […]

Reporting a cancelled visa

Reporting a cancelled visa

10/11/2016 6:00:34 PM Based on what you wrote, you would complete the form like this… Even though you were given 13 days TA, the event is properly recorded as being refused entry. As long as you put it down and provide your reference number, they will be able to pull up your record and see […]

Why do flight attendants say in safety instructions that you should put on your own mask before helping others?

Why do flight attendants say in safety instructions that you should put on your own mask before helping others?

9/4/2016 2:22:10 AM There is a general principal in medicine — first of all, do no harm. This extends to lifesaving practice in that you should, while attempting to help others, not put anyone else at risk including yourself. It simplifies a lot of discussion to say that by first helping yourself you are best […]

Prev posts
Next posts

Search Posts

Latest posts

Popular posts