Author: Jack Edwards

Carry On Baggage Limits –New ways to take money from your pocket.

This year, for the first time flying Fiji Airways, and the last time flying Fiji Airways. Although they appeared to be a bit less expensive than Air New Zealand, I found that they have a new way to charge extra for people who travel light and only use a carry on bag and a personal bag.

In general, even if we travel for 2 weeks or a month, we do it with a carry on bag and a personal bag. My carry on bag for a month long stay may weigh 12 kg (26 pounds) and the personal bag may weigh in at 5 kg (10 pounds).

Now, although the still have the size limits for your carry on bag, they have added new weight limits. ONLY 7 kg for your carry on bag and 4 kg for a personal item that will fit under your seat. It is ok to have a cabin full of 100 kg passengers, but you cannot have a 12 kg carry on bag. They make you check it if it weighs more than 7 kg. I will be over the limit with my backpack carry on bag, with a tablet computer, my dop kit, 2 changes of clothes and a light jacket. Forget about three or four changes clothes you might want to carry for a month long trip. I guess that they want to force you to check your bags, and for that they can charge an extra fee.

I understand that if you are flying using the cheapest fare that they may charge you for carry on bags, checked bags, water, food, etc… But at least let me fill my bag with clothes and a dop kit. By the way, their checked bag is limited to 30 kg which is about 66 pounds and way more than I want to carry, but since  they charge for each bag, it may be better to only check one bag for the two of us and have to fight with the heavier bag if flying those airlines.

We found the same issue with Jetstar Airways to fly from Melbourne to Queenstown.

When compared to Air New Zealand, for flying economy, they have the same limits but for regular economy or business or various alliance partnership levels, the weight limit is 14 kg which is about 30 pounds plus you can have a personal bag or laptop or purse.

Quantas allows you to bring 14 kg of stuff onto the plane with the carryon bag being 10 kg and the 4 additional kg being in a personal bag or computer bag.

When I checked American Airlines and United Airlines, they both provided size limits for carry on bags as well as a personal bag to place under the seat, but no weight limits.

When we flew down under 5 years ago and again 2 years ago on Air New Zealand, our carry on bags weren’t an issue. The next time I fly down under, I know which airlines I won’t book with.

Did You Buy or Win a Resort Vacation Certificate?

Are you ready for a vacation?

A few months ago, through my real estate business, Jack Edwards Real Estate, I donated two vacation certificates to local Elk Grove nonprofit organizations for their annual fundraising dinner.  The question of course, is it worth your time and money to bid on one of these certificates at the live or silent auction at the fundraising dinner that you will be attending.

Of course the answer is always, “It Depends.”  The biggest “It Depends,” is on when and where you want to travel. These certificates are not for the peak season, but for shoulder season. The shoulder season is the few weeks before or after the time that everyone wants to visit. Personally, I prefer to travel during the shoulder season because the crowds are much smaller, so for me they are always a big win.

I have stayed at many of the locations that are available with these certifiates, and will return to stay there again on a future trip. Since I own a timeshare, I sometimes stay at those locations using the timeshare or using a trade through RCI. If I am low on points, using one of these certificates may be a better option for me. It is all about how and where you travel. You can always bid on it and give it to a friend or one of your kids so that they can travel the world. Other than airfare, assuming that you are flying somewhere, the cost of the lodging is usually your most expensive part of the trip. At $200-$500 per night for some locations, or more, that makes this certifiate easily worth $1400 to $3500 depending on the cost per night at the resort of choice. This certificate can cover that cost.

Let me tell you about the certificate and you can decide for yourself. It comes from Resort Vacation Certificates, which is affiliated with RCI, the worldwide resort destination company. The certificate will give you hundreds of options for an exciting vacation, locally or around the world.

In some locations, you can use the certificate to cover the cost of your room at the resort, but in some locations, especially during peak times, you may have to pay a small fee for the whole week, not each night, in addition to using the certificate. The key is to plan early and book your vacation as soon as possible to get the best choice. You will have to book your vacation before April 25, 2025 and you must start your travel within 365 days of the date booked.

What do you do if you have the winning bid?

If you have the winning bid for the vacation certificate, you will need to provide an email address so that we can send you the certificate.  Once you receive the email, you will be directed to create an account and log into the www.resortscerts.com website. You will be required to register your certificate before you can start to explore and ultimately redeem your certificate and complete your booking.

On the website, you will be able to view all of the available resorts as well as four videos with vacation ideas. I have included links to two of the videos here so that you can have a look before you even consider bidding for the vacation certificate.  Orlando Video.  Mazatlan Video.

Keep in mind that the certificate does not include any of your other expenditures such as air fare, transfers, activities or meals.  Additionally, there will possibly be a required deposit, a resort fee, a charge for housekeeping, as well as a tourist tax. I have seen resorts in Arizona that charge an air conditioning fee.  Some resorts require the visitor be over 21 years of age. If traveling to Africa, you may have to get vaccinations before you leave home. So, before booking, look at the bottom of the resort information page for any additional fees, local taxes or other restrictions. P.S. These fees are not just for certificate holders, they are mandatory for all guests including timeshare owners at the resort.

Here are some thoughts for international destinations. Three of my favorite places to visit would be Cabo San Lucas, Australia and Africa. I have included excerpts from the website showing where some of the resorts are located. You will have full access to all of the locations after you register your certificate.  Again, as a reminder, book as soon as possible for the greatest selections. Also, you will see below that some resorts show that they offer upgrades as well as options for no additional fees. Some resorts also offer to sell you an “All Inclusive” option to cover some of your food and drinks. I just checked on a couple of the resorts discussed in this blog post and some have increased a little since this blog post was first created in April 2024.

In the first image below showing Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo, I am showing some of the available resorts. We have stayed at a couple of these resorts. We have stayed several times at the one marked $470 on the right side of the map, which is the Worldmark Coral Baja and the one marked at $555 is the Pueblo Bonito Rose in Cabo San Lucas. The last time I checked, Pueblo Bonito Rose was getting a little run down, but next door is the sister resort of Pueblo Bonito Blanco. Coral Baja and Pueblo Bonito Blanco are great resorts. When the map shows “No charge,” that means that the resort certificate covers your room with out paying an upgrade fee. You may still be charged for other fees noted above.

Below is a graphic showing some options in the Melbourne area of Australia. We have stayed at Phillip Island and will be staying at Torquay this fall. As you can see, most of these resorts are available with an extra fee of between $200 & $302 dollars. Still not to bad for a week in a great resort.

For my Africa example, I am showing South Africa and the town of Hazyview which is just west of one of the main gates into Kruger National Park. We visited there in 2015 and stayed at the Sanbonani Lodge, shown in this example, and enjoyed visiting Kruger every day except for a spa day at the resort to rest and relax.  $362 dollars for a week in a great resort is a great price. Don’t hesitate to ask me about any of these vacation locations.

It seems that most of the resorts in this area of South Africa will charge an extra fee of $361.75 per week for a two bedroom unit that sleeps 6 people. I don’t think you can stay at a Motel 6 for a week for $361.75. I just checked and you can stay at the Motel 6 in Rancho Cordova for about $832 from the 12th to the 19th of July to visit the California State Fair but you won’t get a two bedroom unit because they don’t have any of those. For 6 people, you would need 3 units which would cost you $2496 for the week. If it is for mom and dad and a couple of kids, you may get by with cramming everyone into one room for $832 for the week.

According to The Reserve, a local hotel in Hazyview, which would charge you $179 per night for a room with a bed and a fold out couch, “One of the most enticing aspects of staying in Hazyview is its proximity to the world-famous Kruger National Park.”  The Phabeni Gate is less than 15 kilometers away. Keep in mind that if you want to visit Kruger National Park, they do charge an entry fee. When we were there in 2015, we purchased an annual pass for each of us before we left home and each morning we checked in at the gate and spent the day driving around and game watching. We fully enjoyed our first safari in Africa without breaking the bank. I just looked on May 31st for the Sanbonani and the price is now $365.19 for a week in August 2024. That is still pretty cheap for a week in a great resort. When is the prime time to visit Kruger? Check my guide on the best time to visit Africa and you will find that August is a prime time to visit.

So, are you ready to vacation? Start thinking about where you would like to go and how much less it would cost if you have a vacation certificate that covers most of the cost of lodging for your visit. Yes, there is still air fare or other transportation costs. And there is food; but I bet you were planning on eating if you stayed home for that week.

This is also the perfect vacation option if you want to visit resorts throughout the USA and Canada.  Places like Las Vegas, San Diego, Palm Springs, Sedona, Banff, Calgary, Canmoor  etc…  I have told you a lot about what this vacation certificate is great for, but what it is not great for?

For example, these certificates are for resorts in vacation locations throughout the world, but generally not hotels in big cities, so don’t bid on this item if you want to visit London, Paris, Berlin or Sydney.

Visa Free Travel to Kenya

As you may be aware, especially if you keep up with travel trends, most countries are moving to an e-visa or an ETA program to simplify travel to their country.

What is an e-visa or an ETA?

e-visa’s are just what you might expect; an electronic visa.

An ETA is an electronic travel authority. It is something that you apply for online before you travel that will make it much easier to get into that country.

Kenya is now in the process of following that trend. They are not there yet, but here is the most recent info from Kenya.

Here is the press release regarding their ETA-Update-Statement-Jan-7/2024

You can use the link, or just read below since I have pasted the text of the press release below:

 

MINISTRY OF INTERIOR AND NATIONAL ADMINISTRATION
STATE DEPARTMENT FOR IMMIGRATION & CITIZEN SERVICES
OFFICE OF THE PRINCIPAL SECRETARY
PRESS STATEMENT JAN 7, 2024
UPDATE ON THE STATUS OF THE ELECTRONIC TRAVEL AUTHORISATION (ETA)

To boost tourism and attract more foreign investments to Kenya, the Government removed all visa requirements for all foreign nationals visiting and transiting through Kenya from January 2024.

This decision reflects our commitment to the promotion of an open, accessible and inclusive tourism and investment environment. The vacated visa requirements have been replaced by the Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) system. This is designed for visa-exempt foreign nationals traveling to or transiting through our country, especially by air.

So far 9787 ETA applications have been received on https://www.etakenya.go.ke ke. Of these, 4046 have already been processed while the others are undergoing review on priority basis guided by the travel schedule submitted by each applicant.

The introduction of ETA is premised on the need to have a fair, faster and reliable system that also addresses Kenya’s security and other strategic interests. Before ETA, citizens from 51 countries enjoyed visa-free entry to Kenya, while travelers from 155 other countries were subject to a visa application process at a cost of $50.

ETA has introduced significant changes to the travel and transit experience for foreign nationals visiting Kenya in four fundamental ways:

1.  Equal Treatment and Reduced Fees.  The entry requirements and applicable payments for all foreign nationals, except for East African Community (EAC) citizens, will now be the same irrespective of the country of origin. The visa fee was $50 while the ETA fee for all is $30, thereby ensuring fairness and equality.
2.  Advance Passengers Information.  Previously, travelers from 51 countries were not required to fill out any forms on personal and relevant travel details. There was therefore no means of obtaining data to inform critical decisions and plans around security, infrastructure and insurance needs. With the introduction of the ETA, we now have comprehensive data on all visitors, significantly improving our ability to ensure the safety and well-being of both our visitors and citizens.
3. Reduced Processing Time.  Compared to visa application, ETA provides for a simple and faster process. Previously, it took up to 14 days to process visa applications for foreigners from 12 listed countries. The waiting period for this category has now been drastically reduced to a maximum of 72 hours.
4. Dedicated ETA Desk.  To guarantee a seamless experience, we have introduced a 24-hour service desk dedicated to ETA. This will ensure clients are promptly attended to irrespective of the hour while also taking into consideration the different time zones across the world. We will continue to review and refine the ETA system to align it with our clients’ convenience and to support our commitment to make Kenya a natural home for visitors and investors. With ETA system now in place, we are proud to declare to the world: ‘Welcome Home!’

Amb. (Prof.) Julius K. Bitok, MBS
PRINCIPAL SECRETARY

Should I buy a drinks package on my cruise

Photo from The Office in Cabo San Lucas in 2012

If you are taking a cruise, one of the things you need to decide to do before you leave home is to buy or not to buy a drinks package.  It really depends on several things because every adult in the cabin has to buy one if you do. Also, how much you drink per day is a consideration and finally, what do you drink. Is it regular everyday stuff or do you only drink premium liquor.

The cost of most packages adds up to the cost of buying 8-10 beers or 5-7 cocktails per day, every day, even when you are in port. If you only have a glass of wine or two at dinner, you would be wasting money on a drinks package. If you drink and the other adults in your cabin don’t drink, you would probably be wasting your money. Also, if you have kids in your cabin, some cruise lines require you to purchase a non-alcoholic drink package for each child.

Also, the drinks package does not include the drinks in the mini bar in your cabin or drinks on your excursions.

Here is a link to a drinks calculator to look at: Cruzley Drinks Package Calculator.

One more thing to consider, most cruise lines add 18-20% to the cost of drinks or a drinks package as a gratuity. Keep this in mind so that you don’t waste money over-tipping at the bar since the tip is included in the price.

Finally, remember that most drinks packages don’t include specialty coffee drinks either.

Save Time on Your Return From Overseas

When you travel to an international destination, especially if you travel from a smaller airport, you will discover that you are always routed through a larger airport on your return so that you can go through Customs and Border Protection(CBP). Now, it is true that you usually cannot fly to international destinations from your smaller airport, but you can still save time upon your return by being able to avoid the CBP hassle upon your return.

How, you might ask? Use CBP Preclearance.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Preclearance is the strategic stationing of CBP personnel at designated foreign airports to inspect travelers prior to boarding U.S.-bound flights. With Preclearance, travelers then bypass CBP and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) inspections upon U.S. arrival and proceed directly to their connecting flight or destination. These airports also allow you to use your Global Entry identification number to make it through the check-in process more quickly. Also, keep in mind that you will want to get to the airport a little earlier on your trip home to go through the preclearance.

As of December 2023, CBP has staff stationed at 15 Preclearance locations in 6 countries:

  • Dublin and Shannon in Ireland
  • Aruba
  • Bermuda
  • Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates
  • Nassau in the Bahamas
  • Calgary, Toronto, Edmonton, Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Vancouver, Victoria, and Winnipeg in Canada

I did not know about this program when we traveled to Calgary in 2021 and was quite surprised that we did not have to go through CBP upon landing in the US. After a little research, I discovered the magic that saved us time at the end of a long travel day.

Keep in mind that the time saved is great, but putting the extra hassle at the beginning of your return trip means that after a long and tiring flight, especially if you don’t sleep well on an airplane, means that you get out of the airport sooner to get home to your own bed for a good night’s sleep.

The real question has to do with the convenience of travelling through one of the above airports if you are going beyond those destinations. For example, is it worth the effort to fly through Dublin to visit South Africa.

Generally when we travel to Africa, we travel through London Heathrow to break up the trip as well as to spend a few days in London. But, London Heathrow does not have preclearance and Dublin does and we would love to spend more time visiting Ireland. So, as noted above, is it more expensive to fly through Dublin vs flying through London to get to South Africa.

When I checked in December 2023 for a trip to Africa during the Emerald Season in May 2024, the round trip from Sacramento was priced between $2250 and $2750 per person for economy plus. Those flights went through various European airports, but not Dublin. The round trip from Sacramento to Dublin was about $1600 per person and the round trip from Dublin to South Africa was about $1500. That means that it would have cost about $400-$800 more per person to fly via Dublin.

Follow-up to Planning for an Emergency

When you prepare for a trip, it’s smart to prepare for an emergency too. The threats of political unrest, natural disasters (hurricanes, wildfires, and earthquakes), and terrorist attacks—both at home and abroad—are not going away any time soon. But by all means don’t focus so much on highly unlikely, spectacular risks that you ignore the mundane risks that are far more likely to do you harm. For example, I traveled to London recently, and I optimized my family’s safety not by doing anything so extreme as avoiding the Tube (a target of past terrorist attacks) or abstaining from a cricket match at The Oval (another potential target, what with 24,000 spectators in a stadium), but by making sure that we looked both ways when crossing the street (it’s easy to look in the wrong direction in countries where people drive on the left) and that we used a bathmat in our rental apartment so we would not slip and fall in an unfamiliar shower.

In addition to keeping risks in perspective, here’s what I do to be prepared for emergencies when I travel:

Before Your Trip

1. Enroll in STEP.
Signing up for the State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program makes it easier for the U.S. embassy to send you important information about safety conditions, contact you in an emergency, and help family and friends get in touch with you. Enrolling is easy and quick.

2. Activate your phone for overseas use so that, at a minimum, you can send and receive text messages.
That way you can communicate with others in your traveling party via text message, receive STEP security updates and Twitter Alerts (see #14) via text message, etc.

3. Depending on how remote or risky your destination is, consider carrying a satellite phone or satellite text-messaging device.
In an emergency, you could lose your ability to communicate by cell phone. Internet access could be unavailable as well. Satellite devices do not depend on cell-phone or Internet technology and are much less expensive to rent than they used to be. In countries where satellite phones are illegal—India and China, for instance—you can rent a local mobile phone.

4. Whatever your communication device is, carry extra battery power for it.
If you’re using a smartphone, attach a Mophie or carry a charging block; if you’re using a satellite phone, have an additional battery.

5. Choose a hotel in the right neighborhood, with the right TV news channels and high-speed Internet access.
If you’ve got CNN, BBC, Al-Jazeera, and fast Wi-Fi, you can easily monitor the news and check local English-language websites for news and help. Pick a hotel that is not located close to a symbolic plaza where protests and traffic jams occur (e.g., Taksim Square in Istanbul, or Tahrir Square in Cairo).

6. Book your trip through the right destination specialist.
This gives you a local fixer, advocate, problem solver. The travel specialists on my WOW List know which areas of their destination are safe and which aren’t, and arrange trips based on the latest on-the-ground intel. They connect you with the savviest drivers and “guides” — more expediters and strategists than traditional tour guides — who have the background and credentials to keep you safe and have access to key people in the country who will take care of you. I know this based not only on personal experience, having traveled under their vigilance, but also based on years of feedback from travelers. For example, when Nepal specialist Toni Neubauer had WendyPerrin.com travelers in Nepal during the 2015 quake, she quickly got them on a flight out of the country. (Read the review of Toni that the travelers, Joe and Rowena Burke, posted on Toni’s reviews page.) At dicey moments, Israel specialist Joe Yudin has kept WendyPerrin.com travelers safe (read Nadika Wignarajan’s review here), Turkey specialist Earl Starkey has as well (read reports from his travelers here). WOW Listers also provide you with the physical tools to stay safe: India specialist Sanjay Saxena, for instance, gives you an in-country mobile phone pre-programmed with numbers for local staff, hotels, emergency services, etc. Of course, his in-country and U.S. staff are available 24/7 as well.

7. Pack certain medicines.
Bring a prescription antibiotic and prescription pain reliever that you know work for you, in case you end up needing to be your own doctor. Bring iodine tablets (or one of the newer technologies) to purify dirty water too, since, in an emergency, bottled water supplies quickly run out.

8. Plot on a paper map where the local embassy, consulate, and best hospitals are.
In an emergency you won’t want to rely on your smartphone or Google Maps app to get you there; you’ll want to save your battery for calls to loved ones, doctors, etc. Know where the best hospitals are—not just for the capital city, which could be hours away from where you are when a crisis strikes, but for other cities too.

9. Purchase an emergency assistance plan.
A MedjetHorizon membership can get you safely out of a crisis situation 24/7 and can also get you out of a foreign hospital and back home to a hospital you know and trust. They can come to the rescue in the event of a terrorist or political threat, violent crime, or if you need a ground ambulance, specialty hospital transfer, or cash advance.

During Your Trip

10. Program your cell phone with emergency numbers.
Remember that 911 does not work for countries outside the USA and Canada. Here’s one list of local emergency numbers, but also ask your hotel concierge for the best numbers for the police, medical emergencies, and someone at your hotel who can help.

11. Carry a mini-flashlight.
You don’t want to get caught in the dark.

12. Carry your hotel’s business card, in the local language.
You can show it to police or taxi drivers to get back to safety quickly.

13. Carry a photocopy of your passport photo page and any visas.

Keep it on your person during the trip, in case the original is back at your hotel (usually the smartest place to keep it) or gets lost in the emergency.

14. Follow relevant Twitter feeds that can provide reliable, accurate updates and potentially life-saving alerts.
Such Twitter feeds will vary by destination and type of emergency. Usually, though, you’ll want to follow the U.S. embassy feed in the country you’re visiting, as well as the U.S. State Department’s feed, @travelgov. The @RedCross and Google’s Crisis Response Team, @GoogleCR, are also worth following, as are the local airport’s feed, which may post updates about airport delays and shutdowns, and the feeds of local hotels, which usually have an emergency action plan and may be offering help or a landline. You can also turn on Twitter Alerts for the feeds relevant to the destination you’re headed to.

15. Know that Google has a person finder and Facebook has a Safety Check feature.
In natural and humanitarian disasters, Google helps track missing persons. When a crisis occurs, Facebook activates its Safety Check feature: If you’re in an affected area, use it to alert friends and family that you’re okay; if you’re at home, you can use it to search for travelers and confirm their status.

If You Have a Trip Booked to an Area Perceived as Risky

* Don’t overreact: Realize that the geographic area affected is limited.

So often, when a crisis strikes a country, U.S. travelers unnecessarily cancel trips to a huge swath of the world surrounding that country. They avoid regions that have not been affected in the least—which would be like Europeans deciding against a trip to New York because there was an earthquake in San Francisco or a terror attack in Orlando. The Italy earthquake is no reason to cancel a trip to Tuscany, the same way the Nice attack was no reason to cancel a trip to the Dordogne.

* Don’t confuse the probability of an incident with the probability of becoming the victim of that incident.
Is it virtually certain that there will be another terrorist attack in Europe this year?  Yes.  Does that translate into a high degree of risk for the individual traveler to Europe?  No.

* Understand the psychological reasons why your fear of a terrorist attack is out of proportion to the risk—and why you fear a terrorist attack more than an earthquake.
I explain it in my article 7 Keys to Traveling Without Fear Despite Terrorist Attacks.

* Know where the real dangers lie.
Remember that the single biggest cause of death for Americans traveling overseas is motor vehicle accidents.

 

 

  1. PAULA DAVIS

    Reply
    After my mother had to have her appendix removed in Italy -I also suggest you have google translate downloaded on your phone and keep a record of not only your medications,/doses but recent major surgeries as well along with contact information for those surgeons and your primary care doctors.
  2. LINDA DE SOSA

    Reply
    One other note – I was in a bad car accident in a rental car. Make sure they have given you the number to call for help. I ended up being transferred to their internal computer help number like my monitor had broken. Thdy wanted me to call AA which I found out an agonizing day later.
  3. DONNA THOMAS

    Reply
    Hi Wendy a great and timely article. I had always left my medications , spare contact lenses and glasses back in my hotel room. as did my travelers. I learned in the Christchurch earthquake what a mistake this is. I now advise travelers to keep at least half their essential medication with them and the spare contacts, glasses with them not in the hotel. As several of our hotels were destroyed in the quake , travelers could not reach their medication or spare seeing devices. Now by carrying a few days of meds with them they are assured they will have essential prescriptions for a few days. We learned you cant always get back to the hotel. During the earth quake pharmacies were closed so even a prescription we had faxed could not be filled, We were fortunate to work with the local Christchurch Hospital in obtaining necessary medications for our travelers but some locations might not be as helpful..We also found passports quite the challenge. Many travelers had stored them in their in room safes which could not be accessed in a hotel in rubble , having the spare copy of the photo page as you suggested was essential but also leaving a copy of it with their WOW specialist would ensure a quicker reproduction of their passport at the embassy.

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Turning Dreams into Memories,
One Vacation at a Time.
Bon Voyage!!!

As you might guess, this document is a compilation of information from our travels as well as from other travelers. I hope it has been of value to you.  Check out the important links below.

Don’t hesitate to email us when you return from your trip with any suggestions that will make this document better for you and your fellow travelers!

You may also want to visit our Facebook page, www.Facebook.com/TeamEdwardsTravel

Known Traveler Info Updated

These days, almost everyone who travels a lot has Pre-Check or Global Entry or some other program that gives you a Known Traveler Number (KTN).

Here are a few things to keep in mind.

  1.  When you book travel make sure that you put your KTN into your airline’s system to speed your processing during check-in as well as upon your return to the USA. Also, make sure that you add that as well as your passport info in your name as well as your frequent travel partner. Otherwise, you may get Pre-Check and your partner won’t. Your partner won’t be happy with you when they find out that it was all your fault.
  2. If you are like me, you got your Pre-Check first, then later because of expanding to international travel, took the time and effort to get your Global Entry Card. We could not get an interview in our area so we set it up to do the interview in Alabama on a trip to visit family.
  3. You can also get a KTN by applying thru through Nexus, Sentri. You don’t need all 4, just do Global Entry.
  4. With having more than one type of program available, what numbers do you inter for your KTN?
    1. If you only have Pre-Check, you enter that number. Generally it starts with a TT followed by numbers and letters. Once you obtain your Global Entry number, don’t use your Pre-Check number. In fact, go to all of your airline apps and change your Pre-Check number to your Global Entry number. They still call it your Known Traveler Number on every airline website that I have used.
    2. If you have upgraded to Global Entry, use that number and quit using your Pre-Check number. Your Global Entry number is 9 numbers and generally it starts with a 15 or 98 or 99. You can find the number on the back of your card if you ever received a card.  Forget about the two letters and three numbers that you may see showing after the 9 numbers. I don’t know what they are, but the are not a part of the KTN that you need.
  5. Finally, you don’t need to carry your Global Entry card unless you are returning to the US from Canada. They will ask to see it.
  6.  Also, you will not get a notification to update or renew your Global Entry membership. So, go back and find the date that you received it and put a note in your calendar, a couple of months prior to the 5 year expiration date, to log in to do a renewal.  Do your renewal at https://ttp.cbp.dhs.gov.  It will show you your KTN and the expiration date. You can renew it up to 1 year in advance if you wish, but no earlier. Before you renew, you may consider getting a credit card that will pay for your renewal. Get one that also gives you Priority Pass access to the lounges that you will want to visit during those long layovers. I use my Hilton Honors card from American Express. Not only do I enjoy the Priority Pass access to the lounges, I also enjoy the reduced car insurance when I travel to Mexico. My last trip to Cabo, using that card, saved me over $500 on car insurance but also allowed me to use the VIP lounge in Cabo before our trip home. A lot of people use the Chase Sapphire Reserve card for the same type of benefits.
  7. On a similar subject, for those of you who don’t travel internationally very often and chose to stay with Pre-Check, you have another option for your return from your infrequent travels abroad if you return to a major port of entry. That app was called Mobile Passport when it first came out. It was changed to Airside Mobile Passport but it has changed again in February 2022 to CBP MPC which is short for Customs & Border Protection Mobile Passport Control. You often have a line as short or shorter than what you will see for Global Entry, but like I noted, it is not available at every airport or port of entry. Currently only 31 airports and 4 shipping ports. When we returned from Cabo recently, I was telling some of the people in line to board the flight about this App. Unfortunately, we were flying back to the US on Southwest Airlines by way of the John Wayne International Airport in Santa Anna (SNA). If we were entering via PHX, LAX, OAK, SAN, SFO, SJC or SMF, they could have used this App and saved waiting in line with a couple hundred other folks. Keep that in mind when booking your flights if you can use this App.

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Turning Dreams into Memories,
One Vacation at a Time.
Bon Voyage!!!

As you might guess, this document is a compilation of information from our travels as well as from other travelers. I hope it has been of value to you.  Check out the important links below.

Don’t hesitate to email us when you return from your trip with any suggestions that will make this document better for you and your fellow travelers!

You may also want to visit our Facebook page, www.Facebook.com/TeamEdwardsTravel

Travel Documents – COVID-19

It’s Time to Travel!

For the past 2 years, most of us did not do much in the way of international travel because of the COVID-19 restrictions. However, we did manage a 2-week trip to Alberta, Canada last year. I can fully recommend a trip to Calgary. We stayed in Canmore which is just a few miles from Banff. Beautiful place to visit.

Now that most countries are allowing travel, you need to know as much as possible regarding entry requirements for the countries you are visiting or transiting through. It was time for us to dust off our 2020-planned trip to Zambia for another safari.

It is pretty clear that the U.S. still requires an antigen test and in fact, requires you to obtain it one day before you board your airplane to come home. Not a problem since they are available almost everywhere. I had already located the lab in Lusaka, Zambia where we could get the test. That meant staying an extra night in Zambia since their website still said that it would take 24 hours for the results when everywhere else only took 20 minutes; but that was ok. I also discovered that it would be cheaper to do the test at Johannesburg airport, so, at the last minute we changed our plan to get the test in Zambia and opted to get in Johannesburg. That would save us about 500 Rand (about $32 USD). Not a lot of money, but money none the less.

A Bump in the Road

Unfortunately, not every country keeps an updated website listing their requirements, or they are often vague about what you need to do. So, no matter how well you plan, you can still end up with problems like we did.

COVID19 Blank Vac RecordFor example, our planned trip to Zambia would transit through South Africa. When we started planning the trip, both countries required us to get a PCR test 72 hours before going through their countries. In late March 2022, both countries changed their rules. As of March 22, 2022 you had to do the PCR test or to provide proof of vaccination. No where on the government websites of South Africa or Zambia noted what exactly was required for proof. Would they accept the little paper copy of a shot record from Kaiser? That is what we had in hand when we set off on our trip. All set, or so we thought. When we arrived in Johannesburg, late in the evening, they told us that our documents did not meet their requirements because they did not have the QR code, but since the unit that handles that issue was already closed, we were allowed to pass thru without any other issue. Yay!

That meant that we would need to get our vaccination records with the QR code. I did remember logging into a California website a few months earlier that provided a QR code vaccination record. To make sure that we were ready for our return trip, I logged into the California Department of Public Health, Digital COVID-19 Vaccine Record website. I completed the information and they provided our proof of vaccination with a QR code. Everything was ready to go with a copy of the document in my phone. (I am sure that your state provides a similar service.)

Are You Kidding Me?

As they say, “The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry”. When we arrived in Johannesburg, they would not accept our State of California proof with the QR code. They did not say what they would accept, but it had to have the QR code on it. They also said that their rules had changed at 10:00 am that morning which now required their sacred vaccination record with the QR code or an antigen test. Our only alternative was to wait for 2 hours in a line of a few hundred people to get an antigen test before we could actually enter the terminal’s passport check area.

We took our test but, but they did not issue a certificate. They just taped the plastic test piece to our travel documents to enter South Africa and required us to photograph it and show the photo to the border guards. They would not give us the proof of the test. That left us with the question of “How do we get back into the U.S. without a certificate showing that we had a negative antigen test? Then, I remembered our return trip from Canada last October and that the airline only asked for the Passenger Disclosure and Attestation Form, not the test certificate signed off by the person who gave the test. With that in hand, we were ready to return to the US. Just remember that you really want to have that proof of testing in hand when you enter the US. They could always ask for it at your first port of entry as you go through passport control.

We’ll Be Ready Next Time

Africa Union LogoWhen we got home, I was still looking for the info needed to get the correct document with the QR code for travel to Africa. I finally found it so that you don’t have to look for it.

On that site, you fill out the info on your tests from your little vaccine record card. Then photograph it and upload it to their website. When completed, they give you the option to print the certificate with their approved QR code or email it to yourself. I have my document, but I have to say that I am not fully convinced that it will get me through the Johannesburg airport. They will probably have changed their rules before we return to Africa. Just in case, next time I will also have a PCR test before we get on the plane.

There are a couple of additional documents you may need, depending upon which country you are visiting. Both Zambia and South Africa require you to complete a Traveler Health Questionnaire before you land and to provide that document to airport staff person checking your documents. You can even fill out the PDF and bring printed copies with you.

If you were planning to travel to Mexico, I just discovered that “Starting March 2022, it will NO longer be necessary to fill out the Health Questionnaire, to fly in/out from Mexico.”

As with every trip we take, we learn something new. “Travel is broadening”; just don’t come back too broad! We’re looking forward to our next trip, next week, to Cabo San Lucas!

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Turning Dreams into Memories,
One Vacation at a Time.
Bon Voyage!!!

As you might guess, this document is a compilation of information from our travels as well as from other travelers. I hope it has been of value to you.  Check out the important links below.

Don’t hesitate to email us when you return from your trip with any suggestions that will make this document better for you and your fellow travelers!

You may also want to visit our Facebook page, www.Facebook.com/TeamEdwardsTravel

What do you do when you can’t get an Uber or Lyft?

The logical answer might be to just call a taxi. I don’t know about you, but I am not too fond of taxi cabs. Besides that, I like to book my transfers before I leave home. Call me paranoid, but that is what I do.

The back story; the airlines have changed our flights from Venice to Paris, and I don’t think there is enough time to make our flight after the ship docks and we get off and get a ride to the airport. Unfortunately, as far as the airlines are concerned, the time difference is not enough to qualify for us getting a new flight without paying about $350 per person in penalties along with any difference in the cost of the tickets.

Our solution is to disembark at Trieste, Italy and take the train to Venice and stay the night close to the airport so that we an make our flight. That leaves us with the need to get from the cruise port to the train station in Trieste as well as from the train station in Venice (really Venezia S. Lucia in Mestre, Italy) to the hotel near Marco Polo International airport.

After giving up on Lyft and Uber, I found the perfect solution. GoOpti. Their fares are great, especially compared to a cab. Only 30 Euros in Trieste and 18 Euros in Mestsre for the two of us. That plus 14.80 Euros for the train ride and about 150 Euros for the hotel room sure beats the penalty for trying to change our flights.

The best thing, of course, is a sightseeing train ride in Italy that will cost less than the cost for an excursion that we could buy through the cruise line.

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Turning Dreams into Memories,
One Vacation at a Time.
Bon Voyage!!!

As you might guess, this document is a compilation of information from our travels as well as from other travelers. I hope it has been of value to you.  Check out the important links below.

Don’t hesitate to email us when you return from your trip with any suggestions that will make this document better for you and your fellow travelers!

You may also want to visit our Facebook page, www.Facebook.com/TeamEdwardsTravel

Thinking About a Self-Guided Trip to Europe?

Picture of Parliament at night in Budapest
Thinking About a
Self-Guided Trip To Europe?

If you are planning a trip to Europe where you will be traveling via airplanes, trains and the metro and you have never done it here at home, you may be in for a rude awakening.

Most of our trips had been by car or by car to the airport followed with a rental car or a shuttle to the hotel or resort.

Each one of us almost always had one 24″-26″ roller bag that was checked plus a 22″ carry on plus a personal bag like a purse or computer case or book bag style backpack for personal stuff that you wanted to have handy at all times.

We were not ready for the challenge of hauling all of our suitcases up and down 2-3 flights of stairs to get from one metro train to another, nor were we really familiar with how to navigate the metro system with all of those bags.

If you are planning such a trip, I suggest that you do what I heard Rick Steves say in one of his videos(that you will find on this page). He said to pack your bags, take a short trip via train, bus and subway or metro and spend the night and return home one or two days later. You will be ready to trade in your big suitcase and learn to pack light so that you are not lugging 80 – 100 pounds of stuff with you on your European trip. You will enjoy that trim much more if you can learn to travel light.

ebags Backpack

On this trip we will start in Sacramento and spend a couple of nights in San Francisco. First, we will have a friend drop us at the Amtrack train station in Sacramento. From there we will travel to Richmond, take the BART(our version of the Metro) to San Francisco, then walk to our hotel. We will do the Hop on-Hop off bus tour of the city, just like we were tourists, to get the lay of the land. On Saturday we will visit the great farmer’s market at the Ferry Building, then return home on Sunday.

You can try the same thing wherever you live. Do it or you will hate your self and be miserable on your European Vacation.