Have a lovely New Year’s Eve wherever you are, whatever you choose to do. I’ll be holing up with some friends in San Fran, nothin’ major, but fun nonetheless. Oh, and at the risk of sounding like a mom, stay safe.

God only knows if this is still available, but FlyerTalk is buzzing with info about an Expedia-esque fare glitch over at Orbitz that translates to $3.19 for rooms at Tokyo’s Intercontinental Hotel. Head to A View from the Wing for instructions on how to get the fare (takes some crafty clicking around on the site).

I love it - Daily Candy’s Travel Quiz for new couples. At this time of year, the Candy reruns its favorite features from the past year, and this quiz came up as an added goody at the bottom of this week’s travel feature. It includes such gem questions as:

1. Hypothetical scenario: One of us gets bumped to first class. Who’s going — you or me?

2. Complete the following: When in Rome …
a) get wasted, dude!
b) don’t miss the Spanish Steps.
c) check out those hot Italian chicks.
d) beware of panhandlers.

4. What exactly is your policy on carrying other people’s luggage?

5. I have some extra room in my suitcase. I should pack:
a) running shoes.
b) some candles to put by the tub.
c) your handcuffs.
d) my handcuffs.
(Trick question. There is no way I’ll have extra room in my suitcase, fool.)

6. Do you have a fetish for having sex in historical landmarks or national parks?

12. I will not under any circumstances try to get a look at your passport photo. ________________ (sign here)

In London for New Year’s Eve? As of Friday, a transit strike was planned for the London Underground for 24 hours over the holiday weekend.

[Source: International Herald Tribune]
[Photo: TravelPoster cctraveler2]

Hey! That’s one crowded beach. Thought everyone experiencing the cold nasty weather right now could use a beach scene. Also, I admit I’m on a jag with the big phots. It won’t last forever, but I just thought this shot of a beach in Yalta, Ukraine was mucher better viewed in large format. In addition to being about an (in my book) rather unusual vacation destination, TravelPoster janreriksson’s post about Yalta is one of my recent faves. Here’s an excerpt (and just you nevermind the creativity taken with the English language):

During the Soviet times was Yalta considered as the best holyday place in the Soviet Union, it is that still. No more Soviet but Yalta still exists as a holyday resort. It is a very intense bath and party town but almost only for former Soviet Union people. That is sad, as being in Europe and in the cheapest country in Europe it deserves a better treatment from also us “westis”. Only real problem is the quality of the sand at the beech, more of rubbles than sand, swim shoes is needed and they are not sold in Yalta bring them from home. Food is OK and a meal at a normal restaurant cost about 3€ including beer. Ukraine makes lot of vine but at a very poor quality stay with beer or vodka (gorilka) it is OK.

Thanks for the post janreiksson!

Bankrupt Independence Air has until January 7 to come up with a major cash infusion or it will likely cease operations.

[Source: Charlotte Business Journal]

I usually post TravelPosters’ photographs to illustrate a destination - to give readers a glimpse of what a specific place looks like. I rarely do it for the artistic quality of the photo. But this is one I’m posting purely for the aesthetics. I just love it. Hence the unusually large size. To see more cool shots from TravelPoster andrehead’s adventures in Hue, Vietnam, visit this journal post.

This USA Today story has it all: travel, a blog and controversy. Check it out.

Phew! After the previous post, I had to go take a nap. But I’m back. I was perusing Conde Nast Traveler’s Jan issue and came across mention of Time Out’s The Other Side CD/DVDs. One one side: a mix CD by a DJ from the featured city (currently available for London, Paris and New York). On the other side: A tour of the city’s underground hot spots. You know, the sorts of places that you’re not supposed to find in guidebooks. Los Angeles and Berlin guides are in the works. Could be kinda cool to have one of these while you’re on the plane to the city.

Finally, what you’ve all been waiting for. Drum roll, please. The Top Travel Trends for 2005, as conceived by me, your TravelPost.com blogstress. I devised this list in a completely unscientific, unprofessional manner. Really, I just sat here and thought about all the travel-related stories, blogs and magazines I’ve read this year and came up with my take on the latest trends across the travel industry. So don’t get all nit-picky and “who gives you the authority to say this” about it. Also, these are in no particular order and certainly not in order of importance.

1. Travel aggregators: Sidestep, Kayak.com, BookingBuddy, Mobissimo. We love these guys at TravelPost.com. They’ll search hundreds of sites for fares so you don’t have to do the online traveler’s dance among the big three (Orbitz, Travelocity, Expedia) or other sites. IMHO, travel search engines such as these headed for changes, evolution, growth and consolidation just like the online travel sites that went before them. But it’s a really interesting era in travel search. I mean, a few years ago, who would have thought there was any room for a new onslaught of travel web sites? I worked for one of the big three during the dot.com boom and bust, and, let me tell you, all the travel sites were freeeaaking out back then about whether the market could sustain even a few big sites, let along the many niche sites popping up these days.

2. Volunteer vacations: With last year’s Tsunami serving as the main catalyst, volunteer vacations have taken off. Do-gooder travelers headed to Thailand in droves to help rebuild parts of the devastated coast. At the same time, other non-Tsunami volunteer vacation opportunities are achieving success, even with hefty price tags attached.

3. Please, sir, can I use my miles? As airlines offer more and more compelling ways to accrue miles, it seems proportionately more difficult to redeem them for travel. You can earn miles just by using an ATM card, going to college, buying denture cleaner, drinking water or dumpster diving, but, as the New York Times‘ Joe Sharkey has pointed out on many an occasion, turning those miles into a seat on a plane is about as likely as a non-celebrity getting good service at Hollywood’s Hotel Roosevelt.

4. Free wi-fi will win the war: Many hotels already offer free high-speed and wireless internet in their hotels, but those that don’t are feeling the pressure from travelers who’ve come to expect Internet access as a basic amenity. Most mid-range chains offer free Internet services to win customers, while many a high-end hotel still charges for daily usage. IMHO, this will change down the line. In a few years, I hope and pray, wi-fi will be as common as an in-room hairdryer or ironing board.

5. Everyone’s a hotelier: Hell, is there anyone out there who isn’t thinking about starting a hotel? This year, we had Brad, George, Matt, Steffi and Andre, Mariah, Versace, Bvlgari and many others talking the talk. It’s like owning a hotel is the new black.

6. Hotel beds are outta control: Soon, we may drown in all the squishy, comfy goodness that defines today’s hotel bedding configurations. At least we’ll die happy. At the same time, the massive pillows, heavy comforters and seemingly endless array of layered sheets (sometimes, I’m not sure which ones I’m supposed to get between) are literally breaking hotel workers. The beds take an eon to make-up, and hotel workers are rushed through the process. Injuries have happened. Expect more union protests down the line.

7. Getting off the beaten path is basically impossible: Unless, of course, you head to one of the world’s as yet untarnished (and usually quite expensive to reach) destinations like Mongolia, Bhutan, Madagascar or Space. In a world where travel is increasingly accessible to the average person, it’s harder and harder to find cities and destinations that haven’t been touched by the tourism bug. So naturally, the untouched destination has increasing cache. When everyone can get something, fewer and fewer people want it. I expect this trend to continue until the end of time.

8. Travel blogs can make/save you money: Over the course of the year, travel blogs were won savvy travelers money with hotel review contests, treasure hunts across the U.S. and in Singapore and even landed lucky blog readers $2/night accommodations in a posh Japanese hotel through a glitch in Expedia’s booking system. And a legion of dedicated travel bloggers scour travel resources to post the best deals every single day. And finally, more and more bloggers are getting paid to write, run and edit travel blogs. All a traveler needs to do is set up an RSS reader and rake it in. It’s not really that simple, but it sounds good, right?

9. Airlines charge for everything: Not a surprise here, but a trend nonetheless. Airlines are cutting amenities and charging for the ones they keep around. We were used to paying for headsets and booze, but now some airlines are even going to start charging for checked luggage and sodas. And of course, paying for airfone usage, Internet access, food and bags over 50 lbs are already so common they’re practically industry policy. In the coming year, I expect them to charge for air.

10. Podcasts: Here a podcast, there a podcast, everywhere a podcast. Do I need to explain this one? There are podcasts about almost any travel destination one can fathom. Museums, cities, motels, etc. You name it, there’s a podcast about it.

So that’s my story, and I’m stickin’ to it. I probably forgot something major. Are there travel trends you’ve noticed this year? Send them to me using the email link over on the right, and I’ll post them on the blog.