With the high temperatures laying it on thick these days, there’s no better time for gadgets that help prevent accidental overexposure to the sun (b/c none of us are silly enough to go there on purpose, right?). After all, scoring a massive sunburn during your week at the beach is no way to spend your precious vacation time. The UV Monitor Watch from Innovative Home Products retails for $19.95 and - besides telling time - rates the UV radiation levels from the sun according to their intensity. A 2 rating means you can stay outside with minimal protection, while an 11 rating means you can burn in just a few minutes. You can also program a UV alarm to go off when the rating hits a certain level. An added bonus: it’s water resistant up to 50 meters.

UV Monitor Watch

JD Power & Associates released its 2006 North American Hotel Guest Satisfaction Index Study (hello, mouthful). The top chains according to the study:

Mid-scale Limited Service: Drury Inn & Suites

Luxury: Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts

Mid-scale Full Service: Hilton Garden Inn

Economy: Microtel Inns & Suites

Upscale: Omni Hotels

Interestingly, the study also found that 43 percent of hotel guests book their reservations online. That’s shocking to me. I can’t remember the last time I booked a hotel any other way… Okay, nevermind. I can. But still.

For more info about the study and its findings, visit the JD Power web site linked below. In the travel section, search the press releases for “travel” for a list of recent studies.
Extended Stay: Residence Inn

JD Power & Associates Travel

Ibiza is one of those places you might want a guide for - because after a few hours there, you’ll probably be too wasted to hunt down cool spots on your own. Enter Ibiza Spotlight’s Ibiza Town Bar Guide. The guide is written by a local promoter who’s got the inside dirt on where to go to drink, flirt, drink, dance, drink, flirt… and drink.

American Airlines announced today that it is now offering travelers the opportunity to purchase $50 one-day passes for its 40 Admirals Clubs from the self-service kiosks at check-in.

As an editorial side note, I think $50 is way too high a fee for what you get. I mean, in most cases, you’ve got to pay for wi-fi access and food inside the club. Yeah, you get soft drinks and coffee for free, but you’d have to drink a crapload of beverages to get your money’s worth. I don’t doubt that airline clubs can be useful for certain travelers, but they aren’t all that impressive for most travelers.

If an airline came up with a members’ only lounge that was really cool and offered sweet amenities like free wi-fi, food, drinks, nice bathrooms with showers and amenities, video games, DVD players and iPod docking stations, well, I bet they’d get a ton of people trying to join at higher membership rates that the ones they charge now. I think someone should do that. In fact, a company not affiliated with an airline should do this. Open a chain of lounges with cool amenities and charge annual membership fees. That’s my idea for the day.

American Airlines Admirals Club official site

Students: check Student Universe for deals on tickets. Capitalize on your education, even during summer.

Air Greenland has announced plans to begin a weekly direct flight between Baltimore and Kangerlussuaq, Greenland. At the moment, travelers trying to get to Greenland have to fly from Iceland or Denmark - not a great option for U.S. folk. To snag a flight, you’ll have to wait until May 2007, but hey, maybe global warming will do some more damage before then and it won’t be as freaking cold there.

It’s an interesting development. In a time where travelers seem more and more interested in getting to untouched, unspoiled lands, access is opening up to this vast island with a population of only 55,000.

Why would one want to vacation near the Arctic Circle? Here are a few reasons: Northern Lights, dogsledding, kayaking, hiking, icebergs, angling, ice golf, whale watching, coastal cruises, ice cap crossing and the Midnight Sun.

Air Greenland Planning Weekly Flight to America

I post about travel contests in our Deals, Contests and Promos section when I spy a worthy one, but for travel contest nuts, there’s a blog devoted to the subject. The Travel Contests blog is run by a DC-based travel writer named Barbara Benham, who vowed to win a travel contest this year. To achieve her goal, she’s entering as many as she can and sharing the contest information with you, fair readers.

I learned about OGIO’s (known for golf bags) weird looking laptop bag from Mobissimo. Like the Mobi folks said, it looks a wee bit strange, but I’d be willing try it if it meant good things for my back. It’s quite an intriguing concept, though I might end up accidentally strangling myself while trying to get it on and off.

OGIO official site

The Sheraton Burlington Hotel in South Burlington, VT has announced plans to go smoke-free by August 1, 2006.

The weekend edition of the Wall Street Journal devoted its Eating Out column by Raymond Sokolov to a taste test of the new airline food offerings out there. Can’t link ya to the online version, but here are a few notable findings from this very scientific study:

Best sandwich: Air Canada’s $5 Subway veggie sandwich

Worst snack box: ATA

Best snack box: United’s Rite Bite

Worst muffin: American Airlines’ Otis Spunkmeyer 440 calorie muffin