Perú is a magical place. For most Smithsonian travelers the goal, the prize I should say, is to see Machu Picchu with ones own eyes. My wife and I went to Machu Picchu in January 1980, when the means to get there, the accommodations, and other aspects of the infrastructure were far less than they are now. Machu Picchu was one of the first places we visited that turned out to be better than we had hoped it could be; it still is, though we must now contend with some 2,000-2,500 other visitors each day.

But there is a great deal more to Perú. Perú was the richest part of the world in the 16th and 17th centuries, and it was a very wealthy country in the 19th century. Pe

Read full topic…

My strictly inexpert feelings that airport security measures are a waste of time are supported by a damning feature in the current issue of Vanity Fair which claims: As you stand in endless lines …, here’s a comforting thought: all those security measures accomplish nothing, at enormous cost.

The Vanity Fair article deals with the security measures at US airports where theyre supervised by the TSA – founded at vast expense as a response to the 9/11 attacks.

The measures, claims the article, accomplish nothing – they are there as security theatre to impress us that the Government is taking security threats very seriously indeed.

Terrorism experts say that the problem is that these measures largely expect future attacks to resemble past attacks – shoes have to be taken off, for example, because of the failed Shoe Bomber and 100ml liquid limits are imposed because of the failed plan to smuggle liquid explosive aboard planes in toiletry and drink bottles.

In fact any future serious terrorist attack would not only try something new it would completely by-pass the passenger security checks. It wouldn

Read full topic…

Its now a well known fact that social media is revolutionizing travel distribution, as we shared in our recent Top 10 Case Study pack.

Read full topic…

If you were told that you could get paid $6,000 a WEEK to play in the sand, stay in fancy hotels, eat amazing meals and get lots of publicity, would you do it? Ok, ok, so maybe play in the sand isnt the correct word but it feels funny saying work when Im talking about sand. In any case, it appears that some people actually do make $6,000 a week to build sand castles. And thats just not fair.

Or maybe it is. Ok, it definitely is. These arent just people playing with buckets theyre educated mechanical engineers and teachers who happen to be really good at building stuff in sand.

Read full topic…

Kim Jong-Il’s funeral coverage has increased demand for holidays in the secretive country.

Despite it being one of the worlds most secretive and sinister countries, more people than ever are now enquiring with their travel agents about holidays to North Korea.Recently, following on from the death of the countrys leader, Kim Jong-Il, television coverage from the country, consisting of tributes and the funeral itself, have seen the country on our screens more than ever before. Read full topic…