Those interesting asterisks

For some reason, I get lots of email offering me inexpensive flights and travel packages.  These deals always look get; however, they almost always have an asterisks.  These asterisks always point you to a more complete explanation of the deal.  For instance, you have to fly out of New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C. or some other major airline hub.  Of course, I live in none of these cities.  Sometimes, these deals are also restricted by when you can travel.  Sorry, I can’t travel tomorrow or next week.  My favorite disclaimer is that these flights are one way!  Frequently, all three conditions apply.  Okay, there goes that part of savings.  My least favorite offerings that I get are vacation packages, which include flight and hotel.  No thank you!  Despite my skepticism, occasionally, there are good deals that you through email … I guess that’s why I keep reading them.

STA & G.A.P. — Travel for the young?

A couple of days ago, I received my periodic STA (Student Travel) email with updates on travel deals and destinations.  STA [a Swiss found company] has an office at the University of Kentucky and provide travel arrangement for students … young students.  By the way, I am a full-time graduate student and a full-time employee and I am not young … compared to the 18 — 22 year old who make up the majority of college students, but I am still a student.

I don’t know about your STA office, but the one at the University offers a significant number of prearranged packages from G.A.P., the Great Adventure People [a Canadian company].  My take on these two companies is that they really cater to budget conscious young people, e.g., those adventurous spirits.  Students are not their real focus.  Of course, they will take anyone’s money.

As I started, I receive an email from STA, “debunking myths about tours.”  Now, I must admit that what they were debunking like many myths and stereotypes had kernels of realism.  So, STA says don’t be afraid to take a tour.  Tours don’t have to be those boring stogy “look here, look there, touch this, don’t touch this …” bus trips that your parents made take on family holidays.  Also, don’t worry, you won’t be the oldest person on the tour either and it will actually be an adventure.  This is STA’s spiel.

As a person who likes to take tours, and admittedly sometimes we are the oldest people on the tour, they can be very informative and an adventure.  I don’t think that an adventure has to be on the back of a moped, driving down some alley way off the beaten path.  While this could be fun, I don’t think it is necessarily more of a tour than my climate control comfortable buses.

I like to read airline magazines.

I actually like to read the airline magazines that you find in the seat pocket in front of you.  Admittedly, the magazines are nothing more than a cleverly, but thinly masked, form of advertisement.  But, the magazines do contain interesting articles [this is the clever aspect].  A large number of the articles feature cities and other destinations and reasons for traveling to the place [clever, but thinly masked]. 

Surprisingly, all destinations happen to be places that the particular airline or one of its code share partners service.  Not only do you learn what is unique about the destination, but you also can find entertainment and the finest dining experiences [actual advertisement].  Recently I read a piece where I could “pay” for my contribution to the emission problem.  Another article almost had me fooled that it was purely an article.  This piece talked about the blending of active and pampering holidays where you could do both.  Of course, it was on the airline’s travel route. 

In fairness to airline magazines, I read an interest piece about Europeans’ perceptions of Americans [people from the United States, not Canada, Mexico, or Ecuador] that was completely unrelated to advertisement.  Of course the title was “The Ugly American”.

Other than entertainment, these magazines serve another purpose.  If a talker sits next to you, you can always open the magazine and read it, or at least, pretend to do so … Not that I have ever done that.