I’m going to do things a little differently this year. I’m still going to write about my travels and share interesting travels news and tips but on top of that, I am going to write editorial pieces and actually do the research by experiencing them myself. So I have some great plans for this year to expand my blog and make the content more valuable, worthwhile and entertaining for my readers- who I love and am grateful for. I’m also going to be doing a complete re-design and rebranding of my blog. The name will stay the same and so will the mission statement: To share my travels and experiences while inspiring others to explore their world- but the look and feel of my blog may change. And finally I will be opening up my blog for some advertising. No I am not selling out, this has always been a part of the longer plan, it will just help me out with funding some of my travels.If you are interested in advertising keep your eye out for the advertise with us link which will come very soon. Some of my great editorial plans for this year include:

Best Places to Honeymoon on a Budget (ongoing): This will be a series of ten editorial features on different locations throughout the world. The feature will go throughout the year with hopefully one feature a month. At the end I will re-cap and talk about the best locations and give my final recommendations. This will be a unique gathering of resorts, excursions, cities and planned itineraries. I will actually be doing these different vacations and breaking it out in terms of how much money it will cost, the type of experience you will get, and different activities, restaurants, spas, etc to check out. It should be fun and I’m open to suggestions and recommendations so please email me at dottingthemap@gmail.com

The Bed and Breakfast: Last year I focused on hostels and offering tips for the hostel virgin. This year I will focus on the ever growing popular B&B front. I myself have never stayed at one before and realize it is a different type of vacation and vacationer who prefers these accommodations but excited to explore the new experience.

Dissecting Priceline.com: I had planned to do this last year but only got one opportunity to try out one of the features of this website, so this year I will explore it more widely, get interviews from priceline.com as well as from both people who swear by it and others who have had really bad experiences. I will do the research and learn the tricks of the trade to help ease others into finding better deals and make travel more affordable.

The Cruise: I plan to do a few features both video and written on the cruising industry and how it has changed the way some people vacation. I plan on talking to avid cruisers and offer tips and recommendations. Along side that- in a few weeks I will be taking my first cruise ever and be giving my own recount of the experience along with recommendation, tips and tricks.

Questions and Answers: I encourage my readers to email me with their questions and ask for recommendations and I will do my best to answer them on my blog. I am always happy to hear from my readers since this blog is mostly written for you. I will research, pull from my own experiences and ask others. Also look for polls this year on my blog. I love hearing your feedback.

International Travel (crossing fingers): Last year I boasted so much about my upcoming Europe trip and we saw how that worked out for me. My husband ended up breaking his collar bone in two places and our Europe fund went to surgery instead. So I learned my lesson to not count my chickens before they hatch- however we do have some trips tentatively planned throughout the year, so keep your eyes out for them!

My editorial content is not limited to these specific topics by any means. I come up with new topics daily and will be constantly updating. If you have any exciting travel news or ideas please let me know! I’m excited for 2009 and the growth that will come from it. Please tell your friends and don’t be a stranger!

I went on some pretty amazing trips last year that gave me quite a few amazing memories. The purpose of this blog post is to share those with you and let you look at some eye candy. These photographs were all done by my talented photographer husband. Enjoy!

 

Jefferson Memorial in Washington

Capitol Building

Rotunda in the Capitol Building

Rotunda in the Capitol

National Cathedral

Washington DC LDS Temple

Seward Alaska

Alaskan Fisherman

Alaskan Puffins

Waterfall, Anchorage Alaska

Bridge, Minneapolis Minnesota

Spoonbridge and Cherry, Minneapolis Minnesota

Hotel del Coronado, San Diego

Painted Ladies, San Francisco California

You know I am an advocate for hostels and unique hotels. Recently, I wrote a blog post about Switzerland’s first 1 star hotel in which they have transformed an old nuclear bunker into a hotel. Well by golly it’s time for another rendition of jaw dropping budget hotel options. Check out this old Pan Am 747 that has been turned into a hostel in Sweden! I mean why not? Old lighthouses, trains, and other unique facilities are often turned into hostels why not a giant (really expensive) airplane? And you even can get married in the left wing- sounds like a dream wedding to me. The hostel rates range from $40 for a bed in a shared four-bed dormitory to $170 for a private room with a twin bed and a single bed. The bridal suite costs $420 per night. The Jumbo Hostel is set to open January 15 but has been taking reservations for awhile now. The good thing about it is it’s very accessible by the airport!

 

 

photo credit goes to Jumbo Hostel

All I can say is wow. Really? An African airline that is launching this month called Airtimes Airlines is planning on offering flights where you pay by the minute- similiar to those cell phone plans. You can even book tickets via text message. I get that it’s unique and playing off the demographic of those who are younger and more tech savvy. But really- in an industry notorious for delays- who would be willing to pay per minute when they fly. Pay per mile- yes that makes sense. And I also realize that they probably only charge you for the average flying time, but the thought still makes me uneasy and makes me question this company’s viability. Who knows I could be completely wrong- maybe the concept will take off and become very popular. Proove me wrong Airtimes- Proove me wrong! Read the article that Wired wrote and let me know your thoughts!

An article was featured on CNN today that explained how to get your way with travel companies. I completely agree with it to the point that if you were seriously wronged these are some valuable tips to get your way- but not if you are trying to take advantage of a business for your own greedy pleasure. Here is an example of how we felt we were wronged and the company made it right (eventually).

One day the husband and I were making a day trip to San Francisco. We rented a car so we could head north and visit one of the redwood forests. We booked the car on Priceline and was told that $29 would be our set fee unless we added insurance and gas. We arrived at the airport and got to the rental car place- only to discover that they were out of the class of car we had reserved. So they upgraded us to a mustang. It made us a little nervous to drive this car around the city so we asked how much full coverage would cost. We asked for the total charge including Priceline fees and were told it would be $37. We felt it would be worth the cost so we opted for the insurance (something we generally do not agree to because we have full coverage on one of our cars). We had a great trip and nothing happened to the car.

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