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by George

The demise of Sunday newspaper travel sections a huge hit to Hawaii and Mexico tourism.

October 28, 2009 in George's Observations by George

Now I know you are thinking what’s the difference between online promotion and newspaper advertisements. But I would like to submit there is a huge difference.

I owned and operated a mid-sized travel agency in Silicon Valley for 20 years. We would run newspaper advertisements promoting Hawaii and Mexico vacation packages. These ads produced a great return on investment so we ran then every weekend, 52 weeks a year. We would co-op with big wholesale tour operators like Suntrips and Pleasant Hawaiian so we could run bigger ads than I could afford by myself. In the San Francisco Chronicle and San Jose Mercury News the Sunday Travel section readers would see these big ads promoting Hawaii and Mexico Vacations every weekend. In addition to my ads, 30 or 40 other travel agencies would run their own smaller independent ads. To add to the promotional frenzy, Ed Hogan at Pleasant Hawaiian would run lot’s of Radio ads hawking Hawaii vacations. Hawaii and Mexico Vacations were promoted constantly on the west coast. Now that everything travel is mostly promoted only on the Internet, Hawaii and Mexico are just another destination. The demise of Sunday newspaper travel sections has taken away the promotional advantage.

They must now compete on their own merits. As people surf online for vacation deals, they find many great destinations that are now promoted right alongside Hawaii and Mexico beach destinations. Hawaii’s not cheap and Mexico has issues that keep it in the news for the wrong reasons. No longer does Hawaii and Mexico enjoy the promotional advantage they once had from the Sunday travel sections. It will take new methods and new messages to promote Hawaii and Mexico vacations.

George

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by George

Mexico Hotels offer Huge Discounts to Lure U.S. Travelers

June 3, 2009 in George's Observations by George

Now is the time to vacation in Mexico!
Sounds like the mantra for the real estate industry’s: “Now is the time to buy.” However, it’s also true for Mexico vacations. With the Swine Flu scare behind us for the most part, Mexico’s Beach resorts and hotels are flooding the market with discounts and great packages to lure back U.S. travelers.

According to Jorge Sidron, Chief Mexico Corespondent for Travel Weekly “Travel discounts to Mexico might not get better than this. As the county’s tourism industry battles to recover from the severe impact of the swine flu outbreak, people considering a visit can choose from an unprecedented number of steeply discounted resorts and hotels throughout the country, including many that would otherwise be out of a typical tourist’s price range.”

Staying in a luxurious resort normally beyond one’s means? Self-indulgence in today’s frugal consumer environment? An interesting concept indeed. However, if you are planning on taking a vacation why not stay in the best hotels if they offer such a great price you really can afford it? It’s been a rough couple months. Go ahead, treat yourself. Go to a 5-star Mexico resort for the price of a 3-star hotel.
George

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by George

Swine Flu Causes Mexico Hotels to Close for Lack of Guests!

May 7, 2009 in George's Observations by George

The Swine Flu scare has forced the RIU chain of popular All-Inclusive Mexico beach resorts to temporarily close due to lack of guests. To be clear, they are not shutting down, but closing until mid May due to lack of incoming guests.

In Cancun, the RIU Playacar, Riu Tequila, and Riu Palace Cancun will shut down until May 21, moving all incoming guests to the Riu Yucatan or Riu Palace Riviera Maya.

In Puerto Vallarta, the Riu Jalisco is shutting down until May 21 moving all guests in-house and incoming to the Riu Palace Pacifico.Clearly, Riu Mexico Hotels has the facilities to shut capacity and handle the incoming guests. However, it truly indicates the impace that the Swine Flu scare is having on Mexico tourism.I’m no doctor, but isn’t it just the Flu? Don’t more people get Montezuma’s Revenge than the Swine Flu? I guess, people move in groups.

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Mexico Timeshare Scams – Now is not the time to buy

December 16, 2008 in George's Observations by George

I received this review the other day on www.ReviewResorts.com. I did NOT publish this review on this Mexico hotel for a couple reasons. Primarily because the author did not put input their contact information. However, it was disturbing in many ways because it fits a pattern of others I received. I will publish it here for you – So you can beware.

From Scammed:
“Please beware of the fraudulent timeshare sales practices at this resort. There are numerous complaints on this company all over the internet. XXXXX Resort sales reps go far beyond the usual exaggeration and embellishment at timeshare resorts. XXXXX Resort sales staff outright lie and deceive unsuspecting buyers. Take heed and stay away from this unscrupulous company. In my experience, XXXXX Resort agreed to trade-in a timeshare I owned at another resort to offset the price of an upgrade from a studio unit to a one bedroom. When questioned about the why the trade-in was not listed in the upgrade documents, I was told that it would be in a separate document and would be provided shortly by fax. I told them that my upgrade was based on that trade-in. Although they later put the supposed trade-in confirmation in my sales folder, it was not correct. After returning home, I found that the document referred to listing the timeshare for rental or resale instead of confirming the purchase by XXXXX Resort. There had been no mention of listing the property for rental or resale in my discussion with the sales rep. The only discussion was related to the trade-in to XXXXX Resort. I thought it might be a clerical mistake at first, but soon realized this was fraud when XXXXX Resort pretended to know nothing of the trade-in. I also discovered that there are many, many other victims of the XXXXX Resort timeshare scams. You can find a multitude of posts by doing a Google search of XXXXX Resort combined with scam, fraud, and lies. It is amazing that they have been able to perpetrate these fraudulent practices for so long.”

The old adage of “Let the buyer beware” comes to mind. In this economic recession, I am sure that there will quite a few hotel managers looking to exploit time-share sales for more revenue. Be careful – Now is NOT the time to buy Time-shares.

George

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Winter Mexico Cruises on Holland America

December 10, 2008 in George's Observations by George

Winter Mexico Cruises aboard Holland America Line.

The economic mess is really bringing travel prices down. I was excited to find some really great cruise deals for Mexico cruises from San Diego. What really stands out is that these 7 & 10 day sailings are on the deluxe Holland America Line.To check out these deals go th the Holland America Cruise Line web site.


Holland America Cruise Line

7-Day Mexico — aboard Holland America Cruise Line
Visit: Cabo, Mazatlan & Puerto Vallarta
Jan 3, 10, 24, 31; Feb 7, 14, 21

Inside Cabins from: $449
Outside Cabins from: $499
Verandah Cabins from: $699
Verandah Suites from: $899

10-Day Mexico — Sea of Cortez Cruises
Visit: Cabo, Loreto, La Paz, Guaymas, Mazatlan & Puerto Vallarta
Jan 3, 10, 24, 31; Feb 7, 14, 21

Inside Cabins from: $699
Outside Cabins from: $799
Verandah Suites from: $1,699

Enjoy,
George

Note: Prices are per person, subject to availability and change without notice.

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Mexico Travel Deals

December 5, 2008 in George's Observations by George

Mexico Vacation Deals
Winter is the time to travel to Mexico. The weather is usually pretty decent. Not so hot, not so much rain. No guarantees on the weather of course. But the trend is pretty well known.

So I was searching for Mexico vacations and found some really good deals on Pleasant Holidays. The specials below include Airfare from Los Angeles, but Pleasant Holidays has airfare deals from most major U.S. cities. Heck the Cancun special below is using the Oasis Cancun All-Inclusive Resort (food and drinks), airfare from LAX and transfers to the hotel from the Cancun Airport.


 

3 Nights at the NH Krystal Puerto Vallarta
Includes: 3rd night FREE and Kids 12 and younger stay FREE
Valid for travel: Select Thru 05/04/2009 – 05/26/2009
From $399.00 – Plus Govt Taxes/Fees

 

3 Nights at the NH Krystal Cancun
Kids 12 & younger stay FREE.
Valid for travel: Select Thru 05/04/2009 – 05/19/2009
From $495.00 – Plus Govt Taxes/Fees

3 Nights at the All-Inclusive – Oasis Cancun
All-Inclusive Includes: all meals, drinks, non-motorized water sports daily activities and more! Plus Kids 12 and younger stay FREE
Valid for travel: Select Thru 01/12/2009 – 01/27/2009
From $536.00 – Plus Govt Taxes/Fees

The source of these Mexico Vacation Deals: www.PleasantHolidays.com

Happy Travels,
George

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Zen Travel – Yoga Resorts in Mexico

December 4, 2008 in George's Observations by George

Yoga Resorts in Mexico. OM and Namaste at a Mexico Beach Resort with www.ViaYoga.com.

A while back I was part of a group that visited the Ceiba del Mar Resort in Puerto Morelos (Cancun). Some of the group signed up for the morning Yoga class held on the beach.

So I’m in the gym lifting weights like most guys and the group of ladies signed up for the Yoga class came into the gym area to get fresh towels for the class. Naturally they egged me on to join them calling me a wimp and saying that I probably couldn’t handle Yoga anyway. Well, you ladies know exactly how to get a man to do what you want and I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to prove them wrong, right?

You ladies are smart because I sure am glad I did. It was an truly remarkable experience. Practicing the peaceful art of Yoga on a tropical beach with the sound of the ocean waves in the background is one of the most relaxing experiences one can have. I will definitely make this a priority on future beach trips.

With that said, I stumbled upon a new tour company called VIA YOGA. These people have combined tropical adventure travel with Yoga.
Via Yoga’s moto is: Sun. Surf. Yoga. You.

VIA YOGA combines surfing and Yoga, Pilates and Surfing, Spanish and Yoga and more. This sounds like a real nice twist on experiential travel. They have a great web site that will have you ready to explore your inner Zen in Mexico. Here is a link to their web site for more information: www.ViaYoga.com

Enjoy,
George