The post Airbnb’s CEO Thinks That Hosts Are Overcharging appeared first on Traveler Dreams.
]]>When Brian Chesky co-founded the company with his friend Joe Gebbia in 2008, it was based on an idea to put an air mattress in their living room and creating a makeshift bed and breakfast. The simple concept has since grown into a business worth around $9 billion.
Over the years, millions of people have signed up as hosts, opening their homes to strangers. Yet, not all hosts are fit for the task and it has left a blemish on Airbnb’s reputation.
Many travelers feel that hosts charge too much to rent a room in their home, and that going to a hotel is better and cheaper. After all, hotels don’t expect guests to do chores or charge additional cleaning fees.
After analyzing millions of customer service complaints and social media posts, Chesky is trying to improve the platform. For example, the cleaning fee is now included in the price you see.
The CEO’s advice is for hosts to look at the going rate for hotels in their area when proving their properties “so they have a sense of what travelers are getting on other platforms.”
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]]>The post Finland is Helping Passengers Skip the Queue by Trialing Digital Passports appeared first on Traveler Dreams.
]]>For the first time, travelers from Helsinki to the United Kingdom will be able to board a flight using a digital copy of their passport.
It is no secret that we live in a digital age where we order everything online, have video meetings with people on the other side of the globe, and use our faces to unlock our phones. But one thing that has always remained in the physical realm is passports.
Finland
(@sundas_diaries)The Finnish Border Control is taking part in a pilot project that will see Digital Travel Credentials (DTC) used in a “real border control environment” for what is believed to be the first time in the world.
The DTC is a digital version of a physical passport that supposedly equally reliable and will allow smooth and fast border crossings without compromising security.
Currently, the trial is only available to Finnish citizens and involves registering at a police station where a valid physical passport is required to make a digital version. It will also include signing a consent form and a photo being taken for facial recognition.
The DTC can be used on Finnair return flights between Helsinki and the UK until the end of February 2024.
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]]>The post Got Student Debt? Frontier Airlines Have Got a Surprise appeared first on Traveler Dreams.
]]>Under the Student Loan Mile Match, 100 people will have the opportunity to match their debt per mile. In other words, $20,000 in debt will grant them 20,000 Frontier Airline Miles. There is a limit of 100,000, however.
“With flights available for as little as 10,000 miles, Frontier Miles are a great way to take advantage of Frontier’s expansive network and enjoy a getaway to explore someplace new or visit family and friends,” said the airline’s vice-president of marketing, Tyri Squires. “The larger the debt, the bigger the promotional mile payout, which can be used for free flights.”
The contest is open to all residents of the United States, except those in New York, Florida, and Washington DC. All you have to do is submit an entry form, so long as you have a Frontier Miles account.
The competition closes on August 27, so hurry!
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]]>The post What Career are People Searching for Most Around the World? appeared first on Traveler Dreams.
]]>Pilot
Many kids had dreams of being a pilot when they grew up, but it seems thousands of adults do too. There were 930,630 searches for how to be a pilot, with the profession proving the most popular ambition in 25 countries, including the United States, Australia, and England.
Writer
We may not even register how many articles, signs, and other forms of words we consume each day, but someone has to write them. How to be a writer was a top query in 75 countries, with 801,200 searches. Writing can entail being a novelist, copywriter, or journalist, which seems to pique the interest of those in New Zealand, Sweden, and South Africa.
Social Media Influencer
We live in an age where people can make a lot of money from content creation. Considering how much time we spend on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, it’s not that surprising that Influencer and YouTuber made the list in 4th and 7th place, respectfully. They appeared most popular in Spanish-speaking countries like Mexico, Argentina, Uruguay, and Spain.
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]]>The post Los Angeles International Airport Bans the Sale of Plastic Water Bottles appeared first on Traveler Dreams.
]]>Over the last few decades, the world has taken a massive stand against single-use plastics. Global efforts to reduce plastic waste have extended from vigorous recycling to the phasing out of plastic straws. And now, Los Angeles International Airport is joining the fight.
The transportation hub has chosen to ban the sale of plastic water bottles on its premises, instead offering travelers H2O in recyclable aluminum or glass containers.
“We encourage guests to bring reusable water bottles that can be filled at various water stations throughout our terminals. Thank you for helping us reduce plastic waste as we move towards zero waste,” read a tweet from the airport’s official account.
The proposal was first suggested in 2021, with a two-year phase-out initiative put into effect that would allow airport businesses to use up inventories of plastic water bottles and modify purchasing contracts.
The new policy applies to pre-packaged single-use plastic bottles of all sizes containing non-carbonated and unflavored purified water, spring water, mineral water, artesian water, well water, tap water, and electrolyte-enhanced water.
The ban, however, does not include bottled water served on board a flight.
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]]>The post UNESCO Raises More Concerns About Venice, Italy appeared first on Traveler Dreams.
]]>Known for its intricate network of canals, the city and its lagoon have been a part of UNESCO’s World Heritage Site since 1987. But the effects of over-tourism and climate change have placed the City of Water under concern from the global organization.
Italian officials are no stranger to the endangerment. Two years ago, the waterways around Venice a were declared a “national monument” and cruise ships were banned from entering.
Sadly, it doesn’t seem to have been enough.
UNESCO believes that the corrective measures are “currently insufficient and not detailed enough” and has accused Italy of not communicating in a sustained and substantive manner since the matter of blacklisting Venice was raised in 2021.
(@elen.venezia)Officials have said that they will review UNESCO’s recommendation.
One way in which Venice could be saved is if the government decides to finally enact the proposed tourist fee for those wishing to make day trips to the city. The initiative, which would control the number of visitors, was due to be implemented in January of this year, but has faced several objections.
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]]>The post British Airways was Forced to Serve KFC Onboard a 12-Hour Flight appeared first on Traveler Dreams.
]]>There is, of course, scientific reason as to why food doesn’t taste as good on an aircraft, but sometimes you’d prefer anything to the chicken or fish option. Say, for example, Kentucky Fried Chicken.
A series of passengers traveling from Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos to London recently found out what it was like to have KFC while 30,000 feet up in the air.
The 12-hour journey included a layover in Nassau in the Bahamas, during which the crew realized that there was an issue with the onboard meals not being properly chilled…
This resulted in the airline staff buying several pieces of KFC at the Nassau Airport so that the passengers wouldn’t go hungry, like this post from Andrew Bailey explained.
“With limited options available at the airport, our teams sprung into action and made sure our customers onboard our flight had something to eat,” explained a spokesperson for British Airways. “We apologize to customers that their full meal service was not available and that we had to wing it on this occasion. We’re sorry if we ruffled any feathers.”
While not all passengers were pleased with the makeshift meal, it certainly can’t be the first time that they’ve resorted to KFC in a pinch.
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]]>The post One Passenger Decided to Use a Movie Projector Aboard a Flight appeared first on Traveler Dreams.
]]>While Douglas Lazic-Kirk was on a recent flight, a fellow passenger decided to project the movie he was watching onto the overhead bins.
“I’ve flown on more than 800 flights to 147 countries and never seen anything like it,” said the Aussie who took a video of the experience. For reference, the film was The Patriot starring Mel Gibson.
In response to the unusual incident, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) decided to have a little fun on Instagram.
“Not reel-ly sure how to travel with your electronic devices? Don’t lose your cool-ing system,” read a post on the official account. It then proceeded to hand out tips about which electronic items are allowed in carry-ons.
“If these tips don’t re-movie all doubt and your packing concerns have you feeling frozen, we have something Elsa you might find useful,” the post continued, urging the 1.2 million followers to reach out if they have further questions.
Who says the TSA doesn’t have a sense of humor.
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]]>The post Venice’s Famous Canals are Drying Up appeared first on Traveler Dreams.
]]>Yet, the City of Water is reportedly drying up.
Although winter is Italy’s wet season, the country has been experiencing notably dry weather over the last few weeks. The situation has led to concerns that a drought may be on the cards.
“We are in a water deficit situation that has been building up since the winter of 2020-2021,” said a climate expert from Italian scientific research institute CNR, Massimiliano Pasqui. “We need to recover 500 millimetres in the north-western regions: we need 50 days of rain.”
Venice, in particular, has been affected by the bizarre weather. Flooding is a normally a worry in the canal-lined city, but due to the lack of rain, the opposite has occurred. Low tides are making it near impossible for gondolas, water taxis, and ambulances to travel along the main canals.
This has resulted in some ambulance boats having to stop farther from their destination, forcing medical crews to sometimes hand carry stretchers over long distances. Tourists have also been unable to venture on gondolas through some of the waterways, preventing them from navigating through the car-less city.
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]]>The post This is the Most Over-Touristed City in Europe appeared first on Traveler Dreams.
]]>One of the city’s claims to fame is that it served as a filming location for Game of Thrones. This is just one of the reasons that it has been named as the most “over-touristed” city in Europe.
The title comes courtesy of Statista, a global data-gathering company. It was found that Dubrovnik has 36 tourists for every local resident.
It was followed by Venice, Bruges, and Rhodes, all of which come in at 21.
Although UNESCO advised against admitting more than 8,000 visitors into the World Heritage Site at one time, it has not managed to curb the overflow.
Dubrovnik’s mayor has now revealed measures to address the tourist overload. One involves introducing a luggage drop-off system at the entrance to the city center. Visitors must then pay to have their suitcases delivered to their accommodation. The rule is expected to come into effect in November.
Until then, there are some ways to enjoy the walled city without the crowds. Do like the locals and stay out of Old Town. Instead, venture to the Gruž neighborhood and take a boat trip to Mijet.
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