Holidaymakers are pulling the wool off their eyes and turning their sights online, thanks to the popularity of aggregator sites – a new software search mechanism that is influencing buying behaviour.

Current affairs programs having been delivering a round-about way of comparing products for years, however the online version puts the consumer in control through fetching & filtering requested information. The aggregator’s Google-like nature has seen been welcomed with open arms buy online consumers who are well versed in the search game.

Airline and hotel comparison sites got the wheels in motion, educating travellers about the various products and prices on the market. And now the sphere has expanded with compare sites popping up for car hire, tour bookings and travel insurance online. Industry experts have gone as far as saying that the role of the travel agent will more than likely become completely redundant. Why?  Consumers know where…

 
Individuality by Gretchen Wilson-Kalav

Who’s fooling who? Whether the question is (grammatically) correct or not doesn’t really matter. (That grammatically incorrect question worked very well for Eric Clapton so I stole it. Thank you, Eric.) What does matter is the essence behind the question. Are you happy with the life you lead or are you just fooling yourself into believing it’s all good? Do you like the 9:00-5:00 routine? Letting someone else write your playbook? Being a follower rather than a leader? Putting off what you really want to do for something you have been told needs doing?

If the answer to these questions are all “big fat yeses”, then it’s time to read The Art of Non-Conformity: Set Your Own Rules, Live the Life You Want and Change the World by Chris Guillebeau. I’ll just leave it at that…

About the Author:

Chris Guillebeau is the author…

There’s a certain amount of harm we cause ourselves always being grown up and tampering our desires with reality.

At the urging of a couple books and online articles I’ve read in the past months, I finally started a Bucket List, or a list of things I want to do before I die. One of the reasons for starting this list was to re-energize; to remember that feeling of being a kid and wanting with abandon because it’s inspiring. There’s a certain amount of harm we cause ourselves always being grown up and tampering our desires with reality. That’s why most of us travel: to escape the everyday and feel like we’re checking off some of those things on our own Bucket Lists.

In writing out my wants I started listing things like “Gift wrap my own presents” and “Learn how to bake better” and my energy was…

“The scene is all too familiar. A couple hundred people, weary after their flight, bunch around the cold metallic baggage claim, waiting for the first bags to appear. Minutes pass. The conveyors start turning. More minutes pass. Finally bags start falling on to the conveyor. Everyone edges a little closer to the carousel.”

A couple hundred people, weary after their flight, bunch around the cold metallic baggage claim, waiting for the first bags to appear.

Those words were taken from the review of Jason Barger’s original book. Not much has changed except Jason’s take on the concept. In the Business Leader Edition, he adds a new twist to the “Step Back” movement.

About The Author:

Jason Barger is an author, motivational speaker and a consultant. In 2008, he released the original version of Step Back from the Baggage Claim, which was written for all of us. Jason has…

It’s been sort of a rough week for my head. It seems as though I’m not only losing my English but simultaneously sucking at Spanish. I guess the English started slipping over time and with such immersion, it’s only a matter of time before the grammar starts to go. According to my dad, my blogs are getting sloppier and sloppier. I now speak no language well.

It’s been sort of a rough week for my head. It seems as though I’m not only losing my English but simultaneously sucking at Spanish.

Last week when I spent the afternoon at an estancia with my job, assisting Canadian tourists, I could see how my English was exaggerated and forced. It seemed like I was subconsciously speaking with a slight Spanish accent. But why? I guess because the majority of the time that I hear English (not counting TV), it…

Recently, I conducted interviews with Theodora Sutcliffe (Travels with a Nine Year Old) and her 9-year old son, Zac (The 9-year-old strikes back). Though Mom calls him Z, I asked his preference – it’s Zac. (Guess Moms get to call you by whatever name they choose. Comes with being a Mom.) Each was given a similar set of questions to answer. I hope you enjoy their replies.

Zac: In the blog (Travels with a Nine Year Old), your Mom has written: “…since he was small we’ve talked about taking a year out to travel the world when he is nine. Now we’re finally doing it.” Why did the two of you choose age nine for this journey?

Well, for starters, it was a 24-karat golden opportunity since Mum had the time.

Well, for starters, it was a 24-karat golden opportunity since Mum had the time. We always talked…

Men went on adventures. Women just kept dreaming about them. Thankfully, the tides have changed…

I’m not quite sure why, but the title of this book has reminded me of “She’s Leaving Home” by The Beatles. Perhaps it struck a chord. Harkening back to my more youthful days when women dreamed about leaving home on some “wild” adventure but settled for the alternative – a domicile existence and the few days on vacation. Packing it all in to follow the dream was something few of us dared to attempt. Men went on adventures. Women just kept dreaming about them. Thankfully, the tides have changed…

Daily, I see questions from women of all ages asking if traveling solo is safe. The uncertainty in their written words is overwhelming at times. They not only feel a bit lost but also stuck in the darkness. Because of this, Stephanie Lee’s e-book…

In August, 2008, Dave of The Longest Way Home, was interviewed about his search for that (proverbial) place we all like to call… Well… Home. The place where we set up a permanent camp, decorate the walls, kick off our boots at night, put books on the shelves, have home-cooked meals, and maybe don’t have to close the door when in the bathroom. Okay – a bit graphic but isn’t that part of what “home” really means? A place of comfort, security and belonging?

It’s now 2010. Has Dave found a home or is he still on the hunt? We took time to check back in with him to find out. Some things have changed. Some have not. But no matter what, in traveling that elusive road for these additional two years – life is no longer the same.

In your last interview, you were asked if you…

 
Paris In The Spring

In 2008, Lara Dunston was interviewed about her life as a travel writer and her experiences traveling with her husband, Terry Carter, who is also a travel writer, photographer and now – an expert in the art of eggs – culinary-style. (You think I’m kidding…)

Together, they have taken on a new project, Grantourismo!, which has them traveling from their home-base-storage-unit in Dubai to a new destination every two weeks over a twelve month period (February 1, 2010 through February 1, 2011). Not only are they investigating new destinations, Terry has found some new egg recipes and still travels with his trusty cleaver.

Being avid travel writers, you’ve just begun yet another journey around the world. How did you choose which countries to visit considering HomeAway Holiday-Rentals’ numerous available locations?

Lara: We’re two months into a 12-month grand tour of the globe, an experiential-cum-local…

World Art – Santiago, Chile, Photo by Peacocks

You began your travels at an early age. You continued to travel until real life intervened – meaning fell in love, got married, bought a house, had children and worked for a living. It may not have happened in quite that order (for some) but the end result remained the same. Travel was relegated to family vacations and work-related trips to here or there. Regardless, a nagging little voice kept tapping you on the shoulder, “Take a year off. Travel. See the world. Bring the family. Just do it!” And, so it went for lisa Shusterman.

About The Author(s):
Yes, the family thought her mad – at first. Little did they know how sane an idea it would prove to be…

lisa Shusterman is a writer who, along with her husband Marty Greenwell and twin daughters,…