Orbitz, Expedia Seek Congressional Help In Fight On Room Taxes
31. January 2010
TRAVEL GUY
By Martin Vaughan
Dow Jones Newswires(Updates with positions from hotel trade association, union)
WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- Online travel booking firms including Orbitz Worldwide Inc. (OWW: 6.13, -0.01, -0.16%) and Expedia Inc. (EXPE: 21.41, -0.27, -1.25%) are asking Congress to resolve in their favor a legal dispute with cities and counties over hotel occupancy taxes.
The online firms are seeking to add a provision to economic stimulus legislation pending in the U.S. Senate, that limits their exposure to the taxes.
The firms have battled lawsuits from cities including Houston and Louisville, Ky., claiming that the companies underpaid hotel bed taxes. The online firms have been quietly lobbying for Congress to step in since last year, but the controversy broke into the open when the provision turned up this week on a Senate Finance Committee staff draft list of possible items being considered for a stimulus bill.
Local government groups representing cities, counties and officials who control local government purse strings immediately launched a counter-attack. The groups wrote senators Wednesday that the online firms’ lobbying was “nothing more than efforts to preempt state and local taxing authority.”
Hotels, too, have joined the fray, lobbying alongside local governments to block the online firms’ efforts. The online booking firms “should not be allowed to manipulate the tax law to provide themselves a competitive advantage,” the American Hotel and Lodging Association wrote in a December letter to the Senate.
The provision favored by online travel firms is unlikely to be included in an initial jobs and stimulus bill Senate Democrats are unveiling next week, according to a Senate leadership aide. But Democrats plan to move more than one bill this year aimed at spurring the economy.
The dispute revolves around how much the online booking firms should pay in hotel occupancy taxes, which municipalities use to promote tourism. The online firms claim they owe taxes only on the discounted amount they pay hotels for the rooms, not on the full amount paid by the customer.
For instance, if an Orbitz customer pays $100 for a room booked on the firm’s Web site, and Orbitz negotiates an $80 room rate with the hotel owner, the online firm pays tax on the $80 discounted rate. If the tax rate was 5%, Orbitz would pay $4, rather than $5 if the tax was assessed on the full price paid by the customer.
Hotels say that gives the online booker a pricing advantage, which makes the customer less likely to book on the hotel operator’s own Web site. The same room, if booked on the hotel site, would be subject to a $5 tax in the example cited above.
The online firms have received backing for their effort from Sens. John Ensign (R., Nev.) and Ron Wyden (D., Ore.), according to lobbyists and congressional aides. Those senators’ offices did not respond immediately to requests for comment.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) is also sympathetic to the position of the Internet travel firms.
The proposed legislation has gone through several drafting changes, but one version would prohibit a state or locality from imposing a hotel occupancy tax on the fees that travel agents, online or otherwise, collect from customers. Another version being considered would let each state set a uniform policy on hotel room taxes, reducing the uncertainty for online operators who face thousands of separate municipal tax regimes.
Online travel firms contacted for this article referred questions to an industry trade group, the Interactive Travel Services Association.
“It is imperative for Congress to step in and lay out some parameters for how these issues should be resolved,” said Andrew Weinstein, a spokesman for the group. “It’s not good for tourism when travel companies are forced to litigate with local municipalities rather than bring in more visitors.”
The group’s members include Orbitz, Expedia, Travelocity, and Priceline.com Inc. (PCLN: 195.35, -6.33, -3.14%).
Local governments counter that the revenue they lose because online firms don’t pay tax on the final consumer price hurts their efforts to promote tourism.
“It’s totally disingenuous to say that what the online travel companies are seeking is a tax break for job creation. This will cost jobs, not create them,” said Lars Etzkorn, program director at the National League of Cities.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal think-tank that has criticized the online firms’ position, estimates that as much as $650 million in annual taxes are at stake in the dispute.
The online firms counter that the litigation from municipalities threatens their entire business model, the loss of which would cost the U.S. tourism industry $1.147 billion annually, according to Weinstein. They also have won backing for their legislation from Unite HERE!, the hotel and casino worker union.
“Simply put, online travel companies put heads in beds, filling hotel rooms that would have gone empty,” Unite HERE! wrote in a December letter to senators.
Copyright © 2009 Dow Jones Newswires
Orbitz | 0 Kommentare »
Travelling with Kids
19. September 2009
TRAVEL GUY
Holiday with the Kids
Life is always changing, when it was just the two of us things seemed to be a lot simpler, if we wanted to go out or do something at the last minute we just did it.
Holidays, travel and nights out on the town where arranged a few days before hand if that. Children bring new responsibilities and a whole new time frame, but I must say I wouldn’t change a thing.
Now when we go on holiday there’s a lot more planning, and its no longer 5 star hotels and relaxing over cocktails, now its all about cheap flights, budget hotels, kids meals, kids activities, and sunscreen.
Its hard sometimes to stretch the budget far enough to cover everything, but my kids never want for anything,
I’m not saying they get every new games or trendy clothes, but they are well mannered, happy and have enough toys and things to open a shop!
Holiday with Children | 0 Kommentare »
The Easy Way To Book Group Accommodation
17. September 2009
TRAVEL GUY
Nothing in life is as easy as it seems, this is definitely the case when it comes to going on
Sounds easy but…. Booking accommodation for a large group is a lot harder than a single room with a couple of beds.
The first thing is the travel date, getting everyone to agree on the same date to travel, is the first hurdle to jump over, next is to consider is where to go and then the budget you have to work with, a good guide to make this a bit easier, is to work out what you want to pay per person per night, then start your search for the right accommodation in the city you want to visit, it could be London group accommodation, New York group accommodation, Barcelona groups accommodation or Group accommodation Amsterdam or any other worldwide destination.
You could spend countless hours on the phone and on the internet trying to figure out the best youth hostel or budget hotels accommodation to book, but what you should have done is to make just one phone call or sent one email to a specialist in booking budget accommodation for large groups, like Hostels247.com that has a dedicated group booking department with years of experience in placing large groups in great accommodation worldwide.
You see booking group accommodation is not only about which hostels and discount hotel for groups have availability, but most of all which locations are best suited to accommodate the group, especially when someone in the group has special requirements, the more information you give the better, some key points to include are:
Country:
City:
Arrival Date:
Number of Nights Stay:
Number of People:
Number of Male:
Number of Female:
Number of Male Team Leaders:
Number of Female Team Leaders:
Type of Group:
Main Group Age:
Budget Per Person Per Night:
Preferred Room Types:
Any Special Requirements/Additional Information:
Once your information is received, the group booking specialist, works on your behalf to find the best accommodation for your group whether it’s a student or university group, hen or stag group, corporate group or just a family group of 10 people or more, they will help you to book the best accommodation for your group.
Use the Special requirements and additional information to ask how far the accommodation is from the airport or train station, if the accommodation is in the city centre, what facilities the accommodation has like guest kitchen, bar, lounge and if breakfast, linen and towels are included in the price, basically anything that you want to be included or you want to be provided for the group ask about it in this area.
When you’re using a group booking specialist make sure to ask if they charge any booking fee, or charge to use your credit card as this can add to the cost, there are some companies that don’t charge any fees so try to use them it’s a lot cheaper, make sure the price the price you are quoted is inclusive of all the local taxes and charges.
To put it bluntly, these companies do all the work for you and it means there is no headache and worry about where you and your mates are going to stay, you can just choose from the groups accommodation option offered, check the pictures description, reviews and location on the map, it’s the sure fire way to make booking group accommodation easy and hassle free.
Group Accommodation Booking | 0 Kommentare »
New York Named Top World City 2009
11. September 2009
TRAVEL GUY
Time out Names World’s greatest city 2009
New York has been named by Time out as the World’s greatest city 2009 closely followed by London.
It was a close fought race for first and second place between New York and London,some of the things that pushed New York to the forefront are, New York has a 24 Hour culture, offering travellers and locals something to do and see no matter the time of day or night, from Restaurants, Bars and Night Clubs to Theatre, Shopping and Sight Seeing, no other city has more energy than New York this factor gained New York an extra point for Buzz getting the top mark of 10 compared to London getting 9.
New York is a new, modern, planned city compared to ancient and historic cities such as London, Rome and Athens and has built itself up very quickly to a prime holiday and business destination for reasons other than historical sights and monuments, New York city has countless accommodation options for tourists, from Budget Hotels and Youth Hostels to Luxury 5 Star Hotels and Studio Apartments.
The Manhattan skyline makes your heart beat faster and is an imposing and amazing sight, whether you see it every day or when just you’re visiting for a holiday, the architectural delights of Manhattan gained New York two extra points making 9 over London getting 7 for architecture and pushed New York into the top city spot.
New York city has an unrivalled infrastructure needed for any great city of the world.
The key features looked at to determine which city is the greatest in the world are:
Architecture, Arts & culture, Buzz, Food & drink, Quality of life and World status.
Top 10 Results
1. New York, USA
Architecture: 9
Arts & culture: 10
Buzz: 10
Food & drink: 9
Quality of life: 6
World status: 9
Total/60: 53
2. London, UK
Architecture: 7
Arts & culture: 10
Buzz: 9
Food & drink: 9
Quality of life: 6
World status: 9
Total/60: 50
3. Paris, France
Architecture: 9
Arts & culture: 9
Buzz: 6
Food & drink: 9
Quality of life: 7
World status: 8
Total/60: 48
4. Berlin, Germany
Architecture: 7
Arts & culture: 9
Buzz: 9
Food & drink: 6
Quality of life: 7
World status: 8
Total/60: 46
Equal 5th. Barcelona, Spain
Architecture: 9
Arts & culture: 7
Buzz: 8
Food & drink: 8
Quality of life: 8
World status: 4
Total/60: 44
Equal 5th. Chicago, USA
Architecture: 9
Arts & culture: 8
Buzz: 7
Food & drink: 7
Quality of life: 7
World status: 6
Total/60: 44
Equal 5th. Tokyo, Japan
Architecture: 7
Arts & culture: 6
Buzz: 9
Food & drink: 10
Quality of life: 4
World status: 8
Total/60: 44
8. Istanbul, Turkey
Architecture: 7
Arts & culture: 7
Buzz: 9
Food & drink: 7
Quality of life: 6
World status: 7
Total/60: 43
Equal 9th. Rome, Italy
Architecture: 9
Arts & culture: 7
Buzz: 7
Food & drink: 6
Quality of life: 6
World status: 7
Total/60: 42
Equal 9th. Sydney, Australia
Architecture: 7
Arts & culture: 6
Buzz: 7
Food & drink: 7
Quality of life: 10
World status: 5
Total/60: 42
New York Top World City 2009 | 0 Kommentare »
Take A Break, Travel The World Without Breaking The Bank
9. September 2009
TRAVEL GUY
There is no denying the obvious fact - the world is a big place.
With over five billion people tucked in 195 countries, it is very easy to be humbled by the sheer enormity of our planet. The world has always been an incredibly diverse place. This is why since the dawn of time, people have always taken time out to explore its many distinctive parts whenever they are presented with the opportunity. Few people who have walked the streets of Greece, run with the bulls of Madrid or marvelled at the wonders of the Taj Mahal have left disappointed. The world offers so much to the seeking traveller. In today’s world where distance is fast being reduced by modern travel methods, the need and opportunity to visit strange countries has never been more appealing.
For the best relaxation from the familiar routines of your day, there is nothing better than visiting another country and enjoying the strange traditions, cultures and weather of its shores. The only problem is most times, people are worried about the important question of travel accommodation.
The good news is that this is easily solved.
By making use of the services of online hostel booking webites or travel agencies, you will be able to find accommodation in almost any part of the world. Established websites like hostels247.com have provided steady support for millions of travelers all over the world. Their advantage lies in their understanding and relationships with hostel services all over the world. Fancy a visit to Rome? By using the services of hostel booking sites like www.hostels247.com you will be provided with available hostels in Rome. Even better, you not only get to enjoy the benefits of choosing a delightful location, you are also presented with the chance of reducing your expenses. Why pay so much money for a night in a three-star hotel when you can pay much less and get so much more?
No one knows the city like its natives. For the best advice on hostels in London, you would undoubtedly prefer the opinion of someone familiar with the sights and sounds of London. This is why hostel booking sites are so effective.
By making use of locales in the area and carefully investigating the various options available, hostel websites ensure that you get the best accommodation results out of your search.To this end, even if your destinations are cities that have a reputation as being expensive, such as New York, Paris or Dublin, hostel booking websites will allow you to find accommodation options that are significantly less expensive and still of sufficient quality. They also will save you the long hours of trying to get a booking.So the next time you plan on taking a trip, save yourself the worry. Save yourself the delays. Save yourself the money. Visit a hostel booking website and make your journey so much more fun.
There is no denying the obvious fact - the world is a big place.
With over five billion people tucked in 195 countries, it is very easy to be humbled by the sheer enormity of our planet. The world has always been an incredibly diverse place. This is why since the dawn of time, people have always taken time out to explore its many distinctive parts whenever they are presented with the opportunity. Few people who have walked the streets of Greece, run with the bulls of Madrid or marvelled at the wonders of the Taj Mahal have left disappointed. The world offers so much to the seeking traveller. In today’s world where distance is fast being reduced by modern travel methods, the need and opportunity to visit strange countries has never been more appealing.
For the best relaxation from the familiar routines of your day, there is nothing better than visiting another country and enjoying the strange traditions, cultures and weather of its shores. The only problem is most times, people are worried about the important question of travel accommodation.
The good news is that this is easily solved.
By making use of the services of hostel travel agencies, you will be able to find accommodation in almost any part of the world. Established websites like hostels247.com have provided steady support for millions of travelers all over the world. Their advantage lies in their understanding and relationships with hostel services all over the world. Fancy a visit to Rome? By using the services of hostel booking sites like www.hostels247.com you will be provided with available hostels in Rome. Even better, you not only get to enjoy the benefits of choosing a delightful location, you are also presented with the chance of reducing your expenses. Why pay so much money for a night in a three-star hotel when you can pay much less and get so much more?
No one knows the city like its natives. For the best advice on hostels in London, you would undoubtedly prefer the opinion of someone familiar with the sights and sounds of London. allThis is why hostel booking sites are so effective. By making use of locales in the area and carefully investigating the various options available, hostel websites ensure that you get the best accommodation results out of your search.To this end, even if your destinations are cities that have a reputation as being expensive, such as New York,Paris or Dublin, hostel booking websites will allow you to find accommodation options that are significantly less expensive and still of sufficient quality. They also will save you the long hours of trying to get a booking.So the next time you plan on taking a trip, save yourself the worry. Save yourself the delays. Save yourself the money. Visit a hostel booking website and make your journey so much more fun.
Travel The World | 0 Kommentare »
Lagos State Nigeria Imposes 5% Tax on Hotels
23. June 2009
TRAVEL GUY
Lagos Imposes 5% Tax on Hotels & Hospitality Sector
Lagos State Governor, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN) on Monday signed into law a bill to impose a five percent consumption tax on all goods and services consumed in hotels, restaurants and events centres within the state with an assertion that the new law exempts all those who comply from paying the Sales tax.
According to Governor Fashola who spoke at the Conference Room of the Lagos House, Ikeja, the new law also exempts the operators of traditional and customary eating places popularly called bukas.
He added that the enactment of the law is a response to the complaints of double taxation which recurred during the administration of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu as well as during the Governorship election campaigns in Lagos and the inception of the present administration.
Governor Fashola explained that the new law also seeks to promote and develop some of the good practices that usually take place in some of distant jurisdictions and which people here are ready to always use in comparing the country.
Said he: “We have always decried the relative level of development and compared ourselves with the progress made in other jurisdiction without asking ourselves what prices those jurisdictions have had to pay for the level of their development.
“This law seeks to promote, develop and do some of those things that are done in those other jurisdiction by which standards we are measured. No event place that I got to overseas that do not demand this tax.”All patrons of such places have to pay. All those who access hospitality outfits across the world do pay”.
Governor Fashola added that during his recent trip to South Africa, he took note of how much he was levied and that it was very substantial.
The Governor, who described the Lagos business environment as one of the most attractive when a comparative analysis of Europe and West Africa is done, added that the highest income tax in Lagos is 25 percent but the same tax is as high as 43 percent in some other jurisdictions.
He added that the new tax is a guarantee of good life that allow the Government to perform its role well adding that the beauty of the new law is that people will only pay when they make use of the service.
Said he: “For those in the hospitality sector, it is an opportunity to share in the commonwealth and enable us to ensure a further sustenance of security that will secure the events and help in increasing capacity to deliver on infrastructure like roads and water supply because the event centres cannot be viable if infrastructure is absent”.
Lagos Nigeria Hotels & Hospitality Sector | 0 Kommentare »
Cancelled Flight A Nightmare
14. June 2009
TRAVEL GUY
Cancellation of Flight for Unjustified Reasons Is Immoral
In my humble opinion, the services of airline industry have been deteriorating these days. Taking a flight now is such a burden, the waiting, delayed and the inconvienence of cancelled flights, has taken the joy out of travel. Travel was once an enjoyable thing to do. Airlines take untimely decisions and cause passengers a lot of inconvenience.
I just graduated from university in San Francisco and wanted to give a surprise visit to my family in Michigan during the Christmas holidays, two years ago. To get cheapest airline tickets, I booked for a flight from San Francisco to Michigan three months ahead of the planned travel. Just two days before the scheduled departure, the flight was cancelled for some unjustified reasons.
They asked me to take a flight from L.A. to Michigan, as an alternative, without even realizing what they were asking me to do. L.A is 400 miles away from San Francisco and it was next to impossible to catch the suggested flight.
I asked them for a refund which took a long time, three months later. I was really unhappy that I had to buy another Air Fare which was very expensive, because it was a last minute ticket, and the only flight I could find to Michigan.
All I want to ask is, there must be some Legal responsibility that the airlines should abide by, and checks made on Air Line operator to see why flights are cancelled on such short notice and no suitable alternative given to customers.
There must have been other passengers who would have cancelled their journeys altogether. Such a conduct is highly immoral and requires passengers to be adequately compensated for any financial loss borne by them due to undue cancellation of flights.
Cancelled Flight A Nightmare | 0 Kommentare »
Never Sit Near The Toilet On The Air Plane
2. May 2009
TRAVEL GUY
Flight Seat Near The Toilet- A Deadly Experience! My Worst Flight Ever
I travel frequently by air but in the last 7 years I have never had the misfortune of sitting near a toilet. It was a trip from San Antonio to Atlanta and I was damn tired because of the hectic weekend. All I wanted was a comfortable seat and nothing else. I always make sure to book a seat aboard flights of my favourite airline, and check in early to ensure I get a good seat, but somehow this time there were no seats available. So, I had to travel by another airline.
My seat was so close to the air plane toilet, that if I stretched out my left arm I could have opened to the door lock. During the entire flight I did not have even a wink of sleep due to the constant noise of flushing. I think because it was very cold inside the plane, that made almost all the passengers rush to the toilet continously. Just imagine how awful the whole experience was ! A couple of them, tired of waiting for their turn, used my arm rest to rest their butts.
The toilet, that was perfumed with the air freshner at the beginning of the flight, was later was filled with the stench of shit and urine. It became difficult for me to breathe. At times, I just felt like puking. I just wondered if it was right to make someone sit so close to the toilet and stll pay the same airfare. In fact, even if someone asked me to sit in the same seat for free next time, I would refuse. This was my worst ever flight experience!
Now days the airlines make the seats so close to the toilet, theymight as well rename the seat as the Toilet Seat, and they still expect you to sit in these seats, pay the same price as everyone else and eat your food while the whole place smells like shit.
bad travel Experience | 0 Kommentare »
Ryanair Planning to Charge to Use the Toilet?
15. April 2009
TRAVEL GUY
Ryanair Planning To Charge Customers for Using Toilets - Now that is Cheap!
Recently Michael 
O’Leary the chief Executive of Ryanair the Irish low cost airline based in Dublin with the main hub located at London Stansted airport, announced they may charge its customers £1 for using the toilets on their aircrafts. Isn’t that cheap? With oil price getting back to normal, rather than reducing air fares and providing more services, airlines such as Ryanair have now resorted to the crudest way of unbundling.
I just wonder how anybody could think that they could charge customers to use the toilets on the aeroplane, oopps Michael O’Leary thought so, I’m sure he’s thinking millions of passengers every year flying on Ryanair, by charging £1 each time they use the toilet, they could make millions, from customers just using the toilet. What a Genius?
Imagine going to a restaurant paying for your meal and deciding to use the toilet and not being able to use the toilet until you to put money in the slot to unlock the toilet door, or Checking into a Hostel or Hotel Accommodation and being told that the charge to use the toilet is not included in the room price.
Imagine the plight of the customers who travel by air, who are paying a hefty sum for an airline tickets, when they will also have to shell out more money for different services, even for using a toilet. Let us even accept it for a moment. What will be the charges of using a lavatory then? 
It starts at £1 were will it end? And if somebody has an upset stomach, will such a customer get bulk discount or special return customer tokens for the toilet?
When in the air, customers have no choice, other than to use toilets provided by the airline. Can nature’s call be made into a tool to make profit? All this is making airline customers go crazy. With the airlines withdrawing one service after the other, there is a lot of outcry. I think it is time that the passengers assert their importance. The authorities need to question the costs and revenues of such companies.
I know the airlines are exempt from all sorts of legal restrictions on charging their customers for everything, the most annoying part of this, is they can legally do it
There are plenty of incidences of flight delays, rude staff, over charging and the situation is getting worse. It is high time that the customers stand up united against such weird announcements. Wonder what shall be the next. Charging customers for farting, puking or even a charge for the oxygen used during the flight? Don’t laugh it could be coming soon.
Will the madness, of these extortionate charges, to travel by air, ever end?
Airline News | 0 Kommentare »
Travel Break from Everything
21. March 2009
TRAVEL GUY
Reviving Myself by Taking a Break from Everything and Everyone
Sometimes you need to revive your intellectual frame of mind. Sometimes you wish to be left alone. Sometime you love to travel alone. Though, most of my friends don’t agree with the idea, it has always been an incredible experience for me to measure the miles of road alone. Exploring new places make me more creative, as I start improving in the pictures I paint, poems I write and music I listen to. 
Going out with friends on long holidays suited my teenage years. Today, I am equally passionate about holidaying, but in a different way altogether. Interestingly, I have learnt an array of new things and as a result I have started entertaining my life in a better way. Recently, I got a chance to visit a hill station alone and took my brand new digital camera with me. While I was capturing the scenic beauty of the place, a professional photographer moved to me and shared some great tips for improving my photography skills. Some of the images I clicked have become famous amongst my friends on a social networking website.I become more open to chat with unknown fellow travellers and companions at hostels accommodation I stay in. It is a great opportunity to become more social in nature, when you are all alone at a new place. You have more choices for food and drinks and the best part i
s that you are saved from sharing the menu card with your friends, who can experiment a new dish on you.
For me, the idea of travelling alone is more of the spiritual bent. Spirituality brings a different aspect for me, apart from indulging in meditation and listening to spiritual music. Imagine you, holding a glass of your favourite late night brandy and watching the stars twinkling above the ocean, shining at its fullest glory. A big wow and you are re-introduced to yourself.
If you ever get an opportunity to visit a place alone, missing it is like tearing-off a special chapter of your life. Believe me! It is no less than a hunt for treasured moments of lifetime.
Travel Break | 0 Kommentare »
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