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TSA and 5 Items Not to Wear or Carry
The Trump Administration is considering 11% cuts in the TSA Budget. If that means faster yet more intrusive searches, women need to rethink what we wear and what we carry. Especially if you are traveling alone on one of our trips, you don’t want to be delayed while your carry on sits away from sight.
Here are items that should be left home, substituted or packed in your suitcase. Here are some tips from The Women’s Travel Group:
The big one: underwired bras.…
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Why go to Russia now? Are we welcomed?
The Women’s Travel Group keeps up with on-the-ground situations. We have temporarily suspended our 2nd Iran trip; visas for Americans are on hold. We are going to Russia in July and expect the welcome to be as warm as ever. What veteran travelers know about the brand of ‘being American’, is everyone likes us.
In Cold War years, Americans going to Russia were stared at with envy. We were like movie stars, sporting the latest in jeans and sweatshirts. Today we are just another tour group, with no particular wardrobe.…
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Will you feel like Tiny Tim in your new super-cheap airline seat?
Airlines are beginning to offer new crazy cheap seats: example, American Airlines and British Airways yesterday: round trip New York to London: $485. The big guys are scared of the discounters and are taking action.
So what are we getting for that half priced fare?
The same routes and same schedules, most of the flights for mid March were empty-ish.
You will get your ff miles.Seats with extra leg room might cost you even if you have status on the airline.…
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What is this funny place: Ixtapan Spa we all love
So what is this funny named place The Women’s Travel Groupgoes to? Ixtapan Spa is a famous budget fitness/spa/yoga resort in colonial Mexico ( pick up inMexico City’s modern airport).
What do you do at a spa/fitness resort?
Do it all or do none! 7AM brisk walk in cool mountain air. 8AM healthy buffet breakfast or join a yoga class in the zen gazebo. 10AM, a full 50 minutes of aerobics in the heated pool.11AM pilates for all levels, noon: salsa in the pool.…
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5 Awkward Questions to Ask Your Guide
In the back of many women’s minds are questions we are afraid to ask a guide. Often we worried women stay home for fear of ‘ embarrassing situations’. So what are our major embarrassing hang ups?
Bathroom needs: Many women have urgent bathroom needs. Some of this is medical; some because we are worried about not having a bathroom at hand. I know personally, that as soon as I go to the theater in New York, I begin to think about the bathroom line and if there is time to get to the front!…
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Where in the World is Waldo Safe?
Every day when I wake up, the paper and tv tell me to hide in the deepest closet. There I might be safe, if I don’t eat sugar, fat, processed foods, or salt. So are we safe if we travel today? Who are all these pundits and are they for real?
There are the safety consultants, usually for profit companies, who want you to hire them for consultations or training in judo.
There are battalions of former– not all so young –military personnel now on the payroll of tv news programs. …
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The Bargain Gifts for YOU
Many women who travel with us are obsessed with buying gifts for others, even though we earned the money and earned the gift. Here are some of the best bargains we saw last year. We do not stress shopping in our trips, but there is always some time to forage. Ask us for our Bargaining Tips. www.thewomenstravelgroup.com. We did not include India as shopping in India would take 50 pages more. Our next India trip includes Diwali Festival!
Mexico: Frida Kahlo designed sneakers and $4 bags, bought at the entrance to the Pyramids where there are endless stalls selling super cheap merchandise you will love.…
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6 Dumb Things Women Pack
Women overpack, that is a fact. Please share this with friends who overpack or are nervous about what to bring. The Women’s Travel Group, small group tours for women is generous in how much you can bring for our porterage inclusion; however, here are the 6 dumbest items you might pack.
- Jewelry of any kind. Packing even fake jewelry is an invitation for theft. Packing jewelry that has large stars on it is an invitation for the TSA to confiscate it as a possible weapon.
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Get a Life in 2017
How come we all don’t Get a Life? What holds us back from taking a trip? The Women’s Travel Group believes it is habits and allergies.
Habits are what we acquire; saying good things like Thank You, doing good deeds like picking up litter or reacting appropriately like smiling at a child. Habits are also bad, no need to list those. But did you ever think about traveling as a habit? Once you get out of the habit or if you never had the habit, making a decision about travel is worrisome.…
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Don’t be dumb with your Smart Phone
Many women who travel with The Women’s Travel Group have smartphones; however many are not phone smart.
Recently I was introduced to Whatsapp.com. Whatsapp has been free since the beginning of 2016. I personally hate catchy names for phone jargon and have very few applications on my smartphone. However, Whatsapp has really helped as I travel.
Keep in touch with others in wifi areas (they must be subscribers but you will know, immediately with their phone number). Call someone, it sounds as if you are around the corner.…
