Confessions of a YYC Travel Junkie

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by brocoli

How was it getting to your resort for the Belize airport? I'm assuming that you just water taxied it. And it's too bad that the Seaside Cabanas aren't open during the time that we are there. They look nice. I'll just keep searching. Oh, and did you find the mosquitos bad?

Yep, we just grabbed a taxi from the airport to the water taxis in Belize City. From there you just hop on a water taxi to Ambergris Caye or Caye Caulker. On windy days I could see it being a little rough on someone if they're prone to seasickness. Otherwise it was pretty painless!

One thing I don't think a lot of people realize about Belize is that English is the official language (former British colony). Communicating and getting around is pretty easy. Another interesting fact is that there are only 350,000 people in the entire country.

If you make it to Caye Caulker and the Hol Chan Marine Reserve, be sure to ask around for Juni the snorkel tour guide. It's still the best snorkel tour I've ever done.

I don't recall mosquitoes being an issue in any of the areas we stayed. I can't remember seeing any at all really.

[rubecube]

If I had any advice, it'd be to spend most of your time on Caye Caulker and daytrip it to Ambergris. The dining options on Caye Caulker can be fairly limited if you're not a big seafood fan but it's just an awesome place to stay.

My snorkel guide suggestion would be Ras Creek. Dude is awesome and he'll take you out on his rickety boat for a good 3-4 hours and then feed you whatever he catches fresh all for around $25.

[GP_Matt]

A few weeks ago I was pricing our flights to Costa Rica and Air Canada had direct flights from Toronto to San Jose on Rogue but now I don't see the flight offered. Do you know if it is going to be a seasonal flight or every other day and how I can find that out?

[Maritime Q-Scout]

Put of curiosity, how often do you see really good deals from regional airports? Airports like the ones you have in your signature have multiple airlines to multiple destinations. What about smaller centres?

I'd assume the answer is 'never' but if be curious if there are ever crazy deals (or even good deals) out of somewhere like YQY despite only having regular scheduled service to YHZ and seasonal service to YYZ and FSP.

[MoneyGuy]

Chris, any word on trips to the Amazon River? Something escorted and a river cruise on a smaller ship? UofA has one for alumnus for $4200 if booked before Aug. 6 that I'm considering. Machu Picchu add on is also available. Do you see things like this? The Amazon is on the top of my bucket list since I've just crossed off the Great Wall.

[GirlySports]

I was looking at the Belize deal but the layover on the way back is insane! 11hours in Houston?

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by GirlySports

I was looking at the Belize deal but the layover on the way back is insane! 11hours in Houston?

Go catch an Astros game. I hear the stadium is gorgeous.

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by GP_Matt

A few weeks ago I was pricing our flights to Costa Rica and Air Canada had direct flights from Toronto to San Jose on Rogue but now I don't see the flight offered. Do you know if it is going to be a seasonal flight or every other day and how I can find that out?

If I recall correctly, the Rouge flights from Toronto to SJO will be year round. I believe the plan was to fly twice a week to SJO, and once per week to Costa Rica's other airport, LIR.

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by Maritime Q-Scout

Put of curiosity, how often do you see really good deals from regional airports? Airports like the ones you have in your signature have multiple airlines to multiple destinations. What about smaller centres?

I'd assume the answer is 'never' but if be curious if there are ever crazy deals (or even good deals) out of somewhere like YQY despite only having regular scheduled service to YHZ and seasonal service to YYZ and FSP.

Basically, in Canada, if the population is smaller than 150,000, they really don't ever see any good airfare deals. Kelowna is about as small a city as it's worth tracking deals for, and even then, the number of good deals they actually get is pretty small.

It's really just the fact that the smaller cities in Canada are often at the mercy of 1 or 2 airlines, both of which are Canadian airlines, that pretty much never budge on their prices. You usually need to have the competitive forces of U.S. airlines on the route for there to be any chance of a good deal happening.

Unfortunately, I don't think I've ever seen anything out of Sydney, Nova Scotia (YQY) that was too notable. On very rare occasion, if there's an extremely good deal on a charter flight with Air Canada Vacations out of Toronto, they might see an interesting price, but likely have to overnight in Toronto on the way there and/or back.

[Sidney Crosby's Hat]

Originally Posted by GirlySports

I was looking at the Belize deal but the layover on the way back is insane! 11hours in Houston?

You could visit NASA! I actually recommend it, pretty cool.

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by MoneyGuy

Chris, any word on trips to the Amazon River? Something escorted and a river cruise on a smaller ship? UofA has one for alumnus for $4200 if booked before Aug. 6 that I'm considering. Machu Picchu add on is also available. Do you see things like this? The Amazon is on the top of my bucket list since I've just crossed off the Great Wall.

Trips to the Amazon aren't something you'll see offered by the typical tour operators in Canada. I'd put it in the category of a specialty trip, where someone is just piecing it all together manually (flight on a major airline, and adding in some accommodations and a tour/cruise through a local tour operator).

Best thing to do might be to get the details of the U of A trip, and Google around to see what it would actually cost for you to piece together the same trip.

Googling 'university of alberta amazon river trip' brings up a PDF file with the details.

Roundtrip flights:
YEG to Lima (LIM) - $1016
LIM to Quito (UIO) - $400

5 day Amazon river cruise from Nauta on the La Amatista ship. I'm guessing it's something like this: http://www.perucusco.com/cruises-mar...uta-river.html
Which looks to cost $1550 USD/person.

Accommodations:

Casa Andina: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...co_Region.html

Looks to run about $130/night. So $260 for 2 nights, but I'm guessing you're probably sharing a room with someone on this trip, so let's say $130.

El Dorado Plaza: http://www.expedia.ca/Iquitos-Hotels...el-Information

Looks to run $260/night. So again, divided by two people, let's say another $130.

So far, it looks like it would cost someone $1016 + $400 + $1550 + $130 + $130 or $3226 to build a similar trip on their own. But there's likely some excursions and maybe some additional meal costs that haven't been factored in yet. And also any additional ground transportation.

So overall, $4200 doesn't seem too out of line considering the components involved. The Amazon river cruise does look to be the biggest expense, but for a smaller ship that can get you further into the depths of the Amazon, I'm guessing it's probably always going to have a pretty hefty pricetag of around $250-$300/night. Gap Adventures for example, is charging $2500 for 9 nights in January... http://www.gadventures.com/trips/ama...ate/2014-01-01

[cmyden]

Originally Posted by GirlySports

I was looking at the Belize deal but the layover on the way back is insane! 11hours in Houston?

Yeah, certain date combinations have good connections each way (layovers of 90 min to 3 hours) but many of the date combos do have insane overnight layovers.

You might want to try the ones mentioned in the blog post if the dates work for you...

Oct 29 to Nov 7
Nov 5 to Nov 14
Nov 28 to Dec 06
Dec 3 to Dec 12

[something]

So my girlfriend and I are thinking of heading on vacation to the following places Nov 3rd to Nov 20th:

China (Via Beijing or Guangzhou) for 990

Belize For 500

Panama for 630

Any recommendations? I have been to Central America and Mexico numerous times, and while I traveled SE Asia, have never been to China.

[Jbo]

I've been to Belize the last 2 years in a row and echo the comments here. Head out to Caye Caulker and do day trips from there. I also had a blast in Hopkins, but it is much more local and less tourists. You do need to be aware of crime in Belize City and Dangriga. I also recommend Placencia if you have a chance. I flew everywhere when I was down there on Air Tropic or Maya Air and felt safe. They seem well run.

Have fun to anyone headed down.

[lucky1]

Originally Posted by something

So my girlfriend and I are thinking of heading on vacation to the following places Nov 3rd to Nov 20th:

China (Via Beijing or Guangzhou) for 990

Belize For 500

Panama for 630

Any recommendations? I have been to Central America and Mexico numerous times, and while I traveled SE Asia, have never been to China.

Well, Beijing will be a bit chilly that time of year... You could also fly into Chengdu, check out the pandas.. There is a flight out of van with a smaller Chinese airline that is usually cheaper than ac or ca... Saying that, there is usually seat sales at that time of the years, especially this year as extra capacity has been put on the ac and ca

[MoneyGuy]

Originally Posted by cmyden

Trips to the Amazon aren't something you'll see offered by the typical tour operators in Canada. I'd put it in the category of a specialty trip, where someone is just piecing it all together manually (flight on a major airline, and adding in some accommodations and a tour/cruise through a local tour operator).

Best thing to do might be to get the details of the U of A trip, and Google around to see what it would actually cost for you to piece together the same trip.

Googling 'university of alberta amazon river trip' brings up a PDF file with the details.

Roundtrip flights:
YEG to Lima (LIM) - $1016
LIM to Quito (UIO) - $400

5 day Amazon river cruise from Nauta on the La Amatista ship. I'm guessing it's something like this: http://www.perucusco.com/cruises-mar...uta-river.html
Which looks to cost $1550 USD/person.

Accommodations:

Casa Andina: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...co_Region.html

Looks to run about $130/night. So $260 for 2 nights, but I'm guessing you're probably sharing a room with someone on this trip, so let's say $130.

El Dorado Plaza: http://www.expedia.ca/Iquitos-Hotels...el-Information

Looks to run $260/night. So again, divided by two people, let's say another $130.

So far, it looks like it would cost someone $1016 + $400 + $1550 + $130 + $130 or $3226 to build a similar trip on their own. But there's likely some excursions and maybe some additional meal costs that haven't been factored in yet. And also any additional ground transportation.

So overall, $4200 doesn't seem too out of line considering the components involved. The Amazon river cruise does look to be the biggest expense, but for a smaller ship that can get you further into the depths of the Amazon, I'm guessing it's probably always going to have a pretty hefty pricetag of around $250-$300/night. Gap Adventures for example, is charging $2500 for 9 nights in January... http://www.gadventures.com/trips/ama...ate/2014-01-01

Chris, you're awesome.

[Rudee]

Originally Posted by something

So my girlfriend and I are thinking of heading on vacation to the following places Nov 3rd to Nov 20th:

China (Via Beijing or Guangzhou) for 990

Belize For 500

Panama for 630

Any recommendations? I have been to Central America and Mexico numerous times, and while I traveled SE Asia, have never been to China.

Been to Belize twice. My memories of Belize both times was bugs. bugs. and more bugs.

[GP_Matt]

Originally Posted by cmyden

If you did want to try flying through the U.S. from Calgary though, don't forget to try both of Costa Rica's international airports (SJO and LIR). Typically the fastest it can be done is with about an hour stopover in Houston each way. Only having an hour of breathing room can be a little scary though, especially coming home, as Houston airport can be a zoo.

If you play with the stopover length filter on Kayak you can find flights with slightly longer layovers, and if you find yourself getting through the airport quickly, you can sometimes ask to be put on the earlier flight if they have room.

Do you know how much of an issue the 1 hour layover is when flying south through Houston?
The Calgary -> Houston -> San Jose has either a one hour layover or a 10 hour overnight layover. Will I have to clear security again (or immigration) or just make my way through the terminal to my new gate?

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by GP_Matt

Do you know how much of an issue the 1 hour layover is when flying south through Houston?
The Calgary -> Houston -> San Jose has either a one hour layover or a 10 hour overnight layover. Will I have to clear security again (or immigration) or just make my way through the terminal to my new gate?

If you need a short layover in Houston, southbound is by far the better way to have it. You'll clear US customs/immigration in Calgary, so when you land you're already in the secured area and just need to get to the departure gate.

Coming northbound I wouldn't chance a tight connection, since you'll need to go through US customs/immigration which can take a huge amount of time if you happen to be unlucky.

YMMV and no guarantees, but I'd book the 1 hour connection if it was me.

[Sidney Crosby's Hat]

Originally Posted by GP_Matt

Do you know how much of an issue the 1 hour layover is when flying south through Houston?
The Calgary -> Houston -> San Jose has either a one hour layover or a 10 hour overnight layover. Will I have to clear security again (or immigration) or just make my way through the terminal to my new gate?

Just a side note, but I did Edmonton -> Houston -> San Jose a few months ago and the Edmonton -> Houston leg was a redeye. At YEG U.S. customs shuts down at 10:00 p.m. so that redeye flight goes through domestic and you do have to clear customs in Houston (and subsequently have to pass through security once again).

You shouldn't have any issues but I thought I would mention that for anyone thinking of doing the same from Edmonton.