Jaunted

Tags: Stupid Hipsters / Williamsburg / New York City / Travel Trends / → All Tags

Would You Drink Out Of A Coconut, Far From Tropical Climes?

There are exactly two entries in Jaunted's Hipsters category, one about gelato and the other with the word "irritating." Neither are particularly complimentary. This article from the New York Times, which describes how Williamsburg hipsters have taken to ostentatiously sipping juice out of coconuts as they saunter down the street, is an excellent illustration as to why.

Hipsters, it turns out, are prone to eyeroll-inducing trends of "look at me not caring that you're looking at me for being ridiculous" obnoxiousness:

In the last few months, retailers in hipster hot spots like Williamsburg and the Lower East Side say they have sold unprecedented amounts of the fruit for streetside consumption. 'I think it’s stylish, it’s pretty,' said Zarifeh Saleh... 'You feel like you’re on the beach, but you’re not on the beach.' Some say the public ritual is part of the drink’s allure. 'I don’t ever go and buy a bunch of coconuts and stock them and drink them at home,' said Jennifer Verdon.

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Tags: Google Earth / Maps / Travel Trends / → All Tags

Will Google Change The Way We Travel?

This month's Conde Nast Traveler has a fascinating backgrounder on Google Earth and Google Maps by Mike DiPaola. It turns out that the ability to visualize every part of an increasingly interconnected planet might have a few consequences for tourists:

So, will the new technology relegate paper maps and bound atlases to eBay and Antiques Roadshow? Since ancient times, maps have included only what was deemed important by the mapmaker, with scads of other stuff left on the cutting-room floor. Now all of it can be stored and accessed, and a map can be customized not just by a cartographer but by you. A map can never fully be the territory it purports to represent, but as layer upon layer of information becomes available, the screen inches ever closer to reality.

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Tags: Travel Trends / Travel News / US Airways / Flight 1549 / → All Tags

US Aviation Safety Streak Still Alive!

Did you hear a plane crashed in the Hudson River? All 155 people on US Airways Flight 1549 Thursday survived, though a flight attendant suffered a broken leg. Without overlooking the extraordinary efforts of the crew and the fact that the airline is out one very expensive Airbus jet, we're calling this the trendiest air disaster in recent memory. Let us count the ways:

Everyone Lived: Can we just repeat that? A jet crashed into a river full of icy water and everyone made it out alive. Maybe we shouldn't be so surprised, given that US-based carriers are setting impossible-to-believe safety records.

You Heard about the Crash on Twitter: What Boing Boing called "a fantastic, iconic shot" didn't come from a news outlet or TV channel, it came from a Twitter user who snapped passengers huddling on a wing and floating on a raft from his ferry. We've said that the future will be microblogged, and the photo so far has garnered more than 140,000 views.

Banks Are Toxic: Turns out more than 20 of the 150 passengers on Flight 1549 worked for Bank of America, which has its headquarters in Charlotte. Most employees probably figured it couldn't get worse than a momentous drop in the value of their own stock or trying to wiggle bailout money from Congress. That was before an A320 ditched in a river!

Related Stores:
· Plane Crashes In Hudson River [Jaunted]

[Photo via Janis Krums]

Tags: Open Threads / Travel Deals / Travel Trends / → All Tags

What's The Latest Travel Deal You've Booked?

We've been hyping all manner of deals these first couple weeks of 2009, with an eye to both the economy and the fact that no matter how bad it gets we'll still be flashing our passports. But now we want to know: What's the latest travel deal you've scored?

Whether you booked one of our five airfare sales of the moment, noticed a must-visit hotel that popped up on HotelChatter's room rate drop watch or you're planning to take advantage of bargains in the cut-throat rental car market, how are you saving cash while still seeing the world?

The Jaunted crew has tried a couple strategies lately, including hitting up Whistler in the dead zone between New Year's and MLK Jr. Day, visiting a South American country where the exchange rate is quite favorable and hopping cheap buses.

Fill us in on your latest travel deal triumph in the comments!

Related Stories:
· Our Top Five International Airfare Sales Of The Moment [Jaunted]
· 2008's Best Travel Newcomer Is BoltBus [Jaunted]

Tags: Cruises / Cruising with Celebs / Travel News / Travel Trends / → All Tags

Five Reasons We Might Actually Take A Cruise In 2009

We've recently commenced detente with the cruise industry, mostly because of its ability to churn out celebrity cruises with such alarming facility. But while travel booking websites are quaking with fear and airline bankruptcies seem more common than a free upgrade, the number of people taking cruises is actually growing.

Granted, we're getting those numbers from the Cruise Lines International Association, which has a vested interest in hyping the trend. But the organization also points out some reasons besides bandwagon jumping that might motivate travelers to take a boat-bound trip in 2009.

New Destinations: One of the things that turns us off about cruising is the relatively snoozy ports of call. (Really? Ft. Lauderdale to Cancun? We'll be dozing by the shuffleboard court.) But the CLIA reports lots of action at "emerging ports" like Bahrain, Dubai, Hvar, Ischia, Mumbai and Sihanoukville. Now we're talking.

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Tags: Travel Trends / Twitter / Continental / → All Tags

The Future Will Be Microblogged

By now, you've probably heard that @2drinksbehind was onboard Continental Flight 1404 when it skidded off the runway in Denver Saturday night. Shortly after he leapt to safety, he started Twittering like mad about the experience. Since then, he's been on TV news shows and picked up tons of followers.

But we're wondering what the plane incident X-factor is because Pam from Nerd's Eye View Twittered her own off-the-runway accident in September and didn't get a call from Brian Williams. Maybe it's because her plane didn't catch on fire? Or maybe it's because she didn't use the words "Holy fucking shit" to introduce her live-from-the-tarmac reporting?

We're expecting even more Twittering of plane crashes and bad seatmate encounters now that airlines are getting in-flight WiFi--and even painfully ordinary flights are already being liveblogged. Used to be all you could do in midair was watch the major news networks report on your beleaguered Airbus. In the future, CNN will be DMing you to ask for a report on the situation live from. Terrific.

Related Stories:
· Terrifying Restaurateurs in 140 Characters or Less [Jaunted]
· 2drinksbehind [Twitter]
· Jaunted [Twitter]

Tags: Holiday Parties / Travel Trends / Rum / → All Tags

Island Hopping Without The Hopping

We're gonna go ahead and call this trend before it even really gets going. Cheesy tropical island-themed parties are totally making a comeback this winter. Yep, grass skirts, calypso music, drinks in coconuts and even the limbo are in.

The whole thing may sound a little 1970s-office party right now, but let's remember the only reason the Caribbean theme became cheesy is that actually going to the Caribbean became cheap. Now that none of us can afford to jet away for winter weekends anymore, we think we're gonna see an awful lot of cold, cold people starting to sing "the Banana Boat" come January.

DC gets a head start this weekend with a holiday party that we might have turned our nose up at in years past, but we think the fiesta at the Embassy of Barbados is the hot ticket tonight. Curried shrimp, tropical décor, and rum galore... what could be better? (Aside from actually flying to Barbados, that is.) So if your poor office canceled the holiday fun, this sounds like the party to check out. Dress is "smart casual," which we assume means throw on a grass skirt over your suit.

Related Stories:
· Holiday Party in Barbados [WaPo]
· Barbados Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: teesha b]

Tags: Food Travel / Travel Trends / Restaurants / → All Tags

Trendsetters Agree: Peru Is For Foodies

It's official: The 2009 foodie trend-before-it-even-happens is Peruvian. Last week we brought you Epicurious' prediction that Peruvian cuisine would be all the rage in 2009, and we found a few stateside restos where you can chow down on the new hotness.

But now tricky Bon Appetit has gone and one-upped the 'curious. From the '09 predictions list in BA's January issue:

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Tags: Travel Trends / Restaurants / Food Travel / → All Tags

Where Are All the Peruvian Restaurants?

Epicurious is out with their list of the top 10 food trends to watch in 2009. Most of them we're already up on (noodle bars, cheap eats, regional roasters), but we were caught off-guard by number 3: "Peruvian is the new Thai."

You thought Peruvian cuisine was all about seviche, maybe? Guess again: Peru boasts culinary influences from Spanish, Basque, African, Chinese, Japanese, Italian, French, and British immigrants. Pisco Sour, anyone?

Who knew? We hate to admit to being followers, but this sounds like a trend we can get behind. But wait a minute--we're not sure we've ever even seen a Peruvian restaurant, much less eaten at one. So we did a little legwork to find out just where these suddenly trendy eateries are. After the jump, our (untested) guide to Peruvian restaurants across the US:

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Tags: Three Is a Trend / Travel Trends / Travel News / Ryanair / Vivaaerobus / Megabus / Travel Deals / → All Tags

Free Tickets All Around

Now this is a trend we can get behind: In the face of a recession, companies are giving away tickets to keep people traveling.

In Mexico, VivaAerobus is giving away seats on certain flights to its hub in Monterrey. You'll have to pick up taxes and fees, but your flight from Austin, Cancun or Puerto Vallarta will be fare-free. And even if you want to connect in Monterrey to another flight, you won't be spending much: One-way tickets start at about $30.

In the US, Megabus will be giving away 100,000 free seats starting today for travel January 14-March 18, 2009. Just type in the promo code "greenbus" to see if your dates and routes are eligible. We randomly picked a trip between New York and Baltimore on January 15 and found six trips with free seats out of 14 daily departures. (Of course, the other trips were priced at $1 and $4, but still!)

And in Europe, Ryanair's 1 million free seat promotion continues until Friday. As usual, you'll cover the taxes and fees--and might get slapped with additional fees if you're not careful about the weight of your luggage--but the upside is a "free" flight. Even better? The carrier has a handy PDF of all the current availabilities so you don't waste your afternoon digging through city pairs and departure times.

Related Stories:
· Free Seats to Mexico [Airfare Watchdog]
· Megabus [Official Site]
· Ryanair [Official Site]
· Travel Trends coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Megabus]

Tags: Food Travel / Travel Trends / → All Tags

Cartagena's Cuisine Revival

When Cartagena, Colombia comes up in a convo it's often replete with references to Pablo Escobar, marching powder and imitation accents. It's hardly ever paired with hip bistros, authentic seafood fare, bright veggies mixed with pungent spices and refreshing mojitos.

But The New York Times begs us this week to look at that side of Cartagena, one that's rapidly making a mark on the (very) competitive foodie scene. The tropical city is home to some of the area's freshest fish, inventive, hip chefs and discerning diners. Folks that once headed to Paris and Rome for culinary vacations, the Times says, are re-thinking Cartagena.

Read on for some of the city's most amazing (and upcoming) new restaurants, and trust us, drop the "Romancing the Stone" references when you make your reservations:

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Tags: Advertising / Advertising Bans / Travel Trends / → All Tags

Three Is a Trend: Billboard-Free Cities

A billboard ban--called an act against "visual pollution" by the mayor--went into effect on January 1, 2007 in São Paulo. And what the Brazilian city started could soon become a global trend.

In China, the well-touristed city of Xi'an has just announced it will remove advertising from its historic center as part of a broader plan to spruce up the imperial capital. Meanwhile in Cleveland, some government officials are trying to reign in billboards using a legal clause already on the city's books.

Other South American cities including Buenos Aires, Rio de Janeiro and Brasilia are looking into the idea of ending outdoor advertising, too. Could billboard prohibition be the new smoking ban?

Related Stories:
· Billboards Gotta Go in Xi'an [IT]
· Advertising Rage [Cleveland Scene]
· Clearing the Air [OTM]
· Advertising coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo of São Paulo: andredeak]