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Tags: Political Travel / Honduras Travel / Travel Advertising / Tourism Boards / Travel Ads / → All Tags

Honduran Tourism Minister Launches Blistering Ad Campaign Against...Honduras?

Normally when you see negative travel advertising about a city or state, it's one locale trying to play itself up as an alternative to another and occasionally you run into a campaign that's more or less being done to punish a place. An example of this is food companies' punitive response to New York's ongoing war against smoking/alcohol/transfats/fun, but it's very unusual to have a campaign that's just pure "don't go to this place" spite. What's been happening in Honduras, where the exiled Tourism Minister is screening negative ads about his own country, is indeed very unusual.

The politics down in Honduras are obviously a mess. Manuel Zelaya was ousted from the presidency with various degrees of legitimacy and justification, the answer to that varying with where you fall on the political spectrum. The US government, along with Honduras' neighbors, insist it was a coup. The Honduran Supreme Court, legislature, and army mostly beg to disagree. None of that matters for our purposes. Instead we enter the story where Ricardo Martinez, Zelaya's former Tourism minister, is invited to act as the country's legitimate representative at the Central American Travel Market.

He was, all things considered, not the best imaginable spokesman for the Honduran tourism industry...

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Tags: Volunteer Travel / Maine Travel / Gay Travel / Political Travel / → All Tags

'Travel For Change' Is Sending Volunteers To Maine For Gay Rights

Usually, volunteer vacations are about helping the needy, but for some, they can also have a political agenda. Last year, Travel for Change helped send over 400 volunteers to swing states to work for the Barack Obama campaign. Now, they are helping send volunteers to Maine, where voters will take to the ballot box next month and decide whether to overturn a law that allows same-sex couples to wed. "Question 1," as it is being called, is similar to Prop 8, a same-sex marriage ban eventually approved by voters in California last year.

Travel for Change is working with the No on Question 1 campaign to get volunteers from across the country to Maine to work for marriage equality. The organization is raising funds and airline miles, matching volunteers to share rooms and cars, and placing them in appropriate jobs once they arrive in Maine.

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Tags: Holiday Travel / Barack Obama / Presidential Travel / Political Travel / → All Tags

How To Get Tickets For The White House Holiday Tour

Washington D.C.-bound travelers hoping to celebrate Christmas with the Obamas may already be out of luck. With its twinkling lights and a new family occupying the world's most famous address this year, snagging holiday tour tickets to the White House is a feat that rivals landing floor seats to a Springsteen concert.

As the Richmond Times Dispatch reports, tour requests are accepted up to six months in advance, but whether you're the lucky winner of tickets isn't disclosed until three weeks before the scheduled date, or thereabouts.

The formal request process and the lottery-like submission for tickets are a result of post-September 11th security measures. Before then, tourists could show up the morning of and fall in line to get same-day admission. Now, ticket requests must be made "through the office of a member of the House of Representatives or Senate."

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Tags: Scandalous Travel / Scandals / Political Travel / Travel News / → All Tags

Airlines Losing Their Best Upper Class Customers: Adulterous Governors

It kinda sucks for the airlines that some of their highest-paying frequent flyers just aren't able to travel as often or as expensively anymore. Of course we aren't talking about business travelers, but scandalous governors, most recently South Carolina's adulterous Governor Sanford.

Sanford, who had always portrayed himself as a frugal conservative, is now facing a probe into his pricey travel habits, which extend beyond use of private planes to very costly international flights on commercial airliners. However, the Governor is using that old "they do it too!" argument, claiming that other governors have been similarly lax about traveling in coach class. To prove his point, Sanford sent a letter to a senator all but naming names:

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Tags: Political Travel / Bill Clinton / North Korea Travel / → All Tags

Clinton Kicks North Korea Into Giving Back Jailed Journalists

Thinking about heading to North Korea for the Arirang Mass Games? You better hope that former President Bill Clinton has got your back, just like he has with the two Current TV journalists who were arrested on the North Korean border in March and sentenced to 12 years in a hard labor camp for "committing hostilities against the Korean nation and illegal entry.”

During Clinton's brief visit, which focused solely on negotiating the freedom of the women—Laura Ling, 32, and Euna Lee, 36—and not North Korea's recent nuclear tests, he met with good old Kim Jong-il, who wasn't looking all that ill.

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Tags: Alaska Travel / Sarah Palin / Tours / Politics / Political Travel / → All Tags

Say Bye To Sarah Palin As You Swing By Her Alaska Office

Whether your heart is still aching over her loss in last year’s election or the fact that she's still around, you better hustle up to Juneau, since time is running out for Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. Over the long weekend, she decided to light off some of her own fireworks by announcing she wouldn’t be seeking a second term, nor would she even be finishing out her term in office; she’ll be wrapping up her duties and stepping down by the end of July.

Go to Alaska and bring home a souvenir eBay can be proud of: go to Alaska’s Capitol Building and try to get her to sign your ticket stub. The facilities are open all summer, obviously to take advantage of all those cruisers looking for glaciers, moose, and 2012 presidential candidates. The tours last for about thirty minutes, are totally free, and run daily. The state legislature, governor, and lieutenant governor all call this building their home away from home.

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Tags: What Recession / Political Travel / → All Tags

Public Servants Lead Charge Back To Expensive Travel

This week we were treated to the riveting story of South Carolina governor Mark Sanford, who used state funds to meet his lady-love journalist in Buenos Aires. Sanford told his staff he was on a much more modest jaunt to the Appalachian Trail, which indicates that maybe he had a shred of shame about the whole business, but in the end, he said, "Well, it's not like I have any presidential ambitions, right?" Last year's luv guv Eliot Spitzer opted for the more budget-friendly train tickets and D.C. hotel accommodations, but those were different times.

Sanford's not the only one who feels the world has turned around enough to allow for gleeful spoiling at taxpayer expense: The Detroit Free Press reported that the trustees of the city pension fund spent $380,000 on travel last year, and then tried to cover it up when the paper sued for records. With 21 trustees, that's an average of $18,095 per person, although one trustee, Ronald Gracia, spent $105,000 of it alone, including an $18,600 trip to Hong Kong.

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Tags: Scandalous Travel / Buenos Aires / Argentina Travel / Political Travel / → All Tags

Where The New Luv Guv Should Have Gone in Buenos Aires

What a day yesterday was for South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford, who after having been "missing" for five days, turned up deplaning after a flight back from Buenos Aires in Argentina and not the Appalachian Mountains, as his staff was lead to believe. Within hours of being caught on arrival, the Governor admitted to carrying on an affair while away in Argentina and resigned as chairman of the Republican Governors Association.

So aside from knocking boots with a hottie South American woman, what was the Governor up to in Buenos Aires? Five days can't all be spent in bed, and so we've compiled our guide to enjoying Buenos Aires in Sanford style:

Stay: Hotel 1555 Malabia House
As BA's first design Bed & Breakfast, the focus is on intimate interiors, garden spaces, and the historic neighborhood. This are, the Palermo district, is also where Sanford's mistress' apartment is located, so you're just around the corner from the luv guv's little love nest.

Nightly rates here average $170 for a room with private balcony; it's perfect for tawdry kisses and nighttime whisperings like "My heart cries out for you, your voice, your body, the touch of your lips, the touch of your finger tips and an even deeper connection to your soul." We're sure Sanford would have felt right at home chillin the balcony as if he were back on a porch in South Carolina.

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Tags: Protests / Political Travel / Riots / → All Tags

Protests Over Iran's Election Hit Paris, Rome, Toronto and New York

The post-election riots in Iran are not limited to Tehran. Several major European cities (in full summer tourism swing) and a few here in North America have seen their own protests recently.

Rallies and protests took place yesterday in Paris, Toronto, New York, London and Berlin over the controversial election, which supporters of candidate Mir-Hossein Moussavi claim has been rigged by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Indeed, the protests outside of Tehran have already made it into a Wikipedia entry.

CNN's iReport captured the protest yesterday in Paris in front of the Eiffel Tower. Several hundred thousand protesters gathered in Mel Lastman Square in Toronto yesterday afternoon while in New York Moussavi supporters rallied outside the United Nations. Students also protested in Rome and you can see some Flickr shots here.

Meanwhile in Tehran, a pro-Mousavi rally turned deadly when militia members fired on the crowd, killing one demonstrator. Despite this, another demonstration is planned for Tehran tomorrow.

Related Stories:
· Top Cleric Calls for Inquiry as Protesters Defy Ban in Iran [NY Times]
· iReport: Paris Portests [CNN]

[Photo: kappazeta]

Tags: Protests / Thailand Travel / Political Travel / → All Tags

Bangkok Protests Continue, Thailand Warnings Start Again

Thailand, Thailand. You're so beautiful, so why do we have to keep writing these bad news stories? Unfortunately it looks like the internal political problems, while completely unrelated to travelers and the tourism industry, are going to stop thousands of visitors to Bangkok and Thai islands again.

While last week it sounded like even the ASEAN meeting of regional leaders might still go ahead, it's now been canceled and protests have become violent. Despite the government declaring a state of emergency, protesters have continued to gather in Bangkok and there are now armed soldiers on the streets.

Countries including Britain, Canada and Australia have already issued travel warnings advising its citizens to review their travel plans to Bangkok and to avoid the area if they are already in Thailand. At this stage the airports are still open, but remembering last year's chaos would definitely make us think twice about assuming it'll stay that way. Can we suggest neighbors Vietnam or Cambodia instead, as long as your flights don't connect in Bangkok?

Related Stories:
· Thai Protesters Clash With Police [NY Times]
· Travel Warnings For Thailand After Weekend Mayhem [Reuters]
· Thai Travel Might Be Tied Up Again [Jaunted]
· Thai Airport Standoff Proves World Is Indeed Flat [Jaunted]

[Photo: Y Not ?]

Tags: Protests / Thailand Travel / Political Travel / → All Tags

Thai Travel Might Be Tied Up Again

Just when we were thinking it must be safe to go back to Thailand after last year's airport closures, we're starting to wonder again.

This week there were anti-government protests in Bangkok, with 100,000 gathering near the Prime Minister's office and taxi drivers intentionally blocking traffic in the city. With the ASEAN summit being held over the weekend, some authorities are getting a bit worried about security for all those VIPs.

Whether this is the precursor to another airport lockdown to strand thousands of tourists or just a small political glitch remains to be seen but we'd be checking the latest news carefully before booking our Thai flights.

Related Stories:
· Thai PM Says Peaceful Protest OK [Reuters]
· Thais Trying To Turn Tourism Tide [Jaunted]
· Thailand Travel Guide [Jaunted]

[Photo: Yan Pritzker]

Tags: Political Travel / Cruising with Celebs / Karl Rove / Barack Obama / Holland America / National Review / → All Tags

Does Karl Rove Wear SPF 80? You Can Find Out on Holland America

After the 2008 election, it was conservatives, not liberals, who joked about fleeing the country which they saw as having turned on them to elect President Barack Obama. The impulse is to go somewhere and start over -- really, anywhere will do where conservative ideals can take pride of place again and no one will argue with you about who you voted for.

If this sounds like your dream, you can live it on Holland America's National Review Cruise this summer. Spend 10 days in the Greek Isles with great thinkers like former UN Ambassador John Bolton, former Delaware governor Pete DuPont and, yes, Bush White House insider Karl Rove. Hey, we hear the man raps!

Activities in which you can rub shoulders with these guys and National Review editors as well, who should feel lucky to work at the magazine with the best perk ever, will include onboard yoga and outings to places like Olympia and Santorini.

Related Stories:
· Event Highlights [NRCruise.com]
· Presidential Family Wedding Hits Texas In '08 [Jaunted]
· Cruising with Celebs coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: NYTimes.com]