Posts in the category "family travel":

(From my post on msnbc.com’s Overhead Bin)

Earlier this week, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced that children under 13 years old soon will no longer have to remove their shoes at airport security checkpoints.

That’s great news for families, of course, but also for any traveler who has had to wait in line behind a 3-year-old balking at being parted from his Spider-Man sneakers.

I asked Transportation Security Administration spokesperson Lisa Farbstein to explain what families, children and general travelers need to know about the new kid-friendly checkpoint procedures.

Q: What will be different?

A: The modification is that we will allow kids 12 and under to leave their shoes on. We will also permit multiple passes through the metal detector and advanced imaging technology by children to clear any alarms as well as [employ] the greater use of explosives trace detection. The idea is that these changes in protocol will ultimately reduce — though not eliminate — pat-downs of children that would have otherwise been conducted to resolve alarms.

Q: Will there be exceptions?

A: Yes. Children may be required to remove their shoes, and could still undergo a pat-down, if anomalies are detected during security screening that cannot be resolved through other means. These changes will allow officers to better focus their efforts on passengers who are more likely to pose a risk to transportation while expediting the screening process.

Q: When will it start?

A: The changed procedures are already in effect at many airports, with full implementation expected by Sept. 26.

Q: Weren’t some airport already doing this?

A: In August, we tested the new procedures in a pilot at six airports: Boston, Atlanta, Miami, Orlando, Houston (IAH) and Denver. Those pilot sites were selected based on airports that had a higher volume of travelers in the desired age range to allow for a better overall sample during our testing.

Q: What tweaks were done in response to the testing?

A: For security purposes, we can’t get into that. But here’s an interesting factoid: Children in the 12-and-under age range represent about 3 percent of all passengers, although during peak travel seasons at certain airports, children may make up about 8 percent of the passengers.

(Photo courtesy TSA)

Categories: family travel, TSA
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Each Sunday StuckatTheAirport.com takes a look at the souvenirs you can get when you’re stuck at the airport.

This week, the souvenirs come from the sky, courtesy of Fly the Branded Skies, an airline-focused website that has a section devoted to the junior wings just about every airline used to hand out to young passengers.

Delta and a few other airlines still do hand out junior wings, but instead of metal the modern-day wings are plastic or, in some cases, merely a sticker.

Categories: Air Travel, Airlines, family travel, Fun Stuff, Kids, Kids travel, Souvenir Sunday, Souvenirs
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Here’s a sneak peek at the Route 66 slide show I had a little too much fun putting together for Bing travel.

Seat belts on?

The Gemini Giant is the official greeter at the Launching Pad Restaurant in Wilmington, about 60 miles southwest of Chicago. A former fiberglass “muffler man” statue designed to show off an oversized automotive part, the Gemini Giant now wears a pointy space helmet and holds up a rocket ship advertising the restaurant’s name.

The Fanning 66 Outpost is a general store with a taxidermy shop, archery range and wide-range of Route 66 souvenirs. Out front, and impossible to miss at a smidge over 42 feet tall and 20 feet wide, is what the Guinness World Records has declared to be the World’s Largest Rocking Chair.

Hugh Davis built this smiling, 80-foot long blue whale in 1974 as an anniversary present for his wife, Zelta and, not long after, the whale became Catoosa, Oklahoma’s most popular public attraction. The creature fell into disrepair in the 1990s, but it’s been rescued and revived by the Catoosa community.

I’ll circle back with some more kicks from Route 66, but in the meantime, there are lots more photos – and links – back on the Route 66 slide show on Bing.

Categories: family travel, Fun Stuff, Road Trip
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Where I live, it’s called Ride the Ducks and, corny as is it when a bus/boat of quacking tourists drives by – which is fairly often now that summer season is in high gear – this does seem like a really fun and unusual way to check out a town.

In Seattle, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Branson, MO and the other U.S. cities where these amphibious adventures are offered, the tours start in town.

But for anyone who might find themselves stuck at Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport there’s now a Dutch version of the ducks designed specifically for people like you.

Powered by 198 batteries, the carbon-neutral Floating Dutchman bus boat picks up its passengers right at Schiphol Plaza, drives into town and then drives into the water for a tour through the city’s canals. When the tour is over, the bus emerges from the water and drives back to the airport.

The time in the water is about 45 minutes, but the entire tour will take about 2 hours and 45 minutes. So if you’re thinking of doing this on a layover tour operators suggest you choose this as an option only if you’ve got at least four hours to spare.

Sound like fun? Here’s more information about Schiphol’s Floating Dutchman.

(Tip: Book online and you’ll get a 10% discount)

And if you don’t have quite enough time to take the tour, there’s plenty to keep you entertained at Schiphol.

The airport recently opened a lovely indoor/outdoor park and not too long ago, the airport opened a library.

Categories: Entertainment, family travel, Fun Stuff, ground transporation, Layover
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Last week I had good weather – and the good fortune – to spend a few days on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula. Most of my activities centered in and around Forks – a tiny town with a deep connection to the forest and a fresh new identity as the theoretical setting for the Twilight series of vampire-romance books and films.

I must admit I’m not a big vampire fan. But I am a big fan of the folks in Forks who have embraced the Twilight craze and rolled out a witty welcome mat for fans.

Here’s the piece I wrote about my Twilight visit to Forks for msnbc.com’s Overhead Bin:

With her daughter and two granddaughters in tow, JoAnne Clarke raced inside the visitor center in Forks, Wash., to grab a map for the town’s self-guided “Twilight” tour. Next came pictures taken with the cardboard cutouts of Edward, Bella and Jacob — characters made famous by the vampire-themed romance books written by Stephenie Meyer and the film adaptations.

“Nope, not interested,” said Tom Clarke of Puyallup, Wash., arms crossed, refusing to go inside. “Just came along so I can spend time with my grandchildren.”

“Typical ‘Twilight’ couple,” said Marcia Bingham, director of the Forks Chamber of Commerce, describing the Clarkes.

It’s a scene that has played out countless times in this tiny community in western Washington state — ever since Meyer picked Forks and the rain-drenched forest of Olympic National Park as the setting for her books. Since 2006, Forks officials have counted more than 100,000 signatures in the register at the visitor center. “And that doesn’t count all the fans who come to town but don’t stop here for a map,” said Mike Gurling, manager of the visitor information center.

Visitor statistics for 2011 are running a bit behind 2010, but Gurling said the town expects another “Twilight” uptick when the next movie in the series comes out, sometime in November.

Neither the books nor the films feature actual places or people from the area. However, more than 73,000 fans visited in 2010 to have a look around. The former down-on-its-luck logging town has seen a surge in tourism-related jobs and motel and sales tax income due to the “Twilight” craze, so local residents and shop owners are happy to play along.

For example, a local pizza joint serves up “Bellalasagne,” the pharmacy sells “Fang Floss” and there’s a parking spot at the Forks Community Hospital reserved for the fictional Dr. Cullen.

The “Twilight” tour map, handed out at the visitor center, leads fans to the Swan House, the Cullen House, Forks Outfitters, City Hall and the police station — all stand-ins for locations Meyer mentions or invented for the book.

Unfortunately for fans like Sandra Buff of Cologne, Germany, one popular stop on the tour, Forks High School, no longer exists.

Courtesy Mike Gurling

The 1925 building was knocked down in mid-June to make room for a new, more modern school, and efforts to raise funds to save the facade of the building failed. The school sign is still there, though, just north of the new school construction site.

Forks High School sign, courtesy Mike Gurling

“I wanted to see all the important places: the hospital, the houses and the school. But this won’t ruin my trip,” said Buff, who did get her picture taken with the cardboard Edward outside the visitor center, right next to Bella’s red truck.

Categories: family travel, Fun Stuff, Road Trip
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