Stevens Point, Wisconsin, U.S.A-Though hurricane season officially began June 1, activity in the tropics heated up ahead of schedule this year with Tropical Storm Alberta forming off South Carolina in late May, followed by Tropical Storm Beryl, which was the strongest pre-season storm to make landfall in history when it came ashore in Jacksonville, FL. With this early tropical activity in mind, Travel Guard is urging travelers to prepare for upcoming vacations by considering travel insurance options.

No matter if travelers are taking advantage of off-season deals in Florida and the Caribbean or heading to destinations outside of the hurricane belt, their plans can be drastically affected by delays and cancellations that can affect airports far from the coasts should a storm arise. Several tips can help to avoid these problems.

Safeguard your trip investment: In the event of a covered hurricane or other unforeseen severe weather, travel insurance may provide benefits under trip cancellation and trip interruption coverage. If a trip is cancelled for a covered reason, travel insurance may refund the prepaid, forfeited, non-refundable trip costs up to the limit of coverage.

Purchase in advance: Insurance must be purchased at least 24 hours prior to a hurricane being named in order for trip cancellation and trip interruption coverage to cover losses due to the hurricane. Once a hurricane watch or warning is in effect, it’s too late. To avoid a last-minute scramble, travelers should purchase insurance at the same time they book their travel plans.

Monitor status of airports, accommodations and driving routes: If a storm directly affects travel arrangements or accommodations, insureds may benefit from trip cancellation or trip interruption coverage. A few examples: an airport is closed due to the high winds; mandatory evacuations are enforced at a policyholder’s hotel/resort; roads are impassable due to high water and alternate modes of transportation are not possible. If a resort, hotel or vacation home is damaged and cannot be used, or if comparable accommodations cannot be provided, non-refundable costs could be covered.

Be aware of the difference between what has happened and what “might” happen: Inclement weather must directly affect travel arrangements for travel insurance to cover the loss. Base travel insurance plans never cover losses incurred by a cancellation based upon what “might” happen because of a storm. For example, if a policy holder chooses not to take a flight because of concern about a hurricane, and that flight still operates on schedule, the cost of the flight will not be a covered loss.

Prepare for delays: If the airport from which flights are scheduled to depart is closed due to a hurricane or other weather event, travel insurance may cover the expenses incurred because of the delay. Additionally, reasonable accommodations and travel expenses may be covered until travel becomes possible. It’s important to understand that Travel Guard’s travel insurance plans do not cover cancellations solely made by the traveler’s choice not to go because of possible delays, unless a plan including “Cancel For Any Reason” coverage has been purchased.

“With the many unanticipated situations that can arise during hurricane season, our best advice to travelers is to be prepared,” said Carol Mueller, Vice President, Travel Guard North America. “Travel Guard travel insurance plans average 5-7 percent of the total trip cost, meaning an affordable cost can provide travelers with confidence throughout hurricane season.”

Hurricane season runs through November 30, 2012. To keep track of the latest hurricane-related news, visit the National Weather Services’ National Hurricane Center.

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Etihad airway, the national airlines of United Arab Emirates (UAE), has announced its plans to have direct, daily nonstop flights from Abu Dhabi, the UAE capital, to São Paulo, Brazil starting in June 2013.

São Paulo would be the first South American Destination in Etihad’s list; the new route would be to São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport, the main international airport in the city.

According to Business Traveler websites, Mr. James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ President and CEO, said “Brazil is a logical next step for us and will mark the sixth continent we serve and our coming of age as a truly global airline.”

Etihad airlines would be the second UAE airline to have direct flights from the country to a Brazilian city; Emirates airlines was the first.

In 2014, Brazil will be the hosting country of the FIFA World Cup. UAE in general, and especially Abu Dhabi, will be the main hub for the football fans and sports journalists from Asia and the Middle East looking for direct flights to Brazil.

Also, São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport would be a great transit point for the connecting traveler to other destinations in Brazil and other Latin American Countries. The airport is connected to all South American airports directly by different airlines.

Abu Dhabi will be a major connecting point to their original homeland for the large Arab community in Brazil and other Latin American countries. Most Arabs in Brazil are originally from Palestine, Lebanon, Syria and Iraq.

Additionally, it will ease the travel for students from Middle Eastern and Asian countries between Brazil and their countries for holidays and after graduation. Brazil is considered an attractive education spot for the scholar who is looking for high quality education with low tuition fees and living costs.

The new flights between the two cities will give a push to the growing business between the two countries. Brazil is considered to be the 4th largest trading partner to the UAE, with trade business valued about 2.85 billion US dollars. Officials in the two countries are hoping to expand the trade relation to 10 billion US dollars in the next 5 years.

According to the National, the official UAE English newspaper, Mr. João de Mendonça Lima Neto, the Brazilian ambassador to UAE, stated “We are witnessing significant growth in the bilateral relations between Brazil and the UAE and we are certain that Etihad Airways flights will create new opportunities for government, trade, tourism and cultural exchanges.”

Image Courtesy of   TBSteve

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A new, less invasive scanner has been installed in airports around the United States.

With controversy still surrounding the Transportation Security Administration’s decision to install airport scanners that allow TSA employees to see through the clothing of individual passengers, the new scanner has been installed in airports in Salt Lake City, Utah, Miami International Airport, and a number of other airports around the country.

It is believed that this new scanner will help assuage the numerous complaints that have been voiced since the original scanners were installed in March of last year.

Rather than showing the body specifics of any particular individual, this new scanner simply shows an avatar of a human. If there is any suspected weaponry or dangerous materials on the passenger, the locations of these objects are shown on the screen as small yellow boxes using an Automated Target Recognition program.

For instance, if a passenger had a suspicious object in his or her pants pocket, a yellow box would show on the screen in the same area. If anything suspicious shows up on the screen the suspected area is searched and the passenger is subject to a pat down. If there is nothing of note detected by the scanner, the screen shows “Ok” and the passenger is free to go.

The original airport scanner was introduced amid concerns by a number of individuals about the safety and privacy of travellers. Many complaints were directed at the use of an x-ray machine on such a wide number of people. Concerns were raised that the radiation produced by the x-rays could pose a number of health concerns.

However, TSA had done testing on the machines before installation and when they were first introduced the assistant administrator for security operations stated that the level of radiation emitted by these scanners “is equivalent to the amount of radiation that a passenger would receive in two minutes of flight.”

Despite assurances that the radiation levels were safe for the majority of passengers, concerns remained. The most controversial aspect to the original scanners was the fact that the image shown on the scanners revealed the nude body of the person being scanned.

The TSA tried to maintain the anonymity of the individual being scanned by having one TSA employee with the person being scanned, and another TSA employee viewing the image of the passenger. Despite the efforts by TSA to maintain an individual’s privacy to the extent that they could, many people still objected to the invasive nature of the scanners.

For individuals who are still not comfortable with the new scanners, or who are pregnant or concerned about the low levels of radiation admitted, they can still choose to have a pat down instead of going through the machine.

Now that these new scanners have a more generic picture for passengers, it helps to preserve the anonymity of the individual being scanned. It also saves costs for TSA since the image no longer needs to be screened in a separate location by a different TSA employee.

This less invasive procedure, if adopted more widely, will help to preserve the privacy of travellers, while still ensuring that their trip is safe for all involved.

Image Courtesy of  http://www.flickr.com/photos/33671002@N00/

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Have you ever lost a luggage during a travel?

Last year the total cipher for lost luggage enclosed 30 million items. A leading Australian insurance, named Travel Insurance Direct reported that these losses have increased since previous years.

Ian Jackson General Manager at Travel Insurance Direct explained that almost 30 million bags were misguided or mishandled throughout 2010, a 17 percent augment from the previous year.

He continued by saying:

“Unfortunately for travelers, growing traffic levels at airports worldwide have combined with extraordinary weather events to increase the chances of your luggage going missing,”

The company explained that the primary reasons of mishandling luggage were the troubles with flights, caused by the Icelandic volcano eruption and unexpected storms across North America & Europe. A total of 300,000 flights were cancelled throughout the year.

In a statement, Mr. Jackson tried to explain the efforts made, he added: “Until recently, airports had been making excellent improvements in their baggage handling processes and technology, but luggage loss is now on the increase again”.

“Fortunately, the majority of mishandled bags were reunited with their owners within 48 hours but there will still more than a million items lost last year and never seen again.”

“Unfortunately there’s nothing a traveler can do about flight disruptions, but there are still several simple measures travelers can take to reduce the chances and impact of lost luggage,” The most important thing of all is to ensure all luggage is properly labeled and never travel without adequate travel insurance.” , Mr. Jackson added.

The largest sector for the company is the lost, damaged and stolen luggage. On their website, Travel Insurance team listed at 10 lost luggage tips to ensure your luggage travels as safely as possible when en route to your next destination.

Now its time to think twice before fliying without a luggage insurance, in fact these days just by actually getting your luggage is a matter of luck!

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Early Wednesday, Kizza Besigye, the Ugandan opposition leader who has spearheaded the recent protests against rising fuel prices and the election of his opponent, President Yoweri Museveni, claimed that he had been barred from returning to his country after receiving medical treatment in Kenya. Two weeks ago, Dr. Besigye was violently arrested during a protest. After posting bail, he travelled to the neighboring country to be treated for eye injuries he suffered when police attacked his vehicle. They had drenched him with pepper spray and hauled him onto a pick-up truck, according to Reuters.

Dr. Besigye has been highly critical of the incumbent President and the recent elections which he believes was rigged.

The east African country has been plagued by violent clashed between demonstrators and police during protests against rising food and fuel prices. The Daily Mail reported that President Museveni, in power for 25 years, is accusing the opposition of trying to spread chaos to avenge their defeat in February’s disputed presidential elections, in which he won by 68%.

The opposition was heading “walk to work” protests which urge Ugandans to leave their cars at home on Mondays and Thursdays in solidarity with those who cannot afford fuel. However, the protests have sparked violence in the capital Kampala, as well as other major cities for nearly a month, leaving scores of people injured. On Monday, at least nine unarmed people are believed to have been killed – Reuters report that three were shot in the back as they fled security forces.

The scene of the clashed, in pictures, show special water cannons spraying protestors with pink liquid spray. This practice is common in Uganda and elsewhere on the continent, having been used during the Apartheid era in South Africa, most famously in the 1989 Purple Rain Protest in Cape Town, The Daily Mail explains.

After Besigye had left for Kenya, his officials told Reuters that upon his return he would stage a “national prayer” rally on the same day as the inauguration ceremony for Museveni which is tomorrow, Thursday. However, before noon on Wednesday, Beignye told the BBC from Nairobi airport that he had been indirectly denied re-entry to Uganda. “The Ugandan government had told the Kenya Airways chief executive that if they board us the aircraft will not be allowed to land in Uganda and that we were not welcome and that therefore they had absolutely nothing to do if they wanted to fly to Uganda but offload us,” he stated.

The Ugandan authorities have denied any role in the matter. “The government of Uganda has nothing to do with Dr. Besigye’s travel plans from Kenya or any sovereign state,” Fred Opolot, director of the government media centre, stated at a news conference in Kampala. “The understanding is that Dr. Besigye, as per communication from his party, is on his way from Nairobi and should arrive sometime today,” he continued as reported by Reuters.

At noon, Dr Besigye confirmed that he had been given permission to return to the BBC, but had no explanation as to why the authorities had reversed their decision.

It is not clear whether the confusion was a misunderstanding between officials, or a ploy to entice or dwindle the demonstrators.

Dr. Besigye and Mr Museveni are former colleagues, but fell out about 10 years ago. According to the BBC, Besigye had left the country but returned in 2005 with the introduction of multi-party politics.

Photo provided by besigyekizza

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