Author: Cheryl Rosen

Cheryl’s 40-year career in journalism is bookended by roles in the travel industry, including Executive Editor of Business Travel News in the 1990s, and recently, Editor in Chief of Travel Market Report and admin of Cheryl Rosen’s Group for Travel Professionals, a news and support group on Facebook. As an independent contractor since retiring from the 9-to-5 to travel more, she has written regular articles about the life and business of travel agents for Luxury Travel Advisor, Travel Agent, and Insider Travel Report. She also writes and edits for professional publications in the financial services, business, and technology sectors.


Close-up of a smartphone displaying ETA or Electronic Travel Authorization alongside a passport, set against the British or UK flag background.

 

File under “One more thing your travel advisor will be telling you about next time you visit the UK.”

Beginning January 8, travelers to the United Kingdom from non-European nations, including the United States and Canada, will need to take an extra step as the new Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) system rolls out.

Whether just passing through a UK airport or planning a stay of six months or less—for tourism, family visits, business meetings, …

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Smart ID card form lines, triangles and particle style design. Illustration vector

 

Online passports have taken a step forward with the broad rollout of a Google Wallet application. Travelers now can upload a passport and just show their phones as ID at TSA checkpoints across the United States.

Even Google cautions that the technology, which went into beta in September and rolled out on Friday, is still “in its early stages.” And there are a few caveats: Online passports are acceptable as ID at TSA checkpoints …

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Welcome to Cozumel Sign on a Beach

Facing strong pushback from the travel industry in general, and the cruise lines in particular, Mexico has postponed a new $42 tourist tax on cruise passengers by six months, from January to July 1.

Mexico has long taxed hotel guests but exempted cruise passengers, who sleep on their ship. But a new bill that passed the Mexican Congress in December calls for a $42 tax on every cruise ship passenger entering Mexican waters, whether they …

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The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would provide federal agencies with necessary flexibility to begin enforcement of the REAL ID regulations on the May 7, 2025, deadline in a manner that takes into account security, operational risk and public impact.

This proposed rule seeks to ensure that federal agencies, including TSA, are well positioned to begin enforcing REAL ID requirements on May 7, 2025. The proposed rule does not

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Airport Security Check

A story on Forbes.com has people abuzz over an old rule in Mexico travel that many never knew existed: Inbound travelers may bring in one electronic device—but pay a heavy tax if they are caught bringing in two. So if you need a MacBook Pro for work, forget the iPad for watching movies. You could end up coughing up 3,690 Mexican pesos, or about US$190.

Mexico allows tourists to bring in “two cameras or camcorders …

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recreational vehicle

Here’s one thing I learned on my first-ever camping trip last week: There’s something kind of sexy about sleeping with your husband under a star-filled night sky, watching him wrestle a big rig across the vast prairie, recalling cowboy movies set beside soaring red cliffs.

But I digress. Let’s start at the beginning.

Our amazing adventure in Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon started with an email from Benoit Lafond, CEO and co-founder of Noovo, …

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Illustration representing a Real ID mandated by the government

It’s been five years since the federal government announced that it would require REAL IDs for travelers over 18. But in just a year from now, the regulation actually is likely to take effect.

Passed by Congress in 2005, the REAL ID Act was the result of a recommendation by the 9/11 Commission that the Federal Government “set standards for the issuance of sources of identification, such as driver’s licenses” before allowing people to board …

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Clear Airline security sign

CLEAR lovers will lose one benefit of the program in 2025, as the TSA says it will begin requiring them to produce a REAL ID or passport at airport checkin.

The CLEAR program is based on two premises: it takes you to the very front of the check-in line, and its biometric check-in process means you do not have to pull out your ID. But beginning in May, 2025, that second advantage seems about to …

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Virgin Cruise Ship

Virgin Voyages has indefinitely delayed the launch of its fourth ship, Brilliant Lady, citing staffing, supply chain and construction issues.

Brilliant Lady was supposed to set sail in December; but Virgin now has canceled its two festive inaugural sailings, a five-day roundtrip Christmas cruise from Miami and a seven-day New Year’s Eve from Miami, and its regular sailings from San Juan in January, March and April and the April 20 repositioning cruise from the …

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Princess Cruise Ship

What’s a cruise line to do when it has a few empty suites lying around? Like many others, Princess is trying out a new program that offers them to the highest bidder. Launching first on September 6 on five ships in North America, the new Princess Upgrade program allows guests to bid on a higher-end stateroom than the one they booked, including oceanview, balcony, deluxe balcony, mini-suites and full suites.

It will first be available …

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