LIMA, Peru Hundreds of unticketed tourists have been turned away from Machu Picchu this week as Peru’s famed Inca ruins reached capacity.

Angry tourists blocked a bridge for two hours Monday in the town of Aguas Calientes at the entrance to the ruins. That impeded buses that ferry visitors to the hilltop archaeological site.

Juan Julio Garcia is the regional tourism director in nearby Cuzco. He says some travel agencies have failed to inform visitors that they should get tickets in advance because of the daily load limit of 2,500 people.

Authorities established the limit for Peru’s main tourist attraction in 2005 as a conservation measure.

In January, tickets became obtainable online.

Read more…

The federal government’s Essential Air Service is fast becoming the metaphoric poster boy for wasteful government spending, entrenched interests, political gridlock, and a greedy airline industry. Joe Brancatelli shares secrets and proven tips for first- and business-class road warriors. From airport-security pat-downs, to new rights for airline passengers stuck on the tarmac, to new rules for credit cards, business travelers confronted a wealth of contradictions on the road this year. The new war between legacy airlines like American and Delta against online travel agents like Expedia and CheapOair isn’t about protecting consumers. Read more…

Forget old fashioned ideas of stuffed toy donkeys and cheap sombreros. With the pound at a real low on the international exchange, cashing in whilst abroad is a good way to make your budget stretch a little further.

Whether its simply getting organised enough to pick up Christmas and birthday gifts for the entire year, or going the whole hog and investing in bulk buys for retail back at home, the key to making savings is to work out the sums first.

Fully fledged buyers will want to counter the cost of the entire cost of the trip into the figures, whilst the rest of us might just bolt the buying trip onto an already accounted for, well deserved break.

Read more…

ABTN speaks to Jo Stevenson, Accor’s UK and Ireland sales director, global and national sales, about recovery in the business travel sector.

How are business travel sales performing in the UK for Accor?

Last year, 2010, was a really strong year of recovery and we’ve seen that continue in 2011 in the UK, but also on a global basis. If I look at some of the distribution channels like GDS, which is the main channel that the travel management companies (TMCs) are using for booking business travel, we’ve seen a really strong increase in 2011.

The key cities where we’ve really seen some huge recovery are London, New York, and Paris especially – because Accor is so huge in France. Getting ava

Read more…

We might spend the whole year dreaming of slapping on sun lotion in sunny climes, but a third of Britons spend their holidays stressing about money.

According to a new survey, we are a nation of holiday-worriers, with 39 per cent of those asked admitting their biggest concern is not being able to splash the cash.

Although the majority agree holidays should be a time to relax, 90 per cent admit they are likely to fret about their holiday before they depart with 14 per cent feeling stressed before the trip is even booked.

What a lot of worriers: Britons struggle to relax on holiday as they fear they are spending too much

The research, by ebookers.com, shows that on average, holiday makers spend three hours agonising about their holiday, with 11 per cent worrying for eight hours or more.

Top gripes include delayed or missed flights, poor accommodation, lost luggage and passports.

Travellers are not just nervous about their holiday before take-off, 37 per cent admit they worry about returning to reality while theyre still away.

Read more…