Travel is close to back to normal in Christchurch New Zealand after the devastating Earthquake a week ago.

I am amazed at how quickly our Kiwi friends have been able to recover to minimize travel disruptions in Christchurch since last Saturdays huge earthquake.

It is great testimony to th emassive importance New Zealand places on tourism and just how quick they can implement plans to offset these types of disasters.

In some ways now I suppose will be people who will find it interesting to see the aftermath of such an event.

No doubt the Kiwi’s marketers will find a way to use it as a positive.

New Zealand is the most popular destination for Australians travelling overseas and I don’t see that changing.

Tomorrow Nilla will be sharing her views of Egypt which she visited over the last week…I can tell you Nilla is very very excited Egypt as a travel destination.

Until tomorrow…

take good care.

John C Spark

Expert Travel Planner

The internet has been great for travel…but how would you be feeling now if your bookings to New Zealand include Christchurch immediately after the Earthquake?

My heart goes out to anybody impacted from the recent earthquake in Christchurch New Zealand…it will reach far beyond the victims with property damage and or business disruptions.

More specifically right now there are at least 50,000 Australian tourists in New Zealand…a high number of these people would of planned on either staying or departing from Christchurch airport.

Those plans are all turned upside down now…thanks to the earthquake and the state of emergency being declared for Christchurch.

What would you be doing and where do you turn if you had booked your travel on the internet? Or even worse you did not take out adequate insurance?

If you are reading this then I would say it is very possible you are not impacted so probably you are thinking …I am glad this is something I don’t have to work through.

Right!!!

What I can share is that we have already taken calls from New Zealand this morning from our clients and WE will be sorting out their options with minimal stress to them.

View Christchurch- New Zealand in a larger map

Here’s to a speedy recovery to our Kiwi friends and a minimal impact to all travellers enjoying the magnificent “land of the long white cloud”

Feel free to share your comments  or personal experiences as you may just be helping a fellow traveller.

Cheers

John C Spark

Expert Travel Planner

Look what I found  today…

Happy cow.net. is a great resource for anyone who is interested in finding

healthy places to eat pretty much anywhere in the world.

It is simple to use…just type in the city you are visiting and up comes a list of recommendations.

Along with a google map, reviews in most cases and the menu. Another feature is you can stipulate the distance from your location so that you don’t get some an endless long list to wade through.

Now there is much more to the “happycow” you also have a heap of recipes which can be downloaded so there’s no need to travel enjoying lovely food.

You could of course always use happycow in you own city to experience how useful it may be when you travel.

If you have similar sites that you think other travellers should know about then please comment below or email me and I will review them…that way we can all enjoy even better travel experiences.

Her’s to your travel exceeding the highest expectations.

Cheers

John C Spark

Expert Travel Planner

Today I have gone out on a limb by featuring Ben Cousins, drugs and Travel…

Check out why in my video…

Let me state right up front that I only want to highlight…

a key point Ben’s father Brian shared relating to ALL families…

and that is the need to improve communication within the family.

On a personal level I am very passionate that any family with a little

careful and thoughtful planning can significantly improve how they

communicate with each other via travel.

Travel is one of the best but least understood education tools

available to most people.

Don’t take my word though, check out if you haven’t already one very easy and fun such way in

the video. (I plan on sharing a lot more on travel and better communication

in future posts…I invite you to check in regularly)

I promise you it will work and maybe, just maybe it  could be the stepping

stone to a better understanding of a family member.

If so, then I will consider going out on a limb worth while. As I have witnessed

first hand the devastating impact a drug problem can bring to families.

As always you are encouraged to share your comments.

To your family.

John C Spark

Expert Travel Planner

We are so proud of you…Kelly

Most of us know that parents can be bias towards their children…

well it now looks like a bosses can be just as proud!

You have checked out the video haven’t you?

What may not be clear is just how incredible Kelly has been for her clients as a Expert Travel Planner second to none.

10 years ago this month Kelly joined Jetset Albany as a consultant. Little did we realise that Kelly would not only travel the world  to many exciting and rewarding destinations but she would develop into one of Australia’s premium travel planners.

Kelly’s  awards list include Jetset consultant of the year  for 2007,2008,2009,2010. National consultant of the year for Jetset 2008, 2009 and an Avis scholarship finalist 2010.

While the awards say one thing about Kelly what can’t be fully demonstrated in a video is the PASSION and COMMITMENT Kelly’s  clients all feel every-time they seek her input to their travel.

Just last week a client wrote to me a  two page thank you for the way Kelly made her feel about her travel.

Let me share just a small part of that letter: “She has an open, friendly manner and a really lovely personality.  She obviously has a gift for making her clients feel ‘special’.  I felt as though I was her ONLY client and the only person she cared about.”

Nilla and I have very proud and have enjoyed her journey to where she is now…we just wanted to share our joy with you.

Please feel free  to pass on any comments and or contact Kelly on her email kelly@travelwithjetset.com

Thank you for allowing me to share  my excitement and joy.

Cheers John C Spark

Expert Travel Planner

The Travel diary is now getting harder to  make as we are getting very tired…little did we know our 8 hour  Buenos Aries layover was going to bring us fresh challenges.

Expert Travel Planner Nilla shares her feelings after a long 12 hour flight on Qantas  from Sydney to Buenos Aries where we had another 8 hours before catching a flight to Lima.

Or so we thought…

Stay tuned to learn what happens 7 hours later and how we cope with this situation.

Sometimes the getting to your destination can be a little trying but really it is minor

when we consider what so many other people have to put up every day.

Enjoy good things…

always.

John C Spark

The life of a top Travel Planner can sometimes be very stressful…so what do we do to relieve that stress?

Kelly Spinks has just returned from a quick trip to Sydney where she was a finalist in the Avis scholarship awards. Great stuff Kelly we are very proud of you.

But Kel is not feeling too well now as she managed as one can when flying to pick up a sore throat

and a decent cough somewhere along the way.

Most likely from her seat belt bucket as they are known to be a place where flu germs can be.

So I decided I would cheer her up a bit and make her a nice lunch with plenty of garlic and chilly.

Interestingly Kelly does not seem to be coughing as much since she has eaten. She probably wont get to close to her partner when she gets home either thanks to the extra garlic.

Now if you would like the recipe just let me know in the comments box below and I will write it out.

Almost all my cooking is done  as one off dishes because I tend to make it up as I go so hence I don’t have the recipe ready.

If you have a proven Flu cure which you would like to share then please do in the comments box below.

Tomorrow I have a special experience from a friend in Singapore who travelled to Nepal.

Camilla is a keen travel photographer and managed to capture pictures of a eagle that were good enough to be included in National Geographic.

So please come back tomorrow and read what Camilla has to say on her Nepal experience.

So until then…

enjoy peaceful thoughts.

John C Spark

Expert Travel Planner

The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a magnificent site at the best of times…it looks even better from the water in my eyes.

So there’s my spur of the moment update.

But wait don’t leave it just gets better as a few minutes later we pass under the Sydney harbour bridge.

I can’t help myself and whip out the video camera again…check it out

Have you ever been under that magnificent engineering feat before and looked up?

Amazing…it just gives it a whole different size perspective.

And how small do the Sydney Harbour bridge walkers look.

I could not help myself with having to include the Sydney Opera house and a quick pan around the city.

Sydney is deserving of its reputation as one of the most beautiful cities in the world in my mind.

In case you are wondering what was I doing on the Sydney Harbour…well glad you asked as I can highly recommend the lunch time cruise we experienced.

Very comfortable, nice food and a great commentary all added up to a very worthwhile couple of hours.

Stay tuned as we share the next the joys and a few frustrations that can crop up in anyone’s travel.

So until then…

enjoy yourself.

John C Spark

Expert Travel Planner

Macchu Picchu is one of the must see travel places for many people when they visit Peru.

Take a look at this short video animation Nilla made for members of our group.

Once I viewed it I said let’s share it as it shows some nice shots of Macchu Picchu.  There is also shots of  Mt Veronica from a location few tourists will have visited.

Plus a number of nice people pictures as they happened which capture the feeling and sense of togetherness our group enjoyed.

Nilla will be posting her day by day dairy starting next week so if you want to learn some insights into travel in Peru, Macchu Picchu, Lake Titikaka and local village life then you will want to stay tuned.

Enjoy all things good.

John C Spark

Expert Travel Planner

Don’t you hate it when you get off a long flight and then you find yourself waiting around to leave the airport?

If you are travelling to Sydney then this is a high probability as you will see in my short video.

I took this video rather quickly after our limo driver told us that on some days you find yourself waiting 2 or more hours in ques.

Sam the limo driver said that early morning before 10 am and evenings from 5 to 8 pm were the worst times as that is when a lot of flights arrive and depart.

In the past I have  paid $55 for the Airport to Darling Harbour taxi ride. The limo service cost between $65 and $75. Interesting that it is much quicker than a taxis too.

You can probably speculate why!!!

The thing to remember is that a limo service must be booked in advance…the bonus is they will always have a nice luxury late model car and be very professional.

I have travelled in taxis all over the world and believe me my personal experiences have not always seen me at ease with some local taxis drivers where as I am yet to have

anything but a good experiences with limo services.

Now it would wrong of me not to mention you can also catch a the shuttle bus which is only $15.

You will have to wait your turn to be dropped off as the shuttle services a number of hotels.

And finally there is the train which I have caught once and then had to drag my bags around the streets as it did not stop near my Hotel.

Well that covers more than what I intended…hope it helps the next time you go to Sydney.

Happy Travels

John C Spark

Expert Travel Planner