Virtual Voyagers
t's easier to get lost in cyberspace than ever before. Since last year, when Government Executive's Travel Supplement first listed on-line travel resources, travel sites have increased at least sevenfold. In November 1995, plugging "travel" into the Webcrawler search engine turned up 8,839 sites; in November 1996 it spit back 64,636. These days, every self-respecting reservation system, airline, hotel and car rental company has a Web site, easily located using an Internet search engine. Most federal employees will find it quicker to plan trips by placing a phone call to their agency travel management center or commercial travel office than by searching the Internet for information. Still, travel service vendor sites can be used like a glorified Yellow Pages-a godsend to federal offices where directory assistance calls are limited or prohibited and phone books are outdated.
Often, business travel information is buried in travel clearinghouse sites like Epicurious Travel at travel.epicurious.com/travel/a_homepage/ home.html, a site which contains the on-line versions of Fodor's guidebooks and Conde Nast Traveler. Business travelers will find information they can use-such as an excellent travelers checklist and suggestions on the best way to get downtown from more than 100 airports-in the site's "Planning" section.
Other hiding places: the American Express Web page, which contains SkyGuide Connections, a monthly on-line magazine for business travelers at www.amexpub.com/SG that's worth bookmarking for its monthly roundup of frequent traveler program promotions and business travel news; the index to travel articles on The New York Times' Web site at nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/travel/indext.html. (Readers must register with The New York Times Web site first.)
So, Government Executive left very few stones unturned in compiling the following list of Web sites for federal travelers. These sites are not the only places in which to find travel information on the Web, but we think they are the best.
TRANSPORTATION
All Aboard
Travelers can search for schedules at Amtrak's much improved Web site (www.amtrak.com). In early 1997, it gets even better: Passengers will be able to make reservations and buy tickets on-line.
Take Me Away
We love the Bureau of Transportation Statistics site (www.bts.gov) for two reasons: Its virtual library of transportation topics (found under "Other Transportation Resources") and its on-time airline statistics page (www.bts.gov/oai/oai.html). The virtual library offers, among other items, the most comprehensive package of links to public transit Internet sites we've found anywhere. At these links you'll find schedules, maps and fare information for METRO, MARC, MARTA, SEPTA, Metra, the T, Washington State ferries to Canada and more. The library's highway links lead to sites that offer road condition reports, and its traffic links lead to sites that offer real-time gridlock reports. At BTS' on-time statistics page, you can view overall on-time performance for the 10 biggest U.S. airlines or query the database to find out how often that 8:30 a.m. USAir flight you're planning to take to Orlando tends to be late.
Where the Streets Have No Name
You may never get lost at an airport again if you consult the list of links to airport Web sites offered by QuickAid, an information kiosk company, at www.quickaid.com/airports. Airport sites provide information on ground transportation, airport hotels and ticket counter locations. A few sites display terminal maps.
Heavy Lifting
Your packing company left your household goods out in the rain. Are they liable for damages? Find out by reading the government's Tender of Service agreement on-line at the Federal Supply Service's Transportation Management Office Web site at www.kc.gsa.gov/fsstt. The Transportation Management Office operates GSA's freight and household goods programs. The site also lists rates and routes of companies that move federal employees and explains GSA's decentralized transportation management system.
DOMESTIC TRIPS
Travel, American Style
Research your destination using "News From the Fifty States," a searchable state guide compiled by The Washington Post on-line at www.washingtonpost.com. The guide is under "Destinations" in the Travel section. It provides recent articles by Washington Post and Associated Press correspondents as well as links to tourism offices, state government and local media. Visit City Net at www.city.net for detailed information about American cities (international cities, too) and possibly the best interactive maps the Internet has to offer.
Regional magazines like The Washingtonian, Baltimore and Boston; weekly newspapers like The Village Voice and LA Weekly; and city newspapers from Florida to Alaska are putting their publications on line. Check their theater reviews, dining guides and event listings before you go, and the locals will never guess you're from out of town.
Follow the Rules
Visit GSA's Federal Supply Service at www.fss.gsa.gov for federal per diem rates and travel charge card policies.
Room at the Inn
The Federal Supply Service's Best Available Lodging Value (BALV) program lists hotels that comply with the 1990 Hotel/Motel Fire Safety Act and offer last-room availability at per diem rates; convenient locations; amenities such as free parking, local phone calls and airport shuttle service; accommodations for people with disabilities; and direct agency billing. The BALV site will include properties in the top 75 federal destinations after January 1997. It's located at: www.gsa.gov/regions/r9/travel/balv.htm.
When to Bring Your Umbrella
CNN knows. It provides weather forecasts at cnn.com/WEATHER/index.html. Regional newspapers on-line (see "Read Like a Local" above) are other good sources of local weather information.
You Gotta Eat
Find a good meal in a strange town with ZagatDine, Zagat Restaurant Guide's on-line service. Pick a city, and then search by cuisine, quality, popularity or bargain status. The site is located at pathfinder.com/@@ONI.WwwUAUzft2nbt/Travel/Zagat/Dine/index.html.
Road Warrior
Put an end to aimless wandering by mapping out your route to the field office using the interactive street atlas on Rand McNally's Web site. The site, located at www.randmcnally.com, also provides a road-construction database, so travelers can circumnavigate potential traffic jams.
Best Seat in the House
Search Ticketmaster's on-line box office at www.ticketmaster.com to find out if the Smashing Pumpkins' world tour coincides with your business trip to San Francisco. No? Never mind: The site also lists sports and arts events. Buy tickets on-line, by phone or at Ticketmaster outlets. The site provides addresses.
INTERNATIONAL TRIPS
When In Rome
You can't do as the Romans (or the Germans, or the Brazilians) do unless you know what they do. A good place to start researching foreign destinations is at their embassies' home pages. (Use a search engine to find them.) Most embassies' pages link to independent sources of country information; lots of sites contain photographs. Get advice on local customs, gift giving, calling from overseas and voltage in 51 countries from Craighead's Business Reports Fact Sheets, on-line at the Smart Business Supersite (www.smartbiz.com/sbs/cats/ie.htm). The GNN Travelers' Center offers "Notes from the Road," a large and ever-expanding collection of insightful travelogues and travel photo essays.
Papers for a Small Planet
Proof positive the world is shrinking: You can now read the day's Jerusalem Post, South African Mail and Guardian or London Observer on-line with your morning coffee, even if you're waking up in Arlington, Va. Other foreign newspapers, too. Use a search engine to locate their URLs. Bone up on political scandals happening 7,000 miles away; scan the movie listings before you arrive.
Consular Counseling
Minimize trips to the State Department. If you need to apply for a new passport or report one stolen, you can now download forms from its Bureau of Consular Affairs' site at travel.state.gov. You still have to apply in person or through the mail, though. Other reasons to visit the Bureau of Consular Affairs on-line: Travel warnings and consular information sheets are here, as is information on visas, legal assistance abroad and international adoption and child abduction.
Is This Rash Serious?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Web page at www.cdc.gov/travel/travel.html is a shot in the arm for international travelers: Punch in your destination, and the CDC will tell you which vaccinations you need. The site also sounds the alert on disease outbreaks and provides information on health topics such as prescription drugs that prevent malaria and spraying aircraft for insects. The International Society of Travel Medicine aims to increase awareness of travel health issues among travelers. The ISTM Web site is located at www.istm.org/.
What Your Dollar's Worth
Every day at noon, the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank posts currency exchange rates at www.ny.frb.org/pihome/mktrates. The Washington Post on-line, at www.washingtonpost.com, offers currency exchange rates, provided by Data Broadcasting Corp., at 5 a.m., noon and 7 p.m. EDT daily, plus currency markets news.
London Calling
When it comes to radio, Brittania rules the airwaves. The British Broadcasting Corp.'s World Service provides a lifeline to news-starved English speakers the world over. The World Service radio site, located at www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice, offers program schedules (updated every month), tips on how to improve shortwave radio reception and a searchable database of frequencies. If you'd rather hear an American voice coming out of your shortwave, obtain schedules and frequencies for the Voice of America radio service at gopher://gopher.voa.gov/11/voa-sked. Learn more about Voice of America at www.voa.gov.
Don't Forget to Write
Out of stamps? Send an electric postcard instead: postcards.www.media.mit.edu/Postcards.
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