TRAVEL GENERAL

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AIRPORT PARKING - GATWICK • AIRPORT SECURITY • • CREDIT AND DEBIT CARD SECURITY • DVT (DEEP VEIN THROMBOSIS OR ECONOMY CLASS SYNDROME) • EGYPT • EGYPTIAN LOCAL BUSINESSES • EGYPTIAN VISA • HEALTH • MASTA • • LONDON • NEW YORK • TRAVEL INSURANCE • •

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AIRPORT PARKING - GATWICK BACK TO TOP

 
AIRPORT SECURITY BACK TO TOP

 
CREDIT AND DEBIT CARDS BACK TO TOP

    British tourists are being targeted by dishonest waiters and shop assistants working for gangs across the continent to 'clone' their credit and debit cards. This is possible by the use of a small box called a skimmer which is smaller in size than a packet of cigarettes and can be clipped onto a belt. The card is passed through the skimmer which makes a copy of the details held on the magnetic strip, this takes less than a second and the skimmer can hold up to 100 numbers. The information is later downloaded on to a computer. The information is used to clone a new credit or debit card which can then be sold on.

    The first you may know of this is when you get your next statement and there are a number of items that you do not recognise.

 
EGYPT BACK TO TOP

 
EGYPTIAN VISA BACK TO TOP
  • When travelling to Egypt visitors need a VISA. This costs £15. You must have at least six months left on your passport.

    The visa is available from
    CONSULATE GENERAL
    2 LOWNDES STREET,
    LONDON
    SWI X9ET
    Telephone number 0207 2359777 or 0207 2365562 or 0207 2359719
    Fax number 0207 2355684
    Visa forms which are taken in person must be delivered to the Consulate in the morning before 12.30pm and are collected between 2.30 and 4pm on the same day.
    You can also get your visa on arrival in Egypt. You must pay for it in pounds sterling or your national currency. All foreign nationals are given a form to fill in on the airplane before landing giving many of the details from your passport.

    E-mail: Egyptconsulate@netscapeonline.co.uk

 
LOCAL BUSINESSES IN HURGHADA BACK TO TOP
  • The local businesses need to make a living and this is done through trading with tourists. The local people enjoy talking to tourists, asking where you come from, inviting you into the shop to look at their goods, asking how much you are willing to pay for the items. In the majority of shops there are no prices so you have to ask if you are interested in something and then you barter until you reach a price you are willing to pay and the trader is willing to sell at. Be prepared to take your time. You will be offered cups of local red tea, asked to sign the visitors book or just engaged in talk. Some of the traders will leave you alone when you say you are not interested some will try to show you almost everything in the shop in the hope that you will buy something. If you are not interested you just need to be firm and say no. Do not say maybe or I will come back or later. This will mean that everytime they see you they will say "you said you would come back later".
 
HEALTH BACK TO TOP

     
  • DVT       BACK TO TOP
    There is a lot of publicity about DVT (Deep Vein Thrombosis) and long haul flights. DVT can happen whenever you are in one position for a long period of time, on any long journey in the car, on the train, or even sitting in front of the computer, as well as flying. To prevent the occurrence of DVT you should drink plenty of water, rotate the ankles, lift the knees or just move around regularly. You should consult your doctor before travelling. Those more at risk from DVT include people suffering from heart or lung disease, cancer, following a surgical operation or taking HRT or the pill.

    It has been suggested that using elasticated stockings will help. Again check with your doctor.

     
  • MASTA       BACK TO TOP
    Medical Advisory Services For Travellers Abroad Ltd provides travellers with a Travellers Health Brief detailing recommended immunisations, seasonal diseases, Malaria Prevention where applicable, Latest Health News from the country to be visited and Foreign and Commonwealth Office Travel Advice.
    www.masta.org

 
LONDON BACK TO TOP

London mainline stations usually have an underground ticket and information office where you can obtain a tube map and purchase one day travel cards which allow travel on the underground and on the buses within various zones numbered 1 to 6 and the higher the number the further out the travel card covers. A Zones 1 & 2 travel card will allow travel throughout the West End and City of London The cost in April 2002 was £4.10


 
NEW YORK BACK TO TOP

New York has a one day Metrocard available from subway stations which gives unlimited travel on the buses and subway. In October2000 the price was $4.00

Gray Line run New York Sightseeing tours which can be taken over two consecutive days and cost $35 in October 2000. This is a hop on hop off tour so you decide where you want to spend time and what you want to see from the bus. They are mainly open topped double decker buses. The tour is in two halves, the downtown loop takes about 3 hours and the uptown loop takes about 2 hours. The trip covers from Battery Park in the south to 125th Street (Harlem) in the north. The tours split at the Port Authority Bus Terminal, not far from Times Square. There is a commentary throughout the trip often with information you don't find in the guide books.

  
TRAVEL INSURANCE BACK TO TOP

     
  • ANNUAL TRAVEL INSURANCE

    When taking out travel insurance check what is and is NOT covered. An annual Personal Travel Insurance Policy was supposed to cover trips in the UK as well as abroad. At the time of taking out the policy I said that I travelled throughout the UK and stayed with family and friends and I was assured that these trips would be covered.

    A claim was rejected because "Trips within the United Kingdom are only covered if they are pre-booked for a period of at least one night and are for leisure only. In the circumstances, therefore, in order to consider your claim, we will require an Invoice/Reservation, in writing, from the Hotel in London where you stayed."

    In the definitions section of the policy "TRIP means the journey or holiday insured for which You have paid the full insurance premium and which begins and ends in the United Kingdom. If this policy has been validated as an Annual Multi Trip Policy, You are insured for an unlimited number of Trips during the Annual Policy period but only 17 days with regard to all Winter Sports. Trips lasting 31 days or 17 days for Winter Sports are not insured: No cover is given beyond the expiry of the Annual Policy Period. If this Policy has been validated as an Annual Multi Trip Policy, trips within the United Kingdom are insured providing they are pre-booked for a period of at least one night and are for leisure only."

    No-where here or anywhere else within the Policy could I find the reference that pre-booked meant IN AN HOTEL. I had booked with family and friends, from different parts of the UK, to meet in London for a reunion and I was to stay with family in London overnight.

    I contacted the insurance company's customer services department who told me to appeal if I was not satisfied. I wrote to the company and said that I did not accept the rejected claim. They then advised me to contact the Financial Ombudsman Bureau, City Gate One, 135 Park Street, London, SE1 9EA quoting the Insurance Company, your policy number and the claim reference number and supplying full details of the claim and your reasons for the appeal.

    You will be sent a form to complete and return to The Ombudsman. The claim will be looked at and they will decide if they feel that you have a case and how to deal with it.

    In my case they upheld my complaint and returned the file to the insurance company to settle the claim and send a settlement cheque within one month with interest added from the date of the loss to the date of the payment.

     
  • MEDICAL TREATMENT ABROAD AND FORM E111

    The Form E111 is free from Post Offices. There is a form and a certificate at the back of the booklet Health Advice For Travellers and the Certificate needs to be completed and certified, usually at the Post Office. Form E111 is advertised as the passport to free or reduced-cost emergency medical treatment in most European countries.

    People in the UK tend to forget that they may have to pay thousands of pounds in medical costs if they fall ill or have an accident outside this country. In many countries, even in the EU, you may not be covered for all the expenses you incur. In some countries you will have to pay for the treatment and then claim a refund before leaving the country.

    You should carefully read the booklet BEFORE you leave on your trip so that you know what is covered and where to go for any treatment. Keep all receipts for treatment and medicines as some can be reclaimed, or a proportion can be reclaimed.

    The cost of bringing a person back to the UK, in the event of illness or death, is never covered even under the reciprocal arrangements. Check what is covered in the reciprocal arrangement and then take out extra travel insurance to cover the areas that are not covered.