Tim Leffel’s Cheapest Destinations

Useful Travel Advice Roundup

I’m getting to know Kansas City this week at a travel media conference—more on that later. Meanwhile here’s some good advice from others that is worth your attention if you’re a surfer, are a woman traveling to India, or hate to get stuck in traffic in a foreign land. And more!

Airlines are saying “screw you” to surfers, charging them insane fees to check their board. As that L.A. Times article points out, there seems to be a clear bias since board charges are far higher than those for golf clubs at many airlines, despite being far lighter and easier to pile on a luggage stack. Thankfully, Surfline.com has broken down all the charges for you, from free (Air New Zealand, Qantas, South African Airways) to $25 at JetBlue to $200 one way at United and Lufthansa. Plus some airlines impose seasonal embargoes and British Air says “no surfboards” all year long. Do the math and it’s probably better to rent or buy a cheap used one after arrival.

Beth Whitman fills us in on how a woman should dress for India. As in most countries where there’s pent-up sexual frustration, you’ll still get leered at and maybe even felt up in a crowd, but you’ve got a better chance of blending in with this advice, especially if you have dark hair.

The traffic in Istanbul has gone from bad to worse, with the Turkish Daily News wondering if we’ll see The day we became Michael Douglas. The most populated city in Europe routinely shuts down streets and highways when a head of state comes to visit and the last time this included the one everyone takes to the airport. A problem when there’s water on three sides. Don’t forget, you can take a train to and from the airport and trams and ferries around much of the city. Avoid the roads whenever you can.

The irony meter went to 11 last week as the guy who wrote 100 Things to Do Before You Die kicked the bucket at age 47. He fell in his own house and banged his head. Maybe the book should have stopped at 50 since “He only managed to achieve half his list.” His legacy will live on, unfortunately. “It was an instant bestseller and inspired a publishing industry all of its own with dozens of ‘100 Things’ spin-offs.”