EXPEDIA EXPRESS

|

, October 1998 — The following is the monthly newsletter for the Microsoft® Expedia
™
travel service highlighting the latest site information and trends in online travel. Expedia includes many third-party offers; some restrictions may apply. For more information on offer details, please go to http://expedia.MSN.com/ .

What’s New

Ten Days in Australia for $1,198

  • We’re not kidding, mate! Round-trip air fare aboard Qantas Airways Ltd. and eight nights in two hotels Down Under is available for only $1,198 now through Nov. 4. Exclusively through Expedia.com, the Australian Tourism Commission offers this package featuring three nights in Sydney’s Mercure Hotel and five nights in tropical North Queensland’s Cairns-Novotel Palm Court Resort. Even better, the World Guide in Expedia helps travelers explore everything from attractions and currency conversion to local weather updates and local foods.

Kodak and Expedia Want Travelers to Get a Better View of Their Travel Photos

  • Expedia and Kodak PhotoNet are teaming up to let users of Expedia sample Kodak PhotoNet free of charge. When travelers buy a ticket through Expedia between Oct. 15 and Nov. 15, they’ll receive free film development, free prints and free online photos (connect-time charges may apply). Kodak PhotoNet stores photos on a password-protected Web site, making it easy to share with family and friends, order reprints, create photo gifts and even improve the quality of pictures through image-enhancing software. This online service makes it easier to share vacation pictures by allowing family and friends to view the photos any time on the Internet.

Go to the Source! Travel Experts Share Their Secrets

Expert Advice

  • Especially when travelling internationally, health information can be frustrating and difficult to find. To make things easier, Dr. Alan M. Spira offers his advice on where to go when searching for valuable travel health information. Sources of travel health information from the Internet and beyond are scheduled to be profiled beginning Oct. 27. Read Dr. Spira’s hints at http://www.expedia.MSN.com/daily/column/ .


Pssst … What’s the Scoop?

  • There’s no better teacher than experience. Travelers can avoid costly mistakes and learn from a host of experts and other travelers as they answer questions in real-time chat forums. Below is a sample of the chat forums available 24 hours a day, only at http://expedia.MSN.com/forums/ .

  • Find safety south of the border. Users of Expedia.com can interact with David Simmons, editor and publisher of The Mexico File newsletter, and learn about security issues in Latin America, as well as the U.S. State Department’s recent travel warnings concerning travel in and around Mexico City. This feature is scheduled to occur from 9 to 10 p.m. EST Oct. 26.

  • Could you be related to the Pied Piper? Most people don’t know that the fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm were based on real places and real people in Germany. The town of Hamelin from
    “The Pied Piper”
    truly exists and remains largely unchanged to this day. Join Allison Williams, recipient of a U.S. government grant to study Germany’s legendary Fairy Tale Road, as she shares travel tips and hints about this magical destination. This feature is scheduled to occur from 9 to 10 p.m. EDT Oct. 8.

  • Ski resorts, family style. Travelers tired of cruising the same old bunny slopes while the kids whine about not going to Florida should start planning now for an exciting ski trip that will keep the family talking for years. Join our family chat forum to learn how to keep everyone in the family happy – even the ones that don’t ski – as well as how to pack and save money. This feature is scheduled to occur from 10 to 11 p.m. EST Oct. 27.

Full Circle

The Australian Outback is planned to be featured during the month of October, as this 360-degree rotating view brings you a vision so real the computer screen may get dusty.

Top 10 Destinations Booked Online via Expedia.com

Where are travelers on the net going? Following is the Expedia.com list of the hottest destinations from Aug. 15 through Sept. 15:

  1. San Francisco

  2. Los Angeles

  3. New York

  4. Chicago

  5. Atlanta

  6. Orlando, Fla.

  7. Boston

  8. Washington, D.C.

  9. Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas

  10. Las Vegas

What’s Hot in Online Travel

Breaking Travel News Straight From the Expedia.com Magazine Section

The Expedia online magazine at http://www.expedia.MSN.com/daily/magazine/ offers breaking news and great deals in the travel industry. Some current examples include these:

  • Reduced fares on travel into 1999. Delta Air Lines Inc. kicked off the first fare sale for travel this fall and into winter 1999 with discounted round-trip fares in the continental United States and Canada.

  • Late harvest means late wine festivals. It’s still not too late to indulge in California’s popular wine festivals. A late harvest caused by lingering El Ni
    ñ
    o effects pushed traditional wine fests back.


Don’t Panic!

  • What do travelers wear in Nairobi? Is a certain hotel in Moscow wheelchair accessible? How much does $1.32 (U.S.) buy in Panamanian Balboa? Whether traveling to Anchorage, Ala., or Amsterdam, Netherlands, users of Expedia can learn the answers to these questions quickly with Expedia resources available at http://www.expedia.MSN.com/daily/resources/ .

Coming Soon

  • The holiday season is quickly approaching, and Expedia.com has the solution for people who are tired of giving the same stale presents that Uncle David throws in his closet right after the holiday is over. Expedia.com is offering the chance to buy travel for that hard-to-buy-for person. Details are coming in November’s Expedia Express.

#########

Microsoft and Expedia are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.
Other product and company names herein may be trademarks of their respective owners.

Related Posts