After losing everything in a natural disaster, it’s a tremendous burden to have to put your life back together again. Important documents are lost, your life is in complete and utter turmoil, and insurance doesn’t cover everything even if you’re lucky enough to have it. Under those circumstances, having to pay $135 to apply for passport replacement is like adding insult to injury. Passport replacement
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The grand old Internet tradition of "Cyber Monday" turns six years old tomorrow, as online retailers try to get their piece of the holiday shopping pie. At this point, I'm not sure why you would want to camp out in the cold and risk life and limb to shop Black Friday at a bricks-and-mortar store when you can get great deals online for all sorts of products, including travel. This Cyber Monday, some travel companies are bending over backwards to…
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For many Americans, the ability to apply for a new passport completely online ranks high on their travel wish list. Unfortunately, as of right now, you can only start the process online by filling out and printing the relevant application forms. If you've never had a passport before (or you are otherwise ineligible to renew your passport by mail), you still have to go down to the nearest passport acceptance facility (most likely a post office) to turn in the…
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*The passport fees have recently changed. As of April 2nd, 2018, the passport acceptance fee has gone up from $25 to $35. University of Rhode Island students had chance to get some help with their passport applications last week, thanks to a unique event held by the University's International Office. During the event, the International Office gave away 50 free passports, covering the application fees for those students lucky enough to be able to snag one. In addition, the…
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Fall is harvest season, so it's traditionally a time of gluttony. If you can't wait for the requisite Thanksgiving feast at the end of the month, why not renew your passport and fly in to the Cornucopia Festival in Whistler, Canada? As the name implies, Cornucopia is a celebration of gourmet food and wine. It runs from November 10th to November 13th, and if you like food, wine and fun, it's definitely working checking out. (Via Gadling). If you like to…
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Waiting in line to go through a border checkpoint can really try your patience. However, when it's your turn to hand over your passport, don't let your impatience make you less vigilant. While it's rare, there have been a couple of cases recently where customs officials have handed people back the wrong passports. First, there was the case of Joe Valdez in Texas. Poor Mr. Valdez lost his passport when a border patrol official handed his passport to a stranger…
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Do you love wine and travel? If so, here's a travel contest that's tailor-made for you: The Wines of Chile Experience. (Via Gadling.) If you win, you'll get two free flights to Chile (one for you, one for a guest), as well as five nights of accommodations at a boutique hotel or winery, food and drink, activities and transportation within Chile. The total value of the prize package is "not to exceed $15,000," so there should be enough of a…
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Japan has come to depend on its tourist industry, but after the earthquake/tsunami one-two punch that leveled parts of the coast and damaged the Fukushima nuclear reactor, the number of foreign visitors dropped by 50-60 percent (via NileGuidance). Since then, the Japanese travel industry has come up with several promotions aimed at combating the negative perception of the country that still lingers even today. For example, in July, a group of Japanese resorts held a contest to send one lucky…
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Want to do something really special for Halloween this year? Now that popular reality shows follow "paranormal investigators" around, ghost-hunting is all the rage, but do you really want to spend your Halloween shivering in an abandoned building in the hopes that something will materialize? Stay at one of these reputedly haunted hotels, and you can enjoy your creature comforts while you try to catch a glimpse of supernatural visitors. Just remember: you can check in, but you may never…
