Wyoming Town Honors Rodeo Star

Tiny Kaycee dedicates Chris LeDoux Memorial Park this weekend to big local star

Chris LeDoux was a rodeo star on horseback and on stage. He won the Professional Rodeo world championship in bareback riding in 1976, and he played to capacity crowd concerts at Cheyenne Frontier Days beginning in the mid-1990s. He was inducted into both the Cheyenne Frontier Days and Pro Rodeo Halls of Fame. A highlight of his music career was a top ten hit sung with Garth Brooks, "What You Gonna Do With a Cowboy," and his records sold more than six million worldwide. He died in 2005 at age 56 of a rare form of liver cancer. 

This weekend,  Kaycee, Wyoming (70 miles north of Casper, population 300) is dedicating the new Chris LeDoux Memorial Park in downtown on land that LeDoux and his wife, Peggy, purchased many years ago. They raised five children on a ranch outside of Kaycee. It dedication includes the unveiling of a monumental life-and-a-half size bronze called “Good Ride Cowboy” by sculptor D. Michael Thomas of Buffalo, Wyoming (45 miles north of Kaycee). He began the project shortly after LeDoux’s death. “Chris’s passing hit me like a ton of bricks right in the gut. I always had an idea there needed to be a monument of this fellow. He was Mr. Wyoming,” said Thomas.

Thomas’s 2,300-pound bronze depicts LeDoux spurring for a coveted world champion’s buckle. The base depicts LeDoux’s guitar. Kaycee locals and legions of LeDoux fans raised the funds required for the sculpture. A Cody mold maker, the Caleco Bronze Foundry in Cody and finisher Clay Ward of Deaver, Wyoming, were involved in taking the project for concept to completion. The dedication takes place tomorrow, June 19, and while it's way  late for most people to head for Kaycee, the festivities give an iea of how a small town can celebrate a significant local person. The celebration starts at 10:00 a.m. and includes free food and beer prior to the unveiling of the bronze at 3:00 p.m. Afterward, LeDoux’s band, the Western Underground, will play a free concert following the ceremony.

Best US Cities for Vacationing on a Budget

Discount travel booking site announces its top 10 list

Top 10, top 20, top 100 and top whatever other number you want to pull out of a hat can be pretty tedious, but I'm somehow intrigued by a new one from Hotwire, the discount travel booking site. The Hotwire Travel Value Index lists the cities that offer the greatest values -- note that these aren't necessarily the cheapest but ones that provide good value.

Hotwire scored the cities 25 percent for air, hotel and car-rental discounts; 50 percent on low prices for air, hotel and rental cars, and 25 on overall appeal, affordable entertainment and choice of accommodations. I'm not sure how they came up with these parameters that seem partially redundant, but here's their list of the 10 cities that achieve these requirements (last year's ranking in parentheses, where applicable).

1. Orlando (3)
2. Atlanta (5)
3. Denver (4)
4. Dallas-Fort Worth (2)
5. Phoenix (1)
6. Houston
7. Los Angeles (6)
8. Tampa
9. Washington, DC (7)
10. Chicago

Book Blog for Armchair Travelers and Otherwise

A Traveler's Library finds and reviews travel books, films and more

A lifetime ago, I read Helen MacInnes's The Salzburg Connection while in Salzburg and the lake region called the Salzkammergut. I re-read Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises in Spain and A Farewell to Arms after returning from Slovenia. Peter Matthiesen's The Tree Where Man Was Born came to Tanzania with me, and Peter Hessler's River Town and Simon Winchester's The River at the Center of the World provided insights to life on the Yangtze in particular and China in general. And I've happily slogged through many a James Michener tome when traveling in places he wrote about. After returning from Easter Island, I rented "Rapa Nui." Loved the island. Hated the movie. And so my reading and my reading, and occasionally film watching, run in parallel chairs, often intertwining like a braided river, with the experience and the book merging and diverging.

In truth, because I work with words all day, I don't read nearly as much as I once did -- except when I am traveling. So when my friend Rosemary recommended her friend Vera's blog, A Traveler's Library, I found a kindred spirit. I enjoyed roaming through it, and I hope you will too. And while you're at it, check out Feast, Rosemary's eZine, which celebrates travel and also food, films, literature and art.

Holland America Donates Toiletries to Shelters

Cruise line does an environmental and humane good deed

Years ago, Denver's Queen Anne Inn began donating partially used bottles of shampoo and soap left by guests to a local homeless shelter. After Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, delegates to the Society of American Travel Writers annual convention were asked to bring toiletries liberated from hotels to be packed and sent to relief shelters -- and we responded. Therefore, the CNN.com headline "Cruise Line Donates Items Once Discarded" resonated with me. Diverting small bottles of toiletries from landfills and distributing them where they are useful made sense before, and it makes sense now.

Until recently, Holland America sent thousands of shampoo bottles and soaps, used or unused, into landfills. "But then the cruise line came up with a new use for the discarded items. They are now collected, separated into bins and brought through Customs at ports of call," CNN.com reported. Even though the process is labor-intensive and time-consuming and certainly not profitable, the Holland America launched a program called Ship to Shelter in Seattle, where the line is based, and recently expanded it to Port Everglades, Florida.

The report quoted Marti Forman Florida's Cooperative Feeding Program, which feeds about 400 people a day and provides hot meals and showers for homeless men and women and is feeling pinched during this recession. "The donations aren't there, the cash donations in order to be able to have expenditures like that to us have become a luxury item," Forman said. "If we have to decide between people having shampoo [or] people having something to eat, we're going to opt to have the food for them." With the cruise line's donations, she said that her program no longer needs to make that choice and has also seen an increase in the number of people coming to the shelter to use the showers.

For its part, Holland America now has also begun to donate TVs, crew uniforms, plates, silverware, and pots and pans, and as word got around among passengers, people have started to leave behind clothing, books and other items for Holland American to add to their donations to help the homeless.

Pay Toilets on Airplanes? Rynair is Considering It

Low-fare Ryanair reportedly exploring another revenue source

If Ryanair, the aggressive European low-fare carrier, wanted to A) raise travelers' hackles or B) get their name in print and on the air, they couldn't have picked a better subject than the possibility of converting their lavatories into pay toilets.

The Associated Press's widely printed story tried to make light of the situation by inserting reportorial witticisms and pithy quotes:

"When nature calls at 30,000 feet, is $1.40 a wee price to pay? Or could it
force passengers without correct change into a whole new kind of holding
pattern? The head of budget European airline Ryanair unleashed a flood of
indignation and potty humor Friday when he suggested that future passengers
might be obliged to insert a British pound coin for access to the lavatory to
get some in-flight relief.

"Airline chief Michael O'Leary suggested that installing pay toilets would
lower ticket costs and make flying, somehow, easier for all. Not even his own
aides seemed to be sure if he was serious or pursuing his penchant for making
brazen declarations to get free publicity for Ryanair....

"O'Leary spokesman Stephen McNamara said his boss often spoke tongue in
cheek - but he then defended the idea of in-flight pay toilets as part of a
logical trend. 'Michael makes a lot of this stuff up as he goes along and, while
this has been discussed internally, there are no immediate plans to introduce
it,' McNamara said, adding, 'Passengers using train and bus stations are already
accustomed to paying to use the toilet, so why not on airplanes? Not everyone
uses the toilet on board one of our flights, but those that do could help to
reduce airfares for all passengers.'

"Analysts agreed that the man who pioneered charging passengers to
check bags, to use a check-in desk and even to use a credit or debit card to
make an online booking just might be serious about mile-high toilet
extortion....

"Not surprisingly, passengers reacted with indignation and outrage at the
prospect....'Your only choice with Ryanair, really, is not to fly Ryanair. Your
dignity goes out the window. If you have a complaint, they're not programmed to
care," said Samantha Jones, a 30-year-old Welsh woman.She discounted the practicality of a restroom rebellion. 'If you are given a choice between wetting your knickers or not wetting your knickers, you will pay whatever fee they make you pay, and Mr. O'Leary knows this well,' she said. 'Frankly, I'm surprised he's talking about letting us have a wee for a pound, not more!'

"Rochelle Turner, head of research at British consumer rights magazine Which? Holiday, said Ryanair had a well-documented practice of putting profit before the comfort of its customers" - but this one could backfire. 'Charging people to go to the toilet might result in fewer people buying overpriced drinks on board. That would serve Ryanair right...

"Noah Cole of Portland, Ore., who has flown on Ryanair, called it "unconscionable" to charge for a bathroom, and he even predicted money-changing problems. In other words, if you only have dollars, can you still euro-nate?..."

American Airlines' Latest Fee

Pay ahead for a few benefits that you might not use

In this age of unbundling that requires passengers to pay separately for such services that until recently were included in air fares (checked baggage, food, standby for earlier flights, a better seat, etc.), American Airlines is "rebundling"  some fees. They're calling it  the "Your Choice," and here's what the airline boasts that it now offers to passengers for yet another upfront fee:

•places you in Group 1 of General Boarding, which allows you to be one of the first groups to board the plane for your flight. (Group 1 boards immediately following PriorityAAccess customers);
•provides a $75 Flight Change Discount, which means that if you need to change your itinerary, you'll save $75 off the regular service charge when applicable;
•allows you to standby for an earlier flight on your day of departure at no charge;
•applies to all travelers in your reservation per-person charge;
•offered for an introductory price of as little as $9 each way. Prices vary based by market and routing;
 
Note that it doesn't allow you to check a bag without yet another fee -- and of all the add-on fees, this one drives most passengers bonkers -- and is driving them to Southwest. It does allows you to stand by for an earlier same-day flight at no charge, but if there are no seats on that earlier flight, you lose that crap shoot. And significantly, Your choice doesn't totally waive the flight change fee; it just cuts the excessive charge by $75. American doesn't say how long the Your Choice "introductory" price (currently $9-$18 each way) will be valid. It could be a week, a month, a year. I'm guessing that if people pony up for this new fee, American will jack it up fast.
 
The airline adds, "Later this summer American will offer Group 1 of General Boarding as a stand-alone option for customers, upon arrival at the airport. The introductory price for the Group 1 of General Boarding option is $10 each way, regardless of flight length, markets or routing. Services must be purchased for the entire itinerary. This option will be available for purchase up to one hour prior to scheduled flight departure, via the self-service check-in machines at most U.S. – and many worldwide – airports." Would you call this re-unbundling?

Riviera Maya Puts Tourist Promotion into Overdrive

Fancy new hotels, upgraded old towns, eco-experiences, new attractions and Tulum lure visitors

A few weeks ago, representatives of tourism industry came to Colorado with updates about the Riviera Maya, the Yucatan Peninsula's sun-kissed coastline Caribbean coastline. South of Cancun and all of its high-rise razzmatazz stretched along a 14-mile-long Tourist Zone, visitors to the Riviera Maya nevertheless benefit from the proximity (11 miles to the north end of the Riviera Maya) to a good-size international airport. It is anticipating building its own airport within a few years, but from my standpoint, why cut down ancient jungle and foul up the place with airplane noise, fumes and traffic when a perfectly good airport is not all that far -- except that Cancun and the Riviera Maya are in different states, and politics is doubtless involved.

The infrastructure of the 81-mile Riviera Maya has been greatly upgraded since I was last there nearly 20 years ago. My husband and I had been scuba diving on Cozumel, just offshore. Since we weren't able to dive within 24 hours before flying home, we boarded a hydrofoil to a dusty town called Playa del Carmen, wandered up the main street and hopped on the first Tulum-bound bus. A rattly old school bus drove the two-lane road with a lot of jungle views and dropped us off along the highway, perhaps a quarter of a mile from the entrance to these magnificent ocean-view ruins. The bus fare was about $1.35. We explored the ruins at our own pace, consulting our guidebook and occasionally eavesdropping on an English-speaking guide. Then, we wandered back to the main road, boarded the next Playa del Carmen-bound bus (another $1.35 fare), just missed one hydrofoil and had a couple of drinks and a some dockside nibbles before returnbing to Cozumel on the next one.

Tulum photo by Bruno Girin from Creative Commons

That was then and this is now: 362 hotels with a total of 37,300 hotel rooms available in different categories from small and charming hotels along the shore to modern "integrated tourism complexes made up of luxurious five star hotels, marinas and golf courses," in the tourist-speak now practiced in this enchanted, enchanting part of Mexico. I think there's even a four-lane highway. Now, luxury hotels, including all-inclusive properties, have sprung up on the Riviera Maya -- mercifully lower-rise and with less density than other coastal resorts. If you want swimming pools, palapas, fine dining and a family-friendly resort environment, the Riviera Maya has those in abundance.

There are also tourist developments that appear to be enlightened and enlightening. Xel-Ha is described as "open-sea aquarium offer[ing] a myriad of land and water activities, ecological attractions, world-class restaurants and countless more unimaginable experiences." I'm intrigued by the concept of a responsible attraction that protects wildlife, marinelife, birdlife and habitat while offering the kinds of safe experiences that many travelers, especially families, seek today. Another attraction that appears to combine gentle adventure, visitor education and resource protection is Xplor, which provides an opportunity to swim through a stalctatie river, hand-paddle an undrground raft and ride a zipline above the trees and water, all of which seem designed to protect the natural resources. The two-seat amphibious vehicles that "conquer all terrains between jungle, water, rocks and grottos" -- maybe not so much.

If you prefer a vibrant town with a lots of  amenities aimed at visitors, Plaza del Carmen is such a place. No longer a laid-back Mexican town, it has been developed a good culinary presence and an interesting art and music scene. It also has an abundance of tourist shops, tourist-trap bars, gringo-ized restaurants and even a WalMart. I wouldn't go back for those, but I would for the arts, the festivals and the chance for some of the nearby eco-opportunities, including cenote snorkeling or diving  -- and of course, to revisit the ruins at Tulum.

Clearly, presentations, like that given by the Riviera Maya representatives make everything look great, even facilities not normally of interest. What impressed me about this one was the range of accommodations now available, from backpacker-friendly to five-star luxury, presenting something for every type of Mexico-bound traveler. And from what I'm hearing, prices for the rest of 2010 (until Christmas) are rockbottom low, even at top properties. Summer is a season of high heat and low prices, but consider a deal at a complete resort with a great beach, a large pool and air conditioning, where the heat won't bother you.

Head to Playa del Carmen on Thursday evening, when it's cooler, for a weekly cultural and street festival starting at 8:00. 5ta. Avenida in Playa del Carmen, the main street, features painting , sculpture, dance, poetry, theatre, photography, performance art and video. Come fall, festival season kicks up again.