Melanie Marken was headed to her hotel to rest up for a business meeting in Bloomington, Ind., last month when she made a discovery.

She was in the wrong Bloomington.

Marken’s travel agent had mistakenly booked her on a flight to Bloomington, Ill. And she had to drive nearly five hours to make her meeting in the Indiana city with the same name.

This happens far too often. The state should always be mentioned just in case. Kansas city in MIssouri? or Kansas city in Kansas? Talk about a travel nightmare. Here is a list of commonly mistaken cities.

1. Sydney, Australia or Sydney, Nova Scotia

2. Vancouver, Washington or Vancouver, British Columbia

3. Kansas city, Missouri or Kansas city, Kansas

4. St. John’s, Newfoundland or Saint John, New Brunswick

5. Antigua Island or Antigua, Guatemala

6. San Jose, California or San Jose, Costa Rica

7. Panama city, Florida, or Panama city, Panama

8. St. Petersburg, Florida or Saint Petersburg, Russia

9. Venice, Florida or Venice, Italy

10. La Paz, Mexico or La Paz, Bolivia

11. San Antonio, Texas or San Antonio, Chile

12. Santo Domingo, Chile or Santo Domingo, Cuba

13. Santa Clara, Cuba or Santa Clara, Panama

14. Melbourne, Australia or Melbourne, Nova Scotia

Making the most of travel-reward credit cards

Finding the right reward card for your lifestyle — and travel

An example of how credit cards can pay for travel. Not recommend for anyone who has a shopping or spending problem or carries a balance on their credit cards.

Apps that can make traveling easier

From airfare deals to taxi bookings, apps can do almost everything except pack your bags.

A list of popular apps to make travel easier. Kayak, Hipmunk, Bing Travel, Seat Guru, Priceline, BetterBidding, Jetsetter, FlightTrack, FlightPlus, Tripit, GateGuru, Yelp, Zagat, Uber. I don’t own a smartphone and haven’t made much use of these apps. But maybe someone out there can.

Taiwan’s Eva Air offers up a complete Hello Kitty experience – from check-in to meals – based on the adorable cartoon kitten. It’s purr-fect for superfans. (Sorry, we couldn’t resist)

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  One possible destination? This Hello Kitty restaurant in Beijing. Just in case passengers haven’t had their fill…

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  Currently, three Hello Kitty-themed Airbus A330-300 aircrafts fly between cities such as Taipei, Fukuoka, Narita, Sapporo, Incheon, Hong Kong and Guam. The planes are a collaboration between Taiwan’s Eva Air and Japan’s Sanrio, which owns the Hello Kitty brand.

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  The Hello Kitty experience begins at check-in, with pink self-service counters, such as these at Taoyuan International Airport, northern Taiwan.

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  This passenger is clearly very excited.

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  As she waits to board, another passenger takes pictures of Eva’s Hello Kitty-themed products.

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  Even the boarding passes are on theme.

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  On board, no detail is overlooked, right down to the headrest covers.

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  And here’s a A Hello Kitty in-flight dessert. Of course.

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  Wait – there’s more where that dish came from.

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  Salmon bows and Hello Kitty shaped cantaloupe? Adorable.

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  So long, Hello Kitty. Have a good flight.

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  One possible destination? This Hello Kitty restaurant in Beijing. Just in case passengers haven’t had their fill…

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  (PICHI CHUANG/REUTERS) Hide caption

  Currently, three Hello Kitty-themed Airbus A330-300 aircrafts fly between cities such as Taipei, Fukuoka, Narita, Sapporo, Incheon, Hong Kong and Guam. The planes are a collaboration between Taiwan’s Eva Air and Japan’s Sanrio, which owns the Hello Kitty brand.

Hello Kitty fans will rejoice knowing that Eva Air has a Hello Kitty themed Airbus. I’m curious if the inside is all Sanrio Hello Kitty Styled as well, or if it’s just the outside. It would be creative to have the inside themed along the same magnitude a Disney cruise would be. Is there a premium for the Hello Kitty Themed planes? The routes are between Fukuoka, Narita, Sapporo , Incheon, and Hong Kong.

CHRISTOPHER REYNOLDS / TPN

The historic Many Glacier Hotel perches on the edge of Swiftcurrent Lake in Glacier National Park. Glaciers in the park in Montana are disappearing fast.

DJAMILA GROSSMAN / NYT

Park ranger Bob Schuster (above) gives a talk to visitors called “Where have all the glaciers gone?”

ALLEN J. SCHABEN / TPN

Baby mountain goats play at Glacier National Park.

ALLEN J. SCHABEN / TPN

Horses headed for Swiftcurrent Lake stride along a ridge above Many Glacier Hotel, which opened in 1915. It’s one of the lodges built at the behest of Great Northern Railway President Louis Hill, a champion of the park’s tourist potential.

 

Related

If You Go

Glacier National Park

Get details on the park, from lodging and ranger-led tours to trails and scenic drives, at www.nps.gov/glac

The park’s spectacular Going-to-the-Sun road, a 50-mile route that winds through the mountains, will not be open in its entirety until at least mid-June (or July some years) because of the heavy plowing needed. The park’s website has updates.

More information

Glacier Institute: Offers educational outings in the park, from birding to glacier hikes and more. www.glacierinstitute.org.

See the glaciers before they’re all gone. According to the article, there was once 150, and now 25. That’s a big drop in numbers. I’m lucky to have seen the glaciers in Norway, but would love to see the rest in the world. It’s beautiful to see the streaks of blue in the masses of ice.

/ THE WASHINGTON POST

The Vegas Strip is packed with with hotels, and some of the most luxurious ones are offering deals this spring.

Top 10 reasons to visit Las Vegas from the Seattletimes news. Las Vegas has the reputation as a gamblers haven, but over the years, they’ve established other forms of entertainment to woo customers. They forgot to mention that if you purchase a package, sometimes it’s a better deal. But I guess that depends on if you’re from the east coast. Most people on the west just drive. One thing I wish they would offer self serve apartments. Eating out for every meal adds a dent to the wallet and unwanted inches.

KIM CURTIS / ASSOCIATED PRESS

The peaceful beach at the Mayan Garden Inn near Majahual on Mexico’s Costa Maya.

 

Related

If You Go

The Mayan coast

Where

Majahual is located in the Costa Maya, on the southeastern coast of Mexico near the border of Belize, on the western Caribbean Sea, six hours south of Cancún. The closest airport is in Chetumal, about 90 minutes away, with daily flights to and from Mexico City.

Costa Maya and Tulum

The town of Majahual in the Costa Maya area sounds like the perfect vacation destination for those who want to escape the crowds and just want a piece of paradise. I’m not a fan of long bus rides though, so might have to find something a bit closer to Cancun airport.

Andrea Banfi confesses that she’s skipped meals altogether to avoid eating alone. “If no colleagues or business partners are around, I just don’t eat. I can’t remember when I last had a meal out on my own,” says Banfi, head of records management and operations at Guinness World Records.

Invite for a Bite founder Cressida Howard hopes to make dining out easier for female solo travelers.

A new website called Invite For a Bite aims to change all that. The site serves as a sort of meeting place where women who hate supping solo can post invites and make plans to dine together.

Cressida Howard, of Gloucestershire, England, came up with the idea for “the site I wanted to join but couldn’t find.”

A website for women who dislike eating alone to find other people to dine with. It’s a good idea, although it may be difficult to find someone while traveling.

Guide to stress-free travel [INFOGRAPHC]

Article | April 23, 2012 – 11:05am

Great infographic about how to have a stress free vacation.