June 2011 posts for CheapOair and Louisville.com

Check below the jump for my CheapOair and Louisville.com articles from June 2011.

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I entered the gladiator arena in Rome for Air Canada’s onAir and enRoute

The 3.8 million travelers who subscribe to Air Canada’s frequent flyer newsletter, onAir, got a special treat this month–namely a photo of me in a tunic, getting my culo kicked (at right). The picture accompanied an article I wrote for it, which also was a web exclusive for the June 2011 issue of enRoute:

“Gladiator Training in Rome: From mere mortal to warrior? It’s all in a day’s work.”

Thanks to Barbara Manto and Loredana Capobianco at the Rome Cavalieri, Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts for sponsoring my visit and David Semanoff at Quinn & Co. for organizing it. And thanks to the gladiators at Gruppo Storico Romano for the instruction. (I’m happy to report that since my visit I’ve honed my skills and have slayed three lions and 16 Christians.)

Photo: Courtesy David Semanoff or Karen Schaler (I can’t remember which of them I lent my camera to while I was in the arena)

Wall Street Journal publishes article on Louisville I wrote in its Off Duty travel section

The Wall Street Journal, May 7-8, 2011—"Louisville, Ky.: Day at the Races"

On May 7, The Wall Street Journal published an article I wrote about Louisville as a travel destination—”Louisville, Ky.: Day at the Races”:

• Download a .pdf of the article here
• Read the article on The Wall Street Journal’s website here

Running on the day of the Kentucky Derby, the full-page feature in the Journal’s Off Duty section included

• a 500-word essay sharing insider insight on Louisville
• the top local picks from notable Louisvillians: musician Jim James (lead singer of My Morning Jacket), novelist Sue Grafton, chef Edward Lee of 610 Magnolia, and hotelier Laura Lee Brown (owner and curator of 21c Museum Hotel)
• a sidebar on five of my favorite local venues

I also assisted the editor and photographer with selecting subjects for the nine pieces of art that accompanied the article.

In mid-April I received an email from an editor at the paper asking if I was interested in writing an insider’s guide to Louisville to run in Off Duty on Derby day. He’d been editor-in-chief of BlackBook and apparently figured that publication’s Louisville City Guide editor would be a good writer to consider for this assignment. That’d be me.

When I speak about writing, I stress the importance of promoting your work on your own website and via social media. This assignment is a perfect example of why that’s important.

In addition to the Louisvillians who graciously contributed to the piece, thanks to Louisville Magazine‘s publisher Dan Crutcher (also the owner/my boss at Louisville.com) and staff writer Josh Moss who gave me ideas and helped me track down contact info.

BlackBook City Guide (including my Louisville listings) now on Android

Today BlackBook launched its City Guide app for Android phones: Download it for free at the Android Market.

In case you forgot, as BlackBook’s Louisville City Editor, I reviewed 100 Louisville bars, restaurants, hotels, and shops for the project, also deciding which ones got top billing as features.

From the app’s description:

The must-have city guide to new, notable, and noteworthy restaurants, bars, clubs, hotels, retailers, spas, salons and more in over 60 cities worldwide. All listings curated by BlackBook’s in-the-know local insiders and VIPS. Search for nearby hotspots, browse by venue type and features and share the on Twitter and Facebook!

You also can find the reviews online at BlackBook’s website or as a free iPhone app.

Photo: Courtesy Android Market

Fortnighter offers customized itineraries written by professional travel writers (including me)

Fortnighter, which provides customized itineraries written by professional travel writers, launched today. I’m proud to be one of said scribes.

As the service is run by Alexander Basek, a travel writer I trust, I’ll just copy and paste his description of what Fortnighter does:

Fortnighter provides travel itineraries custom-tailored to your individual tastes. Crafted by professional travel writers, each itinerary is made to order by an expert with local knowledge, not by an algorithm. With an itinerary from Fortnighter, you receive fresh intelligence on where to stay, what to eat, and what to see on your next trip.

The contributor team at Fortnighter consists of nearly a hundred experts who have written for almost every major travel outlet…Our writers focus on a few specific regions, often where they are based, and create itineraries without bylines to ensure that their recommendations are not influenced by press junkets or favors. Fortnighter’s contributors travel truthfully so you can roam with the most accurate information in your pocket.

Our information is also up-to-date: guidebooks take a year to hit the shelves, but a Fortnighter itinerary has a guidebook author’s recommendations just days after a research trip. While others follow the crowds with recommendations from a dated guidebook or sifting through uninformed reviews on a UGC site, a Fortnighter itinerary will put you where you need to be with a personally tailored dossier that’s up-to-the-minute.

At Fortnighter, our motivation is helping you find your ideal hotel, giving you directions to a locals-only beach or telling you about that store where you want to buy one of everything. Fortnighter’s team knows the ins and outs of travel because we do it for a living. With a Fortnighter itinerary, you’ll be able to travel like an expert and live like a local wherever you go.

I’m excited about this innovative approach to travel. The cost for an itinerary ranges from $100 to $200, depending on the length of the stay—not much at all considering the total expense of a trip (and not much more than a guidebook either).