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Executive Board 
President:
Terry F. Koenig
President of Koenig & Associates, a marketing and public relations company. Past President of the Skål Club of San Francisco. He has spent 38 years in the Travel Industry with 20 years directing the marketing for passenger ferry operations in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Served as Chairman of the California Travel Industry Association and on the boards of the Long Beach Convention & Visitors Bureau, Catalina Island Chamber of Commerce and the Tiburon Chamber of Commerce.
Vice President:
Robin Morales Business Development - Sales Manager at SoPac/SF Connection -- a tourism and travel represenation company Robin has served as a successful professional in Business Development/ Sales for an airline, a tour wholesaler, a worldwide chauffeur company, a non-profit organization and a travel agency.
Secretary-Treasurer:
Christian Spirandelli
Bryan International Travel, President, CEO and Owner since 1995. He merged into FROSCH International Travel in 2007. As usual with the travel industry, he has traveled extensively worldwide and has held advisory positions with several companies.
Chairman:
Lakshman Ratnapala
Chairman of Enelar International, a global management consultancy. Emeritus President & CEO of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA). A regular writer to business magazines and speaker on travel topics at conferences and workshops.
Co-Chairman:
Logan Happel
Director of Sales and Client Relations, Travel Industry at USI Travel Insurance Services.
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OUR STORY --
75 YEARS
Founded in 1934, the Foreign Travel Club (FTC) of San Francisco, the oldest of its kind in California, celebrates its 75th birthday this year.
The Club was launched by a band of enterprising men who challenged the monopoly of the local travel scene by employees of the Southern Pacific Railway.
The Club is non-sectarian and apolitical. Led over the years by respected executives of the travel industry, the Club membership has comprised individuals who have contributed to the growth of the single most important industry that enhances the quality of life and the vitality of the San Francisco Bay Area.
The FTC's monthly luncheon meetings, featuring speakers on travel topics are occasions where past and present travel industry executives, travel writers and frequent travelers meet to share experiences and promote the business of travel in a spirit of camaraderie.
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The Foreign Travel Club cordially invites travel presentations at our monthly luncheon meetings from Government, State, and City Tourism Offices, Airlines, Cruiselines, Hotels, Tour Operators, Travel Writers, and others.
Please contact:
President, Terry Koenig at
There is no cost to the presenter.
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CLUB EVENTS
Please mark your calendar for luncheon meetings of the Club scheduled for the fourth Thursday of every month, except September (summer outing), November (third Thursday), and December (Holiday Party).
We usually meet at the Marines Memorial Club, 609 Sutter Street, 12th Floor, in San Francisco. The keynote topic, speaker and venue are announced by a special notice, a week prior to the meeting.
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COMING UP:
January 27, 2011
Brendan Vacations
Registration begins
at 11:30 am.
Guests are welcome.
For details and to RSVP, contact:
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FTC CLUB ANNUAL
MEMBERSHIP DUES
Couples - $50
Individuals - $40
For details, please contact Terry Koenig at ftcosf@gmail.comor call (415) 726-3712.
Membership of the FTC is open to travel industry personnel, travel writers and frequent foreign travelers whose credentials must be endorsed by a current member. Spouses are welcome to join. FTC luncheon meetings serve the dual purpose of social interaction and business opportunity.
Professional presentations on travel trends, destinations and services are followed by Q&A session with Club members.
Although the internet and guidebooks do a great job of preparing the traveler, nothing can replace the experience of someone who has been there, done that and can speak from personal exerience. Research shows 20% of American travelers value others' personal comments over information from books, newspapers and the internet.
The FTC is a forum to meet world travelers, many of whom are travel writers and executives who have worked for tour companies, airlines/cruiselines and hotels. Whereas the internet gives impersonal information, the FTC offers insights to real life experiences.
Being a member of the FTC enhances every trip you take, it ensures you unforgettable travel experiences and opportunities to share them with other members in a spirit of camaraderie.
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SIGN OF THE TIMES . .
Travelers say airlines' customer service failed
(AP - December 29, 2010) Travelers are lashing out at airlines for poor customer service after this week's storm on the East Coast left thousands stranded and unable to get through to reservation agents.
Travelers are incensed over what they say is the airlines' effort to blame everything on the weather and take themselves off the hook.
"We don't blame the airlines or airports for bad weather, but it's their responsibility to be prepared," said Brandon Macsata of the Association for Airline Passenger Rights. "The airlines just seem to be saying, `Suck it up.' People are tired of sucking it up."
Travelers calling to rebook flights earlier this week in huge numbers were put on hold for hours or told to call back later because the major airlines have fewer reservations agents to take their calls. For example, Continental cut 600 call-center jobs -- nearly one-fourth of its 2,600 reservations workers -- in February. A few months before that, it closed a center in Florida and cut 500 jobs. American Airlines cut about 500 when it closed a center in Connecticut.
United Airlines has 10,000 customer-service and reservations employees, down from about 15,000 in the early 2000s, according to Rich Delaney, president of the machinists' union, which represents the workers. United once had 17 reservations offices; it now has three, he said.
The airlines cut staff because so many people now book tickets online. The airlines themselves encouraged the trend by charging customers a fee to book over the phone.
US Airways imposed mandatory overtime for customer-service workers to handle calls during the storm. American Airlines said it asked people to cut short vacations and extended the hours of part-time workers at call centers and airports. It still wasn't enough to handle a volume of calls that was more than twice as high as usual, according to American spokesman Ed Martelle. By Wednesday, the airline had things under control, he said.
Many travelers visibly exhausted after living at the airport for two or three days, said they were unable to get basic information from airline employees. "I waited four hours in the queue just to speak to someone -- just to get the news that I have to wait a few more days," said Tommy Mokhtari, who was stranded at New York's JohnF.KennedyInternationalAirport while trying to get home to Dubai. "They really need to have a backup plan. Some travelers had better luck calling travel agents back home instead of dealing with airline agents standing a few feet away.
Major U.S. airlines have canceled more than 9,400 flights since Saturday. The airlines have declined to say how many passengers have been put out, but given that many holiday-week flights were sold out, an estimate of more than 1 million is not unreasonable.
Airport traffic was flowing more smoothly on Wednesday, allowing the airlines to add a few extra flights at New York-area airports. Still, it could be days before all the displaced passengers finally get where they were going. Some will not get on a flight until after New Year's Day.
As the airlines cut call center jobs in recent years, they also eliminated flights and grounded planes to meet the reduced demand for travel during the recession. Those leaner schedules helped the airlines earn handsome profits this summer but left them with less capacity to handle the backlog of passengers stranded in New York and Philadelphia by this week's storm.
Planes operated by Cathay Pacific and British Airways spent over seven hours on the tarmac at JFK airport on Monday night. Airport officials said the airlines had taken off for New York without first ensuring that they had a gate assignment after landing.
British Airways spokesman John Lampl acknowledged that a flight carrying 300 passengers left London on Monday night without a JFK gate assignment, but the crew didn't think that would be a problem. "Normally a gate is available," he said.
U.S. airlines operating domestic flights can be fined up to $27,500 per passenger for tarmac delays longer than three hours, but the rule doesn't apply to international flights or foreign airlines. Passenger-rights groups are lobbying the U.S. Transportation Department to extend the penalties to all flights to and from the U.S., but the proposal is opposed by the International Air Transport Association, which represents foreign airlines.
Source: Yahoo!Finance/ AP.
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The Most Amazing Hidden Sites In The World
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When it comes to travel--especially to ancient sites, which are big business for the tourism industry--very little stays secret. That said, some ancient destinations have slipped through the cracks. And with the help of history travel website Historvius.com, here are 10 of them.
For the full story,visit: Yahoo!News/Huffington Post.
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Cruising?
Join your fellow FTC members & friends on fun cruises at
group rates with
group amenities.
CONTACT:
Claudette Main, CTC, ACC
Phone/Fax:
(650) 345-9455
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Starwood Maintains Momentum Into 2011, Continues Chinese Expansion
On 15th December 2010, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide announced that its global powerhouse Sheraton Hotels & Resorts will open three more hotels in China before the end of January, including its third in Shanghai and first hotel in Wenzhou, one of the most developed economic centres of Zheijang Province on China's south-eastern coast.
The first to open was Sheraton Wenzhou Hotel on 28th December 2010, followed by Sheraton Jiangyin Hotel on 31st December and Sheraton Shanghai Hongkou Hotel on 15th January 2011. With the addition of these three new hotels, Sheraton will boast a portfolio of 35 hotels in Greater China, with another 29 in the pipeline.
Starwood's largest brand, Sheraton boasts a current portfolio of 400 hotels in 75 countries and 92% awareness among business travellers, higher than all other global hotel brands. Following the recent completion of its $6 billion revitalisation campaign, Sheraton is now investing another $5 billion to add approximately 35 new hotels to its portfolio by the end of 2013. Half of the new Sheraton hotels will open in China.
Visit, www.sheraton.com.
Source: Hotel Newswire.
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The Luxury Collection Hotels & Resorts Launches 'The Cocktail Collection'
On 15th December 2010, The Luxury Collection Hotels & Resorts launched The Cocktail Collection with renowned mixologist and recently-appointed Global Explorer, Greg Seider. The Cocktail Collection is a compilation of 38 inventive drinks inspired by the indigenous flavours of the world's most fascinating and desirable destinations and created exclusively for The Luxury Collection.
Designed to provide a sensory journey, Seider's transporting creations such as 'Pinakona Coco' (inspired by Hawaii), 'The Raymi' (inspired by Peru), 'Tears of Chios' (inspired by Greece) and the 'Mandarin Sidecar' (inspired by China) will be served selectively at The Luxury Collection properties. The Luxury Collection features more than 75 properties in more than 30 countries.
Paying homage to the brand's rich history is the signature 'The Last Cocktail' which will have a special place on every hotel's bar menu around the world. A tribute to The Luxury Collection's Italian heritage, the spicy and aromatic cocktail combines hints of dusted clove, Italian juniper berries, the flavours of fresh pear and rosemary and the crisp bubbles of locally-produced Prosecco to provide both an olfactory and palate-pleasing voyage to the Tuscan countryside.
Greg Seider, The Luxury Collection's newest Global Explorer, has been creating some of the world's most inspired cocktails for more than a decade. He joins Andrea Fazzari, an award-winning, world-renowned photographer, as The Luxury Collection's second Global Explorer.
The Global Explorer programme celebrates the vibrancy of the world's most enchanting travel destinations through the eyes of the world's foremost innovators. Representing a broad cross-section of disciplines and personal endeavours, Global Explorers are at the forefront of their field.
For more information visit, www.luxurycollectionexplorers.com.
Source: Hotel Newswire.
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WANT TO SELL ...
destinations, tour packages, cruises, airfares, hotels or other services? The FTC delivers you a sophisticated travel audience.
COSTS: Graphic banner ads cost $15 per issue. For live links to websites, add $15 per URL.
AD DIMENSIONS: Files must be submitted in .JPG file format with a 100 dpi resolution with dimensions as follows:
Rectangle Ad: 180 pixels wide x 240 pixels high.
Vertical Banner Ad : 60 pixels wide x 100 pixels high.
FTC members receive a 10% discount. For ad quotes or to place an ad, contact:
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PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE: Welcome 2011!
I hope everyone had an enjoyable Holiday Season and are ready for a new year of travel adventures!
To give you a peek at what's in store for the travel industry in 2011 we consulted TripAdvisor a travel web site which recently announced the results of its annual travel trends survey. And, it looks like Americans will hit the road in record numbers in 2011. Ninety percent of those surveyed said they would take two or more leisure trips this year. Sixty-nine percent of the survey group said they would take international trips with 52% planning to visit Europe, 13% Asia and 12% South America.
The top three International destinations U.S. travelers plan to visit are Paris, London and Rome. Seventty-five percent of those surveyed plan domestic travel with the most popular U.S. cities being Las Vegas, New York City and San Francisco. The hot lodging trend in 2011 is vacation home rental with 47% of the survey group considering that option.
The good news for 2011 is that Europe's weak economy will result in travel bargains, especially in countries such as Portugal, Spain and Greece, according to John Clifford of InternationalTravelManagement.com and a San Diego-based travel company called Luxury Travel Consultancy. The bad is that strikes and protests over the economic problems could cause travel delays or disruption.
In the U.S., hotel rates are on the rise due to a better economy and increased demand from the group and corporate markets. Bargains may be few and far between for leisure travelers and finding a room in popular cities during peak periods could be difficult.
At home here in "popular" San Francisco,the San Francisco Travel Association (formerly the San Francisco CVB) predicts it will be a banner year for San Francisco with an improving economy and publicity from the Giant's World Series win and the America's Cup driving positive press coverage.
Terry Koenig
President
Foreign Travel Club of San Francisco |
FOCUS THIS MONTH: Exploring the World with Brendan Vacations
Our first speaker of 2011 is Bonnie Newman, Director of National Accounts - West, for Brendan Vacations.
Bonnie has had over 20 years experience in the travel industry. She began her career as a retail travel agent before joining Trafalgar Tours as District Sales Manager where she spent three years. After Trafalgar, Bonnie joined the cruising sector with Royal Caribbean Cruises Line where she held three positions: District Sales Manager, Key Account Manager and Sales Coach. She stayed with RCCL for 9 years before joining Travelbound as National Account Manager.
"Brendan Tours" was incorporated in California in 1969 by Michael Keady, Jim Murphy and Bill Lawless which launched their first tours to Europe and to the South Pacific. Throughout much of the 1970's and 1980's, they continually added new continents to their offering starting with their first African tours in 1974, South and Central American tours in 1984, Eastern European and U.S. and Canada tours in the late 80's.
In the early to mid 1990's, the company launched a number of related vertical in the air consolidation and cruising markets. The first decade of the new millennium presented numerous opportunities which allowed the company to invest in a company called "Newman's South Pacific Vacations", in Airtickets.com and in the addition of offering escorted tours to Asia.
In January 2002, they changed their name from "Brendan Tours" to "Brendan Worldwide Vacations" to better reflect the touring services they offer. This name was selected by the staff of Brendan. In 2006, The Travel Corporation purchased Brendan and renamed it Brendan Vacations which is now known to the trade as "Brendan."
Their Founder, Jim Murphy, believes that the best way to travel is not just to take a trip, but to experience all the sights and sounds of a country. This philosophy has been implemented at Brendan and they have maintained a standard of providing travel experiences that show "We Care" for over 40 years. |
 EVENT DETAILS:
WHEN:
Thursday, January 27, 2011
WHERE:
Marines' Memorial Club
609 Sutter Street, 12th Floor
(Corner of Mason Street)
San Francisco, CA
SCHEDULE:
11:30 AM - Registration & Bar Opens 12:00 Noon - Lunch & Program
COST: $26.00 - Luncheon and Program
MENU SELECTION:
1. ASIAN CHICKEN SALAD - Served with a ginger vinaigrette & fried wontons
2. COBB SALAD - With grilled chicken, bacon, avocado, tomatoes, chopped egg, crumbled blue cheese and a poppy seed dressing
3. PETRALE SOLE - Flour dusted & sauteed, topped with brown butter, capers, lemon juice & parsley, served with French green beans and rice Pilaf
4. LEATHERNECK ANGUS CHEESEBURGER - Served with Club French Fries and Cole Slaw.
5. PASTA PRIMAVERA - Sauteed fresh seasonal vegetables served over fettuccini with a light wine, herb and garlic sauce
LUNCH INCLUDES - Rolls & Butter, Ice Tea, Starbucks Coffee & Tea and Dessert.
To RSVP:
Select one of the entrees from above and click on either the YES or NO link below. When the message appears on your screen, fill in your name (and the names of any guests), choice of entree(s) from the selections above, then click send.
YES, I WILL ATTEND ( ftcosf.yes@google.com), or
RSVP Deadline: RSVP by Monday, January 24th.
QUESTIONS? Call Terry Koenig at (415) 726-3712. |
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DECEMBER HOLIDAY PARTY ROUND-UP
Although the weather was brisk and overcast, everyone who attended appeared to enjoy themselves at the Foreign Travel Club's Holiday Party on December 18th at Fog Harbor on PIER 39.
(From Left) Harry Everett, Logan Happel, Doreen Happel, Robin Morales. (Photo by Jim Main)
(From Left) John Montgomery, Charles & Rosamaria Legier, Vern Dwelly, Ray Conrady, Monica Conrady, Georgia Hesse, Diane LeBow. (Photo by Jim Main)
(From Left) Arney Lundquist, Janet Quin-Harkin, Stewart Hume, Janet Hume, John Quin-Harkin, Jan Lundquist. (Photo by Jim Main)
(From Left) Rachelle Reyes and Maura Murphy. (Photo by Jim Main)
(From Left) Claudette Main, Chris Spirandelli, Diane Spirandelli and Jim Main. (Photo by Jim Main)
(From Left) Prize Winners John Quin-Harkin, Georgia Hesse, Monica Conrady, Arney Lundquist, Colette Pratt, Harry Everett, Erwin Kelly, Bob Barrow and Doreen Happel. (Photo by Jim Main)
HOLIDAY PARTY PRIZE-WINNERS:
50/50 Drawing - $101 Bob Barrow
Wine - Arney Lundquist, Monica Conrady, Georgia Hesse and John Quin-Harkin
Ecuadorian Crafts - Harry Everett and Colette Pratt
Giants Package - Bob Barrow
China Book - Doreen Happel
Insulated Lunch Bag - Erwin Kelly |
COMING ATTRACTIONS:
Thursday, January 27, 2011
Brendan Vacations
LUCKY YOU! Every meeting features a 50-50 raffle and one or more lucky draws that you must be present to win. |
A SENSE OF TRAVEL . . . with Georgia Hesse In medieval times, traditional Christians were supposed to recite prayers at fixed hours up to eight times a day. For centuries, that ritual was performed, mostly in Roman Catholic monasteries. (Presumably, farmers left their Rolexes at home when they went to work in the fields.) The practice was known as Liturgy of the Hours and consisted of Scripture passages, chiefly the Psalms, joined by hymns and prayers for each time of day and each day of the year. Just think how long that would take! 
Liturgy of the Hours in a monastery of Carthusian nuns.
The Hours evolved from Jewish tradition: "Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous laws." Then in A.D. 525, St. Benedict wrote a manual for monks explaining the Hours and they became popular among literate medieval folk when the Vatican issued the first official prayer book in the 11th century.
Surprise! The Hours are ba-a-a-ck: in popular books, in evangelical churches; even on the Internet!
English naval administrator and member of Parliament, Samuel Pepys.
My own enthusiasm is for Books of Days, which I practice by lifting a glass of wine to toast a person or a happening: on New Year's Day, it's apt to honor Samuel Pepys, who on Jan. 1 in 1660 recorded the first entry in his "Diary." "This morning (we lying lately in the garret) I rose, put on my suit with great skirts, having not lately worn any other clothes but them." Now, doesn't that send the day off with a good whisk?
"A Passage To India" book cover.
In 1879, E.M. Forster (he of "A Passage to India") was born in London on this day, and in 1919 J. D. Salinger ("The Catcher in the Rye") appeared in New York City.
The most intriguing happening on Jan. 1, 1909, was surely that Marcel Proust dipped a rusk of toast into his tea and the flavor brought a flood of memories that led to the madeleine episode in "Swann's Way" from which the monumental "Remembrance of Things Past" resulted. Whee!
Proust with tea and madeleine.
These delights are delivered by "A Book of Days for the Literary Year," published by Thames and Hudson. Meanwhile, "A Book of Days in American History" (Scribner's) reminds us that on Jan. 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation that granted freedom to slaves living in states that joined the rebellion.
Books of Days exist for the Civil War, for traditions, for royalty, for saints and sinners, for old terms and some special places, such as Vermont. One of the highest valued is Robert Chambers' "Book of Days," published in 1869, now quite rare in the original but brought to a waiting world on the Internet in a hyperlinked and searchable version by the Greater Emmitsburg Area Historical Society of Emmitsburg, Maryland: www.abookofdays.com. Who would have guessed?
Abraham Lincoln at the Antietam Battlefield.
As an example of valuable information, take France's Louis XII, who died on Jan. 1 in 1515. Toast him as, in Chambers' words, "sober, sweet-natured, modest, laborious, loved knowledge, was filled with sentiments of honour, religion, and benevolence." Who wouldn't love such a king?
Later in the first week of January: science fiction author Isaac Asimov was born in Petrovichi, Russia (1920); Scribner's editor Max Perkins met Thomas Wolfe to discuss the manuscript of "Look Homeward, Angel" and was reminded of Shelley (1929); Alaska, the 49th state, was admitted to the Union (1959), and Utah became the 45th state (1896).
Irish poet and London playwright, Oscar Wilde.
On a memorable Jan. 3 in 1882, Oscar Wilde's ship arrived in New York. Asked by U.S. Customs whether he had anything to declare, he archly replied, "Nothing but my genius."
In 1925, on Wednesday of this week in 2011, Nellie Tayloe Ross was inaugurated as governor of Wyoming, the first woman to hold that office in a U.S. state.
Nellie Tayloe Ross.
On Thursday, the sixth, we can salute Carl Sandburg, who was born in Galesburg, Ill., in 1878, and we will giggle at the classy critique of Edmund Wilson, who pronounced when the poet won the Pulitzer Prize for his biography of Abraham Lincoln, that "the cruelest thing that has happened to Lincoln since he was shot by Booth has been to fall into the hands of Carl Sandburg."
On Friday the seventh, remember poet John Berryman, who committed suicide in 1972 by jumping off a bridge into the Mississippi. He was 58.
On Saturday the eighth, rejoice with General Andrew Jackson, who in 1815 fended off a British attack in the Battle of New Orleans, last major fight in the War of 1812. (There being no e-mail, neither side knew that a peace treaty had been signed in Europe two weeks earlier.)
What goings-on! And we're only a week into 2011!
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