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READERS' LETTERS:
• Another British Tour Company
• In Search of the Wallops!
• Ottawa’s Byward Blue Inn
• ‘Mini’ Hikes in Alaska
• A Memorable Day (and Evening) in Deep Cove
• A Month in Spain

DESTINATION ONE:
African Dreams
DESTINATION TWO:
Egypt and Kenya

EDITOR'S LETTER...

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Most people pay far more than
they need to when they travel.
Dear Fellow Traveller

Vacations are high points in our lives ... experiences to be remembered and talked about for a long, long time. But are your travels similar to those of the people you know and are you paying too much? Wouldn’t you like to impress your friends with tales of some unique travel experiences - and save money too?

Please allow us to introduce you to TravelScoop - Canada’s only truly-independent
consumer newsmagazine designed for discerning travellers of all ages. TravelScoop has been available, by private subscription only, for close to 20 years. It is a Canadian magazine designed especially for Canadians travellers who love to roam the world.

Read TravelScoop and you’ll do more, enjoy more and
save more every time you travel.

TravelScoop keeps its readers well advised with good, factual travel information .... how to save money, when to ‘go it alone’ or when a tour is better, attractions not to be missed, how to find discounts, the travel guides that are worth buying, websites worth visiting and so on. TravelScoop has no advertising and therefore has integrity and is beholden to no one.

Oh yes, travel agents do a great job and can offer a wide variety of brochures with details of packaged trips, all-inclusive vacations, big-boat cruises and so on. But aren’t you ready for something different? What if you’d like to learn something, to volunteer, to stay in a historic inn rather than a ‘cookie cutter’ hotel, to meet the local people in a B&B or on a farm? Or perhaps you’d like to join members of The Travel Society on one of the exclusive tours designed especially for our subscribers.

When you subscribe to TravelScoop you automatically become
a member of The Travel Society

Yes, all TravelScoop subscribers automatically become members of The Travel Society, our very own travel group that offers small-group tours exclusively to members (and their families and friends) when we think tours are the best way to go. For example, to date hundreds of our readers have joined us on our most popular tour ever – a luxurious 18-day odyssey of the highlights of China, including a cruise on the Yangtze River, at an unbelievably low price starting at C$3,416 including air fares. Tours to such destinations as Australia, Vietnam, Ecuador (including the Galapagos) and long-stay accommodation options in different winter-escape locations are also offered. Become a TravelScoop subscriber and you too can enjoy these tours.

Another distinctive aspect of the TravelScoop newsmagazine is that many of the articles are written by the readers themselves ... Canadians of various ages and incomes, all of whom enjoy travelling, just like you. These are fellow members who really have rented villas, swapped houses, exchanged money, taken educational courses and more. We will welcome your input too. And when our editor travels she works hard to find what she wants you to know: she tests the public transport, walks to see if she feels safe, searches out a variety of accommodations, helps you find the attractions you shouldn’t miss (and the ones you should!), and suggests worthwhile luxuries to enjoy with the money you have saved.

There are other questions you may like answered before you travel independently. In which of Europe’s cities is it a good idea to stay on the outskirts? How can you arrange a house exchange or a villa rental? Who can tell you the ages and nationalities of the participants on those famous coach/camping trips through Australia ? How can you find well-priced safaris in Africa? “Is it safe ... can I rent a car (or do I need to rent a car) ... can I use my credit cards ... what discounts can I get ... how can I stay healthy?” All these - and many other - questions are answered in our pages.

TravelScoop is published ten times a year. Each issue contains 24 pages and only costs about two ‘loonies’. You will be amazed at amount of news and information those pages (free of advertising, remember) contain. As all our subscribers do, you’ll keep every issue and refer to them again and again. Sorry ... there are no full-colour photos of beautiful people lounging on beaches or leaning against palm trees!

How TravelScoop helps you find good travel values:

Accommodation options: If you’ve always stayed in hotels, perhaps it’s time for a change. TravelScoop gives information on inns and bed and breakfast accommodation, home exchanges, university stays, hostels for all and holiday rentals ... from castles and villas to lighthouses,
cottages and city apartments. Our money-saving tips on properties close to Heathrow and Gatwick Airports in England and Schipol Airport near Amsterdam are alone worth the price of a subscription.

Learning vacations: You probably know that there are language and cookery schools all around the world. But do you know that there are nearly two thousand short-term study pro- grammes in 80 countries from Argentina to Zimbabwe and that most are available to travellers of all ages? TravelScoop has helped readers to study subjects from art to zoology, while they stay economically in a small inn, a rented property or with a local family.

Volunteering: Working as a volunteer at home or abroad is an increasingly popular way to spend a vacation, particularly for singles and mature travellers, combining low costs with a sense of purpose and achievement in the company of like-minded people. TravelScoop can help you discover a project that appeals: save turtles, track snow leopards, count penguins, pre- serve rain forests, search for fossils, go on a ‘dig’, teach English ... the list is almost endless.

Cruising: It’s easy to find information on the big cruise lines. But how about cruising to Alaska at a fraction of the big cruise line cost or travelling around the Caribbean economically on a supply ship? How about sailing to New Zealand on a freighter or taking charge of a barge on the waterways of Europe or visiting Norway on a coastal ferry? Our subscribers have done all these things and shared their experiences.

Short getaways: We make suggestions on where to go and what to see in Canada and the United States. Read how to make your dollar go further – and your trip far more interesting – by staying with local people or in small inns. Or read how to
‘work the coupons’ in almost every State and hear about those
destinations in the US that accept Canadian dollars ‘at par’.

Active travel: For many people, lying-on-the-beach vacations are a thing
of the past. Today travellers of all ages are enjoying a wide variety of activities:
hike, cycle, ride a horse, kayak, dive, ski ... TravelScoop suggests how and where.

How TravelScoop helps you decide where to go:

Choice of destination is usually your first travel decision. But how do you know a location is right for you and how do you ensure you get the most out of your trip? The destination articles in TravelScoop will give you information you can trust. Here are some examples ...

Britain: The favourite overseas destination of Canadians may have an ‘at home’ feel but there’s still so much you need to know. TravelScoop readers share their experiences on trans- portation passes, driving, changing money, acquiring theatre tickets, destinations out of London, city apartments and country inns. We remind readers that while summer in Britain may, indeed, be lovely, if you want good theatre and that crackling-fire atmosphere you may decide to think again and travel out of season (and you’ll save a great deal of money too!).

Destinations all over Europe: Would you like to rent a villa in Tuscany? Find a ‘boutique’ hotel in Paris? Enjoy free guided hikes in Austria? Stay on a farm in Germany? Navigate a barge along a French river? Stay all winter in Portugal? Learn the fascinating history of the island of Malta? Members have found how to do all this – and much more – in our pages.

The Caribbean: Even well-known Caribbean islands still have hidden pleasures. If you go ‘all inclusive’ you’ll miss that plantation restaurant in the hills that Somerset Maugham loved and that ‘toes-in-the-sand’ beach bar that the real sailors favour. TravelScoop tells you about secrets waiting to be discovered, even in popular destinations.

Asia and Africa: Discover Asian and African destinations before they become spoiled and ‘touristy’. You’ll be surprised where some of your fellow TravelScoop members have been and they can help you do the same.

Antarctica: Yes, even Antarctica! One TravelScoop subscriber wrote of her unforgettable experiences on the dazzling, icy continent and some other readers followed!

As well as destination articles, TravelScoop has a variety of regular columns. Here’s
what you can expect:

Reader to Reader: Our readers request specific travel information from fellow
subscribers in TravelScoop - absolutely free. And we have a lively e-group etc.
It works for so many of our subscribers ... it will work for you!

Your favourite places: Reader recommended, often out-of-the-way, accommodation
in a variety of price ranges around the world.

Travel digest: Highlights of ‘what’s on’ in Canada and around the world, together
with special promotions designed for Canadians.

Seniors’ specials: Don’t miss news of trips, learning vacations and money-saving opportunities
designed especially for seniors. Remember, even 50-year-olds may qualify!

Airline news: Read which airline is giving the best deals, learn about new alliances (which affect the collection of ‘points’) and make sure you take advantage of airlines’ special offers such as hotel, theatre and car rental deals.

Hotel happenings: Learn about discounts, free nights, hotel consolidators and money-saving packages that make the most of your stay.

Combine all this news, all this advice, all the unique ideas, all the money-saving tips, all our own exciting trips ... it all adds up to one great deal. Subscribe to TravelScoop today and you will benefit from a special discount price and we will send you, absolutely free, a copy of the TravelScoop World-Wide Tourism Directory, your key to a world of information. If you are not satisfied with your subscription, we GUARANTEE we will refund your money - no questions asked. We are confident in making this offer because once you have seen the valuable information in TravelScoop we are sure you will remain a subscriber for many years to come. Most of our readers do!