January 15, 2010 12:03 p.m. ESt
– Carolyn Fletcher’s honeymoon started heading south the moment she and her husband landed in Cancun. No one was there to pick up the newlyweds.It took an hour for her to convince a van service to deliver them to their hotel. But when they checked into their four-star resort in Akumal, they discovered it was “a two-star, at best,” she remembers. “The grounds were unkempt and there was trash everywhere,” she said. “Our room smelled of mildew. I sat down on the bed to cry, only to find the sheets and mattress wet from the moisture and mildew. There was mold growing on the curtains, the walls and the furniture.”
Why am I telling you about Fletcher’s post-nuptial nightmare? Because she booked it online. Some vacations should never be booked through anyone but a travel agent, and a honeymoon is arguably one of them. But there are others, too, as travelers like Fletcher are discovering.
A recent Forrester Research study suggests there’s something of a backlash when it comes to booking travel online. It concludes 15 percent fewer travelers will use the Web in 2009, compared with two years ago — a finding that comforts many travel agents who previously saw themselves on the endangered list. (People have gotten a little carried away with the Forrester study, though. One headline writer suggested online booking might be the “worst part” of the trip. Right. That would be the flight, actually.)
It’s little consolation to Fletcher and her husband. “While most people will remember their honeymoon with happy memories, ours are filled with disparagement, frustration and regret,” she adds.
In trying to figure out when you shouldn’t book online, I thought I’d ask someone who works for an online travel agency. I put the question to Ginny Mahl, Travelocity’s vice president of sales and customer service. “There is still a place for traditional travel agents, particularly those that have carved out a niche, like adventure travel,” she said. “Depending upon the traveler and their needs, a face-to-face meeting with such a consultant could be wise.” Of course, she adds, “higher fees will apply.” Of course.
So when should you not book on the Internet? Here are seven kinds of trips:
–Bert Archer: From Wednesday’s Globe and Mail 
In announcing the winners of the 2009 Davey Awards, the International Academy of Visual Arts recognized PRIDE Travel with its highest award, a Gold Davey, for the independent in-house production of the “Amazing Thailand” commercial promoting Thailand as a travel destination. The commercial was produced in-house by PRIDE Travel’s owner and CEO Marc R. Kassouf using only a standard office PC, readily available home and office video editing software Roxio, and old fashioned trial and error until the final finished product was attained. The original footage was provided by the Tourism Authority of Thailand, and although informative was not intended as an audiovisual whole or to be used as a commercial. Mr. Kassouf initiated the project in order to promote the destination with a short commercial video at trade shows and events, and add it to other similar destination videos. “I am ecstatic that PRIDE Travel has won a Davey Award for the Amazing Thailand commercial” said Kassouf, adding that “to win a Davey is a great honor, a Gold Davey even more gratifying as recognition for all the work done and many hours spent on the production” The Amazing Thailand commercial is available for online viewing on YouTube directly via the following URL : 
he spectacularly serene Bo Seong green tea fields, and making his own Kimchi at the Nam Do folk food museum. In Seoul, just a few of the many facets sampled were tours and stays at world-class ultra luxury hotels and resorts such as the Grand Hyatt Seoul, the W Hotel Walker Hill, and the JW Marriott, with cultural visits to the Gyeong Bok Palace, Nanta show performance, TODES performance, and a cultural cuisine kaleidoscope experience at the Korean House center.
For the month of October 2009 PRIDE Travel will join thousands of cruise-selling travel agents in World’s Largest Cruise Night, an exciting event designed to showcase the incredible choice, diversity and value of cruise vacations. Travel agencies across North America will team up with 24 member lines of Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) to provide consumers with information on cruise vacations and exceptional offers.
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