Dubai's Union Properties theme park put on hold

DUBAI, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Dubai-based Union Properties UPRO.DU said on Thursday its has suspended its $460 million Formula One theme park due to the financial crisis and drying up of liquidity from banks.

"The suspension will delay the opening of the Formula One entertainment concept until 2010," it said in a statement on the project which was scheduled to be completed in 2009.

"The project is founded on a strong business model that withstands recession whilst allowing for the future growth of Dubai," Penny Fischer, marketing director for F1-X said in a statement.

"With construction more than 50 percent complete, the core of international expertise on the ground and operational plans virtually complete, it is hard to believe that a financial partner will not come forward in the coming days or weeks to capitalise on the opportunity," Fisher said.

F1-X is part of Union Properties' MotorCity project.

Dubai's once-booming property sector has been hit hard by the financial crisis, which triggered a drop in property prices that has forced real estate firms to cancel or postpone projects and cut thousands of jobs.

Union Properties made a fourth-quarter loss of 37.6 million dirhams due to lower land sales. (Reporting by Jason Benham; Editing by Greg Mahlich)

http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssFinancialServicesAndRealEstateNews/idUSLQ86125820090226

Yucatan city of Playa del Carmen, Cape Cod share few common virtues

by Paul Gauvin

Playa del Carmen, Mexico – This city of a bit more than 100,000 people and the town of Hyannis have a couple of things in common. They are both situated on spits of land jutting out to sea, boast fine beaches and survive mostly on tourism.
There the similarities fade. Weather here is predictable, a sub-tropical 80s average with cooler nights. Rain is usually a brief cloudburst, and overcast skies are a real rarity.

The majority of service and construction industries do not require the importation of seasonal help. Here in Playa, the working class is home grown, the progeny of successive generations of what once was, say historians, the magnificent Mayan civilization.

Hmmm. What does that say of the Cape’s “snowbirds” who escape the blahs each year by flocking like Canada geese to kinder, gentler climes, as Bush the Father might say?

And, more to the point this time of year, the weather. The Cape Cod Times compared this year’s frigid, gray, slushy, ugly, lousy weather to Gran Marais, Michigan, where snow is five feet high and temps below zero…in effect calling complaining Cape Codders big sissies.

This 80-percent Catholic town on the Yucatan peninsula jutting out into the Gulf of Mexico on one side, and the azure Caribbean on the other, also has one other important – very important – virtue that Cape Cod doesn’t: It has a fantastic public transportation system comprised of very comfortable, cutting-edge buses, clean taxis and a ubiquitous array of vans called “collectivos” that travel hither and yon every five minutes carrying the labor force where it needs to go.

We’ve been traveling here in collectivos, sometimes sitting on a small box or jamming in with the driver in front to get to places like Puerto Aventuras, Tulum, Akumal, Cancun and from one end of Playa del Carmen to the other…which one could just as easily walk if one has a few minutes to spare and/or like many a tourist, ride a bike.

Most workers here, like New Yorkers, don’t own cars, albeit the motor scooter enjoys a healthy market. You see dust-laden construction workers, two per scooter, heading home after a day’s labor.

Seeing this again spurs a recurring thought: I daydream sometimes of a high-speed train running on tracks laid out on the center green belts of our highways, particularly routes 6 and I95 to Providence, through New Bedford and Fall River, two cities with a combined workforce capable of ending the Cape’s need for foreign labor if only quick and inexpensive transportation were available.

The “collectivos” here seat about the same number of passengers as the short-haul Cessnas flying out of the Barnstable Municipal Airport…about nine to a dozen. Travel from Playa del Carmen to Puerto Aventuras, for example, a distance of about 14 miles, is 12 pesos and we’re exchanging for 13 to 14 pesos per dollar at the moment, meaning that 12 pesos is only 83 cents in U.S. currency. From the Cancun airport to Playa, nearly 50 miles, the per-passenger cost is $8 USD. That is compared to about $22 to travel by bus the 50 miles to Boston from Hyannis.

(One episode describes caution in dealing with pesos. One bus ticket seller tried to shortchange me $10 pesos, figuring perhaps I hadn’t been around long enough to figure out the coinage. When confronted about it, however, he quickly paid, with a guilty countenance, the $10 pesos before I made a boisterous issue of it.)

One advantage here is that the currency has no pennies, which the U.S. should also abandon, and people here actually use coin dollars rather than hoard them as do Americans. For the record, paper pesos come in denominations of $20, $50, $100, and $500 while coin values are $1, $2, $5, $10 and $20 pesos.

When it comes to currency under a peso there are only denominations of 20 and 50 centavo coins, meaning the Mexican government coinage makes more sense out of less cents.

http://www.barnstablepatriot.com/home2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=17341&Itemid=112

Hollywood Hip Revel in Privacy of Old Chateau Marmont: Travel

by Jason H. Harper

Feb. 24 (Bloomberg) -- The Chateau Marmont is Hollywood’s most notorious hotel, so you could hardly call it a hidden gem. Yet the fanciful 1930s-era mansion is famed for both discretion and privacy, important considerations during paparazzi-mad periods like last week’s run-up to the Oscars.

You arrive at the hotel on a narrow driveway off Sunset Boulevard that leads to a low, hidden garage where a tiny, creaking elevator goes straight up to the main floor.

Otherwise you can hoof it up a gloomy stairway to the lobby and cramped check-in nook. Grand? Not a bit. Yet that’s part of the allure of the place, where the Hollywood history is as thick as the grime on the baseboards.

The Chateau has been run by hotelier Andre Balazs since 1990, and while it was remodeled, it was never homogenized. Akin to New York’s Chelsea Hotel, the grittiness is hallowed.

There’s history here, too. The hotel’s often-naughty guests have included Errol Flynn, Jean Harlow, Clark Gable and James Dean. Led Zeppelin members once drove motorcycles inside, and in 1982 John Belushi overdosed in his garden bungalow.

It’s fair to say that the hotel’s 63 rooms both are and aren’t the point. The bungalows, set near the pool behind a locked fence and high hedges, are 600 square feet and the more private option. There are also one- and two-bedroom suites available. I booked the cheapest room: a standard in the main building for $370.

White, No Clutter

Room 16 is right off the lobby: a big square space with tall ceilings and wooden floors. It’s remarkably clutter-free, with no hanging art on the eggshell walls and otherwise only a white wooden armoire, two old chairs, an antique writing desk and an LG flat-screen television.

The baseboards need a good cleaning and a crawl-space trap door on the bathroom ceiling has oily black finger smudges. The bathroom is redone in marble and has a big shower.

If a bit beaten, there’s plenty of character, and large windows let in gobs of light. I like it much better than, say, the quasi-chic cookie-cutter rooms found at the new Hotel Palomar in Westwood, 15 minutes away.

Unfortunately an irksome beep emanates from an ancient speaker above the door, which I ask to be fixed. In the middle of the night I discover that it hasn’t been. So in the morning I’m moved to a much larger space on a higher floor with a full kitchen, including an antique Wedgewood four-burner stove and classic GE refrigerator. My favorite detail is the green Formica kitchen table.

Savory Bar Food

In the evening, a friend and I stop by Bar Marmont, in a separate building on Sunset. Chef Carolynn Spence used to cook at New York’s Spotted Pig, and the bar food includes very non- L.A. yet savory choices like prunes wrapped in bacon and homemade potato chips. It can be a scene, though it’s quiet this Monday night.

We retire back to the hotel lobby, where waitresses serve cocktails to groups sitting in couches and non-matching chairs. The space is dark and cloistered; you can’t quite make out faces. A host in a long black overcoat says the room is full, yet once he learns we’re guests, the attitude completely changes and within minutes we get seats.

This is one of my favorite things about the Chateau: The staff seems solicitous and protective of even their non-famous guests.

The final morning I take my laptop down to the pool among the other writer-like or movie types tapping at computers or talking quietly into cell phones. Not a single person is wearing a bathing suit.

No wonder so many guests make prolonged stays, choosing the hotel as a West Coast base. You can’t help but feel if you’d just hang out long enough, the Chateau’s secrets would start to reveal themselves. If you don’t mind a bit of grime, that’s pretty beguiling.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=a.VeO7XmFhAg&refer=muse

Boyd Gaming Offers to Buy Station Casinos Assets

By Beth Jinks

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Boyd Gaming Corp. offered to buy some assets of Station Casinos Inc., the Las Vegas operator that proposed a bankruptcy filing this month, and may be interested in the entire company.

Boyd sent a letter it called a “non-binding preliminary indication of interest” to Station’s directors to acquire all of the company’s assets that do not serve as collateral for secured loans for about $950 million, Boyd said today in a statement. Boyd may offer to buy the rest of Station after a “due diligence review,” it said.

Station, which was taken private by management and private- equity firm Colony Capital LLC in 2007, struggled to pay creditors in a market among the hardest hit by deteriorating home prices and recession-driven job losses. Gambling revenue in Las Vegas last year declined the most on record.

“This value would present a superior recovery to the unsecured creditors of Station versus the current exchange offer” Station made earlier this month, Boyd said today. Station on Feb. 3 offered investors 10 cents to 50 cents on the dollar in secured notes and cash, in exchange for about $2.3 billion of existing bonds.

Boyd, which hired UBS AG as its adviser, said it had about $2 billion available on its revolving credit facility. The $950 million offered is an estimated “enterprise value” of the assets, it said.

‘Will Evaluate’ Plan

“We intend to continue to work with our lenders and bondholders to pursue our previously proposed plan of reorganization, but we will evaluate the terms of Boyd Gaming’s proposal,” Station spokeswoman Lori Nelson said in an e-mail.

Both Station and Boyd are headquartered in Las Vegas and operate casinos that market themselves to local gamblers. Some of Boyd’s 16 casinos are located in New Jersey, Mississippi, Illinois, Indiana, and Louisiana, while all of Station’s 18 gambling facilities are in the Las Vegas area.

Station Casinos on Feb. 3 proposed filing for bankruptcy in collaboration with lenders, in a restructuring to be voted on by March 2. Some secured lenders have agreed to support the plan, the company said.

The buyout offer and bankruptcy proposal came 15 months after Station’s takeover by the Fertitta family and Colony Capital. The company’s casinos include Red Rock Casino and the 3-month-old Aliante Station.

Bankruptcy Proposal

As part of the proposal, affiliates of the Fertitta family and billionaire Tom Barrack’s Colony Capital have agreed to invest as much as $244 million to maintain their current ownership stakes. The family and Colony paid $90 a share, or $5.4 billion, and assumed about $3.3 billion in debt to acquire Station.

In December, Station abandoned a debt-exchange offer for some senior notes after trying to prod investors to accept a below-face-value cash payment or new, discounted notes with longer maturities. In August, Boyd stopped construction of its $4.75 billion Echelon resort development on the Las Vegas Strip.

Station, founded by Frank Fertitta Jr., started as a Las Vegas bingo hall in 1976 and grew into a casino company focused on attracting gamblers who live and work in Nevada’s Clark County, where the population more than doubled between 1990 and 2006.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=aJTpB8QXOa2k&refer=us

Hard Times, High Fares

By AYSE BAYBARS

I miss the nineties. Back then, besides having boy bands and great television shows, traveling by plane was almost a pleasant experience. I could carry-on more than just the clothes on my back, a laptop, and a book. Food and non-alcoholic beverages were both free. Go on a flight nowadays, and you find yourself thirsty, hungry, and possibly bereft of clothes when the airline loses your checked baggage.

I don’t, however, miss the higher airfares. Over the last decade, plane ticket prices have become ridiculously low-priced—on the whole, airfares have dropped an average of 30 percent since 1990. It’s easy to get used to paying less; when fares aren’t as low, the public is outraged and accuses airline executives of lining their pockets.

Given the present economic situation, this attitude is irrational. Raising airfares under the circumstances makes sense as airline companies feel the financial strain due to bad money management, raised fuel prices, and the loss of confidence in air-travel after 9/11. There is a fundamental problem with the entitlement the public feels regarding low airfares—flying a commercial aircraft is expensive, and when low ticket prices are coupled with overall financial strain, airline companies lack the means for the necessary aircrafts, pilots, and crew.

While it’s mildly annoying that we must now pay for food, drinks and checked baggage—which is usually our only option when overhead compartments are too small or flights are so full that we can barely fit our carry-on bags in the space provided—any slack in the system of efficient service is even more distressing.

The financial woes of airlines are particularly noticeable during emergency situations, when any lack of resources becomes obvious. On February 15, 2007, passengers on JetBlue’s Flight 751 to Cancun, Mexico were trapped on the runway for eight hours when a snowstorm delayed their flight. The logical conclusion in most weather-related delays is to have passengers sit in the terminal until the plane is ready to take off; although not an ideal situation, it is still preferable to being trapped in a stuffy airplane. In the case of Flight 751, however, passengers remained stranded on the runway and unable to reenter the terminal because not a single gate was available.

Airlines need to pay over $1 million to airports in gate fees to have ample space for their aircraft—including extra aircraft for emergencies. When airlines face so much financial strain that even water costs money, it’s clear that airlines do not have the means to pay airports for as many gates as are necessary to accommodate delayed flights. Disasters like JetBlue Flight 751 are the result.

Somehow, airlines need to find a means to increase their revenue. Whether this comes from raising food, beverage, and baggage fees—perhaps now pillows, blankets, and even air will cost money!—or from increasing airfares themselves, is up to the airlines.

The more logical and practical option is to increase airfares, despite the frustration many people will undoubtedly feel as they themselves feel the pinch of the economic downturn. Regardless, the public ought to remember that we are not entitled to being flown to our destination of choice for a low price; everyone, including airlines, is affected by the financial crisis. If increasing airfares is the only way to avoid catastrophes like the JetBlue affair, then the public must accept the economic realities of the airline industry and be prepared to shell out just a little more.

http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=526686

Going to Mexico for spring break? Read this first

By Ed Walsh

As we approach spring break season, the US State Department is advising young people to use caution when visiting Mexico.

They have issued the following advice and information:

Over 100,000 American teenagers and young adults travel to resort areas throughout Mexico over Spring Break each year. While the vast majority enjoys their vacation without incident, several may die, hundreds will be arrested, and still more will make mistakes that could affect them for the rest of their lives. Using some common sense will help travelers avoid these unpleasant and dangerous situations.

We encourage all U.S. citizens to phone home periodically to assure family members of your safety and inform them of your whereabouts. Remember, whether you travel to Mexico by land, air, or sea, you are entering a foreign country and are subject to the laws and customs regulations of Mexico.

Entry Requirements

Effective January 23, 2007, ALL persons, including U.S. citizens, traveling by air to the United States from Mexico, Canada, Central and South America, the Caribbean, and Bermuda will be required to present a valid passport, (or if applicable, an Alien Registration Card, form I-551, Air NEXUS card, or U.S. Coast Guard Merchant Mariner Document), to enter or re-enter the United States. American citizens can visit http://travel.state.gov or call 1-8... (1-877-487-2778) for information on applying for a U.S. passport. Please see Mexico’s Country Specific Information for complete entry requirements.

Mexican Law

While traveling in Mexico, American citizens are subject to Mexican law. An arrest or accident in Mexico can result in a difficult legal or medical situation, sometimes at a great expense to the traveler. Mexican law can impose harsh penalties for violations that would be considered minor in the United States, and U.S. citizenship in no way exempts one from full prosecution under the Mexican criminal justice system. If U.S. citizens find themselves in legal trouble, they should contact the closest U.S. Consulate, U.S. Consular Agency, or the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City. (see "Contact Information" below). U.S. consular officials in Mexico can visit detained American citizens in prison, provide information about the Mexican legal system, and furnish a list of Mexican attorneys, among other assistance. U.S. Consular officials cannot arrange for Mexican officials to release detained American citizens.

Alcohol and Drugs

Excessive alcohol consumption and unruly behavior can lead to serious problems with Mexican authorities. Alcohol is involved in the vast majority of arrests, accidents, violent crimes, rapes, and deaths suffered by American students on Spring Break. Disturbing the peace, lewd or indecent behavior, littering, driving under the influence, drinking on the street or on public transportation, using public transportation without payment, or making obscene or insulting remarks are all considered criminal activities by Mexican authorities. The importation, purchase, possession or use of drugs can incur severe penalties, including imprisonment without bail for up to a year before a case is tried, and imprisonment of several years following a conviction. All individuals 16 years of age or older are tried as adults.

Safety and Security

Standards of security, safety, and supervision may not reach the levels expected in the United States. This has contributed to the deaths of U.S. citizens in automobile accidents, after falls from balconies or into unmarked ditches, by drowning in the ocean as well as in hotel pools, and in water-sports mishaps, among others.

Warning flags on beaches should be taken seriously. If black or red flags are up, do not enter the water. Strong undertow and rough surf are common along beaches throughout Mexico, especially on the Pacific coast, and drownings have occurred when swimmers have been overwhelmed by conditions. Swimming pool drain systems may not comply with U.S. safety standards and swimmers should exercise caution. Do not swim in pools or at beaches without lifeguards. Do not dive into unknown bodies of water, because hidden rocks or shallow depths can cause serious injury or death. If you choose to swim, always exercise extreme caution.

Use only the licensed and regulated "sitio" (SEE-tee-oh) taxis. Some illegitimate taxi drivers are, in fact, criminals in search of victims; users of these taxis have been robbed, kidnapped, and/or raped. Hotels, clubs and restaurants will summon a sitio taxi upon request.

Firearms and Knives

It is best not to carry even a pocketknife into Mexico as this can result in a weapons charge if a knife is found on a traveler who is arrested for a separate offense. Visitors driving across the border should ensure that their vehicles contain no firearms or ammunition. Mexico imposes harsh penalties for bringing as little as one bullet across its borders.

Renting and Operating Vehicles and other Equipment

Visitors should exercise caution when renting vehicles, including jet skis and mopeds. Many are not serviced and in poor condition, and many are uninsured or under-insured. Read rental contracts carefully to be sure your own insurance will cover you in the event of an accident, if the rental company's insurance is not adequate. Drivers of any vehicle, including jet skis and mopeds, should exercise extreme caution and ask the rental agency about local laws and procedures before operating the vehicle. The Department of State has received reports of equipment rental operators using locals to form a “mob” to intimidate customers into paying exorbitant amounts for damage to rented equipment.

Operators of any vehicle that causes damage to other vehicles or injuries to other people may be arrested and held in custody until full payment is made, either in cash or through insurance.

Driving in Mexico

American citizens planning on driving to Mexico should carry a valid driver’s license at all times. U.S. driver’s licenses are valid in Mexico. Mexican law requires that vehicles be driven only by their owners, or that the owner be inside the vehicle. If not, the car may be seized by Mexican customs and will not be returned under any circumstances. We strongly recommend that you purchase a full coverage insurance policy that will cover the cost of bail. Please be aware that if you are involved in an automobile accident, you will be taken into police custody until it is determined who is at fault and whether you have the ability to pay any penalty.

Know Before You Go

The following cities and areas are some traditional destinations in Mexico for travelers on Spring Break. While other resort areas may not be as well-known for this type of travel, the advice contained here still applies:

Acapulco: Drug-related violence has been increasing in Acapulco. Although this violence is not targeted at foreign residents or tourists, U.S. citizens in these areas should be vigilant in their personal safety.

Avoid swimming outside the bay area. Several American citizens have died while swimming in rough surf at the Revolcadero Beach near Acapulco.

Cabo San Lucas: Beaches on the Pacific side of the Baja California Peninsula at Cabo San Lucas are dangerous due to rip tides and rogue waves; hazardous beaches in this area are clearly marked in English and Spanish.

Cancun and Cozumel: Cancun is a fairly large city, approaching 500,000 inhabitants, with increasing reports of crime. Crimes against the person, such as rape, commonly but not exclusively occur at night or in the early morning hours, and often involve alcohol and the nightclub environment. Therefore, it is important to travel in pairs or groups, be aware of surroundings, and take general precautions. To protect against property crimes, valuables should be left in a safe place or not brought at all. If you are a victim of a crime, immediately notify the U.S. Consular Agency in Cancun or Cozumel or the U.S. Consulate in Merida at the telephone numbers provided below.

If you rent a moped or other vehicle in Cancun, it is advisable to purchase third-party insurance, as the insurance offered on some credit cards will not cover you in Mexico. Should you have an accident or cause damage to the vehicle, you may be required to pay the full amount of any repairs, in cash, as determined by the rental agency, or face arrest.

In Cancun, there is often a very strong undertow along the beach from the Hyatt Regency all the way south to Club Med. Already this season, several U.S. citizens have drowned when overwhelmed by ocean conditions. In Cozumel, several drownings and near-drownings have been reported on the east coast, particularly in the Playa San Martin-Chen Rio area.

http://www.examiner.com/x-2026-SF-Gay-Travel-Examiner~y2009m2d22-Going-to-Mexico-for-spring-break---Read-this-first

5 mistakes to avoid when traveling overseas

By Los Angeles Times

Round-trip Los Angeles-London flights for less than $400. Mediterranean cruises for $100 a day. Six-day air-hotel packages to Hong Kong and Singapore for less than $1,500 per person.

With jaw-dropping prices like these, penny pinchers can't go wrong. Or can they?

Amid an avalanche of travel bargains, vacationers who venture abroad can still get stung by surprising fees, unnecessary expenses, unfavorable exchange rates and more. It has to do with how you manage your money.

With that in mind, here are five mistakes that can drain your wallet on a foreign trip -- and how to avoid them:

Ignoring foreign-exchange rates: These are volatile but important. Between the time you book your trip and, say, months later when you take it, your costs on the ground could easily increase or decrease by 15 percent or more, depending on how much the U.S. dollar is worth in other countries' currencies.

During the past five months, the euro, generally used in Western Europe, has roller coastered between about $1.25 and $1.50. In the same time, Britain's pound has steadily plummeted, from nearly $2 to about $1.40, as has Mexico's peso, from about 9 cents to 7 cents, and Canada's dollar, from nearly 90 cents to 80 cents.

A dollar here, a few cents there, and you're spending hundreds more or less than you budgeted.
Less, of course, usually isn't a problem, but if you hate surprises, consider a cruise, a tour or an air-hotel package that includes major expenses such as lodging and meals. Because you pay upfront in U.S. dollars, these costs should remain constant.

If you're willing to take some risk, you might benefit by booking just your flights and first night's hotel, then paying as you go. Over the past few months, as the dollar generally got stronger worldwide, you would have come out ahead. This year? Who knows?

To follow the dollar's daily adventures in foreign-exchange markets, visit Web sites such as www.x-rates.com.

Looking only at exchange rates: Of course, just because the British pound is getting pummeled by the dollar doesn't mean that Britain is suddenly cheaper for Americans to visit than, say, Thailand or Argentina. That's partly because living costs vary.

For quick estimates, check out the U.S. government's per diem allowances for employees dispatched to hundreds of foreign cities. The State Department posts these on its Web site www.state.gov. (Click on "Travel," then choose "Foreign Per Diem Rates" from the drop-down menu.)

The "maximum per diem rate" for each city includes lodging, meals and incidental expenses. Of course, a prudent traveler will spend less, but the rates make useful comparisons.

As of Feb. 2, the per diem for London was $385, compared with Paris ($454), Bangkok, Thailand ($218), Buenos Aires, Argentina ($299), and Vancouver, British Columbia ($250 to $275, depending on the season).

Nearly anywhere in the world, you'll save by spending time outside a country's capital, financial hubs and major resort areas, while meeting more locals and having more authentic cultural experiences. For instance, the U.S. government's per diem for Cardiff, Wales, was $283, about $100 less than for London. In Mexico, the per diem was $300 for Mexico City but only $179 for San Miguel de Allende.

Any short list of cheap or newly cheaper destinations these days -- and there are many -- would include Iceland, which suffered a currency collapse last year; Mexico and Argentina, almost always good values; Hungary; Canada; Thailand; Cambodia, and South Africa.

Dining richly: At home, you surely don't eat every meal out. So why do that when traveling?

Just like here, you'll save a bundle by grabbing food-to-go at groceries and produce markets abroad. Stroll to a park and have a picnic. Eat foods that locals eat. They're nearly always cheaper than Western-style dishes.

If you're big on breakfast, which can easily cost $20 or more at hotels in London, Paris or Singapore, shop for a room rate that includes it. Or explore nearby cafes, where you'll often pay half what the hotel charges and get faster service too.

Taking private transportation: Cab travel is convenient but usually the costliest way to go. Unless you're too jet-lagged or luggage-laden to cope with alternatives, take public transit or shared-ride services, where available, to and from the airport.

The savings can be staggering: about $6 by Tube from Heathrow Airport to central London versus more than $80, plus tip, by taxi. It really pays to study the local transit system before you leave home. Once in the city, take buses and subways. With a little research, you can put together your own bus tour of local highlights for a fraction of the cost of a private one.

Changing money at the airport: You'll nearly always get better rates and pay lower service fees in town. Even more convenient, just shove your debit card into a local ATM machine and get local currency.
But here, too, watch out for fees. Just like in the U.S., you'll probably pay $2 or $3 or more for each ATM withdrawal. And believe it or not, many ATM and credit-card issuers charge "foreign transaction" fees of 1 percent or more to change one currency into another. Check out Capital One's charge cards, which generally don't assess this fee.

As for how to carry cash: In most major destinations, your ATM card should work fine. It can be smart, however, to buy $100 or $200 worth of local currency before you leave home, despite the poorer exchange rate, to cover incidental or unexpected expenses until you can get to an ATM at your destination. And travelers checks are worth carrying too, as a backup.

http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/business/40032882.html