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Post by fretslider on Mar 21, 2010 21:02:55 GMT
Venezia, bella citta. The vaporetti, or water buses, of Venice are run by ACTV, very public sector set-up. The policy of the City Council has always been that non-residents pay more to use the bus. A CartaVenezia will allow you to purchase any ACTV tickets and passes at the resident rate, including a month’s pass, a carnet of 10 tickets for €10. The cost for a non-resident is €40. Now, Venice can be a pretty expensive place, but that certainly doesn't stop the tourists coming.
London, total sh-ite hole. Sadiq Khan (Minister for Transport) informs us...
The introduction of “All England Bus Travel” meant increases in costs for Local Authorities where they have had to subsidise additional free bus travel. A Special Grant was set up solely to help local authorities meet these costs. This funding is entirely separate from Freedom Pass funding, as the Freedom Pass is only available to London residents.
Since London had offered free transport to older residents since 1999, the only increase in costs they faced was the cost of non-Londoners traveling on London buses for free.
Its insane.
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Post by mouse on Mar 22, 2010 8:34:01 GMT
the whole country is run in an insane way fret...
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Post by Ben Lomond on Mar 22, 2010 14:22:08 GMT
London is overly expensive, and in fact a bit of a rip-off at every turn. Now that I am retired I no longer have to make frequent trips to the capital; for which I am truly thankful. As for Venice, the gondoliers are also a total rip off price wise; and while I am not sure what they are charging for a very insipid coffee in St Marks Square these days, you had to take out a bank loan the last time I was there. My experience is that tourist hot spots the world over are all much of a muchness when it comes to welcoming tourists---and at the same time fleecing them!
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Post by trubble on Mar 22, 2010 14:33:22 GMT
Tourists over 66 get free rail travel in Irelandfrom the Irish Times: 17 March 2010 OLDER TOURISTS will enjoy free rail travel around the State following the introduction of a new scheme yesterday. All overseas visitors aged 66 or over, from anywhere in the world, will be able to benefit from unlimited travel on mainline, Dart and commuter trains in the scheme, developed by Fáilte Ireland in conjunction with Iarnród Éireann. The scheme was announced by the Government as part of the budget in December, in a bid to increase overseas visitor numbers. It is similar to the free travel scheme for Irish people aged 66 and over, but does not include free bus or Luas (Dublin City tram) travel. It also differs from the scheme for Irish residents when it comes to cross-Border travel. Irish senior citizens travelling from Dublin to Belfast are entitled to free rail travel for the entire journey, but overseas visitors will only be entitled to free travel for the portion of their journey in this State. They will have to purchase a ticket for the remainder of their trip, from Dundalk onwards. The scheme is initially for a one-year period, but will be subject to review and is expected to continue indefinitely if the demand is there.Tourists can access the scheme by visiting the Fáilte Ireland website, www.discoverireland.com , to arrange for a “Golden Trekker” reservation. They will be asked for details such as their date of birth and passport or national identity card number. Their Golden Trekker reservation can then be used to book their free Golden Trekker tickets when they arrive. Tickets can be purchased in blocks of four days, depending on the length of stay. A four-day unlimited ticket is normally worth €100. Visitors who do not pre-book the reservation can also avail of the scheme when they arrive by calling to a Fáilte Ireland tourist information office. Fáilte Ireland’s Redmond O’Donoghue said the initiative was a very encouraging and constructive development. “It will help strengthen the appeal of Ireland among some visitors, and Fáilte Ireland believes it will pay dividends to Irish tourism longer term.” Iarnród Éireann chief executive Dick Fearn said the scheme would give Irish tourism a boost in a difficult time. “As well as providing tourists with rail travel facilities, they will also benefit from the unique perspective our network gives of the beautiful Irish countryside.” The Times of India has already highlighted the scheme, following Taoiseach Brian Cowen’s remarks on it earlier this month.
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Post by fretslider on Mar 22, 2010 14:39:23 GMT
You're so right, Trubbs.....
We don't have a monopoly on insanity.
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Post by trubble on Mar 22, 2010 15:30:47 GMT
Mad geniuses? Sometimes it's such a thin line. Should this be called how to waste a million quid? €200,000 MUST be won. It's in the rules.
Thursday, February 18, 2010 Irish President Mary McAleese has launched a major competition with the potential to create thousands of jobs. The brain-child of her husband, Martin, the on-line competition is looking for the public to submit ideas to the 'Your Country, Your Call' campaign. Two winners will each receive €100,000 in prize money and up to €500,000 each to develop their ideas. Martin McAleese is mostly connected with his work in the North's peace process, but now he is turning his attention to creating employment and lifting the mood of the nation. Over the past 15 months he has been joined by a host of people from major companies, organisations, government and individuals, who have given money and their services for free. They have come up with a major competition asking the public to submit transformational ideas they hope will secure prosperity and jobs in this country. The public is asked to submit ideas online at yourcountryyourcall.com. The closing date for entries is the end of April.
Forgive my cynicism. Just as I hope the drive to monopolise the global grey-trainspotter pound works, I hope this works. It could! But it's kind of funny because there aren't any other plans. Just this. Plan A. Mission Accomplished. I laughed.
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Post by Big Lin on Mar 22, 2010 17:02:03 GMT
Considering how little power and influence the Irish President has (only Mary Robinson and De Valera manage to make the office convey any kind of gravitas and Cearbhaill O'Dailley (hope I spelt that right - probably not - was embarrassed into resignation) I suppose Mary McAleese feels she has to at least LOOK as if she's doing something to justify her salary!
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Post by trubble on Mar 22, 2010 17:32:14 GMT
Ach, she's alright really. Fairly popular. And what's a few hundred grand and a big house between friends?
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