Travel News Roundup: Getting High, Amtrak WiFi, Carnival Tip Bump, and More

Though I think we've covered most of the significant recent travel developments in this blog, there still remain a handful of other news events that might lightly affect your next vacation or trip.

For some travelers, the decision by The Netherlands to bar foreign tourists from the famous coffee shops of that nation (where marijuana is openly sold), will be of some importance. The ban takes effect in a large part (the southern tier) of Holland on January 1, 2012, and will then be extended to the entire country in 2013

Amtrak has recently equipped 70% of its rail services with wi-fi, and will reach a figure of 75% by the end of the year, when trains in California receive those facilities. This should serve to remind us of the importance of Amtrak to our lives

Carnival Cruises has just increased its mandatory tipping requirement from a former $10 per person per day, to $11.50. This is still insufficient to reward the hard-working cabin and dining room attendants of that line, and the amount should be supplemented by us, in my firm view, when we take a cruise

The last trans-Atlantic sailing of the year by the elegant Queen Mary 2 will leave Southampton, England, for New York on December 12. Since that isn't a popular time for ocean cruising, the ship is now selling balcony cabins -- that's balcony cabins -- for that crossing for as little as $699 per person. Though you'll also have to buy a one-way trans-Atlantic flight to reach London (Southampton) for the cruise, the resulting cost is still one of the great travel bargains

Another great travel bargain for the coming weeks? It's the air-and-land package for $845 sold by China Spree ( www.chinaspree.com ) for a six-night stay in both Beijing and Shanghai during the month of February, 2012. That includes round-trip trans-Pacific airfare from San Francisco, first class hotels in both cities, transportation between the two of them, breakfast daily, four lunches, and escorted transfers and sightseeing. China remains a spectacular value