Julie Fanselow Q & A

HOW OFTEN DO YOU FLY?
I am actually much more of a road warrior than a frequent flier. I just retired a 1988 Chevy S-10 pickup with nearly 200,000 miles on the odometer, most of which I piled on in the early-to-mid 1990s while researching the earliest editions of Traveling the Oregon Trail, Traveling the Lewis & Clark Trail, Idaho Off the Beaten Path, and Lonely Planet Texas. I probably fly six to eight round-trips a year on average, mostly in the States, though I did manage to qualify for frequent flier tix on both Southwest and Delta this past year.
WHAT CLASS OF SERVICE DO YOU MOSTLY FLY IN?
Coach. I've only once been in first class, and it was in December 2000 on the middle leg of a trip home from Australia, an upgrade after a pilot slow-down canceled my flight from LAX to Salt Lake City. I was so burned out by the time I got onboard that I went right to sleep and didn't even enjoy the perk.
FAVORITE AIRLINE?
Southwest
FAVORITE AIRCRAFT?
747
FAVORITE HOTEL?
The Westin Bayshore in Vancouver, BC, and The Governor in Portland, Oregon, are both wonderful upscale splurges, but I spend most of my road nights in modestly priced motels. Small-town, "mom-and-pop" motels can be real finds. I'll never miss a chance to stay at Ken's Motel in Aurora, Nebraska, where I get a great recliner, comfy bed, and fridge for my nightly microbrew for about $40. It's across from a lovely little city park, the perfect place for a stroll after 10 hours on the road.
FAVORITE AIRPORT?
Salt Lake City is close to downtown and a reasonably accommodating place to kill time between flights. People are surprised to see it has a branch of the locally famous Squatters brewpub, plus a Laptop Lane, and lots of room to spread out. It was hell the day after the 2002 Olympics closing ceremony, so I hear, but it's fine on a normal day.
FAVORITE CITY?
Melbourne and New York are the two most magical places I've been.
AISLE OR WINDOW?
Window all the way!
ETICKET OR PAPER?
Eticket, definitely.
TRAVEL AGENT OR ONLINE?
Online. I soured on travel agents when one booked my husband and me for a long layover in Atlanta after a flight from London. Rather than wait around Hartsfield all day for a Delta flight to LA (after which we'd *still* have had to fly to Salt Lake then drive 3 1/2 hours home to Idaho), we got busy seeing if Delta had an earlier flight. Turns out they did, and right to Salt Lake City. I think travel agents still serve an important function, particularly for people who aren't web-savvy or who don't have time to book their own travel. But these days, I book almost everything online ... air and rail tickets, rental cars, rooms, concert tickets.
FAVORITE TRAVEL WEBSITE?
I am most proud of www.guidebookwriters.com, a site I helped found which showcases the work of about 100 top travel writers. We started in 1998 as a way for travelers to contact guidebook writers for trip-planning assistance, but we've evolved into a biz-to-biz site where editors and content managers can find proven writers who cover almost everywhere in the world.
FAVORITE TRAVEL COMPANION?
My husband, Bruce, though I've spent lots of time on the road with our daughter, Natalie, and she's great, too. Of course, much of my travel is solo, and I thoroughly enjoy my own company -- except at dinnertime!
BEST TRAVEL TIP:
Plan ahead with websites, guidebooks, advice from friends, and so on, but leave room for spontaneity and serendipity. My husband and I cherish the memories of a 1993 trip to Prague. We arrived with no place to stay and wound up with a super-cheap, perfectly adequate room in a local woman's apartment, walking distance to everything. We usually book rooms ahead, but it's fun to just wing it sometimes and see what happens.