STORY:
New Year's Eve Travel Update

According to a story by the Associated Press, representatives at Walt Disney World say all of the resort's hotels are sold out for Millennium Eve. Accommodations in Berlin are about 92 percent sold and Sydney, Australia, hotels are not far behind. New York City expects more than a million people to congregate in Times Square for the decent of the new, crystal ball.

The American Society of Travel Agents said 69 percent of its members reported that cruises were the hot thing to do on Millennium Eve, though prices are two to four times higher than usual.

An 11-day Carnival cruise at $899 per person to celebrate this past New Year's Eve will be $2,649 for the coming New Year, Conde Nast Traveler magazine reported.

The article which appeared in many newspapers in the U.S. including the San Antonio Express News says travelers were willing to put deposits on specific millennium trips last year, even before some prices were announced. Now that the cost is in, some are having second thoughts.

With beautiful weather and proximity to the dateline, the South Pacific Islands seemed to be the perfect millennium destination, but the outlook is not as bright as residents had hoped.

The tiny islands, such as Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and Kiribati, can't provide lodging and transportation for the number of people who would love to make the trip, according to their national tourist offices.

Gisborne, New Zealand, is having more luck. Officials expect about 35,000 people to celebrate and take part in more than 40 special events in the small farming town.

Big-city locations throughout the world are sure to be crowded. Rome is sprucing up some of its monuments, Paris is lighting up the Eiffel Tower, and Greenwich, England, is opening the $1.2 billion educational and entertainment center called the Millennium Dome.

Source: Associated Press / San Antonio Express News

DATE: 4/23/99

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