By now everyone is used to seeing the beautiful scenes depicted in advertisements for cruise deals: fun, laughter, lavish amenities, clear oceans, and that beautiful cruise ship! Cruise ships have always been thought of as the ultimate getaway full of luxury, but apparently this is only one side of the industry. Recently, some people have become worried about the happenings below deck, where it is rumored that some crew members may be working in exploiting conditions that are more similar to foreign labor practices than what is accepted in North America.

Recently, in Vancouver, the site of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, a flash mob targeted one of three cruise ships that had been docked at the location for housing security personnel and other officials. The “mob,” in this case is not a stereotypical mob at all, but a seemingly peaceful group that calls themselves Pirates for Justice and claim that the protest will be a “family-friendly” event. The group has staged the protest against what they have called substandard working conditions for crewmembers at work aboard the cruise ships.

Travelers, rejoice! Now your favorite brews will be available at Cleveland Hopkins Airport. Great Lakes Brewery has opened at AIRMALL at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. Your favorite food and drinks from the Ohio City restraunt will all be in stock at the new location.

"We are excited to be a part of the ongoing concessions development at the AIRMALL at CLE by providing travelers from all over the world with an authentic taste of Cleveland," said George Walker, operator of Great Lakes Brewing Company at the AIRMALL. "Our award-winning, flavorful beers and mouth-watering food selections will surely be a big hit among passengers, all while providing uncompromising, superior customer service."

I don't know about you but sometimes I need a drink after going through the security at the airport.

The economy sucks and most of us are a little short on cash. However, that doesn't mean you have to forgo visiting family or taking that much needed weekend vacation. Southwest Airlines makes it easy - and CHEAP - to get where you need to go, rolling out new $25 fares.

The new sale began on Tuesday, and is a part of the airline's fourth-quarter sale. The $25 fare is available on several one-way flights of less than 375 miles. For travel between 375 and 549 miles the price is $50, and for travel between 550 miles and 999 miles the fare is $75.

The new campaign is being heavily promoted and carries with it the tagline:

With fares this low, you should invent a reason to go.

Faires are available for travel between December 2-16 and January 5-February 10, 2010. They are available for purchase through Thursday online. As always, some restrictions apply. Visit southwest.com more information and to purchase tickets.

If you want to see world class art museums, get a great view of Lake Erie, see the best orchestra in the world, and experience the most underated city in the country, now is the time to act. Cleveland has just been named the most affordable destination in the U.S. by travel experts Leisure and Leisure Magazine in their latest rankings of America's Favorite Cities. This marks the first time that Cleveland has been ranked by the magazine as one of the top getaway cities, and may have impact on the tourism industry.

It wasn't all good news for us Clevelanders though. Despite giving us kudos for the great orchestra, the West Side Market, and museums, the people over at Travel and Leisure think that Clevelanders are a bit on the ugly side. Out of the 30 cities listed, Cleveland came in at 28th when ranking attractiveness. Cleveland also fared rather poorly in terms of weather (#29), and people-watching (#28). Cleveland was also ranked dead last on the list of spring break destinations at #30, probably because during March and April there's a good chance of there might still be some lingering snow on the ground.

JetBlue is taking an innovative approach to ramp up its post-Labor Day travel by offering an all-you-can-fly pass which is good for one month for just $599. Good between September 8 to October 8, those who take advantage of the deal can fly to any or allof the 56 places JetBlue flies to in the U.S., Mexico, the Caribbean, Costa Rica and Columbia.

In this kind of economy, money is tight and people are only willing to spend it if there is some kind of incentive. Now Megabus is getting in on the stimulus bandwagon, announcing Tuesday that it is offering an additional 50,000 $1 seats for travel September 14 to November 19, 2009.

The $1 seats will be available on all Megabus.com departures in all 30 cities during the specified travel period, subject to availability. Travelers simply need to use the promo code "HOTDEAL" when booking their tickets for a chance to book the $1 fares.

If you thought coach was cramped, get ready for standing-room only "seating" on airlines. The discount Irish airline Ryanair has come up with yet another wacky plan, this one involving building a special standing room only area on a Boeing jet so that fliers can perch on stools instead of sit in chairs. The company says it could get 30% more customers on their planes this way.

Stephen McNamara, a spokesman for Ryanair, said:

"Passengers wouldn't be fully standing, they would have something like a stool to lean on or to sit on."

He added that the plan would "completely adhere to safety procedures." The stools would, of course, have lap belts to keep one attached. Standing room seats would also cost less than traditional seats.

Ryanair got the idea from the Chinese airline Spring, who is developing a similar plan.

Ryanair flies to various destinations through out Europe and Northern Africa, and have become known for their cost-cutting measures and cheap fares. They charge passengers $1.50 to use the toilet, require them to get boarding passes online, and make them carry their bags to luggage compartments.

These long stretches of warm, sunny days that we've been experiencing lately have really made me want to run out the beach or the pool for a fun-filled day of sun and water. However, if you're like me and most of the world that's dealing with the sagging economy, funds are tight. If you haven't booked any vacation plans this summer and are struggling with where to get the most bang for your buck, let me turn you on to a great travel idea - cruises!

Why is a cruise a great idea for a summer vacation? For one, it's easy to plan for last minute. And best of all - they're all inclusive. The fee includes all of the accomodations, food and entertainment that you can handle on your cruise, so there's no need to budget for dozens of different incidentals. The options for cruise destinations are also endless - you can cruise the Caribbean, or along the Nile, the Mediterranean, or even Hong Kong. If you can think it, you can probably take a cruise there.

This summer as the economic situation continues to worsen, and job cuts becoming increasingly common, many Americans are deciding to forgoe the traditional summer vacation either to save money or because they simply can't afford it. But with so much stress, don't we all deserve a break now and then?

HomeAway is heading up a campaign to get tired and stressed out workers another vacation day this summer. The "Save Our Summer Vacation" movement aims to petition Congress to proclaim August 7 as a "National Vacation Day." The more signatures they can gather, the better the chances. So get your friends and family to sign the petition now!

In addition, HomeAway is also searching for the person most deserving or a week-long summer vacation. The grand prize winner will be awarded a $10,000 getaway to the vacation rental of their choice. Two runners-up will each receive a $5,000 trip. To enter, all you ahve to do is sumibt a short text, video or photo entry by July 2 explaning why you deserve to have your vacation saved by HomeAway.

We may have the worlds best orchestra, the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame, a world class art museum, vibrant nightlife, and relatively new sports stadiums but Cleveland couldn't escape the tag as being labeled boring. At least we aren't Detroit who was given the title as least favorite city from a study by TripAdvisor.

New York City was interestingly selected as most helpful and least helpful city. The Big Apple also scored the "grand prize" as favorite city. Here is how the study turned out: