Originally Posted by
sailingdane
I think I'll get a collapsible one, if that makes it easier to travel with. I want to buy a good umbrella, and not several ones for each country I'm traveling to.
If you have access to the UK, Fortnum & Mason had some really brilliant durable, full-sized, wind-tolerant folding ones a couple years ago. Six weeks of windy, wet summer of '07 in Carlyle did not break it!
Originally Posted by
sailingdane
Do you need a permit to carry umbrellas in the land of the free then?
Not unless it's fully automatic.
Only TSA is the potential problem; museums etc. won't bother you at all. However, my friend's experience above is why my good non-collapsible goes buried at the bottom of a large checked bag, if I need it.
Originally Posted by
sailingdane
I think I'll just try to avoid going to the US. It seems like they don't want tourists or business anyway, treating foreigners like criminals and coming up with new hassles like pre-applications online to enter the country and a new $10 tax for entering. I guess the government thinks the economy is so great it's better off with less tourism.
Many of us welcome visitors, and are trying to get the relevant agencies to reflect that (with limited success as you can see on this board). You are not alone; several old friends who used to love vacationing here no longer do because of what you mention. If you choose not to come, please do contact places you would have visited, and tell them why you changed your plans.