The internet is a-buzz with talk about the internet, and some of it about how expensive it is to SEE the internet in certain hotel chains. Among the lead accusers is the champion of hotel consumers, Hotel Chatter, who publish an annual list of which hotel chains charge the most for wi-fi and why (fhy).
    This fiscal outrage is all well and good, and the more hotels that let us download illegal copies of current cinema releases, the better for everyone, n'est-ce pas? Only a layman and a communist would argue FOR hotel internet charges.
So, please step forward one Daniel Edward Craig, a hotelier of unknown repute, who puts forward a case for the daylight robbery of his long-suffering clientele. Get ready to froth at the mouth like an in-room cappucino as he, er, sets out a pretty sensible defence of the whole thing, actually. Some of the arguments are a bit, "Well, we're not as bad as airlines!" but on the whole you can kind of see his point. See what I mean HERE. Marriott can probably still go suck it, though.

Welcome, strangers and bumpkins to New York City. The year is 1920 and there's a lot of crazy going down if you don't know how to navigate this daunting metropolis. Luckily, Valentine's City Guide is here to help with a full rundown of New York's attractions and this handy guide to how to behave in the biggest of apples.

Our favourite picks from the list of advice are as follows:

"Don't ask a pedestrian where a street is. They will be too busy to stop. And if they have time to stop, they won't know."

"Don't gape at women smoking cigarettes in restaurants..."

And the crowning glory:

"Don't buy the Woolworth Building, Brooklyn Bridge...or any other prominent structure because a stranger happens to want to sell it to you for a few hundred dollars..."

You can read the entire thing HERE - skip to page 364 for the run down of rules for visiting hayseeds.

I live in the marshy metropolis of New Orleans, and there’s some division as to how healthy or otherwise the Mississippi swamp water that comes out of the taps here really is. To be honest, most locals are fine with drinking it straight from the tap, but I’ve seen an awful lot of water filters in homes. Also, when you think about the brain eating amoeba that were found in local water systems this year, you kind of get on board with the filtration set.

The Western world is obsessed with filtered water. You only need be overwhelmed by the choice of brands in your local store to realise this. The other things you quickly realise about store-bought water though: it’s chronically wasteful and there’s all those plastic garbage islands floating around in the ocean. Also: you’re being aquatically mugged every time you buy a bottle if they’re charging you more than a dollar.

That agreed upon, it’s obvious that even the most urbane, soy-latte-chugging city dweller who consumes water that isn’t coming out of their own private spring could use and save wads of money with this little black bottle, going by the name of Water-to-Go.

It’s a water bottle, yes, but in its cap is a space-programme-endorsed filtration system that nixes 99.9% of impurities and contaminants. We’re assuming brain-eating amoeba fall into that number. The everyday pollutants that sneak into tap water, even in developed nations, are easy meat. You can treat 200 litres of water, which by my reckoning is about three or four month’s worth unless you’re a particularly Thirsty Theo.

Now imagine how useful this could be if you’re going to places where you can’t actually drink the local water, which to us sensitive westerners is just about anywhere they have to overdub The Big Bang Theory. If you’re heading to, say, Africa, then shoving this into your hand luggage could save you hours of dehydration and almost eliminate the worries you’d have about your digestive system holding up.

Your health. Your bank balance. Your liberal guilt about landfills. All could be assuaged with one water bottle. If you’re science-minded, you can find out more at www.watertogo.eu and there’s lots of info for none-scientists, too.  

Prices start at £25 for bottle plus filter, with filters costing £14.95 for two. See website for stockists.

This list, from the Huffington Post, is a pretty decent stab at some of the world's most overrated destinations. We're pretty on board with the inclusion of Dublin here at SP, but...London? 'Avin' a laaarf, etc. Anyway, here it is in its full glory:

The 25 Most Overrated Places On Earth

It’s the holy grail of air travel – how to get upgraded to business class, or the “first class” that US airlines often refer to when they really mean “business class”. It’s certainly not an easy manoeuvre to pull off, surrounded as you are by rat-like passengers trying to jockey their undeserving way into those self-same seats. Most of us (you) are doomed to languish in the torments of economy for the duration of our adult flying lives, but luckily Shandy Pockets has some insider tips to maximise your chances of a brighter existence.

‘THIS CHARMING MAN'

Always be at your most charismatic and seductive at the check-in desk. The staff there are famously among the most jaded and lonely people in society, and respond to almost any show of human affection. After several instances of taking the exact same flight at the exact same time for a number of months, you should be able to strike up a rapport, and finally ask them out to dinner. Work this angle deftly and within years you could be married to them and enjoying free flight benefits including that all-elusive upgrade.

‘THE CASH MONEY'

Arrive early. Go the ticket desk and pay for an upgrade. Hand over money and hey presto – the upgrade is yours!

‘THE PROFESSIONAL COURTESY’

Abandon your career and spend a number of years retraining, applying for jobs and carving out a career in a sector of the travel industry. Professional travel journalists, for instance, enjoy complimentary upgrades on a regular basis – almost one flight in fifty sees them lording it over the hoi polloi on busy short-haul flights.

‘THE WORKING STIFF’

It’s a little known fact that if cabin crew experience an on-flight passenger death, they will often move the still-warm corpse up to a less-crowded cabin so as to traumatise as few flyers as possible. Wait until the most inconvenient moment before faking a fatal cardiac arrest, then simply hang tight as your body is hastily removed from that claustrophobic middle seat in the back to an isolated window seat up front. Don’t expect meal service or on-demand movies but you can still surreptitiously luxuriate in that extra leg room (stretch out slowly, now!). Granted, it’s going to be an awkward exit once you land, but just brazen it out.

‘THE GORGEOUS GEORGE’

Legally change your name to George Clooney. Dependant on your physical appearance, demeanour, accent and height, a number of expensive prosthetic procedures and vocal coaching classes are probably also necessary. When you’re confident you could pass for the international film star in the biggest of pinches, check in at a busy time, when staff are stretched to the limit. This way, you only have to be convincing for a couple of minutes as the star-struck but harassed airline employees process your ticket and obviously hike you up to a cabin more appropriate to your Hollywood good looks and A-list status.

 ‘THE MARLON BRANDO’

Economy seats are only so wide. Gorging yourself for years on end with neither shame nor reluctance will eventually render your girth simply too much for economy to handle. Buy your cheap ticket and watch the airline be literally forced to plonk you up front (aviation ballast pending). We alternatively refer to this one as the “Too Big to Fail”.

Hundreds of top travel tips in one ten minute video. "High factor sun cream? I'm not MADE of money!"

One of the most annoying things about staying at the end of Soi 11 in Sukhumvit is that as you leave the hotel for the 5 minute walk to the Sky Train, you run the squawking gauntlet of a hundred taxi and tuk-tuk drivers who are all very keen that you choose their conveyance to go wherever you're going. Competition is at fever pitch, and so enthusiastic are they to have you as a passenger, I've even had cab drivers asking me if I'd like a taxi AS I GET OUT OF A TAXI.

That's dedication.

They don't just want your fare, of course. As soon as you're a semi-captive audience they pitch "just one quick stop" (their cousin's trinket store), or quickly slide down the Maslow's Thai Tourist hierarchy of offerings: You want Shopping? Thai massage? Girls? and, if they're very desperate...Boys?

Today my friend Ben and I wanted to cab it to Pratunam Market, and were having a hell of a time. The taxi mafia boss who stands permanently outside the hotel told us he would take us in a metered cab, only to close the door and breathlessly get out his brochures of "best quality" (i.e. knock-off) Louis Vuitton. The next cab told us he had a meter, then as we sat down refused to use it, forcing us to climb out of a moving cab (moving at 2mph, but still) and the next guy just flat refused.

We tried a different tactic - perhaps this is an obvious one and I'm just slow. Instead of getting in the cab and asking for Pratunam Market, this immediately marking us out as rabid consumers willing to field any sales pitch the driver has in his pocket, we asked for a nearby hotel. Ah, now our buying habits are concealed beyond the wit of our potential driver! Would you know it, the very next cabbie took us in, turned on his meter and didn't try to sell us anything. In return, he received a handsome tip, proving that it pays just to shut the flip up sometimes.