In other hotel and travel industry news last week… In an attempt to steer traffic away from Online Travel Agencies like Expedia and Priceline – and the commissions paid to OTAs – several major hotel chains beta-launched Room Key. The brands include Best Western, Hilton, Hyatt, InterContinental, Marriott and Wyndham, and Room Key acts as…
Monthly Archives
Monthly Archives for January 2012.
Airline of the year, fuel stops, American’s cuts, airfare by weight, attendant assault, Southwest expands and Hawaiian breaks a record
In other airline industry news this week… Air New Zealand was named Airline of the Year by Air Transport World Magazine as part of its 38th Airline Industry Achievement Awards. ATW bestowed the honor to NZ due to “industry-leading innovation and motivation of its staff which resulted in exceptional performance across market position, customer service,…
Infographic: The best U.S. airports for business travelers
I’m a fan of infographics and this one is pretty neat. Using data from PC World, the New York Times and Executive Travel Magazine, it shows connectivity at several airports across the United States, an overview of Wi-Fi on airlines and top tech devices. I’m a little surprised they left off many of the busiest…
The new United Airlines Shop is open for business… get your swag on!
The tulip has fully wilted, but this United Airlines loving geek is very happy to see the new United Shop is up and running. Last November or December they had a flash sale on the last remaining tulip items and they’ve very much restocked now with the newer logoed “globe†items. This past Mother’s Day,…
Vintage Airline Seat Map: Delta Air Lines Boeing 767-200 from 1987
United Airlines was the launch customer for the Boeing 767-200, but both American and Delta were quick to also place orders for the then revolutionary widebody twinjet in 1978. I’m not sure if Delta ever flew this model overseas, but the 767 was apparently the most frequently used airliner for transatlantic flights between North America…
Hotel taxes, fees refunded, DOT rules, Boeing’s orders, vacation packaging, Overstock travel and more travel news
In other hotel, aviation and travel industry news last week… Last year, Chicago took the top spot as being the city that charges the most taxes to travelers in the country and effective January 1, 2012, they’ve raised hotel taxes another percentage point. It brings the hotel portion on par now with New York and…
New surcharge, United’s theme & auctions, American delisted, AirTran fined, Qantas pilots, Brussels-bound and 2011 profits
In other airline industry news this week… As I expected and not at all surprising, American, Delta, United and US Airways have added a $6 roundtrip surcharge for flights to Europe to offset the EU’s Emission Trading Scheme. United’s 767-300s that fly to Europe hold a total of 183 passengers. If it goes out full…
Reminder: United Airlines same-day travel change policies
I mentioned in a recent Mileage Run Opportunity post that I frequently take advantage of United’s same-day change options to ward off tight connections at downline airports. I normally like to buffer in more than an hour on complex routings, but sometimes to get the best fare, a tight connection is all that’s available at…
United Airlines Economy Plus marketing fail
In reviewing a seat map for an upcoming trip, I noticed something unusual on my Embraer 145 ExpressJet flight – rows one and 12 were showing as Economy Plus. Odd, I thought, since I’ve never seen that before having flown on ERJ-145s previously and while there is a touch more legroom, it’s certainly not what…
Mileage Run Opportunity: $248.80 nets 7,340 United EQMs PIT-IAD-SFO-TUS r/t
A reader emailed me asking about mileage run opportunities on United Airlines from his hometown, Pittsburgh. I do tend to be coast-centric as that’s where you get the biggest bang for your buck on mileage runs, but welcome other origins as well. If you’d like me to research options from your hometown, shoot me an…