Monthly Archives for May 2023.
The problem with United’s boarding isn’t just that they board earlier but how their gates are set up: boarding pens. Passengers line up in their assigned group, with each group having a different area (airport and gate-allowing), far in advance of boarding.
Some hotels don’t want award guests. They might think they can sell all of their rooms not at their average rate but at a premium, at least some nights of the year. Or they may just have a negative view of program members – they like getting paid nights from these members, but not having to host them on points.
Here are four Hyatt hotels that currently do not let members spend their points for free nights when searching the chain’s website or mobile app.
American is sending out marketing emails to members offering to let them straight up buy elite status. This isn’t the usual ‘buy back status you lost last year’ or even ‘buy a level of status higher than what you earned’ (which historically has generated over $30 million per year in revenue).
Instead, American is sending out offers to members who do not have status at all – members who may not have flown them in years – and offing to let them buy Gold or Platinum status through March 2024 directly.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
You need something on the side, and what enhances the burger experience more than great fries? United Airlines will actually make the huge step of trying to deliver fries with their burger – heated in the oven on board and available on hub-to-hub flights starting May 10.
Hotels have eliminated daily housekeeping in many cases. All except the top luxury brands won’t automatically clean your room every day, or if they do it’s a ‘light service’ making the bed and swapping out towels on the floor. That means they don’t need to hire as many housekeepers, and a single housekeeper can service more rooms.
Scott Chandler, who is American’s Vice President of Revenue Management, explained why customers who purposely book longer connections – not wanting the stress of running from gate to gate, especially when their first flight is delayed – wind up losing those longer connections when the airline runs a schedule change.
The issue here is what is best for passengers, not United’s shareholders which received nearly $10 billion in taxpayer cash already during the pandemic. United’s efforts at Washington Dulles have been subsidized for nearly 40 years. That’s too long rather than a justification for more subsidies at the expense of passenger choices and competition.
A roundup of the most important stories of the day. I keep you up to date on the most interesting writings I find on other sites – the latest news and tips.
DOT’s rule on these slots was that, once service commenced, none could go dormant for more than 90 days or the route authority could be taken back and awarded to another airline.
With Japan late to re-open, and traditional managed business travel still depressed, U.S. – Japan flying hasn’t recovered nearly as much as domestic travel or flying between the U.S. and Europe.
Gary Leff is one of the foremost experts in the field of miles, points, and frequent business travel -- a topic he has covered since 2002.
Co-founder of frequent flyer community InsideFlyer.com, emcee of the Freddie Awards, and named one of the "World's Top Travel Experts" by Conde' Nast Traveler (2010-Present) Gary has been a guest on most major news media, profiled in several top print publications, and published broadly on the topic of consumer loyalty. More About Gary »
