Monthly Archives for November 2023.
This was news to me. I’ve redeposited award tickets where the taxes and fuel surcharges were substantial, and I’ve lost money when those fees were credited back to me when the dollar strengthened between the time of booking and refund. It never occurred to me to ask my card issuer (usually Chase in that case) to make good on the difference. It seemed interesting enough to pass along.
There’s a new airline gold rush down in Mexico, with U.S. carriers lining up to fly to the Felipe Carrillo Puerto International Airport near Tulum. It’s 79 miles from the current Cancun airport, Enilria writes that an aviation study finds that this new airport could compete for a full quarter of Cancun’s passengers. Already American, Delta, United, and Spirit have announced service from the airport, which is slated to open December 1 and to become available to international passengers in late March. With American’s Dallas and United’s Houston service growing to twice daily, there are a dozen flights by U.S. carriers planned for the 12 gate airport: 93% of the area’s air passengers are tourists, and the bet is that there’s a never ending supply of upper middle class Americans headed to yoga retreats. Based…
There’s a simple reason that annoying fees are prevalent in travel. They work. Customers spend more money. And in some cases politics and the tax code encourage them.
John Arnold shares what happened at StubHub when they tested an elimination of hidden fees for some customers: those who were shown transparent all-in pricing spent less money.
American Airlines baggage handlers in Miami were filmed playing ‘toss the wheelchair’ with several passenger wheelchairs, displaying careless handling and insensitivity towards essential mobility devices.
The blog post explores the challenges hotels face in personalizing amenities for guests, highlighting the complexities of catering to diverse preferences and the occasional missteps, like inappropriate gifts or failing to recognize guest preferences. It emphasizes the impact of well-executed amenities, using personal experiences and industry insights to illustrate how getting it right can significantly enhance guest satisfaction.
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.
Saturday Night Live spoofed Thanksgiving week travel with their “Thanksgiving Week Airport Parade” which opens, “Good morning from Newark airport, everybody’s third choice.” The parade is sponsored by Hudson News which is amazing:
It’s not just that the coach seats are smaller and more constraining. It turns out that flying coach is bad for the male sex drive, and the specific problems are ameliorated by premium cabin travel.
That’s because the stress of coach travel, confined spaces and long lines, lead to the release of chemicals in the brain that drive down male testosterone. This retards libido and can harm sexual function.
I find it’s worth checking a booking right after you make it to make sure everything was done correctly — are traveler names accurate? Can you assign seats? Does a partner airline see the booking and does it appear ready for travel? If the reservation is for some time in the future, scroll through your reservations at least once a month. Do it again a few days in advance of travel, too.
One passenger worried for a flight attendant on her recent Delta flight after giving the crew a “1” rather than a “5” by mistake. And she’s taken to social media to rectify the mis-score.
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 »
