News notes from around the interweb:
- New York Times halts its Sunday Travel section, sports too.
- In addition to reducing the qualification criteria for status, IHG Rewards Club has finally extended elite status through January 2022.
For Spire Elite members this includes the Choice benefit of 25,000 bonus points or gifting of Platinum Elite status to someone each year
This change will be automatically reflected in member accounts in the coming weeks.
- Airports of Thailand projects flights back to normal by October 2021 but that comes with a big caveat (HT: Daryl W)
He expects domestic flights to recover before international services, since the latter are dependent on countries’ moves to contain the spread of Covid-19 and how long it takes to develop antiviral drugs or vaccines.“If the Covid-19 situation is brought under control in countries worldwide, the economy in Thailand and other major countries will recover, while traffic volume will return to normal in October 2021,” he said.
- Hong Kong foodpanda food delivery orders now come with free health insurance
- Poland may give its citizens vouchers for domestic travel
- New technology measures the distance between passengers standing in line at airport security
- Quite a sight!
Via @NewsOn6: A large portion of the @AmericanAir fleet @tulsaairports. A special thanks to the Tech Ops — Tulsa team, who continue to maintain each aircraft at #TUL, the world’s largest commercial aviation base maintenance facility. #AATeam @erikolund @flylabrock pic.twitter.com/91pcUJ3nhx
— Ross Feinstein (@RossFeinstein) April 24, 2020
- The worst-structured travel promotion of all time?
IHG status extension applies to status earned through credit card? Can I cancel card now but still have status through 2021?
The New York Times is like the Sears of 2003. Living on borrowed times. If they keep printing a physical paper much into the future I’d be surprised. Much like my Grandparents kept Sears afloat for years that generation is leaving us much like the NYT core.
@DaninMCI – that goes in the face of, you know, actual data – NYT has actually been increasing total subscriptions year over year. Print will of course continue to decline, but that’s more than offset by the digital side.
I look forward to them adding to their 125 (and counting) Pulitzers well into the future.
According to Trump they are the” The failing New York Times”
I’ve been a happy subscriber for decades but then I suppose
I must like failing newspapers
The NYT is my newspaper and I have a digital subscription, but canceling the Travel section is so short-sighted! If I see one more article about what I can do at home during this term of self-confinement (imprisonment), I will stick my finger down my throat and vomit. Let’s look to the future and think about how we might travel when the opportunity again presents itself, no matter how limited it may be. No, it won’t be the same for awhile until there is a vaccine, but “lifestyle?” Do all we have to look forward to from the NYT are articles about cooking and recipes, flower arranging, redecorating, knitting and crocheting, activities to occupy the kids and the like? Peppering articles throughout the paper rather than a dedicated Travel section is defeatist. Come on NYT!!!
@ADT – it’s one of my favorite sections too, but not sure it’s so needed at the moment, nor can they be sending correspondents out to check out different places. It will return!
re IHG Rewards Club status, so, now I can get nothing for less.