Category Archives for Commentary.
Even if there’s an emergency use authorization for a vaccine in the U.S. in December it’s likely late in the second quarter before it’s available for most Americans. Will you wait until June for a vaccine, when you can get one somewhere else in the world if you have the ability to travel and the money to buy one? Would you take a trip to Dubai to get a vaccine six months earlier?
There have been thousands of cases of air marshal misconduct, and nothing has been done. Now air marshals are literally making travel less safe.
The federal government is looking to require foreign visitors and prospective immigrants to submit “fingerprints and possibly other biometric information..into a new database” prior to being permitted to submit online visa applications and even ESTA requests.
The grand experiment in ‘work from home’ has gone better than expected for many companies. Employees all over the world are learning how to do it successfully. It’s not a replacement for in-person interaction, that will happen, just not as often in the office. We’re going to see a new kind of business travel, starting next year.
The U.S. government has taken the opportunity during the global pandemic, when people aren’t traveling out of the country much, to roll out a new platform for storing information they believe they are entitled to take from people crossing the border. A new filing reveals how the U.S. Border Patrol will store data from traveler devices centrally, keeping it backed up and searchable for up to 75 years.
The federal government is considering new rules “that would allow border officials to temporarily block an American citizen or legal permanent resident from returning to the United States from abroad if the authorities have reason to believe the person may be infected with the coronavirus.”
However they’d do this based on their best guess – and not testing – and they’re considering doing this now after the coronavirus barn door has already been left open.
Hertz reportedly has a system glitch that has been reporting some cars stolen even though they’ve been properly rented out. The customers that have rented the cars? They’ve been getting arrested. In a few cases they’ve faced guns drawn by police. Several customers have gone to prison.
After being stuck home, people are ready to get starting traveling with a vengeance as soon as they feel safe to do so. It’s as though the very act of traveling makes a statement that we may be down briefly, but we won’t give in, we’ll return stronger than ever.
One of the reasons TSA temperature checks at airports are a bad idea is that they won’t end after the pandemic. They’ll become the new normal. Just like all of the new rules put in place after 9/11.
The President has indicated support for a $4000 domestic travel credit where you’d get half your money back from airfare, hotels, restaurants and related spending on domestic trips.
That’s now morphed into Martha McSally (R-AZ)’s “American TRIP Act” which would provide a tax credit of $4000 per adult ($8000 to a couple filing jointly) and $500 additional per dependent child to spend in 2020 or 2021 on domestic travel 50 miles or more from home, as well as $50 million to Destination Marketing Organizations to promote tourism to their region. This is insane.
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 »
