Category Archives for Commentary.
There’s a new analysis of the best cities in the U.S. to be quarantined in. It takes into account average apartment size (very important), prevalence of high speed internet (crucial), amount of park land (so you can get out and still social distance), and number of takeout food options.
In December New York State law began allowing undocumented immigrants to get drivers licenses and stopped sharing applicant information with immigration enforcement agencies.
In Early February the Trump Administration announced that because of this law, New York residents would no longer be allowed to enroll in or renew Global Entry. They claimed they needed access to New York’s DMV database as part of their identity verification process. Several New Yorkers are suing.
It’s taken as almost a given that the cruise industry is going to suffer for the long term. After seeing shifts sailing endlessly, not welcomed in any port, and becoming floating petri dishes for the spread of disease, who is going to get back on a ship?
And yet there are reports that cruise bookings are actually up compared to the same point in 2019, with cruise customers saying they’ll sail again.
With United’s Oscar Munoz, Marriott’s Arne Sorneson, and the CEOs of Carnvial Cruise Lines, Hilton Hotels, and Starwood Capital on the important panel to bring back the economy, here are the steps we can expect the country to take.
The impressions and beliefs we’re forming through this crisis are going to carry forward, and that will have long-lasting effects on travel brands. Here’s an early stab at brands that rise in status based on how they’re handling the crisis, and those that fall in status as well.
Chris Guillebeau’s books are empowering because they’re actionable, for instance The $100 Startup talked about finding the things people as you questions about – where others see you as an expert – and turning that into a business. And most importantly, not waiting until sometime in the future, not putting together a business plan and raising money and someday actually doing it but bootstrapping your way to success.
This time he’s written a narrative, rather than a how-to. It’s a story, rather than a manual, about a man drowning in student debt, with his job in jeopardy and losing his apartment. But he finds his focus and begins with small steps, including a challenge to earn $1000 in a weekend. Chris sent me an advance copy, and it’s a great new take for him on how to take stock and improve your life when you’re starting from a rough place.
We don’t want people to travel from highly infected areas (because they might be infected) to areas where the virus isn’t spreading (because that could bring it in).
Having someone with the virus traveling to an area where there’s already significant spread doesn’t really change anything. If you don’t have COVID-19, you won’t make other people sick. And with so few people on planes, social distancing is easy, the actual travel itself is fairly low risk for passengers – though higher risk for flight attendants.
Rhode Island doesn’t want any loopholes in their new ban on New Yorkers seeking refuge in the state. The U.S. now has over 112,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19, nearly 40% more than China has reported. And half of all U.S. cases are in New York and New Jersey.
Police in Rhode Island are now stopping cars with New York license plates and the state’s National Guard is conducting house-to-house searches to find New Yorkers and impose a 14 day quarantine. According to the Governor of the state, their “risk is called New York City.”
Hotels are in line right behind the airlines looking for a bailout – even the Walt Disney Company. So are airport workers, and now Boeing is raising its hand too. We need to reserve government’s response for where it makes the most leveraged difference to society as a whole. There are lessons from China on what’s coming down the road.
The economic challenges aren’t primarily in travel, that’s just what’s slowing down first, and when everybody is bailed out no one is.
President Trump said on Tuesday that the federal government would help the airline and cruise industries. Details, though, are limited. However economic stimulus proposals being batted around Washington are bigger in nominal dollars than 2008’s Troubled Asset Relief Program and the 2009 stimulus law.
When Congress starts talking big dollars, industries line up. After 9/11 Congressman Jim Moran said “It’s an open grab bag, so let’s grab.” And that’s what the travel industry seems to be starting to gear up for.
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 »
