Starting Monday The Vienna Airport Will Offer Coronavirus Testing On Demand

by Gary Leff

May 03 2020

In mid-April it seemed like the best place to get coronavirus testing might be the Dubai airport. And since they were running tests right away, it might even be faster to fly there, get tested, and come home. However the plan there was only to deploy testing for passengers heading to destinations that required a negative test for entry.

Starting Monday testing is available to anyone who wants it at the Vienna airport at a cost of $210. And Vienna is much closer than Dubai.

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Hawaii Prepares To Welcome Visitors With New Slogan, “The Safest Place In The World”

by Gary Leff

hawaii
May 03 2020

In March Hawaii started asking tourists not to visit the state. And then they got so serious about keeping outsiders away, who might bring a virus, that they started paying for plane tickets so tourists would leave.

Now the State of Hawaii – with fewer than 700 confirmed coronavirus cases and just 16 deaths – is making its success containing coronavirus part of a new tourism marketing campaign that’s in the works.

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Warren Buffett Walks Away From U.S. Airlines

by Gary Leff

depressed businessman leaning his head below a bad stock market chart
May 03 2020

Warren Buffett owned about 10% each of Delta, Southwest Airlines, American and a little bit less of United. He wound up with a bit over 10% of Delta – his biggest airline position – by accident when he was buying as Delta was buying back shares. It was rumored a year ago he was going to acquire Southwest Airlines in its entirety.

Buffett has now unwinded them all and walked away from the industry.

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Great Business Class Award Space To Asia For 4 Passengers With American, Chase or Amex Points

by Gary Leff

skysuite
May 02 2020

I’m starting to want to plan travel, even if it’s not clear when I’ll be able to travel abroad. I’m really hungry for sushi in Tokyo, laksa in Singapore, and prawn mee soup in Malaysia. I want a Asia trip, and there’s great business class award availability to Asia for January – March, 2021 right now. It’s available for four passengers, and far enough out that I’m willing to make some bookings.

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United Airlines Uses CARES Act Loophole To Reduce Employee Pay, Keep Bailout Money For Itself

by Gary Leff

people posing for picture
May 02 2020

United has realized they can switch employees from full time to part time and pay them less. That’s not a furlough, and while it reduces pay it does this through reduced hours not reduced pay rate.

The intention of the federal bailout was that the money would go to employees, whose pay would not be reduced. And United is reducing the amount they’re paying employees and using the savings to bolster the position of their shareholders. The airline’s argument is that they need the money which is the same argument they deployed trying to deny refunds to customers for flights they cancelled.

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Marriott Told Us Mobile Room Keys Will Keep Us Safe, Then Delayed Roll Out Of Mobile Room Keys

by Gary Leff

May 02 2020

Marriott emphasized that they have 3300 hotels active with mobile room keys and more being added. This means not having to check in at the front desk with an employee, or having the employee handle your room key. Instead you check in with your phone, and use your phone as a room key.

That’s great, and Marriott is proud of how widespread this feature is (though not yet at half of their hotels). What they didn’t tell you, it turns out, is that they’ve actually pushed back the roll out of this technology at hotels which don’t currently offer it in order to save money.

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