I was struck the first time I went through the airport in Manila that I had to pay a fee in cash before proceeding through security, I’d receive a paper receipt, and then hand that receipt a person in the booth immediately past the one where I’d paid it.
When Marriott took over Starwood and then launched the Bonvoy program, they told owners that the economics would work out better for them. Part of how they did it is by forcing these scam charges on their customers. Yet their owner contracts explicitly allow Marriott to halt these fees.
After a less than impressive visit to the Air Canada Signature Suite, we were headed down to our gate next door for our flight to Paris. Disappointment in the lounge might have put me in a sour mood, but I was actually very excited for this flight to Paris.
A moving walkway has been ripped out of American Airlines terminal 8 at New York JFK. That’s going to make the long walks to some of the C gates feel even longer. But it’s also going to make you spend more money at the shops along the way – and that’s why they’ve done it.
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.
Southwest Airlines is going to start confiscating passenger bags at the gate on almost every flight once they begin charging for checked bags in two months.
I wanted to get to the airport because our tickets would allow us to visit the Air Canada Signature Suite. I was really looking forward to this! I’d been before and I was blown away. I’ve also been to the one in Vancouver and it was very special. So I happily plunked down extra miles for my family to visit.
I wanted to break up the flight as much as possible and Toronto – Paris is a fairly short route (spoiler: baby was fine on the flight, and also on our longer Air France return).
U.S. – Canada travel is down, and it’s likely economic activity is slowing more broadly. Headlines about a 70% decline though are just wrong. That would mean market abandonment at the sort of level we saw in late March 2020 and July 2020 without travel restrictions or a global pandemic.
Private staffed security isn’t ‘returning to pre-9/11’ it’s how things work at some major U.S. airports in the U.S. already. TSA sets screening standards, and employees of private companies carry out the screenings following those procedures. It’s also how things work in much of the world that’s considered safe today.
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 »
