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.
Alaska Airlines buying Hawaiian is good for Hawaiian‘s shareholders, who earn a premium for their shares they have little likelihood of achieving with the carrier as a standalone.
It is even neutral to good for customers. It just isn’t great business for Alaska.
Marriott has the most exclusive top elite tier with published earning criteria. The Ambassador level requires not just 100 nights in hotels but also a minimum of $23,000 in spend, nearly impossible to achieve in many parts of the world with low hotel rates.
Yet for three years the Ambassador level didn’t even come with Ambassador service. Marriott eliminated dedicated Ambassadors during the pandemic, even while Hyatt (which offers concierges at just 60 nights without minimum spend) kept theirs.
A new study shows that guests at 5-star hotels are more likely to steal high-value items like tablet computers, artwork, TVs, and mattresses, reflecting a trend among wealthier guests. There’s been an increase in the theft of more valuable items since 2019, including coffee makers, mattresses, and tablet computers. Mini fridges are now commonly stolen from 4-star hotels.
The survey categorizes theft behavior in hotels by nationality.
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.
Passengers took video of a man sleeping in a plane’s middle seat. His mouth is open. And the aisle seat passenger is sticking Pringles potato chips in his mouth, one after another after another. The Pringles stay in his mouth and the man doesn’t wake up, while people around him strain to prevent themselves from busting a gut laughing, which might wake him.
Southwest Airlines passengers are using wheelchairs to get priority boarding and don’t even seat in them, instead using the wheelchair as a luggage cart to push their carry on bags.
Alaska Airlines has announced a deal to buy Hawaiian Airlines for $1 billion cash and assumption of $900 million in Hawaiian Airlines debt. They will keep the two separate brands, though combine their loyalty programs. The deal is expected to close in 12-18 months, subject to approval of Hawaiian’s shareholders and making it through anti-trust review.
For Mileage Plan and oneworld frequent flyers this is great. For Hawaiian customers this should be fine-to-positive. It’s Alaska shareholders that may not benefit from the merger integration costs in order to swallow an unprofitable airline. Although perhaps the biggest beneficiaries will be the transaction and anti-trust lawyers whose billable hours will be immeasurable.
Here’s the full detail, from an internal memo, on how pilot priority for first class upgrades works now at American Airlines.
American Airlines is refusing to fill empty seats with nonrev passengers through end of year in order to comply with the airport’s passenger caps.
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 »
