It began with phishing, with an employee downloading an attachment from an email. Apparently systems were broadly accessible by employees, so they had a wide surface for attack. The password they needed once gaining access through an employee? Qwerty1234.
Chicago-based photographer named Alex Garcia was traveling back from Havana and overnighted in Miami on Thursday. After waiting for hours to clear passport control he headed to the baggage carousel for his luggage, but he couldn’t find his bag.
He’d placed an AirTag in it, and he knew that it left the airport. Police there were uninterested. So he decided to chase it down himself.
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.
There’s no question that Emirates premium cabin customers who find themselves on board United’s new Newark – Dubai flight will be surprised by the food and beverage program. Sir Time Clark says the airline needs to “make strikes” to improve. That’s an understatement. But he’s not worried. Indeed, Emirates is able to partner with easyJet, Gol, and Jetstar while maintaining their premium image.
SkyTeam member Garuda Indonesia suffered greatly during the pandemic, including from government policies that banned most foreigners from coming to the country for an extended period of time. But it wasn’t Covid-19 that really did it in. They were forced to restructure $9.5 billion in debt earlier this year, citing in part “leasing costs way above the industry average” according to the country’s State Enterprises Minister. Unmentioned, of course, are the charges that were brought against the airline’s former CEO over money laundering and millions of dollars worth of bribery in connection with overpaying for Airbus aircraft. Such things are common in South and Southeast Asia, especially in connection with government-backed carriers. The airline has a new business model. They’re going to focus on domestic travel, and give up most international routes. That means reconfiguring…
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.
Hotel chains aren’t pushing guests to tip out of affection for their lowest-paid employees. They’re doing it as a way of controlling owner costs. The CEO of one hotel group even says they need guests to tip more – so they don’t have to raise wages.
The meals are “presented on tableware from Singapore luxury brand Luzerne, elegantly plated and accompanied by appetizers, breads and desserts” – even for those traveling in economy!
Hyatt is offering triple points on spending at their hotel restaurants when you are not staying as a guest through December 20, 2022. You can earn points on dine-in, delivery and takeout as long as the charge is made by hotels set up to award points, and you provide them with your Hyatt account number.
There’s nothing game-changing here. There’s two airlines that will modestly direct each other’s customers to each other in Dubai and the Mideast. This helps United sell flights to Pakistan, and Emirates sell flights to connecting cities beyond its U.S. gateways. But it doesn’t live up to the hype.
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 »
