The Berlin airport still has huge problems. First of all the airport is on the brink of bankruptcy and expects to run out of money at the start of next year.
Wherever the money has gone, it clearly hasn’t been invested in clean water, which brings us to the second recent problem: the water isn’t safe to drink in terminal 1 which is host to Lufthansa Group carriers, Air France, British Airways, easyJet, United and others.
Wall mounted bottles don’t get properly cleaned or refilled, and they’re a prime target for tampering by a practical joker or someone with more sinister motives.
A perfect example was a recent reader stay at the Westin Detroit Metro Airport.
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 is in the news after a flight attendant reported a white mother traveling with her 10 year old biracial daughter as “suspicious.” The mother was investigated as a sex trafficker.
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.
Marriott is offering a 45% bonus on purchased points through December 8 when buying at least 2000 points. Marriott co-brand cardmembers can take advantage of the offer through December 15, 2021.
A simple math exercise shows when you’re better off buying versus transferring (and why in most cases you’re better off doing neither).
Delta is gutting confirmed international upgrades awarded to top elite customers. Top tier SkyMiles Diamond members can select confirmed global upgrades as a ‘choice benefit’. These have moved a customer on a coach ticket to business class on any Delta flight where upgrade space is available.
However starting February 1, 2022 that’s changing.
I had the opportunity to visit the very first Capital One airport lounge at Dallas – Fort Worth on Wednesday, a couple of weeks before opening. This is a great space, really thoughtfully designed with a lot of details built-in. They’ve invested a lot, and what impressed me most was the food which wasn’t just ‘good for an airport lounge’ but genuinely good. I’m hoping it scales and is sustainable, because you’re going to want to check it out.
Delta’s operation melted down over last year’s holidays. Southwest has melted down over lack of crew. American melted down over the summer without enough pilots and then at the end of October without enough flight attendants. And now everyone’s worried about holiday travel with the government requiring airlines to have their employees vaccinated – with deadlines coming up.
United Airlines sent out a remarkable email, both for its candor and effectiveness but also for the way it brutally subtweeted these competitors. Under CEO Scott Kirby’s signature, United obliquely references news of airline meltdowns and says in effect ‘this won’t happen to us.’
On Monday, a Gol flight from São Paulo Guarulhos airport to Minas Gerais in Brazil took off but wound up diverting back to São Paulo due to weather.
Passengers got frustrated with a lack of help getting rebooked, and facing spending the night where they started. And they started to riot.
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 »
