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1(877)FLYERS6 – Stranded Holiday Traveler Help Line
By 12.5.07
If you’re stranded or heavily delayed at the airport this holiday season, you may want to have 1(877)FLYERS6 saved in your cellphone contacts. That’s a special free flyer hotline set up by the Coalition for an Airline Passengers’ Bill of Rights. They offer a variety of services, like emailing your family or business associates and let them know where you are, offering real-time weather and flight status information, and let you know about hotel or rental options, as well as help you deal with refund situations. If you’re stuck on the tarmac and not being let off the plane, they will pass the info on and try to get media out to the airport.
Airlines Quietly Institute Annual Two-Bag Max Policy For Caribbean And Latin American Travel
By 12.3.07
If you’re traveling to Latin America or the Caribbean, don’t pack more than two bags, and don’t let them be overweight. People traveling to and from these countries have a propensity to pack heavily this time of year. And so every year at this time of year the airlines impose stringent restrictions, though you’ll have to do some Googling on the airlines’ sites to find mention of the policy. No worries, cougars only need one coat anyway.
Amtrak Train Runs Out Of Fuel, Passengers Told To Arrange Alternate Transportation
By 12.1.07
An Amtrak train traveling from San Diego to Santa Barbara ran out of fuel eight miles from its destination. Hartford Courant Editor Jeanne LeBlanc’s daughter happened to be on the train, and recounted Amtrak’s puzzling response.
11 Slowest Big-City Airport Security Lines
By 11.29.07
FareCompare’s Rick Seaney analyzed TSA’s data to find out which of the top 40 busiest airports have the longest security line waits. To get the results, they honed in on max times on Mondays from 2pm-6pm, Oct. 30 through Nov. 27.
5 Worst Airlines According To Zagat's
By 11.28.07
Here are the lowest performing airlines, based on comfort, food, service and website, according to a recent Zagat’s survey. Scores are out of a total possible 30.
10 Secrets Of Air Travel Insiders
By 11.27.07
FareCompare’s Rick Seaney shares Top 10 Secrets Of Air Travel Insiders. We hadn’t heard number 6 before:
Fly the Big Hubs – Usually – A bigger airport can mean bigger savings.
Speed Airport Security By Packing Neater
By 11.23.07
Instead of cramming your carry-on with crap, the TSA says we can all make security lines go faster if we pack neater. They want you to pack in layers; a layer of clothes, then a layer of electronics, then a layer of any heavier items. This way, the security folks can more quickly determine the bag does not contain an explosive device. For once, something the TSA said actually makes sense.
Zagat's Top Airline Picks
By 11.21.07
Zagat’s has gotten into the airline rating business. Here’s the best of the tin pushers stack up, with a highest possible score of 30.
Delta Wants Me To Rebook For A Later Flight Because I'm One Minute Late
By 11.20.07
“Sir, if you go inside and to the right, one of our agents will be happy to assist you with rebooking for a later flight.”
Missing Slip Of Paper Almost Stopped US Airways/America West Merger
By 11.16.07
We always appreciate the oddly forthcoming US Airways emails they’ve been sending to out to customers to keep them apprised of developments during their merger with America West. Turns out the merger almost didn’t happen:
…on September 26th we officially handed over the America West operating certificate to the FAA and formally merged into one airline. Yes, there really was a handover ceremony, and for a few weeks we couldn’t find the original America West certificate. Turns out it was in use as part of a company heritage display. No certificate, no merger. Wouldn’t that have been embarrassing?
Aw, that’s almost cute. Can’t find the operating certificate…passengers stranded on the tarmac for hours….anyone else seeing a correlation?
Skybus Executives' Phone Numbers And Email Addresses
By 11.13.07
Travel troubleshooter Chris Elliot published contact info for five top Skybus executives. Skybus is the new zero frills super cheap airline. One of the ways they save money is by having no phone numbers for customers to call. They want you to just send an email. But by the emails that Elliot is getting, it looks like Skybus isn’t even reading those. We’d be happy to loan out one of our email interns if they’re short of manpower. Barring that, the contact info can help you send you Skybus complaint to a real human being.
Build Your Dream Airline
By 11.10.07
The USA Today tossed three travel experts in a room and asked them to describe their dream airline. An airline that restores the grandeur of flight by focusing on passenger value and convenience. Pay attention airlines, and consider giving us the following:
Know Your Passenger Rights When Flying In Europe
By 11.8.07
If you’re flying in Europe, considering printing a copy of this consumer rights document (PDF) and putting it in your wallet. It’s “Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 February 2004,” but all you need to know is that it stipulates what airlines have to do when flights are canceled, delayed, or they lose your luggage. Like in America, they don’t have to give you jack if the delays are due to weather. Airfarewatchdog Blog has a good breakdown of what the rules mean.
Get Last Minute Holiday Travel Deals
By 11.8.07
FareCompare found some late-breaking deals good for Thanksgiving and Christmas travel. The deals are on specific routes. If you can be flexible with your dates, there’s savings to be found. You must book at least 7 days in advance, and at least 14 is preferable. Even Johnny-come-latelys can to grandma’s house go.
Top 10 Least On-Time Airports
By 11.6.07
Of the big airports, here’s the top 10 with the worst on-time performance percentage, based on the 2007 Department of Transportation stats, via WSJ.
Delta Downgrades Early-Bird Holiday Travelers To Make Room For More Profitable Latecomers
By 10.29.07
Beware if you managed to snag a cheap Delta nonstop flight for the holidays, you might find yourself downgraded. Airfarewatchdog Blog reports that a reader got an insane $138 roundtrip from JFK to Denver for peak Christmas travel. Then a few weeks ago Delta told him they were adding a connecting flight both ways, and now it’s on a regional jet instead of a nice big jet. Why? Probably to make room for the $600 tickets Delta wanted to sell to last-minute customers.
