Forget about renting someone’s extra bedroom through Airbnb on your next trip, now you can book a luxury villa, thanks in part to Airbnb’s recent acquisition of high-end lodging company Luxury Retreats. [More]
trips
Airbnb Launches “Trips,” Offering Customers Things To Do, See On Their Travels
By 11.17.16
Airbnb’s plan to apparently become a full-time travel agency by offering customers add-on travel options like tours, bike rentals, and more moved another step closer to reality this week as the company officially launched Trips, a service that combines accommodations with things to do. [More]
Google Debuts Personalized Travel Planner Dubbed “Google Trips”
By 9.19.16
As anyone who’s ever found themselves standing around a police station in Spain at 3 a.m. calling mom back in the U.S. for their own hotel info can attest, it can be really tough when you’re lost in a foreign country or city without an Internet-connected device. Google wants to make those kinds of experiences easier and help travelers coordinate their activities with a new travel planning app called “Google Trips.” [More]
Southwest Outage Could Cost Airline As Much As $82 Million
By 8.11.16
Three weeks ago, Southwest Airlines was hit by a massive, days-long outage, disrupting 2,000 flights and spoiling travel plans for countless passengers. CEO Gary “I’m Not Going Anywhere” Kelly later described the debacle as a “once-in-a-thousand-year flood,” and now we have some idea of just how much that flood will cost the airline. [More]
You Can Now Schedule Your Lyft 24 Hours In Advance
By 5.23.16
Allowing riders to book trips in advance essentially defeats the purpose of an on-demand ride-hailing app. But it’s a concept that Lyft is now ready to provide customers. [More]
Carnival Says Cuba Cruises To Move Ahead As Planned After Policy Shift
By 4.22.16
Carnival Cruise Line’s Adonia ship will depart the Port of Miami as planned on May 1 with Cuban-Americans on board after the company reached an agreement with the government of the island nation. [More]
Feel Like The Trip Home Is Quicker Than The Trip There? Science Says You’re Not Alone
By 6.11.15 — Updated: 5.2.17
After reading the above headline, you’re probably already saying to yourself, “Yessss I know exactly what that feeling is!” The “return trip effect” is one we’ve all likely experienced — it seems to take a long time to get somewhere — whether it’s vacation, a visit to relatives or a business destination — and a much quicker time to arrive back home again, even though you traveled the same distance. Scientists are on the case to try and explain why we all feel this way. [More]
Megabus Adds Reserved Seats To Double-Decker Bus Trips, But It’ll Cost Ya
By 4.1.15
If you’ve ever taken a trip with a group or family on Megabus, then you know it can be a pain to get seats together unless you show up extra early. Now, the company plans to change that by allowing customers to reserve seats in advance — for a price, that is. [More]
Rotten Economy Might Mean Big Savings On Airfare This Fall, If You Can Afford To Travel
By 8.2.10
Travel guru Christopher Elliott thinks that airfare prices could drop significantly this fall, thanks to a double-dip recession and general economic misery. So far prices for car rentals and cruise packages are going up, but Elliott says he’s hearing from travelers and travel companies about “dramatic, unexpected bargains” and “rates … on par with last year’s record-low prices” when it comes to flights. [More]
Rent Enterprise Car At Twice The Rate, Get Free Dentures (Check Under Floormat)
By 6.21.10
Timothy rented a car from Enterprise last month when he flew into Newark Airport in New Jersey, and he was forced to pay almost twice the amount quoted in his reservation because of problems with a coupon code and an uncooperative manager. But there’s good news: the rental came with a special, stinky surprise that he and his wife didn’t find until the second day of the rental. (Warning: there’s a big close-up photo below.) [More]
Crazy Cruise Line Telemarketer Pulls Out Every Trick In The Book
By 3.8.10
John Tedesco of the San Antonio Express-News was badgered last week by a telemarketer who wouldn’t take no for an answer. He decided to keep her talking for a while to see how many ways she’d try to get him to hand over his credit card number for a “free” cruise. Here were all the tricks she used during her sales pitch. [More]
Greyhound Leaves 88-Year-Old Outside Of Locked Station In 38°F Weather
By 1.7.10
Greyhound left an 88-year-old woman, along with around 30 other passengers, standing outside a locked bus station on Thanksgiving Day on a trip from Chicago to Detroit. Roxanne, who was one of the abandoned passengers on the sidewalk that morning, says that was just the final insult after an entire day of failure on Greyhound’s part. She sent a complaint to Greyhound’s executives on December 5th, but it was returned. Here is her summary of what happened. [More]
Samsonite Files For Bankruptcy
By 9.4.09
Yesterday, a gorilla* stormed through the offices of Samsonite Corp, the “world’s top luggage maker,” and jumped up and down on their financial status. Their retail unit filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and will close approximately half of their 173 stores.
Delta Doesn't Care About Your Honeymoon
By 8.14.09
[Note: Sandals has already responded to the post, expressed sympathy, and reached out to Autumn. We’ve removed their name from the headline to more accurately focus the blame on Delta, which is the company really behind the problems.] We get that Delta employees just flat out hate their jobs at this point—that would explain the surly flight attendants on my last Delta flight, at any rate—but why would you take that out on newlyweds, who have their whole lives to be disappointed and deserve that one week of happiness at the start? The least you could do, angry Delta employees, is try to help out after your employer utterly fails to deliver the passengers anywhere near their destination. No, a dingy one-night stay in a hotel room in NYC is not the same as a week in Antigua.
Orbitz Can't Deliver On Tickets It Sold, But Can't Deliver The Refund Either
By 5.7.09
Austin bought two tickets to Aruba last December. By the end of February, Orbitz had changed his itinerary so many times that now they were only flying him as far as Atlanta, and 11 days later were flying him back from Aruba—it was apparently up to him to get from Atlanta to Aruba in the first place. At this point, the only option was to request a refund, which Orbitz said would take 60 days. Two months later, Orbitz told Austin that they’ll give him his money back in 60 days. We’re pretty sure that’s 120 days total, and there’s still no guarantee Austin will see his money.
Four Reasons Not To Book Your Hotel Room Through A Third-Party Site
By 1.31.09
You won’t get the best deal booking your hotel room through third-party sites like Expedia or Travelocity, according to an anonymous hospitality industry insider. Inside, four excellent reasons to book directly with a hotel to guarantee the best rooms at the best prices.
AIG Executives Help Themselves To $86,000 Hunting Trip
By 10.16.08
The AP is reporting that AIG executives aren’t done partying yet — they took an $86,000 hunting trip even as the company was requesting an additional $37.8 billion loan from the Federal Reserve. Meanwhile, New York attorney general Andrew Cuomo has said that as long as the company continues to be propped up by the taxpayer — he has the power under state business law to review and possibly rescind any inappropriate AIG spending.
Megabus Might Honor Your Prepaid Reservation, But Only If You Chase The Bus Halfway Across Philadelphia
By 8.17.08
A Megabus driver claimed that Chris’ prepaid reservation was actually a standby ticket, and refused to let him board unless he met the bus at the next stop halfway across Philadelphia. The driver was apparently worried that the bus would be full after the second stop, but he wouldn’t let Chris ride along to find out.
