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Hotels

Loews Hotels Introduces Baggage Buy Back Program

In the wake of American Airlines’ new $15 fee for checking bags, , Loews Hotels has introduced a new “Baggage Buy Back” incentive that will reimburse guests for their $15 checked baggage fee.

Arriving guests simply present any airline bag fee receipt at the front desk to receive the rebate, which will be issued in the form of a credit to their bill at checkout. The Baggage Buy Back rebate is available at Loews’ 18 properties in the U.S. and Canada, from June 15 through Labor Day, Sept. 1.

Loews Hotels will offer credit for up to two bags for a maximum of $30 per occupied room per stay. (Source: Loews press release).

Cars

Airline Loyalty Programs Offering Savings, Bonus Miles to Car Renters Airlines are giving their frequent flyer members a chance to earn more miles or get discounts when they rent cars.

Delta Air Lines and Advantage Rent A Car are partnering to allow SkyMiles members
to earn 200 miles per day on any class of vehicle rental through Advantage. with a maximum of 2,000 miles per rental. Additionally, SkyMiles members may earn up to 6,000 miles for rentals completed through July 13.

Northwest Airlines is partnering with Hertz to allow WorldPerks members to save 50 percent and earning double miles on weekend rentals in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico through June 30. WorldPerks members can earn 50 WorldPerks miles per day for Hertz rentals of one to four days, and 500 WorldPerks miles for Hertz rentals of five days or more.(Source: Advantage, Northwest press releases).

Spotlight On…..What You Really Dislike About Flying

It’s not the individual airlines that so frustrate air travelers, according to a new Travel Industry Association survey of air travelers. What irritates you most is the air travel process.

The TIA survey of more than 1,000 air travelers found that the more you fly, the more frustrated you get.

• Seventy-eight percent of air travelers believe the air travel system is either broken or in need of moderate correction
• Sixty-two percent believe the air travel system is deteriorating
• Thirty-three percent of air travelers are dissatisfied with the air travel system and 48 percent of frequent air travelers (those who do five trips or more per year) are dissatisfied
• Thirty-nine percent feel their time is not respected in the air travel process and that increases to 51 percent among frequent travelers.

The TIA is blaming flight delays caused by an outdated air traffic control system as a fundamental cause of the aviation industry’s problems and is holding a summit later this money to push Congress to address the problem.

Dear Valued Customers,

Update on the Registered Traveler Program:

I had the pleasure of hearing Ben DeCosta, the General Manager of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, speak at an industry meeting this week.

He advised us that their goal for wait times at security is 20 minutes. The Atlanta Airport is in the process of adding 6 additional lines at the security checkpoints and there is a firm commitment from TSA to adequately staff those facilities.

In addition, the Atlanta City Council approved adding the Registered Traveler Program here in Atlanta. It is not yet determined if the program will be co-mingled with the existing premium lanes or if it will be a separate area. There is another enhancement forthcoming, special Black Diamond Lanes.

These are for very experienced travelers who fully comply with the rules regarding liquids, etc. They estimate that by segmenting those lanes away from the in-experienced travelers and family travelers, that wait times for frequent travelers will decline significantly.

In spite of everything that you read regarding higher airfares, our company average for all clients is exactly even with last year. I expect that to hold through the summer months but increase slightly in the fall when some major service reductions take effect.

We appreciate your business, and if we can be of any special assistance, please do not hesitate to call.

Terry W. Brennan
President
Williamsburg - American Express

Airlines Up Fares Again for 16th Time This Year
Airlines continued to increase fares and search for new revenue streams to help them cope with soaring fuel prices.

United Airlines initiated what was the 16th fare hike to stick since the beginning of the year, with fare increases that ranged from $10 to $60, depending on the route. Other legacy carriers—Continental Airlines, US Airways and Northwest matched.

American Airlines upped some fares and other carriers tacked on increases as well.

Rick Seaney, CEO of FareCompare.com, an airline comparison website, said that airlines have no choice but to pass on the cost of fuel to consumers and when
passengers do begin to push back in significant numbers the airlines have no choice but slash capacity by that same amount. (Source: FareCompare.com.)

American Cuts Flights, Staff, Charges for First Checked Bag, Ups Other
Fees
American Airlines said it would charge its passengers $15 for their first checked bag as well as cut domestic flights by 11 to 12 percent as part of its efforts to cope with fuel costs.

At press time, no other carrier had followed American’s lead in charging for the first checked bag; Southwest Airlines, in fact, pointedly stated that it continues to let its customers check two bags—for free.

American, meanwhile, upped other fees, including those for oversized bags (from $100 to $15); ticket change fees from $100 to $150 for domestic tickets and from $100 to $200 to $150 to $250 for international tickets. It also upped its reservation service fee and AAdvantage Award ticket fees up by $5 each to $20. US Airways took another tactic—it said it would eliminate free snacks, although it will continue to serve free soft drinks.

And Midwest Airlines said it would begin charging $20 to check a second bag.
(Source: American, Southwest, Midwest Airlines press releases).

Major Carriers Continue to Experiment With All-Business Class Flights
The number of air travelers flying first or business class is dropping at increasingly faster rates, according to the International Air Transport Association, an industry group.
And three transatlantic carriers that offered premium seating—MAXJet, Eos and Silverjet—have ceased flying. But major carriers continue to experiment with the oncept. Singapore Airlines has introduced all-business class flights between New York and Singapore.

In October, Lufthansa will introduce all-business class service between Boston and Munich. That’s in addition to the all-business class service it operates between Chicago and Düsseldorf, Newark and Düsseldorf and Frankfurt and Düsseldorf.

Meanwhile, on June 19, OpenSkies, a British Airways-backed carrier that has three classes of service but has allocated nearly two-thirds of the plane to premium seats, will begin to fly between New York and Paris. And L’Avion, the all-business class French carrier, is now code sharing with OpenSkies to offer three flights daily between Paris and JFK (Sources: IATA, Singapore Airlines, Lufthansa, OpenSkies and L’Avion press releases.)

Network Carriers Add International Flights, Low Cost Carriers Add
Domestic
Some U.S. carriers are adding flights, many focusing on international routes.
Northwest Airlines has begun flying between Memphis and Columbia, Mo., and began
serving Taipei via Tokyo. Delta Air Lines began flying from New York to Georgetown,
Guyana and will start flight from Atlanta to Kuwait in November.

On the domestic front, JetBlue has begun daily service from Boston’s Logan International Airport to Chicago O’Hare and New Orleans. Southwest Airlines is adding flights from Denver to San Francisco and from Denver to Omaha in September.
(Source: Northwest, Delta, JetBlue and Southwest press releases).

New Virgin Atlantic Boston Clubhouse
At last, it’s here - the new Boston Clubhouse has opened its doors and is now accepting Upper Class flyers and Flying Club Gold members for some preflight rest, relaxation and pampering. Boston Clubhouse features a deli counter and bar, dedicated business area with PCs, free WiFi connection, charging facility for mobiles and blackberries, dining, lounge seating, free newspapers and magazines.

Avenue Hotel Opens in Chicago
The Avenue, a contemporary, post-modern hotel, has opened just a half block east of Chicago´s Michigan Avenue.

It has 150 one-bedroom and junior suites and 200 guest rooms. It has Special Tech rooms with iMac, dedicated T-1 Internet connection and color printer for business travelers and kid-friendly rooms with games and child-oriented décor.

It has more than 18,000 square feet of meeting space. It also has Stay for the Cure packages; ten percent of proceeds go to the Chicago Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure and an Eco Avenue program supporting environmental and conservation initiatives. (Source: Avenue press release).

Aloft Hotel to Open at Dulles Next Spring
Starwood Hotels & Resorts has broken ground on the aloft Dulles South, which will open near Dulles International Airport next spring. It will be in the heart of the technology corridor and close to corporate offices in aerospace, technology and telecommunications as well as Westfields business park.

Aloft hotel rooms have loft-like, nine-foot ceilings, over sized windows, wireless internet, one-stop connectivity solutions for multiple electronics including PDAs, cell phones, mp3 players and laptops. (Source: Starwood press release).

What You Paid to Travel in 2007

American Express has analyzed North America-based domestic and international air, hotel and car rental rates for 2007 and found that international rates saw increases across the board, while domestic fares and rates were stable.

• Average international fares increased a record 8 percent
• Since 2004, the average international airfare has increased by 21 percent
• Domestic fares stabilized-but that was after a 7 percent jump from 2005 to 2006
• The expansion of low fare carriers and passengers booking farther in advance helped domestic fares
• International hotel rates increased, domestic rates flattened
• Car rental rates increased 4.4 percent-firms re dealing with high operating costs

Companies can achieve savings in this kind of environment with a well-managed, dynamic travel program and by clearly communicating policy changes with travelers, according to Hervé Sedky, vice president and general manager for American Express Business Travel. (Source: American Express)

Airlines Up Change Fees, Institute Minimum Stay Requirement

In airlines ongoing quest for additional revenues in the face of $120-a-barrel oil, several network carriers have upped their change fees and re-instituted Saturday night stay and/or minimum stay requirements.

United Airlines increased its change fees by 50 percent to $150 and added a Saturday night stay requirement on routes in about 65 percent of its markets.

Continental upped its change fee to $150 for domestic and $250 for international flights. US Airways upped the cost of its change fees by $50, to $150 for domestic and $250 for international flights.In some instances, top customers, such as elite members of airline loyalty programs, are exempt from these fees.

In addition, United, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, Northwest Airlines and Continental have instituted minimum stay requirements on all or many of their routes.

Meanwhile, most network carriers and some low cost carriers, including Jet Blue and Air Tran have added fees for checking a second bag; fees range from$10 to $25. (Source: airline press releases).

Compensation Doubles for Involuntary Bumping
If you’re involuntarily bumped from your flight, you’ll get twice as much as you used to get. Effective this month, if you’re bumped you can receive up to $400 if you’re rescheduled to arrive within two hours of your original arrival time on domestic flights, four hours on international flights, and up to $800 if you’re not rerouted within that time frame.

The rule now covers aircraft seating 30 people or more; it previously covered flights with 60 seats and up. Reimbursement is determined by the price of the ticket, its refundability and the length of the delay. (Source: DOT press release).

DOT, FAA Announce Plans Designed to Ease Congestion
Even though airlines are reducing their domestic capacity, many by as much as five percent, aviation congestion remains a problem.

The Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration have
announced a new routing alternative that will provide an “escape route” into Canadian airspace so that aircraft can fly around summer thunderstorms and high winds. And, the FAA is opening a second westbound route for aircraft, which will provide a parallel route along a heavily traveled corridor, which should cut westbound delays out of New York.

The DOT has also proposed auctioning off a limited amount of slots-the number of flights airlines can operate in a single day-at LaGuardia. The Air Transport Association, an airline trade group, is opposing such market-based solutions, saying that the DOT doesn’t have the authority to institute auctions and congestion pricing and that they are inconsistent with international practices. (Source: DOT, ATA press releases.)

Fare Expert Finds Majority of Airline Attempts to Hike Fares Are ticking
When Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines announced their proposed merger, they said that stratospheric oil prices have fundamentally changed the economics of aviation.

Oil prices are fueling mergers and other alliance, bankruptcies (more than a half dozen this spring, with the latest being the premium transatlantic carrier Eos), capacity reductions and ongoing fare hikes.

Rick Seaney, CEO of the airfare monitoring site FareCompare.com, has been tracking airline fare increases and reports that the airlines have attempted 14 price hikes so far this year; nine have been successful.

Summer demand and soaring fuel prices are making airlines comfortable with these increases, meaning travelers need to lock in summer travel now. (Source: FareCompare.com)

Virgin Atlantic Adds Second Dulles-London Flight for Summer
Virgin Atlantic has begun a second daily flight between Washington Dulles International and London Heathrow. The flight will operate until October 26. (Source: Virgin Atlantic press release).

Border Crossings Get Tougher for U.S. Citizens

Americans who cross into Mexico and Canada by land on a regular basis are
encountering new rules requiring them to prove citizenship upon return or risk being denied entry into their homeland.

The change, effective January 31, requires production of a photo ID, such as a driver’s license, at the border—a departure from past practice in which an oral declaration would suffice, and a precursor to more stringent rules requiring a passport for transnational travel.

“For the safety of the American people, the United States cannot have an honor system at the border,” Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said. “Requiring secure and reliable documentation at our borders will drastically reduce security vulnerabilities posed by permitting entry based on oral declarations alone.”

The rules, which apply to U.S. and Canadian citizens older than 18, are a departure from long-held practice, but the government said the security implications are huge. Between October and December 2007, it said, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol officers reported 1,517 cases of fraudulent claims of U.S. citizenship. Travelers who cannot produce a valid document may face delays, the border agency said.

A list of qualifying documents can be found at CBP’s Web site. U.S. travelers became eligible to begin applying for a new trusted traveler passport card on February 1 in anticipation of the narrower border-crossing document.

Homeland Security originally was scheduled to implement passport requirements this summer, but Congress postponed the rules by a year. The State Department said it would begin taking “pre-orders” February 1 for the new wallet-sized passport card, designed as a cheaper passport alternative for border-state residents and others making frequent land border crossings.

The fees will be $45 for adults and $35 for children. Passport fees were slated
to rise on February 1. Passport Details

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