Tag Archives: United

AIRFARE ALERT: AirTran

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The great thing about airfare sales is that when one airline offers dramatic temporary discounts, one or more of its competitors offer matching deals. But there’s no guarantee that they will.

Good news this morning: AirTran has a 10-day fare sale laid on for spring travel.

The airline is advertising fares as low as $69 one-way, but those sharp-eyed folks over at Smarter Travel have found some AirTran sale fares as low as $57.

The amount of money you could save varies like mad, depending on your departure/destination cities and your day of travel, but there’s no denying you could save you a few bucks. As an experiment, I priced a trip between Atlanta and Los Angeles on AirTran and three other airlines for Sunday, March 3:

                      ONE-WAY ROUND-TRIP
American..         $195         $390
United……         $203         $437
Delta……..         $239         $358
AirTran….         $158         $316

So far, there’s no indication on whether AirTran’s rivals — or for that matter, its owner, southwest Airlines — will choose to match the sale. But that often happens.

With some of these airlines, you might actually be able to beat some of AirTran’s sale fares if your travel dates are flexible by a day or two. But with work or school resuming following the Christmas/New Year’s holiday, most folks are more likely to be locked in to specific dates.

Of course, such sales don’t take into account all the various add-on fees that the airlines charge nowadays, but they do include taxes and surcharges, the ones the airlines used to conveniently leave out of their announcements to make you think that their fares were cheaper than they actually were.

So the prices you’re quoted now are a lot closer to reality than they used to be.

Another good thing about the AirTran sale is that the airlines gives you ten days to pull the trigger, rather than creating a one-day frenzy. Just because you can wait that long, however, doesn’t mean you should.

Airlines often limit the number of seats they offer at sale prices. Further, if they think their fare discount is drawing too hot response from consumers, they can cut it off early, at their discretion.

So if one or more of these fares works for you, don’t dawdle.

AIRFARE ALERT: Southwest jumps in big

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The day after JetBlue discounts 20 US and Caribbean routes for summer, Southwest fires back bigtime — 1,200 routes with one-way fares as low as $60. But it’s only a two-day sale, so don’t dawdle.

In the spring, a traveler’s fancy turns to summer airfare sales — and it’s not just the weather that’s heating up.

Yesterday, the folks at Smarter Travel alerted us to a modest summer sale by JetBlue on 20 of its routes. Five of its competitors, including Southwest, matched JetBlue’s move. I thought that was the end of it for now.

Not even close. The ST crew is back with word of a huge summer sale.

A day after JetBlue dipped its toe in the summer fare sale waters,Southwest is going all-in: 1,200 of its routes discounted for summer travel, with some fares down to $60 one-way.

You know Southwest’s rivals weren’t going to let that go unchallenged. Seven of them are matching, including JetBlue. The other six offering up their own reduced summer fares are American, AirTran, US Airways, Delta, United, and Frontier.

This sale basically covers the first half of summer, for travel starting May 8 and concluding on the Fourth of July. That’s the good news.

The bad news: As usual, the better the sale, the tighter and more numerous the fare restrictions. Also, the shorter it lasts: You only have until Thursday, April 26, to pull the trigger.

Further, Southwest’s competitors are not exactly matching date for date and route for route. Check carefully.

And as usual, the super-cheap one-way fares will be based on a round-trip ticket purchase and all flights will be scheduled for mid-week only.

Still, when an airline serves up discounts on 1,200 routes, one of them’s bound to have your luggage tag on it. But with this sale lasting only two days, you can’t afford to dither and dawdle about.

He who hesitates pays full fare.

AIRFARE ALERT: JetBlue summer sale

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JetBlue tosses out a small summer fare sale, and five competitors follow suit. Who wins? Maybe you.

The folks at Smarter Travel have spotted a summer airfare sale by JetBlue on 20 of its routes to U.S. and Caribbean destinations.

Twenty discounted routes is hardly a blockbuster offering, but if it’s taking you where you want to go this summer, one may be enough. Especially when those fares could be as low as $47 each way.

The really good news about this sale is that, as they often do, several of JetBlue’s rivals are matching it — Southwest on the shorter routes and American, United, US Airways and AirTran on the longer ones.

You have until midnight Monday, April 30, to pull the trigger on any of these deals. No weekend travel on any of these fares, and they have to be purchased 21 days in advance instead of the 14-day advance purchase typical of many sales.

More the rest of the details and restrictions, go to the Smarter Travel page here.

And beware of all those nasty little add-on fees the airlines have lurking in their fare structures these days. What looks like a great deal could turn out to be something quite different once all the airlines tack on all their extra charges.

Still, with fuel costs already kicking the airline industry’s butt, and political tensions with Iran having the potential to raise those prices even further, non-sale summer airfares could cause heart palpitations this summer.

So any sale offering you a chance at lower rates is something worth investigating.

Good luck, and happy travels!

AIRLINES: US Air moves on American

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US Airways cuts deals with the unions representing the struggling American Airlines, the first step in what is now an open takeover bid.

Remember when I told you that American Airlines as we know it today might not be around a year from now? After today, the end could come a lot sooner than that.

US Airways has announced that it has reached agreements with the three labor unions representing American’s employees. Those unions have since come out publicly in favor of a USAir–American merger.

It may be painted as a merger, but what we’re talking about amounts to a hostile takeover, and there may not be much that American can do about it.

American’s parent corporation, AMR, wants to see American remain a stand-alone airline. Frankly, it may no longer be up to them.

American Airlines has been bleeding money more or less since 9/11 and the losses just haven’t stopped — roughly $1.5 billion in the first three months of this year already.

The airline has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, claiming it’s paying out too much in salaries, benefits and pensions to its employees. If we’re to take American at its word, the airline couldn’t survive wouldn’t a massive give-back from the unions.

It really wants to void its contracts with those three unions — the Allied Pilots Association, the Association of Professional Flight Attendants and the Transport Workers Union, which represents American’s mechanics. It needs the blessing of the bankruptcy judge to do that.

What you don’t hear is that those unions already gave back $4 billion in concessions to American nine years ago. The deal with USAir is a clear sign that the unions are done with concessions.

It also means they think they can get a better deal from USAir once the takeover is complete.

They’ve gone as far as to put their support for a merger on the record:

“This significant step represents our shared recognition that a merger between American Airlines and US Airways is the best strategy and fastest option to complete the restructuring of American Airlines, enabling it to exit the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process and restore American Airlines to a preeminent position in the airline industry.”

This is a giant middle finger in the face of AMR.

You see, part of the bankruptcy process included creating a nine-member creditors committee of American’s major bond holders, three of whom just happen to be…

…wait for it…

…the three unions who just signed off on merging with USAir.

When your own employees would rather roll the dice with a predatory rival than work with you to save the company, you’re probably done.

Meanwhile, USAir is now quietly courting the other six committee members. They only need to sway two of them to have a controlling voice on the committee.

Clearly, USAir is painting American into a financial corner — and from the looks of things, they’ve got a pretty large brush.

So what would all this mean for the traveling consumer?

  • Another shrinkage of US air routes? Almost certainly.
  • The demise of American’s older jets, and their popular two-seat sides? Absolutely.
  • More direct domestic flights for USAir passengers? Probably.
  • New international destinations for USAir customers? Clearly.
  • Less domestic airline competition? No question.
  • Higher airfares across the entire domestic airline industry? Definitely.

Overall, does all this represent a win or a loss for travelers? Wait a year or two after the deal is done, then you tell me. The only thing that looks certain right now is that the days of American Airlines as an independent carrier are numbered.

And the number’s not all that large.

ALSO CHECK OUT:
AIRLINES: The end of American?

Edited by P.A.Rice

AIRLINES: Bailing out

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United Air Lines flight on final approach, San Diego

United Air Lines flight on final approach, San Diego | ©IBIT G. Gross

Around the United States, airlines are quietly pulling out of airports where they’re not turning a profit. Expect to see more of this.

One day this coming June, an Airbus A319 belonging to United Air Lines will push back from its gate at Oakland International Airport and taxi down to the end of the airport’s sole runway.

With San Francisco Bay and the San Francisco city skyline off its left wingtip, it will make the long, rumbling takeoff roll to lift off from that runway. It will easily clear the eastern span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and make a long, graceful, climbing right turn before it disappears beyond the Berkeley hills.

Never to return.

After 75 years, United is pulling out of Oakland, saying its operations there just aren’t profitable enough.

Over the decades, United became one of those airlines you just took for granted in Oakland. Smaller, newer outfits came and went, but United was a mainstay, one of the big boys, as rock-solid as those Berkeley hills. You knew those guys weren’t going anywhere.

Well, now they’re going. And United is hardly alone in pulling back from airports around the country.

Frontier Airlines already has announced plans to stop flying to and from Boise, ID, Tucson, AZ and Aspen, CO. It terminated its Milwaukee flights last year. American Airlines is ending its operations out of Burbank, CA, a Los Angeles suburb.

Some of this is an outgrowth of the wave of airline mergers taking place over the last several years. Duplicated routes get pared down, chopped. In other cases, airlines retreat from markets where strong competitors like Southwest and JetBlue have the edge.

And sometimes, airlines just find it easier and cheaper to operate out of smaller airports than larger ones, such as when Southwest pulled out of San Francisco a decade ago and made Oakland its Bay Area hub. (Southwest eventually returned to SFO, but only with a relative handful of flights compared to OAK.)

None of that applied to United’s withdrawal from Oakland. The airline just wasn’t making enough money there, so…see ya!

Okay, airlines have as much right to make a profit as any other business. I get that. Still, it’s jarring when you show up at your local airport and one of the major airlines you’ve grown accustomed to seeing there — and flying from there — is gone.

It doesn’t matter why. All you know is, the ticket counter is empty and dark, the familiar signs and logos have been taken down; only their outline remains.

It’s a bit like coming home and finding a “For Sale” sign on the lawn in front of your next-door neighbor’s suddenly vacated house. The place just doesn’t feel the same anymore.

It also creates practical problems for travelers, who now may have to travel a lot farther to catch their flights.

When British Airways pulled out of San Diego — something they’ve done twice since 1988 — it meant the only way foor San Diegans to get a flight to London was by descending into the hell known as LAX.

Folks up in Burbank and the rest of the San Fernando Valley who intend to fly on American will now have to do the same.

The airlines really don’t care about any of that. The easiest — and perhaps more importanty to the airlines, cheapest — way for them to deal with a low-performing destination is to simply erase it from the route map. No need to work harder or seek creative ways to boost sales from that city.

Just bail out.

Indeed, when you watch U.S.-based airlines for a while, you realize that cutting seems to be what they do best.

Cutting routes. Cutting employees. Cutting back on amenities and customer service. Taking planes out of service to cut back on the number of available seats — and thus have a pretext for raising airfares.

All of which makes it likely that, in an economy still struggling to come wings-level, Oakland will not be the last city this year to watch a familiar airline vanish over the horizon.

DID YOU KNOW?
United Air Lines began flying from Oakland in 1937, the same year that Amelia Earhart took off on her two attempts to fly around the world — also from Oakland.

the IBIT TRAVEL DIGEST 4.4.2012

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The good, the bad and the bizarre from the world’s best travel media. ​

Bicycle parking lot, Amsterdam | ©IBIT G. Gross

TOURISTS: A BILLION SERVED?
Some of you out there (and you KNOW who you are) are old enough to remember when McDonald’s fast-food joints started running those “1 million served” slogans on the marquees they mounted in front of their trademark golden arches. The count has long since run into the billions, of course.

Well, it looks as if the world’s tourism industry may be catching up.

If the UN World Tourism Organization is right, some time this year, someone will step off a plane or a train or a cruise ship to become something the world has never seen before:

The One Billionth Tourist. That’s one billion in 2012 alone.

There’s a reason why tourism is one of the largest industries on Earth. Nothing, it seems, stops the world from traveling. Not recession, wars, or flight crews losing their minds.

If you’re interested in the breakdown by region, the Adventure Travel Trade Association has it for you here.

And now, here’s this week’s Digest:

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AIR
from Travel Daily News
The world’s largest airline alliance broadens its reach in the East. Star Alliance agrees to accept Taiwan’s Eva Air as a new member by mid-2013. China’s Shenzen Airlines joins Star this year. That will give Star eight airlines in the Asia-Pacific market.

from Travel Weekly
Pinnacle Airlines files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Never heard of them? There’s a good chance you’ve flown with them without knowing it. That regional shuttle or “puddle-jumper” flight you took with Delta, United or US Airways? In reality, it was these guys.
​
from Travel Weekly
The bad news: Southwest Airlines quietly raises its airfares. The worse news: Five of its rivals match Southwest increase for increase. You didn’t have to do that, guys. No, really, you didn’t.

LAND
from Smarter Travel
Truth or Consequences is one thing but — Elephant Butte, NM? Rabbit Hash? Leg O’Mutton? Crapstone? Some of wackiest town names you can find — including one Colorado town whose name is No Name. SLIDESHOW

from The Economist (United Kingdom)
Airlines aren’t the only ones looking to bypass online travel agencies like Expedia and Travelocity. A half-dozen hotel chains have joined forces to do the same thing.

from Smarter Travel
Shoes that fold up. Shirts that don’t smell. Jackets that double as pillows or even carry-ons. Clothing for the road warriors among you.

from Ethical Traveler
The world’s most ethical travel destinations among the world’s developing nations.

SEA
from the New York Times For every style of music, it seems, you can find a cruise for it, and rock-themed cruises are among the most popular.

from USA Today Another week, another cruise ship runs into mechanical troubles on the high seas. This time, it’s the Azamara Quest. Another engine room fire. Everyone’s safe.

from Der Spiegel (Germany)
Was the Costa Concordia disaster a tragedy waiting to happen? Der Spiegel talks to maritime experts who say yes, and say why.

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AFRICA
from Vanguard News (Nigeria) via allAfrica.com
A diplomatic showdown may be coming between the Nigerian government and British airlines over complaints that Nigerian passengers are being overcharged compared with passengers from other West African countries. British Airways and Virgin Atlantic are the carriers most often cited by officials inthe capital, Abuja.

from The Star (Kenya) via allAfrica.com
Government urged to combat child sex tourism in Kenya. The laws forbidding it are not being enforced.

from The Star (Kenya) via allAfrica.com
Tourism investors in northern Kenya appeal to the media to start reporting more of the region’s positive aspects, including its track record as a film location.

from The New Vision (Uganda) via allAfrica.com
Should Uganda use the controversial Kony 2012 video to lure tourists to the country? These guys say yes. EDITORIAL

from Daily Monitor (Uganda)
Unlike many African countries, Uganda doesn’t have a national airline — and odd as it might sound, the country might have a better chance of boosting its tourism without one. EDITORIAL

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AMERICAS/CARIBBEAN
from theNew York Times
In New Orleans, they’re re-imagining the hotel bar. It’s not just for tourists anymore. Updated drinks, better food and good music are earning once-stodgy hotel bars a local following.

from the Los Angeles Times
Downtown (Las) Vegas, baby. The part of town that first made southern Nevada a major destination is renewing itself.
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from the Los Angeles Times
Oakland is moving up in class as a destination. Yes, that Oakland.

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ASIA/PACIFIC
​from Japan Australia
Like the idea of traveling Japan by train and want to save money, but you’re an expat, not a tourist? The Japan Rail Kanto Area Pass may be just your ticket.

from The Telegraph (London UK)
I’ve said it before: China likes to do big things. The world’s tallest bridge connecting two mountain tunnels? I’d say that qualifies. It’s 355 meters high. That’s 1,165 feet. You could fly a jumbo jet under that.

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EUROPE
from Rick Steves via SFGate.com
Europe’s not just about cathedrals and vineyards. If you’re into adventure travel, the Old World is ready to satisfy your need for an adrenaline rush.

from the New York Times
History may be the biggest draw in Cologne, the oldest city in Germany, but fresh shops, restaurants and hotels have Cologne thriving in the present.

from VisitBritain Shop
Better than a hall pass, especially in London — a Pub Pass. Pretty cheap for what you get, and good for a year.

from Hotel Chatter
How’s this for a memorable summer: Commute to the 2012 London Olympics…from Paris.

Edited by P.A.Rice

A Dreamliner of Africa

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Boeing 787 Dreamliner of Ethiopian Airlines

Image courtesy of Boeing

One of Africa’s premier airlines is the first on the Mother Continent to acquire Boeing’s new 787 Dreamliner. The implications for African travel are enormous.

While US-based airlines wait to get their hands on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, the world’s newest jumbo jet is already changing the game in Africa.

Ethiopian Airlines is the first African carrier to put Boeing’s new state-of-the-art airplane into regular service on the Mother Continent. The first arrived last December and Ethiopian has nine more on order.

This comes as Ethiopian becomes the 26th member of the Star Alliance, the world’s largest airline alliance.

Both of these developments carry huge implications for American travelers with an interest in Africa.

Let’s start with Boeing’s shiny new toy. The Dreamliner is likely to have a much greater impact on African tourism than the Airbus A380 super-jumbo jet, at least in the near term.

Simply put, the 787 is more Africa-ready than the A380. Here’s why.

With the A380, Airbus took the position that “bigger is better,” creating the world’s first fully double-decked airliner, capable of flying as many as 800 travelers at a time.

Big plane equals more seats and (in theory, at least) cheaper seats.

Boeing chose range and fuel economy over size, limiting the Dreamliner to fewer than 300 passengers and marrying its two highly fuel-efficient engines to an aircraft made mostly of lightweight composites instead of metal.

That gives the Dreamliner a maximum range of nearly 9,500 miles, which puts virtually all of Africa within easy reach from virtually all of North America.

As an example, the 6,200 miles between Los Angeles and Dakar, Senegal would be nothing for this airplane.

This means that airlines like Ethiopian, Nigeria’s Arik Air and Kenya Airways, both of which have 787s on order, will be able to reach European and American destinations in one hop, without pilots nervously watching their fuel gauges.

Until more Africans start traveling by air, the 787′s extended range serves the Mother Continent better than the A380′s size. And with most of Africa’s international airports lacking the facilities or the runways to comfortably handle the massive A380, the Dreamliner literally is a better fit.

Where Africa-bound Americans are concerned, Ethiopian’s presence in the Star Alliance is just as important, especially if you happen to be a member of United Air Lines’ or US Airways’ frequent-flyer mileage program.

Star Alliance is now the only airline alliance in the world with three African airlines as members — Ethiopian, South African Airways and Egyptair. You now can put your United or USAir miles toward an Africa flight on any one of them.

Kenya Airways is a member of the SkyTeam alliance, which means you can use your Delta frequent-flyer miles with them.

Meanwhile, Arik Air was accepted late last year as a member by the International Air Transport Association, which sets safety standards and represents most of the world’s airlines. That clears the way for Arik to join an alliance.

oneworld is now the only one of the Big Three alliances without an African partner. Arik Air membership in oneworld would enable travelers holding miles on American Airlines or British Airways to snag code-share flights to West Africa via Arik.

Don’t be surprised, then, if oneworld puts the moves on Arik Air to partner with them.

What’s more, international airlines can and do form code-sharing partnerships outside of the alliances. South African Airways, for instance, has already hooked up with JetBlue.

Expect to see more connections like this, and soon.

Without the 787′s ultra-long reach, we wouldn’t even be having this conversation. With this new long-range airliner coming into African hands, a whole world of new opportunity now opens up for them — and for the world’s travelers who are increasingly turning their eyes to Africa.

ALSO CHECK OUT:
Know your alliance, Part 1 Part 2
New wings over Africa, Part 1 Part 2
Dreamliner sighting
Delta does Africa

IBIT TRAVEL Digest 2.26.12

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A roundup of the good, the bad and the bizarre from the world’s best travel media ​

Juffureh, Gambia

Juffureh, Gambia | ©IBIT G. Gross

RETURN OF THE TRAVEL AGENT?
The Internet has given us all the ability to search out the lowest price on all things related to travel, so we really have no need for travel agents anymore, right?

Not necessarily.

An admittedly non-scientific side-by-side test by the New York Times matched the Web and a travel agent to see which produced the best deals — and the live-human travel agent came out on top.

Seasoned travelers know there’s nothing like having a knowledgeable travel agent in your corner when reservations fall through or unforeseen events blow up your travel plans. Now, it looks now as if the old-school travel agent might be able to hold their own when it comes to scoring travel bargains, as well.

FLYING LOW OVER ASIAN WATERS
The only thing I love more than traveling by sea is traveling cheaply by sea, which means I’m naturally drawn to ocean-going ferries, and Tripologist.com has come up with a trip that satisfies on both counts.

As close as Japan and South Korea are to one another, it would only make sense to visit both while you’re traveling in that part of the world. But a round-trip ticket for the two-hour flight between Tokyo and Seoul could cost you $500 and up, which is insane.

For almost $200 less, you could take a three-hour cruise on a high-speed hydrofoil between the two countries, and pass easily and cheaply from the ports to the anywhere in either country via their high-speed rail networks.

Two high-speed train rides, connected by a hydrofoil? That’s me, all right.

Tripologist breaks down the particulars here.

THE (AMAZING) RACE IS ON…AGAIN!
That’s right. CBS is coming back at you with its 20th segment of the world travel contest show, The Amazing Race. The format is the same, 11 teams of two competitors each. The prize is the same, $1 million.

Being the travel addict I am, I’d probably watch this, anyway, despite all the artificial drama and instigated conflict the show’s producers try so hard to generate. But this time around, I have extra incentives.

The first is that, once again, there are contestants from San Diego on the show. Or rather, there were. The two Asian golfing sisters were eliminated the first night. Poor girls, they barely got their passports open and they’re already gone.

The other is that I have reason to believe that the race is returning to Africa. I’d watch for that reason alone. Some may watch this show for the conniving and the cattiness, but for this traveler, it’s all about the destinations.

And now, here’s this week’s Digest:

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AIR
from Smarter Travel
The new rules requiring airlines to fully disclose the cost of a flight have prompted online travel agencies to limit their flexible options — in some cases, drastically. But there are still ways to use flexible search to your advantage.

from TIME
First, they were feeling up old ladies, frisking little girls and looting people’s luggage. Are TSA screeners now using their screening machines to ogle young women’s bodies? One woman says yes, and she’s suing.

from USA Today
The merger with United has caused Continental Airlines to disappear in all but name. Now, even that is going away. ​

from msnbc
Have one of those unbearably long flights coming up in Coach? Would rather not have a seatmate, maybe even prefer having a whole row all to yourself? That can be arranged.

LAND
from Framework Cycle & Fitness
Ready to really challenge your bike and yourself? Head north to Cape Breton in Nova Scotia, Canada and ride the Cabot Trail. This ride is no joke.

from The​ Times, London UK
Better driving by motorists would make things a lot safer for cyclists. What makes this statement remarkable is that, in London, at least, it’s the motorists who are saying it.

from the New York Times
The NYT’s Michelle Higgins tells us how to get elite status from the better hotel chains. The way the hotels are adding on surcharges these days, you almost owe it to yourself to do it.

​from Away.com
TV chef Anthony Bourdain shares his five top travel tips. This could cost him his Bad Boy membership card.

SEA
from the San Francisco Chronicle
The Costa Concordia disaster is giving folks in Venice second thoughts about how close they want these massive mega-ships passing by their fragile icon of Italian history.

from USA Today
Talks are underway that could bring a cruise to the capital city of Haiti for the first time in a quarter-century.

from Cruise Critic
Twenty-two passengers from the cruise ship Carnival Splendor robbed at gunpoint in Puerto Vallarta. This probably will trigger a massive response from the authorities to crime in the Mexican port, but it might be too late to save the Mexican Riviera.

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AFRICA
from CP-Africa
Is this the footprint of God?

from The Daily Observer (Gambia) via allAfrica.com
New Fajara Craft Market opens in Kotu, part of an ongoing redevelopment of the Fajara waterfront.

from the Business Daily (Kenya) via allAfrica.com
Tourism figures are up in Kenya despite worries over tourist kidnappings and conflict with Somalia’s al Shabaab religious extremist militia.

from The Citizen (Tanzania) via allAfrica.com
Mafia Island. In more ways than one, it’s not what you think. On land, lush, green, and largely unspoiled tropical landscape. Offshore, world-class diving and snorkeling.

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AMERICAS/CARIBBEAN
from State.gov
The State Department breaks down its travel warnings on Mexico, going state by state.

from the New York Times
This piece is all about how to spend a weekend in New Orleans. But if you approach this city in the right spirit, a weekend in “the NOLA” can last all year.

from USA Today
A new exhibit at a Phoenix museum shows there’s more to the Apache legacy than the legend of Geronimo.

from the San Francisco Chronicle
Hawaii’s lava flows are equally fascinating to scientists and tourists, but if you plan on taking in this breathtaking sight, a little caution is in order. Actually, make that a lot of caution.
​
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ASIA/PACIFIC
from Yomiuri Shimbun (Japan)
From giant paper floats to a private train heated in winter by a pot-bellied stove, Aomori prefecture puts Japanese culture on display.

​from the Japan Times
Tokyo’s famed Tsukiji fish market, which feeds this nation’s insatiable appetite for seafood, is a whirlwind of sights, sounds, aromas and characters. It’s also due to close in three years. So if you want to see a historic piece of daily Tokyo life, go soon.

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EUROPE
from the Guardian (London UK)
An interactive map showing the best bargain-priced restaurants around Britain, Scotland and Northern Ireland. You’ll want to keep this one in your “mobile.”

from the Guardian (London UK)
If you’re one of those people who think camping would be great if it weren’t out in the wilderness, Berlin has the hotel you’ve been waiting for. it’s called the Hüttenpalast. AUDIO SLIDESHOW

from the the Guardian (London UK)
Speaking of eateries, here’s one Parisian’s list of the ten best Paris bistros. I wouldn’t call any of these places a bargain, but they’re probably worth every euro.​

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MIDDLE EAST
from France 24
Iraqi town uses history and heritage to turn from terrorism to tourism.

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AIRLINES: American heading for bankruptcy?

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American Airlines Boeing 757 "on final" in San Diego

American Airlines Boeing 757 "on final" in San Diego | © Greg Gross

While national flag carriers in other countries thrive even in these tough times, the twin strains of recession and sky-high fuel prices have some US-based airlines pulling back — and experienced pilots bailing out.

As a traveler subjected to cramped Coach seats, chaotic boarding practices, indifferent levels of cabin cleanliness and service, overbooking and arbitrary treatment by gate agents, it may be a little hard these days to feel much sympathy for airlines.

But when an icon of the US airline industry finds itself possibly staring down the barrel of financial insolvency, you can’t help but take notice with some chagrin.

Consider then this little tidbit, courtesy of Terry Maxon of the Dallas Morning News.

American Airlines is seeing a steady stream of its most experienced pilots pulling the retirement pin and flying off into their golden years:

“One senior Boeing 777 pilot told me this week that he expects this month’s retirements to be twice last month’s 111 departures. Everybody he’s flown with in recent days seems to be retiring, he said. A worker at his layover hotel said there were retirement parties every night for pilots who were working their last international trip.”

But that’s not as eye-catching as the reasons why:

“If so, blame the continuing decline in the stock market and perhaps the concerns that American and parent AMR might eventually have to file for bankruptcy.”

Say WHAT?

You can read the entire Dallas Morning News story here.

Now bear in mind that we’re talking about an airline with some 12,000 pilots in its employ, but 100-plus pilots heading out the door every month has got to be a cause for concern.

That’s a lot of experience, both individual and collective, for any company to lose.

When it’s being lost by an outfit that makes its living keeping its customers safe and happy in a pressurized aluminum tube at 39,000 feet, you tend to pay added attention.

Further, American is pulling back on its international routes, even as other airlines, especially the national airlines of other countries, are getting stronger.

Maxon mentions that the pilots’ generous retirement benefits are heavily weighted in the stock market. They also are set up in such a way that they actually encourage experienced pilots to retire when Wall Street is down, as it has been for awhile now.

What’s more, their fixed company pensions would take a hit if AMR has to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

What’s scary is that enough American pilots apparently feels there’s sufficient chance of that happening for them to take their pensions and run.

The strains on American are the same as they are o any other airline these days. The recession has some people spending less discretionary money on travel. Higher fuel prices hit the airlines as hard as they hit you and me.

Still, none of this automatically means that the wings are falling off at American.

Bear in mind that American wouldn’t be the first US airline in recent years to go running for financial cover. United, Delta, Frontier, Northwest, Hawaiian and US Airways have all filed for Chapter 11 over the last decade or so, and all have survived.

Still, these have to be nervous days at American/AMR headquarters in Dallas. And what all this entails for the flying public, we’ll probably be the last to know.

So if you’ve got a lot of frequent-flier miles banked with American Airlines, you might want to think about using them sooner rather than later.

Africa can’t wait

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If there’s ever to be a true bridge of travel and tourism between America and Africa, it may be up to Africans to take the lead in building it.

Among many Americans, Africa has the image of being some sort of nether region — unknown, unsafe, unattractive and unappealing.

Nothing, nothing, nothing and nothing could be further from the truth.

Incredibly beautiful land and seascapes. Flora and fauna found nowhere else on Earth. Growing and vibrant urban scenes. Historical and cultural heritage. Almost every type of niche travel that exists. Wide-open business and investment opportunities. The Mother Continent has got a lot going for it.

And statistics would suggest that a growing number of Americans are starting to “get” all of that.

In 2008, while the number of Americans flying abroad dropped 1.4 percent overall, U.S. air traffic to Africa rose nearly 56 percent. In 2009, when the overall traffic dropped 2 percent, Africa-bound air traffic rose nearly 25 percent. In the first six months of 2010, the most recent numbers I’ve found so far, the number of Americans flying to Africa was up about 17 percent.

Add it all up and it means the flow of U.S. air travelers to the Mother Continent has risen nearly 40 percent in the last two and a half years. — and that was while we were in the middle of a recession.

There’s something else at work here, too.

A MARKET IN WAITING
A fair number of people in a good number of sub-Saharan African countries would love to see their their African-American brethren engaging with their ancestral homelands. That’s a market just waiting to be tapped.

What’s more, a lot of African peoples would love to see Americans in general more involved commercially across the continent, if only to provide a kind of counterweight to the financial clout of China.

A survey of African views of China by Aleksandra Gadzala and Marek Hanusch found that Africans in general may be equally skeptical of both of China and the West, but that:

“Africans who attach particular value to human rights and democracy are overall largely critical of the burgeoning Chinese presence across the continent.”

From shoddy products to indifference toward the health and safety of African workers, the views of many on the Mother Continent toward the Middle Kingdom are changing. A great many Africans view the Chinese as standoffish and condescending, with neither interest in nor respect for African cultures or peoples.


You can read the entire survey report in the form of a PDF file on the Afrobarometer site here. Click on the link marked WP117.

I’ve had it put to me pointblank — and in these words — by African diplomats, journalists and ordinary citizens:

“We see the Europeans here. We see the Chinese here. Where are the Americans?”

It’s a good question. You’d think that America’s travel industry, especially its hard-hit airlines, would be all over this.

If they are, they’ve done an excellent job of hiding their interest.

So far, Delta and United air lines are the only U.S.-based carriers providing direct flights from the continental United States to Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa — and even then, only to a relative handful of cities.

Let’s be real here. Obstacles abound.

BIG HURDLES
U.S.-based air carriers are justly dubious about airport infrastructure and security in many African capitals. Our own FAA has little confidence in their civil aviation counterparts in most African countries.

Once you get to Africa, the challenges don’t stop.

Whether from other continents or from within Africa herself, the international traveler needs safe and efficient air, rail and road links, and streamlined customs and immigration procedures to move smoothly and easily between countries. Right now, for the most part, they don’t exist.

When travelers find it easier, safer and at times even faster to travel to neighboring African countries by connecting through London or Paris, that’s a problem.

There are people taking on these challenges from both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. But if the nations of Africa wait for the United States to take the lead in creating this market, they will be waiting in vain.

To be sure, the major players of the U.S. travel industry probably would love to see a thriving U.S.-Africa travel market, but they have little desire to do the heavy lifting needed to get this ball rolling.

AFRICAN INITIATIVE
If this great, lucrative bridge is ever to be built, its construction will have to start from the African side of the Atlantic.

But you know what? Africa can do this.

It’s going to take time, hard work, money. It will take peace and political stability within nations. But it also will take something else — an unprecedented level of trust and cooperation among African governments.

Most countries in the world would love to have their own national flag airline representing themaround the globe; reality says “no.” Running a trans-continental airline is forbiddingly expensive, even for countries that can actually afford it.

A regional approach to this could make a world of difference.

Take (or create) perhaps four African airlines — one each serving North, East, West and Southern Africa — and make them capable of true trans-continental operation, with airliners capable of connecting virtually any two major points on the globe in a single direct flight.

The nations of each region would contribute to flight crews, maintenance crews, airport operations. All would share the costs and the profits.

Not having to fly to Europe and connect to a second long flight to reach African destinations would make Africa travel a lot more attractive to a good many Americans, among others.

REGIONAL THINKING, GLOBAL REACH
Sound far-fetched? Not from the technical side. Airliners capable of flying non-stop between African and U.S. destinations already exist — and a handful of them are already in Africa.

Boeing has extended-range versions of its popular 767 and 777 jets. The “ER” stands for extended range. The 767 can fly nearly 7,000 miles, the 777 almost 8,000 miles non-stop, with 200 to nearly 400 passengers.

These African airlines already fly one or more of these aircraft:

  • Arik Air (Nigeria)
  • Ethiopian Airlines
  • Kenya Airways
  • TAAG (Angola)

Just this year, Ethiopian became the first African airline to take delivery on a new model, the 777-200LR. The “LR” stands for “Longer Range” and can fly nearly 9,000 miles non-stop.

Airbus also is in this mix with its own long-range airliners, like the A340 series. These African airlines already fly them:

  • Arik Air
  • Air Mauritius
  • Air Nambia
  • Egyptair
  • South African Airways

Once on African ground, smaller regional airlines, brought up to speed with the help of our FAA through efforts such as its Safe Skies for Africa program, could distribute foreign visitors through each African region. And a streamlined visa process similar to that of the European Union could enable them to move from country to country on a single tourist visa.

Those transcontinental African carriers, meanwhile, could use the long reach of their extended-range jumbo jets to tie all of Africa together.

Is all of this radical, even wishful thinking? Perhaps. But as I like to say, small dreams are a waste of sleep.

When your continent holds 12 percent of the world’s population but accounts for less than 1 percent of its air traffic, it’s time to start thinking — and doing things — differently.

Especially when 20 percent of all the tourism-related jobs in Africa are generated by travelers arriving by air.

Africa can overcome this challenge. But she cannot wait for outsiders to lead the way.