Archive for the 'Business Travel' Category
Las Vegas’ CityCenter on track for December opening
November 11, 2009 10:07am
CityCenter, the new playground on the Vegas Strip, is racing the clock to finish in time for the rolling opening next month of three of its hotels and its glam retail space. This behemoth marks a turning point in Vegas projects. More than the end of the “Disney for adults” era, it perhaps signals the beginning of the Adult Urban Resort concept.
Numerous big-time architects and designers — Daniel Libeskind, Adam Tihany, Pelli Clarke Pelli, David Rockwell and on and on — plus top restaurants (Jean-Georges Steakhouse, Twist by Pierre Gagnaire, Shawn McClain’s Sage Restaurant) lend gravitas — and I mean that in the nicest way — to the project.
It’s hard to fathom the scope of CityCenter without delving into its numbers, so here are some I gleaned last week from a hard-hat tour. As you’re trying to picture how big this project is, consider that the average U.S. home is said to be 2,350 square feet or that the playing field of Dodger Stadium is said to be 100,000 square feet.
Google gives free Wi-Fi to holiday travelers at dozens of U.S. airports
November 10, 2009 12:10am
Got Wi-Fi? You do now. In the spirit of giving, Google announced today, Nov. 10, that it is offering free Wi-Fi at more than 40 airports across the country during the holiday season.
Southern Californians will be pleased to hear that Bob Hope Airport (BUR) in Burbank and San Diego International Airport (SAN) are on the list of those with free terminal-wide Wi-Fi. Among other airports in the promotion are those serving San Jose, Seattle, Boston, Baltimore, Houston, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando, St. Louis and Charlotte, N.C.
For travelers who think that all airports should offer free Wi-Fi, there’s more good news: Bob Hope Airport plans to continue offering free Wi-Fi indefinitely, according to Google.
This ought to take the sting out of crowded airports and potentially delayed flights during the busy holiday season.
When: Nov. 10 through Jan. 15
Tip: Fly on Virgin America over the holidays to get free Wi-Fi in the sky as well. Google partnered with the airline voted Best Domestic Airline in Condé Nast Traveler’s 2008 and 2009 Readers’ Choice Awards, and announced in October that it would be offering free inflight Wi-Fi during the same holiday period.
Pay it forward: Those who do take advantage of the free Internet will have the ability to make a charitable donation to one of three organizations. Google will match the donations made across all the networks, up to $250,000, and the airport network that generates the highest amount per passenger by Jan. 1, 2010 will receive $15,000 to donate to the local charity of its choice.
More info: FreeHolidayWiFi.com
— Jen Leo, Los Angeles Times Travel & Deal blogger
Photo: A Southwest Airlines jet takes off above Bob Hope Airport in Burbank in April 2008. Credit: Richard Derk / Los Angeles Times
Phoenix airport luggage thefts: 10 tips to protect your bag and belongings
November 7, 2009 4:24pm
Worried about your bag getting stolen in baggage claim? You’ve got plenty of company, especially since the news broke this week about police arresting a suburban Phoenix couple on suspicion of stealing nearly 1,000 bags from carousels at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX).
Nearly 60% of 1,830 people who responded to an online poll, conducted after the arrests, said they always or often were concerned about the security of their luggage in the baggage-claim area, TripAdvisor reported Friday. Only 11% said they were never concerned.
Although airlines say that they recover nearly all the bags that owners report missing, and that only a tiny percentage are truly lost — because they were misplaced, misrouted, stolen, abandoned or whatever — that’s small comfort to victims, who may have numbered in the hundreds in Phoenix alone.
Here are 10 steps you can take to protect your possessions, gleaned from my research and chats with security experts:
Two California luxury hotels added to AAA’s 2010 Five Diamond Award list
November 6, 2009 2:45pm
Open less than a year, the Resort at Pelican Hill in Orange County like all hotels, has struggled against the tides of a beleaguered economy. But that doesn’t mean it can’t take a great compliment. The luxury coastal property is one of two California resorts that have danced into the exclusive ranks of AAA’s just-released Five Diamond Award list for 2010. [Corrected at 5:45 p.m. Nov. 6: An earlier version of this post said the Resort at Pelican Hill is south of Laguna Beach. It is north of Laguna Beach.]
California, with 20 five-diamond hotels, also added the opulent Grand del Mar in San Diego to its coffers.
The new Golden State additions join the company of some real longtimers, like the Ritz-Carlton, Laguna Niguel, which has populated the list for 24 consecutive years, and the Peninsula Beverly Hills, with 17 consecutive years under its belt.
Expedia drops fees for booking over the phone
November 5, 2009 11:04am
It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s a call to Expedia. If you have missed talking to a real human when making your travel reservations because the extra fees forced you to figure out how to do it online, get ready to have your life back. Expedia today, Nov. 5, let go of all its fees for booking flights, hotels, rental cars and cruises over the phone. Yesterday, calling in travel reservations cost customers $20 per transaction; today, it’s zippo.
Here are four scenarios that will save you money if you call in your reservation with Expedia.
1. If you book your flight by calling an airline directly. You know those pesky charges that airlines tack on if you call them to book your flight? As examples, Virgin America charges $15 per guest per itinerary. Delta charges $20 per person per ticket and United charges $25 per person, per reservation. As of today, if you call Expedia to book a flight (on any of those airlines and others) there will be no extra fee for doing so.
2. If you book your flight over the phone through a a competing online travel agency (OTA). Orbitz, Travelocity and CheapTickets charge $25 to book a flight over the phone. If you are making that call to book flights for more than one person, the fees can go up and up. For two people, it’s $50 on those three other OTAs and $75 for three people. When you call in flight reservations for four people, the fee stays at $75 on Travelocity but becomes $100 on both Orbitz and CheapTickets. [Update on Nov. 5: An earlier version of this post said Priceline doesn't charge for offline flight bookings and hasn't for years. The correct information is that Priceline does not offer telephone bookings for flights.]
3. If you book a flight with some OTAs and need to change or cancel the itinerary. Travelocity, Orbitz and Priceline generally charge $30 for flight changes and cancellations. However, Orbitz has a 24-hour no fee flight cancellation policy through its My Trips feature. Priceline’s Name Your Own Price does not allow changes. CheapTickets charges $50 for flight changes and cancellations.
4. If you book a cruise for a family of four with an OTA and need to cancel it. Some online travel agencies charge for changes. Orbitz charges $75 for canceling a cruise, according to a spokeswoman and their website. [Corrected at 4:30 p.m. Nov. 5: In an earlier version of this post, I noted that I called Orbitz and was told they charge $100 per cabin for cruise cancellations but that there will be no charge if you rebook for a different date on the same phone call. I was also told that again when I called later. But an Orbitz spokeswoman e-mailed to correct this information]. And of course, there’s the nonrefundable $25 booking fee. CheapTickets charges $75 per cabin for cancellations. It’s worth noting that Travelocity and Priceline do not charge a fee to change or cancel a cruise booking.
Phoenix airport luggage thefts: Did you lose a bag? [Updated]
November 4, 2009 2:19pm
Take a look at the photo above. Recognize your bag? If so, you may be one of possibly hundreds of passengers whose luggage may have been stolen off carousels at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) in Arizona.
Police are asking travelers who think they might have been victimized to call the property crimes section at the Phoenix Police Department, (602) 495-7808.
In a news alert on their website, Phoenix police said they arrested two people on suspicion of stealing luggage from the airport’s carousels after an officer reported suspicious behavior there. When police searched the couple’s home Tuesday, Nov. 3, they found “suitcases everywhere — from floor to ceiling,” said Det. James Holmes, a department spokesman. The photo above shows some of the bags.
United breaks guitars … and loses bags too: The saga continues
October 30, 2009 5:43pm
Dave Carroll, the Canadian musician who won worldwide fame by composing a song and video about the demise of his guitar at the hands of United Airlines, found himself in that airline’s clutches again the other day, on the way to a speaking engagement about customer service. And guess what happened?
United lost his bag.
“It’s bizarre,” said Carroll.
It happened Sunday, Carroll said, as he made his way from the Canadian city of Regina in Saskatchewan province to the Denver airport, on his way to a conference in Colorado Springs. “The only direct flight to Denver was with United. So I flew United and my bag got lost,” Carroll told Canada’s CBC News on Thursday. Robin Urbanski, a spokeswoman for the airline, said, “We will fully investigate what regretfully happened,” the New York Times reported.
Carroll’s initial trouble with United came in 2008, and he told the tale this year with a “United Breaks Guitars” video (above) that has racked up more than 5 million views on YouTube.
Lowest airfares in 11 years? OK, but what about fees?
October 29, 2009 6:31pm
On the heels of an airfare war comes this report from the U.S. Department of Transportation: We’re paying the cheapest fares in 11 years. Of course, that accounting doesn’t include all the extra charges for checked luggage, seat selection and even blankets and pillows that carriers have piled on in recent years.
Even the airlines concede that these fees, which they dub “a la carte” pricing, add up.
“When you throw in a la carte, there are some cases where you could be paying more to fly” today than back in 1998, said David Castelveter, spokesman for the Air Transport Assn. of America, an industry group based in Washington, D.C. that represents most U.S. carriers.
But really, haven’t we had enough bad news lately? So as you squeeze yourself into a middle seat, sandwich your carry-on bag between your feet and shiver in the arctic blast from the air vents, count your blessings:
From April through June (latest figures), passengers paid an average of 13% less to fly between U.S. cities than they did during the same period a year ago. This was the biggest fare drop since the government began keeping records in 1995.
Bay Bridge closure travel guide: Detour routes, traffic and current info for getting to SFO and OAK
October 28, 2009 3:46pm
The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge is closed in both directions—indefinitely—after two rods and a 5,000-pound crossbeam fell during rush hour traffic at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, as reported on L.A. Now. Traffic was backed up during the morning rush hour on Wednesday and is expected to add delays to the evening commute Wednesday as well. Here are some resources for Bay Bridge updates and alternative travel means, plus maps for traffic statuses on routes to San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Oakland International Airport (OAK).
Bay Area transit info: 511.org is the best place to find alternative transit options in the Bay Area.
The page on transit options shows a full grid of status updates for Bay Area transportation services such as BART, MUNI, SF and East Bay ferry service and more. Use this 511.org “Detour Routes” page for alternative routes that use the Dumbarton Bridge, San Mateo Bridge and other options.
Airport commute: 511.org offers these directions to San Francisco International Airport from the East Bay: “Take Interstate 880, the San Mateo Bridge, and U.S. 101 north. Or, use the 511 Transit Trip planner to plan your trip to the airport on BART.” However, the trip planner does not account for adjusted schedules due to the bridge closure. If you are in San Francisco trying to get to the Oakland airport, MapQuest asks that you drag your route map down to the San Mateo bridge due to the closure. Here is a map link for travel between San Francisco and the Oakland airport.
SuperShuttle: If you are using the Super Shuttle 800 BLUE-VAN (258-3826), note that officials say that driving time is about 1 hour, 45 minutes between downtown San Francisco and OAK. They ask that you allow three hours from your departure time for domestic flights and four hours for international flights.
GEM Hotel offers Manhattan rooms from $139 during the holidays
October 26, 2009 5:58am
If you’re heading to New York City for business, pleasure or some shopping during the holiday season, you might not be holding your breath for bargain-basement deals at the city’s hotels.
Or maybe you’re already wise to the fact that the hard economic times have bitten into even Big Apple tourism, leading to some head-turning deals. For instance, the budget GEM Hotel brand, generally rated positively among travelers for good value, is offering the following rates at its centrally located properties.
Deal: The “Cool Yule” special offers rooms starting at $139 per night, pretax, at the three GEM Hotel locations in Manhattan during these dates: Nov. 20-29 and Dec. 13-29. This represents a savings of about $80 per night, since regular rates during these dates hover around $219. Read the rest of this entry »
