Funny airline moments from tv and movies

Hope you are having a great weekend. While browsing YouTube, I came across some great moments in tv & movies related to air travel. While funny, most of us probably have been in a similar situation while flying the somewhat friendly skies. Enjoy!











Back Monday with a new update.

LA to Australia for under $700 r/t, Caribbean/South America airfare and Delta deals.

Here are some deals currently going on right now with a few airlines that run out within the next 2 weeks, so you may want to get started on booking your spring or summer getaway sooner than later (since prices will more than likely go up as the weather gets warmer).


American Airlines:
When you fly out of Miami Airport (MIA) this spring, you will be able to get in on some great one-way fares to the Caribbean and Latin America. Here are some sample fares currently advertised through American Airlines:

***Kingston, Jamaica (KIN), $79
***Panama City, Panama (PTY), $79
***Punta Cana, DR (PUJ), $79
***Bogota, Colmbia (BOG), $124

Many more destinations are included and you must book by March 10 for travel through May 28. Check out American Airlines for full information.

Delta: Ending this Monday March 2 is Delta's NYC to Europe sale, which includes nonstop fares to such countries as Greece, Spain, Italy and France. One of the most shocking fares is the NYC-Shannon route for only $290 r/t (with taxes and fees included). Fares are valid March 2-April 2, for more information on this great sale check out Delta.


V Australia: The new Aussie Airline is having an introductory sale to top destinations like Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne from Los Angeles for as low as $655 r/t. V also flies out of Minneapolis, Seattle and Portland, OR. This super deal ends March 9 for travel between March 1 and June 15. So make your plans now for a trip down under. Check out V Australia for more information.

An encore for S.C.'s Hard Rock Park

Hard Rock Park in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina just might live to rock and roll another day. After seven years of planning, the $400 million, 55-acre park opened last April to a less than stellar performance. It was the single biggest investment to South Carolina tourism ever. But with gas prices at an all time high and the economy being so weak, the park was shut down by September.

A few months later investors purchased the financially doomed park at auction for $25 million ($10 million less than what the creditors had hoped for). The new owners hope to have the park up and running by Memorial Day at the earliest and plan to use the "Hard Rock" name when doors reopen.

Some of the ways in which the new ownership plans to attract customers is by dropping the admission price from $50 to $40 and to cut the price of an annual pass in half. With the way the economy has crumbled in recent months, there is no doubt that for the Hard Rock Park to reopen and do well, it would have to make it more affordable to the general public.

With the park reopened, this would lead to 750 new jobs, which is great news for the South Carolina area. Hard Rock Park is hoping to draw roughly 750,000 people over the summer (down drastically from the 3 million customers they projected to have in 2008). So if all of this works out, we may be able to have another reason besides gorgeous golf courses and beautiful beaches to visit this great South Carolina destination.

For more information on Hard Rock Park's reopening check out USA Today's article by clicking here.

Planning on being in Myrtle Beach this summer and want to see what Hard Rock Park has to offer? Then head on over to their official website for more information.

Weekly round up: Europe's Rising stars, NYC hotel for under $100 a night???, JetBlue getaways and more.

Another eventful week in the travel business. So I thought today I would catch you up on some of the deals, news, stories and articles that came out this past week.


Jetting for less: JetBlue currently has a 40% off select getaways that include such destinations as Aruba, Cancun & Nassau. These "beachy keen" deals include 4-star accommodations and nonstop flights from such locales as Boston, New York & Orlando.For more information head on over to JetBlue.

NYC Hotel for $89/night???: Whoa...recession pricing is in full effect with this great deal from TravelZoo and Best Western. The new Bowery Hanbee Hotel, which is located in the hip and trendy SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan, is offering a jaw dropping special. For select dates through April, travelers can enjoy a great room for only $89/night! In order to get this low rate you must book with TravelZoo's special code, which is...well..."TravelZoo"...not hard to remember. Click here for more information. Hurry because you must book by March 9.


Luck of the Irish: While not "new" news, it is worth mentioning the current sale and prices that Ireland's most popular airline Aer Lingus currently has on their website. Sales at a stunningly low $199 each way to/from Ireland in the spring and $229 in the summer. Simply amazing considering how expensive flights to Europe were just 8-12 months ago! But Aer Lingus is not just good for flights to the Emerald Isle. In fact they have dozens of European cities at lower than normal prices right now. I booked a 3 week trip to Krakow in June for about 40% lower than the competition. More for information on the Ireland sale click here, to check out all of the other great destinations that Aer Lingus flies to click here.

(Another)Southwest sale: In what seems to be a regular occurrence these days, Southwest is offering a sale. But this sale is unique as it covers all of the airline's destinations. Some of the cities that the low cost airline flies to include New York (Long Island Islip), Ft. Lauderdale, Chicago (Midway) and Seattle. The Nationwide sale has fares that range from $49-$129 one-way. Check out Southwest for more information. Hurry though, this sale ends Monday March 2.

Europe's other great cities: Fodor's has a great article about "Europe's Rising Stars", which includes a look at such amazing, yet sometimes overlooked, cities like Galway, Ireland and Valencia, Spain. These particular cities offer all of the same excitement and culture of their more popular neighbors, but often times To check out the full article, click here.




So much is going on these days in travel. Airfare sales seem to pop up every 7 minutes (or at least it feels that way) and hotel prices are plummeting worldwide. Who would have thought a year ago that you could stay in a nice hotel in Manhattan for under $100/night? Madness. It is safe to say that the term "Staycation" is officially retired. To that I say, GOOD RIDDANCE!

Brooklyn's endless culinary options are worth the visit.

Whenever a friend comes to visit New York or I am asked by a reader "what to see" or "what to do" when visiting the Big Apple, I always point them in the direction of that neighboring borough, my hometown, of Brooklyn.

Brooklyn had been known for years as the place where people that could not afford Manhattan prices went to live and play. Now while that is probably more truer than ever before, it is not just fiscal reasons that drive lifelong "Noo Yawkers" or transplants to "Kings County" anymore. This borough is full of culinary wonders!

Drive 5 minutes in any direction and you will wind up in a part of Brooklyn that offers such different cuisine. Greenpoint has home made Polish, Bensonhurst covers old school Italian perfectly and Brighton Beach offers you top notch Russian. Plus landmark locales like Junior's Cheesecake in downtown Brooklyn, Nathan's Famous in Coney Island, Grimaldi's in DUMBO and Peter Luger Steakhouse in Williamsburg will definitely add an extra few inches to your waistline once you are done with Brooklyn.

So the next time you visit the Big Apple, do not forget to check out "that other borough" and if you are in the neighborhood drop me a line...I love free meals.

For more information on Brooklyn, check out their official site: Visit Brooklyn

My favorite Brooklyn restaurants:

Park Slope: Beet (Thai), Al Di La Trattoria (Italian)

Greenpoint: Krolewskie Jadlo (Polish)

DUMBO: Grimaldi's (Italian)

Bensonhurst: Villabate (Sicilian bakery)

Midwood: DiFara's (Italian)

Click here for more on Brooklyn's new culinary movement.

Break out the Dyson...United is cleaning up its act

If you have boarded a United Airlines flight recently and noticed a certain shine to the windows and the aroma of Lysol in the air, it is because the airline is taking the task of keeping their fleet squeaky clean very serious these days.

In an effort to boost customer morale, United is now going the extra mile to clean its planes thoroughly and more often than it had in the past. I mean it is no secret that airplanes are germ infested flying capsule shaped machines with wings. Especially now with airline cutbacks, many passengers are now seeing dirtier planes when traveling.

United Airlines however will make flying the friendly skies much cleaner. The airline is now steam-cleaning as many as eight wide bodied jets a night and a deep cleaning every two weeks. Planes will be sprayed down and washed from floor to ceiling. Seats will be lifted and checked for garbage. Tray tables will get some disinfectant sprayed on them and windows will shine from the Windex treatment. On domestic flights, which have a faster turn around time, United will employ more cleaners to get the job done faster.

Something about a freshly cleaned airline that just makes me all happy inside.

Drinks are on the house again at US Airways

After several months of charging passengers for drinks on it's fleet, US Airways has decided to yank their stingy policy and go back to giving flyers free water, soda, coffee, tea and juice again. Oh how nice of them.

US Airways actually said that their liquid levy was working and that they only are canceling it now due to the fact that they are the only large mainstream airline currently charging you for that Pepsi or sub par cup of Joe.

US Airways CEO Doug Parker wrote the following letter to employees:

"We know customers don't buy an airline ticket based on whether or not they will get a free soda onboard, but with US Airways being the only large network carrier to charge for drinks, we are at a disadvantage."

Hmm...so they are only doing this in order to save face and not to look out for the customer? That is an odd press release. By the way how does Mr. Parker know that I do not choose an airline based solely on it's refreshments!? Trust me, if there was a Guinness Airline, I would be a frequent flyer. Back to Mr. Parker's letter:

"This difference in our service has been a focal point that detracts from all of the outstanding improvements in on-time performance and baggage handling that all of us have worked so hard to achieve over the past year."

Seriously? I mean was this letter really necessary? They are just giving us small plastic cups of soda filled with iced cubes, not an all you can drink open bar.

For those of you that were not lucky enough to fly US Airways in the last 7-8 months, let me explain what their policy was, as it pertained to drinks while flying with them. US Airways' "buy on board" menu included $2 for soda or bottled water and $1 for tea and coffee. Now while that may not sound like a lot of money, remember they implemented this new policy back on August 1st when airfares were at an all time recent high.

This change in policy came as a surprise to many in the industry, including many insiders that worked for the airline. US Airways' officials had been touting the success of charging for beverages in recent weeks, so it seemed odd that they would just stop the program abruptly. A major reason why executives at US Airways were stunned at the end of this policy had nothing to do with new cash flow, but more with how efficient their fleet had become since charging for drinks. In the past, every traveler had a drink at their table and many asked for seconds...or thirds. When they were being charged however, less people bothered the crew and more work could get done.

But according to Mike Flores, president of the US Airways chapter of the Association of Flight Attendants, who called the policy a "complete disaster", said that the main reason US Airways canceled the entire "buy on board" program was because passenger complaints have been flooding their call centers and e-mail inboxes since August and have yet to die down.

Now while 2008 saw a surge in airfare prices due to the high price of oil, as well as the introduction of "penny pinching policies" such as fees on luggage, food, drinks and even pillows, 2009 may be the year of the exact opposite. With oil trading for about $40 a barrel and the economy in the toilet, airlines have slashed prices. This US Airways "buy on board" policy cancellation might be the beginning of the return of "the friendly skies"...ok maybe not yet. But free soda is a start.

Amtrak's Acela prices to drop by 25%

It is nice to wake up to some good news for a change. I checked my inbox to find a lovely e-mail from Amtrak this morning.It read:

"Book early and ride the Acela for surprisingly low fares. Save up to 25% when you purchase a ticket on Acela Express."

Here is how prices will change on some popular Northeast routes with Amtrak's Acela service:

New York - Boston, $99 (down from about $130)
Boston - New York, $79 (down from about $110)
Washington DC - Philadelphia, $73(down from about $100)

Now while this frugal traveler still feels that these prices need to lower even more to be worth the upgraded service, I will definitely take lowering prices over rising prices when it comes to travel. I personally love using the rails for trips, but Amtrak's prices have been just too high for such mediocre service. Why does it take roughly a day to go from New York to Chicago when I can drive there in traffic and with red lights in under 11? We are so far behind Europe and Asia's lighting fast rail services. Hopefully something will change with this new administration...but I will believe it when I see it.

By the way these lower prices are through June 26, 2009 and require at least a 14-day advance purchase.

Amtrak's newly adjusted Acela prices and full route information can be found by clicking here.

Southwest to start flying out of Boston by fall

Southwest Airlines, the popular low-cost carrier, has announced that they will start service out of Boston's Logan Airport by this fall. This is great news for people that use Boston when traveling for business or pleasure. More airlines equates to lower prices for passengers.

This news comes less than a week after Virgin America started it's own Boston route to San Francisco. Since Virgin joined the fray, "Bean Town" travelers have seen a steady decline in air travel prices on that particular route.

It has not been officially announced as of this posting where exactly Southwest Airlines will fly to when they start using Logan Airport, but many airline analyst predict a Boston-Chicago (O'Hare Airport) route will definitely top the list.

Boston will become Southwest's 66th destination and make many New England travelers happy, since the only option they recently had for a flight using Southwest was in Providence, Rhode Island and Manchester, New Hampshire.

Southwest will have "a conservative number of flights" at two gates in Logan, which is the sixth busiest airport in the country. Details will follow later this Spring with more information on the specific routes Southwest will use when they arrive in Red Sox nation.

Southwest

Insane Italy sale!

Through May Italy is on sale! Big time my friends (or grande tempo i miei amici).

I have found airfare as low as $387 round-trip (taxes and fees included) to cities like Milan and Rome out of New York. I also came across low deals to both of those major Italian locales from top U.S. destinations including Washington D.C., Boston and Los Angeles. Two such sites showcasing these low rates are Orbitz and CheapTickets.

Be flexible when searching for prices and remember to not go past May, as these low deals are only good up until around the end of that month. You will however find the lowest fares earlier (I found a long weekend in late April, NYC-Milan, for that low price of $387).

Nothing is quite like a jaunt to Italy. I was just there last year and absolutely loved Rome and Florence (which while not in the sale, is just a 3 hour train ride from both Rome and Milan). Italy is on pretty much every traveler's "must see" list. So here is the perfect opportunity to not only visit a beautiful country full of flavor and culture, but save a gondola load of loot in the process. What a great way to spend a few days in Spring.

Ciao!