Today’s announcement that Southwest has a new marketing relationship with a rideshare company was no surprise. As rideshare services have become an ever-larger part of the travel landscape, such tie-ups have proliferated. It won’t be long before every airline and hotel loyalty program has a rideshare company on its roster of points-earning partners. Somewhat surprising…
Want to fly Virgin America as an elite member of the airline’s Elevate program? If you’ve already earned elite status with American, Delta, Southwest, or United, Virgin America will match that status, for three months. The Elevate status level awarded will depend on the applicant’s status with the other program: Silver for lower-level status with…
When Hilton and Uber connected in September 2015, that connection was notably tentative. Unlike the Starwood-Uber link, which allows Starwood Preferred Guest members to earn points for Uber rides, the Hilton-Uber tie-up was limited to reminding Hilton customers to book an Uber ride during their hotel stay. Hardly a game-changer, for either of the two…
In the final stages of the duel between the Anbang-led investor group and Marriott to acquire Starwood Hotels & Resorts, two questions remain. The first is whether Marriott will counter Anbang’s latest offer with a higher-value offer of its own. The second is which of the two outstanding offers Starwood stockholders will vote to accept…
Last week, amid unconfirmed rumors that Virgin America was in merger talks with unnamed potential acquirers, I suggested that the best fit would be a combination with JetBlue. According to a new Bloomberg report, I was half right: One of the would-be buyers is indeed JetBlue; the other is Alaska Airlines. RELATED: Airline Employees Behaving…
Enter the Pernod Ricard “St. Patrick’s Day” sweepstakes by April 30, 2016, for a chance to win one of six grand prizes: each a trip for two to Ireland, including air, three nights’ hotel, and a tour of the Jameson distillery in Dublin. To enter, provide the requested contact information (name, email, etc.) on the…
I worked for the airline industry for close to 20 years, in the 80’s and 90’s, and during that time I can recall only one instance of a fellow airline employee breaking the law. That was American CEO Bob Crandall’s ill-fated attempt, in 1982, to persuade his counterpart at Braniff to collude on price hikes.…
Following is our regular summary of the latest travel news and best frequent traveler promotions reviewed during the past week. If it was a good deal—or a notably bad deal—from an airline, hotel, or car rental loyalty program, you can read all about it here, and plan your travel accordingly. This Week, American Devalues AAdvantage…
Airports. Can’t live with ’em, can’t live without ’em. But their tolerability quotients vary widely; some are more endurable, even congenial, than others. Skytrax conducts an annual survey of millions of flyers to determine which airports do the best job of pleasing travelers, and which do the worst. For the fourth year in a row,…
It’s been awhile since Hyatt’s last systemwide bonus promotion. That will be remedied beginning next month, with a new offer that, at least for high-frequency travelers, will have been well worth the wait. Offer Details As confirmed by a Hyatt representative on FlyerTalk but not yet shown on Hyatt’s website, between April 1 and June…
Prepare for Impact. That’s the name of a new smartphone app from the HCI Lab at the University of Udine in Italy. And the name says it all. From the app’s website: Flying is safe! Aircraft accidents are unlikely events But what if… Are you prepared to cope with emergencies? It’s an interactive video game,…