Daily Roundup--October 31, 2011

Happy Halloween!!!!

The world’s population has reached 7 Billion People. Somehow, I think all of them are trying to get through Atlanta  airport the Sunday after Thanksgiving.

Amtrak is adding free wifi service to 12 east coast routes. California is next scheduled to start operation sometime this year.

This weekend’s early snowstorm in the Northeastern U.S. wrecked havoc with flights all over the place. Four flights diverted to Hartford—3 on Jet Blue, 1 on American—forced passengers to stay on their planes for more than seven hours. This is in clear violation of the new passenger rights laws that could mean a fine of $27,500  per passenger. The U.S. government has yet to enforce the law. I wonder if they’ll start now. (Somehow, I doubt it.)

Qantas is flying once again. A labor dispute had grounded their entire fleet over much of the weekend.

After 42 years, the D.C. Tourmobile, that offered narrated tram  tours of the nation’s capital, will shut down after today.. Like so many other businesses, it’s been hit by financial problems.

A Washington, D.C. hotel guest is finally checking out—after over 10 years in residence. I think it would kind of cool to live in a hotel. You need anything, just pick up the phone. A friend of mine lived in an extended stay type hotel for three years and loved it. The only reason she left was because she inherited a house and decided to move in.

Daily Roundup--October 28, 2011

Here’s one overpacker’s attempt at one-bag travel.

Happy Birthday Lady Liberty……125 years old today. (She doesn’t look a day over 110!!!). 

Ever wonder what happens to all those items left at airport security? You might be surprised at the answer.

Daily Roundup--October 27, 2011

Megabus, the “luxury” bus service taking over America, Canada and the UK, is expanding southward and will soon open a hub in Atlanta. Additionally, in the UK, they’ve started sleeper service between London and Glasgow.

Air France flight attendants are planning to strike from Oct. 29 through Nov. 2. Air France says to expect some delays. 

The EU has agreed to share air passenger data with Australia. Under the new legislation, which is supposed to help fight terrorism, passenger’s names, addresses, passport numbers and credit card details will be shared with Australian Customs who may keep the data for 5 1/2 years. Similar negotiations are underway with the U.S. and Canada but the EU says they are worried about the confidentiality of the data with current U.S. laws. 

According to Consumer Reports, the fish you buy in restaurants or supermarkets may not be what you think you’re ordering. . 

Daily Roundup--October 12, 2011

Blackberry outages enter its third day and spread to the North America.  Four months until I can get rid of mine. 

According to a USA Today Study, 48% of the people polled say they travel with either an Ipad or another brand of tablet.. Currently, the only tablet I travel with is an aspirin. 

The Canadian government plans to block a planned strike by Air Canada flight attendants.

TripAdvisor launches free Mobile City Guide apps for Android. 

TSA tests program to allow pilots to bypass most airport security.

Emirates Airlines will build a cable car across London’s Thames river. It will be open in 2012 and in time for the Olympics.

Daily Roundup--October 10, 2011

Flying to Germany this week? Be prepared for possible strikes by ground handlers and air traffic controllers. 

And Air Canada flight attendants are threatening another strike.

Priceline introduces a “Tonight’s Only” hotel deal section on its Iphone app. How does it compete with the Hotel Tonight app? USA Today does a comparison.

Planning a trip to California and want to come back with a tan even if it rains? Well, you better think twice if you’re under 18 as the state has banned the use of tanning beds by minors.

I’m making plans to visit the Leaning Tower of ……..London? Big Ben is tilting.

Daily Roundup--October 7, 2011

Amtrak is celebrating record ridership on one hand and the possibility of its funding being cut on the other.

Dutch Rail is putting urinal bags on their trains that don’t have toilet facilitites..

Have a nice weekend. 

Daily Roundup--October 6, 2011

TSA announces that 29 more airports are getting advanced imaging machines for passenger screening. These new machines come pre-installed with the stick figure image rather than taking a nude picture of the person going through.

MSNBC has an article on how Steve Jobs changed travel.

R.I.P Steve Jobs. Thanks for helping to make the electronics I carry smaller and lighter. 

Daily Roundup--October 4, 2011

TSA unveils PreCheck—it’s new Trusted Traveler Program. Testing begins in four markets with a select group of people. Notice they don’t say registering with this program will make getting through security any faster just that it “may” do so. Time will tell. Hopefully it won’t turn out like the testing in Boston where “specially trained” TSO’s ask every passenger a series of questions to judge their facial expressions. In some cases the wait to get through security was four hours. 

In other TSA news, the agency announced it will purchase and test new machines to authenticate ID’s and boarding passes. According to TSA’s privacy officer “the machines have minimal privacy implications because only a limited amount of personal information is collected by the machines and because this information “is deleted after use.” Hmm….where have we heard that before?

In case you haven’t heard, Apple has announced the new Iphone 4S.

Washington’s National Cathedral, damaged in the August 23rd earthquake, will reopen on November 12th.

Daily Roundup--October 3, 2011

United’s Red Carpet Clubs and Continental’s President’s Club have rebranded themselves as United Club.. Access to all United Clubs is available to members of either program. 

Is it possible to eat healthy at the airport? According to IndependentTraveler.com  it is. 

Thinking of visiting China for the first time? Lonely Planet offers five tips for the first time visitor.

Delta raises checked bag fees on international flights. Another reason for “one bag” travel. 

U.S. State Department continues to urge American citizens to leave Syria while commercial transportation is still available. Ugh, like, “duh.”

Shares of AMR, parent company of American Airlines, drop to an eight year low, just under $2/share, amid bankruptcy rumors.

AMR responds to the days stock plunge.