Tourism

May 6, 2007

++ Sponsored by FirstClassFlyer.com ++ Want to learn how to fly first class for the price of coach? Or close to it? Looking for free and purchased upgrades, 2-for-1s and a fast-track to elite status strategies? Look no further...these hot deals and more are available at First Class Flyer's Web site.

Secrets of first class air travel are revealed every month in Mr. Upgrade's newsletter. Get a free trial issue -- Upgrade Today:

http://www.firstclassflyer.com/subscribe?source=trip0107

++ This week's poll ++

Will a weak dollar affect your travel plans to Europe this summer?

http://www.tripso.com/

++ Tripso Travels: Australia ++
For the next two weeks Charlie Leocha will be traveling across Australia. He will be visiting Brisbane, Adelaide, Darwin and Sydney. His reports will be available on our Tripso.com home page as he updates his travel blog reporting from the Brisbane beaches, the Borassa wine region, the Bullo River outback, an Aborigine camp, Tiwi Island and finally, Sydney with its famous bridge, opera house and harbor. As long as he has an internet connection, Charlie will take you along on his trip through the land down
under.

Check out his latest entry:

http://www.tripso.com/

+ Can't get enough of Tripso?
Sign up for the Daily, our free weekday news service.

http://www.tripso.com/subscribe.html

++ Sponsored by BookingBuddy.com ++
Find the lowest airfare for your next trip at BookingBuddy.com. It's the fastest way to find the lowest price on airfare. Compare fares now.

http://rd.bookingbuddy.com/?r=tripso

++ Tripso columns ++

+ 4 telephone tips for Europe
Calling home from abroad can cost more than your airfare. If you use the hotel phone, you'll be presented with an exorbitant bill. If you rent an "international cell phone," you will also spend a small fortune. U.S. phones with GSM service work well overseas but, again, the price is steep. Does phoning home have to be so expensive? No, it does not. (Charles Leocha)

http://www.tripso.com/2007/05/eurotel.php

+ Your passport's no good
An American Airlines ticket agent tells Nancy Dreher that she can't board her flight to Costa Rica. It seems her passport is valid -- but not valid enough. That ends Dreher's vacation, but now the airline won't respond to her requests for a refund. What, if anything, does the airline owe this passenger? (Christopher Elliott)

http://www.tripso.com/2007/05/passport.php

+ 5 great hotel movies
I love hotels, and I love movies -- and I <em>really</em> love hotel movies. I'm not talking about the kind you rent for some adult entertainment after a long day on the road. I'm talking about movies that have a hotel setting, movies in which the hotel is almost a character. Here are my top five hotel movies, along with one hotel movie I hate. (Amy Bradley-Hole)

http://www.tripso.com/2007/05/movies.php

+ When all hope is lost
James Wysong recently lost a very good friend to suicide. In this column, James ponders the depths of depression and the limits of hope, and offers some advice to others who have friends in need. (James Wysong)

http://www.tripso.com/2007/05/floyd.php

+ Suckered in Santorini
The jewelry in the shop in Santorini was beautiful, and the couple from Florida was dazzled. Yes, the jewelry was expensive, but the shop was a member of Celebrity Cruises' "Guaranteed Shopping Program" -- or so the sign said. So Courtney Thompson and his wife plunked down $24,000 and returned to their ship, where they were in for a rude awakening. (Anita Dunham-Potter)

http://www.tripso.com/2007/04/santorini.php

++ Sponsored by AirportParkingReservations.com ++
Make advanced reservations for airport parking and get discounted prices. You have your airline reservation. You have your hotel reservation. Now you can make a guaranteed airport parking reservation at a great price. Point. Click, Park.

http://airportparkingreservations.com/cgi-local/customer/index.pl?refID=20459

++ This week in travel ++

+ United increases business and economy fares
United Airlines said Thursday it has raised most of its U.S. business-oriented fares by $25 to $50 one way and other fares by $5 to $10 each way, citing the high cost of fuel.

http://www.tripso.com/2007/05/unitedfares.php

+ Union warns of fatigue crisis for U.S. pilots
U.S. airline passengers face a summer of cancellations and delays as a crisis of "chronic pilot fatigue" limits carriers' ability to handle disruption caused by bad weather, the head of the largest cockpit crew union has warned.

http://www.tripso.com/2007/05/fatigue.php

+ Four JetBlue workers accused of using passengers' credit cards
Four JetBlue employees and a New York City corrections officer have been charged with stealing credit card numbers from several unsuspecting airline passengers.

http://www.tripso.com/2007/05/creditcards.php

+ Southwest raises fares up to $2 each way
Southwest Airlines Co. said Monday it raised fares up to $2 each way on some of its flights, a move that was matched by competitors.

http://www.tripso.com/2007/05/southwest.php

+ Delta out of bankruptcy
Delta Air Lines emerged from bankruptcy early Monday, following a 19-month reorganization that saw it fight off a hostile takeover.

http://www.tripso.com/2007/04/bankruptcy.php

++ Sponsored by Cheapflights.com ++
Looking for cheap airline tickets? Look no further than Cheapflights.com. It's simple, fast and free. Find the best airfare deals and the companies who sell them. Get a quick overview of the widest selection of cheap airline tickets. Compare plane ticket prices from major airlines, discount airlines, agencies and more.

http://www.cheapflights.com/?source=advtripso

Note: Unless you specify otherwise, all e-mails, letters and phone conversations are considered "on the record." That means your name could be used in a future article.

Subscription/unsubscription instructions are listed at the end of this newsletter. Unfortunately, it is not possible to process requests to subscribe, unsubscribe or change your e-mail address in any other way - including replying to this message.

++ Sponsored by Easy Travel Kits ++
Easy Travel Kits have everything you need in personal care for a week on the road. At $19.95, the kits are delivered via US Priority Mail directly to your destination - hotel, office or residence and marked 'HOLD FOR ARRIVAL'. Delivery Confirmation sent to your email address! Avoid the hassle of the 311 Rule and avoid checking your bags. Order a kit for your favorite frequent flier. Click below:

http://barclaycrocker.com/mm5/merchant.mvc?Screen=SFNT&Store_Code=etk&Affiliate=TRIPSO

Tripso Weekend is published every week by http://www.tripso.com (c) 2007 Tripso, Inc.

To unsubscribe, click below:
http://www.tripso.com/sendstudio/users/unsub.php?Mem=666958&ConfirmCode=3bbca3b3908a4c052893ccc09b1729fa

http://www.tripso.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=5088

++ See what's cooking in Tripso's forums ++
Discuss the latest travel industry buzz in Tripso's forums. Registration is simple and FREE plus there is usually a monthly contest where you can win prizes.

http://www.tripso.com/forums/

+ Can't get enough of Tripso?
Sign up for the Daily, our free weekday news service.

http://www.tripso.com/subscribe.html

++ Tripso columns ++

+ The complaint and the Caribbean
There is an art to complaining, and it doesn't involve either whining or wheedling. What it takes is a backbone. So, when the water ran out on this anniversary vacation in St. Martin, the husband knew just what to do. (Been There)

http://www.tripso.com/archives/2006/01/complain.html

+ Mystery of the missing ticket
The $280.60 airfare from Sioux Falls, S.D., to Oakland, Calif., is a real bargain on Cheapseats.com. But when Jane Christianson checks in at the airport, she discovers the agency was supposed to have sent a paper ticket, which it never did. She is forced to spend $850.30 on a new ticket -- and now Cheapseats.com is balking at a refund. What's going on? (Christopher Elliott)

http://www.tripso.com/archives/2006/01/cheap.html

+ Secret powers
Travel would be so much more pleasant if it weren't for all the obnoxious people. You know the ones. The guy who hollers into his cell phone in the airport lounge. The kid who runs up and down the aisle of the plane. The desk clerk who chats with a colleague while you cool your heels at the counter. But you have secret powers to stop them. (Terry Riley)

http://www.tripso.com/archives/2006/01/stare.html

+ Hot tips for cold fliers
If you're like me, the prospect of flying in winter is about as appealing as spending a couple of hours trapped in an igloo. I'm coldblooded by nature -- and a flight attendant by profession -- so I know just how cold it can get in the cabin. Herewith, eight hot tips to keep the cold at bay. (James Wysong)

http://www.tripso.com/archives/2006/01/hot.html

+ Are travel agents worth it?
The Internet is a marvelous thing, but it has also let loose a scourge: the consumer hell-bent on making sure that I don't make a single penny for the work I do. I'm not sure when education turned into extortion, but I am sure it's a bad thing for consumers and travel agents alike. (John Frenaye)

http://www.tripso.com/archives/2006/01/lament.html

++ Sponsored by Cheap Flights ++
Looking for cheap airline tickets? Look no further than Cheapflights.com. It's simple, fast and free. Find the best airfare deals and the companies who sell them. Get a quick overview of the widest selection of cheap airline tickets. Compare plane ticket prices from major airlines, discount airlines, agencies and more.

http://www.cheapflights.com/?source=advtripso

++ This week in travel ++

+ Branson: Bird flu pandemic would ground most planes
A human bird flu pandemic could ground up to 70 percent of aircraft, Virgin Group boss Richard Branson said on Thursday.

http://www.tripso.com/archives/2006/01/pandemic.html

+ Pilots union says Delta's inflexibility hurts talks
Delta Air Lines Inc.'s refusal to budge on its demand for $325 million in permanent pay and benefit cuts from its pilots could jeopardize efforts to hammer out a comprehensive agreement by a March 1 deadline, a top union official said Wednesday.

http://www.tripso.com/archives/2006/01/deltapilots.html

+ Four killed in private jet crash
A private jet overshot a runway and crashed in flames Tuesday, killing all four people aboard, authorities said. The Cessna 560 came in for a landing at Southern California McClellan-Palomar Airport on a flight from Hailey, Idaho, but went about 150 yards beyond the runway, smashing through scaffolding and into a commercial storage facility.

http://www.tripso.com/archives/2006/01/4killed.html

+ Man jumps from moving jetliner onto tarmac
An airline passenger bit a fellow traveler Monday, then jumped out of a jetliner moving on the tarmac, authorities said. He was later subdued with a stun gun. The man was taken to a hospital from the Fort Lauderdale airport, the Broward County sheriff’s office said.

http://www.tripso.com/archives/2006/01/jump.html

+ Runway reports often unreliable
An antiquated warning system for the nation's pilots has led dozens of them to receive unreliable information about slippery runways and to land in dangerous conditions, according to a USA TODAY review of accidents and pilot reports during the past decade.

http://www.tripso.com/archives/2006/01/runway.html

++ Sponsored by Journeyware.com ++
The destination for exceptional luggage, business/tech cases and travel accessories from leading brands like Travelpro, Lewis N. Clark, RoadWired and more. Great prices, fast, free UPS ground shipping on orders of just $50 or more! All with a level of uncompromising, personal service that you might not be used to getting these days (especially if you are a frequent traveler). Enter coupon code TRIPSO10 and click "update" at checkout for an additional 10% off any order.

http://www.journeyware.com/tripso

Note: Unless you specify otherwise, all e-mails, letters and phone conversations are considered "on the record." That means your name could be used in a future article.

Subscription/unsubscription instructions are listed at the end of this newsletter. Unfortunately, it is not possible to process requests to subscribe, unsubscribe or change your e-mail address in any other way - including replying to this message.

Tripso Weekend is published every week by http://www.tripso.com (c) 2006 Tripso, Inc.