Travel Industry Archive

Marriott International’s quarterly report had few surprises buried deep in its bowels. Many were obvious: a soft economy, tight lending, sluggish residential sales, high fuel costs and less consumer confidence all seem to be taking a toll on Marriott as well as other hoteliers. The report said that recent events and the volatile capital markets may cause owners and franchisees to delay,...

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Allegiant suspends St. Louis snowbird flights — Allegiant Air suspended scheduled flights between MidAmerica St. Louis Airport and Florida until 2009 citing strong Southwest Airlines competition and rising fuel costs. The snowbird flights are seasonal, but usually resume for the fall and winter tourist seasons. Allegiant will continue to fly Las Vegas- St. Louis routes. [Source:...

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Earlier this summer, the TSA was patting its own back for finally requiring that people show IDs in order to travel. It’s little-known that it wasn’t actually required to show ID when you traveled in the past. You would simply be subject to secondary screening and then you could go on your way. Now the rules have been toughened up, but they’re not exactly going to be...

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South America or Bust? – An international trade organization says that travel to South America will rise as the region has shrugged off a “reputation as a backpacker destination,” having undergone “an elegant transformation into a modern up and coming destination for the luxury traveler.” The new elitism and cheaper accommodations and activities are also...

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Raising rates for hotel rooms isn’t just arbitrary, it’s the American Way — capitalism as it’s meant to be. When there’s an increase in demand, prices rise naturally because supply is generally stable, right? But while raising rates significantly during conventions or the Big Game is common, doing so in disaster areas can be criminal,  as some Texas hotels...

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For those who missed it, Lufthansa is attempting to reach the college kids of the world by launching a social networking site. Unfortunately, I think this is probably a misguided effort that won’t yield the results they’d like to see. The site is called GenFly Lounge, and I’ll let them explain it in their own words: GenFlyLounge is the new social networking site for...

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Cruise ships cited for pollution — Alaska issued six more notices for cruise ship wastewater pollution in Juneau, bringing the total to 15 for the year.  Ships in port exceeded limits on zinc, copper and ammonia. [Source: Fort Mill Times] Strategic Hotels & Resorts Inc. pulls out of Chicago project — Strategic Hotels & Resorts pulled out of their agreement to purchase...

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I know you’re sad that I’m out of town right now, so let me leave you some light reading to keep you busy. The Government Accountability Office put out 102 pages of governmental goodness on the proposed redesign of the airspace in the New York/New Jersey/Philadelphia area. I expect a full book report from each of you on why this is good or bad for the airlines when I return. As we...

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Carnival bankrolls almost half of new San Diego cruise depot — The Port of San Diego is planning to begin construction on a $28 million cruise ship terminal (almost half paid with a loan by Carnival Cruise Lines) that could be finished as early as 2010. The 52,000-square-foot building will be big enough to hold customs and immigration facilities as well as cruise lines. [Source: San...

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Last month, the federal government awarded the SCASDP grants (PDF) that I had written about in July. It appears that this might be the beginning of the end for the SCASD program, and that’s a sad thing. This program at least encourage creative thinking and expected results. I thought it would be good to go back to the five applications I wrote about to see how they did. The results?...

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