Frommer Picks APR on His Favorite Sites List

Arthur Frommer, the legendary and often brutally honest travel guru, compiled a list of his six favorite travel websites, based on the level of stress they reduce for travelers.

Among them was our own Airport Parking Reservations site, and he cited the crucial advantage of being able to reserve a spot during the holidays and other busy travel periods.

He also mentions seatguru.com where you can pick the best seat on any type of airplane, and atlasnavigator.com/directory/airports.html as another valuable site that helps with maps of all major airports and the direct phone number to get more information.

Another of Frommer's favs is sleepinginairports.com, a site that rates airport terminals on how easy it is to catch a few winks and also lists 'the prime spots for snoozing without being bothered.'

Thanks, Arthur, we appreciate being on your short list!

Washington Dulles in for Big Changes

Eero Saarinen, the famous Finnish designer, is known for the beautiful Terminal at JFK, with its sweeping lines. But when he designed Washington Dulles airport in 1962, at the onset of the Jet Age, he made a few blunders.

Now officials there are trying to undo the grand design that has turned Dulles into one of the worst airports in the US. The Finnish designer concieved of 'mobile lounges' that would wisk passengers to the planes, instead of traditional parking gates. By 1964, the mobiles were a big hit, passengers in the hip sixties said they were their favorite part of the airport.

What happened? Well, the mobiles with stewardesses serving drinks and travelers gaily waving lit cigarettes were fine in the days when less than a few million passengers traveled through. But as Dulles grew, to 1987's ten million, it's too hard to direct the traffic of the mobile lounges and the planes.

One solution was to build a midfield terminal, and a subway, and to expand the original terminal. Today a billion dollar renovation is underway and an aeroTrain will speed passengers between terminals. There will still be mobile terminals but only to get to International arrivals and US Customs.

Ouch! A Sneaky Tax is Coming to Orlando

Ugh! For the millions of Americans who make the pilgrimage to Disney World, a rental car out of Orlando is de rigeur. But now it will cost more since officials at the airport have voted to add an additional tax on all rental cars.

A 'Customer facility charge' of $2.50 per day will be levied on up to five days of car rental fees, adding about $12.50 to each bill.

The tax supporters say it will raise money to help pay for big improvements at the airport, with more parking spaces, fueling stations and car-wash bays for the rental vehicles.

The tax could begin this summer, and there is a tiny silver lining here: officials say they hope to eliminate the tax within five to seven years, after the construction work is paid for.
We won't hold our breath to see if this promise comes true.

Plenty of Eyeballs, Plenty of Ads at New Terminal

Last week the Wall St. Journal reported on how a new terminal in London's Heathrow Airport will be adding hundreds of screens in which to show ads to passing travelers. It's all part of new revenue scheme at the airport's fifth terminal.

"There will be more advertising here than in any airport in the world,"said the article. "From giant billboards overlooking security lines to television screens in the underground train station, the ads have been positioned in ways BAA hopes will make them impossible to avoid. There are 333 billboards or posters, along with 206 flat screen TV sets, which change ads to target specific flights.

Compare this to LAX, where there are only 34 advertising TV sets in the whole airport! At JFk, there are 40, says JCDeceaux, a Paris-based specialist in outdoor ads, and the people hired to wire up the new London terminal.

There are plenty of eyeballs to see the new ad screens: some 27 million people are expected to pass through the terminal in the first year, and a survey revealed another fact: The travelers have an average heart beat of 91 beats per minute, compared to 70 beats for a relaxed person.
"Highly aroused people are receptive to messages," said Kevin Miller, Decaux's head of research.

Rocking Chairs and Sculpture Brighten Airports

On this rainy Monday holiday morning, there is a bit of cheery news about American airports. In Denver, for example, ABC News reports that the TSA will be adding workers to help guide travelers to the shortest line, and remind them about the procedures.

This is because Denver is famous for having the longest security wait times in large airports in 2007. So this might help speed up the average time that is about 20 minutes, or 30 during peak times.

In St. Louis, 70 rocking chairs have been installed in post-security areas. The blue chairs are near the gates, and will make the place seem, well, more like home. In addition the airport is adding live music performances to enhance this comfy new atmo.

There is a new sculpture at Chicago Midway, which relates to how the airport got its name. Sculptor Gary Weisman has created a nine-foot depiction of a soldier in pain. His face is writhing in agony, some veterans are saying that they don't like seeing him suffer--even as a statue. In another part of the airport there is a restored SBD-5 Dauntless aircraft that was salvaged from Lake Michigan, to further enhance the airport named after a WWII battle.

Now On Sale: British Visas, for Chinese Tourists Only

According to xinhuanet.com, there is a sale going on...prices are being slashed for British Visas for Chinese tourists. "Britain will cut the price of its group tourist visas for Chinese travelers by almost a third for three months from March 3, said the British Ambassador to China Sir William Ehrman on Wednesday.

The price would fall from 63 pounds (980 yuan) to 44 pounds (660 yuan) and a final decision on whether the reduction should be permanent would be made at the end of the trial period, said Ehrman.

China was the first country to carry out the trial reduction, said Ehrman, adding it was aimed at promoting tourism. "The UK's relationship with China is crucial and growing, and mobility between the two countries is essential to underpin it. The visa system needs to facilitate that mobility," Ehrman said.

He said Chinese tourists were visiting Europe in increasing numbers, and Britain wanted to welcome as many as possible.

JetBlue Shares Code with Aer Lingus

The Wall St. Journal reported last week about a new alliance that might mean good news for travelers who love JetBlue's cool style and want to travel to Ireland. Aer Lingus is forming a strategic partnership beginning April 3 under which European and American travelers will be able to book linked flights between Ireland and more than 40 US destinations served by Jet Blue.

This is news because budget airlines like 'Blue don't usually set up arrangements with legacy, or flagship carriers, called code sharing. The budget carriers just have a different approach to the business, such as shunning hub and spoke arrangements for direct flights in and out of fewer airports.

"This is totally new,"said Jet Blue Executive Dave Barger. He hopes this new code sharing can be extended to other international carriers. A secret behind this new plan is that it's web only, it doesn't require all of the coordination between call centers.

Big German airline Lufthansa has taken note, and last month bought up a 19 percent stake in JetBlue. Maybe soon there will be a similar arrangement that will let German tourists easily book to 'Blue from their state airline too.

The Ticking Time Bomb Facing Airlines

There is a time bomb ticking for airlines around the world, and it has nothing to do with terrorism. It is the fact that there is serious shortage of trained pilots and in the decades ahead it will be much harder to find people to fly the planes that take us all over the world.

Evidence? There is plenty, such as the fact that fewer people are entering the air force, where many of today's pilots were trained. Add to the fact that fuel is killing profits and stock prices and it's easy to figure out why many flyers would rather cash in a cushy pension than continue that route between Dallas and New York. Here is a story from the Dallas Morning News with a grim tally for American Airlines.

American Airlines Inc. said 143 pilots retired Thursday, an unusually high monthly number that the carrier says was caused by the falling stock market, as pilots decided to lock in the value of retirement plans.

In Dallas-Fort Worth, union officials told pilots that 56 of their locally based colleagues had retired.

Anticipating the retirements, the carrier last month canceled 28 flights that it had intended to operate in February, mostly on long-distance international routes that used American's newest and largest airplanes, the Boeing 777.

"Although this represents an unusual number of retirements, it is about on par with what we anticipated," American spokesman Sue Gordon said Thursday. "We made the decision to cancel a limited number of select flights in February. These cancellations represent a small fraction of our February schedule."

She said American has notified customers on the affected flights and is trying to accommodate them on other flights. "We will continue to monitor the situation and will make further adjustments, if needed," she said

Virgin America Offers Cool and Groovy Flights

While visiting the Quebec City Winter Carnivale, on the 400th anniversary of this the first permanent settlement in North America, I glanced a catchy ad on my computer.

I was on the SF Gate website, that is a conglomeration of news about the Bay Area, and saw the ad. It said NO WAY! LAX-SF $49, and was in the jaunty red color of the parent company, Virgin Airways. It was for the new airline that has burst on the scene, Virgin America.

I took a little time to investigate their website, and typed in a search to find a fare between NYC and LAX. The site gave me a bunch of choices in the 300-400 dollar range, and then took me to a screen where I could pick my seat. In first class, the site told me, I can choose a massage chair.

The site made me want to fly this new airline, mostly because it seems so cool and well, groovy. I know that in business class they hand out very stylish black pajamas to passengers to keep, and I'm sure the swag is great in Virgin America's first class cabin.

Sometimes the image that a website gives you can be a compelling sales message. In this case, I'm thinking of flying VA for my next cross country trip.

There's Money To Be Made--Just Send in the Form

Have you ever looked at you bank account after you take a trip and spent money overseas? There are these little annoying fees that pop up, and they chip away your money for conversion fees. Well, there's hope to those of us who are annoyed.

From Shelly Banjo of the Wall St. Journal comes this tip: You may be owed a refund if you used credit cards while traveling abroad.

"Payments are available under a proposed settlement of a federal class-action lawsuit involving currency conversion fees. You qualify if you made a transaction in a foreign currency on a US-issued Visa, Mastercard, or Diners Club credit, charge or Debit/ATM card between February 1996 and November 2008.

There are three ways eligible card holders can get refunds, the first is the easy way, (that's the one I chose). You fill out a form and they send you the money, this is the best option for those who spent less than $2500.

But if you're a bigger spender, and can provide statements about your overseas spending, you can get 1 percent back. To submit a claim go to ccfsettlement.com or call 800-945-9890.

Continental Will Give the 'Net Away for Free in the Air

There is a growing wave that portends good thing for airline travelers. It's the Wi-Fi in the sky wave, and it's spreading to more and more carriers as 2008 unfolds. Just last week I read that Continental Airlines has partnered with a company to offer not only internet in the sky, but satellite TV entertainment to every seat in the plane.

The airline will offer 52 channels of television and entertainment in seatback screens and charge $6 to coach class passengers to enjoy it. In business class it will be free. One saving grace in Continental's proposal is tha they will give everyone on the plane internet for free. Just bring your laptop.

Other carriers are getting into offering internet and email in the sky but they are all trying to charge various levels of fees. It's like in Europe--the better and bigger the hotel, the more they try to soak you to use the 'net. The cheaper, cooler hotels give it away, but the stodgy old guys always have some rip off scheme that costs too much.