Luxury ships, lower prices
The cruise industry must believe that loose lips sink ships. Otherwise, they’d share their secret with the world: This fall, prices on luxury cruises are better than ever–and they’re not likely to plunge this low again for a while. It’s “a price anomaly,” says Daniel Kwoh, chief executive of cruise specialist 7 Blue Seas. “Major cruise lines are selling out and raising prices. But luxury cruise lines have inventory and are surreptitiously lowering prices.”
Just following orders
Q: My fiance is in the Navy and currently on a submarine. Before he left for his tour of duty, he purchased a $1,300 ticket from Priceline for me to visit him for his first port call, which at that time was scheduled to be in Japan.
He spoke with a Priceline representative and asked if [...]
When contraband prowls round the cabin
Half an hour into a crowded flight to Phoenix a couple of years ago, something brushed by my feet. It felt like a cat. But I said to myself, ”Wait a minute, I’m on a plane. They don’t have cats on planes.” I looked down, and sure enough, there was a medium-size black cat. It [...]
Lost my rental in a hurricane
Q: I was scheduled to speak at a conference in Gainesville, Fla., in September. But the meeting was cancelled because most of the delegates in the area were still without electricity after the recent hurricanes.
I had booked my airline ticket through Orbitz and a car rental on Hotwire back in August. Both Orbitz and [...]
Salvaging my lost cruise
Q: We booked a Caribbean cruise package, which included airline tickets, on Norwegian Cruise Lines through our travel agent last year. We charged the initial deposit of $700 and paid off the balance of $2,812 on our credit card a few months before sailing.
But when we arrived at Detroit for our flight to Miami [...]
If HAL the computer audited your expenses
On a business trip to Bismarck, N.D., David Godfrey flew into town two days early to qualify for a cheaper airline ticket. His total savings were $300. He stayed at a friend’s house instead of checking into a hotel, knocking an additional $100 off his expenses. His friend even picked him up at the airport.