Hostage on a nightmare flight
Q: I recently flew from London to Washington on Virgin Atlantic with my daughter. We boarded on time but then waited for an hour for “late passengers.”
I can deal with a one-hour delay. But what happened next, I can’t.
We took off and were about an hour into the flight when a rather breathless pilot [...]
Which came first, the luxury hotel or the rice paddy?
I am constantly in search of an authentic experience when I travel, whether it is the perfectly tied muslin wrapping around the lemon at breakfast or arriving in Manhattan after dark and seeing the lights of the Chrysler Building and the spectacular skyline.
Dinged for damage on my rental
Q: Last year I traveled from Minneapolis to Los Angeles, where I rented a Kia from Enterprise Rent-A-Car. A quick walk around the vehicle revealed no damage to the rental. The next day I returned the car to the local Enterprise agency in Lancaster, Calif.
Another walk-around inspection of the car was done personally [...]
Fees, fees everywhere
The $39 parking charge at San Francisco’s expensive Westin St. Francis hotel did not faze Veronica St. Claire, a business traveler who is instinctively wary of extra fees wherever she goes. But when the hotel added a $5.46-a-night bed tax to the parking charge on a recent visit, she felt ambushed.
Help, my Hilton points are gone
Q: I used to be a very frequent business traveler. I was a regular at the Hilton chain, where I collected more than 500,000 points and became a Diamond VIP member, their highest elite level, for a number of consecutive years.
But for the past two years, I’ve been in a more stationary job and have [...]
Letting go of your baggage
On a recent business trip to New York, I made the flight but my luggage did not. Back when I was a for-profit entrepreneur, I would have seen this as a great excuse to head to Barney’s. But those days are over.
The runaround from Grand Circle
Q: Several months ago I booked a seven-day cruise through the Grand Circle Travel Web to Tahiti for $1,995. Two other couples, who planned to celebrate their 40th anniversaries on the cruise, decided to join us on the trip. (My husband and I were celebrating our 42nd anniversary.)
We each put down a deposit by credit [...]
Getting aggressive on damage
The Ford Escape that Karen Anderson recently returned to Budget Rent a Car in Bend, Ore., looked “squeaky clean” to her. But perhaps she did not look hard enough.
Daytona vs. spring break
Daytona Beach, once a destination for raucous, partying, spring-breaking college students, is looking to change its appeal to the college crowd. Tourism officials have been emphasizing a “respect campaign” with TV ads and volunteers urging students to behave. (National Public Radio’s All Things Considered)