Elliott’s E-Mail/November 27, 2007
In this issue …
» Oh, never mind!
» Forced to upgrade my rental car
» Looking for faster customer service from your airline? Flash your card
» Northwest fun
» Christmas lights
» How to reach yours truly
» Support this site
This issue of Elliott’s E-Mail is underwritten by FirstClassFlyer.com, the only tool you need to fly first class for the price of coach — or close to it. Looking for free and purchased upgrades, two-for-ones and a fast-track to elite status strategies? Look no further than FirstClassFlyer.com
FIRST | Random thoughts about the week in travel
Oh, never mind! I admit, we media types were ready to write the apocalyptic headlines about Thanksgiving travel disasters (”Record flight delays signal end of civilization as we know it!”). We wanted to show you long lines and angry customers. Instead, as I point out in this week’s issue, we had … nothing. And as someone who had to board a plane three times last week, no one is happier than yours truly. Also, check out posts on influential travel bloggers, unconventional travel advice and why being a frequent flier can help you get a faster answer from an airline. Read all about it in this week’s issue.
Burning question … got any cruise secrets? I’m looking for any tips on how to save money on a cruise. I’m putting together a column with “secrets” for saving money on your next floating vacation, and want to know how you do it. Do you save on shore excursions by booking them separately? BYOB on board? Crash the VIP reception for frequent cruisers to get free drinks? It’s all fair game. Remember, the best story gets cool Skooba luggage. (More winners will be announced at the end of this month.) Send me a note or shoot me an IM (celliottlive on AIM).
Get it before anyone else. You can receive all of the latest travel news and commentary first by connecting with me on Facebook. I post every new story, blog posting and newsletter to Facebook — often hours before it lands in your “in” box. (Note: You need a Facebook account, which is free, in order to access this information.)
SIGHTINGS | Noted Elliott appearances online and offline
Forced to upgrade my rental car — The rental car that Earnest Hoenck reserves from Hertz isn’t available when he arrives in Hamburg, Germany. He’s offered two choices: a smaller car that won’t accommodate his luggage, or a bigger car for an extra 10 euros a day. He picks the bigger car, but when he returns the rental, he finds that his bill is even bigger than he expected. What can he do? (From The Troubleshooter)
Follow the crowd: 4 secrets of the herd — Follow the crowd. That’s right, stand in that long line at the airport. Buy the same ticket everyone else does. Book the happenin’ hotel, the popular cruise. Go on, vacation with the masses. The conventional wisdom on traveling — which is not to do what everyone else is doing — is often wrong. (From MSNBC.com)
Elliott’s E-Mail is also underwritten by Priceline.com, the leading travel service for value-conscious leisure travelers. With both Name Your Own Price and everyday fixed low prices, no other travel service gives more ways to save on their airline tickets, hotel rooms, rental cars, vacation packages and cruises. No one does deals like Priceline.com!
BLOGGED | New posts on Elliott’s Blog
Uh-oh: United.com doesn’t like hyphenated names — United Airlines’ Web site may have hit a glitch over the weekend, and if you have hyphenated last name, it could affect you. Reader Char James-Tanny reports trying to buy a ticket through United.com, but having the reservation stall when she tried to pay. A company representative told her the problem was on the back end of the reservations system, and was being fixed. (From Elliott Blog)
The 7 most influential travel bloggers of 2007 — Who are the most influential travel bloggers? That isn’t an easy question to answer, because it’s not just site visits and mainstream media mentions that matter (in fact, those often matter very little). It’s how the blogger influences travelers and the overall industry. And at the end of the day, that’s a pretty subjective thing. (From Elliott Blog)
Looking for faster customer service from your airline? Flash your card — Frequent flier programs may be the crack cocaine of the travel industry, but if you want an airline to respond to your inquiry, being elite gets you priority treatment. So says a new survey of airline customer relations departments I’ve obtained. (From Elliott Blog)
“Got a nice surprise from Northwest this morning” — Happy Thanksgiving, indeed. At a time of the year when bloggers and talking heads like to pile on the airlines for their substandard service, it’s refreshing to hear about a carrier — and particularly one with a so-so reputation for customer service — not just meeting, but exceeding its customers expectations. I’m talking about Northwest Airlines. (From Elliott Blog)
Surprise! So far, Thanksgiving air travel ain’t so bad (unless you’re in Denver) — Forget everything you’ve seen on TV, heard on the radio or read in blogs about holiday air travel. Early indications are that things are running remarkably smoothly out there. Here are on-time numbers from the last 12 hours for the 10 busiest airports in the United States, courtesy of Flightstats. (From Elliott Blog)
Thrifty’s “system” thinks you should pay more — When you rent a car, you expect the rate you’ve been promised to be the rate you pay, right? Wrong. Often, auto rental companies tack on extra fees after you return to car, billing for everything from “mandatory” insurance to tire disposal. But some don’t even bother waiting, as reader Vicki Lewis recently discovered. (From Elliott Blog)
Elliott’s E-Mail is also underwritten by skoobadesign.com, designers and makers of some of the most acclaimed, innovative carrying cases and travel accessories for laptop computers and other tech gear. Skooba Design’s products have been named “best buy” by major independent consumer magazines, as well as leading technology, travel and general interest publications. Elliot’s E-Mail Subscribers get 20 percent off, plus free shipping (UPS Ground/48 States) on all Skooba Design orders of $50 or more. Just enter coupon code enter ELLIOTT20 at checkout. Some restrictions apply. Here are the details.
FLASHBACK | A retrospective from the Elliott archives
Northwest fun More posts about the airline…
Northwest’s stealth customer service initiative? — Is newly-solvent Northwest Airlines getting back into the customer service game? Maybe. Exhibit A: The latest customer complaints numbers released by the government. For the month of April, Northwest racked up only 69 reported complaints. That’s just 1.5 gripes per 100,000 enplanements, which is a few tenths of a point below average. (From Elliott Blog)
Donut emergency on Northwest — Let’s start at the end for a change. Northwest Airlines put this passenger on the next flight and upgraded him to first class as a goodwill gesture. And Northwest had a lot of making up to do. (From Elliott Blog)
Elliott’s E-Mail is also underwritten by Cheapflights.com, which lets you search and compare flights to find the lowest-priced airfare for your next trip. Get the details at Cheapflights.com.
POSTCARDS | The latest from Elliott’s personal photoblog
Note: You’ll notice that some of the photos on my the site look a little different this week. I’ve started experimenting with high dynamic range (HDR) photography, a technique that allows you to “show” more than one exposure on the same picture. Feedback is always welcome.
Christmas lights — It’s that time of year! Aren, Erysse and Kari are hanging up the Christmas lights while Daddy makes the eggnog. But not before taking a picture or two
Gotcha! — This is the first photo Aren took for our blog. It was actually two exposures (adding the third would have made the subjects too blurry). And we used a tripod Daddy doesn’t want to start up Photoshop, so everyone has to hold really still. Way to go, Aren!
Where’s my skateboard? — Aren got an early Christmas present — a skateboard. That was the easy part. Staying on it … now there’s the challenge!
I wanna ride! — Aren rode his bike for the first time without training wheels today. No worries. We’re only a few miles from a hospital.
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