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ELLIOTT'S E-MAIL
The Last Honest Travel Newsletter
http://www.elliott.org

July 2, 2001

> Inside

* This Week: Told You They Were Lying
* Censored: Get Your Refund Now
* Mobile Phone Confusion
* Guilty Pleasure
* Current Currency Advice
* Don't Trust Technology at the Airport
* Solomangarephobia
* Leave Fido at Home
* Reliable Sources
* Perkins: Your Rights - and How to Enforce Them
* Brancatelli: Taking Advantage of the Big Drop

> This Week in Travel

** Told You They Were Lying
Were the airlines lying about improving customer service even as Congress was on the verge of re-regulating them? You bet they were. Just listen to what American Airlines chairman and chief executive Donald Carty told a House panel last week. "The substantial and very expensive ongoing initiatives by this industry are in fact taking place in a time of dire economic conditions in which we have suddenly found ourselves," he said. "The resources we have to deal with customer service problems are very severely constrained." If this sounds like a cop-out to you, you're not alone. The airlines are using the economy as an excuse to continue offering substandard service and to lie about fares and schedules. We shouldn't buy it - and neither should Congress. - CE

> Censored from the Sunday Travel Section

** Get Your Refund Now
Recent fare wars mean you should run, not walk, to your airline ticket counter and demand a refund. Chances are that if you're traveling during the next month, the price of your ticket is dropping faster than a plane in freefall. Be certain to arm yourself with the carrier's terms and conditions - also called its contract of carriage - which is usually available from its Web site. Some airlines are also reportedly authorizing refunds by phone. (By the way, if your airline is refusing to give you a refund, e-mail editor@elliott.org with the name of the airline and details of the incident. Don't forget to include your full name, city, and what you do for a living.)

> By the Way

** Mobile Phone Confusion
If you travel internationally, you probably hate cell phones. With good reason. The portable you use in the States probably doesn't work overseas - and vice versa. This week, it's your turn to gripe about mobile phone compatibility and how you've managed it. Do you carry two separate phones? Do you rent one when you travel? Have you tried dual-band phones? Please send your comments to feedback@elliott.org along with your full name and city of residence.

** Guilty Pleasure
Whether you're a frequent flier or an industry insider, you probably already know that Elliott's E-Mail is one of travel's guilty pleasures. Mileage guru Randy Petersen calls it "one of our favorite reads." Now it's your turn to share your secret source of tips, information and controversy with friends and coworkers. By forwarding this dispatch, you're helping to get the word out on Elliott's E-Mail - the Monday morning antidote to the Sunday travel section. Subscribing is easy. Just tell your friends to follow this link: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/elliottslist

> Elliott's Cheap Travel Tip

** Current Currency Advice
This week's cheap travel tip comes from reader Ro Logrippo, who says that while ATMs are a convenient amenity when traveling overseas, you should never underestimate the power of a little pre-trip cash. "The first thing I do a couple weeks before flying is to visit the currency exchange counter," Logrippo says. "I've found it pays to take $100 in foreign currency with me for the country where I'm headed. This enables me to leave the destination airport on arrival without having to search for currency exchange. I can take public transport or a cab and have funds available. And I never get tripped up by a holiday falling in a foreign country the day or day after I arrived." Got a moneysaving tip? Send it to tip@elliott.org.

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> Elliott's Commentary

** Don't Trust Technology at the Airport
The camera may never lie. But the airport computer monitor, that's another story altogether. Edward Herold discovered that on a recent trip to Toronto. The Guelph, Ontario-based university professor arrived at Denver International Airport for a layover, looked at the screen displaying the flight arrival and departure times, and did a double take. "Our connecting flight was listed on the monitor as leaving at 4:45 p.m. - and it was 4:40 p.m.," he remembers. "My wife and I ran with our carry-on luggage for at least half a mile before we got to the other gate." Read this week's Travel Technologist at http://www.elliott.org/technology/2001/trust.htm

** Solomangarephobia
It strikes fear in the hearts of frequent travelers. It is more stressful than forgetting your passport, more frustrating than missing a flight, more nerve-racking than trying to check into an overbooked hotel. It is eating alone. "I'm phobic about it," confesses Charles Pizzo Jr., a New Orleans communications consultant. "Truly phobic. I often rent a car and head for fast food restaurants, where I don't perceive any social stigma in dining alone…. Actually, I generally get takeout and go back to my room." From the vault at http://www.elliott.org/vault/critic/1998/solo.htm

** Leave Fido at Home
Summer is here, and you're probably thinking of a vacation. Maybe a vacation with your pet. Well, think again. In this installment of ChrisCrossings from the archives, answer guy Chris Elliott revisits a query from a reader who plans to travel from Tampa, Fla., to Manchester England. She wants to return with a very small dog. Big mistake, says Elliott. In ChrisCrossings at http://www.elliott.org/ask/1999/crpets.htm

> Audio Commentary

** Reliable Sources
You can't trust an airline to give you reliable arrival and departure information. The terminal monitors are often no better. So where can you turn? The answers are in this week's audio commentary. Click on this week's Outtakes from the Laptop Traveler at http://www.elliott.org/audio/outtakes/2001/Flightinfo.mp3

(Note: You need an MP3 player on your computer to listen to the audio commentaries.)

> Other Voices

** Perkins: Your Rights - and How to Enforce Them
Although Congress is still dithering about whether to pass an airline passengers' "bill of rights," and if so which one to pass, you already have some limited rights. Government rules and airlines' conditions of carriage grant you some rights. And when an airline stonewalls you, you have the right to sue in small claims court. Two pamphlets detail those rights. SmarterLiving.com's Ed Perkins explains. At http://www.smarterliving.com/columns/ed/Your20010628.1.html

** Brancatelli: Taking Advantage of the Big Drop
Anyone with eyes and just a bit of experience on the road can see it. Airports are less crowded. The clubs are less crowded. The ticket counters and boarding gates are less frenetic. There are fewer flyers wedged into coach and a lot of empty seats up front. You're getting upgraded more often now. Or maybe you don't see any of this at all because you're one of the increasing number of business travelers who have simply stopped flying in recent months. Either way, The Big Drop is on. This week, Biztravel.com's Joe Brancatelli tells how to take advantage of it. Click on http://misc.biztravel.com/CPageUtil_.dll?Content&path=Nv/branc/01/062101branc.htm&affiliation=BT3&ssnid=

(Whoa, that's quite a URL. You know the drill - cut and paste into your browser for best results.)

** Heard a Rumor? Got News?
If you've come across any interesting travel or technology-related news, let us know at Elliott's E-Mail. We'll check it out. Send a note to editor@elliott.org or call (410) 626-9618.

> Other Sponsors

** Alaska Travelgram
Scott McMurren's Alaska Travelgram e-mail newsletter. Punchy, timely information on travel in, out and around Alaska! For a free subscription, click on http://www.alaskatravelgram.com

** AirJet Airline News
This issue of Elliott's E-Mail is also underwritten by AirJet Airline News, the largest electronic airline news magazine on the Internet. News updated hourly at http://www.airlinebiz.com/wire/

> Your Opinion Matters

Read something you disagree with? Got a story idea or a gripe? Your opinion can make a difference. E-mail editor@elliott.org or call (410) 626-9618 with any comments, feedback or suggestions about anything in this newsletter. Your participation won't just make it a better service, but it could also improve travel.

> Be an Underwriter!

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