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Copyright Elliott Publishing. All rights reserved. For more information, call (305) 453-4781 or send e-mail to us.

ELLIOTT'S E-MAIL
http://www.elliott.org

May 27, 2002

> Inside

* The Stork Has Landed!
* Should Tax Pay for Blunder?
* Web Bargains on Rental Cars
* Not Too Late to Become an Underwriter
* Dying to Get on the Bestseller List
* Play the System to Win
* Given the Once-Over
* No Future for Tech Travel?
* I Try to Be Understanding...
* The Good Guys
* American Softies

> The Stork Has Landed!

I'm extremely honored to announce the arrival of my son, Aren Elliott. He was born May 23 at 6:35 p.m. at Baptist Hospital in Miami, weighing eight pounds, seven ounces. Kari and I are very grateful to all of your notes and phone calls of support, especially during the difficult first few days while Aren was in intensive care. We've posted a Web site for family members. Since I've always thought of my newsletter readers as an extended family, I invite you to click over and meet the next generation.

> This Week in Travel

** Should Tax Pay for Blunder?
Key Largo's heroic efforts to salvage the U.S.S. Spiegel Grove, the world's biggest and most expensive artificial reef, is weighted down by a troubling and largely overlooked fact: Much of the estimated $1.2 million that it will cost to scuttle the vessel isn't really its money alone to spend. The funds belong to the taxpayers and, to some extent, the tourists who visit the Keys.

> By the Way

** Web Bargains on Rental Cars
Which Web site offers the best prices on a rental car? Do you go straight to the company or do you also check Hotwire, Priceline or Orbitz. How many of the sites do you check before deciding on a purchase - and which order to you visit them in? Send us an e-mail, and please don't forget to include your full name, what you do for a living, and contact information. Your response might appear in a future story.

** Not Too Late to Become an Underwriter
You already know that your help is critical to the survival of the cutting-edge commentary and news that this Web site produces. This is the last week of our pledge drive, and we're really counting on you to come through. Other sites sell expensive subscriptions, limiting access to their information to only the most affluent travelers. Not us. We're here for everyone - but we need your assistance in order to keep it that way.

** Dying to Get on the Bestseller List
Neil Teplica "100 Things to Do before You Die" is the bestselling travel book this week. Also new on the list, at number two, is "How To Go Almost Anywhere For Almost Nothing: A Guide for the Economically Challenged Traveler," by Maureen A. Hennessy. Get all the details, plus find out more about our new featured book of the week, "Stuck at the Airport: A Traveler's Survival Guide," by Harriet Baskas.

> Our Sponsor

** DisneyDollarless
Do you wish you could visit Walt Disney World more often - or even at all? DisneyDollarless is a free email list that can help you do just that! DDL is also a unique vacation support network where members answer trip planning and cost-cutting questions, trade used guide books, exchange travel coupons, book group cruises, and earn Disney prizes among other fun activities.

> Elliott's Commentary

** Play the System to Win
What's the easiest way to start an in-flight brawl? Tape a picture of Osama Bin Laden to your seat? Drink a quart of vodka and make a pass at your seatmate? Nope. Just tell anyone how much you paid for your airline ticket. Chances are they shelled out more than you did (they'll get the first swing) or you overpaid (then you'll get it).

** Given the Once-Over
On two recent flights with Southwest Airlines a reader received complete baggage and body searches. Apparently he matched a profile because he made a reservation within three days of travel, traveled on a one-way ticket, or changed my time of departure. Trouble is, these searches weren't effective. What can he do?

** No Future for Tech Travel?
Is there a future for those of use who travel with technology? A review of the headlines during this column's five-year run would suggest that the answer is "no." If things continue at the rate they're going, then laptop computers, personal digital assistants and cell phones will be banned from planes, trains and cars.

> Ticked.com Talk

** I Try to Be Understanding...
Laying over for a few hours in London after a recent road trip, Joe Brancatelli jumped onto the Heathrow Express to squeeze in a quick lunch with one of his favorite airline executives. An Australian working for a major U.S. carrier, he promptly slapped me right between my groggy eyes with a full plate of righteous indignation. "Your columns were much better in the old days, mate, when you explained and analyzed the airline business," he began. "All you do now is complain. You're acting like you don't know a bloody thing about the airline business."

** The Good Guys
When Freddie Laker took off across the Atlantic with his low fares, it changed the airline world. But eventually Freddie Laker and his airline went bankrupt. He was driven out of existence by his competitors. It was enough to make Charlie Leocha cry. It was an ugly story. Every anti-competitive action that the major airlines could take was employed. In almost every other business environment, these activities would have been termed unfair and monopolistic.

** American Softies
Terry Riley is happy that our government here in the good ol' U. S. of A. looks out for us by requiring businesses to comply with certain safety standards. You know, "promote the general welfare" and all that. For the most part, these requirements help us go about our daily lives and our travels without having to worry about airplanes colliding, bridges collapsing, or rats - or at least too many rat parts - in our food. But there is a problem that is caused by these rules: They soften us up. Find out more in an archive Err Travel column at http://www.ticked.com/errtravel/2001/errsofties.htm

> Other Sponsors

** The Great Alaskan TourSaver
Going to Alaska? You need this book! Recommended by Frommers! More than 30 totally free offers on train rides, cruises and tours throughout Alaska. More than 100 2-for-1 offers all around the state. Flightseeing, the finest lodges, fishing charters--all at 2-for-1 savings ONLY in the Great Alaskan TourSaver. Check out the list of deals on the Web.

** M-Travel
The stock markets are down. The luster is off the dot-coms. But the application of mobile technology in the travel industry is alive and well. Although still in its infancy, mobile travel sales and services will be the biggest thing in wireless commerce. Visit the only Web site devoted exclusively to mobile communications and travel technology. Free weekly e-mail newsletter.

** Family Travel Forum
Summer's coming and you need the best resource for travel with kids? Join the FTF community for first-hand accounts, great vacation ideas and the editors' pick of real deals, free festivals, and regional events.

> Charter Underwriters

* AirJet Airline News - Airline news updated hourly.

* Applied Psychology - Security tips and more online.

* Bonjour Paris - This site's French connection.

* Journeywoman - The premier travel resource for women on the Internet.

> Your Opinion Matters

Read something you disagree with? Got a story idea or a gripe? Your opinion can make a difference. E-mail us or call (305) 453-4781 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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