• What's elliott?
• About elliott
• Contact us

t o p i c s

• Business
• Commentary
• Destinations
• Help
• Leisure
• Technology
• Vault

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

September 3, 2002

> Inside

* 9/11 Saved Business Travel
* Feeling the Pinch?
* Carlson Travel Tip: Jet Lag
* New Season, New Columns
* Agents vs. Web
* Sail Past Cruise Surcharges
* Up Scale, Down Fee
* Spring Cleaning at 36,000 Feet
* New Travel Bestsellers
* We Are the Enemy
* Navigating the New Security
* Drunk Pilots Affect Industry

> This Week in Travel

** 9/11 Saved Business Travel
Did the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 kill business travel? Conventional wisdom suggests that the attacks inflicted massive damage on corporate travel. But as the anniversary of the hijackings approaches, it's becoming increasingly clear that the conventional wisdom is wrong. Last September's events may have changed business travel for the better, and probably saved it. >> Read the whole story in Opinion.

> By the Way

** Feeling the Pinch?
How are recent cuts by air carriers - reduced mileage benefits, restrictions on tickets and pared schedules - affecting you? Send an e-mail to us and please don't forget to include your full name, city, and what you do for a living. Your answer may appear in a future column.

** Carlson Travel Tip: Jet Lag
It takes your body one day for each time zone crossed to completely recover from jet lag. If you arrive in the morning, eat breakfast and take a walk - don't sleep. Don't drink alcohol, regulate your diet, and avoid lots of sun. These will help you adjust to your new surroundings a lot faster. For more information on travel safety, visit our Web site or call us toll-free at (877) 288-3138. To subscribe to our bi-weekly email newsletter, send an e-mail to us with "subscribe" in the subject line.

** New Season, New Columns
Labor Day marks the end of the summer in the United States. Here in the Florida Keys the weather starts to cool off enough so that you can leave the windows open and switch the air conditioning off. This September is also a turning point in the life of this newsletter. We say good-bye to some features and introduce several new ones. In coming weeks I'll let you know the details of the change-over. Stay tuned.

> Our Sponsor

** ThriftyTraveling.com
A newsletter filled with travel tips and resources as well as late-breaking destination-oriented news and bargains you can use. Each issue is packed with a wide variety of useful information that will help you save money and travel safely without stress. It also has special Over-50, Solo Travel, and Net News sections.

> Elliott's Commentary

** Agents vs. Web
Jim Klein wouldn't think of booking a trip without a travel agent. Whenever he runs into trouble on the road, as he did on a recent flight from Philadelphia to Orlando, he remembers why he uses one. "My travel agent really went to bat for me," says the Mesa, Ariz., computer specialist. "My flight was canceled, but my agent was able to find a new flight on a different carrier, and convinced a supervisor to allow the change without incurring a fee." But not everyone feels that way. >> Details in Power Trip.

** Lost My Ticket in a Plane Crash
The Federal Express plane carrying my paper ticket crashed - and now the agency I booked my trip through won't issue another one, writes a frustrated reader. How to pick up the pieces after your paper ticket goes up in flames? Find out. >> Details in The Travel Troubleshooter.

** Sail Past Cruise Surcharges
The Collesi's 50th anniversary cruise on Royal Caribbean's "Enchantment of the Seas" was supposed to be a festive occasion surrounded by family and visiting charming Mexican ports like Cozumel and Costa Maya. And it was-until the bill for dinner arrived one evening. "They charged $1.45 per soda for each child," remembers Roz Collesi, a Des Plaines, Ill., retiree. "They really nickeled and dimed us to death." Her disenchantment is common. >> In The Travel Tightwad.

** Up Scale, Down Fee
This autumn is unlike any other in the travel business. A widely anticipated summer recovery in tourism appears to have fizzled, forcing hotels and resorts to extend - or even sweeten - existing specials. "There are more deals out there, and they're concentrated in the weakest parts of the travel industry," says Mary VanMeer, editor of the bimonthly online newsletter ThriftyTraveling.com. And weak spots are everywhere. >> Details in US News & World Reports' Diversions.

** Spring Cleaning at 36,000 Feet
Ever flick that light switch above your airline seat only to discover - Oh no! - you actually pushed the "service" button? You wait a few seconds for the annoyed flight attendant to come over and say, "Yeah, what is it?" Seconds turn to minutes, minutes to hours. No crew member ever shows. It's happened to me a time or two. Maybe I didn't press the button hard enough, but nothing happened. That doesn't surprise Cynthia Kane, a spokeswoman for the Association of Flight Attendants in Washington, who says she's not familiar with any federal or airline rules that would compel a crew member to respond. "The button," she says, "is considered a service." >> In The Travel Critic Archives.

> Ticked.com Talk

** New Travel Bestsellers
Ticked.com's list of September bestsellers has just been released, with all-new books leading the pack. Our featured book this month is Michael Shapiro's new edition of the Internet Travel Planner, the update of his authoritative title about online travel.

1. The Unofficial Business Traveler's Pocket Guide: 165 Tips Even the Best Travelers May Not Know (Christopher J. McGinnis)

2. Plane Insanity: A Flight Attendant's Tales of Sex, Rage, and Queasiness at 30,000 Feet (Elliott Hester)

3. The Travel Detective: How to Get the Best Service - and the Best Deals - from Airlines, Hotels, Cruise Ships, and Car Rental Agencies (Peter Greenberg)

Featured title: Internet Travel Planner: How to Plan Trips and Save Money Online Second Edition (Michael Shapiro)

>> Read the rest of the list.

** We Are the Enemy
The airlines seem to want to go out of business these days. Terrorists may have struck a symbolic blow against the capitalist Satan with their destruction of the twin towers, but the airlines themselves are proving to be much more of a threat to their survival than any terrorist may have been. My mind spins with the latest proclamations from the airline powers that be. Most businesses in bankruptcy, or near-bankruptcy trouble normally turn to their loyal customers to bring them back from the brink of financial disaster. >> Read Charles Leocha's column.

** Navigating the New Security
Tina Lorraine shakes her head as she assumes what passengers now call the airplane pose. Her eyes grow big as gloved strangers dig through her carry-on, wand her with a hand-held metal detector, then ask for her shoes. Take them off, she's told. "I didn't know it was like this," the 26-year-old said before she boarded a Southwest Airlines flight at Los Angeles International Airport. This is the new airport environment post-Sept. 11. Almost a year later, passengers are still learning their way through the revamped lines and ticket counters and the beefed-up security checkpoints at the nation's 429 commercial airports. >> Read more in Terri Langford's story in The Dallas Morning News.

** Drunk Pilots Affect Industry
Several months ago, while walking toward the boarding gate with members of my airline crew, our captain was approached by a passenger who asked if he'd been drinking alcohol. The query was met with candid incredulity by every member of the crew. Our captain was as sober as a corpse. (I've never flown with one who wasn't.) In a clipped voice, he informed the passenger of this fact and then marched toward the airplane, shaking his head. >> Read more Elliott Hester's column.

> Other Sponsors

** GreatCruises.com
Learn insider cruise information. Be an informed cruiser. Subscribe to GreatCruises.com's free monthly e-mail cruise newsletter, "All Cruise E-News." Get breaking news on new ships, new itineraries, price trends, cruise lines, health and safety inspections, cruise line awards and cruise tips of the month.

** EyeforTravel
The EyeforTravel USA East conference and exhibition taking place at the Hyatt Regency Cambridge on September 23 to 24 has over 150 people signed up for the event already. If you would like to be part of the biggest travel distribution event you can book now for only $995, a massive saving of $300 for a two-day VIP pass. (More information in part 2 of this newsletter).

** Firstclassflyer.com
Want to fly first-class for the price of coach? Looking for free upgrades, two-for-one specials and a fast-track to elite status? Look no further. These hot deals and more are available at First Class Flyer's Web site.

** Bonjour Paris
Bonjour Paris is a virtual trip to France for lovers of all things Parisian and French. Visitors will find travel information, food, wine and hotel tips, as well as lively cultural information.

** Save Money at Disney World
Secrets To An Affordable Walt Disney World Vacation will show you how to save up to 40 percent on your Walt Disney World Vacation. Discover the money saving tips and strategies - virtually unknown by the general public - that will help you save big on Disney hotels, dining, tickets, cruises, honeymoons, and souvenirs.

> 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

This site relies on support from travelers like you. If you care about journalism that's uncompromising, cutting-edge and consumer-focused, then you're invited to become a subscriber of elliott.org. Your contribution will help keep us operating.

> Please Forward Elliott's E-Mail

Did you know the average reader forwards Elliott's E-Mail to two other people every week? We don't mind at all, but you could always save yourself the trouble by inviting them to subscribe. It's easy and it's free: just click here.

> Credits and Subscription Information

Elliott's E-Mail is published 50 times a year by http://www.elliott.org. (c) 2002 Elliott Publishing. To unsubscribe, please go to our unsubscribe page and follow the directions or send an e-mail to our general unsubscribe mailbox.