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

June 2, 2003

>> Inside <<

* Mad as Hell
* Which In-Flight Amenity Do You Most Miss?
* Aren's New Blog
* Public Radio Double-Shot
* Five Business-Lunch Faux Pas
* Claamping Down on Legroom
* Passengers Rule
* Same Card, Wrong Hotel

>> First Off <<

** Mad as Hell
The summer travel season is underway, and reports of ruthless travel companies taking advantage of clueless travelers are on the rise. This week, Charlie Leocha takes a look at American Airlines' efforts to add new seats to economy class. In a commentary for NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday, I detail some of the industry's other offenses. Terry Riley follows up with a scary story on safety (or lack thereof). And I try to solve one reader's problem when she's double-billed for a hotel visit. It's enough to make you really, really upset. But that's good - stay mad. It's the only way anything will change in this corrupt industry. Tell us what ticks you off. Shoot us an e-mail. It's going to be a long summer.

>> Underwritten By <<

** The Great Alaskan Toursaver
Developed by Alaska travel expert Scott McMurren, it's full of free and 2-for-1 offers on all the state's top activities and attractions: flightseeing, fishing, whale-watching, adventure lodges, train rides, hotels, rental cars and much, much more. Just $99.95 - it's got $25,000 in travel savings. Everything is 2-for-1 or free! Tell them Elliott sent you.

>> By The Way <<

** Which In-Flight Amenity Do You Most Miss?
Carriers have been cutting back on meals and other amenities since 9/11. Which one do you miss the most? Is it the food? The in-flight entertainment? Or the little "extras"? Send us an e-mail and include your full name, city, and what you do for a living.

** Aren's New Blog
He's back by popular demand. When I mentioned that Aren's baby blog would end on May 23rd, many of you wrote in to ask us to reconsider. And we did. This week, it's my pleasure to introduce the sequel to Aren's blog: Aren's Adventures. This blog is similar to the last one, but you'll find it's more visual - with larger photos and short captions. By the way, we were pleased recently to find out that Aren's blog was among the first photo-blogs to be published online, and perhaps the first ever photo-blog written in its first-person narrative style.

** Public Radio Double-Shot
Elliott was on public radio twice during the last week. In his regular Fix My Trip segment on public radio's The Savvy Traveler, he chatted with Mike Brutz and solves the case of the shrinking pants. And on NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday, Elliott delivered a commentary about the airline industry's hard times. Click here to hear the whole thing. (If these links break up, please click on the HTML newsletter at the top of this page.)

>> Elliott's Commentary <<

** Five Business-Lunch Faux Pas
The recipe for a successful business meal seems deceptively easy. "Let's meet for lunch," you tell a client or associate. You get together. You talk business. Sounds simple enough. But you know better. A business lunch is part meal, part meeting. It's informal, but at the same time there's a long list of unwritten rules that can't be broken. A business meal is an opportunity to show off your culinary know-how - or expose your bad taste in restaurants. There's so much that could go wrong, it's no wonder 40% of us prefer to "brown bag" it, according to a recent restaurant trade association survey. > Details in Power Trip.

> Five Ways to Cut Meal Costs
> Bring Your Own T-Bone
> Should You Take the Kids?

>> Ticked.com Talk <<

** Claamping Down on Legroom
With dismay I read that American Airlines has decided to squeeze more seats into their coach cabins. I know, I know, they say it is only on the Las Vegas flights and a few others. But it is a mistake. As anyone who reads this column occasionally knows, I am a big fan of Southwest. But I became a fan of American Airlines as well when they finally took the lead and gave coach/tourist class passengers more room in the back. > Read more in Charles Leocha's column.

> Flights of Fancy
> Portly Passengers
> United Squeeze

** Passengers Rule
A little-publicized event occurred this past month in San Diego. A whacked-out passenger boarding an American Airlines jet yelled, "I can't take this flight!" grabbed his carry-on luggage and blew past the flight attendants and off the plane. Airport security was notified but was never able to locate the distraught-or, who knows, dangerous-passenger for questioning. In the meantime, the Dallas-Fort Worth bound flight crew must have thought, "No big deal." They just loaded up the remaining passengers, shut the door, put the plane in gear and drove away from the gate. > Read more in Terry Riley's column.

>> Triprights.com Ticker <<

** Same Card, Wrong Hotel
She books a room at the Tremont Plaza in Baltimore for four days to attend a conference. But when she shows up, there's no reservation in her name. But wait - maybe she and her partner are staying at the other Tremont hotel across town? No matter. The hotel finds her a room, but then sends her two bills: one for the nights she stayed there, the other for a "no show" fee. Now she wants to pay only one bill, but her travel agent won't let her. What's going on here? > In Fix My Trip.

> Mystery of the Phantom Booking
> Same Flight, Different Fare
> No Balcony at My Hotel

>> Also Underwritten By <<

** Cruisemates.com
Cruising is the world's best vacation value! And the best cruise bargains are in CruiseMates' Cruise Bazaar. One-stop Internet shopping for a variety of cruise lines and agents offering cruises around the world. Known for unbiased cruise reviews, feature articles, news and advice, CruiseMates means complete cruise information. Message boards, chat, polls, contests, humor, consumerism, family, single, teen, gay, and first-time cruiser information.

** Travelhunters.com
If you like to find great travel bargains, you've got to check out TravelHunters.com - the bargain travel community. The site was created by two brothers from Minnesota who love to help people find the best travel bargains. You'll find numerous hot deals for vacations and cruises, bargain travel articles, travel resources, and a comprehensive travel message board. Be sure to sign up for the free monthly newsletter - the Travel Hunters News - dedicated to helping people find amazing deals.

** AnitaVacation
Do you need a vacation? Do you need fresh ideas, news, and information to be inspired? Look no further than AnitaVacation.com. Editor Anita Dunham-Potter gives you timely insider tips on consumer travel issues, in-depth vacation features, and the best deals to favorite destinations, air travel, cruises, and much more. Sign up today for our free weekly newsletter with even more advice, viewpoints, and deals that show you how to have better travel experiences ~ because everyone needs a vacation.

>> Who's Reading Elliott's E-Mail? <<

* Demographics
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Total E3 Network visitors - 77,506
Change from last month +12,311 visitors/580 subscribers

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