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

February 15, 2004

>> Inside <<

* Hot News
* Question of the Week: Hard-sell Car Rentals?
* Sighted at the Travel Show
* Way to Go, A. Mark Hom
* Aren's Adventures Continue
* Travel Notes Takes Top Ranking
* It's All About the Bed
* Are Web Meetings Passé?
* Sex, Lies and the Caribbean
* This Week in Travel
* Sitting Next to Senator Slimeball
* Missing the Pointe-a-Pitre

>> First Off <<

** Hot News
This issue almost has a Caribbean theme, with the Troubleshooter taking on the unbelievable case of the traveler who took four days to fly from Newark to Point-a-Pitre, Guadeloupe, and a favorite commentary about sex, lies and the tropics. But there's more "hot" news this week, too. Ticked.com welcomes a new columnist, James Wysong, and we have our Question of the Week luggage winner (more on both of those later in this newsletter). Stay warm, folks. Winter is almost over!

>> Underwritten By <<

** Journeyware.com
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>> By The Way <<

** Question of the Week: Hard-sell Car Rentals?
Ever run into car-rental agents who wouldn't stop trying to sell you something? Maybe it was an upgrade, insurance or an expensive fuel-purchase option. They just wouldn't take "no" for an answer. This week, we're looking for your hard-sell car-rental stories. Don't forget to mention where and when it happened and what the outcome was. Send us an e-mail and include your full name, city, and what you do for a living. > Remember, your story could mean free luggage.

** Sighted at the Travel Show
Last weekend's LA Times Travel Show was a lot of fun. I had the honor of meeting many travel industry luminaries who I admire, including Kevin Coffey, John DiScalia, Catharine Hamm, Jeffrey Lehmann, Jim Richardson and Terry Trippler. It was thrill to be a panelist alongside Kathy Sudeikis and Pauline Frommer, and to meet the Times' new Internet travel columnist (and panel moderator) Jim Gilden. But most of all, I enjoyed seeing all of you who attended the show and introduced yourselves to me before and after the panel. Thanks for your support!

** Way to Go, A. Mark Hom
He's this month's winner of a Travelpro WalkAbout Lite Rollaboard from Elliott's E-Mail and Travelpro. How'd he do that? By answering our Question of the Week. > It's easy. Here are the details.

** Aren's Adventures Continue
The other day someone asked me if I still had a baby running around the office. I do. Actually, Aren is more of a toddler right now, which means he's getting himself into even more trouble. > Read all about his adventures (and misadventures) here.

** Travel Notes Takes Top Ranking
Thanks to all of you who have clicked on (and linked to) Elliott's Travel Notes, the impossibly controversial blog about travel rights. OK, so the blog has gotten me fired from a second-tier news outlet, but who cares? It's now the number-one ranked travel blog on the Web. Couldn't have done that without you, folks.

>> Elliott's Commentary <<

** It's All About the Bed
Phoebe Eskenazi endured many sleepless nights before checking into the Royal Sonesta Hotel Boston for a weekend. The Alexandria, Va., teacher was recovering from a bout of asthmatic bronchitis and just couldn't get any rest. But when she collapsed into an extra-cushiony Serta bed created just for the hotel chain, she fell into a deep slumber. "It was one of the most comfortable beds I've slept on," she raves. Eskenazi and her husband were so smitten they took a Sonesta bed home - for $1,600, including shipping. "It is all about the bed," says Sonesta spokeswoman Deborah Roker. The hotel industry is starting to agree. > Details in U.S News & World Report.

** Are Web Meetings Passé?
Business travel is back, with an improving economy and spending on the rise. But is it time to let your Web conferencing schedule go slack? Not for businesses who have seen how reducing extended time on the road can increase their employees' productivity. The use of "virtual meeting" technologies surged after 9/11, as Web and videoconferencing usage jumped 61% in the year following the attacks. Meanwhile, the number of in-person meetings dropped by about 16%, according to a study by Wainhouse Research. But now that corporate travel is returning to its pre-9/11 levels, it's worth asking whether online meetings should continue at the same pace. > Details in Power Trip.

** Sex, Lies and the Caribbean
Picture yourself reclining on a secluded tropical beach, a palm tree gently swaying above you. It's a tranquil and welcome image at a time when war worries and threats of severe respiratory infection are making travel anything but pleasurable, isn't it? Thank goodness for the latest issue of Travel+Leisure magazine, which doesn't leave anything to the imagination. A special 18-page Caribbean advertising section offers no less than three separate ads featuring photos of a lone coconut palm arching over turquoise water. On first glance, in fact, they almost look like the same tree shot from different vantage points. Nothing unusual there: Other destinations - most recently Bermuda - have run into trouble for using bogus stock pictures in their promotional campaigns. > Details in an archived Opinion.

>> This Week in Travel <<

News, opinion and analysis from Elliott's Travel Notes is underwritten by TravelHunters.com - hunting down the best travel bargains on the planet.

> Alaska Simplifies Fares, Lowers Prices (2/13)

> Report Slams Screening System (2/12)

> Car, Hotel Surcharges Just Aren't Right (2/11)

> How 'Total' is Car Rental Price? (2/10)

> Hotel Spas Can't Get a Break (2/9)

> See archived blog postings at or catch up on today's news.

>> Ticked.com Talk <<

Note: We're pleased to introduce a new columnist to the Ticked.com lineup - author and flight attendant James Wysong. He'll be filing regular dispatches from 36,000 feet and offering commentary from the other side of the galley, so to speak, in a new column called "A Frank Steward." Please check out his new column and send him a note if you like it.

** Sitting Next to Senator Slimeball
The senator was the last to board the flight. I was a passenger in the first class seat next to him. We had been waiting on him to close the doors and get on our way. Before the meal service, a man from the economy section brought his six-year-old son up to meet him. Hey, sonny, what do you want to be when you grow up?" the slightly inebriated lawmaker said as he patted the boy on his head. "I want to be a pilot or a senator just like you." "Well, you'd better stay in school or else you may end up being a flight attendant instead," he said. I almost choked on an ice cube. > Read more in A. Frank Steward's debut column.

>> Triprights.com Ticker <<

** Missing the Pointe-a-Pitre
There are delays - and then there are airline delays. We've all been stuck in a terminal for a few hours, but what happens when you're in transit for more than half a week? What does your airline owe you? That's what one passenger wants to know. He and his girlfriend are delayed four days on a trip between Newark and Pointe-a-Pitre, Guadeloupe. American Airlines is sorry for the hold-up. But will it do anything more than apologize for burning away most of his vacation? > In Fix My Trip.

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

* Demographics
* Average newsletter circulation - 20,277
* Last month's total unique visitors
Elliott.org - 56,742
Ticked.com - 25,864
Triprights.com - 9,755
Not2far.com - 2,504
Total E3 Network visitors - 94,865

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