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

June 13, 2004

>> Inside <<

* Another Hot Summer?
* Question of the Week: What Ticks You Off About Business Travel?
* New Travelcomment.com Column
* This Week in Travel
* Paying For Their Mistakes
* Lost - and Found
* Scalped!
* Fire Your Travel Agent
* Fraud in the Amazon
* Flashback: The Skies - Friendly and Otherwise
* Flying the Unfriendly Skies
* Angel Fire's Aliens
* Five Worst Airports
* Can Radiation Zap Your Data Inflight?

>> First Off <<

** Another Hot Summer?
Looks like it's going to be a hot summer for travelers. And I'm not even talking about the temperatures. In this issue of Elliott's E-Mail, we take a look at how the travel business is putting the heat on its customers after three slow years. There's a hilarious column by James Wysong on the flight attendant who was attacked by a toupee (no, I'm not making this up). And speaking of heat, our newest columnist John Frenaye steps into the fray with a debut column that is sure to make travel agents a little hot under their collars.

>> Underwritten By <<

** Net-roamer.com
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>> By The Way <<

** Question of the Week: What Ticks You Off About Business Travel?
This week, it's an open-ended question. What ticks you off about business travel? Long lines? High fares? Surprise surcharges? Rude tourists? Or is it something else? Let us know. 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. It did for Robert Johnson, our May winner.

> Trying to e-mail me? Please read this first.

** New Travelcomment.com Column
We're delighted to welcome John Frenaye to the growing roster of Travelcomment.com columnists. Travelcomment.com, which is technically still in beta and scheduled to officially launch later this year, is the place to go for cutting-edge travel commentary. Frenaye, who owns a travel agency in Arnold, Md., is an industry insider with an outsider's perspective. Please give him a warm Travelcomment.com welcome and don't forget to visit his debut column at http://www.travelcomment.com

>> This Week in Travel <<

News, opinion and analysis from Elliott's Travel Notes is underwritten by Travel Hunters - the bargain travel community.

> Hotels Offer Free Fuel to Travelers (6/11)

> Report: TSA Failing to Secure Airports (6/10)

> US Airways Passenger Attacks Cop (6/9)

> Web Site Warns of Airline Attacks (6/8)

> Virgin USA Goes to San Francisco (6/7)

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

>> Also Underwritten By <<

** edate.com
Where online dating meets travel. With the explosive popularity of online dating including a state of the art dating site, edate.com has teamed up with some of the world's largest travel partners to give away fantastic monthly trips and offer its members great travel deals, tips and more. Thousands of members can hook up in their own town or in some exotic locale. Check it out.

>> On Elliott.org <<

** Paying For Their Mistakes
For most Americans, this summer is the first opportunity for a long-overdue vacation. With worries of war, SARS and terrorism fading into memory and the economy on the rebound, more travelers are expected to be out and about than in any other summer since 2001. But for the American travel industry, this summer represents an opportunity of a different kind: a chance to make us pay for the many mistakes and missteps it's made during the last three years. Whether we're flying or driving, it seems the travel industry is determined to force us to shell out a little extra - slapping us with surcharges and fees meant to either improve their earnings or just cover expenses that taxpayers refuse to. > In Opinion.

** Lost - and Found
Travelers have turned to the Web for turn-by-turn directions almost since there's been a Web to turn to. No one knows the exact size of the mapping market - online or offline - but it's a safe bet that frequent travelers refer to them on a regular basis for help. The Web site Mapquest.com as well as MSN's Maps & Directions deliver millions of directions each day. For a vast majority of the road trips, online directions do the trick. But not for all of them. > Details in Power Trip.

>> On Ticked.com <<

** Scalped!
Sometimes passengers and flight attendants interact in the most unexpected ways. When I think of odd customer encounters, the story of Jean always comes to mind. On a flight to London, during the breakfast service, Jean rolled the cart down the aisle, quietly offering coffee and drinks to the few passengers who were awake. At one point, she swung her arm over a seat and reached for something on the drinks cart. Her diamond hooked onto a passenger's toupee and plucked it off. In horror, she thought she saw a rat-like creature crawling up her hand. > In A Frank Steward's column.

>> On Travelcomment.com <<

** Fire Your Travel Agent
You don't need me. I may be the only travel agent to admit it, but it's true. Under some circumstances you're better off booking a trip without my help. Think about it. Do you need an accountant to make a deposit at the bank? Do you need to see a doctor to treat a headache, or an attorney to pay for a parking ticket? Nope. So here are some situations where using an agency might not make sense. > In John Frenaye's column.

>> On Triprights.com <<

** Fraud in the Amazon
Getting overcharged for a hotel room isn't unusual. Billing mistakes happen all the time. But there are errors - and then there are errors. When one hotel guest is asked to pay an extra $2,000, she refuses. But then the hotel shows her charge-card company an invoice for the full amount that it claims she signed. She says it's a forged signature. What kind of recourse do you have in a situation like this? And whose side will your card company be on? In the enclosed column, I try find the answers. > In Fix My Trip.

>> Also Underwritten By <<

** FirstClassFlyer.com
Fly first class for less than what others pay for coach? Looking for free and purchased upgrades, 2-for-1s, advanced ticketing techniques, and a fast-track to elite status strategies? Look no further ... these hot deals and more are available at First Class Flyer's Web site.

>> Flashback: The Skies - Friendly and Otherwise <<
What happens up there doesn't stay up there, at least when it comes to air travel. Here's a collection of columns that have to do with the skies - friendly and otherwise.

** Flying the Unfriendly Skies
Remember when air travel was an elegant experience that passengers dressed up for? When meals were served on china with real silverware? And doting flight attendants pinned honorary plastic wings on the lapels of wide-eyed youngsters? I do, because I was one of those kids. I was charmed by crew members who made me feel like I was sitting in first class, even though I had a seat in economy. And, of course, I wanted to grow up to be a pilot. Every boy who was lucky enough to fly in those days wanted to be a pilot, especially after a visit to the cockpit. Those days are over. > In Destinations.

** Angel Fire's Aliens
There's a road sign along U.S. Highway 434 that looks so ordinary, so official, that you're tempted to ignore it. By the time you realize what you've seen - an image of a cow being sucked into a spacecraft - it's disappeared in your rearview mirror. There are the extraterrestrial-looking rock formations. Canyons that could pass for a backdrop in any science fiction movie. Darkness hides these surreal geological formations at night, but as the road curves up the mountain the moon emerges from behind a cloud and illuminates their chiseled, otherworldly surface. > In Destinations.

** Five Worst Airports
No airport is perfect. Each one has its flaws, whether it's Palm Beach International Airport's confusing access roads, Juneau International Airport's maddening fog or Las Vegas airport's omnipresent cigarette smoke. Frequent travelers understand that. They deal with it. But when an airport is so imperfect that we go out of our way to avoid it, when we would rather drive for hours to the next major city than bother with it and when we warn everyone we know to stay away, far, far away - well, those airports deserve special recognition. > In Power Trip.

** Can Radiation Zap Your Data Inflight?
When the lights on his plane started "to go crazy" on a recent flight to Japan, Andrew Back feared he might end up as that evening's headline news. "Everyone's switches suddenly controlled the lights for those in the seat behind them," he recalls. "After about 30 minutes or so they went back to normal. We never did find out why it happened." But Back, an electrical engineer by profession, had his suspicions: electromagnetic interference, or EMI, may have short-circuited the lights. Radiation levels are considerably higher at 36,000 feet than on the ground. > In The Travel Technologist.

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** Journeyware.com
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** Bonjour Paris
France has recently come under a lot of fire. Access Bonjour Paris if you're interested in the pros and cons about travel to France. Bonjour Paris is the best content site about France and is not afraid of controversy. With focus on hotel and apartment reviews, consumer reporting, plus tons of articles, Bonjour Paris is the best on-line resource about tout La Belle France. > Click here for more information.

** EasyTravelAir
The must-have travel accessory If you've fumbled with your ID while taking off your shoes and coat, emptying your pockets, and removing your computer, you'll find getting through airport security a lot simpler and less stressful with the Security Pouch. Purchase the travel-warrior-tested Security Pouch online special only $10 or call (800) 282-1469 to order at $14.99 each. Order now.

** ProTravelGear.com
The new SearchAlert re-settable combination padlock from Outside The Box offers unique innovations in luggage security. SearchAlert may be opened with an override device controlled by Transportation Security Administration agents. No SearchAlert lock should be cut off by TSA agents. In fact, we offer a free replacement if it's ever cut off. SearchAlert features a Security Window which changes color from Green to Red when any override device is used. $9.99 each or two for $17.98 Available exclusively online. Enter coupon code: ELLIOTT for a discount. Click here to order.

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

* Demographics
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* Last month's total unique visitors
Elliott.org - 47,311
Ticked.com - 28,554
Triprights.com - 10,289
Not2far.com - 2,288
Travelcomment.com - 4,116
Total E3 Network visitors - 92,558

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