Carry-On Rules…are they out of hand?

Are the airlines taking it too far? I recently considered taking a flight but then I had second thoughts. What was I going to do with nothing to read, no paper and pen to write with. What a boring trip!

Not to mention the thought of having to check my laptop with everything else. If normal suitcases come out damaged, could you imagine what might happen to your laptop that has all your work, files and other important info on it? I can just see my laptop bag coming out of the baggage belt fine but the laptop in a million pieces.

The people I really feel really sorry for are the professional musicians. They have instruments that are worth a fortune and most of them are custom made, making it even harder to get a replacement. I can’t believe that airlines are making them check these items. In a recent story here, a man that was touring Europe with an orchestra had his violin shattered on his flight home. Now this mans job is at risk, as it was a custom violin and now he has no instrument.

Another case recently was when J.K Rowling was asked to check her last ‘Harry Potter’ manuscript with handwritten notes as luggage. Now this is going a bit far…she challenged them as it was only paper and the let her take it on as carry-on.

Isn’t it time that airlines start make some exceptions to the carry-on rules?

Troubles in Thailand…

Due to the current unrest in Thailand, would you consider Bangkok as a destination for a holiday or a stopover in the next week, month or year?

I have been to Bangkok and I really enjoyed my time there but I am glad that I have been as I’m not sure if it will ever be the same.

One of the main problems that the tourism industry faces is that Bangkok is a major transfer point for people travelling from Europe to Australia / New Zealand.

Will this have an effect on flight routes in the future?

Would you buy your next holiday from Ebay?

Think about it…you buy presents, books and a tonne of other items from Ebay, so would you buy a vacation?

There are airfares, vacation packages, hotel accommodation, self catering houses and a lot more all up for auction, but would you trust buying your next holiday from the auction site?

There are some good deals to be had and people are bidding, but would you?

Is it time for the bubble to burst?

I came across an interesting article about the amount of start-up travel related websites and the article is asking - Are there too many online travel start-ups? Personally I think the answer is yes…It seems like everyday I am getting emails from new companies.

Anyway, the article is an interesting one - so check it out.

Am I forgetting something?

A friend of mine recently arrived from a short flight & proceeded to get home. It wasn’t until my friend was home (45 min. drive), that he went to get his bag out from the car & realised that the bag wasn’t there…it occurred to him that he had left it on the baggage carousel at the airport. He had just walked out of the airport without realising that he forgot to get his bag.

Once he was home, he called the airline (WestJet) and they advised that he needs to go back to the airport and get it which was all good.

What wasn’t that normal was when we were at the airport picking up the bag, he didn’t have to show ID to claim it. His word was just good enough. I thought that for sure he would have had to shown ID or airline ticket, but nope - not a thing was required.

Does this seem right? Has anyone else ever had anything like this ever happen?

Jetstar does it again…

Jetstar, the budget offshoot of Qantas is planning on flying to Asia which means super cheap fares for Australians!

Jetstar Australia has hooked up with Singapore Jetstar Asia to provide flights to Bali, Osaka, Ho Chi Minh City, Phuket and Bangkok but they are already offering introduction fares as low as $169 o/w to Bali, $249 o/w to Osaka, $398 to Vietnam return - these fares are all including taxes!

The flights will begin in November this year but being a budget airline, there are a few little added extras you may want to pay for such as $25 for two meals, $10 for an in-flight entertainment kit and $7 for a comfort pack with a pillow and blanket.

Don’t forget these prices are in Australian Dollars - so super cheap!

Advertised airfares including taxes???

Well I never though that this would happen, but the European Commission recently proposed a new legislation that would make airlines advertise their fares including ALL taxes, charges and fees…and no this is no joke.

Could you imagine looking at an airfare online or in a magazine / retail agency and seeing a price that was truely ALL INCLUSIVE?

Fingers crossed that this legislation is approved!

What services does your airport offer?

In the last couple of years, I have really noticed more and more airports offering different services while you wait, or while you are on holidays…

Some of the services I have seen or heard of are:

• Dry Cleaning
• Medical / Doctors
• Spa / Massage
• Car detailing / cleaning
• Hair dressers
• DVD rental

What services does your airport offer?

The end is near for paper airline tickets!

The time has finally come with IATA (The International Air Transportation Association - more on IATA coming soon) announcing that they will be forcing airlines to phase out paper tickets by the end of 2007.

Currently 50% of tickets in todays market that are being issued are e-tickets and I’m sure this makes everyone happy…some benefits of e-tickets are:
- Save the airline industry up to US$3 billion a year
- E-tickets cost US$1 to produce compared to paper tickets that are US$10
- Easier itinerary changes
- No more lost tickets
- Plus saving trees!
E-tickets are the way to go…

Check out Farecast…now live!

Quick update on my previous post a couple of days ago, Farecast.com is now live and available to the public.

Unfortunately it is only available for people flying out of Seattle & Boston but I still think that it is worth keeping an eye on for the future!