U P F R O N T
Grillin' & Chillin'
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Best wishes to all Crier readers for the July 4th holiday.
If you're traveling by air, expect security-related delays at the airports and allow plenty of time to get to the gate.
I finished up my last trip well before the beginning of the holiday crush, and don't plan to be anywhere near an airport until things quiet down again. I'm looking forward to a quiet weekend in my own neighborhood, lingering with friends over long meals in half-empty restaurants.
Cheers!
This Week's Travel Newsbites
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How bad was May? The Int'l Air Transport Association (IATA) reports that international passenger traffic was down a whopping 21% over the year-ago period. Broken out regionally, the SARS-pummeled Asia-Pacific carriers were the worst hit, with a 50.8% drop, followed by North American carriers which were down 20.6%, and European carriers down 5.5%.
Hard on the heels of firing more than 3,000 flight attendants, American is signaling that yet more changes are in the pipeline. Speculation tends to concentrate on route and frequency cutbacks, but more worrisome is the prospect of further backsliding on their "More Room Throughout Coach" program.
Also ominous: reports that Midwest may be forced to file for bankruptcy protection within the next 2 weeks.
On the good-news end of the spectrum, AirTran placed an order with Boeing for up to 110 737's and 717's -- a sure sign of AirTran's robust financial health, and a boon to Boeing, which has been losing ground to arch rival Airbus.
Boeing also got a nice shot in the arm from All Nippon Airways, which ordered 45 737-700's for use on its domestic Japan routes.
M I L E S & P O I N T S
Earn Up to 32K Bonus Miles from Cathay
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Cathay Pacific is reprising its "Return Rewards Offer" -- up to 32,000 AAdvantage bonus miles for 3 or more first or biz-class roundtrips from the U.S. to Hong Kong or points beyond.
The 1st qualifying roundtrip earns 8,000 bonus miles; the 2nd earns 16,000; and the 3rd earns 32,000.
Qualifying travel must be completed between July 1 and Dec. 31, 2003. You must be a U.S. resident to participate.
Register prior to travel by calling 1-800-882-8880 or online at http://www.aa.com/offers, promotion code CXRRO.
Cathay Offers Miles to Travel Agents
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Another re-run from Cathay Pacific: their "Miles For Me" program, which awards travel agents up to 15,000 AAdvantage miles for booking Cathay.
Registered agents can earn up to 15,000 AAdvantage miles for selling Cathay Pacific transpacific or transborder one-way or roundtrip tickets between North America and Asia or between New York and Vancouver. Miles are earned on qualifying first, business and economy class tickets sold for travel between July 1 and Dec. 31.
For more information or to register, agents should visit the CXcyberAgent website at http://www.cxcyberagent.com.
From Diners Club: Restaurant Rebates
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Diners has partnered with iDine -- provider of the miles-for-dining module in many of the largest airline programs -- to offer Diners cardholders a discount of up to 20% off the bill, including tax, tip and beverages, when charging meals at more than 4,000 participating restaurants.
The discount is applied automatically and is reflected on card users' monthly billing statements.
The new Restaurant Savings Program is available with Diners' Personal, Carte Blanche or Montage cards.
Cardholders still earn Diners Club Rewards points, but only on the net amount.
> More...
Omni Hotels Is New Mileage Plus Partner
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Effective July 1, Mileage Plus members can earn miles for stays at Omni Hotels.
Normal earning rate is 500 miles per qualifying stay. To promote the partnership, members will earn 1,000 miles per stay from July 1 - Aug. 31.
'Qualifying stays' in Omni's case means business rates. To earn Mileage Plus miles for cheaper rates -- "most government, leisure and group rates" -- travelers must join Omni's Select Guest program, and attain Gold status (6 stays).
(See "Sweeps & Freebies" below for an Omni sweepstakes to encourage Select Guest sign-ups.)
> More...
United Adds NetBank to Partner Roster
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Effective immediately, Mileage Plus members may earn miles for banking services from NetBank, "the country's first commercially successful Internet bank."
Members earn 2,500 miles for opening and funding a NetValue or SuperValue checking account; 2,500 miles for opening and funding a NetVantage Money Market Account; 1,500 miles for initiating direct deposit with NetBank; 500 miles for enrolling in and using NetBank's online bill payment service.
(NetBank entered into a similar relationship with Delta in May and has a longstanding relationship with Six Continents' Priority Club Rewards.)
> More...
WestJet Doubles Air Miles
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Canada's low-fare WestJet is offering double Air Miles reward miles -- 2 miles for every $20 spent -- for online bookings through July 26.
The special offer is to promote WestJet's expansion of its participation in the Air Miles program, from an award partner to a full-fledged earn-and-burn partner.
> More...
S T E A L S & D E A L S
Deal Alert from SmarterLiving.com
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This week's hot deals from SmarterLiving.com...
Explore Hawaii for less with fares as low as $318
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Small airlines that fly to Hawaii offer many of the best deals, and in some cases, you can earn miles on your trip from a major carrier. You can fly last-minute to Honolulu, Maui, or Kona on Aloha for just $318 roundtrip, if you can depart from Oakland; Burbank, CA; Santa Ana, CA; or Vancouver, Canada. To get this fare, you have to book between 3 and 10 days before departure.
Or, travel from the West Coast to Maui this summer or fall with sale fares from Hawaiian, starting at $339 roundtrip, and earn miles on American or America West. You can also fly on Aloha from Reno or Santa Ana, CA to Hawaii for under $400. Though United is an Aloha partner, note that you can only earn Mileage Plus miles on Aloha's interisland flights.
> More...
18 Asian cities in 21 days starting at $699
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Cathay Pacific has cut $200 off the lowest price of its "All Asia Pass," which now costs $699. You can fly to Hong Kong from the East or West Coast, and then explore 17 other Asian destinations for up to 3 weeks. Malaysia Airlines is offering a similar package for travel to 25 cities in Southeast Asia, starting at $999.
> More...
S W E E P S & F R E E B I E S
Omni Sweepstakes Prize: Double Airline Miles
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Most travel sweepstakes award the winner a pre-specified number of frequent flyer miles. In an interesting variation on that theme, Omni Hotels' "Double Without The Trouble" sweepstakes will double the winner's existing frequent flyer mile balance (as of Aug. 31) in the program of American, Delta or United. There's a cap: 500,000 miles.
Enter between July 1 and Aug. 31 by joining Omni's Select Guest program at http://www.omnihotels.com.
Sweepstakes is open to residents of the 48 contiguous United States. Limit: 1 entry per person or e-mail address.
> More...
R E A D E R R A N T S & R A V E S
This Week's E-Mail Bag
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"In response to BJ's complaint (Issue #253) that on 3 separate occasions he was not able to apply his mileage to reward seats; I want to state that on 2 separate round-trips I was able to use my mileage. The first was in early November 2001 which I booked a day before departure as there was a family emergency. The so-called compassion fare was "unreasonable" for me, but I was able to use the mileage (20 or 25 k). Another subsequent occasion (Sept 2002), I booked travel for myself & my cello for the airline & used 20 k each for two seats. Perhaps there has been a change in policy to the number of available reward seats allocated for each flight, or perhaps the number varies depending on the seasonal demand, therefore BJ's experience is different from mine. I'm not saying that Continental is the most accommodating or friendliest airline company out there because I've certainly experienced indifferent, sometimes rude behavior from some of the ground personnel, but I wanted to offer a different testimony especially in this overly litigious society."
- Priscilla"
"I for one have tried to book flights may times on Continental and it is the rule you never get a flight anywhere good for a reasonable award. You can go to Nicaragua. But try to get a flight to Costa Rica in the high season for the base 35k award miles, you have a better chance of being struck by lightning."
- Bob
"In response to BJ's trouble redeeming mileage on Continental, I had the same problem on United. After trying unsuccessfully to redeem mileage for several different trips, I redeemed my United mileage for a Delta flight. And, surprisingly, I was able to do it on the first try for exactly the flight I wanted. Maybe with the new CO-DL-NW Alliance, BJ will have similar success using the Continental mileage for a Delta flight."
- Sherrie
F R E Q U E N T F L I E R F U N N I E S
True (Funny) Travel Stories
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"On a recent 'very turbulent' flight from El Paso to Dallas/Fort Worth the pilot came on the intercom to announce more rough air. He started by saying 'It's going to be pretty bumpy on our descent into the Dallas/Fort Worth Airport. For those of you, who are a bit apprehensive, tighten you seat belt low across your hips and hold on to your neighbor. For those of you who are more adventurous, hold your hands in the air and yell yooohooooo! Remember, you'll be on the ground in 10 minutes, but I've got to do this for 5 more hours.'"
[Thanks to Doug in Tennessee, who contributed this week's story for the enjoyment of Crier readers.]
Until next week...
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