Travel Blogs
Ticket refund on “hold” while travel agency squabbles with airline
Patience is a virtue. Particularly if you're waiting for an airline ticket refund.
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What’s new on Elliott: Help me Uncle Sam, hotels get desperate for good reviews and squabbling over a refund [Brought to you by Competitours -…
Can the government really help travelers? Plus, hotels would do anything for a good review and a customer is left high and dry in Antigua
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US Airways fined $40,000 for failing to disclose full airfares
In yet another sign that the Transportation Department is serious about protecting the rights of consumers, the government this morning fined US Airways $40,000 for failing to disclose the full price consumers must pay for air transportation. “When consumers shop for air travel, they have a right...
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Best price loophole leaves Antigua visitor high and dry
After Craig Simpson booked a six-night stay at the Cocos Hotel on Antigua, he wondered if the $312 rate was the lowest available. It's a good thing Expedia offers a "Best Price Guarantee" so you customers like him can "always book your trip with confidence." The identical room was $293 a night..
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Busted! How to ensure your luggage survives a trip
One minute I was rolling my carry-on bag along the concourse floor at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The next, I was arguing with a useless box on wheels — and dreading what would happen to my back if I had to carry it.
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What hotels will resort to for a good review
Oh, the things hotels will do for a good review. It's not enough to ask guests for a write-up on a popular site such as TripAdvisor or Yelp after they've checked out. Lately, some innkeepers have been pressuring their customers to say positive things online -- in extreme cases, even before they've...
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Forget this volunteer vacation — let’s go to Vegas!
Ellie Capers' 12th-grade class has plans to volunteer at a marine lab in Baja, Mexico, when the swine flu outbreak forces them to cancel their trip.
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What to do when an airline doesn’t follow its own rules
Can you force an airline to follow its own rules? Phil and Margaret Warker wanted to know after a disastrous return flight from Nassau to Washington via Miami
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What’s new on Elliott: JFK’s curse, airlines that don’t follow their rules and Dave Carroll strikes again [Brought to you by Competitours -…
Is JFK cursed? Plus, what to do when an airline doesn't follow its own rules and Dave Carroll strikes again.
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A picture is worth a thousand words — if you’re renting a car, make that $1,444.61
This is Kathyria Padilla's rental car. When she returned it to Avis last April, she took a few snapshots of the vehicle, just in case. Good thing she did.
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Robinson Crusoe Island
I was in Haiti in 2007, less than two years before the disastrous earthquake hit the Caribbean Island. Back in 1998 I was on another island that’s recently suffered earthquake damage, Chile’s Robinson Crusoe Island. Eight people on the island are known to have lost their lives when the tsunami resulting from the...
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Dave Carroll strikes again: “United needs to change in a big way”
He's back! United Breaks Guitars' Dave Carroll late yesterday released the third in his trilogy of United-themed songs.
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Why we cut up our credit cards
I was in Bali from 15 to 20 February, Maureen was having an important birthday and we’d convened a family get together in Ubud to celebrate. We were paying for it so during our visit there were assorted ATM withdrawals, nine charges to my Visa credit card and two to my Diners Club...
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Palm Coast Travel gets more company as regulators crack down on Cruises R Us, Atlantis International
Florida regulators this morning cracked down on two more travel agencies as part of their expanding investigation into illegal travel insurance. It brings the total number of companies charged with selling fake travel insurance to seven since January. More enforcement actions are believed to be on..
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Veteran frequent flier stripped of 46,000 AAdvantage miles — are they gone forever?
American Airlines knows how to contact Mary Ann Hall. And it does.
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What’s new on Elliott: upgrade your next vacation, airfares that vanish in a click, and Palm Coast’s claims [Brought to you by Competitours -…
Upgrade your next vacation. Plus, airfares that vanish in a click and Palm Coast's claims.
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Internal report shows Palm Coast Travel had $27,787 in outstanding travel insurance claims
A fresh round of public records released by the state of Florida's Department of Financial Service this morning reveals a "medal count" of complaints against travel agencies alleged to have sold illegal travel insurance, as well as the number of claims and their estimated value.
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My Oyster Card, My Myki Card
Public transport smartcard systems are all the go. All over the world cities are rolling out computerised transport tickets which allow commuters to use one card to access multiple forms of public transport.
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Losing my faith on Shamu’s first weekend back on the job
For the same reason people go to a car race (to see a fiery crash) or a hockey game (bare-knuckled fight) Shamu Stadium was packed to the gills for the 12:30 p.m. show Sunday, on Shamu's second day on the job after the unfortunate incident in which he killed his trainer. Everyone wanted to...
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Accidental tourist? Tips for maximizing happy coincidences — and avoiding the bad ones
Accidents happen when you travel. The bad accidents — the fender-benders, the missed airline connections the unfortunate food-borne illnesses — are the ones that come to mind first, of course
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The low airfare that vanishes in a click
Now you see it.
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Is my hotel’s lost star a lost cause?
When Stephanie Farrow books a nonrefundable hotel room through Priceline, she's promised a four-star property. She ends up with a three-star and when she complains, she's given the runaround
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Gaddafi’s naughty boy
Travelling around Libya it struck me that Muammar al-Gaddafi
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Refund-less after six months: “I feel as though we have been taken advantage of”
Everyone knows airline refunds can take a long time. But how long is too long
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What’s new on Elliott: Waiting for a refund, a failure to launch and TSA cracks down on Good Samaritans [Brought to you by Competitours – Amazing…
How long should you wait for a refund? Plus, a failure to launch, and TSA cracks down on Good Samaritans.
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A failure to launch — and refund
Glenn Cox had planned a trip to Orlando to watch the next Space Shuttle launch, but when liftoff was postponed, he found himself holding a hotel reservation with some surprise restrictions.
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