BE HEARD: TRAVELERS UNITED GIVES YOU A VOICE IN TRAVEL
Travelers United is the #1 advocacy group in travel. Your Support Helps Us Continue Our Education, Research, and Advocacy. Be heard!
LATEST STORIES
Sunday musings: Alaska’s baggage guarantee, More vegan meals on planes, Resort fee subpoena to hotels
This week we look a good customer-service rule from Alaska Airlines that is often forgotten. We examine the new vegan offerings of airlines at mealtime. And, Attorneys General of 47 states begin to take action on eliminating the false advertising of resort fees.
read more
Is it arrogance or ignorance that makes one an “ugly tourist”?
As locals in a tourist town, I complain about ugly tourists. Some destinations even have signs that ask, “If it is tourist season, can we shoot them?” So, imagine my chagrin when I joined the ranks of stupid tourists on a recent trip to Wales only because of ignorance.
read more
POLICY
Airlines make kids vulnerable as sexual assaults soar
Airlines make kids vulnerable to sexual predators by charging families extra to sit together. Even though Congress, two years ago passed a law requiring DOT to study the issue and make specific rules to allow family members 13 and younger to sit together with families, DOT has not even begun a rulemaking to study the problem.
TRAVEL
Is it arrogance or ignorance that makes one an “ugly tourist”?
As locals in a tourist town, I complain about ugly tourists. Some destinations even have signs that ask, “If it is tourist season, can we shoot them?” So, imagine my chagrin when I joined the ranks of stupid tourists on a recent trip to Wales only because of ignorance.
DOT needs more airline customer service regulations, not less
I never can feel sorry for airline customer service requirements dictated by DOT that protect passengers. If anything, customer service protections need more strength and enforcement rather than less. The public needs help from DOT to keep the current program of regulations effective. Plus, we need some new rules.
read more
TSA’s Quiet Skies — is the agency secretly watching you?
Sometimes the government gets really creepy. An air marshall program, TSA's Quiet Skies, aimed at travelers who “are not under investigation by any agency and are not in the Terrorist Screening Data Base,” has been uncovered by reporters at the Boston Globe and the...
read more
America’s top consumer groups support FAIR Fees Act in Senate
Top consumer groups clearly announce support of the FAIR Fees act. When an industry that has near monopolistic power over its fees and when all major network carriers match each other fees dollar for dollar, consumers need protection. DOT has abrogated any responsibility for protecting consumers from unfair pricing practices. Congress, now, needs to take action.
read more
Discovering world food — The best of delicious dining
Our travels to more than 75 countries have taught us that the same holds true throughout the world. National, regional and local dining customs tell much about various cultures.
read more
“Southwest Effect” drives airfares down
Southwest flights drive airfares down and passengers up. The Southwest Effect is back in the news. The Southwest Effect is a phenomenon where airports that are a major hub for Southwest Airlines end up having cheaper fares on average. A recent study showed that the...
read more
Dangerous vacations can be a good thing
Danger can add interest for family vacations Where should you go on vacation? If you don't have to answer that question because you're just planning to lie on the beach for a week or read a book while the kids splash in the pool, then wake up. You can make your next...
read more
TRAVEL SAFETY
Ready for your summer road trip? Check your tires!
Before your summer road trip is the right time to check tires When heading on your summer road trip, don’t blow your summer vacation. And I mean that literally. Check your tires carefully. It looks like another big summer for driving. More than seven in 10 Americans are planning a road trip, according to the latest Hankook Gauge Index, a quarterly survey of American motorists.
TRAVEL TIPS
Why daily local newspapers provide useful benefits for travelers
Daily local newspapers provide a break from the online world, are affordable, filled with dining and entertainment news, and add color to travel every day.
The FAA is allowing smaller airplane seats to become death traps
The FAA is refusing to release emergency evacuation test data that shows smaller airplane seats and added passengers on planes still allow 90-second evacuation. The American public is growing larger and that airplane personal space is shrinking.
read more
8 ways to put child safety first
While the FAA recommends the measures outlined by the NTSB, it has remained resolute in exempting children under two so their parents can save the cost of their fares. Many parents take advantage of the exemption, holding their infant in their laps, gambling with their child’s life. While severe turbulence continues to be relatively rare, it only takes one accident or one incident of severe turbulence to lose a child.
read more
Hotel safety is still primarily on the shoulders of guests
Hotel security and hotel safety have been in the news lately. Both Hilton and Disney changed their “Do Not Disturb” policy. While the new policy will help make hotel guests safer, it’s still incumbent on guests to take personal responsibility for their own safety.
read more
Don’t lose it over lost luggage
More bags are lost than airlines are willing to admit. When luggage disappears, passengers are often pulled into a baffling world of forms, phone lines with prerecorded messages and endless waits. But you have more rights than you realize when your bags disappear, and there are long-term solutions to this irritating aspect of air travel.
read more
Last-minute ticket changes at the airport? You MUST do this next.
After any last-minute ticket changes make sure to recheck the rest of the reservation. Or, contact your travel agent. Don’t relax. Do it the same day or the next day. Sometimes there’s more than one issue.
read more
The sharing economy — complaints go up and so does usage.
Angela Diaz suffers from travel sharing economy fatigue. She recently rented a two-bedroom home in Dania Beach, Florida, but wishes she’d stayed in a hotel, instead. Is she alone or does this seem to be a wave of the future. Surveys tell one story and statistics tell a different tale. This may be the classic love-hate relationship.
read moreFOLLOW
Receive Daily Updates
SUBSCRIBE TO NEWSLETTER
WHAT HAVE WE DONE FOR YOU?
These accomplishments have been achieved by working closely with our members, national media, the travel industry, the Department of Transportation (DOT), Congress and many other agencies.
- Creation of the Advisory Committee for Aviation Consumer Protections
- Advertised airfares now include airfare plus, mandatory taxes and fees
- Lost/damaged/delayed luggage compensation limit increased to $3,500
- Passengers have 24 hours to change or cancel their nonrefundable tickets without penalty
- Once an airfare is purchased, that airfare and ancillary fees cannot be increased
- Families flying together act passed by Congress that requires family members 13 years of age and younger to sit with other family members at no additional cost.
CURRENT TRAVEL POLL
Do you think airlines have gone too far with adding more seats and reducing their size?
- No, they don’t bother me 3%
- Yes, I’m tall and/or overweight so seating is cramped and painful 22.6%
- Yes, I’m short but still find it difficult to get comfortable 28%
- Yes, when the passenger reclines it is almost claustrophobic 46.4%
