To maximize overall Amtrak safety, the US national passenger railroad should first deploy its new Airo trainsets to the Northeast Corridor to replace their oldest trains, manufactured prior to modern rail safety standards. Amtrak recently introduced its new Airo...
Amazing to say, there is a travel agent shortage today. I dropped in recently at an outdoor travel agent event for one of my favorite hotel groups. There, I met a sales representative who had flown in from Munich to visit their top agencies for the first time in three...
Airline flight delays and flight cancellations have become almost routine. Here are 8 hacks that you can use to defend yourself against their effects. In the last year, we’ve seen total meltdowns of airlines and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) causing...
Where is the DOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg? Since Trump, airline passengers see no change in regulation, the ATC is ignored, and railroad safety is clearly compromised. I have refrained from writing this column for several months. Anyone who works with me (or reads my...
If you’re planning a vacation rental stay, you need to do one thing before you kick off your shoes and unpack — if you don’t want to end up with surprise vacation rental cleaning fees. Grab your phone and start taking pictures. Lots of pictures. I speak from personal...
GAO report tells DOT to protect consumers better Five years ago, a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report outlined a series of problems with the Department of Transportation’s (DOT’s) airline consumer protections. These changes have not been made...
Southwest Airlines’ record-keeping is good — very good. First up, to be honest, like many travel agents, I don’t book Southwest that often. The airline that has, or had, a warm fuzzy relationship with consumers is difficult for those of us in the industry...
When applying for a new or renewed passport there are traps that can cause your trip to end before it starts. Plus, other passport traps cause problems at your destination. When traveling internationally, the one document we must have is our passport. Other documents...
Free family seating rules on network carriers started with United Airlines — until UA, only Southwest Airlines treated families decently. Only days after President Biden spoke against current airline family seating policies during his State of the Union address,...
The cost of business class is soaring, especially on monopoly routes. With all the concern about the cost of nearly everything these days, few travelers are going to really shed a tear over the cost of business class airfares. On the other hand, price gouging is price...
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.
– Removal of restaurant fees from DC area eateries — this is an ongoing project
– Creation of DOT Dashboard to outline consumer rights after cancellation of a flight
– Bi-partisan bill to eliminate hotel resort fees introduced into House of Representatives
– 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 $3,800
– 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.
