My Barbados Blog

NOTE: While other airlines are raising rates, Southwest Airlines has refuted any changes to their baggage policy - it still allows passengers to check up to two free bags when they fly with Southwest and the airlines has no plans to change that - Kudos to them! - Linda

United Airlines initiated the 16th attempt to hike airfares late last week, and over the holiday weekend.

Continental Airlines, US Airways and Northwest Airlines matched, according to the airfare monitoring website FareCompare.com.

United's fare increase ranged from $10 to $60 roundtrip. City greater than 1,500 miles roundtrip (750 miles one-way) have been increased by $30 or $60; city pairs between 800 miles and 1,500 miles roundtrip (400-750 one-way) have been increased either $20 or $40 and city pairs under 800 miles (400 miles one-way) have been increase $10 or $20 roundtrip.

American Airlines also increased what appears to be mostly Southwest overlap routes by $6-$8 roundtrip.

AirTran raised fares by $50 across the bulk of its route system in the same airfare distribution. Alaska Airlines matched the increase increasing airfares ranging from $30 to $60 roundtrip.

Frontier Airlines has also added a $25 fee for a second checked bag, and Midwest Airlines also announced that it will charge a $20 fee for customers choosing to check a second bag.

Rick Seaney, CEO of FareCompare.com, said the timing of the increase, which came on the heels of low customer satisfaction, and American Airlines contentious $15 first check bag fee this week – is at best a bit tone deaf - underscore the desperate measures airlines are likely to take if oil prices continue rise unchecked.

Seaney said airlines have no choice but to pass on the cost of fuel to consumers and when passengers do begin to push back in significant numbers the airlines have no choice but slash capacity by that same amount.

However, he said that a bright spot for passengers is that airlines have to keep the planes completely full and that means those willing to travel on off-peak days like Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday and off-peak times of day can still get reasonably priced tickets if they don't procrastinate and start shopping a few months before departure.

For more information, visit www.farecompare.com

I agree with the survey results that money is not the main factor when celebrating a second honeymoon. We have booked six couples celebrating second honeymoons for Barbados this year.

The majority of the six have been married for over 20 years, and let's face it - you want something really special after that length of time. Five couples have booked at The Crane, with the remaining couple booking at Crystal Cove.

Hawaii topped the list for second honeymoons in the survey, but since we specialize in Caribbean travel - with a strong emphasis on Barbados, our results are obviously slanted towards this region. But I wholeheartedly agree that travel agents are the first to notice trends, and those of use who specialize in one particular area are less affected by new trends in travel.

While the Caribbean is not the first destination Americans choose for travel, our travel business continues to be strong for 2008. The main downside we see is the weak dollar forcing many Americans to travel closer to home, or in the case of the Caribbean, look for cheaper markets and travel specials - Linda

For overall travel, here's the results of ASTA's survey of agency owners and managers . . .

In its annual “Hot Spots for Summer” survey, the American Association of Travel Agents (ASTA) polled 585 travel agency owners and managers to determine the most popular second honeymoon destinations and uncover other emerging travel trends for 2008.

“Agents typically recognize travel trends long before anyone else,” said Cheryl Hudak, CTC, ASTA president and CEO.

“However, ASTA conducts these surveys to keep all of its members informed, especially those who specialize in one or two specific areas of travel and are generally less affected by trends. When agents are aware of current consumer demands, they are able to prepare and assist any client regardless of their travel expertise.”

According to respondents, Hawaii was the most popular second honeymoon destination with 24.4% share of the total response. While Hawaii can be more expensive than other destinations, respondents reported that money was less of a determining factor for couples who were taking a second honeymoon destination, compared to couples taking their first.

Cruising was ranked number two, with 11.6% share of the total response. Respondents routinely book cruises for second honeymooners because this type of vacation offers variety, convenience and, on-shore excursions, dining and shopping excluded, an all-inclusive package.

The third most popular second honeymoon destination, the Caribbean, also offers travelers endless options due to the number of islands that comprise this tourist-friendly oasis.

Jamaica and Cancun, ranked fourth and fifth respectively, rounded out the top five most popular second honeymoon destinations.

Although in the bottom half of the top 10, Europe, ranked number six, and Italy, ranked number seven, prove that interest in European vacations is still strong despite the current weakness of the US dollar.

With 3.5% share of the total response, Mexico claimed the number eight position. Tahiti, with 3.2%, and St. Lucia, with 3.0% of the total response, fell into ninth and tenth place respectively.

Last week I posted about airline news in the U.S. and Caribbean. Air Jamaica made a decision to stop its service to St Lucia in April, and I posed the question about continued service to Barbados.

Well that question has been answered - Air Jamaica is increasing  it's service to Barbados, along with Grenada - Linda  

Air Jamaica is increasing its seat capacity from JFK to both Barbados and Grenada, effective April 1, 2008.

Air Jamaica’s Sr. VP announced that the airline will continue to serve the New York - Barbados route with daily non-stop flights, and upgrading the existing A-320 Airbus aircraft to the larger A-321 which carries an additional 38 seats.

“Barbados will continue to have the most convenient schedule to the island from the northeast United States - we’ll be first on the beach and last off the beach,” said VP Pennicook, who explained that the fully dedicated Barbados flights from New York and Jamaica will not be shared with any other Eastern Caribbean nation.

The airline executive explained that the new schedule also opens up daily non-stop flights between Barbados and Kingston, Jamaica - an important and profitable intra-Caribbean business route - and connections from Kingston to the U.S. may also be added.

Last Minute Vacations are booked with 3-14 days of travel. Many travelers think they can only take advantage of "last minute vacations" at the last minute. However you can plan your vacation time well in advance, and then book with two weeks of travel and save up to 60%.

We advise all our travel clients to bookmark the "last minute travel" page of our database, and check back right before their travel dates.

One of the best travel letters was received back in November. A young couple wanted very badly to get away and celebrate a honeymoon they never got to take because of the husbands military service. While they had their sites set on the Caribbean, they ended up taking a trip to Paris for $389 per person! I have to admit that even I was impressed with the price they managed to get.  

That price included air, hotel and taxes. Needless to say they were thrilled going on a trip they never thought they could ever afford. Upon return, both stated they had a wonderful, romantic honeymoon, and even had money left over to buy a few souvenirs. They are sold on "last minute vacations", and will book another in August - hopefully to Barbados.

Here's a listing of "last minute Barbados" vacations, along with several other islands. You may want to bookmark this page, because you never know where you might end up, and you will definitely save lots of money if you can be somewhat flexible on your destination.  

Last Minute Barbados Vacations 

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has begun an important countdown - 100 days to 100% e-ticketing.  100% electronic ticketing eliminates lost tickets, makes itinerary changes easy and enables a wide array of self-service options.

"In 100 days the paper ticket gets put in a museum. On June 1, 2008 we will achieve 100% electronic ticketing," said Giovanni Bisignani, IATA's director general and CEO.

The "Simplifying the Business" program drive by IATA began back in June 2004, with the goals of making travel more cost efficient, along with making travel and shipping more convenient. Back then only 18% of the tickets issued around the globe were e-tickets, but today the number has risen to 93% overall.

The program began with five projects:
1) Bar Coded Boarding Passes (BCBP)
2) Common Use Kiosks for Self Service check-in (CUSS)
3) RFID for aviation, e-ticketing and e-freight with annual industry savings of $6.5 billion.
4) Fast Travel the self service project
5) Baggage Improvement Program

But there are still challenges to getting everyone around the globe onboard. E-ticketing in Africa is 83%, along with the Middle East having reached 84%.

But, the real concern is Russia, and the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) that used to be part of Russia - Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. They are all currently at just 54% e-ticketing because of recent government changed legislation.

For more information, visit www.iata.org/stbsupportporta

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Air Jamaica is offering "Leap Into the Caribbean" fares, which are available now through Feb. 29.

Roundtrip fares include:

Atlanta to Jamaica: $218; Ft. Lauderdale and Miami Jamaica: $208; New York (JFK) to Jamaica: $238; New York (JFK) to Barbados: $398.

For more information, visit www.airjamaica.com.

Cruise Passenger ID and New Pre Departure Requirements

New Cruise Passenger Pre-Departure Requirement - if you are planning a Caribbean cruise, or have already made reservations for a cruise vacation, please be advised of this new pre-departure time requirement.

As of Feb 18, all cruise passengers departing from U.S. ports must be on board at least one hour prior to sailing, a new pre-departure requirement of U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Cruise ships are required to provide U.S. Customs and Border Protection a full passenger and crew manifest an hour before leaving port. So when flying into your port of departure, you should factor this new time frame into your airline flight schedule, as well as the time it will take you to get from the airport to the cruise port terminal.

Just so everyone is clear, I will post the travel requirements for land and sea travel, AND air travel from the U.S. again because there is still confusion as to what travel documents are needed versus type of travel. I will also add that the U.S. Government has not done its job in making this information clear to the traveling public, nor have they rolled out the requirement documents in a timely fashion.  

January 31, 2008 - All U.S. citizens 19 or older traveling by LAND OR SEA ports or borders, must prove their identity and citizenship with a valid U.S. passport, or provide TWO other documents that prove identity and citizenship.

Having a valid U.S. passport proves both your identity and citizenship.

If you do not have a passport and plan to travel on a cruise, or cross the borders between Mexico and Canada by land, you need to provide TWO pieces of ID - a valid driver's license or government issued ID AND an original or certified birth certificate. No copies of birth certificates are accepted. As of January 31, oral declarations of citizenship, which were allowed are no longer accepted.

This new ruling should not be confused with the travel requirements from January 2007 which required all Americans who are traveling by AIR to the Caribbean (except U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico), Canada, Mexico, and Bermuda to be in possession of a valid U.S. passport, or TWO pieces of ID that prove both citizenship and identity.

This should also not be confused with the new Passport Card which can be used instead of a passport to cross the land borders between Canada and Mexico. The new Passport Card will not be ready until this Spring, however you can apply for the card at the same facilities that provide passport processing.

This new Passport Card is not valid for AIR travel outside the U.S. - only for land and sea crossing to Mexico and Canada. The cost is $45 for adults (16 and over) and is valid for 10 years. Cards for children under 16 cost $35 and are valid for five years.

And for the latest on passport processing - from the latest indication, U.S. Passport processing is back on schedule. If you apply for a U.S. Passport, or need to renew your passport, the time frame to receive your passport is currently six weeks.  

• Way to Go!

STA Travel Looking for World Traveler Intern

STA Travel, the world's largest student and youth travel organization, is conducting a nationwide search for the next ultimate summer intern.

The STA Travel World Traveler Internship takes the winning student through 14 countries during the summer of 2008 as they document their adventures and inspire fellow students to travel the world.

The World Traveler Intern will highlight their adventures through blogs, photos and videos along the course of the trip.

This media will then be available for students to follow on several different online channels including STA Travel's Facebook Group and online social community, www.statravelers.com.

This integrated community of student travelers is an engaging space full of multi-media destination information.

Applications are being accepted through March 1 on www.statravelers.com.

The Coalition for an Airline Passengers' Bill of Rights has issued a challenge to each of the presidential candidates to make public their positions on the rights of airline passengers to not be subjected to more than three hours on airport tarmacs and to be provided a minimum amount of food, water, medical attention and other basic human essential needs during lengthy tarmac delays.

Policy request letters were faxed, e-mailed, and hand-delivered to each of the candidate's campaigns. The only candidate with a known track record on this subject is Senator John McCain, who led a campaign for passengers' rights in 1999, but then he dropped the issue in favor of the airline's self-imposed service improvements.

The Coalition said history has shown that the trust placed in the industry was misplaced. The other candidates do not appear to have a track record or public position on these issues. In related news, the U.S. Senate is reportedly considering an extension to the FAA Modernization Act that will effectively kill passengers' rights legislation this year, despite the fact that tarmac strandings continue to occur.

The group says their members are outraged. Every day that passengers' rights languish on the tarmac, is another day someone may suffer from diabetic shock or develop a blood clot.

The extension also affects desperately needed upgrades to the air traffic control system. Passenger enplanements are expected to increase to over one billion in the next ten years, further taxing an already over-stressed system.

For more information, visit www.flyersrights.org 

Whatever your vacation choice, we have FREE travel brochures available.

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It appears that some LIAT flight attendants are "unofficially striking" according to a press release by the airlines.

What is an "unofficial" strike?

If all the flight attendants are not striking, then these flight attendants are simply not reporting to work. A press release from LIAT states that since this is the Christmas season, not action against the employees is expected.

Well, the whole story will come out eventually, but what LIAT needs to be concerned about is getting their "customers" to their destination, along with the fall out this may bring.

This "unofficial" action has caused the airline to cancel approximately a fourth of its flights. Whatever the reason for the cancellation, passengers are stranded in Barbados - and they are not happy - and police were even called in to handle confrontations. What a mess! Unfortunately this experience may the first many of these passengers will have of Barbados, and the island was not even their vacation destination. 

LIAT made hotel reservations for some of the passengers, but many of them claim they never received a call from the airlines with updated flight information. And to compound matters, once they paid for transportation to get back to Grantley Adams Airport, passengers found that LIAT flights had already departed.

It appears most of the passengers were headed to the island of Dominica, and hopefully they will finally get to their destination. I imagine that LIAT may not be their airline of choice in the future - that's often the fall out with the tourist trade when it comes to airlines - especially in the Caribbean.

One incident should not turn travelers against a particular airline - but that depends on how bad the incident was, and what kind of inconvenience for the passenger - I know I have personally had my boycott against certain airlines.

Things have gotten so bad here in the U.S. with airlines holding passengers stranded, that new laws had to be passed - and passengers always look to be compensated - but often money does not remedy lost vacation time.

The Travel Industry Association, National Tour Association and Travel Business Roundtable conducted a survey of likely presidential primary voters in two key states, revealing that travel issues are of significant importance to the electorate.

Stung by a summer of travel delays and a 17% decline in overseas visitation to the U.S. since 9/11, voters in South Carolina and Florida feel the government can do far more to improve the travel system while enhancing security in the process.

And of course, there's the passport requirements that had everyone confused due to government delays, and the government inability to get passport issued. And this has affected travel to the Caribbean islands.
 

Voters are looking for a presidential candidate to make the increasingly difficult travel process a priority on their agenda. The poll represents the key findings of four separate surveys - including 300 Republican and 300 Democratic primary voters.

70% of those surveyed in both states think it is possible to reduce wait times and still maintain the same level of security at airports.

A majority of Republicans and two thirds of Democrats believe that "government could do far more" to improve the travel process. Some 85% of respondents believe it is important (60% say very important) to develop and implement a newer air traffic control system.

Three-fifths of likely voters in all four surveys feel 2008 presidential candidates have not adequately addressed issues surrounding travel and tourism, and between one-third and one-half in both states would be more likely to vote for a candidate who does.

Other Related Articles

NTA: The National Tour Association

Travel Business Roundtable

Talk about flipping the script and marketing PR, Southwest is turning sour lemons into sweet lemonade with a new fare sale named for a passenger they put off their plane. Ohh boy, that's good 

This story has made the media rounds, and we all could see there was nothing provocative about the passenger's attire. And the fact that Southwest started their business with flight attendants wearing sexy hot pants just made this story so much more a bad PR nightmare . . . Linda

Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly made a public apology to one of its customers whose trip several months ago has become the subject of recent television and newspaper commentary.

Then Southwest President Colleen Barrett also reached out to that customer, Kyla Ebbert, with an apology and invitation to again fly on Southwest as she taped a television show. Ebbert had been prevented from flying on the airline because a Southwest employee had found her short skirt too provocative.

"From a company who really loves PR, touche to you Kyla!" Kelly said. "Some have said we've gone from wearing our famous hot pants to having hot flashes at Southwest, but nothing could be further from the truth. As we both know, this story has great legs, but the true issue here is that you are a valued customer, and you did not get an adequate apology. Kyla, we could have handled this better, and on behalf of Southwest Airlines, I am truly sorry. We hope you continue to fly Southwest Airlines. Our company is based on freedom even if our actions may have not appeared that way. It was never our intention to treat you unfairly and again, we apologize."

Kelly took an additional step by launching a national fare sale featuring "mini-skirt" fares. of $49 to $109 one-way. To book these low fares, available only at southwest.com, visit www.southwest.com/?src=PR_FS_091407.

Southwest CEO Gary Kelly further stated that "The publicity caught us with our pants down, quite frankly. The story has such great legs, but we have an even better sense of humor, so we're going to jump out there and lower our fares to match the mini skirts we've all been hearing so much about."

Fares require a 14-day advance purchase by Sept. 24, 2007, for travel beginning Sept. 28, 2007, through Nov. 15, 2007. They are available for travel on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays.

This story is just too much . . . Caribbean Steel Ban Terrorists

A Caribbean steel band returning to London was turned off a plane by Italian armed police after a passenger thought they were terrorists.

The five British musicians, on their way home after playing at a festival in Sardinia, were taken off the Ryanair flight after one of their members, who is blind, was reported to the pilot as acting "suspiciously".

Read this embarassing story at the Daily Mall  

Please visit Travel 2 the Caribbean's Web Journal for latest updates on Jamaica and Mexico.

Jamaica Hotel Update for Couples, Half Moon Bay and Tryall
http://www.caribbean.braveweblog.com/entry/23970

Jamaica Island Outpost Hotel Update for Goldeneye, Jake's, Strawberry Hill, and The Caves
http://www.caribbean.braveweblog.com/entry/23968

Jamaica Tourist Board Hurricane Update
http://www.caribbean.braveweblog.com/entry/23966

New Mexico Hurricane Update - Riviera Maya
http://www.caribbean.braveweblog.com/entry/23965

Mexico Update - Yucatan Peninsula, Cancun, Tulum
http://www.caribbean.braveweblog.com/entry/23960