Dec 24th, 2010 at 3:00PM: On December 23, 1999, I was trying to get from Madison, Wisconsin to Boston Massachusetts. On paper, it didn't look hard. I had to catch a short fight from Madison to Chicago and another flight from Chicago to Boston. Unsurprisingly, it was snowing in Madison. It was also snowing in Chicago. Flights were canceled quickly and routinely, and crowds backed up in the gate areas. I was starting to ...Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.
holidaytravel posts
Five ways holiday travelers annoy business travelers
Dec 24th, 2010 at 3:00PM: On December 23, 1999, I was trying to get from Madison, Wisconsin to Boston Massachusetts. On paper, it didn't look hard. I had to catch a short fight from Madison to Chicago and another flight from Chicago to Boston. Unsurprisingly, it was snowing in Madison. It was also snowing in Chicago. Flights were canceled quickly and routinely, and crowds backed up in the gate areas. I was starting to ...Christmas travel begins -- are you wearing your travel pants?
Dec 24th, 2010 at 8:00AM: If you're one of the millions of Americans traveling this week for this Christmas holiday, you're probably already dreading the journey. Metropolitan streets across the country are jam-packed each evening, filled with worker bees fleeing the concrete jungles and filtering back across country roads to their home bases. Security checkpoints are stuffed to the gills, confusion reigns at the ticket ...Plan your holiday guilt trip with Babelgum
Dec 23rd, 2010 at 1:00PM: In a week where most young folks are hitting the road to visit loved ones or relatives all over the country it's fun to compare tactics that friends and family use to solicit visits. You know you've been there before: you're only in town for two nights and your hometown friends are calling from the bar -- only it's pudding night at the Martin residence and gee howdy, you can't miss pudding night ...
The 10 easiest ways to improve air travel this holiday season
Dec 16th, 2010 at 3:00PM: It's time for you to drag your screaming kids, annoying spouse and endless amounts of overstuffed bags through the airport, as you find your way over the river and through the woods. Thanksgiving is behind us, and that's the really ugly time to travel, but Christmas is no picnic either. The gate areas and bars will be crowded, and it's going to be awfully hard for you to be happy while darting ...Top ten holiday season foods from around the world
Dec 15th, 2010 at 11:30AM: No matter where in the world you live, whatever your ethnic or religious heritage, the holidays are inextricably linked with food. Whether there's symbolic meaning behind these seasonal treats, or they're everyday dishes that have become festive additions to the seasonal repertoire, they're hard to resist.
Below, I've picked some of my favorites, most of which have personal meaning (although ...Disney World at Christmas: Expect crowds. BIG crowds.
Dec 7th, 2010 at 2:00PM: I spent many a childhood vacation driving back and forth to Florida. My family loved to vacation here. We went to various beach communities around the state, and our trips would often involve a day or two spent at Walt Disney World.
So the whole family was excited when, in 1984, one of my aunts moved to Florida. It was immediately decided that the extended family would spend Christmas there. ...10 Congested highways to make you lose your mind tonight
Nov 24th, 2010 at 3:30PM: We know that today and tomorrow, traffic is going to be brutal. With 42 million people traveling for the holiday – and 94 percent of them going by car – it's inevitable that someone's going to wind up frustrated. Throw in some nasty weather and highway construction, not to mention a handful of screaming kids, and you have a formula for misery.
Can it get any worse? The Weather ...Five reasons why you'll be miserable during Thanksgiving travel
Nov 23rd, 2010 at 2:00PM: We've all heard that the day before Thanksgiving is the busiest of the year for air travel. And, the roads tend to get clogged up with people going to visit friends and family – not to mention stuff their faces with turkey, potatoes and other traditional holiday fare. Travel isn't going to be fun tomorrow, but you already know that.
But, do you know why?
Personally, of course, I have ...Hyatt introduces Facebook travel experts; ready to answer holiday travel questions
Nov 22nd, 2010 at 12:30PM:
As the craziness that is the holiday season approaches, Hyatt has teamed up with Gadling to help guests answer their travel questions. On their Facebook page, guests can ask anything they want - from tips on how to score great last minute deals, to helping them with their packing list.
Taking this to Facebook is just another way the hotel chain is expanding its regular customer outreach. In ...Hyatt hotels deal: 50% off on third night for holiday travel
Nov 20th, 2010 at 10:00AM: Now's the time to start watching for the over-the-top holiday hotel deals. We'll post what we think are the best holiday travel deals here, starting with this one: Hyatt Hotels & Resorts is offering the third night free for rooms booked during the holiday season.
Starting now, when guests book two nights for stays between November 19 and January 17 at participating Hyatt Place and Hyatt ...Five reasons Thanksgiving travel will be miserable (by the numbers)
Nov 2nd, 2010 at 12:30PM: You may have gotten a break last year, but the 2010 Thanksgiving holiday will be a return for the norm. Fares are increasing, and traffic is following, as more passengers take to the skies thanks to a recovering economy. The Air Transport Association puts year-over-year Thanksgiving travel growth at 3.5 percent. This is enough to show the tide has turned, but it still doesn't compensate for the ...Summer travel: how not to sizzle your skin
May 28th, 2010 at 3:00PM: The good folks at CNN have released a helpful guide and accompanying photo gallery horror show of solar ray-blasted epidermis. In "5 ways to avoid getting deep-fried," you'll find dermatologist's tips to protect your sun from UVA/UVB damage, skin cancer detection links, and entertaining anecdotes of CNN reporters' worst sunburns/precursors to melanoma.
I love the sun as much as most ...Holiday travel to fall 2.5 percent
Dec 14th, 2009 at 1:30PM: The airports may not be as crowded at Christmas this year. The Air Transport Association of America expects holiday flight traffic to fall 2.5 percent from 2008. The holiday period is measured as December 17, 2009 through January 6, 2010. The busiest days in the sky are most likely to be the Sunday, Monday and Tuesday after Christmas.
Don't expect to have plenty of legroom, though. Part of the ...Bad behavior at the airport, Hollywood style and how to tips for keeping your cool
Nov 25th, 2009 at 1:30PM: When passengers show bad behavior at the airport, everyone notices. Bad airport behavior is one place Hollywood gets it right, even when scenes are a bit outlandish.
Here are two scenes that show just what can happen when a passenger is vexed beyond sanity--either due to traveling with a family member or the actions of another passenger coupled with airline staff reactions.
Perhaps you'll see ...DoT gives airlines $175,000 reminder ahead of Thanksgiving
Nov 25th, 2009 at 1:00PM: Three airlines just scored a first with the U.S. government: they were fined for leaving passengers in the lurch. Continental Airlines, ExpressJet (a Continental affiliate) and Mesaba (part of Delta) racked up a total punishment of $175,000 when their combined efforts left fliers on a plane in Minnesota for six hours.
Continental and ExpressJet were slapped with a fine of $100,000, while Mesaba ...Passengers to become drivers for Thanksgiving this year
Nov 19th, 2009 at 3:00PM: We aren't staying at home, but we're definitely not flying. That's the word out of AAA this year. Thanksgiving, always a travel-heavy holiday, will see more cars in the road than people crammed at the gate, as travelers respond to the recession and recent increases in airfares.
AAA puts the number of people driving 50 miles or more from home for Thanksgiving at 38.4 million -- up 1.4 percent ...Five ways to make a dollar go further in New England this holiday season
Nov 11th, 2009 at 3:00PM: New England was made for the holiday season. Sure, it's a bit chilly up there in the winter, but bundle up, and it's impossible not to be sucked in by the charm of one of the oldest corners of America. If you're looking for a great way to maximize your spending power this Christmas (who isn't?!), check out five great ideas from New England Inns and Resorts. There's plenty of variety ... but little ...Six ways to make waiting in line better (and shorter)
Nov 10th, 2009 at 8:00AM: The holidays are coming, and if your plans involve travel, expect to lose large chunks of your youth to the painful ritual of waiting in line. Aside from the occasional ascetic masochist, nobody digs the ol' "hurry up and wait" game. Yet, you'll be doing plenty of standing in line at airports, hotels and retail establishments. Last year, I wrote about what you can do to make this easier. Now, ...Five ways to rock Idaho for the holiday season
Nov 3rd, 2009 at 9:30AM: Coeur d'Alene, Idaho may not be the first destination that comes to mind for holiday travel. I mean ... who jumps to Idaho?! Well, this is a problem that needs to be remedied. If you're looking to take off for a few days between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day, there's a lot happening in Coeur d'Alene.
1. Holiday Light Show: More than 1.5 million lights are hung along the Coeur d'Alene waterfront ...Hotel Jerome's awesome Thanksgiving deal
Oct 31st, 2009 at 2:00PM: The Hotel Jerome is offering a fantastic deal, but its for Thanksgiving weekend only. So, if you're sick of carving into the same dry turkey -- yet again -- watching the damned parade on television (or worse, in person ... trust me), book a last-minute trip to Aspen, Colorado. The Hotel Jerome's "120th Anniversary Celebration" package costs only $1,889 for two people from November 25 - 29, 2009. ...
