By Joe Brancatelli
updated 3:24 p.m. ET, Tues., Dec. 30, 2008
At the end of each of the thirtysomething years that I have survived a life on the road, I inevitably reach the same conclusion: It sure has been another bizarre 12 months for business travel.
Who'd have guessed that more than 80 airlines would fold in 2008, many of them destroyed by the price of oil this spring and summer? Who'd have imagined that the airlines could cut domestic seat capacity by double digits this fall and still see chairs go empty and fares drop? And who'd have thought hotels, expecting record increases in room rates in 2008, would end the year discounting lustily and mulling huge declines in 2009?
But all this chaos does have the proverbial silver lining: You learn stuff. Here are five things I've learned this year.
The rich aren’t different
The upper end of the travel industry has insisted that its increased emphasis on $20,000 first-class airline seats and $1,000-a-night hotel rooms was justified because the rich were different. The wealthy would always travel, claimed the developers of new luxury resorts and the executives of every airline that unveiled another pricey, front-cabin offering.
But the rich aren't different — except that they've curtailed travel faster than the rest of us. According to IATA, the worldwide airline trade group, premium-class travel dropped 8 percent in September, 6.9 percent in October, and "early indications for November point to further large declines."
Occupancy rates at luxury hotels have plummeted faster than the lodging industry at large, and even fancy brands such as Ritz-Carlton and Four Seasons are suddenly discounting like crazy and throwing in extras like free nights and gratis breakfasts.
Better airline mousetraps don’t guarantee success
Last year at this time, there were four all-business-class airlines flying the North Atlantic skies and a fifth prepping for launch. They offered extraordinary in-flight comfort for a lot less than major carriers charged, and they expected business travelers to beat a path to their cabin doors.
Turns out, building a better mousetrap doesn't guarantee survival in the dog-eat-dog airline world. Maxjet, EOS and Silverjet all folded on the New York-London route and L'Avion, which flies between New York and Paris, sold itself to OpenSkies, B.A.'s boutique carrier that launched in June.
But OpenSkies is struggling too. Its revolutionary prem+ cabin has confused passengers, who expect the back of the bus to be cramped and cheap, not spacious and fairly priced. And the lie-flat beds up front have yet to steal enough business from its larger competitors on the Paris and Amsterdam runs.
Slow and steady wins the airport race
This was going to be the year of the new airport terminal, with major facilities opening at London's Heathrow Airport; New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport; Raleigh/Durham; Indianapolis; and Detroit's Metro Airport.
This year I learned that it really does pay to delay your opening if you need extra time to get everything right. You may take a publicity hit for a blown deadline or two, but you won't suffer the disaster than befell Terminal 5 at Heathrow. It opened bang on time in late March — but was a nightmare of lost bags, missed connections, worldwide ridicule and money-gushing make-goods for British Airways.
Heathrow's owner, B.A.A., paid a bigger price: British regulators last week ordered the subsidiary of Spain's Ferrovial to sell its other London airports, Gatwick and Stansted. The four U.S. facilities shifted their launch dates by a few weeks and opened without notable incident or embarrassment.
Not all fees are created equal
The airlines turned 2008 into the year of à la carte pricing, unbundling just about everything from the basic ticket price: checked luggage; advance seat selection; in-flight meals and beverages; fuel costs; and even blankets and pillows. The goal, of course, was to charge lower-fare customers for all the little niceties that once were free.
Passengers pushed back hard against the fuel surcharges, even as oil prices soared to record highs. They reacted indifferently to the concept of paying for seat selection and largely ignored the airlines' buy-on-board meal programs and buy-a-blanket plans. And they seemed to accept without complaint the concept of paying for checked luggage.
The free second checked bag disappeared from most domestic flights as early as February. By the summer, American Airlines was also charging for the first checked bag. Virtually all of American's major competitors have now fallen in line, reckoning that they were leaving money on the table by giving away something for which passengers would willingly fork over $15.
No longer almighty, the dollar is resilient
When the U.S. dollar fell to record lows earlier this year and made international travel insanely expensive, there was no reason to believe the once-Almighty Dollar would ever regain its luster.
But worldwide financial crises can be the dollar's best friend. The Australian, New Zealand, and Canadian dollars have given up years of gains against the U.S. dollar in just a few months. The British pound, trading above $2 for much of the year, has crashed. It closed last week below $1.50, which is about where it was trading before 9/11.
And while the dollar has zigzagged crazily against the euro in mid December, it closed below $1.40, a far cry from the $1.60 level it had reached early in the year. The notable exception: the Japanese yen, which has gained about 15 percent against the dollar lately. In other words, don't plan any trips to Tokyo.
The fine print ...
One thing I have long known that you should learn: Never believe what an airline says about its future route plans. Earlier this year, big carriers were crowing about their new flights to China.
Virtually all of them were canceled or delayed indefinitely. And United Airlines, which began a heavily publicized daily Washington-Beijing service last year, has slashed the route back to just a few flights a week. It has also switched to a smaller aircraft to further reduce the number of seats it flies between the two capitals.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Holiday travel tips
By Lynn Parramore
01:59 PM PST, December 18, 2008
A volatile economy, reduced airline capacity and stressed consumers are making this holiday travel season one of the most challenging in recent years. Before you start that sleigh ride for the holidays, here are some tips that can help save you money, time and headaches.
Reserve airport parking. During peak travel times, traffic delays and increased demand for parking can make nabbing a space at the airport a nightmare at best and a trip-ender at worst. Before you leave, check out AboutAirportParking.com, which guides you to the best places to park at more than 100 airports, often at significant discounts.
You can find detailed specs on each lot, along with prices, Google maps, online reservations, user reviews and information about such services as valet parking, luggage assistance and even oil changes.
AboutAirportParking.com also provides stats on general airport time delays and average security wait at individual airports.
You can sort your parking lot choices by distance, rate or name by using a drop-down menu. There are even star ratings and user reviews on many of the facilities. At LAX, for example, the Hilton Los Angeles Airport Valet gets five stars and has 30 user reviews, which range from tepid (one or two) to laudatory. It's true; people get starry-eyed about parking.
Before you pack, check baggage restrictions. American, Continental, Northwest, United, Delta, US Airways, Frontier, AirTran and Spirit now charge $15 for a first checked bag each way for travel within the U.S. Virgin America allows the first bag to be checked for free, and Southwest still does not charge for the first or second bag.
Also be sure to check weight restrictions. Weight, the enemy of fuel efficiency, has come under increasing scrutiny of late, and airlines more often will charge you for bags that exceed the carriers' limits. (Fifty pounds is common, but check the websites.)
And don't forget about carry-ons. If you have one that's too large, you may end up checking it and that will cost you some bucks. You can save room in your carry-on by wearing such bulky pieces as coats and boots on the plane, then stowing them.
You also can avoid security hassles by bringing a Transportation Security Administration-compliant toiletry kit like My SmartPac (www.mysmartpac.com). You can also find small sizes of many of your favorite products (to avoid problems with TSA's 3-ounce rule) at www.minimus.biz. It even carries such hard-to-find-in-small items as shaving cream, deodorant and hair spray.
For resources and ingenious tips on how to pack light, check out Onebag.com or SmartPacking.com, or Google "packing light."
Make sure you have the right carry-on. Does your carry-on exceed airline restrictions? For most airlines, this means 45 linear inches or less. (To calculate add the height, width and depth of the bag, which must not exceed 45.)
Functional, stylish bags that fit the bill are available through numerous stores and online outlets. At 44 linear inches, the Helium Rolling Carry-On and Rick Steves' Convertible Carry On are compact, sturdy and surprisingly roomy options and are available through such retailers as Travel Smith, Buy.com and Luggage.com.
Pack snacks. To cut costs, many airlines have stopped serving food, soda and even bottled water. Take your own snacks and an empty bottle to fill at a water fountain once you've passed security. (If you prefer a flavored water, many brands now offer powders you can add to any bottled water to give you the same taste.) Energy bars are filling and take up little precious packing space. For kids try cheese sticks, flavored rice cakes and grapes.
Drive wisely. If you're planning to be on the road, use AAA's gas calculator for an estimate on fuel expenses ( www.fuelcostcalculator.com).
To avoid peak traffic, hit the road early in the morning or travel on Christmas Day. You can save money -- and the environment -- by checking tires before you leave. An under-inflated tire will decrease your fuel economy by up to 2%.
Last December, Californians were forking over $3.32 a gallon for gas; this year, they're paying $1.77 or less. Now that the harsh reality of costly gas has taught us to conserve, we can continue to keep our fuel costs down by employing all we know.
travel@latimes.com
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