Virgin Atlantic Nightmare Flight - Travel Critic
23. June 2010
TRAVEL CRITIC
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Virgin Atlantic Flight, due to travel from London to Newark, was diverted to Bradley Airport.
About 300 travellers were forced to spend over 4 nightmare hours on the tarmac at Bradley Airport USA, with no food, drink or air conditioning, after their flight from London to Newark, New York, USA was diverted due to bad weather.
According to the passengers, almost as soon as the Virgin Atlantic flight landed at Bradley airport USA, the planes generator shut down which meant that the Air Conditioning on the plane failed to work, the heat began to rise in the planes cabin, sending the temperature up to 100 degrees.
The 4 nightmare was made worse for some passengers as the sweltering heat caused some people to faint and one male traveller was taken to hospital for dehydration.
The 3 hour limit on passengers being kept on the tarmac on a plane in USA did not apply to this Virgin Atlantic flight, as the law does not apply to non US carriers.
What travel critic finds difficult to understand is why passengers have to be kept in these inhuman conditions that are not even fit for animals.
Even if the air conditioning on the plane was working and there was sufficient food and water, it’s still not good enough to have been kept for hours on the plane, passengers paid to travel from London to Newark Airport, not to be kept on the tarmac in the wrong airport.
But on this Virgin Atlantic plane there was no Air conditioning on the plane, and not sufficient food and water, the passengers should have been let off the plane much quicker without waiting for them to suffer and start falling ill before they did something.
Virgin Atlantic Nightmare Flight | 0 Kommentare »
Beware of hidden charges in Hotels & Airlines
7. June 2010
TRAVEL CRITIC
Travellers are charged for everything, and it’s become a fact of life that there are a lot of extra charges for travellers and tourists to pay now days, from the most obvious ones like baggage charges on budget airline flights and room service in Hotels. To the hidden ones that might be missed unless you’re looking carefully at your bills.
Some of the most overlooked service charges are in Hotels, small amounts of money that can quickly add up, but can also be easily missed unless you check your bill carefully before paying on Check Out and checking the terms and conditions before checking in.
As a norm you should be informed of the cost of things before they are charged, but sometimes this is not the case, what some hotels do is to say some items and services are chargeable and are to be paid for on check out, this means they are not required to list every single thing that is chargeable, because technically you have been informed that there may be additional charges, the problem with this is you don’t know which items and services are free and which are chargeable
Some of the things to look out for are Service charges for tea/coffee facilities in the room, welcome basket and when you take towels to the pool and don’t return them.
Talking about pools one fee that most people would not expect are called Resort Fees, this is a daily fee automatically added to your bill in some hotel resorts accommodation, for things that you might expect to be complimentary, like access to a pool or fitness centre and daily newspapers supplied. You need to check if there is a Resort Fee before you check in and dispute it then, because after check in, most hotels will not waive or reduce the resort fee.
Another fee that is very tricky, is a new type of mini bar in some hotels. As some people like to remove all the expensive mini bar items supplied by the hotel and keep them to one side, they then refill the fridge with cheaper drinks and sweets from the local shop, the only thing you need to be careful about is now some hotels have a new type of mini bar with pressure sensitive points where all the items are kept in the min bar, as soon as you life the items up they are automatically charges to your room even if you replace them later.
An Extra cost that a lot of people disregard is tipping the Bellman when checking in or out, the thing is that most people are just being lazy and could have taken the bags them self and saved their money, another tip to avoid paying a bellman is to make sure you have a suitcase with wheels and a shoulder bag, then you can easily carry your own luggage.
In conclusion, there are a lot of things that can easily bump up the cost of your Flight, Accommodation and Holiday so here are some top tips to save money
Flights
Check what is including in your flight ticket before you book and pay, take into account, taxes, baggage charges, are meals and drinks included, do you have to pay for pillows and blankets onboard, are ear phones free, because after all the added charges it may be almost the same cost to pay for a normal airline rather than a budget airline.
Accommodation
When deciding on what type of accommodation to stay in on holiday remember that sometimes a budget Hotel, Guesthouse or Youth Hostel might be a better option to a 3 star or above rated hotel, as you are not going on holiday to stay in an expensive hotel room.
Food
If you’re the type of person that gets the munchies at night, or during the day, its always best to plan ahead and stock up with your own snacks from a local shop, of crisps, nuts, sweets and drinks or whatever you like, its easy to keep a bag of goodies in your room or with you during the day to stop yourself buying expensive things from the hotels mini bar or near tourists sights where things are always more expensive, after all who likes to pay $5 USD for a can of drink or £3.50 for a bottle of water, when you could have bought at least 4 for the same price if you had gone to a local shop.
Luggage
Always travel light, I know it sounds easier that what is actually is, but here’s a helpful tip; pack your suitcase in advance, then unpack it and think whether you really need everything you packed, remove what is not necessary, usually you will find that some things are not needed, this stops excess baggage charges and bellman tips, as you can easily carry your lighter luggage on your own.
Be aware
When away from home you should use your common sense and be aware of what is going on around you even more than at home, everyone wants to relax and unwind on holiday, after all you have worked hard and everyone deserves a break, but you also don’t want to be taken advantage of, or pay through the nose for everything.
Using your Common Sense is the key to a happy, enjoyable and cost affective holiday.
Beware of hidden charges in Hotels & on Airlines | 0 Kommentare »
Victory for British Airways on strike action by cabin crew
17. May 2010
TRAVEL CRITIC
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The Planned BA cabin crew Strike Action due to begin at Mid Night Tonight has been stopped by a High Court injunction by BA in London.
The reason being, that the Trade Union Unite did not inform all their voting members about the results of the ballot that was taken to decide whether to strike.
All voting union members of unite should have been informed the total number of votes, and the breakdown for number of votes for Strike action, the number of votes against strike action and the number of spoilt ballots, in this case not all the voting members were informed of results of ballot.
The courts therefore ruled that strike action was not legal and stopped the cabin crews planned strike action and put high court injunction to prevent 5 day strike action.
This is the 2nd time courts come to aid of BA and stopped strike action by BA cabin crew. All Industrial action taken by members of a trade union, needs to comply with the law.
In this case they did not comply and the strike action has been stopped due to a technicality, unions must abide by the law and follow all rules, just like employer must comply to duty of care of its staff.
BA said they are delighted with the courts ruling
The Trade Union Unite is going to launch an appeal tomorrow about the ruling of the courts stopping the strike, stating it is the right of the BA Cabin Crew to take strike action.
No strike action by BA Cabin Crew | 0 Kommentare »
Hostels247.com Launches New Website
3. May 2010
TRAVEL CRITIC
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The long awaited launch of www.hostels247.com new website has finally gone live today, Monday 3 May 2010.
The new user friendly easy to navigate hostels247.com website, looks fresh and clean and has all the usual information and eye catching pictures, to help our customers navigate the site with ease, the inner workings of the site has been greatly improved and that’s were the most exciting new things have happened, to make booking hostels and budget accommodation easy.
The New colour scheme of blues and greys, with accents of red and yellow, is easy on the eye and doesn’t distract from the key features of the pages which are the search box, which has been improved to make finding your accommodation easier and faster.
Once you search for your hostel, bed & breakfast or budget hotel accommodation from the search box, the results page has clear easy to understand green boxes for accommodation with availability, at the top of the results page and closer to the bottom red boxes for hostels and budget hotels accommodation that are sold out for the selected dates.
Clicking on the hostel or budget accommodation that you have chosen takes you straight to the accommodations listing page with the availability chart already open so you can see the room types and prices for each room. Customers are now able to book multiple rooms, and also see the total price and 10% deposit due before you go to the confirm booking page, this is a new feature on the site and of course there is No Booking Fee when booking with hostels247.com and no additional fees to use Credit or Debit cards.
To change the dates or the number of nights stay there is no need to click backward or go to another page because on top of the availability chart there are drop down menus to change the arrival date and the number of nights stay.
The secure online booking page to pay the 10% deposit has also been redesigned to be more stream lined and user friendly. The Booking details are located on the left of the page and then on the right is the requested Personal and Payments details required to confirm the booking.
The new www.hostels247.com site combines new eye candy design, colour and user friendly features, with high tech innovative back end workings, making booking hostels and budget accommodation easy, hassle free and a pleasure rather than a chore.
by hostels247.com news group accommodation
Hostels247.com Launches New Website | 0 Kommentare »
Netherlands Queens Day celebrations 2010
29. April 2010
TRAVEL CRITIC
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If you don’t like the colour orange and crowds, then 29 & 30 April, is not the best time to travel to, or to be in Amsterdam or anywhere in Netherlands!
Across Holland people are celebrating Koninginnedag, which is Dutch for Queens Day, the time everyone in Netherlands celebrates the Queens birthday, and its also day of national unity and “togetherness” for Dutch people.
During the celebrations people wear something orange and the cities are also decorated with orange balloons and banners, this is done reference to the colours of the House of Orange-Nassau, its also referred to as the Orange craze
Queens Day celebration is the premier event in Netherlands and attracts millions of people from all over Europe and the World every year.
The tradition started on 31 August 1885, on the birthday of Princess Wilhelmina, later Queen Wilhelmina. Since 1949, after the ascension of Queen Juliana, Queen’s Day is Queen Juliana’s birthday on 30 April. Although Queen Beatrix’s birthday is on 31 January, she officially celebrates her birthday on 30 April.
The largest celebrations for Queens Day takes place in Amsterdam, every year the city is packed with locals and tourists all enjoying the festivities, the streets of Amsterdam are turned into one of the biggest street parties, with Music, dancing, and performers to rival the best carnivals worldwide.
Amsterdam hostels, Bed & Breakfast, Guesthouse and hotels accommodation are always fully booked for a long time in advance and all the restaurants, bars and cafes are packed.
No matter where you go in Holland during the Queens Day celebrations, from Amsterdam and Rotterdam, to Utrecht, Eindhoven and Edmond, orange can be seen everywhere.
Queens Day celebrations have a similar atmosphere to a carnival, with the streets packed with revellers dressed in orange and many bars and clubs organising special parties and events
If you want to join the celebrations next year be sure to book your travel and accommodation well in advance, unless if you enjoy sleeping outside.
Netherlands Queens Day celebrations 2010 | 0 Kommentare »
Google may purchase an influential travel software company
22. April 2010
TRAVEL CRITIC
Rumors are flying that Google could be preparing to purchase one of the most influential travel software firms in the world.For all those wondering about the importance of another rumored Google purchase of a firm largely unknown by the general public - this time of travel software firm ITA - perhaps the size of the deal is an indicator of the potential impact.
Reports suggesting that Google is in talks to purchase ITA have given a figure of $1 billion (€747 million), not far behind the $1.65 billion (€1.23 billion) price tag the search giant paid for YouTube.
Of course, Google doesn’t just throw that sort of money around - while most consumers will have never heard of ITA, the company powers some of today’s household names and a reported 65 percent of online airline bookings.
So if you’ve ever used Fly.com, Hotwire, Orbitz, or TripAdvisor for price comparison, chances are you’ve used ITA’s software. If you’ve booked direct from carriers such as Continental, American Airlines or Alitalia, the prices were probably generated by ITA software. And crucially, if you’ve ever searched for a flight on Microsoft’s Bing - well, ITA was probably behind that too.
Owning the Cambridge, Massachussets-based ITA would instantly elevate Google to one of the leading players in the travel “meta-search” market, which is rapidly becoming travelers’ preferred way to book tickets.
At the most basic level, the deal would give the search giant the information that it needs to offer instant fare information next to search results for flights, in much the same way as hotel prices have now been integrated into Google Maps.
But the software that ITA produces could potentially be used for much more. It offers the ability to plan trips based around event listings in select cities, for instance, potentially integrating with Google’s other offerings such as Google Calendar to allow full travel “packages” to be sold.
It can also process booking changes, seat selections and online check-in for airlines (both online and through mobile devices), giving Google the chance to provide richer information on departures for travelers through its portal and location-based offerings.
Airlines use ITA software to track their spare seats and calculate pricing accordingly - potentially this information could be integrated with other Google services such as AdWords to ensure that flights are fully booked, every time, before departure.
Speaking at a travel technology summit in London on April 20, the Google UK Managing Director said that Google has no intention of being a “travel agent or tour operator.”
But with such powerful travel technology potentially joining its arsenal, it seems likely that Google is set to be a prominent player in travel.
google travel | 0 Kommentare »
Volcanic Ash Cloud Closes air space across Northern Europe
16. April 2010
TRAVEL CRITIC
Yet another set back for northern European air travellers, this time not caused by strike or human intervention, but by the collaboration of the Volcano in Iceland Eyjafjallajokull Spewing laver and chocking ash into the air and the wind
A huge Volcanic Dust Cloud originating from Iceland is causing havoc across northern Europe, thousands of flights have been cancelled, delayed or detoured due to the Cloud of Volcanic Dust.
British Air space is closed, and is not due to reopen until at least 7am Saturday Morning. All of UK’s commercial flights from London Heathrow have been grounded about 840 Flights affecting over 180,000 passengers and over 120,000 passengers have been affected at Gatwick.
Earlier this week on Thursday flights in Belgium, Holland, Denmark, Norway, Finland and Russia were also affected
It is difficult to predict the duration of both the air space closures and the cloud cover.
A lot depends on whether the volcano continues to produce ash and whether the wind continues to carry that ash towards Europe.
Volcanology expert professor Chris MacLeod, of Cardiff University, told Sky News: “The last recorded eruption of Eyjafjallajokull lasted over a year (1821-1823) but we don’t know if it was as intense as this eruption.”
He added: “It’s difficult to say how long the eruption and consequential flight disruption will go on for.
“The Grimsvotn volcano in Iceland eruption in 2004 lasted four days but it’s possible it could go on for quite some time - maybe a week or two - before the ash plume fully disperses.
He added: “Even if the eruptions stopped now, it’s not going to clear up within the next 24 hours. I suspect flights could be grounded for some time.”
Its hard to plan for such disruptions such as Volcanic dust clouds grounding your flight and putting a stop on your Holiday or travel plans, and a lot of travel insurance policies do not cover Volcanic eruptions, and even if the Flight costs are refunded or rebooked the cost of unused Hotels and Hostels accommodation at your holiday destination are not covered.
At least one good news and ironic fact is that Icelandic Air space is still open, the reason being the cloud is drifting south and Icelandic flights usually fly north, so there are not any real dangers for flights leaving and arriving into Reykjavik and other cities in Iceland, from Asia and Far East.
Other benefactors of the cancelled and delayed flights in UK and across europe are Hotels accommodation near the airports that are now nearly fully booked with delayed passengers and Euro Star Rail from London which is also almost fully booked for the whole weekend and Euro Rail and TGV in France who have seen a massive increase in customers.
Volcanic Dust cloud from Iceland disrupts air travel | 0 Kommentare »
Yet another silly $45 add on by Spirit Air
8. April 2010
TRAVEL CRITIC
Spirit Airline the so called ULCC (Ultra Low Cost Carrier) is due to charge travellers $45 for carry on luggage each way
Spirit Airline Inc. the Miramar, Florida based airline has added yet another fee for its customers; they are due to start charging travellers as much as $45 for Carry on Luggage that fits in the over head bins, the new fee is due to take affect for flights on or after 1 August.
They have been so nice, not to charge for carry on luggage that fits under the seats, hurray, although we all know that barely nothing fits under the seats, and also takes up your leg room, that was already limited in an Airline like Spirit Air.
The CEO of spirit Air Ben Baldanza said, having fewer carry-on bags will help empty the plane faster, he said the idea is to get customers to pay for individual things they want while keeping the fare low
What a load of Rubbish, I think also having an empty plane will also help to empty the plane quicker, sometimes after all customers do get in the way of running an Airline business.
Low cost airlines are meant to give travellers an alternative to expensive air fares charged by traditional airlines, but when there are a lot of hidden charges for everything from Food, Drink, Blankets, Pillows and Luggage, in the end they are more hassle, stress and almost the same price as any other airline.
You got to ask yourself, are they worth it?
Non Existent Customer care and Cramped flight conditions, its getting to a time now that these airlines, will even start charging customers for Oxygen during the flight, after all the Oxygen needs to be filtered and provided by the airline.
In the long run some of these budget airlines are becoming joke and their so called low cost fares are a gimmick because after adding all the taxes, added fees and credit card charges they are just as expensive as any traditional airline.
Customers should vote with their feet, to stamp out these gimmicks, unless if you want to travel without a luggage.
On the other hand, it maybe cheaper to ship your luggage before hand anyway.
Its not as if travellers are asking for Champagne, Caviar and first class serve for a budget cost, all travellers are asking is for a clear set price for an airline ticket that has basic food, drink and a luggage allowance included.
So in conclusion, the passengers and customers of Spirit Air, are not worthy of respect
Spirit Airline | 0 Kommentare »
Over inflated airfares to Nigeria
3. April 2010
TRAVEL CRITIC
Why is the cost of travel to Nigeria so high?
The high cost of air travel to Nigeria is stopping the country from becoming a popular tourist destination that it deserves to be and therefore makes the attempt of the government who are spending money promoting the country as tourists destination, and to modify the battered image of the country, futile.
They are not attracting non-Nigerians to visit Nigeria; all they have is Nigerians going home, and few business travellers, who charge the expensive air fares to the company they work for.
It’s not because it’s a far distance to travel to Nigeria, for example like travelling from London to New York or Australia. So the excuse of the price is based on the number of the miles is untrue, because a direct flight from London to Lagos by British Airway or Virgin Atlantic which is only 6 Hours 25 Minutes, is more expensive than a flight by Air France that first stops at Paris then goes to Lagos which takes in total 9 Hours and 40 Minutes and is over £200 GBP Cheaper.
To me I think all the Airlines that have the rights to fly to Nigeria, are taking advantage of people travelling to Nigeria and they are over inflating the air fares. The few flights that travel to Nigeria are full, but not because customers have chosen to travel by the airline because of competitive prices offered, but because they have no choice but to pay the high air fares and take one of the few flights available.
Another issue that is stopping Nigeria from becoming a true Holiday destination is the accommodation options are very limited, mostly luxury expensive hotels, and hardly any budget hotels and hostels, and there is definitely no chance of a package Holiday organised by a tour operator which would attract more tourists.
Well, I think that the price of air line ticket should be a fair reflection of the actual distance travelled and not a preconceived inflated fixed price that people are forced to pay, if more airlines like 
budget airlines especially, had the rights to fly to Nigeria the price would drop and become more competitive and beneficial for customers, and people should have the choice of budget, mid range and expensive hotels accommodation.
The most annoying part of this is, the Nigerian Government is not doing anything about this, maybe they still believe like one of the Nigerian Government Officials said a few years ago that air travel is for rich people. The Government may also think that Nigeria isn’t a tourist destination so why encourage a range of accommodation options for travellers, what they forget is, when people spend so much to get to Nigeria, they won’t have a lot of money spare, to spend in the country and help the economy.
Who actually benefits from this high cost of travel to places like Lagos Nigeria, except the Airlines?
Or is it someone else benefiting behind the scene?
Flights to Nigeria | 0 Kommentare »
There should be travel Options for all budgets
2. April 2010
TRAVEL CRITIC
A choice of Airlines and accommodation for all Budgets
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There is no denying that the economic climate has hit the travel and hotels accommodations industry hard, especially when it comes to luxury and mid range hotels accommodation, as people t
ighten there belts and try to make there hard earned money go further.
But some sectors that have faired a little better during the credit crunch are the budget airlines, Budget hotels and Hostels accommodation. The main reason these businesses are doing ok is because now there is a whole new set of customers looking to them as an alternative to expensive Hotels and Airlines.
To be honest if an Airline gets you safely from A to B and gives you a meal and drinks during the flight then the other things offered are just extra frills, and are nice but not necessary. The same thing applies to Budget Accommodation, as long as the Budget Hotel or Hostels accommodation is clean and in a safe location what more do you really need other than a clean bed to sleep in for your stay, and it must be said that some of the larger hostels have great facilities like guest kitchens, bars, restaurants, games rooms, free internet access and even private en-suite rooms.
In the end in order for everyone to be able to enjoy a holiday and a well earned break from work, there needs to be budget, mid range and luxury options for airlines and hotels accommodation after all if you are lucky enough to be able to afford First Class travel and 5 star hotels then you should be able to book what ever you want.
But on the flip side if someone is struggling to meet all the financial commitments every month, they too should have a budget option available for travel and accommodation.
So in conclusion I think there should be all types of Airlines, Hotels and Hostels accommodation.
Travel & accommodation | 0 Kommentare »
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