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E L L I O T T ' S TRAVEL NOTES
Travel news, opinion and analysis

December 22, 2004

Norwalk Virus Closes UK Hotel
A hotel may re-open tomorrow after it was closed by an outbreak of the Norwalk virus. The Grand Hotel in Scarborough, which has been hit by similar outbreaks in the past, closed on Monday afternoon and guests were moved out to enable intensive disinfection to be carried out. Ten guests had been taken ill with the norovirus, an airborne infection that can cause vomiting and diarrhea. No guests were admitted to hospital and none of the Grand's staff was affected. The management took the decision to close the 460-room hotel in consultation with North Yorkshire Health Protection Unit, Scarborough, Whitby & Ryedale Primary Care Trust and Scarborough Council's environmental health team. (Yorkshire Post) Posted 5:35 a.m.
• Guests 'In Shock' As Hotel Closes (ST)
• Earlier: Las Vegas Hotel Infected By Norwalk (HA)

These Norwalk outbreaks are a simmering trend in the lodging industry - so low-level that no one really acknowledges it, yet common enough that anyone could become a victim.

Airport Family Reunions, Post 9/11
Since September 2001, people greeting friends and family flying in for the holidays can only look back with nostalgia at the days of unhurried reunions in roomy airport concourses. "It was so much fun, because you could see the plane pull up to the gate, and you could actually watch them coming off the plane," Judy Wiggins of Mount Olive said last week as she and 24 members of her family milled about a narrow corridor of Raleigh-Durham International Airport. They were waiting to greet her nephew, who was returning after two years in upstate New York as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. (News and Observer) Posted 5:45 a.m.

Weak Dollar, Strong Tourism
When the Association of British Travel Agents met in Orlando last month, they tolerated the meetings about Florida vacation packages. What they really wanted to do was rocket to the nearest malls. To shop. "There was an incredible demand for shopping," says an amused Bud Nocera, CEO of Visit Florida, the state's tourism marketing organization. "They wanted to go to the malls not only to do Christmas shopping but to use their British pounds because they could buy so much more here than back home." The hottest purchase, by the way: Apple iPods. (St. Petersburg Times) Posted 5:50 a.m.

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SkyMiles Defiled
Caving to the protests of its stingiest customers, Delta Air Lines is revamping its SkyMiles program to what it calls a more "customer-focused transformation meant to simplify the Medallion qualification process." I've checked out the changes and I have a different opinion: I think it's accelerating Delta's path toward bankruptcy. Delta is essentially downgrading its loyalty program to reward infrequent, disloyal, customers who make purchasing decisions based only on price. Basically, they're dissing their best customers. (Travelcomment.com) Posted 5:55 a.m.

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United Financing Deal Called Unworkable
The business plan that United Airlines is using to line up postbankruptcy financing is unworkable, a labor union leader said yesterday, even though the plan was called "feasible" by an independent financial consultant. The union leader, Robert Roach Jr., vice president for transportation at the International Machinists and Aerospace Workers, said the business plan assumed the termination of United's four employee pension plans, a step he vowed the machinists would not take voluntarily. (The New York Times) Posted 6:05 a.m.

Cruise Ship Sitter Molested Toddler, Couple Charges
A couple have sued Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., alleging that a company baby sitter sexually assaulted their 2-year-old son while they were on a cruise. Dawn and Kurt Bennett of the Orlando area said the company was negligent in hiring and supervising the baby sitter on the Brilliance of the Seas, where the assault allegedly occurred on Dec. 18, 2003. They are seeking unspecified damages in the lawsuit, filed Wednesday in state court in Miami. (AP) Posted 6:10 a.m.

No Charges Filed in Sea-Tac Drug Death
The mystery surrounding the death of Desseria Whitmore last year at Sea-Tac Airport still looms, but some questions may have been put to rest yesterday when King County prosecutors announced that they will not pursue charges against the Port of Seattle police officers who detained her. Police say that on Oct. 25, 2003, Whitmore -- a churchgoing Bank of America executive who lived on Capitol Hill -- tried to evade them after security screeners discovered a drug pipe and a small amount of marijuana in her purse and carry-on luggage at the airport's north checkpoint. (Seattle P-I) Posted 6:15 a.m.

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