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

June 11, 2004

Hotels Offer Free Fuel to Travelers
It's too early to tell how much gasoline prices topping $2 a gallon will depress enthusiasm for travel this summer, but many tourist businesses aren't waiting for a definitive answer. If there's a chance that fear of fill-ups will keep customers away, expensive hotels and even some day-trip museums will pay for the gas. Indian Lakes Resort in suburban Chicago, a luxurious golf and conference center where rooms are hexagonal in tribute to a design by Frank Lloyd Wright, is rewarding customers who stay at least four nights with coupons for up to $35 to fill their tanks at a BP station a mile away. "We can't rely on travelers not being turned off by the gas situation," said Maris Brenner, the director for marketing and sales of Indian Lakes. "We need to be proactive." . The New York Times | Posted 6:30 a.m.
-- Globe: Southwest hedges its jets, saves money
-- Chronicle: Gas prices burning into car profits

• Fuel prices seem to be the only vulnerability to this summer's travel recovery. If they edge any higher, they could take down a few of the weakened airlines, too. And that might throw everything into chaos. Send us your comments.

Woman Banned After Air Rage Incident
Vietnam Airlines has banned a woman from flying on its planes after she attacked an attendant who tried to stop her from repeatedly using a mobile phone during a domestic flight last month. "This is a very peculiar violation that has happened to the airline," Nguyen Van Ba, head of the security and safety department of the carrier, was quoted by state media on Wednesday as saying. Air rage is rare in the communist country. "We have ordered all of our agents to deny a seat for this passenger on all of our flights," he added. The 19-year-old passenger, identified as Vo Thi Thu Ngoc, is accused of slapping a female flight attendant and throwing water in her face after being told repeatedly to stop using a mobile phone during takeoff and landing. Reuters | Posted 6:45 a.m.

Now Airlines Will Never Take Off
A new no-frills airline has gone into receivership before any of its flights have even taken off. Now Airlines said it had experienced problems with funding and it had delayed the launch of its services "until further notice". The company officially launched in March 2003 aiming to challenge other low-cost airlines such as Easyjet. Budget airlines have suffered a number of problems recently as competition in European routes has intensified. In a statement on its website, Now said: "We obviously regret the measures taken, particularly in respect of the tremendous support from staff, partners and suppliers, and all the good efforts for Now to happen." BBC | Posted 7 a.m.

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• And finally ... MSN linked to my feature on why travelers are jerks today. I've been getting a lot of grateful e-mails from people in the travel industry who are thanking me for "finally telling the other side of the story." Well, you're welcome. Posted 7:10 a.m. | Send us your comments.

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