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

May 10, 2004

Norwalk Virus Strikes in Australia
A cruise ship returned to Sydney on Saturday with 140 of its passengers complaining they were struck down by a stomach virus. P&O, which operates the Pacific Sky cruiseliner, said it would consider refunds or credits for future cruises on a case-by-case basis following the outbreak of the norovirus during the 11-day trip. It was not immediately clear how many passengers were on board or if the cruise was cut short. According to P&O's Web site, the Pacific Sky can carry 1,550 passengers. Noroviruses - which includes Norwalk and Norwalk-like viruses - are spread through food and water and through close contact with infected people. They can cause diarrhea, stomach pain and vomiting for 24 to 48 hours. AP | Posted 6:30 a.m.
-- Travelbiz: Passengers will be compensated for illness

• The Norwalk virus is painful, but not deadly. I know because I've been stricken by it. Question is, what are the cruise lines going to do about it - this is rapidly becoming an epidemic, and as the cruise season gets underway, it's something the industry needs to address. Send us your comments.

Southwest Fuel Gamble Turns Profit
As oil prices hit $40 a barrel, squeezing transportation company profits, one petroleum user is sitting pretty: Southwest Airlines. The Dallas airline has hedged more than 80 percent of its fuel needs for the next two years at a price of $24 a barrel. And Southwest is the only U.S. carrier to have hedged most of its fuel. How important are those fuel hedges for Southwest? "It's huge," Chief Executive Jim Parker said in an interview last week. That foresight was the reason Southwest turned a profit for the first quarter, while other airlines bled due to high fuel costs and depressed airfares. Without the hedges, Southwest's profit of $26 million would have been a loss of $8 million. Dow Jones | Posted 6:45 a.m.

Agents Versus Web: Who Wins?
The travel agent was once a mystical creature. She or he had access to the best fares and vital destination information. The agency’s holy grail was its Sabre computer system, apparently so complicated to use that a person had to go to a special school to learn how to operate it. But today, with the Internet, we have all become travel agents. Whether this is a good or bad development depends on whom you ask. But one thing is certain: It has changed the travel industry. Here are a few tips that may be indispensable for those booking a trip. New Orleans Magazine | Posted 7 a.m.
-- Chronicle: New Web sites help you find cheap fares

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• And finally ... from the mailbag. Reader Patrick Barnette took issue with my linking to a Topaz survey that said travel agents often produced a lower fare than the Web. "When you are in a position of instruction, as you are to loyal readers like me, you want to ensure that you pay attention to the credibility of your sources," he wrote. "First off, this little article is actually a press release, not a news story, so it is devoid from the sort of fact-checking that would accompany a news story. Take a look at Joystar (the company issuing the press release) and you will see that they are more like Amway than a real travel business." Posted 7:10 a.m. | Send us your comments.

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