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

May 18, 2004

Put the Brake on Car Rental Overruns
If you think finding the best airfares is tricky, try pricing car rentals. The big car-rental companies are doing their darnedest to tack as many fees as possible onto your bill. Driving from, say, Miami to Tampa? No problem. An extra $200, please, for a drop fee. Need a car seat for your 2-year-old? Maybe $8 a day. You're a few hours late dropping the car off? That's another day's rental. Renting a car can be complicated and costly if you're not careful. Check out these ways to hit the road without leaving your bank account on fumes. Money | Posted 6:30 a.m.
-- BTN: How to save money on cars for business
<-- Elliott.org: Escape from car rental traps

• What goes on behind the car-rental counter is fascinating - and frightening. That's what I discovered when I interviewed a former car rental agent recently. It changed the way I rent cars; it will probably do the same for you. Send us your comments.

Regional Airlines Flying Higher
The seven largest regional airlines had the highest domestic operating margins - an industry measure of profitability - of any carrier groups during the fourth quarter of 2003, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) of the U.S. Department of Transportation reported today in a release of preliminary data. This group of regional carriers reported a domestic operating profit margin of 14.1 percent for the fourth quarter, above the profit margin of 5.3 percent reported by the seven largest low-cost air carriers and the 7.9 percent loss margin reported by seven largest network carriers. Domestic operating margin measures operating profit or loss as a percentage of the airline's total domestic operating revenue. BTS | Posted 6:45 a.m.

Boeing Survey Says Smaller is Better
International air travelers overwhelmingly prefer being on 250-seat airplanes to 550-seat airplanes, whether flying non-stop or on connecting flights, a Harris Interactive study of more than 900 long-distance fliers found. Harris Interactive surveyed travelers from Tokyo, Hong Kong, and the United Kingdom who had recently taken at least one international flight of eight or more hours. Boeing commissioned the study to determine the aircraft preferences of these fliers. "We presented respondents with real-life air travel scenarios to better understand the attitudes and feelings that led to their choices," said Dr. David Bakken, senior vice president of Marketing Sciences, Harris Interactive. "What we found was that travelers taking very long flights generally prefer the more convenient and flexible experience provided by smaller planes." PR Newswire | Posted 7 a.m.

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• And finally ... from the mailbag. Seems as if I'm not the only one with a positive Avis experience (see end of blog entry). Reader Robert Ramus wrote to tell me about his recent rental in Los Angeles. "My wife and I piled into an intermediate Pontiac, only to find the car swelteringly hot without a functioning air conditioner. 'Can't use that,' the agent said as he walked by us. He returned quickly with a brand new, full-size Buick and off we went -upgraded, cooling off, and very happy with Avis customer service." Posted 7:10 a.m. | Send us your comments.

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