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

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September 2, 2004

Monster Storm Targets Florida Again
Nearly half a million people began preparing for evacuation Wednesday as massive Hurricane Frances appeared headed for Florida's east coast, bringing a roughly 100-mile-wide swath of hurricane-force winds. Gov. Jeb Bush declared a state of emergency, activated the Florida National Guard and reopened the state's emergency operations center, just three weeks after Hurricane Charley ripped across the state and left 27 dead. "We are prepared, we will respond and we will recover," Bush said. The National Hurricane Center late Wednesday issued a hurricane watch for roughly 300 miles of Florida coast from Florida City to Flagler Beach, meaning those areas could experience hurricane conditions within 36 hours. St. Petersburg Times | Posted 6:30 a.m.
• Travelers Try to Flee Central Florida (Sentinel)
• Storm Batters Turks & Caicos, Bahamas (AFP)

Better rethink that Labor Day trip to the Sunshine State. For the sake of disclosure, we are right in the projected path of Frances, so if you experience a delay in this blog, you have your reason.

For Travel Industry, a Good Summer
The summer travel season, which comes to a close this weekend for many Americans, was the busiest for companies that own theme parks, resorts and cruise ships since the September 11 terrorist attacks. Lodging occupancy levels will reach 69 percent from Memorial Day through Labor Day, the highest for that period since 2000, according to PriceWaterhouseCoopers. The American Automobile Association estimates 34.1 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more this three-day weekend, up 2.2 percent from last year. Increased vacation demand “may mean that the soft patch in consumer spending wasn’t that soft a patch and that it won’t stay soft for long,” said Conference Board economist Ken Goldstein. Bloomberg | Posted 6:35 a.m.

More Industry Opposition to Northwest
At least three major travel industry groups have complained about Northwest Airlines to the U.S. Justice Department's antitrust division as the feud over the carrier's new ticket fees gathers steam. On Wednesday, the Association of Retail Travel Agents, a Kentucky group that says it represents nearly 2,600 mostly small travel agencies, joined the parties calling on the Justice Department to investigate Eagan-based Northwest's new ticket-selling policy. The new policy, in effect now, adds a non-refundable surcharge ranging from $5 to $10 per round-trip ticket on most domestic Northwest tickets not booked through the airline's Web sites. Pioneer Press | Posted 6:45 a.m.

United to Cut More Jobs - United Airlines, denied federal money to help it emerge from bankruptcy and squeezed for cash, plans at least $625 million in cost cutting, top company officials told employees. The cuts may lead to more layoffs and less service, although airline officials yesterday would not confirm the move. Newsday | Posted 7 a.m.

Half of US Hotels Have Broadband - Half the business-class hotel rooms in the United States offer broadband Internet access, according to a new survey by the American Hotel & Lodging Association. That's up 23% since 2001. In addition, a growing number of hotels are making it easier for guests attending meetings to link to the Web via wireless connections. InformationWeek | Posted 7:05 a.m.

Possible Deal in US Airways Talks - The union representing pilots for US Airways is anticipating a tentative agreement, perhaps as soon as today, in negotiations to help the airline avoid another bankruptcy. "It is possible," said Jack Stephan, a spokesman for the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA). "We're not commenting on the specifics of the proposal." US Airways is asking for $295 million in labor-contract concessions from its pilots. Washington Times | Posted 7:10 a.m.

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• Off the Record ... When you buy an airline ticket on the Web, but the site gets your name wrong, what can you do to make things right? For one traveler who books a ticket to Rome through Expedia, the answer is: not much. I try to help her in a just-posted installment of the Travel Troubleshooter. Posted 7:15 a.m. | Send us your comments.

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