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Airline Taxes and More
Today Joe Sharkey of The Times discusses the rise in airline taxes. He mentions the cost of jet fuel, almost 50% up since January 2010. Another contributor is the lower dollar: as the dollar drops, taxes in foreign currencies rise. For instance, lets assume that your ticket to London includes a British airport security or construction tax in Pounds. If the dollar falls, and the Pound rises, your taxes will rise and so will the cost of your all in ticket.…
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Travel Tip: Airplane Pillows
Hate those pillows but need some support. Bring your own pillow case, and stuff it with your coat or sweater or something in your carry on. Or buy yourself a very light and squishable pillow: LL Bean sells one with plaid upside and grey downside. But buy a bright color so you do not leave it on the seat on departure.
This is even more important now that passengers want clean and sanitzed airplane items. For a full list of what we suggest you pack, contact us here:…
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Wake Up at Midnight and Forgot to Buy Insurance
You can buy our insurance 24/7 with the link we provided. If you do need to call the company for more info, you need to wait for office hours at Travel Guard. But for those sleepless nights: here it is again.
Just click here and off you go.A few more facts: you can buy insurance in installments, say you decide to upgrade your flight, just call Travel Guard, quote our reference: 33585786 (ECPS Consulting, our formal name). and increase your coverage.…
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Airport Security Line Annoyances
For those of you who paid $99 per year to whisk through security at 22 airports with Global Entry…. guess what: your whisking is not guaranteed. The press has been covering travelers who were denied quick GE lines despite their status. And the same goes for you FF Fliers. I flew to Los Angeles last week as a Gold AA member. Special treatment? No way, there was no line at all for upgraded passengers, even First Class (I was not) queued with us serfs.…
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Snow Delay Travel Tips
Weather is responsible for 40% of all plane cancellations. Although airlines prepare ahead of a storm, they do not cancel flights until same day. An annoying practice for us. One trick is to look at flight tracker sites to see which flights are arriving and which arrivals are cancelled. Airlines will begin to cancel arrivals before departures which gives you a vague heads up.
Travel insurance will cover costs associated with weather messes.…
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Airline Rules Contested
The papers today suggest that the announcement: “You must stay in your cabin and class of service”, is not actually an airline rule! However if you breach instructions and ,heaven forbid, push back the curtain or use the business class toilets, yikes, staff might strong arm you. Suggestions here:
1. Get all names of staff involved. If they say they will contact the captain write down his/her name as well. Be discreet.
2. Record witnesses’ statements on your phone.
3. Send a certified letter to the airline asking for an apology- they will not compensate you so just go for the apology then tell the world.… -
Cold Weather Airplane Tips from www.thewomenstravelgroup.com
Tips for Cold Weather Airplane Travel from Thewomenstravelgroup.com
1. Do not assume you do not need a winter coat. Even if flying to the Caribbean, take it in case of unexpected detours.
2. Sitting near the airplane window is chilly around the feet, wear knee socks and warmer than normal shoes. Try to insulate the plane wall with your coat or other.
3. If you get on the plane first, take one of the increasingly few blankets and use it! Or buy a cheap fleece one at a Target/Sears/TJMaxx type of store.…
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Thewomenstravelgroup.com tip to check flights, when uncertainties prevail
We all know how to call the airline or look on the web. But say your arrival airport might be closed for snow or strikes? Here is a way to check the status. Go to any flight tracking site, enter the flight arrivals same day from your destination airport. Example: flying to London on Dec. 20 with possible JFK handlers strike. Check flight arrivals on Dec. 20 into JFK to see if flights are landing on time and on schedule. This way you will get a real time accurate picture of the situation.…