U.S. cities top the cost charts for business travelers

December 21, 2017

Business travelers really rack up the expenses in the Big Apple. (Image: Jim Glab)

What’s the most expensive destination for a U.S. business traveler? You might think it’s some pricey overseas city like Tokyo or Geneva or Paris. Nope – not even close. The most expensive business destinations are right here in the USA.

That’s according to an extensive new ranking of daily business travel costs compiled by the trade publication Business Travel News, using data from actual January-November 2016 bookings provided by the global corporate travel management company BCD Travel. The study looked at average daily spending for a hotel, rental car and meals at scores of cities in the U.S. and abroad.

And the most expensive of all those destinations was New York City, with average daily spending of $549 – an increase of 5 percent year-over-year. San Francisco ranked second, at $534, followed by Boston at $510.

Source: Business Travel News

By contrast, the foreign city with the highest average spending level was Tokyo at $489 a day, followed by Zurich at $471 and London at $468. (All overseas prices were recorded in local currencies and converted to U.S. dollars. Click on the above link for an explanation of the study’s methodology.)

Three of the five most expensive foreign business destinations were in Switzerland; in addition to Zurich, they included Basel at $442 a day and Geneva at $432. And in the U.S., four of the 10 most expensive cities were in California. Besides San Francisco, they included Los Angeles ($419), San Jose ($418), and Santa Barbara ($395).

Source: Business Travel News

Hotel rates accounted for the biggest difference in costs. The average daily cost of a business hotel stay in New York was $385, followed by $379 for San Francisco, $337 for Boston and $320 for Washington D.C., the fourth-place U.S. destination.

By contrast, no hotel spending at foreign destinations exceeded $300 a day. The average hotel spend was $239 in Tokyo, $265 in Zurich and $279 in London.

Readers: Which U.S. and foreign cities have you found to be the most expensive in your travels? How do you keep costs down on business trips?

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Frequent flyers may need a new driver’s license – but when?

November 21, 2017

Current map for compliance with federal Real ID standards (Image: TSA)

There’s been a lot of coverage recently about states with driver’s licenses that do not meet the requirements of the federal Real ID law, and whether travelers holding those licenses might have to bring a passport to the airport as an alternative ID. Now it seems that many state driver’s licenses (including California’s) do not comply with that law – but there’s some question about how soon they need to be replaced.

Over the weekend, we heard from readers concerned about scary headlines such as “Californians will have to pay for new ID cards soon.” They breathlessly told readers that “Your current California driver’s license or ID card soon won’t be accepted by the TSA.” But a few paragraphs further, they said that new Real ID-compliant licenses won’t be needed until October 1, 2020. Three years away doesn’t seem very soon.

So there is no need for Californians to rush out and get a new license before January 18. You can rest easy. For a while…

California will start to issue Real ID compliant licenses in 2018, but TSA will not require them until 2020. (Image: California DMV)

The California Department of Motor Vehicles, now says on its website that “A valid California driver license or ID card (i.e., not a Real ID-compliant one) can be used to board a commercial flight or enter secure federal facilities until October 1, 2020.”

The confusion came when the DMV also said it will make Real ID-compliant licenses available starting next year, and will start taking applications for them January 22, 2018. Readers and editors thought that mean the deadline to get a new license was January 18 when in fact it’s not until 2020.

Regrettably, the TSA has done a poor job keeping travelers and the media abreast of correct, current and consistent information about new Real ID requirements. Our requests to TSA for clearer information remain unanswered.

For example, the information and links in this statement on the TSA website make it sound like California will not be compliant while state DMV site says that it is.

TSA: “Starting January 22, 2018, passengers with a driver’s license issued by a state that is still not compliant with the REAL ID Act (and has not been granted an extension) will need to show an alternative form of acceptable identification for domestic air travel to board their flight. To check whether your state is compliant or has an extension, click here. Passengers with driver’s licenses issued by a state that is compliant with REAL ID (or a state that has been issued an extension) will still be able to use their driver’s licenses or identification cards.”

Californians should just be aware that if they want to use their driver’s licenses as an ID to get through TSA screening at the airport, they have plenty of time to get a new one that complies with the law.

Phew! No matter what state you are from, it’s a good idea to simply travel with your passport (or similar ID) whenever you plan to board a plane. Mine is now permanently packed in my go-bag. What about you?

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Sneak sale: Hawaii $325 roundtrip from 5 west coast cities

October 24, 2017

Fares to Hawaii take a dip. Need to act fast, though. Kauai pictured here. (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

UPDATE! United’s been on a tear this week with tons of low fares for winter trips from the Bay Area- we can barely keep up! First it was Hawaii at $325, then South Florida for $251, then SFO-Boston for just $197 in basic economy, $228 regular (even during peak summer) and now SFO-HNL or Maui (OGG) are back and even lower at $299-$305- and these fares are good November thru May and then again in August and September. And there’s even more: How about SFO-LAX for just $73 roundtrip in basic economy, $110 in regular. Yep, and it’s good for trips late November through end of February. Grab ’em while they are hot! All fares found on Google Flights & United.com and subject to change.

>>Here’s the original post from last week.

Whenever we see fares to Hawaii from the west coast dip below $400, we jump. Over the last year it has been rare to see anything below $399. That changed this week when roundtrip fares dipped quietly closer to $300.

The airlines are not making a big deal about this, but we are!

Today we are seeing some very nice deals for winter travel to the islands– most at around $325 round trip between the Bay Area, Portland, Sacramento, San Diego, Seattle and Honolulu, Maui, Kauai and Hawaii. (This applies to both nonstop and one stop flights.) Interestingly, this does not apply (yet) to flights from LAX where fares remain above the $400 mark, but not by much, at around $410.

UPDATE #2: As of 3 pm on Oct 24, these fares are already drifting higher– most $325 fares are now closer to $350.

UPDATE #3: We are now finding flights available for deep peak summer for just $325-$345, mostly SFO-HNL in late August and early September

UPDATE #4: Weds Oct 25 7 am– the lowest roundtrip fares are now in the $375 range- not $325 any more, but still a good deal for winter trips to Hawaii. Most remaining discounts appear to be on flights to Maui (OGG).

Update #5: Weds 5 pm This sale appears to be slowing down however we are still finding SFO-Honolulu or Maui on Virgin America for $345 Nov-May and also in late August. That’s a very good deal.

Fares for mid-Late November between SFO and Hawaiian Islands (Google Flights)

What’s even better about this is a nice big window for travel– it starts in November and goes all the way to May. Of course this does not include the Christmas/New Year’s holiday period, but it does include spring break months of March and April (excluding the week before Easter). First class fares from the west coast are at about $1,000 roundtrip.

As of today, its mostly United and Hawaiian that are offering the low fares, but keep an eye out for matches from Alaska Air and Virgin America.

As of this morning (Tues Oct 24) we have found the following deals on Google Flights and as always clicked thru to airline sites to confirm:

San Francisco or San Jose to Maui: $325
San Francisco to Honolulu or Kauai: $333
San Diego to Honolulu, Maui or Kauai $338
Sacramento to Honolulu or Maui: $366 (one stop in SFO)
Seattle-Honolulu $348 (one stop in LAX)
Portland to Honolulu $333 (one stop)

San Francisco to Maui nonstop for just $325 in February is a great deal. Go grab it! (Google Flights)

Right now it appears that United is leading this sale with the most sale fares. Keep in mind that this could change rapidly– the airlines might just be “testing the waters” to see how low they must go to stimulate demand.

As always during the slower fall and winter months, it’s important to act fast on these un-publicized sales. If you see a fare that works for you, grab it because it likely will not last.

What’s a “good” deal to you when it comes to Hawaii? What’s the least you’ve ever paid to fly there? Please leave your comments below.

Get that $325 roundtrip fare nearly every day in cold dark Jan and Feb and get to paradise! (Google Flights)

Aloha!

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Popular: Big fare sale + Delta devaluation? + TWA hotel + Final 747 flights + Uber at airport

October 1, 2017

Roundtrip fares between Norcal & Socal plummeted to just $57 this week- did you get one? (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

TravelSkills’ 10 most popular posts over the last week (descending order):

1 Deal expired but more to come: Deal Alert: California Corridor goes dirt cheap

2 Two sides to this issue- see comments: Delta Diamond status just got a lot harder to earn

3 So that’s why! Airport Lyft & Uber pickups get faster. Why?

4 Routes: More Hong Kong from SFO, Delta to London, Virgin 747 flights, Lufthansa + more

5 Airport updates: O’Hare, LAX, Pittsburgh, Minneapolis, Boston

Do you follow Chris on Instagram? Come on and jump onboard here

Daytrip SFO-LAX in 6 hours #travel #california #sf #la #embraer @americanair #avgeek
A post shared by Chris McGinnis (@chrisjmcginnis) on Sep 27, 2017 at 9:19pm PDT

6 This is so remote: New: Take a bus to your plane at SFO

7 Anyone old enough to remember? See comments! TWA Hotel takes shape at JFK & in Manhattan (slideshow)

8 Bye bye big bird: United’s final 747 flight sells out in hours

9 Ugh! American Airlines eyes new perks – and packs in more seats

10 Nice: Delta debuts free in-flight text messaging

This is a lot of fun if you have 15 minutes to watch: In Worth It: Lifestyle, a spin off of BuzzFeed’s hit series Worth It, host Steven Lim and his buddies embark on a new adventure, setting out to try different experiences at three different price points: affordable, middle tier, and luxury–from airplane seats to cars to videos games. (JetBlue, Singapore Airlines, SurfAir) At the end of the episode, the gang decides which experience is the most “worth it” at its given price.

Links to stories from other sources that we thought you’d like to read:

Amex Platinum adds access to Lufthansa lounge at Munich Airport

More congestion coming to ATL curbside due to canopy construction

In July at SFO: 300,000 car service rides vs 100,000 taxi rides

Uber out of Montreal from Oct 14

Not much swoon for Air France’s new airline, Joon

Don’t forget: You can earn Delta SkyMiles for your Lyft rides

Lyft is a Delta’s SkyMiles partner- did you know? (Image: Delta/Lyft)

American Airlines CEO: “We’ll never lose money again.”

Elon Musk’s New Vision: Anywhere on Earth in Under One Hour

United exec discusses better sleep, social media at APEX conference

Hotels take in record amounts of revenue from guest fees

American introduces new sleep products for long-haul, transcon customers

Study: Airline revenues from Wi-Fi could grow from $1 billion to $30 billion

Canada’s Westjet will launch Calgary-based low-cost carrier

Netflix will help airlines improve their in-flight streaming technology

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Deal Alert: California Corridor goes dirt cheap

September 27, 2017

Fares have plummeted for fall and winter flights as airlines battle for Golden State (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

UPDATE: This fare sale expired at midnight Weds Sept 27. Roundtrip intra-California fares are now in the $100 range. Not bad, but not $57! As competition continues in the battle for the Golden State, we expect more fare sales like this during slower fall and winter months so stay tuned to TravelSkills.

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There’s a good old fashioned fare war happening in the California Corridor this week with roundtrip fares on several airlines as low as $51 on most NorCal-SoCal routes.

It appears that the war got started when Southwest Airlines deeply discounted round trips between its big Oakland hub and southern California cities. Spirit jumped in, too with its low fares and high fees.

Then it moved across the Bay to San Francisco and San Jose, where United and Alaska Air jumped into the fray in the battle for the Golden State.

Here’s how Southwest is pushing its sale which sparked a fare war in California

How low are we talking? Here are some examples- but there are so many that you need to check yourself. I’ve posted roundtrip fares, but the sale applies to one-way fares, too.

Note that these roundtrip fares are available on the morning of Sept 27 and subject to change:

SFO-Burbank on United: $55 roundtrip
SFO-LAX on United: $57
San Jose-LAX/Burbank on Alaska Air: $57
LAX-Orange County on United: $57
SFO-San Diego on United: $57
Oakland-LAX on Spirit: $57
Oakland-Long Beach on JetBlue $57
SFO-Burbank, LAX, Orange County, San Diego on Southwest: $57
Oakland/San Jose-Burbank, Los Angeles, Orange County, Ontario, San Diego on Southwest: $57
Sacramento-Los Angeles, San Diego, Ontario, Burbank on Southwest or United $57

It appears that the $57 roundtrips are only available on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays. Fares apply to flights now through mid-February. The are not available for peak holiday season flights. We found these fares on Southwest.com and Google Flights.

Note that the lowest United fares could be low-frills basic economy– awful, but acceptable for such short flights.

When roundtrip fares between SFO and LAX go below $100 round trip, it’s time to pay attention. But just $57 round trip? Wow. $57 is less that what many of us pay for a ride to or from the airport in Lyft, Uber or taxicab.

Will you take advantage of this sale? What’s the lowest fare you’ve ever seen in the California Corridor? Leave your comments below.

Deal> Australia or New Zealand: $949 round trip on Qantas

September 26, 2017

Fares between the US and Australia tumble for 2018 trips- Qantas A380s sunbathing at LAX (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

When fares to Australia or New Zealand dip below $1,000, it’s time to sit up and take notice.

Today Qantas announced a very good deal for flights from the US to Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane– with fares from San Francisco and Los Angeles starting at just $949 roundtrip. You can fly to Auckland, New Zealand from California for $999. From Dallas, fares are running at about $1,100 round trip. One stop flights from New York-JFK are just $1049 round trip.

What’s best about this sale is the timing… you’ll travel during the dark cold days of winter in the US to the sunny shores of Oz between February 5 and June 23. To get the deal, you must book your trip by Monday, October 2.

Fare chart from Qantas for economy roundtrips

For business travelers, premium economy fares are also discounted for this sale to around $2,300 round trip. Business class remains a steep $7,000+ round trip.

So far, United and Air New Zealand have not matched this sale, but stay tuned… it could happen in the next 24 hours.

We checked and these fares are indeed available on the Qantas sale website, but keep in mind that you’ll pay more to choose your seat ahead of time.

Link to sale here: https://www.qantas.com/us/en/flight-deals.html/sfo/au/economy/all/lowest

What’s the lowest price you’ve seen or paid for a round trip ticket to Australia? Will you take on this deal? Please leave your comments below.

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California, Texas ‘all-you-can-fly’ airlines merge

June 8, 2017

Surf Air offers private aircraft flights around California. (Image: Surf Air)

Small airlines in California and Texas that use a similar business model – charging a monthly membership fee for “all-you-can-fly” service – are merging.

Santa Monica-based Surf Air said it has acquired Texas-based Rise; Surf Air offers small private aircraft flights in intra-California markets, and Rise does the same in Texas.

The company said that together, Surf Air and Rise will operate 445 flights a week to 17 destinations.

The companies will also add new markets: “As part of the agreement, the combined entities also announced plans to quickly expand to additional markets within the next 18 months,” Surf Air said, including Las Vegas, Nev.; Bentonville, Ark. (home of Walmart headquarters); Midland, Tex. (a major energy center); New Orleans, La.; Scottsdale, Ariz.; and Taos, N.M. Certain membership levels will also qualify for weekend service to leisure destinations like Cabo San Lucas, Aspen and Sun Valley, the company said.

A Rise King Air 200. (Image: Rise)

The Rise brand will be changed to Surf Air, and “a new fleet of Surf Air aircraft will be brought to Texas to fly the scheduled Rise routes between Dallas, Austin, Houston and San Antonio,” Surf Air said.

Destinations currently served by Surf Air include the Los Angeles area (Hawthorne and Burbank), Santa Barbara, the Bay Area (Oakland, San Carlos and San Jose), Napa Valley, Truckee/Lake Tahoe, San Diego, Carlsbad, Palm Springs and Monterey. The carrier operates up to 90 flights a day in California.

Surf Air said that after the merger is complete, it expects to link up its California and Texas networks. A Surf Air membership starts at $1,950 a month. Both companies also offer “block pricing” that allows travelers to purchase a package of a specific number of flights without committing to a monthly membership.

The company has set up a page on its website where members and prospective members can vote on specific new routes they’d like to see added to the existing network.

To find out more, you can check out the “frequently asked questions” sections on the websites of Surf Air and Rise.

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Uber could make tipping easier – but would you? POLL

April 18, 2017

Uber may have to alter its app to allow tipping. (Image: Uber)

Even though its competitor Lyft has always allowed customers to tip drivers through its app, ride-sharing giant Uber has firmly resisted that option – although it might soon be forced to change its policy.

New York City’s Taxi and Limousine Commission this week said it will take up a proposal that would require car services that rely on app-based credit card transactions to include a way for customers to tip drivers through the app. If the commission ultimately decides to adopt the rule, a process that could take several months, other cities might follow suit.

>>SEE POLL BELOW!>>

The New York proposal is backed by a petition effort signed by thousands of drivers. Two months ago, a bill was introduced in the California legislature that would impose a similar requirement on Uber.

A year ago, as part of a settlement with drivers in California and Massachusetts, the company agreed that it’s OK for drivers to solicit cash tips by posting signs in their cars, or simply by asking customers.

Uber drivers want an easier way to collect gratuities. (Image: Uber)

On its website, Uber informs customers who look for guidance that its app does not include a tip in the trip fare. “In most cities, Uber is a cashless experience,” the website says. “Tipping is voluntary. As a rider, you are not obligated to offer your driver a gratuity in cash. If you decide you would like to tip your driver is welcome to accept.” That verbiage was recently changed from the previous version: “You don’t need cash when you ride with Uber. Once you arrive at your destination, your fare is automatically charged to your credit card on file — there’s no need to tip.”

After the company changed its policy on tipping last year, an article in the Harvard Business Review was highly critical of the company’s decision not to allow gratuities to be paid through its app, instead requiring a separate transaction between passenger and driver.

“While this tipping procedure sounds harmless, it puts Uber at a significant competitive disadvantage,” the article said. “In addition to the inconvenience of the extra step, which will require business travelers to collect multiple receipts for expense account reimbursements, many riders will feel pressured to be overly generous in the amount they tip.” It noted that customers might also feel pressure to cough up a bigger tip if they want a good rating from the driver. “Customers never enjoy being strong-armed over a gratuity,” the article said.

When we polled our readers in February 2016, we found that by a two-to-one margin, they do not regularly tip Uber (or Lyft) drivers. Would that change if you could tip through the Uber app?

POLL:

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Please click the clear-looking or “vote” button

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New $149 California-Spain flights – and it’s not Norwegian

March 17, 2017

Level will fly A330s from Oakland and Los Angeles. (Image: IAG)

British Airways’ parent International Airlines Group (IAG) is making good on its promise to take on Norwegian Air by bringing a new low-fare service from California to Spain this summer. New nonstops on Level between Oakland, Los Angeles and Barcelona start June 2.

When the service was announced earlier this year, one-way fares started at $149. Currently the cheapest roundtrip fares for June OAK-BCN flights are $366. For July and August flights, fares are in the $700 roundtrip range.

Tickets are on sale now at www.flylevel.com. As with other low fare carriers, you’ll pay fees for checked bags, assigned seats and food, but even with those, this is still a good deal.

The Level A330s (operated by Spain’s Iberia Airlines at first) will have 21 premium economy and 293 regular economy seats.

Economy seating on a Level A330. (Image: IAG)

Economy seats on the A330 are configured 2-4-2 with 30 inches of pitch. Each seat gets a 9-inch seatback video screen.

Premium economy seats have slightly wider armrests and 37 inches of pitch and larger 12-inch video screens. A premium economy fare (about $1,300 round trip) also includes a checked bag, a carry-on bag, in-flight meals, advance seat selection and in-flight movies. Inflight Wi-Fi starts at $9.65.

Premium economy seats on Level are slightly larger with 37 inches of pitch (Image: Level)

Here’s how Level describes its premium economy section

What’s more, flights on Level will be included in IAG’s Avios loyalty program, which is also a feature of its other subsidiaries (BA, Iberia, Aer Lingus and Vueling). However, we don’t yet know how many Avios members will earn.

Norwegian announced last fall that it plans to begin new 787 service to Barcelona from Los Angeles starting June 5 and from Oakland beginning June 7. It was initially offering one-way fares starting at $199.

In addition to the U.S. service, Level will fly from Barcelona to Buenos Aires, Argentina and to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. At Barcelona, passengers will be able to connect to intra-European flights on IAG’s Vueling subsidiary.

“Barcelona has been chosen as the first European city for the launch of IAG’s new operation but LEVEL will look to expand its flights from other European cities,” IAG said.

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Popular: Alaska invasion + Amex changes + Airport lounges + Nowhere flight + Cathay Pacific

March 12, 2017

What will happen to fares when Alaska moves in? Listen to what Chris said on CBS5 (Image: CBS5)

TravelSkills’ 10 most popular posts over the last week (descending order):

1 See Chris discuss this on TV- 13 new nonstops with Alaska Airlines’ big Bay Area bump

2 A slew of good comments- Game over for American Express card gamers?

3 Ummmm, yesss! Are airport lounges getting too crowded?

Some additional notes regarding Amex: See below for Amex guest policy changes announced this week to fix overcrowding at lounges; additionally, we’ve heard from a few readers who called Amex to protest the 22% rate increase, and were offered a $300 credit on the spot to not cancel their cards)

4 Getting cushy- Double beds in business class

5 Seriously! A new trend? Oh, no! Another 4-hour flight to nowhere

Another one! Hawaiian Air flight 43 took off from San Jose, and returned 4 hours later (Image: Flight Aware)

6 Airport news: Atlanta, LAX, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Orlando

7 One of this year’s most popular- United flies Boeing 747 SFO-LAX

8 Tried Lyft yet? Get the app! 5 key reasons to try new Lyft Premier

Lyft now offers a classier ride to the airport with new Premier option (Source: Lyft)

9 Both airlines have final hurrahs in the works- United, Delta 747 schedule: final flights

10 Another reason to fly Southwest Getting on earlier flight getting easier

Links to stories from other sources that we thought you’d like to read:

This week Cathay Pacific announced that it would add a THIRD daily SFO-Hong Kong nonstop on October 29 using an Airbus A350, its first deployed in the U.S. The new jet will offer Cathay’s newest business class, premium economy and economy class seating (no first class). What’s really nice about this plane? It burns 25% less fuel (with corresponding reduction in emissions) and its carpet and blankets are made with nylon and plastic recycled from bottles and salvaged fishing nets, which pose a threat to marine life. Even better, this will be the first Cathay plane to offer inflight wi-fi– essential for those 12-14 hour flights to Hong Kong!

Cathay Pacific’s first U.S. A350 coming to SFO this fall (Photo: Cathay Pacific)

American Express restricts Centurion lounge guests to 2 family members only

Chris on CBS5 talking about Alaska Air’s big Bay Area bump

Emirates, Etihad on the verge of a merge?

At LAX, agents detain Playboy bunny believed to be Russian spy

JetBlue to ATL: Thanks but no thanks for ghetto gates on Concourse D

NY Post: How to survive LaGuardia’s construction chaos

Why are new planes still delivered with ashtrays?

Leg rest or lie flat? More buy up to premium economy than buy down from business class

Study finds radiation threat on long-haul flights is worse than previously believed

Construction starts on new hotel inside Saarinen terminal at JFK. (Photo: NY Governor Cuomo office)

TWA Terminal Hotel at JFK will have a restaurant inside a Lockheed Constellation

Qatar Airways plans to launch a subsidiary in India with 100 planes

Here’s what happens when your seatmate dies in flight

Trump wants to slash TSA’s budget to help pay for border wall

Hughes Network Systems claims in-flight Wi-Fi speeds of 400 Mbps

TSA pat-downs get more personal

On Delta #1583 SFO-JFK on Feb 22 met by CBP agents demanding ID? @ACLU wants to talk to you

Get the app and get $10 off your first Lyft ride!

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Burbank loses Hope but gains flights

February 21, 2017

Burbank's airport is 16 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles. (Image: Bob Hope Airport)

Bob Hope Airport is getting a name change. (Image: Hollywood Burbank Airport)

Burbank’s airport may be small, but with a name change, a new terminal and an increasing roster of flights, it could be a viable alternative to Los Angeles International for a growing number of passengers.

Located northwest of downtown Burbank, the city’s Bob Hope Airport is about the same distance from Beverly Hills as LAX is. It’s even closer to Hollywood, and hence its new name, which was approved last spring and will soon appear on airport signage: Hollywood Burbank Airport.

Actually, it was called Hollywood Burbank Airport before 1978, and then was renamed Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport. In 2003, it was renamed for Bob Hope. But since that actor’s name didn’t say anything about where the airport is located, officials decided a geographic reference was needed once again. And Hollywood Burbank probably has more cachet than Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena.

The little airport is gaining traction among business travelers as Los Angeles International becomes more congested and more bogged down with massive construction projects. It’s also closer to the west side hotels that many road warriors prefer.

Hollywood Burbank Airport is 16 miles northwest of downtown Los Angeles. (Image: Google Maps)

Passenger traffic during November 2016 was up more than 11 percent over the same month a year earlier, and the airport was poised to show a 12-month total for the year of more than 4 million. Southwest dominates the airline roster at BUR, carrying about half the total passenger count.

The airport is also served by Alaska, American, JetBlue, Delta and United. Route options in the California Corridor are the strongest at BUR, with Southwest flying to San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose and Sacramento. United also flies BUR-SFO, and Alaska Airlines is due to launch three daily roundtrips between BUR and San Jose in mid-March. Small-jet operator JetSuite X also started operating at Burbank last year, with service to San Jose and to Concord, CA in the East Bay area. United has recently up-gauged some of its DEN-BUR and SFO-BUR flights from regional jets to mainline, according to Live & Let’s Fly.

$200

Get $200 when booking your next trip: Use code: TS!

Burbank has attracted nonstop flights from as far away as New York-JFK (JetBlue), and Austin, TX. Alaska flies in from Seattle and Portland. Delta used to offer a convenient nonstop from Atlanta.

Southwest will add new service from Burbank to Salt Lake City next month, a route already served by Delta. Service is also available to Seattle on Alaska and American; to Portland on Southwest, Delta, American and Alaska; to Phoenix on American and Southwest; and to Denver on Southwest and United. JetBlue offers a red-eye from BUR to New York JFK, the airport’s only transcontinental non-stop.

The airport is planning for future growth with a new terminal. Last fall, voters approved construction of a 14-gate terminal that is farther from the runways than the existing facility, which will be torn down after the new one opens. Design and construction of the $400 million terminal is expected to take place from 2018 to 2022.

Readers: Do you consider Burbank a viable alternative to LAX? What do you consider Burbank’s advantages and/or drawbacks?

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Fare war: California-Chicago $100 roundtrip

February 21, 2017

Chicago continues to block Uber airport pick-ups. (Image: Jim Glab)

Chicago-California nonstops hit rock bottom for spring trips. (Image: Jim Glab)

There’s a fare war festering between major airlines and ultra-low-cost carriers between the West Coast and Chicago with fares as low as $120 round trip.

What’s best about this deal is that it is good for spring break travel– we’ve found super low, sub $150 roundtrip fares on SFO-ORD and LAX-ORD from now through the end of May.

The cheap fares are lead by the ultra lows: Spirit Air and Frontier. Both are offering fares as low as $100 round trip on this busy route, which is crazy. But keep in mind that you end up paying a price for using these guys…you are dinged for carry-on bags, seat assignments, and don’t get much love (or alternatives) if your flight is canceled or delayed. You might have to take a red-eye. But still, $100 round trip is tough to resist!

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We used March 1-March 8 as sample here (Google Flights)

We used March 1-March 8 LAX-ORD as sample here (Google Flights)

Majors have responded with ultra low fares of their own– we found nonstop deals on United, American, and Virgin America for as little as $120 round trip. We found American’s code share on new Alaska Air operated nonstops between San Jose and Chicago as cheap as $128. And these are regular economy fares, not the new stripped down “basic economy” fares loaded with restrictions and fees. Plus most of these flights are at decent times, you’ll still earn miles or points, and are not saddled with too many restrictions.

$200

Get $200 when booking your next trip: Use code: TS!

Southwest does not appear to be engaging in this fare war– its cheapest Oakland-Chicago Midway flights are still in the $300 roundtrip range.

Anytime we see roundtrips between California and Chicago running less than $200, we know it’s time to jump. So if this works for you, jump! It won’t last for long.

NOTE: These fares were available using Liligo and Google Flights on Tuesday, Feb 21 and subject to change. We also confirmed fares on individual airline sites.

Let us know if you have been successful or unsuccessful in finding these fares–put it in the comments.

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Uber’s driverless car test in San Francisco hits a snag

December 15, 2016

A driverless UberX Volvo near San Francisco’s ferry terminal. (Image: Uber)

Uber’s driverless car test in San Francisco is getting off to a shaky start.

No sooner had Uber started testing the use of driverless cars in San Francisco this week than the state stepped in to block it – and an incriminating video didn’t help Uber’s case.

The ride-sharing giant, which started using driverless vehicles in Pittsburgh in September, expanded the service to the streets of San Francisco this week with some UberX automated Volvo XC90s. The company said customers could request a self-driving car for their local rides based on availability.

But California’s Department of Motor Vehicles quickly intervened by telling Uber it needs a permit to use the driverless technology – something that 20 other companies already have, the DMV noted.

Uber is challenging the DMV’s warning, however. “We understand that there is a debate over whether or not we need a testing permit to launch self-driving Ubers in San Francisco,” the company said. “We have looked at this issue carefully and we don’t believe we do…First, we are not planning to operate any differently than in Pittsburgh, where our pilot has been running successfully for several months. Second, the rules apply to cars that can drive without someone controlling or monitoring them. For us, it’s still early days and our cars are not yet ready to drive without a person monitoring them.”

As soon as the UberX Volvos hit the street, they started having problems, according to local media, with the cars running red lights on at least two occasions. Uber called it “human error,” blaming the problems on the engineers who were in the driver’s seat of the driverless cars, supposedly ready to handle any emergency or sticky situation. It said both employees had been suspended while it investigates.

One of those incidents was caught on video from the dash cam of a local taxi:

Readers: Would you ride in a driverless car as long as there was an Uber engineer keeping an eye on things? What if there wasn’t? Post comments below.

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Another small-plane alternative for California: Blackbird

November 17, 2016

Blackbird promises a small-plane experience at a budget airline price. (Image: Blackbird)

Blackbird promises a private-plane experience at a budget airline price. (Image: Blackbird)

Californians are getting plenty of alternatives to commercial airline travel these days. There’s Surf Air, which uses an all-you-can-fly, membership-based model; there’s JetSuiteX, which has a growing network of intrastate flights with 30-passenger aircraft; and now there’s Blackbird. The question becomes, How many airlines can the market bear?

Blackbird calls itself “a new, technology-driven airline delivering a private flight experience at a budget airline price.”

The company is partnering with independent charter operators to offer small-plane service, with its first scheduled flights due to begin January 12 between Palo Alto and Truckee near Lake Tahoe. (The big airport alternative to that would be Southwest’s OAK to Reno flight, Alaska’s SJC-RNO flight or United’s SFO to Reno flight.) It’s website says, “Imagine skiing in Tahoe until 4pm on Sunday and back home to the Bay Area by 5:30. Blackbird is the cure for Sunday night driving dread.” Depending on traffic, the slog between the Bay Area and Lake Tahoe can run from 4-7 hours.

Blackbird said it will initially operate between the two cities from Friday through Sunday at fares starting at $125 per seat, with no sign-up or membership fees. Flight frequencies will expand to more days as customer demand picks up, and “Blackbird will add six additional routes throughout California in 2017,” a spokesperson said.

Other cities under consideration for Blackbird service (Blackbird website)

The company promised its flights would operate on a regular schedule, and said seats will be bookable through a mobile app, “just like Uber.” (Well, it’s obviously not just like Uber because it’s not an on-demand service, but many start-ups these days can’t seem to resist the Uber comparison.)

While the app is not yet operations, Blackbird has a website at www.flyblackbird.com. A spokesperson says that the app will be available for reservations starting in early January.

The new entrant’s competitors seem to be doing well so far. JetSuiteX recently announced an equity partnership with JetBlue, and Surf Air (which already flies to Truckee from three Bay Area airports) said it is expanding its all-you-can-fly concept to Europe.

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Most popular: United devalues + California + Lie-flat seat + Australia deal + Uber scam

October 16, 2016

When the TSA PreCheck line at SFO looks like this on a Wednesday, I’m glad I renewed CLEAR- with the Delta discount! CLICK for details (Chris McGinnis)

TravelSkills’ 10 most popular posts over the last week (descending order):

1 Bad and good (ish): United devalues; Delta throws a bone, Chairman resigns (anyone know why?)

2 Cali is HOT! New California routes: Southwest, AA, Delta, JetSuiteX, Mokulele + more

3 An exotic new one: Love a lie-flat seat? You’ll love this…

4 Move in this week: SFO flips switch on shapely new control tower

5 Berlin from SFO! Routes: Airberlin to SFO, LAX; Emirates, Lufthansa, Etihad, Southwest

6 A new Jennifer Aniston ad from Emirates

7 Break out the khakis: What in the world does “business casual” really mean?

Don’t miss! Marriott’s new beta-test hotel in Charlotte

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Access to the great outdoors and Sydney's "rock pools" make Australians smile (Chris McGinnis)

Access to the great outdoors and Sydney’s “rock pools” make Australians smile- go for <$1000 (Chris McGinnis)

8 Deal: Australia on sale! $914 round trip (still in effect- ends next Sunday)

9 Confiscation possible: Really bad news for Samsung smartphone owners

10 Routes: LOT at LAX, AA seats, KLM popup, 2 new US cities for Icelandair

TravelSkills editor Chris McGinnis flew SFO-ATL-SFO this week. Paid $249 for an upgrade for the return leg. Worth it!

Links to stories from other sources that we thought you’d like to read:

How to survive NY LaGuardia airport construction

Yet another simple way to earn 500 Virgin America Elevate points

Is Delta experimenting with SkyMiles partner award pricing?

Singapore Airlines picks up newest A350 in Toulouse

Work begins on Atlanta’s showy airport roadside canopies

Airbus to slow production of giant A380

As would be expected, flight attendants pass trays of Turkish delight candies during each flight (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Political strife takes toll on Turkish Airlines’ rapid expansion

Hong Kong bids farewell to the Queen of the Skies

Airlines deploy fire containment bags for overheated devices

Live a little: Report lists NYC’s 10 most expensive hotel suites

New Star Alliance carrier (Photo: Star Alliance)

New Star Alliance carrier Juneyao (Photo: Star Alliance)

Chinese carrier will become a Star Alliance partner next year

Major airlines try to tackle low-fare transatlantic competition

Luggage series was designed with input from 100,000 frequent flyers

Watch out for fake Uber scam at LaGuardia and JFK

Chase Sapphire Reserve sole sponsor of new online travel publication, Meridian

Emirates adds daily Ft Lauderdale nonstop to tie in w partner

Colorado’s Famed Ski Train Is Back For Winter Vacation Fun

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New California routes: Southwest, AA, Delta, JetSuiteX, Mokulele + more

October 13, 2016

Southwest will add two more California routes in March. (Image: Jim Glab)

In domestic route news, much of the action is in California, including a pair of new Southwest routes, new American flights from northern California and LAX, a new Delta market from Los Angeles, and new intrastate service from JetSuite and a small Hawaiian carrier; meanwhile, Alaska upgrades its equipment on two California routes.

Southwest Airlines, which has focused much if its recent growth on California, plans to add another pair of routes there. The carrier said that beginning March 9, it will start new service to Salt Lake City from both Sacramento and Burbank. Southwest is offering introductory fares starting at $59 one-way for booking through October 20.

American will begin Phoenix flights from Santa Rosa’s Charles M. Schultz Airport. (Image: Charles M. Schultz Airport)

On February 16, American Eagle/SkyWest will kick off new daily non-stops between Sonoma County’s Charles M. Schulz Airport in Santa Rosa and AA’s Phoenix hub. The carrier will use a CRJ-700 on the route. Elsewhere in California, American plans to initiate summer seasonal service next year from Los Angeles International to Grand Junction, Colorado. The flights will operate from June 3 through August 19, also with an American Eagle/SkyWest CRJ-700.

Outside of California, American will begin new regional jet service on February 16 from Phoenix to Bullhead City, Arizona; and AA this month began American Eagle/Envoy Air flights twice a day from its Chicago O’Hare hub to Akron/Canton.

As we mentioned the other day in a post about the expansion of lie-flat premium seats on transcontinental routes, Delta plans to launch new service on April 24 between LAX and Washington D.C.’s close-in Reagan National Airport, using a 757-200 equipped with fully-flat seats in the front cabin. At the same time, Delta will drop one of its two daily Salt Lake City-DCA flights, replacing it with a Salt Lake-Washington Dulles service.

This Phenom 100 jet from JetSuite seats six (JetSuite)

A Phenom 100 jet from JetSuite (JetSuite)

JetSuiteX, which offers small-plane public charters within California, will begin new service October 17 between San Jose and McClellan-Palomar Airport in Carlsbad, north of San Diego. The company will use a four-seat Phenom 100 to fly the route four times a week, on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. On the same day, JetSuiteX will boost frequencies between San Jose and Burbank to two flights a day– and currently flights from both Concord and San Jose to Burbank are on sale for just $59 each way (for November trips) and that includes checked bags and wi-fi.

Following United’s recent decision to stop flying between San Francisco and Santa Maria, California, that town just got new service from an unlikely source: Hawaii-based Mokulele Airlines. The carrier is flying four times a day between Santa Maria and Terminal 6 at Los Angeles International Airport using nine-passenger Cessna Grand Caravan turboprops.

In nearby Santa Barbara, meanwhile, Alaska Airlines has started to use new 76-passenger Embraer 175s on its routes to Seattle and Portland, replacing 70-passenger CRJ-700s. The new planes have first class, Preferred Plus and regular coach seating, and are equipped with Wi-Fi service.

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California competition heats up

June 9, 2016

Alaska is taking on Southwest in a battle for California dominance. (Image: Jim Glab)

Bay Area travelers have some new airline options this week as carriers add more routes in a growing competition for California customers.

Alaska Airlines has taken on the daunting task of horning in on a pair of Southwest Airlines’ intra-California monopoly routes out of San Jose. Alaska just started up three daily flights between San Jose and Orange County’s John Wayne Airport, as well as three daily roundtrips between San Jose-San Diego. The flights will be operated for Alaska by SkyWest, using 76-seat E175s with first class, Preferred Plus and main cabin seating, as well as Wi-Fi access and free streaming entertainment. They’ll be facing Southwest’s heavy daily schedules of multiple 737 flights in both markets.

At Oakland, meanwhile, Southwest this week launched nine new daily flights, including new intrastate service to Long Beach four times a day, along with three new daily flights to Reno-Tahoe and one to St. Louis. Southwest also boosted its Oakland-Baltimore/Washington schedule from one flight a day to two.

Southwest Airlines jets at Oakland International Airport (Photo: Port of Oakland)

With the new service from Oakland to Long Beach, “Oakland and Southwest will offer more daily departures by a single airline from a Bay Area airport to Southern California with 43 peak non-stop flights per day,” according to a spokesperson for the airport. With the latest additions, Southwest now has more than 120 flights a day out of OAK – with half of them going to airports in the greater Los Angeles region plus San Diego.

The new routes are just the latest escalation in a growing battle for the California market between Southwest and Alaska, which should get really interesting when Alaska merges with San Francisco-based Virgin America. And more new routes are coming from the two carriers, including Alaska’s plan to begin Sacramento-San Diego and San Jose-Burbank flights next winter, and new Southwest flights from San Jose to Baltimore/Washington and Salt Lake City coming this fall.

Cruising over Oahu on Virgin America (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Speaking of Virgin America, that airline is due to add another new Hawaii route next week (June 14), when it kicks off daily service from Los Angeles to Maui’s Kahului Airport. Early last month, Virgin started daily LAX-Honolulu flights. It also flies to both islands from San Francisco.

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Alaska, Southwest fight for California with new flights

May 19, 2016

Alaska Airlines will begin two new intra-California routes early next year. (Image: Alaska Air)

Both Alaska Airlines and Southwest Airlines this week announced they will add new routes from California airports. This is likely just the beginning of a battle for the hearts and wallets of California’s frequent flyers as Alaska absorbs Virgin America and takes on Southwest for dominance in the Golden State. For the short term, travelers should benefit with more options and lower fares.

Alaska set a March 17, 2017 start for new Sacramento-San Diego and San Jose-Burbank service. It will offer three roundtrips a day in both markets, using its new 76-seat E175 jets operated by SkyWest Airlines with first class, premium economy and economy seating. (More on the E175 here.)

Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines will increase its growing presence at Mineta San Jose International Airport by adding nonstops to Baltimore/Washington International and Salt Lake City International, both starting on November 6 of this year.

Southwest will operate one daily roundtrip between SJC-BWI and two a day between SJC and Salt Lake City.

Officials at the airport noted that there is currently no non-stop service between San Jose and the metro Washington D.C. area, which was the second most requested domestic destination in a Silicon Valley corporate survey.

We checked times and prices on the new San Jose-Baltimore nonstop. Here’s what we found for an early November roundtrip:

The new flights will give Southwest 76 weekday departures from SJC to 15 destinations. Plus it will give San Jose another much-needed nonstop connection to the East Coast.

San Jose has made huge gains this year with flights to several long-haul destinations. British Airways just launched new 787 Dreamliner flights to London. On June 16, Air China inaugurates nonstops to Shanghai, followed by Lufthansa nonstops to Frankfurt later this summer.

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Hyperloop approaching faster than expected

May 12, 2016

Rendering of passenger boarding a Hyperloop vehicle. (Image: Hyperloop Technologies)

Rendering of passengers boarding a Hyperloop vehicle. (Image: Hyperloop One)

The California Corridor is the staging ground for what could be a revolutionary leap forward in fast ground transportation, as tech companies move forward with ultra-high-speed magnetic levitation systems. And it sounds like the future is approaching faster than expected.

At least three companies are in the news this week with plans to develop “Hyperloop” systems that would use the technology to zip passenger pods or compartments along at speeds of up to 750 mph. The competitors are raising tens of millions of dollars in venture capital, and some are already working on small-scale test tracks.

One is a company called Hyperloop One, inspired by Tesla and SpaceX guru Elon Musk; it would shoot passenger capsules through a low-pressure tube on a cushion of air. (Magnetic levitation systems rely on magnetic forces to lift vehicles above their guide rails, eliminating all that friction that slows down regular trains.) Today, the company completed an initial “test run” in the Nevada desert– see below.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the company’s plan is to create a fully operational hyperloop system by 2020.

The 700 mph #Hyperloop just got one step closer to reality. @HyperloopOne held its first test run.https://t.co/7o3JcaL7f3
— CNBC (@CNBC) May 11, 2016

Another firm, Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, has licensed Maglev technology developed by California’s renowned Lawrence Livermore Laboratories. The third is a firm called SkyTran, which envisions Maglev vehicles traveling on elevated tracks and is working with NASA.

If the firms achieve the suggested goal of 750 mph, it could mean a San Francisco to L.A. trip in just 30 minutes – without the hassle of airports. Maglev technology is already operating in Japan and China. Last year, a Japan Railways Maglev train achieved a record speed of 374 mph, suggesting that the American developers still have a ways to go. In China, Maglev trains operate between Shanghai Pudong Airport and central Shanghai at speeds of about 268 mph.

Rendeering of as Hyperloop vehicle in an elevated tube. (Image: Hyperloop Transportation Technologies)

Rendering of a Hyperloop vehicle in an elevated tube. (Image: Hyperloop Transportation Technologies)

Whoever comes out ahead with the technology, a working California Corridor Hyperloop line is many years away. First of all, there’s the cost, estimated at $6 billion. Then there are the logistical difficulties of building a safe and secure route through heavily populated and developed areas – not to mention that much of the corridor is an earthquake zone.

But it’s sure fun to dream about for now. And exciting to see tangible progress toward reality. In the meantime, we have the Sleepbus 🙂

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California hotel rates are soaring

March 25, 2016

Rooftop pool deck at Kimpton's Hotel Wilshire in Los Angeles (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Rooftop pool deck at Kimpton’s Hotel Wilshire in Los Angeles CLICK (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Demand for hotel rooms in key California business markets is pushing up room rates far above the national average, according to a new report.

STR, a firm that tracks hotel industry performance and metrics, this week released data for room rates in major cities during the week of March 13-19 and compared them with the same period a year earlier.

It found that among the nation’s top 25 markets, the biggest increase in average daily rates was in Los Angeles/Long Beach, where the average room rate soared by 14 percent, to $174 per night. The higher room rates corresponded with a big increase in demand: STR said the average occupancy rate for Los Angeles/Long Beach hotels hit 88 percent, a gain of 6.4 percent.

That compares with the national average of daily rates that increased just 4.2 percent (to $127) and occupancy of 70.5 percent, a gain of 1.9 percent.

Impressive lobby in the brand new Axiom Hotel near San Francisco’s Union Square CLICK (Photo: Axiom)

The company also found substantial rate increases in two other California markets: San Francisco/San Mateo and Anaheim/Santa Ana. It said the average room rate in the San Francisco area jumped 11.3 percent year-over-year to $240 a night, while the average rate for Anaheim/Santa Ana hotels rose 10.7 percent to $154. (Note that the rate period studied – March 13-19 – does not include the Super Bowl period, when San Francisco room rates ballooned even more.)

Looking at a different metric – revenue per available room, which includes more than just the room rate and thus reflects overall guest spending – STR found even larger year-over-year gains for those three markets – 21.3 percent for L.A./Long Beach, 16.6 percent for Anaheim/Santa Ana and 16.0 percent for San Francisco/San Mateo, ranking them number one, two and three in the nation. It also found a 12 percent increase in revenue per available room for San Diego hotels.

Some observers have suggested that the rapid growth of Airbnb would draw enough business away from hotels to put downward pressure on rates – but that’s apparently not the case in Los Angeles. The LA Times reported last week that from May 2015 to January 2016, the number of Airbnb listings for Los Angeles County skyrocketed by 42 percent.

Just goes to show that California is once again hot-hot-hot, repeating its historic rythym of boom and bust.

What’s your favorite California hotel? Why? Have you noticed higher rates? Please leave your comments below.

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Routes: Southwest, Delta, American, United

February 22, 2016

Southwest Airlines unveiled a new special livery today, “Tennessee One” Like it? (Image: Southwest Airlines)

In domestic route news, Southwest will add a number of new flights out of California airports in August; Delta will tack on new spokes from its Salt Lake City and New York LaGuardia hubs; American revives a secondary California route from DFW; and United changes planes on a west coast route out of San Francisco.

Southwest Airlines’ latest schedule announcement says the carrier will begin service August 7 on several new California routes, including daily non-stops from Los Angeles International to Pittsburgh; from Burbank and Ontario to Portland; from San Diego to Milwaukee; and from Sacramento to Baltimore/Washington International. In addition, Southwest will launch new daily service from Nashville to Charlotte, and from Ft. Lauderdale to Nassau, Bahamas. Southwest also said it intends to extend some seasonal routes beyond August to year-round service, including Houston Hobby to Seattle and Portland; Kansas City-Seattle; San Diego-St. Louis; Ft. Lauderdale-Pittsburgh and Ft. Lauderdale-Kansas City.

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Delta plans to resume service on March 2 between its Salt Lake City hub and Raleigh-Durham, N.C., according to Airlineroute.net. The carrier will operate one daily non-stop using A320 or 737-800 aircraft. Another new route for Delta, this one starting April 4, is Delta Connection service linking New York LaGuardia with Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport, located between Fayetteville and Bentonville (home of Walmart’s world headquarters). The route will operate six days a week with a CRJ700.

Santa Barbara’s gorgeous airport terminal completed in 2011 (Image: Dreamyshade / Wikimedia Commons)

American Airlines stopped flying from Santa Barbara to its Dallas/Ft. Worth hub in 2009, but now it plans to revive that route. AA will begin daily American Eagle flights on June 2, using a 76-passenger, two-cabin CRJ900.

United Airlines plans to revise its schedule between San Francisco and Eugene, Oregon starting June 9, changing aircraft types and frequencies. United currently offers United Express/SkyWest service six times a day in the SFO-Eugene market, using regional jets. But in June, it will cut frequencies to four flights a day and will switch three of those to mainline Airbus A319s and A320s. One flight will still use a regional jet. The net result will be a 31 percent increase in the number of seats United flies in the market.

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More 787 Dreamliners headed west

August 31, 2015

Don’t miss! Our full report & slideshow of Delta’s new SFO Sky Club! Wow!

Look for more United 787s on transpacific routes next year. (Image: United)

Look for more United 787s on transpacific routes from California next year. (Image: United)

United has announced that it will be shifting most of its Boeing 787 Dreamliner fleet from Houston to its West Coast hubs at San Francisco International and Los Angeles starting in Spring 2016.

When the redeployment is complete, it will fly the 787-9 on routes between SFO and Sydney, Taipei and Tokyo Haneda. In addition, it will fly SFO-Seoul with a 787-9 between Aug. 1 and Oct. 21, 2016.

From LAX it will fly new Dreamliners to Melbourne (Australia), Tokyo Narita, Shanghai, Sydney and London Heathrow.

The Houston routes that it previously flew with the 787-9 will be replaced with Boeing 767s and Boeing 777s, and the 777s displaced from LAX and SFO will be re-assigned primarily to Newark, Chicago O’Hare and Washington Dulles.

Hainan Air arrives at SJC with 787 nonstops to Beijing (Photo: SJC)

Have you inhaled that new airplane smell on your own first Dreamliner flight yet? Frequent flyers who want to experience Boeing’s newest widebody will find their best odds at the mega-gateways of Los Angeles and New York — but the Bay Area isn’t far behind.

The website Airlineroute.net recently compiled a handy listing of every route worldwide where the 787 is now flying, or is about to start flying soon. By our count, it includes 16 routes out of New York (JFK and Newark) and 16 out of Los Angeles International, with the Bay Area (San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose) currently in third place among U.S. gateways with nine (not counting United’s plans mentioned above).

At SFO, United is currently using Dreamliners across the Pacific to Osaka, Japan and Chengdu, China; China Southern has 787 flights to Guangzhou; and Virgin Atlantic is poised to begin SFO-London Heathrow flights with a new 787-9 beginning October 24.

European budget carrier Norwegian has started flying Dreamliners from Oakland to both Oslo and Stockholm. And at San Jose, Dreamliners are available on flights to Tokyo Narita with ANA; to Beijing with Hainan Airlines; and soon to London Heathrow with a new British Airways 787-9.

NOTE: Be sure to click here to see all recent TravelSkills posts about: Delta’s new Sky Club at San Francisco International + LAX will allow Uber, Lyft pick-ups + British Airways coming to San Jose + Airbnb draws corporate customers

Don’t miss! Our full report & slideshow of Delta’s new SFO Sky Club! Wow!

Beijing Moscow train set to speed across Asia

January 22, 2015

A Chinese high speed train at the West Beijing station (Photo: Fabio Achilli / Flickr)

This week China announced that it’s going to build a $250 billion Beijing-Moscow bullet train, which could be in service within 10 years.

California’s $68 billion high-speed rail service between Los Angeles and San Francisco, which broke ground earlier this month near Fresno, will take at least 14 years to complete. And it already has a competitor (see below).

The Beijing-Moscow train’s transit time on the 4,500 mile route will decrease from the current six days to just 48 hours, and run along much the same route as the famous Trans-Siberian railway. (See map)

China now has the world’s longest high-speed rail network with over 12,000 miles of track in service — more than the rest of the world’s high speed rail tracks combined. China also claims the current longest high-speed rail route– 1,500 miles between Beijing and Guangzhou.

Construction of a high speed rail line near Guangzhou in 2013 (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

According to various sources, the project was once considered by Russia, but due to its current financial crisis turned the project over to China Railway High Speed, the operator of the maglev train the runs between Shanghai airport and Pudong as well as much of China’s high speed rail network.

Promoters of the new Beijing-Moscow train say that it will (of course) be used for passengers. But freight could be even more lucrative with European car manufacturers and food/agricultural concerns already expressing interest in a new, fast and cheap way to get their products into the booming Chinese market.

Elon Musk describes his Hyperloop as a cross between a Concorde, rail gun and air-hockey table and it will be solar powered.

Back here in the US, Tesla CEO Elon Musk revealed that he is planning to build a five-mile test track for his Hyperloop concept– passenger pods traveling at speeds of up to 760 mph inside vacuum tubes. (See the popular TravelSkills post about this.) Musk claims that the Hyperloop could whisk passengers between San Francisco and Los Angeles in about 30 minutes and cost less than half as much as California’s current high speed rail project.

I know we talk primarily about air travel on TravelSkills, but a 4,500 mile Beijing Moscow train and the dream of a hyperloop are pretty irresistible- and likely inevitable.

–Chris McGinnis

6 tips for better plane pics

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8 things to like about Delta’s new California Shuttle

October 9, 2013

Nice view out the window as the Delta California Shuttle arrives at LAX. (Chris McGinnis)

Good news for TravelSkills readers who spend a lot of time on the West Coast! In early September, Delta added hourly “California Shuttle” flights between San Francisco International and Los Angeles International using a fleet of Embraer 175 jets. And last week, Delta announced that starting next April it will add six flights per day between SFO and Seattle using the same type of aircraft.

Delta now offers up to 15 flights per day on the busy SFO-LAX route using the 76-seat Embraer 175 operated by its partner Compass Airlines. Flights depart SFO as early as 6 a.m. and return from LAX as late as 9 p.m.

Delta recently invited me to give the new service a try on a Tues-Sat trip from SFO to LAX.

Here’s what I liked:

Loath crowds? Delta’s Terminal 1 is nearly empty mid-afternoon (Chris McGinnis)

1> A ghost town of a terminal for my mid afternoon flight south on a Tuesday at 4 pm. That’s likely to change as Delta bulks up at SFO with even more flights to Seattle next spring. But be warned: Delta’s Terminal 5 at LAX is much busier, more crowded, and currently undergoing a major renovation, which will be complete in 2015.

Deserted PreCheck lines at Delta’s Terminal 1 Boarding area C security checkpoint (Chris McGinnis)

2> Fast and easy check in (including PreCheck) and security at Delta’s nearly exclusive terminal 1, Boarding Area C location.

Onboard a recent Delta Embraer 175 flight SFO-LAX (Chris McGinnis)

3> Nice, new, roomy Embraer 175 jets w big square windows, all leather seats and overhead bins large enough for my rollaboard bag.

Delta’s Economy Comfort seats onboard the Embraer 175 (Chris McGinnis)

4> Three classes: standard economy (52 seats) , Economy Comfort (12) configured 2-2; first class (12) configured 1-2.

Full first class section on Delta’s California Shuttle to LAX. Note the Great Dane service dog in the bulkhead! (Chris McGinnis)

5> The first class section was full on both my south and northbound flights. Economy almost empty on the way down from SFO, full on the 9:30pm Saturday night departure from LAX

Healthy inflight dining for first AND coach passengers (Chris McGinnis)

Healthy inflight snacks for first AND coach passengers (Chris McGinnis)

6> Super friendly, eager to please flight attendants and healthy, organic snacks like edamame hummus, raw sunflower seeds, whole grain crackers, raw veggies– for both first and economy passengers.

7> Gogo wifi on all flights (although my connection was spotty)

8> Free beverages, beer and wine, for all passengers in first and economy include Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. craft beer, Starbucks coffee and Wente Vineyards wines.

Although Delta paid for my ticket, fares are always low on this hyper competitive route, no matter what airline you fly. Currently, economy fares range from about $100 to $350 round trip, depending on how far in advance you book. First class runs $300-$500 round trip.

—Chris McGinnis

8 things to like about Delta’s new California Shuttle

October 9, 2013

Delta California Shuttle’s low altitude swing over LA offers some impressive views! (Chris McGinnis)

In early September, Delta added hourly “California Shuttle” flights between San Francisco International and Los Angeles International using a fleet of Embraer 175 jets. And last week, the Atlanta-based carrier announced that starting next April it will add six flights per day between SFO and Seattle using the same type of aircraft.

Delta recently invited me to give the new service a try on a Tues-Sat trip from SFO to LAX.

Here’s what I liked:

Loath crowds? Delta’s Terminal 1 is nearly empty mid-afternoon (Chris McGinnis)

Deserted PreCheck lines at Delta’s Terminal 1 Boarding area C security checkpoint (Chris McGinnis)

2> Fast and easy check in (including PreCheck) and security at Delta’s nearly exclusive terminal 1, Boarding Area C location.

Onboard a recent Delta Embraer 175 flight SFO-LAX (Chris McGinnis)

3> Nice, new, roomy Embraer 175 jets w big square windows, all leather seats and overhead bins large enough for my rollaboard bag.

Delta’s Economy Comfort seats onboard the Embraer 175 (Chris McGinnis)

4> Three classes: standard economy (52 seats) , Economy Comfort (12) configured 2-2; first class (12) configured 1-2.

Full first class section on Delta’s California Shuttle to LAX. Note the Great Dane service dog in the bulkhead! (Chris McGinnis)

5> The first class section was full on both my south and northbound flights. Economy almost empty on the way down, full on the 9:30pm Saturday night departure from LAX

Healthy inflight snacks for first AND coach passengers (Chris McGinnis)

6> Super friendly, eager to please flight attendants and healthy, organic snacks like edamame hummus, raw sunflower seeds, whole grain crackers, raw veggies– for both first and economy passengers.

7> Gogo wifi on all flights (although my connection was spotty)

8> Free beverages, beer and wine, for all passengers in first and economy include Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. craft beer, Starbucks coffee and Wente Vineyards wines.