OAK Archives - TravelSkills

Two rare birds land by the Bay- with ultra cheap fares

June 3, 2017

Finnair’s inaugural Airbus A330 arrives at San Francisco International on Thursday (Photo: Peter Biaggi / SFO)

This week two rare birds touched down in the Bay Area. Both are offering super cheap transatlantic fares for summer trips.

On Thursday, Finnair landed at SFO, flying in from Helsinki, Finland. Over at Oakland, a brand new airline called Level arrived from Barcelona.

Finnair is flying into SFO with seasonal service– three times a week during summer months only. Currently the lowest roundtrip economy fares between SFO and HEL are running about $1,200 to $1,500 for peak summer flights– not a bad deal for the 11-hour flight. Business class fares are about $2,900 roundtrip.

Here’s what Finnair business class looks like:

Finnair business class on an Airbus A330 (Photo: Finnair)

Next up, we have Level, which breezed into Oakland from Barcelona on Friday with some of the cheapest fares we’ve seen this summer. Its A330 holds 314 passengers and economy and premium economy configuration (no business or first class).

A Level A330 arrives at Oakland International from Barcelona (Photo: Port of Oakland)

Level is a new low-fare subsidiary of IAG, which owns British Airways and Iberia, and is offering some remarkable fares on the first ever nonstops between the Bay Area and Spain.

For summer trips, it’s offering startlingly low fares of just $400 round trip (seriously!) all the way through August! Get ’em while they are hot! Note that you’ll pay extra for checked bags, seat selection and food- see this. The cheapest premium economy fares we could find this weekend for summer trips are in the $1,200 to $1,500 range– a very good deal for a bigger seat, better service, and fewer fees!

What’s it like to fly Level? Good Trip Report here.

More about this bird and all of Oakland’s cheap new flights to Europe here.

A Picasso-inspired inaugural cake served at the gate at Oakland Airport (Photo: Port of Oakland)

If you are interested in a cheap trip to Europe this summer, now’s the time to pounce on these new flights– to fill seats, airlines have lowered fares to levels rarely seen before for deep summer trips.

Take a ride on these new birds and report back to us at TravelSkills about your experiences!

NOTE: The fares mentioned here are available on Saturday, June 3 and subject to change. We use Google Flights to find low fares.

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Deal Alert: $457 to London from SFO, San Jose, Oakland

February 2, 2017

British Airways' inaugural San Jose flight arrives at the gate. (Image: Mineta San Jose Airport)

British Airways’ inaugural San Jose Boeing 787 Dreamliner arrives at the gate. (Image: Mineta San Jose Airport)

A few weeks ago we saw Bay Area to London roundtrip fares plummet to under $500 – an astounding deal. Now, with competition heating up, those cheap fares are back… and available from ALL three airports: SFO, San Jose and Oakland! And on all airlines serving the route: British Airways, Norwegian, Virgin Atlantic and United.

In these heady days, we now have up to NINE roundtrips every day between the Bay Area and London (Gatwick and Heathrow).

One at San Jose SJC (British Airways)
Two at Oakland OAK (British Airways and Norwegian)
Six at San Francisco SFO (British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, United)

With competition like that, I bet we’ll see cheap fares for at least the rest of this year.

This sample is for May 1 – May 8 (Google Flights)

What is great about these deals is that they are currently available all the way through mid-May— which means you can fly to London for Spring Break if you fancy that! ‘Tis lovely in the spring!

After May, fares creep up into the $600 round trip range, but even that is a great deal when you consider it’s available during peak summer travel season June-August) when fares normally rise to near $1,800 round trip.

Find these deals on Google Flights. NOTE: If flights are not found on Google flights, try BritishAirways.com, NorwegianAir.com, United.com or VirginAtlantic.com, all of which are still showing these fares as of Noon Thursday Feb 2.

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Flying to the tech center of the universe

March 7, 2016

SFO's new 221-foot air traffic control tower will open next summer (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

SFO’s new 221-foot air traffic control tower is not just a gateway to the Pacific, it’s a gateway to Silicon Valley. CLICK to see inside it! (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

San Francisco International Airport had the highest rate of international passenger growth among US airports last year, and continues to add new international flights at a dizzying pace. And it’s not just SFO that’s growing– San Jose and Oakland are picking up new overseas flights, too.

This is most likely due to the strength of the Bay Area economy, and the need for better, faster access to the tech center of the universe.

According to the International Trade Administration, SFO posted a 9 percent increase in international travelers in 2015, ahead of other major international gateway airports such as New York-JFK, LAX, and Miami. Much of the increased traffic to SFO and elsewhere in the US is coming from China which grew a whopping 25% in 2015.

If you are having trouble keeping up with all the new flights coming to the Bay Area, here’s a rundown:

In 2015, SFO added the following new flights:

The right side of Turkish Airlines B777 is a mural of Istanbul (Chris McGinnis)

The right side of Turkish Airlines inaugural B777 to SFO was a mural of Istanbul- on the left was a mural of San Francisco (Chris McGinnis)

April – Turkish Airlines launched nonstop B777 service to Istanbul
May – Swiss International nearly doubled its nonstop service to Zurich
June – China Southern began nonstop service to Guangzhou
September – COPA launched with nonstop 737 service to Panama City
December – Air India launched the first nonstop flight from U.S. West Coast to Delhi
December – Qantas returned to SFO with B747 nonstop service to Sydney

Fiji Airways is SFO's latest coup (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Fiji Airways is SFO’s latest coup with flights starting in June (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

In 2016, SFO keeps up the momentum:

March – United Airlines begins nonstop service to Tel Aviv
May – Air Berlin launches with nonstops to Düsseldorf, Germany
May – United Airlines begins new nonstop flights to Xi’an, China (Plus there are rumors of a new United nonstop SFO to Hangzhou)
June – United Airlines begins the first U.S. nonstop flight to Singapore
June – WOW Air launches nonstop flights to Reykjavík, Iceland
June – Fiji Airways inaugurates nonstop service to Nadi, Fiji

It’s not just SFO that is growing by leaps and bounds…so are other Bay Area airports. For example, San Jose International has recently snagged (or has pending) new 787-9 nonstops to London (British Airways), Frankfurt (Lufthansa), Beijing (Hainan) and Shanghai (Air China) in addition to its ANA nonstop service to Tokyo.

Norwegian Air flies 787 Dreamliners to Oakland International (Image: Oakland International Airport)

Oakland is on a growth spurt, too, with its major international carrier, Norwegian Air adding nonstops to London-Gatwick this June in addition to its flights to Stockholm, Sweden, and Oslo.

All this new competition is very good news for frequent flyers. That’s because more flights and more seats usually mean cheaper fares.

NOTE: Be sure to click here to see all recent TravelSkills posts about: Should I tip my Uber driver? + Boeing 747 nearing its end? + Bargain hunters travel guide for 2016 + World’s best airline lounge? + Fares to Europe tumble

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Cadillacs on the tarmac + 2nd Ebola case in US + Dallas Love Field recap + Virgin hotels splash

October 12, 2014

This is Part 2 of this week’s Catching up on Travel News with TravelSkills! Here’s Part 1. (Sorry if you get this email more than once today…we are still getting the hang of our email distribution system)

AIRLINES

American will soon be picking up its best passengers at LAX in Caddies like this one. (Source: GM)

American Airlines teams up with Cadillac. Following the lead of Delta’s partnership with Porsche and United’s with Mercedes-Benz, American Airlines is teaming up with Cadillac to provide rides across the tarmac to connecting flights — starting at Los Angeles International — for ConciergeKey members with tight transfer times. AA said it will expand the service next to Dallas/Ft. Worth and New York’s LaGuardia and JFK, using Cadillac CTS, SRX or Escalade models. Also, as part of the promo AAdvantage members can earn 7,500 miles for test-driving a new Cadillac.

Breaking news: A health care worker in Dallas has contracted Ebola according to health officials there. If confirmed by CDC, this would be the first case of Ebola transmitted in the US. Hmm. I’m wondering how many TravelSkills readers (including yours truly) might want to change their answer to our recent Ebola fear poll from “not fearful” to “somewhat fearful” after hearing this news. One thing you can count on: Increased Ebola screening at airports that could cause long lines.

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(click on the vote button or the clear looking button to cast your vote)

Love Field route recap. October 13 marks the end of the Wright Amendment at Dallas Love Field, and here’s a reminder of what’s happening there route-wise.

Virgin America, which moves operations from DFW to DAL, will have three daily flights starting Monday, October 13 from DAL to SFO, LAX and DCA, adding four daily DAL-LGA roundtrips October 28. (Still no word on when it will add flights to Chicago.)
Southwest on Monday starts five daily roundtrips between DAL and Chicago Midway; three each to LAX, Baltimore, Denver, Las Vegas and Washington National; and two to Orlando.
On November 2, Southwest adds one more daily frequency to Midway, Las Vegas, LAX and Orlando, and boosts DAL-DCA to six a day. Also on November 2, Southwest begins service from DAL to Atlanta (4x/day), LGA (3x), PHX (4x), Ft Lauderdale (2x), Nashville (2x), San Diego (2x), Orange County (1x) and Tampa (2x).

All-you-can-fly airline comes to OAK. California’s Surf Air, which charges a flat fee starting at $1,750 a month for unlimited flights in its Pilatus turboprops, is expanding to two more airports — Carlsbad’s McClellan-Palomar (CRQ) north of San Diego on November 18 and Oakland (OAK) on December 15, with flights to Hawthorne, Santa Barbara and other locations. “Both markets were added based on the high current and potential member demand–with more than 100 deposits already placed for membership in these regions and relatively limited service by other carriers to either market,” Surf Air said.

Love your United FA, then say so via the carrier’s website (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Thank your flight attendants. Members of the flight crew seem to be regularly bashed by frequent fliers more times than they are appreciated. Here is a way you can quickly send your message praising a flight attendant who served you well on a recent flight via United’s web site. Although this topic is primarily for passengers of United Airlines, other airlines are discussed in this MilePoint string as well. Have you thanked a flight attendant lately?

HOTELS

The brand new Conrad Seoul hotel is on the south side of the Han River which bisects the city (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

TravelSkills editor Chris McGinnis just returned from a business trip to Seoul, South Korea with a big batch of great pics and news about this burgeoning, modern, high-tech (and quirky) Asian city. Stay tuned for a few fun trip reports and another in our series of new hotel updates. Have you been to Seoul recently? What did you think? Please leave comments below or email Chris.

The first Virgin Hotel will be located in this Chicago building. (Virgin Hotels)

First Virgin Hotel opening soon. Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group has been working for years on a hotel subsidiary, and its first property — in downtown Chicago — is set to open January 15. The 250-room property (including 42 suites) is in the Old Dearborn Bank Building at 203 N. Wabash. Rooms start at $209 and bookings are open now through a new website at http://virginhotels.com.

In Case You Missed It…

>Looks like a major renovation is in store for New York’s iconic Waldorf-Astoria following its sale by Hilton to a Chinese insurance company for nearly $2 billion.

>Airline lounge memberships: Why they’re not for everyone.

>Try these tips for catching some Zs in your hotel room.

>Eight essential tips for business trips to San Francisco.

>>Take a peek at what you may have missed on TravelSkills.com this week! <<

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Ridesharing unwelcome at SFO + Virgin matches SW elite + New arrival from Europe

April 6, 2013

In this issue: Ridesharing unwelcome at SFO, Virgin expands elite matching, SAS nonstops from Copenhagen land at SFO, United upgrades IAH terminal, Presidential visit, 787 flying (empty), $100K a year to travel and blog?

No more pink moustaches at SFO (Photo: Lyftstagrams)

No more pink moustaches at SFO (Photo: Soy_Fans – Lyftstagrams)

RIDESHARING UNWELCOME AT SFO. San Francisco International has issued cease and desist letters to six car/ride sharing services picking up or dropping off customers at the airport. Uber’s licensed, chauffeured town cars are allowed at SFO, but UberX “community drivers” are not. Sidecar, Lyft, InstantCab and FlightCar (recently included in TravelSkills) all received the letters. Do you use ridesharing services? What do you think about this? Leave your comments below.

MORE ELITE STATUS. Virgin America has expanded and enhanced its elite-level status match promo. Now, Southwest Rapid Rewards elites (in addition to United and American elites) can get bumped up to Elevate elite. Virgin has also extended the deadline to enroll until June 30.

NEW ARRIVAL FROM EUROPE. A water-cannon salute awaits SAS’s first Airbus A340 at SFO when it lands this Monday (April 8) between 2 and 3 pm. SAS will offer flights between San Francisco and Copenhagen six days per week (no Tuesday flights). The Bay Area Traveler-TravelSkills will be trying out the new service later this month, so stay tuned for a full report. Skål!

How do you get the presidential helicopters to SF? On a C5 freighter like this (Photo: SFO)

ENTOURAGE. President Obama and entourage arrived at SFO last week for some Bay Area fundraisers. In addition to the bright and shiny Air Force One B747, a giant C5 military cargo jet was also stationed at SFO all week (which transported the presidential helicopters, et al). Did you see it? Obama’s helicopters touched down at Crissy Field for Golden Gate Bridge photo ops, and then buzzed down to Atherton for the events.

OAKLINK. Have you noticed the progress on the 3.2-mile AirBART rail line connecting Oakland Airport to BART’s Coliseum station? There is now a 300-ft span over I-880. The project is now 60% complete…and should be operational in late 2014. Will you consider Oakland Airport more often when the trains start to run?

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NEW TERMINAL AT IAH. If you fly United via its massive Houston Intercontinental hub a lot, you will be pleased to see the new $152 million Terminal B south concourse opening this month. The new concourse will house operations for all United Express regional flights. It’s about four times larger than the old terminal, with lots of new stores and celeb-chef and regionally inspired eateries.

COOL TRAVEL JOBS. Have you ever dreamed of being a travel blogger? Travel website Jauntaroo (set up to help you decide where to go on vacation) is hiring a “Chief World Explorer” to travel the globe for a year, at $100,000 salary, to blog about their experiences and give back to communities through the site’s “Travel With a Cause” commitment. Details are thin right now, but Jauntaroo says it will open applications later this spring, and has produced this teaser video to build awareness. Tourism Australia has just launched a separate, but similar “Best Jobs in the World” promo, offering six positions at $100,000 each for just six months work. What are you doing reading TravelSkills? Get that application in now!

DREAMLINER UPDATE. Boeing is now conducting test flights of its beleaguered 787 Dreamliner, and will submit results of those and other tests to the FAA. The New York Times reports that the FAA could approve the changes later this month, and the plane could be flying again in May—just in time for the busy summer travel season. Would YOU jump on a Dreamliner this summer? Please leave your comments below.

IN THE BAT LAST WEEK. United is expanding its operations at SFO’s Terminal 1 while delays have pushed back the completion of Terminal 3 renovations. Also, there are a few new details about United’s new p.s. service to New York.

—Chris McGinnis

***

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American + US Airways: mmeh!

February 14, 2013

American’s nice Admirals Club at SFO’s Terminal 2 to see more action. (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

What’s the impact on TravelSkills Readers (BATs!) of the proposed merger of American Airlines and US Airways? Minor at best. Here’s why:

Neither carrier has a major presence at any the Bay Area’s three airports.

For example, at San Francisco International, American has been cutting back for several years now, dumping flights to Honolulu in 2011 and Boston in 2010. Currently, it has about 30 departures per day from SFO to (Los Angeles, Dallas Ft Worth, Miami, Chicago and New York) which is a drop in the bucket when you consider SFO handles some 600 departures every day.

When SFO recently revealed its top airlines in terms of market share for 2012, American and US Airways didn’t even show up. For 2012, AA and US took the 5^th and 6^th place positions for airline market share at SFO, with 6.9% and 3.5% shares respectively. However, combining the two carriers “as-is” would result in an airline about the same size as Virgin America, which has only about 9% of the market at SFO.

American walked away from Oakland in 2008. It stopped flying to Tokyo from San Jose in 2006. Its famous “nerd bird” flights between San Jose and Austin disappeared in 2009, but it still offers a handful of nonstops between SJC and Los Angeles, Chicago and Dallas Ft Worth.

US Airways operates just 14 daily departures to three cities from SFO’s Terminal 1: Phoenix, Charlotte and Philadelphia. From San Jose and Oakland, it only flies to Phoenix.

A spokesman at SFO told TravelSkills that based on current usage at Terminal 2 by American and Virgin America, flights to cities currently served by US Airways could be folded into American’s operations there. That means American’s swishy, but relatively quiet Admirals Club at T2 (complete with pine trees and a fireplace) could soon see a little more action from former US Airways Club members.

On the upside, there are likely many TravelSkills Readers who still have large banks of American AAdvantage miles from back in the day when American was a major player here. Now, they will have the opportunity to use their miles to fly nonstop to cities served by US Airways.

And if anyone out there has a few stray miles in both AAdvantage and Dividend Miles accounts, those will now be combined into a merged program and could amount to something.

On the downside, United Mileage Plus members who earned and burned miles on Star Alliance partner US Airways will lose that option in the deal.

In any case, despite the media hew and cry this week over this merger, don’t expect change to come fast—the deal will have to go through regulatory approvals first, which could take at least six months or more. Then begins the long painful process of trying to merge two unpopular old airlines into something new and attractive.

Do you think they can pull it off? How will the American-US Airways merger affect you? How do you feel about having just four major US carriers: American, Delta, Southwest and United? Where does this leave our hometown carrier Virgin America? Please leave your comments below.

–Chris McGinnis

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