Monday, June 30, 2008

How big is your Carry-on?

While there is some semblance of sanity in the size and allowance of carry-ons for Canadian airlines, not only is the allowable size of carry-on pieces larger in the U.S. (22in vs. 20 in.), the monitoring of what people were bringing on board was lax to say the least.

With the opportunity for a new cash source the air carriers south of the border have pinched themselves awake and are now putting tighter restrictions on what you pack into the overheads and under the seats.

In the past it really had gone much too far almost to the point of ridiculousness as people argued with each other as to who owned the real estate over their heads for the duration of that flight.

By being more restrictive the carriers know you will be forced to pay for that first bag in check in. It's new money and "follow the dollar" is the new mantra of airlines north and south.

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posted by That Travel Guy @ 1:54 PM  |  0 Comments

Sunday, June 29, 2008

Is the Bark Worse than the Bite?

Over the last few weeks it seems all we read or hear about in travel is how the price of fuel is going to curtail long distance travel.

It must be correct one would first surmise as we watch airline after airline cut services and routes. But how serious is the crunch. The airlines have not really waited to see how we consumers will respond. Well at least some of them have. Southwest in the USA is adding routes. So is our own Westjet. Virgin Airways say they are doing just fine thanks.

Tour Operators are fearful but confident. And why shouldn't they be. Prices have not only held but dropped in a number of instances. When we are freezing our buns off in January are we really going to say no to the extra cost of fuel?

I will turn down the heat in my home to save some of those costs and transfer them to the earliest and fastest possible escape to a sun destination. On my flight I may continue to read about the cutbacks and the forecasts but those of us on the flight will order a drink, likely at some increased cost, pay for a less than satisfying meal or snack, and make ready for a week of heat that comes to me free courtesy of Mother Nature.

It seems to me that Canadians will not be forced to freeze in the dark because of doom and gloom media coverage.

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posted by That Travel Guy @ 9:39 AM  |  0 Comments

Saturday, June 28, 2008

The Free Car Rental Upgrade

For the past number of years I always looked forward to the free upgrade when picking up my rental at the airport locations around Canada.

Since I have always prefered the freedom of having time and road control, along with the parking frustrations and the like that go along with it. As a result the upgrade, while not expected, was common. However at a dollor forty a barrel, and a dollar thirty plus for gas, that upgrade is not so appealing.

Those big honkers can break the bank after 50 blocks and 10 red lights. Businesses who allow their employees any and all sizes may also be taking a second look at their policies. In a big company where employees are constantly on the road the gas line may be isolated separately from other travel costs and examined under a strong microscope. It is not just the fuel surcharges that are hitting home as car rental companies are having to institute nickel and dime add-ons as well.

I will miss the comfort of those guzzlers nevertheless.

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posted by That Travel Guy @ 7:39 PM  |  0 Comments

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Airline Empathy

It is not often that I feel sorry for the plight of airlines. They have done just about everything possible to turn off even their most loyal adherents. Bad service, inconsistent on-time performance, overbooking, fuel surcharges, and a policy of nickel and dimeing us to death have made us more and more frustrated with them.

Now they have moved to a new level of irritation by going from nickel and dime charges to multiple dollar grabs with strict overweight luggage fees, first as well as second bag charges, and now some airlines have even taken away the peanuts and pretzels, which in themselves were almost an insult to nutrition in the air.

But unfortunately airlines need the revenue to survive as oil prices go sky high. It is too bad that the airlines don't give us some credit for at least moderate intelligence. Instead of just increasing fares to cover costs as most businesses do when faced with rising business expenses, they try to hide the increases in these never-ending add-ons. They are afraid of us.

They believe we will not travel if we see the real price up front. They think that somehow we won't get it. That we won't notice how much we have actually paid for our travel if they kill us instead with a death of a thousand cuts instead of one quick slash, to paraphase an old Chinese proverb.

We need to support our airlines... especially in these troubled times. We need to try to keep the route services we have, and nothing will kill them quicker than low load factors. So I will continue to travel even though it hurts the pocketbook more than in the past.

I just wish the airlines would grow up and stop treating us like fellow children.

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posted by That Travel Guy @ 11:00 AM  |  0 Comments

Welcome to That Travel Guy Blogspace

Over the past few years I have had a weekly travel column in the travel section of the Winnipeg Free Press every Saturday, and have hosted a weekly travel show on radio station CJOB in the same central Canadian city. While a name like Pradinuk would not seem overly complicated to prounounce when people see me in person or are introduced to me their first words are frequently, "Oh you're that travel guy." Hence the choice of http://www.thattravelguy.ca/.

I would have preferred a dot com but there seems to be another travel guy out there currently using it. My own background includes travel to over 50 countries so far. As I talk to fellow travellers, as much as I have traveled I realize my list of places I must still visit is very long compared to others. So many places...only so much time in a life to see it all. For almost 30 years I have operated a travel agency focusing mostly on leisure travel. I served on the national board of the Association of Canadian Travel Agents for years and was the National President for two years as well. I still enjoy serving on the regional Manitoba board.

In 2000 we opened a travel superstore called Journeys Travel & Leisure SuperCentre. It carries just about every travel product imaginable. It is also a swim wear and luggage centre and carries a wide range of travel clothing in brands like Tilley Endurables, Ex-Officio, and Royal Robbins just to name a few. What makes the store different is the services we include for people who live in this area. We have a pre travel health clinic with two nurses, we have a passport picture service and have six tanning beds for those who choose to pre-tan before leaving for their sun destinations.

But this blog is not about sales but about ideas and opinions...yours and mine. In this blog I will call issues as I see them and I look forward to your responses, whether you agree or not. We will talk about destinations, airline and tour operator policies, good and bad travel products you have used, and anything that has the connotation of travel.

Thanks for reading and I look forward to your feedback.

You can read my column every Saturday from wherever you are by going to http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/ then clicking on to the feature sections link and then on to the travel section. They usually hold past columns and freelance stories I write for the paper in the archive section on the right for up to three months. We also put past columns on our website as well. On the right you can read some of the destination stories I have written as well.

You can listen live to the radio show by going to http://www.cjob.com/ Sundays at noon central time, then clicking on listen live. A number of past shows can be heard by going to the stations audio vault.

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posted by That Travel Guy @ 10:23 AM  |  0 Comments