Joe Biden travel tips

Federal regulators have finalized a rule to cap credit card late fees, closing a loophole the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau claims has been long exploited by large credit card issuers. The CFPB finalized the rule Tuesday, thus lowering the typical late fee from $32 to $8 for credit card issuers with 1 million or more open accounts and continuing President Joe Biden's push to eliminate fees on travel and credit cards.

The US Transportation Department is also calling for airlines to provide annual training for employees who handle wheelchairs or lift passengers with disabilities.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has approved an increase in the allowed number of scheduled roundtrip weekly passenger flights by Chinese airlines to the U.S. to 50, up from 35, beginning March 31, according to a DOT order filed Monday.

A four-hour drive from Denver, the rural town of Granada, Colorado, is home to just 450 people—and, at the end of a bumpy dirt road, the now-empty barracks and haunting buildings of “Camp Amache.” Also known as the Granada Relocation Center, Amache was once an internment camp for nearly 10,000 Japanese Americans who were forcibly removed from their homes between 1942 and 1945. Now, after decades of preservation efforts by local volunteers, this site has officially become America's newest national park.

The White House said Thursday it would allocate nearly $1 billion for airport infrastructure projects as part of an effort to modernize U.S. airports. 

President Joe Biden released a tweet from his official X account (formerly known as Twitter) on February 5, sharing how “It’s time all airlines offered fee-free family seating.” 

The White House says it is making progress on the charging network the country needs to enable long road trips in electric cars.

In a move that showed both countries’ keenness to expand air travel after the COVID-19 pandemic, in turn reflecting an implicit eagerness to up mutually beneficial cooperation, China and the United States increased the number of direct regular passenger flights from 48 to 70 per week in the 2023-24 winter and spring seasons. This year marks the 45th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and the U.S. and the two countries have had extensive cooperation in many fields. Their cooperative efforts serve the common interests of both sides and contribute to the overall wellbeing of people worldwide.

The U.S. government has increasingly taken aim at junk fees, charges levied by travel service providers that are considered unnecessary or excessive and not clearly communicated to travelers.

It's the question rail enthusiasts have posed for years: When might U.S. train travel start to more closely resemble that of Europe and Asia?

Chinese tourists won’t be coming back to New York City at their pre-pandemic levels next year. Affordability and limited flights are two issues holding back the rebound, say travel executives.

The White House is announcing billions of dollars in new funding for train projects from coast to coast.

High-speed rail in the United States may soon be a reality. The White House recently announced the allocation of $8.2 billion in funding for several key rail projects including a Las Vegas to Los Angeles corridor; a Raleigh, North Carolina to Richmond, Virginia, route; new service throughout California’s central valley; and more. The investment is a component of President Joe Biden’s “Investing in America” Agenda.  While high-speed rail has been a popular wish among travelers for many years, the allocation of funding helps put the project in motion, with one administration official sharing with Travel + Leisure that the Las Vegas to Los Angeles route could be completed in advance of the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. “If you’ve ever seen the standard of passenger rail service in Japan, Germany, Spain, or Italy, and come home and wondered, 'Why can’t we have these nice things?’ This is the beginning of the answer to that. Help is on the way,” Pete Buttigieg, the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, told T+L during a press briefing on the announcement.  Buttigieg said that the lack of investment in new rail services over the last several decades is a trend that is now being reversed and that while change won’t happen overnight, travelers will see improvements within a few years.  Over 35 rail projects were named as part of the funding announcement, including: 

President Joe Biden is a self-described train fan, commuting between Washington, D.C. and Delaware on Amtrak for decades as a Senator. Now to beef up U.S. passenger rail, his administration is doling out more than $8 billion, including funds for two high-speed trains in California and Nevada.

Welcome back, it’s a brand new day to talk about junk fees — as discussed on TikTok. A viral video posted by a comedian scoffs at short-term rentals and sometimes-exorbitant “host fees.”

The airline is also focused on accelerating the resumption and launch of more international and regional flights, aiming to better cater to the growing market demand for travel to and from China.

The head of China’s civil aviation regulator, Song Zhiyong, met with the U.S. Ambassador in Beijing Nicholas Burns, and exchanged views on pushing for a substantial increase in flights between the two countries, the regulator said on Wednesday.

Airbnb announced today that it has appointed former White House chief of staff and a prominent figure in Democratic circles Ron Klain as its chief legal officer. A close Biden aide, Klain will begin his role at the company starting January 1.

The U.S. and China will improve air connectivity and streamline visa processing, said Chinese President Xi Jinping in public remarks on Wednesday. Xi made the remarks at a dinner hosted by the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and US-China Business Council. 

Joe Biden is bolstering his reputation as the US’s biggest Amtrak fan.

In its latest push for rail improvements, the Biden administration has announced billions of dollars in federal funding for more than two dozen projects along Amtrak's busy Northeast Corridor.