Miscellany tips

When an airline’s own pilots call its service “outright embarrassing,” and deride the company’s corporate culture as “toxic,” you can safely say that airline has a problem.

Enter the Holland America Line “Choose Your Cruise” sweepstakes by March 31, 2016, for a chance to win the grand prize: a seven-day Holland America Line cruise for two to the winner’s choice of Alaska, Canada and New England, the Caribbean, or Europe, including most onboard meals.

How much will you be charged for that hotel stay? The answer, of course, should be obvious: You’ll pay the published rate, plus government-imposed taxes and fees. Whatever that total turns out to be is your price.

WOW Air, the Iceland-based no-frills carrier that raised eyebrows with its $99 fares from Boston and Baltimore to Iceland a year ago, now has something in common with Spirit Airlines, the U.S. carrier notorious for its nickel-and-diming and generally customer-unfriendly ways.

Enter the Budget Travel “Iceland” sweepstakes by February 19, 2016, for a chance to win the grand prize: a trip for two to Iceland, including air, nine nights’ hotel, some meals, and local tours.

If you have a prepaid travel accommodation you find you can’t use, TransferTravel will list it for a possible resale to someone else. Although based in the U.K., TransferTravel is targeting an international market including the U.S. and Canada. The idea sounds great, but the travel industry throws up a lot of roadblocks to any sort of trade.

It’s been almost 15 years since Richard Reid, better known as the shoe bomber, failed in his attempt to bring down an American Airlines flight with an explosive hidden in his shoe. And yet here we are, all these years later, still shuffling through TSA checkpoints in our socks or bare feet. Why, you might ask, are we still forced to do this?

Tired of squeezing your ever-expanding frame into those ever-shrinking coach-class seats? So is Tennessee Congressman Steve Cohen, a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s Subcommittee on Aviation. And he wants the government to do something about it.

Travelers heading to or from Washington, D.C., through Reagan/National Airport can expect major ground travel disruptions and delays through July 18. Trains on both the Blue and Yellow lines will suspend operations on two track segments:

Enter the American Airlines “Your Vacation Spot” sweepstakes by April 1, 2016, for a chance to win the grand prize: a $10,000 American Airlines Vacations travel voucher.

In a setback to United’s new management team, led by Oscar Munoz, the airline’s mechanics today voted to reject the company’s “final offer” for a new wage and benefits package and to authorize a strike.

According to the just-released Airline Quality Rating study, Virgin America is the country’s best airline. Of the 13 airlines ranked in the study, Alaska Airlines was rated fifth.

Yesterday, Marriott’s planned acquisition of Starwood, to create the world’s largest hotel company, was assumed to be a foregone conclusion.

Enter the Clos Du Bois “Spring in Sonoma” sweepstakes by April 26, 2016, for a chance to win one of the two grand prizes: trips for two to Sonoma, including air, three nights’ hotel, and $700 spending money.

The pending FAA reauthorization bill has served as a kind of magnifying lens on several weighty issues facing travel suppliers and their customers.

From the people that brought you the famous Swedish Treehotel, comes their next big project: The Arctic Bath. On the Lule River in Sweden, you can float in luxury at this overnight spa experience.

Following recent announcements from Delta and United that they would cut back on flights between the U.S. and U.K., American has hinted that it, too, is expecting diminished demand to Europe over the coming months.

File this under: Why does the TSA have to even say this out loud?

Southwest manages to succeed where most companies, and airlines in particular, fail, selling a mediocre product, at a price that is rarely the lowest, racking up an industry-leading record of profitability, all the while maintaining a firm hold on the hearts and minds of its customers. Very few companies make so many people so happy so consistently.

New flight routes mean more competition and bigger savings for travelers. Here are seven new routes from JetBlue, Southwest, Spirit, WOW Air, and others that’ll drive bargains this year.

Enter the SmartSource.com “New Year, New You” sweepstakes by February 29, 2016, for a chance to win the grand prize: a seven-night trip for two to Freeport, the Bahamas, including air, hotel, and on-premise meals.