Travel Talk: The Big Comeback for Cruising

When I took my first Mediterranean cruise, I expected to make some mistakes. But I didn't think I'd kick off my voyage with the biggest one. 

It’s a couple of pandemic years behind schedule, but on July 5th The Sphere was lit up for the first time, changing the Las Vegas skyline forever. But that was just a tease, and next month, on September 29, The Sphere will be opened in its full glory by U2 – with the band’s first live performance anywhere in the world in nearly four years.

Acqualina Resort & Residences in Sunny Isles Beach, just north of Miami, is among my favorite properties in the world and one of that’s beloved by my entire family.

At this week’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, cruise giant Carnival Corporation introduced “the world’s first interactive guest experience platform capable of transforming vacation travel into a highly personalized and elevated level of customized service for millions of guests.”

If you haven’t heard about the U.K.’s heated debate on cutting ties with the European Union—dubbed a “Brexit”—you certainly will this week. Britons headed to the ballot box on Thursday and made the historic decision to leave the European Union.

Ever since Delta began ramping up operations in Seattle, Alaska Airlines’ hometown and main flight hub, the relationship between the two airlines has been disintegrating. And there was plenty to disintegrate. The carriers were long-time partners in each other’s frequent-flyer programs, and they code-shared on a host of flights. They were, in the industry vernacular, preferred marketing partners.

OAG, which dubs itself an “air travel intelligence company,” has released its top-10 rankings of the most and least punctual airlines in 2016. The group analyzed 54 million flight records using full-year data from 2016 to compile the list, and for the purposes of the study defined “on-time” as “a flight that arrives or departs within 14 minutes and 59 seconds (under 15 minutes) of its scheduled arrival/departure time.”

Hilton titled the news release announcing upcoming changes to its Honors loyalty program as follows: “Hilton Honors Delivers Even More to Its Members in 2018 with Industry-Leading Earn Rates and New Benefits.”

According to research from Germany-based Cruisewatch: “Booking the respective cruise destination at the right time can realistically save you up to 71 percent reductions off your cruise.”

Emirates has announced it will reduce service between Dubai and almost half its destinations in the U.S. Flights to Boston, Seattle, and Los Angeles will be reduced from two per day to one, and daily flights to Orlando and Ft. Lauderdale will be reduced to five per week each. The total number of weekly flights cut comes to 25.

“Best airport” rankings aren’t typically the most helpful in terms of travel planning: If I want to go to Boston, I’m not going to head for Las Vegas instead because its airport is better. But those best airport lists do come in handy in two cases—when you have a choice of airport for your connecting flight, and when you can choose between multiple airports within a single metro area.

An airport connection (or two) is often the price you pay for service to far-off destinations. Unfortunately, a connection almost always complicates your travel planning, asking you to decide where to connect and how much time to allow for the connection. There’s no easy formula answer to those questions, but there are a few choice airports to try and avoid.