On the Go – July 20, 2023

Industry News – Click on the title to read the full article. Many of the sources below require a free registration to gain access to the article. If a paid registration is required, the individual source will be noted.

Airlines

Delta Air Lines Revamps Business Loyalty Program (Source: Forbes)
Delta Air Lines is revamping its business loyalty program and will launch SkyMiles for Business in October with an eye toward small and medium sized businesses. The new program is free to join and will offer benefits to businesses that spend relatively little on corporate travel.

Delta, China Eastern Ease Baggage Through Shanghai (Source: Delta News Hub)
Delta Air Lines and China Eastern have again made it possible for travelers on flights between the US and interior China to check bags at their departure airports for the whole flight, rather than rechecking when they change planes in Shanghai. The airlines had suspended the service during February 2020 due to pandemic-related safety concerns.

United Airlines Agrees To Give Union Pilots Big Pay Raises (Source: Meetings & Conventions)
United Airlines and the union representing its pilots said Saturday they have reached agreement on a contract that will raise pilot pay by up to 40 percent over four years.  The union valued the agreement at about $10 billion. It followed more than four years of tumultuous bargaining that included picketing and talk of a strike vote.

How Extreme Heat Can Snarl Air Travel (Source: USA Today)
The stifling heat that’s enveloped large swaths of the country like a suffocating blanket has implications for travelers, too.  That’s because extreme heat can affect flights.  “The weight at which you can operate (max gross takeoff weight) decreases as the temperature goes up,” explained Kathleen Bangs, a former airline pilot and current spokesperson for FlightAware, which tracks flight status in real time.

General Interest

The 18 Germiest Places You Encounter While Traveling (Source: SmarterTravel)
Do you ever get sick when you travel?  Chance are you’ve contracted something from on of the dirty offenders on this list of the germiest places.  Fortunately, with a little knowledge and a lot of hand sanitizer, you can stay health on the road and in the air.

Hotels

Spend The Night In The Old Post Office In Washington DC (Source: SmarterTravel)
Steeped in history, and with a grandeur that rivals the neighboring monuments, the new Waldorf Astoria Washington DC is a welcome addition to the capital’s luxury hotel scene.  Housed in the Old Post Office, a landmark building built in 1899, the space underwent many transformations before opening as the controversial Trump Hotel in 2016.  In 2022, the hotel was rebranded as the Waldorf Astoria, marking the brand’s first foray into Washington, DC.

New Hotel With Meeting Space Opening In Downtown Detroit (Source: MeetingsNet)
In the past several years, Detroit’s civic and business leaders have sought more business-travel-focused hotel-room inventory to support both Huntington Place convention center and local businesses. That effort is coming to fruition in the form of more than 700 new guest rooms that will be available by the end of 2025.  One property that’s part of the plan is the 227-room Godfrey Hotel, which will open in mid-August on Michigan Avenue in the Corktown neighborhood, one mile from the convention center.

Leisure Travel

10 Summer Towns That Look European But Are Right In The U.S. (Source: The Travel)
There are many destinations in Europe that always feel like summer, which is part of the reason Europe attracts thousands of tourists. During the actual summer, though, Europe’s top destinations beckon countless visitors who come to enjoy the continent’s paradisiac beaches, amazing cuisine, and vibrant atmosphere.