Millennial Business Travelers Are Rejecting Corporate Travel Policies

by Elizabeth Seward on

Millennial business travelers don’t care much for corporate travel policies, according to an article in Bloomberg Businessweek published today. Company-designed travel booking methods don’t seem to be clicking with the young professionals, who happen to make up the largest chunk of traveling employees for most companies. Since these workers are already spending so much time away from home and typically working in positions that are highly lucrative for companies, like sales, many companies seem hesitant to simply stop reimbursing employees for self-booked travel.

Part of the problem appears to be that internal booking systems aren’t “fun.” They don’t offer rewards or social interaction like many public booking sites or apps do. To address this growing problem while hopefully appeasing the millennial traveler, some companies are working toward developing more engaging and rewarding internal platforms for booking corporate reservations.

Top 10 Most Outrageous Hotel Fees

by Elizabeth Seward on

Airlines receive substantial criticism for their ever-increasing fees. While complaints about surprise fees associated with air travel are warranted and deserving of productive conversation, similarly unsuspected hotel fees are often overlooked. A recent New York Times piece highlighted the problem and stated that hotels in the United States are on track to earn $2.1 billion this year in fees and surcharges alone.

Some of the most outrageous hotel fees that are being reported:

  1. Charges for donations to local charities (without receiving consent) are being added to bills. This actually happened to me while in Grenada.
  2. Bellhop service charges, even when bellhop services aren’t used.
  3. Housekeeping charges.
  4. Charges for using the business center, fitness center or other areas of the hotel.
  5. Some hotels now charge extra for a new set of clean towels or sheets.
  6. Some hotels add fees for using the in-room coffeemaker.
  7. Sometimes guests are charged for the in-room safe, even if they don’t use it.
  8. Package delivery fees are applied for receiving mail and other items to your room in some hotels.
  9. Bills at some hotels now include an “energy surcharge.”
  10. Paying to use the internet often comes with a fee, and sometimes it’s ridiculously steep.

10 Things You Didn’t Know About The Idaho Backcountry Where Hannah Anderson Was Found

by Elizabeth Seward on

A 16 year old named Hannah Anderson was abducted by a family friend last week in a series of events that left both her mother and brother dead. Her saga began in Southern California and ended far away, in the wilderness of Idaho, when she was rescued by FBI agents over the weekend. Anderson’s abductor, James Lee DiMaggio, had fled to one of the most remote areas in the United States, the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness. The protected area is a beautiful place, but few people know much about it. In an effort to give you a clearer picture of this northern area that is relished by outdoors enthusiasts, here are some facts about the Frank Church River Of No Return Wilderness.

  1. It’s the second largest protected wilderness in the contiguous United States.
  2. It’s the largest area without any roads in the contiguous United States.
  3. The wilderness stretches across six different national forests.
  4. The wilderness was renamed after Senator Frank Church after he had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer because of his efforts to protect the environment while in Congress. President Reagan signed the act less than four weeks before Church’s death.
  5. The diverse mix of wildlife found within the area includes wolverines, grey wolves, mountain lions, mountain goats, elk and lynx.
  6. It is the home of the Salmon River, a popular whitewater rafting spot.
  7. Despite the myriad bodies of water within the area, only 10 inches or so of precipitation fall annually near the rivers while as much as 50 inches accumulate near the mountaintops, usually in the form of snow.
  8. There are 296 trails throughout the area.
  9. There are 114 bridges within the area.
  10. There are 1.5 million acres of trail-free land within the wilderness.

What’s Up With Celebrities Behaving Badly On Airplanes?

by Elizabeth Seward on


We all know that some celebrities don’t seem to know how to behave in public and that the list of celebrities removed from airplanes is continually growing. The most recent addition to this list is Soulja Boy, who was kicked off of an American Airlines flight on Friday when he wouldn’t return to his seat when asked to do so. Soulja Boy seemed apologetic about the incident when he spoke to TMZ saying, “It was a bad night and me and the flight staff didn’t see eye to eye. In hindsight, I’m extremely sorry for all inconvenience caused to the passengers and employees of the airline.”

Other celebrities who have been removed from airplanes:

  • Alex Baldwin for not turning off an electronic device
  • Naomi Campbell for losing her temper over lost luggage
  • Christian Slater for trying to board a plane with an unlicensed pistol
  • David Hasselhoff for being under the influence
  • Courtney Love for refusing to sit down and throwing a tantrum

And the list goes on.

Why The American Airlines Merger With US Airways Is Under Fire

by Elizabeth Seward on

The American Airlines merger with US Airways is under fire. The reason is simple: a merger between these two airlines would create the largest airline in the world — an airline that would have the potential to monopolize the air travel industry. The Justice Department, as well as several states, have filed a joint lawsuit in order to halt the merger. According to USA Today, the Justice Department noted that a merger between these two airlines would give the merged airline control over a whopping 69% of departure and arrival slots at Washington Reagan National Airport — that would be six times more control over the air activity of that airport than the closest competitor.
While other airline mergers have been successfully executed (United/Continental, Southwest/AirTran, Delta/Northwest), it seems as though the root of the problem with this particular merger is that it would be too big, perhaps too big to fail. It should be noted, however, that a USA Today article from December 2012 reported that despite gloomy speculations, none of the previous airline mergers raised fares as predicted.