Airlines to add more seating options, room and perks

by Chris Owen on

Looking for more legroom on airlines? American Airlines hears the call and has plans to equip its entire mainline fleet with “Main Cabin Extra,” a new seating arrangement which will provide more leg room as well as priority boarding.

“Customers travelling in Main Cabin Extra seats will enjoy four to six inches of extra leg room compared to a standard Main Cabin seat as well as priority boarding privileges,” said Virasb Vahidi, American’s chief commercial officer.

American will begin installation on existing aircraft soon. New Boeing 737-800 aircraft delivered this fall will already be equipped with Main Cabin Extra seating.

Anticipated future aircraft, including Airbus A321s, and A319s, and Boeing 777-300ERs and 787s, will also offer Main Cabin Extra.

“We continue to provide our customers with choices that enable them to customize their travel on American to be the experience they desire and value,” said Vahidi.

Main Cabin Extra seats, located in the front portion of the main cabin, will allow for easier boarding and deplaning. AAdvantage Executive Platinum and Platinum members, along with customers who purchase a full-fare economy class ticket, will receive complimentary access to Main Cabin Extra, subject to availability.

Also, AAdvantage Gold members will receive complimentary access to the new seating product through December 31st, 2013.

Other airlines have extra space for a fee, too. United Airlines Economy Plus features up to five extra inches of legroom on all United flights worldwide as well as many United Express flights. Jet Blue’s Even More program allows first access to overhead bins and early boarding, too. US Airways Choice Seats program gives flyers the right to be first on and first off the plane, in addition to priority seat reservations using mostly window and aisle seats toward the front of Coach.

Flickr photo by bamueller

Upcoming exhibition will debunk Mayan prophecy of the end of the world in 2012

by Sean McLachlan on


An exhibition coming to Philadelphia will tackle this year´s hottest pseudo-archaeological topic: the Mayan prophecy that the world will end in 2012.

“Maya 2012: Lords of Time” at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology will explain the Mayan civilization’s complex interlocking calendar systems through interactive displays and a rich collection of art and artifacts. These calendars developed out of an advanced knowledge of astronomy and an obsession with the cyclical nature of astronomical events such as the solar and lunar years, eclipses, and the movements of the planets.

One of these calendar systems is the so-called Long Count, which starts a new cycle every 1,872,000 days, or approximately 5,125 solar years. The current cycle ends on December 21 or 23, depending on which scholar you believe. Most scholars say the Long Count doesn’t actually end on this date, it merely starts another cycle. The other Mayan calendars keep going too. No Mayan text says the world is supposed to end this year. In fact, some Mayan inscriptions actually mention dates later than 2012. They don’t mention anything about cosmic vibrations, visiting UFOs, or any of the other bullshit theories being bandied about either.

Dr. Sandra Noble, executive director of the Foundation for the Advancement of Mesoamerican Studies, said in an interview that the ancient Maya felt the end of a cycle was cause for celebration. Anthropologist and Maya specialist Dr. Judith Maxwell did what the New Agers didn’t bother to do and actually asked the Maya what they thought. While the ancient civilization is gone, the Mayan culture is alive and well in Mesoamerica and Mayan shamans, called daykeepers, told Maxwell that the end is not coming.

Apparently the exhibition organizers agree there’s nothing to fear. The exhibition runs from May 5, 2012 to January 13, 2013.

So the world isn’t going to end in 2012.

This ranks top on my list of “unsurprising news of the week.” I’m 42, and I have a hard time remembering a year that the world wasn’t supposed to end. Some hack writer or religious conman is always trying to scare us into thinking the world is going to end. The sad thing is, people embrace this nonsense. The world is not ending this year. You still have to deal with the consequences of your actions and you still have to shoulder your responsibilities. Chances are you will have to do that for many years to come. Chances are you will grow old and live through many more of life’s ups and downs.

That’s not a bad thing.

Cost of travel soaring but savings possible

by Chris Owen on

Determining the true cost of travel takes some effort. What we pay for airfare, hotels, and meals away from home are elements of a budget we want to pin down as much as possible, but that is not always easy. Experts know the cost of travel is rising, but also offer explanations and suggestions on what we can do about it.

Paying attention to prices at the pump, we need not hear from an expert to know that jet fuel prices are probably increasing as well.

“You’ll see gradual increases and then a much bigger jump in April and May when people start shopping for the summer travel season,” says Rick Seaney, CEO of travel website FareCompare.com.

Still, there are ways to save on airline tickets, cruise fares, hotels and more. One trick, normally seen as risky business, is to book later rather than earlier.

“For those of you who are flexible with your travel, it can pay to wait until the last minute,” Steven Fischer, vice president of cruise development at Travel Holdings, Inc. told MarketWatch. “That’s when airlines and cruises need to unload inventory, so stay on top of deals through last minute booking sites like LastMinuteCruises.com and LastMinuteTravel.com. Get a great deal and you don’t have to book 6 months in advance.”Playing it smart when checking into a hotel can help, too. TravelSavingsNut, a website dedicated to providing money saving advice, offers tips and ideas on how to save money when traveling.

“Even if you have a reservation, you may want to consider, before disclosing your reservation to the desk clerk, asking what rooms they have available and the price,” says TravelSavingsNut on its website. “If plenty of rooms are available, you may be quoted a rate lower than your reservation rate for the same type of room. If so, mention to the clerk that the rate is lower and ask that they honor the lower rate. They should be more than willing to do this.“

On the road, eating is a different matter, but USA Today Travel has some ideas to help here, too. Travel expert Pele Omori is a freelance writer specializing in travel and culinary subjects. She has traveled and lived internationally since she was age three and though she likes the idea of cooking when we can, Omori has some other suggestions:

“Stay at a place with a complimentary breakfast; otherwise, eat breakfast at a local bakery. Eating baked goods from local bakeries often costs less than eating at a restaurant or a hotel. Ask locals, such as the hotel staff, about bakeries in the area.

If you are looking to sample the local cuisine, eat lunch at a restaurant instead of dinner. Lunch at most restaurants costs considerably less than dinner at the same eatery. Cut costs further by sharing an entree or having a light meal that consists of soup, salad, or an appetizer.”


We may not be able to do much about the prices charged by airlines, hotels, and restaurants, but taking a step back to consider alternative ways of looking at travel expenses can often make an out of control budget more manageable.

Sierra Club announces Best Internship on Earth 2012 edition

by Kraig Becker on

The Sierra Club has begun accepting applications for the 2012 edition of their Best Internship on Earth, opening the program up to students or recent grads between the ages of 18 and 25. Interested applicants should enjoy traveling, have a passion for the outdoors, and a desire to share their experiences with the Club’s active online community.

The person selected for this internship will be named the 2012 Outdoor Youth Ambassador and will spend the summer traveling around the U.S. as part of the Club’s Mission Outdoors program. That particular initiative is designed to engage young people with nature and encourage them to get outdoors and enjoy the world around them. To that end the “intern” will be hiking, paddling, and climbing as part of their job, while also chronicling their experience through videos and blog postings about their adventures.

Interested parties are encouraged to apply online, where they will be asked to submit a 60-90 second video explaining why they are the ideal candidate for the job. The video should demonstrate an enthusiasm for the outdoors and a passion for conservation – although creative video editing won’t hurt the applicant’s cause either.

The intern will be based out of San Francisco for the summer, but because he or she will be traveling frequently – not to mention spending quite a bit of time outdoors – they’ll also receive $2000 worth of gear from The North Face. That gear will be put to good use throughout their tenure with the Sierra Club and is worth earning the internship alone.

Applications are being accepted through 5PM PDT on March 27th. For more details click here.


How to find a last-minute room in Austin for SXSW

by Jessica Marati on

Over the past several years, the annual South by Southwest (SXSW) Music, Film and Interactive Conference & Festival in Austin, Texas, has topped the event calendar for industry insiders, along with anyone eager to discover the Next Big Thing. This year’s festival, which runs from March 9 to 18, promises to be the most intense yet, with hundreds of panels, workshops, concerts and events on the official schedule.

But Austin, it appears, isn’t ready for the visitor boom brought on by the two-week spectacle. In December, organizers announced that SXSW rooms had sold out in local hotels for the Interactive and Film portions of the festival, with three months left before the start of the event. Last minute attendees, in particular, have been scrambling for places to crash.

SXSW organizers have stepped in with an option. In true “interactive” spirit, the SXSW Housing Desk is encouraging individuals who booked a hotel room with two beds to offer their additional bed to a friend or colleague, or swap for a room with a single bed. They’re maintaining a waiting list for people who wish to be informed when a room opens up this way; you can get on it by emailing housing@sxsw.com.

And then, of course, there are the online options. Thousands of enterprising Austin residents are making significant chunks of change by offering their homes, spare rooms, couches, and even air mattresses to desperate attendees. Airbnb reports a 44% increase in Austin host sign-ups since January, and more than 3,000 nights have already been booked. But Airbnb’s Austin listings don’t come cheap; inflation has led to nightly rates of $200 to $2000 per night. A more lo-fi option is Craigslist’s Austin vacation rentals listings, which offer up new places seemingly by the minute and have lower average rates than those found on Airbnb. Or, try issuing a desperate plea on Facebook or Twitter. You’ll certainly have lots of company.

[image by Merrick Ales via SXSW.com]