This is the time of year for the legendary "mileage runs" -- the fabled flights to nowhere that elite-level frequent fliers take in order to retain their status. But
in my latest National Geographic Traveler column, I wonder if the game is worth playing at all.
I devote an entire chapter in my book,
Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals, to loyalty programs. If you want to read more about the hazards of point collecting, you absolutely have to pick up your very own copy.
By the way,
Scammed arrives in stores today! Be sure to ask for it at your favorite bookstore. (And please consider supporting your local bookstore, which is a vital part of every enlightened community.)
I want to give a big shout-out to my friends at
Luggage Pros, which offers all the name-brand luggage you need for your next trip, plus an exclusive 115 percent low price guarantee and free returns on all products. Luggage Pros is one of the underwriters that funds the consumer advocacy you read here. If you're looking for great luggage, I hope you'll visit
Luggage Pros.
Also ...
• You've probably heard about the TSA's cupcake incident.
Now read the rest of the story, including the incidents the other TSA beat reporters overlooked, and what it means to air travelers. You can also read it over at the
TSA News Blog.
• If you've thought that luggage fees were a scam, you'll want to
read today's story about Air Berlin. Did they offer this customer, whose luggage was also delayed by almost a month, enough compensation?
• Plus, tell me if I should mediate the case of a cruise passenger who says he was
smoked out of his suite on a recent vacation. Should cruise lines be responsible for letting secondhand smoke into a room, and if so, what should they do?
Everyone likes to think of the week between Christmas and New Years Day as being slow, but not for me. A lot of you are out traveling, and I'm here for you. Thank you for being there for me in 2011.
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Commenters on websites are known for straying from the topic at hand and devolving into their own little worlds. It’s common and expected. But they usually start off addressing the story that spawns their vitriol. Not the case when the subject is the TSA, especially at a time when so many people are traveling and have just recently interacted with their friendly neighborhood groper.
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