Business Traveller magazine: relevant articles

[BlacKnox]

BlacKnox, appreciation of my efforts will get you a long way. As they are general industry stories, I was hoping somebody was getting something out of them.

Lindsay I was reluctant to post to this thread as I thought you may want to keep it "clean" with articles only. I indeed read all of your thread updates and have appreciated your efforts "silently" in the past. I'm confident many others enjoy the articles and feel the same way.

Sorry to hear your dinner was cancelled with Nigel Turner, but being online to AFF must come a close second (like having dinner with Tom Cruise :? ).

Ummmm, yeah exactly

I presume that the re-scheduling had a lot to do with the flak that Bmi's top tier fliers are giving him and the exec team (see Flyertalk's Bmi forum for a taste)

Jeeez, Nigel's not making friends is he? Thanks for the link - I particularly liked a poster's explanation of the changes - BMI - Becoming more Idiotic?

 

[QF WP]

Lindsay I was reluctant to post to this thread as I thought you may want to keep it "clean" with articles only. I indeed read all of your thread updates and have appreciated your efforts "silently" in the past. I'm confident many others enjoy the articles and feel the same way.

I don't mind if people wants to post comments relevant to the stories - it is "Open Discussion" as the area header after all.

Jeeez, Nigel's not making friends is he? Thanks for the link - I particularly liked a poster's explanation of the changes - BMI - Becoming more Idiotic?

Yes, Aisle Seat H and I have got to know one another by PM, he's livered :x

 

[QF WP]

Airlines look to replace Concorde

Two airlines are planning to launch transatlantic carriers that revisit the luxury, but sadly not the speed of Concorde. Both airlines are backed by industry veterans who believe there's a gap in the market left by the withdrawal of Concorde from service in 2003.

Eos plans to launch flights from Stansted to New York JFK from September and has been founded by ex-British Airways executive David Spurlock. Other members of the executive team include past employees of Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and Northwest Airlines. They have secured $185 million in funding.

The service will be operated by a Boeing 757, which usually seats 200 passengers, but will be refitted with 48 luxury seats. Tickets will be priced at less than a standard schedule business class fare between New York and London, according to sources from the airline.

The in-flight service will include 21 square-feet of space per customer, a healthy meal that can be taken at any time, in-seat light and laptop outlet and a quality blanket. The launch of Eos is still subject to regulatory approval. Go to EOS Airlines.

A second carrier, Fly First, also plans to launch a premium-only transatlantic service, but will fly from Luton to New York Newark.

Fly First hopes to launch in November, operating Boeing 757-200 aircraft with 48 seats. The carrier would use the private jet terminal at Luton, allowing for a speedy check-in. According to reports, flights would leave at 6.45am, arriving in New York at 9am.

It is being spearheaded by former Eurostar chief executive, Hamish Taylor, who previously worked at BA. Fares have not yet been disclosed but are expected to be between £3,500 and £4,000.

Report by Ginny McGrath


W's little sister

The company that launched W hotels has unveiled plans to launch a cheaper alternative to the fashionable brand. Dubbed "Project XYZ", the new hotels from Starwood Hotels and Resorts are scheduled to start opening in 2007 in US cities, with Tampa, Minneapolis and Palo Alto cited as possible locations.

Starwood has confirmed the emphasis will be on design, with 90-180 loft-style bedrooms, trendy public spaces including a lounge, outside space and a 24-hour kitchen area serving food and drinks. The hotels will offer a pared-down service that is suitable for longer stays or guests on a budget.
Bedrooms will have oversized windows, large working spaces, large bathrooms with Bliss Spa products, and the entire property will be wireless internet enabled.

The properties will also feature a gym and swimming pool, plus meeting facilities and "business booths" where guests can use a computer, print documents and check emails. Starwood says XYZ is a working title and may not be the final brand name for the properties.

A spokeswoman told Businesstraveller.com that the two brands were targetted at different types of customer, XYZ being less pricey than W hotels.

With the two brands not in competition, it's possible they could open in the same cities, although a spokeswoman could not confirm whether this would happen. However, a statement issued by Starwood said it had received interest in the XYZ concept from developers in cities including Los Angeles, Chicago, New York and San Diego, which are all locations for existing W properties.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Lounges for Easyjet

Easyjet is adding airport lounges in a bid to woo business travellers.
The low cost carrier is making a break from the traditional no-frills model by offering the lounges to its passengers at an extra charge.

At a cost from £12 per passenger, the lounges offer complimentary drinks including wines, beer and spirits, snacks, newspapers and magazines. Business facilities include phone, fax, computers with internet access and printers, and some lounges have showers.

Easyjet passengers can book the lounges online at www.easyjetlounges.com and use the lounge for up to three hours before their plane departs.
The lounges are operated by Servisair/Globeground and will be available in 33 Easyjet airports in Europe, although Belfast, Basel and Paris Orly airports do not have lounges.

Customers wearing shorts, football shirts or baseball caps will be turned away according to the rules stated on the website and some lounges don't allow children under the age of 12.

This is not the first business traveller-friendly initiative undertaken by Easyjet. Earlier this year the airline trialled a scheme to offer passengers the chance to board the aircraft first for a fee of £10, allowing them to take the seat of their choice. A second trial at a UK airport is being considered.
Easyjet last year trialled self-service check-in machines at Nottingham East Midlands Airport, and consequently rolled them out at Nottingham East Midlands, Geneva and Berlin airports, with other airports under consideration.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Airport currency exchanges slammed

Waiting until the airport to change currency leaves travellers out of pocket according to a recent survey, which named the UK's worst offending airports.
Robin Hood Airport in Doncaster was named the worst airport for currency exchange rates by the report. Researchers asked to change £100 at the airport and were quoted a return of 130 Euros or $160. This compares to an average return of 141 Euros or $174 from an independent high street travel agent, according to the report.

Businesstraveller.com checked the rates of exchange online on Thursday June 9, and found the Post Office would return $175 for £100 and Travelex $179, for currency ordered online, which can then be picked up at the airport.
Other airports which fared poorly in the survey were Belfast, Bristol, Cardiff, Liverpool and Leeds Bradford.

The survey was carried out by Co-op Travel, a group of independent high street agents in the UK.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Comfort downgrade

A comfort downgrade is in prospect for Club World (business class) passengers flying British Airways to Tel Aviv this month. One of BA's two daily flights from London Heathrow will be operated by a short-haul version of the 767 up to and including June 30. The flights in question are BA165 from Heathrow at 0840 and flight BA164 returning from Tel Aviv at 16.55.

It means that business class passengers on this five hour flight will find the sort of seating normally offered on a 90 minute service to Frankfurt even though their ticket may have cost more than £1,400. Although the configuration remains six across (2-2-2), the seats are not quite so wide while legroom is cut from 50 to 34 inches.

Says a BA spokesperson, "The problem was caused by an engineering overrun for major maintenance which has made us short of 767s. We will continue to offer the normal Club World service with the exception of the seat. Passengers can either opt to transfer to one of our other flights or take a downgrade payment of £200 in travel vouchers or £150 in cash for a return flight."

The two flights which retain the normal Club World seating are BA163 from Heathrow at 22.30 and BA162 from Tel Aviv at 08.05. See BA website


Losing FFP points

BA Executive Club members booking transatlantic flights with American Airlines continue to lose FFP (frequent flyer programme) miles and points because of government restrictions.

Reader Clive Whittall, a member of British Airways' Executive Club, discovered the hard truth when he recently booked first class flights from San Jose (Costa Rica) to London via Miami.

His travel agent selected American Airlines because of the latter's convenient connections. But this decision cost Clive Whittall his FFP benefits for the Miami-London sector. BA told him that "it does not authorise the credit of miles or points for American transatlantic flights."

According to American Airlines, "We can't co-operate or co-ordinate transatlantic services because the US and European governments haven't given ourselves or BA anti-trust immunity. It means we can't enter into reciprocal commercial agreements."

A BA spokesman agreed with American. "Only four carriers [two UK and two US] can operate from Heathrow to the US and there are very strict guidelines under which we can operate. There is nothing in the pipeline which suggests the system will change."

According to Ravindra Bhagwanani of FFP consultancy Global Flight Management, "The BA and American is the only partnership of any of the three alliances to share such a restriction." Bhagwanani suggests that travellers get round this by signing up to the FFPs of other Oneworld members like Finnair, Iberia or Cathay Pacific.

Report by Alex McWhirter

 

[QF WP]

London-Paris less than two hours by train

Eurostar has revealed that the London area will be under two hours from central Paris from 2007. London to Brussels will fall to around 95 minutes.
The dramatic improvements in the train service represent savings of 40 minutes on current schedules. They coincide with the opening of three new stations and the extension of the London-Folkestone high-speed line into London's St Pancras station.

Rather than departing a single London terminus (currently Waterloo), Eurostar has revealed that it will operate from three separate stations all with their own catchment areas, an arrangement which will appeal to passengers living to the north and east of the capital.

Although some Eurostar trains will continue to run non-stop from St Pancras to Paris (journey time 2 hrs 15 minutes) and Brussels (1 hour, 53 minutes) a number will call at Stratford and Dartford International. Stratford will have connecting train, tube and DLR (light rail) services, while Dartford International is being developed as a park and ride facility. It is located near the busy M25/M20 motorway junction (convenient for areas to the east and south of London) and will have parking spaces for 5,000 cars. Journey times from Dartford will be 1 hour 58 minutes to Paris, and 1 hour 35 minutes to Brussels.

But the closure of Eurostar's Waterloo terminal will inconvenience travellers in the Southwest who now face longer journeys to an alternative station. Says a Eurostar spokesperson, "It's regrettable, but there will always be pockets of the UK which will not so be so accessible. We feel that the potential number of passengers [from other areas] to be gained from the move will always be higher." Go to Eurostar's website.

Report by Alex McWhirter


Heathrow rail connection boosted

A train service connecting Paddington with Heathrow is undercutting the Heathrow Express by £5.50.

The Heathrow Connect service, launched on June 12, costs £9.50 for a single ticket compared to the £14 charged by Heathrow Express for the same trip. The saving on a return ticket is £7 because Heathrow Express prices its return at £26, while Heathrow Connect charges £19.

In addition, national railcards including Senior Railcards, Young Persons Railcards and tickets like Business Savers are valid on Heathrow Connect.
However, Heathrow Connect has not been launched to rival the airport express train. It makes five stops at west London stations before reaching the airport so takes 25 minutes to travel from Paddington to Heathrow compared to the 15 minutes taken by Heathrow Express.

As well as offering a cheaper service from Paddington, albeit less speedy, Heathrow Connect stops at Ealing Broadway, West Ealing, Hanwell, Southall, and Hayes (see map), meaning that residents of west London and the western suburbs no longer need to back track to Paddington in order to travel to Heathrow by train.

Heathrow Connect could also be the only train service stopping at Heathrow's Terminal 4 once Terminal 5 opens in March 2008. This is according to preliminary plans laid out by airports operator, BAA, concerning the operation of the new terminal, although this is still subject to discussion.

Heathrow Connect operates its first trains from Paddington at 4.42am and the last train at 23.08, with trains every 30 minutes for most of the day. The first Heathrow Express train pulls out of Paddington at 5.10am and the last one at 23.25, with trains operating every 15 minutes for most of the day.

Go to Heathrow Connect and Heathrow Express.

Report by Ginny McGrath

LW reports that a friend of mine is about to (read within the next 12 hours) use this service within the next 12 hours, so we should have a report on it soon...


Air France unveils new consumer-friendly website

Air France is the latest of Europe's traditional airlines to unveil transparent pricing for bookings made online.

Until now the carrier's website has lagged behind the likes of British Airways, KLM and Swiss, all of which offer potential passengers an easy way to select the best fare for their needs.

The new Air France site displays a simpler range of fares with availability for three days either side of your preferred date. The price you pay varies depending on when you book and when you travel. But an executive booking a midweek London Heathrow-Paris CDG daytrip one week ahead would pay £191. A similar journey booked three weeks ahead would cost £102. The new site provides online check-in facilities, or passenger taking e-tickets can use self-service kiosks at a growing number of airports.

At present the new display covers point-to-point flights to and from France from destinations throughout Europe. But Air France says it hopes to offer the similar, simpler display for connecting flights, covering both long and short-haul routes, from next July. Go to Air France UK website.

Report by Alex McWhirter


New routes for Scotland and regions

SN Brussels Airlines has launched flights from Glasgow to Brussels.
The flight is timely for business travellers with weekday (and Saturday) departures at 6.20am from Glasgow, arriving in Brussels at 9am. A second daily flight leaves on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 2.15pm, arriving in Brussels 5pm.

Return flights leave Brussels at 7.25pm, arriving in Glasgow at 8.15pm every day except Saturdays and an additional return service operates Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 1pm, arriving at 1.35pm. The flight is operated by an Avro RJ aircraft in a two-class configuration. Business Class passengers enjoy dedicated check-in, lounge access, improved catering and larger seats.

SN Brussels chief executive, Peter Davies hopes Glagow-based business travellers will use the service to connect with the carrier's European and intercontinental network.

The airline is currently offering a special rate of E69 return including taxes on its website for flights booked up to June 30 for travel between July 21 and August 21, subject to availability. Go to SN website.

In addition Easyjet has released its winter timetable from UK regional airports. The flights launch at the end of October:

- Belfast to Amsterdam, Alicante, Berlin, Faro, Geneva, Inverness, Malaga, Nice, Palma, Paris, Rome.

- Bristol to Alicante, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Belfast, Berlin, Budapest, Edinburgh, Faro, Geneva, Glasgow, Inverness, Madrid, Malaga, Murcia, Nice, Palma, Prague, Pisa, Rome, Venice, Valenicia.

- Liverpool to Alicante, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Basel, Belfast, Berlin, Cologne, Geneva, Madrid, Malaga, Nice, Palma, Paris.

- Newcastle to Alicante, Barcelona, Belfast, Berlin, Bristol, Budapest, Geneva, Malaga, Nice, Palma, Paris Prague, Rome.

- Nottingham East Midlands to Alicante, Cologne, Faro, Geneva, Malaga, Prague, Rome, Venice.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Reprieve for US-bound travellers

US authorities have extended the deadline for European countries to begin issuing biometric passports, saving business travellers visiting the US the hassle of getting a visa for another year.

In a move to improve border controls the US wants visitors from Europe, who can enter the country under the visa waiver programme, to carry biometric passports, which contain fingerprint and detailed personal information.

The US had previously insisted that all passports renewed after October 26 2005 should be biometric, otherwise the passport holder would have to obtain a visa, which includes an interview at the US visa department and can involve a wait of up to three weeks, ruling out a last-minute business trip.

But following negotiations with European countries, the US has agreed to extend the deadline by one year – the second time it has pushed the deadline back - after European nations said they did not yet have the necessary technology in place to produce biometric passports.

The extension of the deadline to October 26 2006 also applies to countries outside Europe that are part of the visa waiver programme: Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Japan.

Travellers carrying passports issued before October 26 2006 will be able to continue to travel to the US without a visa until their passport runs out, after which they need to renew it with a biometric version if they wish to travel to the US.

Business travellers bound for the US should also be aware that from June 26, they must have a machine-readable passport to enter the US without a visa. This is different from the biometric requirement, and affects fewer people because most passports are already machine readable, i.e. have a sequence of lines that can be swiped by US customs officials. Only those with passports issued by foreign embassies, or children, who could previously travel on a parent's passport, need to apply for a new one.

Report by Ginny McGrath


'New Concorde' on the cards

The days of commercial supersonic travel may not be over.

Less than two years after Concorde was withdrawn from service, Japanese and French aircraft engineers are looking to develop a new supersonic jet.

The first route mooted for supersonic flight is New York-Tokyo. The aircraft will seat up to 300 people, according to Japanese authorities, and would almost cut the flight time between New York and Tokyo in half to six hours. It will not be ready until around 2015.

According to reports from the Paris air show, the two countries have secured over £1 million in funding to develop the aircraft, which would be cleaner and more efficient than Concorde according to the Japanese authorities.

Report by Ginny McGrath

 

[Kiwi Flyer]

hooray - at least some sense in the US that no point having biometric requirement if almost no one can provide them (incl the US)

 

[QF WP]

This weeks' articles

Dubai hotel chain goes international

Jumeirah International, the Dubai-based luxury hospitality group behind the Jumeirah Beach and the Burj Al Arab hotels, has announced plans for rapid worldwide expansion focusing on destinations served by Emirates Airlines.
Bill Walshe, Jumeirah's chief sales and marketing officer, said that over the next five years the group was looking to open 40 new hotels in a mixture of resort and city locations.

"We will start by targeting capital locations, most likely ones served by Emirates Airlines, as well as cities necessary to become a credible world force, such as New York, Paris, Sydney, and Tokyo."

Speaking to Business Traveller, Walshe accepted that it would be a challenge to maintain service levels in the new hotels, which will be run under management contracts, but he insisted that the group would not "shy away from moving outside our traditional operating base of Dubai".

The group is re-branding all but one of its existing eight London and Dubai properties with the Jumeirah name, so that the Emirates Towers Hotel in Dubai for example will become Jumeirah Emirates Towers and the Lowndes Hotel in London is now the Jumeirah Lowndes Hotel. The group's landmark Burj Al Arab in Dubai, however, will not take on the Jumeirah branding.

"The Burj al Arab will always be displayed in conjunction with the brand, and will be endorsed by the hotel group, but as the most famous hotel in the world, it is something more than just a hotel," explained Walshe. "It is like Dubai's Sydney Opera House and the identification it has for Dubai as a destination is bigger than any brand."


Live TV first for Gulf airline

Etihad Airways will be the first airline in the world to offer live television and internet access through its seatback entertainment systems next year after signing a deal with Boeing.

Singapore Airlines is set to launch a similar live TV and internet service for its passengers later this summer, but it will only be accessible to passengers travelling with Wi-Fi enabled laptops. Both airlines are using in-flight broadband technology developed by Boeing called Connexion by Boeing.

The Abu Dhabi-based airline will start rolling out the live TV and internet seatback service from mid-2006 on routes between the Gulf region, Europe and North America.

It will give passengers at every seat access to the worldwide web, e-mail, corporate intranets, virtual private networks, live TV and the ability to stay in touch with friends, family and the office.

Until the full new service comes into operation, Etihad will offer the Connexion by Boeing high-speed internet, data and entertainment connectivity through passengers' Wi-Fi-enabled laptops. This service is also being installed by several other airlines including JAL, Lufthansa and All Nippon Airways.

Peter Dunkin, Etihad's UK general manager, said: "With the introduction of this high-speed mobile internet and entertainment connection on board our new aircraft, we are confident that we will raise hospitality standards to a revolutionary new level of service."


Competition hots up on London to Berlin

Flight connections between London and Berlin will be boosted again in November when Air Berlin adds a fourth daily service from Stansted to Berlin Tegel.

The airline, which operated two flights a day until launching a third daily service in May, will add the fourth in its winter schedule starting November 1.
The move is expected to mean keener prices on services between the two business cities. Air Berlin competes with Ryanair from Stansted to Schonefeld, British Airways from Heathrow to Tegel, and Easyjet, which will launch a new twice daily service from Gatwick to Berlin Schonefeld on September 26 alongside its existing flights from Luton.

Tegel airport is more convenient for Berlin city centre, especially the former Western sector. Schonefeld is further out but provides good access to the city's former Eastern sector. It is also a good gateway for areas of the former East Germany and Poland.

Lufthansa does not fly direct to Berlin from the UK.


Eighties revival for New York fares

Research commissioned by Virgin Atlantic to mark its 21st birthday on June 22 has found that fares for its flights to New York are almost the same as they were when the airline started flying in 1984.

According to its findings, a flight to New York 21 years ago was being advertised for as little as £119 (excluding taxes and charges), compared to Virgin Atlantic's cheapest fare this year of £118 (excluding taxes and charges), a decrease of 0.8 per cent.

Sir Richard Branson, chairman of Virgin Atlantic, commented: "It is eye-opening to see how the prices of goods have changed in the past 21 years since we first started flying.

"When you consider that inflation has gone up by 109 per cent in that time it is surprising that some goods have actually gone down in price and others have only gone up by a fraction of the cost of living rate. "Prices in Britain are often classed as rip-off, but our research shows that many things are cheaper now than they were in the mid-80s."

An Apple Mac computer, for example, has plummeted in price from £1,388 in 1984 to £680 now, while (perhaps unsurprisingly) mobile phones have dropped a staggering 96 per cent from £1,750 in the mid-1980s to about £85 for a handset with a yearly contract now.

The biggest increase has been in house prices with the average UK property going up from £32,751 in 1984 to £162,840 now - an increase of 397 per cent.
The price of a McDonald's Big Mac hamburger has also seen a big rise from 63p in 1984 to £1.88 today.


Indian hotel group takes over the Pierre

The Pierre, New York's landmark hotel on Fifth Avenue, has changed hands.
Previously operated by luxury hotel chain Four Seasons Hotels, it is now being managed by Mumbai-based Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces.

The 75-year-old Pierre, which overlooks Central Park and was once owned by US oil billionaire John Paul Getty, is set to switch over on July 1. It will be the first North American property for Taj's parent Tata group.

For the latest review of the Pierre, by Business Traveller Editor Tom Otley:

What's it like? The Pierre doesn't suit everyone, but those whom it does suit will love it. The restored 1930s Georgian-style 41-story building is a mix of
hotel rooms and condominiums (known as “co-ops” and run by a committee who can reject potential purchasers).
Not surprisingly, the co-ops tend to take the lion's share of the Central Park views, but then with Pierre Bergé's (co-founder of Yves Saint Laurent's haute couture empire) 38th-floor apartment recently on the market for $9 million – with a monthly maintenance fee of $12,000 – they certainly pay for the privilege, as will you if you stay here.
A typical floor might have both co-ops and hotel rooms, giving the hotel a unique feel. Wood panelled elevators each have their own white-gloved operator, and there are post shoots on each level, allowing residents to send letters without leaving their floor.

Where is it? On the corner of Fifth Avenue at 61st Street.

How many rooms? 201, including 52 suites, plus 72 condominiums. There are several room categories, from moderate, superior and deluxe to premier, park view and boudoir. Broadband internet access is available for $10 per day.

Business centre: Just off the lobby, the business centre is small but well equipped, manned during office hours but open 24 hours for hotel guests.

Fitness centre: On the third floor, though Central Park jogging is the main draw.

Restaurant: A good, English-style breakfast of sausages and bacon is available in either Café Pierre or the Rotunda, with its Renaissance-style trompe l'oeil and ceiling murals painted by American artist Edward Melcarth in 1967, faux marble staircase and domed ceiling. Good for afternoon tea, though for dinner it's best to walk a few extra paces to Café Pierre, which is decorated with etched Italian mirrors, imported silks and satins, and a colour scheme of saffron, green and gold.

Bar: The bar is small, dark and intimate, like an Upper West Side apartment – with the addition of a pianist. It has a good wine list, served by the glass, assisted by the 10,000-bottle wine cellar for the restaurant, with coughtails also available.

Price: Starting from $395.

Contact: The Pierre New York, Fifth Ave at 61st St, New York, tel 1 212 838 8000

 

[QF WP]

Bmi Heathrow savings?

Passengers expecting to pay less for their no-frills Bmi flights from Heathrow this summer could be disappointed.

As already reported (see News, May 26) Bmi is converting almost all its short-haul Heathrow services to a low-cost operation on August 1. It means the end of business class and a downgrading of economy class.
Flights will become one-class and passengers will now have to pay for in-flight food and drinks. Members of Bmi's Diamond Club also lose out because they will earn fewer points and won't be able to redeem their upgrade vouchers.

Many of Bmi's best customers are known to be upset at the move and have made their feelings known to Business Traveller. However, a recent poll of Businesstraveller.com recorded a split verdict over the issue of whether business class has a future on short-haul flights, with 47 per cent saying business class does not have a future short-haul, and 53 per cent saying it does. One consolation was the fact that Bmi's ticket prices had been expected to fall to reflect the lower standards.

But that's not going to be the case. When Bmi unveiled its new Heathrow tariffs earlier this week, the savings for the carrier's restrictive economy rates (branded "Tiny" fares) appear to be in the order of a few pounds rather than the substantial savings which travellers thought they might achieve.

Flexible (branded "Premium" fares) tickets have similar prices to previous business class rates even though in-flight service will disappear and the seating become more cramped.

For example, Bmi's flexible economy fare for Heathrow-Amsterdam will be £328 in August which is only £1 cheaper than July's restricted business class ticket. Another example is Heathrow-Milan where flexible economy will cost £440 which is only £10 cheaper than the business class equivalent.

A spokesman for Bmi admits that prices haven't fallen dramatically but says that more passengers will benefit because cheap seat availability is now higher.

* Short-haul routes from Heathrow which retain business class are: Brussels, Dublin, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Belfast. The Dublin route, originally set to lose business class, has won a last minute reprieve. Go to Fly BMI


Better check-in for Frankfurt

Checking in at Germany's busiest airport is set to become easier following the introduction of self-service kiosks.

The introduction of the kiosks at Frankfurt Airport this autumn will speed up the check-in process and reduce queues according to the airport operator. Unlike check-in kiosks at other airports, the machines can be used by multiple carriers –in this case 42 airlines and ground handlers.

However, airlines including British Airways and Lufthansa will continue to operate their own check-in kiosks at Frankfurt Airport as well as utilising the general use machines.

At first eight kiosks will be installed at the airport, with further added if demand is strong. Operators of the airport hope that by 2010, more than 60% of the 50 million passengers who use the airport each year will check-in using the kiosks.

Report by Ginny McGrath


More flights for skiers

Low cost airlines are going head-to-head with British Airways on flights to Grenoble this winter, a popular destination for skiers heading to the Alps.
British Airways will launch flights from Gatwick to Grenoble on December 10, with fares starting at £79 return.

The airline hopes the route will be popular with skiers due to the transfer times to resorts such as Meribel, Courchevel and L'Alpe d'Huez, which are shorter than the journey from airports such as Lyon and Geneva, at under two hours. BA will operate the Grenoble flight on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays until the end of March 2006. Go to www.ba.com.

BA faces competition from Easyjet, which offers flights to Grenoble from Luton, and from Ryanair, which will launch flights from Stansted to Grenoble on September 23 with fares starting at 99 pence each way not including taxes.

A second French airport with easy access to the Alps is the subject of route expansion this winter. Chambery will be connected with Leeds and Manchester when Jet2 launches flights to the airport from December 17. It will also be connected with Norwich, Exeter, Birmingham and Southampton when Flybe expands its services to Chambery from December 17 (December 24 in the case of Exeter).

Report by Ginny McGrath


Virgin launches podcasting

Rather than squeezing a guide book into your already stuffed briefcase, the latest technology means you can be guided around a city using your MP3 player.

The technology, known as podcasting, is when radio content is downloaded onto an MP3 player (see Business Traveller June, page 18). It is being utilised by Virgin Atlantic to make city guides available for free to travellers, regardless of whether they travel with the airline.

The first content to be made available for download features New York, with guides to the top restaurants, best shopping and advice on how to "get off the beaten track". The airline says it plans to launch guides to other destinations in its network and will give users the option to register themselves to receive future content automatically. This means further city guides are automatically downloaded to the user's computer, which can then be transferred to an MP3 player, including iPods. Go to Virgin Atlantic website.

Predicted by Business Traveller as an upcoming trend for globetrotters, podcasting also enables MP3 users to download radio shows and play them back at their leisure. BBC Radio and Virgin Radio are two companies trialling podcasting, by making content available for download, although in most cases popular music is edited out due to an issue over rights.

All of the necessary software can be downloaded online from Virgin Atlantic's website as well as from other sources such as www.ipodder.org.

Report by Ginny McGrath


BA increases fares

British Airways has raised its fuel surcharge to £48 on long-haul return fares.
The airline blames the continuing rise in the cost of oil for the decision to increase the surcharge from £16 per long-haul flight to £24. The new charge came into effect on June 27. It does not apply to tickets already paid for and issued.

The fuel surcharge also increased on short-haul tickets, but by less, from £6 per sector to £8, adding £16 to the cost of a short-haul return ticket.
On making the announcement, BA commercial director Martin George, said the airline's fuel bill is expected to top £1.6 billion in this financial year, more than £450 million higher than last year.

Another factor that could put pressure on air fares is a scheme proposed by the European Commission to offset carbon dioxide emissions from aircraft by adding a levy to air tickets. Current proposals put the levy at between £1 and £6 per ticket, which could come into force from 2008. It would only apply to flights within Europe.

Report by Ginny McGrath

 

[QF WP]

London airports stay open

A series of bomb attacks in central London caused major disruptions for the city's transport system, but airports remained open.

The blasts occurred on trains travelling on the London Underground between Aldgate East and Liverpool Street stations, Russell Square and King's Cross stations, and at Edgware Road station. There was also an explosion on a bus at Tavistock Square, near Russell Square.

In response to the explosions, the Underground system was evacuated and all lines suspended. In addition, London buses ceased to operate in Zone 1.

While rumours circulated across the internet that Heathrow and Gatwick airports were closed, both remained open, although Heathrow is reporting delays of up to half an hour on some arrivals and departures, and part of Terminal 3 was closed for a short time while an unattended bag was investigated. Stansted and Luton airports have also remained open, but passengers are advised to allow extra time to travel to the airport.
Passengers headed to and from Gatwick can use the Gatwick Express, which was reinstated on Thursday afternoon following earlier suspension.

Heathrow Express and Heathrow Connect services were also operating on Thursday afternoon between Paddington and Heathrow following earlier suspension. In addition, coach services were operating from Heathrow, but only as far as Feltham.

Black cab share schemes are in place from Heathrow to encourage travellers to share cabs and keep fares down.

The Stansted Express remained suspended. However a spokeswoman for Airport Express told Businesstraveller.com that the company hoped to have the Stansted Express operational at some point on Thursday. In the meantime, passengers can catch National Express coaches to and from Golders Green and Stratford, or the Hopper buses to and from Whitechapel.

Luton Airport can be accessed by rail, first on Thameslink services to Kentish Town, avoiding Kings Cross and Farringdon, from where trains operate to Luton Airport Parkway station. In addition, Greenline coach services operate to and from Baker Street.

Both Luton and Stansted Airports are reporting heavy congestion on the roads around the airports and the Highways Agency, which manages the M25 and major routes around London.

The information above was correct at time of writing, but travellers using London's airports are advised to check the relevant airport website or baa.com.

Report by Ginny McGrath


More disruption for tube to Heathrow

The Heathrow Express is to accept Travelcards, which cost £8 less than its tickets, when parts of the Piccadilly Line are closed intermittently over the course of the coming year.

Engineering work taking place between Hammersmith and Acton Town over eight weekends between August 6/7 and early 2006, will mean that there will be no through Piccadilly Line trains between Central London and Heathrow airport on those dates.

Consequently, passengers heading to or from Heathrow on the affected weekends will be able to travel on the speedy Heathrow Express with a Travelcard (valid for Underground zones 1-6), instead of the more pricey Heathrow Express ticket.

Travelcards for zones 1-6 cost £6 at the weekend, compared to the £14 charged for a single ticket on the Heathrow Express, or £9.50 on the new Heathrow Connect services, which link Paddington with Heathrow, but take 25 minutes to reach Heathrow Central, compared to 15 minutes on the Heathrow Express.

Heathrow Express serves Heathrow Central (for Terminals 1,2 and 3) and Heathrow Terminal 4. Heathrow Connect serves Heathrow Central only.

Passengers wishing to continue their journey by tube on the affected weekends, rather than use the Heathrow Express, will have to allow longer for their journeys as this will involve taking the slower District Line to Acton Town and then changing to a Piccadilly Line shuttle from there to Heathrow Central.

Go to TFL website, Heathrow Express website, or Heathrow Connect

Report by Alex McWhirter


Trains, planes and mobile phones

Flight updates and airport express train bookings are the latest services to be sent by text message to mobile phones.

BAA has launched an SMS service, Flying Messenger, which keeps passengers up-to-date with the progress of flights operating in and out of Heathrow and Gatwick airports.

To receive the text, mobile phone users text their flight number to 82222, at a charge of 30 pence per request. The mobile phone user is then charged at the standard text message rate, which varies according to mobile phone operator, to receive an instant text message detailing the status of the flight. They are also given an option to request an advanced service called Flying Messenger Plus.

This advanced service sends a series of text messages monitoring the progress of a requested flight, keeping passengers abreast of delays, gate calls and so forth. BAA hopes the service will also be used by people meeting passengers from flights.

The second company offering an SMS service is Airport Express, operators of the Gatwick, Heathrow and Stansted Express trains.
Unlike the BAA service, the Airport Express service is free of charge and available to customers who book their train ticket online. On completion of the booking, a confirmation number is sent to the customer's mobile phone, which can then be retrieved by the user when picking up their ticket at the train station.

Report by Ginny McGrath


After two and a half years, a new Hilton Sydney

Hilton is reopening its Sydney hotel next week to unveil the city's most extensive hotel conference and event space and a contemporary brasserie.

The Hilton Sydney, located in the central business district between George and Pitt streets, will reopen on July 15. It has been closed for 30 months while undergoing refurbishment costing AUS$200 million.

The hotel has been completely renovated, and a 20-metre lobby added, with a design emphasis on light and space. It was overseen by Johnson Pilton Walker, the architects who oversaw a makeover of the Sydney Opera House.

All 577 rooms have been renovated, including 97 Executive Rooms and 31 Relaxation Rooms, which have spa bathrooms with jet showers and holistic relaxation kits, mood lighting and lounge chairs.

The refurbished hotel will feature a contemporary restaurant, Glass Brasserie, in addition to a trendy new bar with the same name and trendy style as the bar in Hilton's London Park Lane hotel, Zeta Bar. There are four levels of event space including seven high-tech meeting rooms, six functions rooms, a state room and exhibition space.

Go to Hilton web site.

Report by Ginny McGrath

 

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'No profiteering' from hotels following London bombings

Accusations that some hotels in London raised rates to take advantage of the chaos caused by the last week's bombings are unfounded, according to research revealed today.

Hotel benchmarking firm The Bench carries out a daily survey of 90 four and five-star hotels in the capital. Its research shows that the average room rate paid on 7 July was £148, compared with £149 on Wednesday, £147 on Tuesday and £143 on Monday. Occupancy on Thursday was 84 per cent, down from 93 per cent on Wednesday.

Russell Kett, managing director of hotel consultants HVS International, said: "The Bench's figures amply demonstrate that, on average, no such profiteering occurred in the 90 upscale hotels, representing 26,800 rooms, covered by their survey. The actual figures for Monday to Thursday last week follow the same trends as were demonstrated in the same week last year."

Thistle Hotels, which has the largest number of hotel rooms in the capital, has issued a statement to say it did not raise its rates.
"An emergency conference call took place at midday [on 7 July] with all London, Heathrow and Gatwick hotels to discuss the incident and to confirm that there would be no rise in prices and other contingency instructions were issued. The decision was also taken to waive all charges that would occur due to cancellations and no-shows for all bedroom and Meetings & Events bookings for Thursday 7 and Friday 8 July."

Marriott also said it did not increase rates to take advantage of those stranded in London. Marriott's International's Jürgen Giesbert said: "We tried to be as good a corporate citizen as we could. It was not the time to reap profits at the expense of others."

At the same time, consultants Deloitte believe that any impact on hotel rates in the capital due to reduced demand will be short-lived. Alex Kyriakidis, Deloitte's global head of Tourism, Hospitality and Leisure, says: "The recovery period post terrorist attacks is getting shorter...Our Hotelbenchmark data shows that post September 11th, the recovery period was some 18 months. However, in the case of Madrid, hotel occupancies recovered to their pre-attack levels within six months and tourism arrivals to Spain were up 3.4 per cent in 2004 compared with 2003, with a marginal decline in the second quarter of 2004 of only 0.3 per cent as a result of the attacks.

The World Travel and Tourism Council this week revealed that it expects business travel to the capital to fall by around 2.3 per cent as a result of last week's bombings, based on research carried out for the organisation by Oxford Economic Forecasting using a specially developed crisis event prediction model. The model uses the historic effects of events such as 9/11 and the Bali bombing and takes into account variables such as shock factor, any damage to infrastructure, government response and traveller confidence.


Taxi strike at Zurich airport enters third day

Business travellers flying to Zurich continue to experience disruption with their onward journeys as a strike among taxi drivers serving the Swiss city's airport enters its third day.

Taxi drivers serving the airport are demanding better working conditions and a minimum salary of SFr 4,000 (£1,750 a month) The strike began after negotiations between Unia, the union representing the drivers, and IG Airport Taxi, the umbrella group that represents the seven taxi firms working at the airport, broke down. Drivers are unhappy that the cost of an annual licence to ply for business at the airport was last year increased from Sfr 5,000 (£2,200) to SFr 10,000 (£4,400) while the number of licences was increased, making it harder to find passengers.

Unique, the company that operates the airport, has laid on a shuttle bus service to a point outside the airport where passengers can catch taxis. An airport spokesman said that a better alternative was to take public transport. "There are 250 trains and 800 buses leaving the airport each day. You can take a train to the next station and take a taxi from there. It might even be cheaper than normal."

Since the strike began, Unique has offered to rip up the contract with IG Airport Taxi, which currently runs to the end of 2008. If the taxi firms agree, it would open up the airport, which handles 17 million passengers a year, to any taxi in the Zurich area.


Skype from your mobile phone

The popular Skype internet telephone service has received a significant boost with the launch of a nifty piece of software called EpyxMobile.

The free software, from tech firm Epyx, allows you to use your mobile phone to call other Skype users for free and make calls to landlines and other mobile phones at rates of around a penny per minute to most major countries around the world. Before now, Skype has only been available to users with dedicated internet phones or wireless-enabled devices loaded with the Skype software.

To use EpyxMobile, you need two mobile phones, one with Bluetooth connectivity, and a Bluetooth-enabled PC. You then connect one phone and the PC via Bluetooth. After changing a few settings, you can then use your other phone to call the one linked to your PC and use the Bluetooth link to access the Skype service. Although the set-up is complicated, it can substantially reduce the amount you spend on calls from your mobile.

Skype has this week announced the launch of a new service with wireless hotspot provider Boingo. For US$7.95 (around £4.40) a month, Skype users can use any of 18,000 Boingo hotspots worldwide to access Skype. The SkypeZones service can be used at UK hotspots in many Choice, Quality and Sleep Inn hotels and at branches of Caffe Nero.

More information from www.epyxmobile.com, www.skype.com and www.boingo.com


Easier passage to India from newcomer Jet

Fast-growing Jet Airways is gearing up for a major expansion of services to London this winter. At the same time the Indian carrier hopes to launch its first ever transatlantic flight, one linking Brussels with New York.

The new UK services are expected to get under way at the end of October. They will see a new route being opened between Delhi and Heathrow and the doubling of Jet Airways' flights between Mumbai and Heathrow.

Fares and schedules have yet to be announced but the current daily Mumbai-Heathrow service departs India at 13.20 (services on Monday and Thursday leave slightly earlier) to arrive in London at 17.40. The return flight departs Heathrow at 21.25 to reach Mumbai at 10.50 the next day. Connections are available at Mumbai to and from 40 domestic destinations. Other international services include links between Mumbai and Singapore along with Chennai to Kuala Lumpur.

Privately-owned Jet Airways, which started flying to London in May this year, is seeking to change the image of Indian airlines on the world stage. Rightly or wrongly, the latter haven't enjoyed the best reputation for service in recent years.

Chairman Naresh Goyal told Business Traveller, "Our crew and in-flight catering are multi-cultural. We want to challenge other Asian airlines for service and reputation. It's not rocket science to become the best carrier in Asia."

Current flights from Mumbai to Heathrow are operated by Airbus A340s with fully lie-flat seats in business class along with 73 inches of legroom. Services to Singapore and Kuala Lumpur are handled by Boeing 737-800s with conventional business class seating providing 58 inches of legroom. The airline's business class checked baggage allowance is 40 kilos which is 10 kilos higher than the industry standard.

* The growth of flights to India (besides Jet Airways, services are now operated by Air India, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Bmi) and Shanghai (where British Airways has just joined Virgin Atlantic and China Eastern) contributed to an 11% growth in traffic handled by BAA airports during June.


Bonus miles as Lufthansa and Swiss align loyalty programmes

Members of the Lufthansa and Swiss frequent flyer programmes (FFPs) can claim bonus miles for all flights taken with either airline between July 20 and September 15. In addition, members of Lufthansa's Miles and More FFP will be able to collect award, status and Hon Circle (the highest tier) miles operated by Swiss. And miles which are earnt can now be redeemed for award flights with Swiss.

Bonus miles (for both Miles and More and the Swiss Travel Club) amount to 1,000 extra miles for a short-haul economy class or 2,000 miles for a short-haul business class flight. Long-distance flights qualify for bonus miles of 2,500 for economy, 5,000 for business and 10,000 for first class.

Details of the offer coincide with the news that Lufthansa and Swiss have received government permission to merge their operations. It means that both airlines will harmonise their schedules to provide better connecting possibilities at Frankfurt, Munich and Zurich from the start of the winter timetable.

But the future of the Swiss Travel Club remains unclear. Says FFP guru Ravindra Bhagwanani of Frankfurt-based Global Flight Management, "What might happen is that Lufthansa merges Travel Club into Miles and More in the same way as it took over the FFPs of Austrian and Poland's LOT [these carriers fellow members of the Star Alliance]. So far Swiss will not reveal its plans for Travel Club."

* Lufthansa will launch a five times a week service between Frankfurt and Algiers on July 15. It is offering double FFP miles for flights taken before November 30.

More information from www.lufthansa.com or www.swiss.com


Air NZ unveils revamped planes

Air New Zealand's new look for its long-haul fleet was unveiled this week. The airline is spending NZ$160 million (£60 million) on the relaunch which will eventually see eight 747s and eight 777s refitted with lie-flat beds, on-demand in-flight entertainment throughout the plane and a new premium economy class.

Regular flyers with Virgin Atlantic will give a nod of recognition when they see Air New Zealand's new Business Premier class. The airline has gone for 22 inch wide leather armchairs that convert into 6 foot 8 inch flat beds, arranged in a herringbone pattern, just like Virgin's. The seat includes an ottoman footrest, in-seat power and a 10.4 inch screen.

In the new Pacific Premium Economy class – the only premium economy service offered to New Zealand - there will be 23 seats, each 18.5 inches wide and with a pitch of 38 to 40 inches. "With Pacific Premium Economy fares available at just 25-30% more than economy fares we have seen strong bookings, particularly for San Francisco and London, with a total of more than 7,000 sectors booked across North America and London routes," said Air New Zealand chief executive Ralph Norris.

The new planes will come into service on the Auckland - Los Angeles - London route (flights NZ1 and NZ2) from 5 November.

As part of the revamp Air New Zealand has ordered some 14,000 new salt and pepper sets and almost 650,000 items of cutlery.

 

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This weeks' articles

Making the connection

Thousands of Bmi passengers transitting Heathrow next month face longer and more difficult journeys.

From August 1, the airline says that in order to save money it will withdraw through check facilities for passengers using separate tickets. Both business and leisure travellers carry separate tickets from time to time in a bid to travel more cheaply. In addition, certain corporate "route deals" prohibit the inclusion of Bmi connecting flights.

The new policy applies to passengers connecting at Heathrow from one Bmi flight to another as well as other carriers. It also includes code-share services. Through check facilities will only be offered to passengers holding a single ticket for their flights.

It means that a passenger flying say, from Edinburgh to Milan (Bmi throughout) or from Teeside to Chicago (Bmi to United) will have to claim his or her bags at Heathrow and check-in again for the onward flight. This process could add hours to the transfer time. It also means that passengers who miss connections will not be entitled to any compensation.

A Bmi spokesperson told Business Traveller, "It's part of our new business model at Heathrow [where Bmi is converting to a no-frills airline] and it's basically a cost issue. With the greater availability of lower fares, more passengers have been combining two cheap tickets to save money [rather than buy a through ticket]. In some cases, the cost of dealing with passengers [in terms of compensation and staff time] who miss connections is higher than what their ticket cost."

At Heathrow Star Alliance member Bmi feeds travellers to over 12 fellow carriers. Says a major Star carrier, "Everyone's affected by this move. It's a decision made by Bmi in the interests of cutting costs. But it's not for us to comment on the way Bmi runs its business."

One of the passenger benefits of Star Alliance was to offer simpler journeys with one-stop check-in. Doesn't Bmi's move go against the spirit of the alliance?

Says a Star spokesperson, "We fully understand the needs of our members, in this case, Bmi, to react to changing market conditions. Because the majority of passengers transferring from Bmi to a Star carrier will hold a single ticket, these customers will continue to enjoy through check-in. Star Alliance will monitor the situation and hold further consultations with Bmi should it become necessary."

But there is a glimmer of hope. Adds Bmi, "We will take an open mind on this decision. If the rules need changing, we'll adjust them."

Report by Alex McWhirter


London tube closures

London's transport network faced severe disruption again on Thursday afternoon following a series of blasts on the Underground. They were not as severe as the blasts that occurred on July 7, with no fatalities and few injuries reported, but in response a number of Underground lines were suspended.

These were the Bakerloo, Hammersmith and City, Northern and parts of the Victoria Line. The Piccadilly and Circle lines remain closed following the terrorist attacks on July 7.

The blasts occurred mid-afternoon on Thursday at Shepherds Bush, Warren Street and Oval stations and on a bus in Hackney, but were reported to have involved detonators only, rather than explosives. The incidents come just two weeks after four bomb explosions in London killed 56 people and resulted in the suspension of the entire London Underground.

Local news stations were reporting heavy congestion on roads around the affected areas and across central London on Thursday afternoon as commuters took taxis and buses to avoid the tube network.

The overland rail network in and around London was operating largely as normal, although Network Rail warned of occasional security alerts causing disruption to some stations. Airport Express trains operating to Stansted, Heathrow and Gatwick were unaffected.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Bliss opens fifth spa

The spa company famous for its oxygen-enhanced facials and brownie buffets has opened an outlet in San Francisco.

The Bliss San Francisco is the company's first spa on the west coast of the US. It opened this week at the W San Francisco, with eight treatment rooms, an outdoor heated terrace, and sophisticated manicure and pedicure stations, where clients are entertained by television screens, DVD players and ear phones while having their nails seen to.

Bliss San Francisco offers a range of facials, massages, wraps, waxing, and body treatments. It also has a boutique selling Bliss products, which are offered to guests at W hotels as complimentary toiletries.

The Bliss brand gained notoriety in the late 1990s as its spas became celebrity haunts and for its signature offerings, which include the Triple Oxygen Treatment facial (135 for 85 minutes), and brownie and wine buffet – both of which will be on offer at the San Francisco spa.

Bliss already operates four spas – one in London and three in New York, one in the W New York. More Bliss spas are in the pipeline, with openings planned for Chicago later this year and Dallas and Los Angeles next year. These spas will be located in W hotels, the fashionable boutique brand owned by Starwood Hotels and Resorts, which bought Bliss in 2004 from luxury retailers LVMH.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Marriott goes boutique in Paris

Marriott has strengthened its presence in Paris by taking over a luxury boutique hotel, which has an award-winning restaurant.

Now branded the Renaissance Paris Vendome, the 97-room property is located along rue du Mont Thabor, one block north from the Rue de Rivoli and a short walk from attractions like The Louvre, Place de la Concorde and Place Vendome.

Guests staying at the hotel will enjoy luxury, personalised service and various accommodation styles in a peaceful setting. There's also a small leisure centre including a swimming pool (a rarity for Paris).

But what guests won't find is a standardised Marriott with the sort of ubiqitious touches found in the US chain's other properties. This hotel is a world removed from the city's other Renaissance in Paris, a 327-room property located in La Defense business area.

All rooms are luxuriously furnished in different contemporary styles and have the usual business touches including plasma screen TVs. There are 12 junior suites. Le Pinxo restaurant, which has two Michelin stars, serves a meal for Euros 50. It features cuisine from southwest France.

Rates range between Euros 279 (weekends) and Euros 350 (midweek), with junior suites from Euros 350. Renaissance Paris Vendome, 4 rue du Mont Tabor, Paris 75001, tel: + 33 1 4020 2000, Marriott web site

Report by Alex McWhirter


More flights for Aberdeen

Bmi is boosting domestic flights between England and Scotland this autumn. The carrier is adding more flights between Aberdeen and Manchester on the back of increased demand, particularly from Scottish-based travellers connecting onto Bmi's long-haul services from Manchester.

From September 5 there will be four flights every weekday between Aberdeen and Manchester, with fares from £52 one-way including taxes and charges. In addition, Bmi is adding a third daily Aberdeen-Norwich flight to its weekday schedule from September 5. Fares start at £105 one-way including taxes and charges. Go to www.flybmi.com.

Further expansion at Aberdeen Airport has come from Monarch Scheduled, which will fly four times a week to Malaga from November. The carrier already operates to Malaga from London, Manchester and Birmingham, and Aberdeen is its first base in Scotland. Go to www.flymonarch.com.

Report by Ginny McGrath


24-hour hotel for InterConti

InterContinental has opened its first hotel in Beijing. The 332-room hotel is on Financial Street in the Xicheng District of West Beijing, a financial hub where over 300 financial institutions are located. The hotel is 40km from Beijing International Airport and a ten-minute drive from cultural sites such as Tiananmen Square and the Great Wall.

It's not just the location of the InterContinental Financial Street Beijing that will attract business travellers. The hotel is the first international premium hotel on the street and offers a range of services 24 hours a day including the business centre and gym. In addition the hotel has a spa, swimming pool, and conference facilities including a grand ballroom that has capacity for 380 people and five meeting rooms.

Guests have a range of dining options – a modern Chinese restaurant with a soup and dim sum kitchen, a New York-style coffee shop and deli and a café-style restaurant offering Asian and Western dishes. There is also a contemporary bar/lounge called XChange, which serves coughtails and new world wines and offers live entertainment.

The rooms have high-speed internet access, safe, in-room television check-out, phone with voicemail and minibar. There are also executive rooms on the hotel's Club InterContinental floors, which have butler service and separate business centre, complimentary use of meeting rooms, complimentary breakfast and evening drinks, and separate check-in. Rates start at CNY814, which is about £57. Go to Intercontinental web site.

Report by Ginny McGrath

 

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SAS to launch from London City

London City Airport will get a connection with Copenhagen this winter on the back of strong demand from frequent users of the airport. The route is being launched by Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) on October 30, and will be the carrier's first service from the east London airport.

There will be two flights per day between London City and Copenhagen (one daily flight on Saturdays and Sundays), with the first flight departing London at 9.40am and arriving at 12.55pm, and the second taking off at 6pm and arriving at 9.15pm. The return flight leaves Copenhagen at 8am, and arrives in London at 9.15am, and the second flight leaves at 4.20pm and arrives at 5.35pm.

The SAS flight will compete directly with a Copenhagen flight being launched from London City by BA franchise-partner, Sun Air of Denmark, which starts on October 31 with two flights per weekday.

Copenhagen was among a list of destinations mooted by London City managing director, Richard Gooding, as potential new routes for this year in an interview in the Business Traveller May edition. Other destinations that are expected to launch in coming months from London City are Glasgow, Madrid, Milan, Newcastle, Stockholm and Vienna.

SAS will operate the Copenhagen service with a 72-seater turbo-prop Q-400 aircraft in a three-class configuration. The middle class is Economy Flex, which offers passengers a fully-flexible ticket, dedicated seating area on the aircraft, complimentary meal and drink and increased frequent flyer points.

Return fares start at £501 in Economy Flex, £606 in Business and £106 in Economy. Business class passengers enjoy more space on-board, lounge access and improved catering.

SAS operates a ten-minute check-in policy at London City. The airline also supports the airport's claim that passengers travelling with hand luggage only can get from the plane to their taxi in five minutes on arrival.

Report by Ginny McGrath


AA looks north

Transatlantic flights from Britain's regional airports are on the up, with the latest announcement coming from Newcastle International Airport.
The airport, in north-east England, will get its first non-stop scheduled link with New York next year. The American Airlines service will start in May 2006 with a daily flight over the summer and five flights per week in winter.

AA plans to operate the all-economy class service using a Boeing 757 with 188 seats. Fares have not yet been announced but tickets are expected to go on sale next week.

The flight departs Newcastle at 11am and arrives in New York JFK at 1.35pm. The return flight leaves New York at 7.45pm and arrives at 7.40am the following day.

The service marks AA's debut at Newcastle but the airline is no stranger to regional airports. It also operates out of Glasgow with flights to Chicago over the summer and from Manchester with flights to Chicago year-round, Boston in the summer and Miami in the winter only. For more information go to www.americanairlines.co.uk.

So much for the good news. UK airline Bmi has found less success with one of its regional UK transatlantic services. The carrier is scrapping its Manchester-Washington flight from October 30. Passengers with bookings are being offered a refund or tickets to an alternative destination. For more information go to www.flybmi.com.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Refunds in doubt for EUJet

Some 50,000 passengers holding tickets with the now-defunct airline EUJet, are still unsure if they will receive a refund.

EUJet was declared bankrupt this week after a main investor pulled out, resulting in the immediate suspension of flights from its base at Manston airport in Kent. The airline claims that passengers with bookings will receive refunds resulting from a policy by the carrier to place revenue from tickets sales in an escrow account and not draw on it until the customer has taken a flight. However, as the airline has now been declared bankrupt, passengers holding a ticket become a creditor of the company and join the list of other creditors hoping to minimise their losses.

A loophole in consumer protection laws means that people who buy tickets direct from an airline and pay in cash are not protected in the event of failure of the carrier. And according to the government regulator, CAA, recent research found only 12% of travel insurance policies include scheduled airline failure insurance in the cover.

The only other chance of receiving a refund is for customers who paid on a credit card to claim to the credit card provider, but this route also has its caveats. Firstly, each credit card purchase must be over £100 to receive a refund, and the average fare sold by EUJet in June was Euros70, and secondly, the company is based outside the UK - in Ireland - which may exempt some credit card companies from providing a refund to customers.

The CAA is appealing to people who bought tickets with EUJet to contact them and to any passengers who were left stranded across Europe when the carrier went bust. All correspondence should go to [email protected].

Report by Ginny McGrath


New corporate card for BA

Free business travel for SMEs is on the cards after British Airways and American Express announced the introduction of a new corporate credit card. The card, available later this year, will reward SMEs who are members of British Airways Onbusiness programme, with free business travel and BA miles on card expenditure.

Tiffany Hall, head of global sales and distribution for BA said: "The SME market is extremely important to British Airways and we have worked closely with our 13,000 OnBusiness customers over a number of years to deliver tailored products to help maximise their travel budgets where possible."

Exact details of earning potential and redemtopion possibilities will be released later this year. At present, British Airways American Express credit cards have three other cards available to Executive Club members: the BA American Express Credit Card, Premium card and Premium Plus card. Card members can earn up to 1.5 BA Miles for every £1 spent on the Card.


British Airways give travel tips for China

Travellers to China are being made aware of Chinese customs and etiquette in a new leaflet from British Airways.

The aim of the leaflet is to ensure that visits to the country run smoothly with business travellers understanding the different cultural sensibilities.

The pamphlets advise on how to dress, how to behave when meeting clients, food etiquette and Chinese customs. Prohibitions include boasting about success in front of others as well as publicly criticising someone, as is leaving food on a plate. Belching and smoking during meals is, however, acceptable. The positioning of chopsticks after a meal and how to accept a business card are just some of the tips BA are giving. Pick up the free advice in Business Class lounges at London, Heathrow.

 

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This weeks' articles - 5 August

Runway remains closed at Toronto Airport

Passengers due to fly to and from Toronto Pearson International Airport, where an Air France flight overran the runway and burst into flames on Tuesday, are being advised to contact their airline before their journey in case of any disruption.

One of the airport's five runways remains closed after Air France Flight 358 skidded off the runway into a wooded ravine, split in two and caught fire.

All 309 passengers and crew on board made a miraculous escape.
A statement by the Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA), issued on August 3, said the airport was now operational, but runway 24L remains closed and will be until a thorough investigation has been completed and the runway has been cleared for use by authorities.

"Travellers are urged to contact their airline prior to coming to the airport and to check the GTAA web site for updated information as it becomes available," the statement said.

Investigators have now begun checking the flight data and voice recorders. Severe weather and runway conditions are believed to have been responsible for the crash, but it could take months or even years to determine the exact cause.


Rooms from £20, but can you swing a cat?

Easyjet has opened its first no-frills budget hotel in west London and it's just what you'd expect – cheap, orange and compact. The 34 rooms, crammed into what was formerly a run-down 20-bed B&B in Earls Court, are the smallest in Europe (and that's according to the company's founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou, who announced the fact proudly at the opening).
But even the smallest rooms come with a 14 sq ft ensuite pod with shower, sink and toilet.

All are splashed with the distinctive Easyjet logo, but unlike the company's aircraft, there are no windows. Guests must get their own breakfast, pay £5 to use the TV in their room, and £10 to have their towels and bed linen changed.

Rooms start from £20 a night and can be booked on the easyHotel website. As with Easyjet flights, rates vary according to demand. A Business Traveller test the day before the hotel opened found the cheapest midweek room for the same week was £35.

The hotel is set to be one of a number of franchise operations across Europe, the first due to open in Basle, Switzerland.


Emirates to open dedicated Gatwick lounge

First and business class passengers flying out of London Gatwick North Terminal with Emirates will be able to use a dedicated lounge from early autumn. The lounge will also be open to Gold and Silver members of the airline's Skywards frequent flyer programme.

Designed along the same lines as the Emirates lounge at Dubai International Airport, it will have seating for 255 travellers, comfortable leather armchairs, flat-screen TVs, and full shower facilities. Emirates has taken over one floor of the British Airways Terraces for the new lounge, which at 1,590 square metres will be its largest lounge outside of Dubai.
Complimentary hot and cold gourmet dishes and a full bar, including champagne, will be served by Emirates staff and a business centre will have 14 computers and six laptop workstations, all with free broadband and wireless LAN access.

The opening is part of a $13million investment to install lounges at key airports across the airline's network. Emirates operates three non-stop flights a day from London Gatwick to Dubai, connecting to onward destinations including Sydney, Melbourne, Bangkok, Hong Kong and Singapore.


New Luton to Zurich service is good for business

Helvetic Airways will add a second daily flight from London Luton to Zurich on September 20.

Until now the airline has only operated an evening flight to the Swiss city, which has not been convenient for most business travellers. The new morning service leaves London at 09.10 and arrives in Zurich at 11.55. Combined with the later flight that leaves Zurich at 17.35, arriving back in London at 18.20, it allows executives to fly to the city and back in one day.
Those who book early get the best deals as the first 10 seats on every flight start at €19 (around £12.50) excluding taxes.


Fight the fear

Executives who are nervous about flying are being invited to enrol for a Virgin Atlantic 'Flying Without Fear' course at London Heathrow on August 28.

The one-day course includes a 45-minute flight at the end of the session for passengers to put their new-found confidence to the test. The courses have been running for eight years at London Gatwick, Manchester and Birmingham Airport. This will be the first at Heathrow. The day starts with a brief introduction, after which two Virgin Atlantic Captains run through aircraft functions, noises and safety.

After a hot lunch, participants can ask question on a one-to-one basis and psychotherapist David Landau teaches skills to help people learn to control their fears. During the 'test' flight, pilots give a running commentary re-enforcing all that has been learnt throughout the day.
This year Virgin Atlantic is offering all course participants membership of its 'Flying Club' frequent flyer programme, plus 2,000 bonus flying club miles.

The inclusive day course costs £199 plus VAT. For bookings and enquiries please contact 01423 714900 or log on to the web site.

 

[QF WP]

This weeks' articles - 12 August

BA suspends Heathrow check-in

British Airways suspended check-in of all flights from Heathrow terminals 1 and 2 and cancelled a number of flights on Thursday.

The airline was forced to close the check-in desks and cancel flights when around 1,000 of its staff walked out at 3pm on Thursday. The staff are mostly baggage handlers and loaders and are members of the T&G union, who were demonstrating support for their colleagues at Gate Gourmet after the company sacked 800 staff members this week.

Around 30 shorthaul flights had been cancelled by 5.30pm on Thursday and 15 inbound flights were diverted.

Gate Gourmet, which supplies a number of airlines with in-flight catering has been the subject of unofficial strike action since Wednedsay August 10. As a consequence all BA flights have been taking off from Heathrow without food onboard. The airline has been providing passengers with food bags and compensation where possible, but has been advising passengers to eat before boarding.

Airport operator, BAA is warning of "considerable disruption to BA services for the rest of today and potentially tomorrow". Passengers wishing to contact BA can call the disruption line on 0870 850 9850

This story will be updated over the course of Friday

Report by Ginny McGrath


Compensation laws flawed

New laws introduced to bring European air passengers improved compensation in the event of cancellations are proving ineffective.

The legislation, introduced in February, imposed mandatory levels of compensation and a refund in some cases, plus care such as refreshments and overnight accommodation for passengers affected by denied boarding, delays of more than two hours, and cancellations.

The regulations over cancelled flights concern passengers whose flight is cancelled less than seven days before departure and whose replacement flight is scheduled flight to leave either one hour before their original departure date or arrive more than two hours after the original flight These passengers are entitled to a refund if they choose not to travel. They can also get compensation of between 200 Euros and 600 Euros depending on the length of the flight. Extra expenses such as foregone hotel and car rental bookings are not refunded.

But the devil is in the detail – the wording of the legislation allows airlines a get-out clause if the cause of the cancellation was deemed to be beyond control of the airline, i.e. due to adverse weather conditions, strike action or air traffic control delays.

Consumer watchdog, Air Transport Users Council has received record levels of complaints in recent months concerning the legislation. The organisation has received 2,000 written complaints and a host of telephone enquiries – which is the number it usually receives in a year. Business Traveller has also received a number of complaints from readers concerning flight cancellations, whereby requests for cash compensation have not been met.

Another area of the regulations, concerning delayed flights, continues to cause confusion for passengers, who believe they are entitled to cash compensation in addition to a refund if they choose not to travel when their flight has been delayed for over five hours. In fact, they receive a refund only if they choose not to travel, in addition to refreshments, two free telephone calls and overnight accommodation if necessary. Cash compensation only applies to incidents of denied boarding in the event of an overbooked flight, and in some cases when flights are cancelled (see above).

For further details on the regulations refer to the AUC website and click on delays, cancellations or overbooking.

Report by Ginny McGrath and Alex McWhirter


Hamburg hots up

The announcement of the debut of a low cost airline on the London-Hamburg route is expected to spark a fares war from existing carriers. Germanwings will launch twice-daily flights between London Gatwick and Hamburg on October 31, and is offering return fares from £68 including taxes and charges.

British Airways and Lufthansa also operate flights to Hamburg from Heathrow but until the announcement from Germanwings, the two full service airlines had been unchallenged by other carriers. Hamburg is one of Europe's busiest ports and is less than two hours by train from Berlin and an hour from Hanover, making it a good starting point for a trip in Germany.

In addition to London flights and an existing Stuttgart flight, Germanwings will operate services to Istanbul, Krakow, Toulouse, Warsaw, Zagreb, Munich, Oslo, and Stockholm from October 31, going head-to-head with Lufthansa to the latter three destinations and to Stuttgart.

Other airlines operating out of Hamburg include Air Berlin, which flies to Manchester five times a week among other European destinations, in addition to Deutsche BA and Hapag Lloyd Express. Ryanair flies from Stansted and Glasgow Prestwick to Hamburg Luebeck, which is 30 miles from the city. The other airlines operate out of Hamburg's main airport, Fuhlsbuettel, which is eight miles from the city centre.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Manchester to lose six routes

British Airways-owned carrier, British Airways Citiexpress is scrapping a raft of flights from Manchester and Birmingham this winter.

The routes being scrapped from Manchester after September 11 2005 are Venice, Stuttgart, Cork, Rome, Nice and Pisa, while Zurich and Shannon are being suspended between October 30 and March 26 2006, and the future of these routes remains under review.

A spokesman for BA Citiexpress told Businesstraveller.com that the carrier was reducing its fleet of aircraft by three and was concentrating on business routes, while BA franchise GB Airways, which also operates flights out of Manchester, concentrates predominantly on leisure destinations. He said business demand for the above Citiexpress routes was not sufficient.

Although BA Citiexpress does not cite low cost airlines for its decision to scrap the destinations, the launch of Jet2 from Manchester to Nice, Pisa and Venice, has put pressure on fares.

Customers with bookings for Manchester-Venice will be rebooked on Venice flights from Manchester via Gatwick and Pisa-bound customers will also re-route via Gatwick. Nice, Rome and Stuttgart-bound customers can travel via Heathrow.

Passengers booked on flights to Cork can rebook with Aer Lingus via London, or rebook to an alternative BA or BA franchise carrier destination, with any additional fare costs met by the passenger, and if the fare is lower, the difference is refunded. The change in booking must be done no later than two weeks after the original flight.

At Birmingham, BA Citiexpress flights to Vienna and Rome are being withdrawn for the winter, and a return to service next March is also under review. For Rome, passengers can rebook with SN Brussels via Brussels or choose an alternative destination. For Vienna the option is to fly via Manchester or Heathrow with BA or with SN Brussels via Brussels.

Passengers can also apply for a refund if they are unhappy with the alternative arrangements. For more details of terms and conditions following flight disruption, go to BA website .

Report by Ginny McGrath


Near-misses less common

Frequent air travellers can take comfort from the latest report concerning the number of near-miss incidents in UK airspace.

The latest statistics reveal there were eight incidents during 2004 in UK airspace involving at least one commercial aircraft. However, only one incident was considered Category A, which means that an actual risk of collision existed.

The government regulator of the aviation industry, CAA, told Businesstraveller.com that these eight incidents occurred against a background figure of over two million flights in UK airspace each year. This means less than one in every 250,000 flights in UK airspace are involved in "airprox" incidents, defined as a situation when an airline pilot or controller believes that the safety of an aircraft has been compromised by the proximity of another aircraft.

The report is produced by the UK Airprox Board, an organisation made up of pilots and controllers, and whose role in to enhance air safety. According to the Airprox Board there is a down trend in the number of risk-bearing incidents involving commercial aircraft in the UK.

Report by Ginny McGrath


New Gatwick routes for 2006

British Airways is launching flights to Iceland and Albania for the first time next year.

The services are two of four new routes being launched from Gatwick at the end of March. Albania's capital, Tirana will be served three times a week from March 27 2006, with fares from £205 return. BA will be the only airline operating direct flights between Tirana and the UK.

The service to Reykjavik in Iceland will operate five times a week from March 26 with fares from £149 return. BA will compete with Icelandair from Heathrow and Iceland Express from Stansted.

In addition to these services, flights to Varna on Bulgaria's Black Sea coast will operate from March 29 with return fares from £149. BA goes head-to-head with local airline, Bulgaria Air, which also operates from Gatwick three times a week.

The fourth service, launching on March 26 is to Izmir in Turkey. Fares start at £149 return and the service will operate three times a week with competition from Kubris Turkish Airlines, which flies to Izmir out of Stansted and Heathrow. All fares include taxes and charges. Go to www.ba.com.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Little black dress to the rescue

One for female business travellers: taking the mini-bar to a whole new level, W Hotels Worldwide is to provide 'emergency' fashion and beauty kits for guests who, for whatever reason, find themselves without the appropriate attire.

The trendy chain is teaming up with style icon Diane von Furstenberg to introduce to its 'Munchie Boxes' (aka mini-bars) an 'Emergency Survival Kit' containing a boxed set of mini lip glosses, mascara and perfume, all from Diane von Furstenberg's signature cosmetics line. The beauty box costs $24. For even greater emergencies, guests can rely on a fashion kit featuring Diane's classic black wrap dress with matching thong, at a cost of $320. The kits will be available in most W hotels from September, and can also be purchased in W's retail boutiques.

So, in the case of an emergency the girls are OK, but what about the boys?

 

[QF WP]

Troubles continue for BA

The British Airways flight schedule out of Heathrow has been reinstated after last week's chaos, but in-flight catering is still not back to normal.

The carrier is warning passengers to eat before they arrive at Heathrow Airport because ongoing strike action taken by staff of in-flight caterers, Gate Gourmet, means many flights leaving and arriving at the airport carry little or no refreshments.

Business Traveller has been inundated with reports from readers who have been affected. Tony Mather, an executive from BOC, flew to Hong Kong in business class this week. He was given a £40 voucher to spend on food at Heathrow. Once onboard he was upgraded to First Class, but offered only water, tea and coffee for the 13-hour flight. He told businesstraveller.com: "The cabin crew were just at a loss as to what to do. They were helpful and charming but had no trolleys to push and meals or drinks to distribute."

James Pearce, managing director of Gold Key Media Limited was also caught up in the chaos. He was lucky enough to be booked on one of the first BA flights that left Heathrow on Friday evening after the strikes and got a snack pack and water to take on-board in the absence of in-flight catering. However, his family returning on Monday from Nice were given 10 Euro vouchers to buy food at Nice airport. All savoury food had run out due to high demand, so they spent their vouchers on sweets. Business Traveller's own reporter Felicity Cousins, flew from Berlin to Heathrow with BA on Sunday received a bag containing an apple, chocolate bar, pretzels, juice carton and bottle of water, but there were no further refreshments on board – and no tea or coffee.

A further problem was encountered by BA business class passengers this week, who were given food vouchers of up to £35 to spend at the airport before boarding the flight, but when they went to Pret A Manger to spend the vouchers, the food outlet had closed for 45 minutes because it was restocking following high demand from passengers.

Other airlines affected by last week's strike action included Qantas and Finnair, but both have confirmed that they are unaffected by the Gate Gourmet strikes and are currently offering full in-flight catering on flights in and out of Heathrow.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Trains adopt low cost airline pricing

Two of Britain's leading train companies, Virgin Trains and GNER, are poised to make the biggest changes to their excursion rail fares seen in years. Both are adopting budget airline style pricing which will see the present range of complex and restrictive tariffs simplified with tickets bookable much closer to departure. Out go those irksome restrictions such as compulsory advance booking and Saturday night stays to be replaced by simple one-way fares with the price you pay depending on when you travel and how far ahead you book.

Says a Virgin Trains spokesman: "It's correct. We are falling in line with airline practice. So rather than passengers having to book 14, seven or three days ahead it will now be possible to book up until 6pm on the day before travel. The idea is to offer passengers more flexibility and to fill seats which would otherwise be empty." Tickets, both for first and standard class, are bookable on a one-way basis. Passengers will be able to combine class and fare types.

Adds GNER: "If a passenger travelling from Leeds to London has to travel south at a busy time but return off-peak, he or she can travel for less by opting for a quieter train for the return."

Existing "walk-up" fares will continue but, as at present, these will be several times more expensive. The train firms say that passengers will still have to book well ahead to get the cheaper prices. But it now means that impulse travellers and those passengers travelling on business will find it much easier to get a good deal.

Prices are not yet available. GNER's new fares take effect from September 26. Virgin plans to follow soon after. For more information go to GNER and Virgintrains.

Report by Alex McWhirter


Improved sites for Easyjet and SIA

Easyjet has today launched a revamped version of its website that is clearer and easier to use, and a bit less orange.

The website is sales-orientated with clearly labelled large tabs along the top that encourage customers to book extras such as hotels, car hire, airport transfers and airport car parking, when they book an Easyjet flight. In addition, the website is easier to use, with a cleaner homepage with links to functions that allow users to change existing bookings, make group bookings, check timetables and pick up destination information.

The homepage is also used to highlight new and existing routes, showing daily frequencies and starting fares. The website also continues to show the full range of fares available on various services offered on the requested day or travel and a day either side, so customers can save money if their departure times are flexible.

Singapore Airlines (SIA) has also unveiled a revamped website, which is one of the best offered by any Asian carrier. Out go the complex graphics and slow-functioning pages in favour of a cleaner, minimalist look with speedier responses.

One of the most important features is where SIA's flights (both point-to-point and connecting services) are simply priced and displayed for five days either side of your requested date. In this respect, SIA has fallen in line with the user-friendly displays offered by Europe's KLM[/b], Air France[/b]) and the afore-mentioned Easyjet website. It enables passengers to choose the best date and price combination for their needs. Also, one useful function (where you can return to the home page by clicking on the SIA logo) isn't highlighted.

Minus points? You can't discover the total price unless you continue to "Passenger Details." Go to SIA UK site.

Report by Ginny McGrath and Alex McWhirter


Free internet next battleground for hotels

Free broadband internet access is being offered by an increasing number of hotel chains in a bid to woo business travellers. The latest hotel group to offer free broadband is Radisson SAS, which is rolling out the initiative as part of its E@syConnect service across hotels in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. It will be available in most hotels by September 1.

Guests can use wired or wireless internet access free-of-charge in bedrooms, public area and meeting rooms. The group completed installation of wireless hotspots in most of its hotels at the start of 2005. Kurt Ritter, president and chief executive of Radisson SAS parent company, Rezidor SAS Hospitality, said: "Free broadband as a service is what guests want from hotels today."

The brand's nine UK properties in Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Stansted, Limavady, Belfast, Edinburgh and Glasgow. For more information go to Free Broadband @ Radisson SAS.

Other hotel groups that offer free internet include Malmaison, which has wireless internet in the lobby and bar areas of its UK hotels and a broadband dataport connection in the rooms.

W hotels, the trendy boutique brand from Starwood also offers free wireless internet access in its public areas, and Staybridge Suites, the new long-stay hotel offering being launched by InterContinental Hotels in 2006, also plans to offer free broadband internet in its rooms.

Report by Ginny McGrath


AA to boost business class (WOO HOO )

American Airlines is making its business class seats more comfortable for passengers wanting to catch up on sleep.

The carrier is introducing lie-flat style seats to business class from next year. The seats will debut on AA's Boeing 767-300 aircraft, which operate on transatlantic flights from Dublin, Manchester and Glasgow and some flights from London Gatwick. Passengers flying in business with AA from London Heathrow and most Gatwick services will have to wait until 2007 to try the seats on the carrier's Boeing 777 fleet.

The lie-flat style seats are described as such because the seat does not recline to a completely flat bed, instead the head and torso of the passenger remains slightly raised. The seats are more comfortable and adjustable with more space for working, plus they are accompanied by improved in-flight entertainment.

Currently the only airlines operating truly lie flat seats in business class are British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, South African Airways, Jet Airways, and from November, Air New Zealand.

In First Class cabins, AA is extending the availability of its Flagship Suites to 20 more aircraft in its Boeing 777 fleet. This will take place over the next two. The seats can be swivelled into different positions and convert to a fully-flat bed. The intention is for passengers to experience the same product every time they fly on the 777 aircraft.

Report by Ginny McGrath and Alex McWhirter


Easyjet eyes Geneva

Easyjet is boosting flights from UK regional airports to Geneva. The low cost carrier is launching flights from Robin Hood Doncaster Sheffield, Edinburgh and Glasgow from December. The services are being billed as "ski routes" but are likely to be popular with business travellers as well as leisure travellers headed for the slopes.

The Geneva flight from Doncaster Sheffield is Easyjet's debut at the airport. It will operate daily from December 15, with an evening departure at 7.40pm every day except Sunday when the flight leaves at 9.35am. The return flight will leave Geneva at 6.20pm (except Sunday, which leaves at 8.15am). The operators of Doncaster Sheffield airport hope the Geneva flight will be the first of a raft of Easyjet flights launching from the airport.

The Geneva flight from Edinburgh will also be offered daily from December 15, with flights leaving Scotland at 14.40pm daily and return flights from Geneva leaving at 12.55pm (add ten minutes to both times for Sunday departures). The Glasgow flight will be less useful for business travellers as it will operate only on a Saturday, from December 17.

Fares start at £55 return including taxes on all three routes. For more information go to Easyjet website.

Report by Ginny McGrath

 

[Kiwi Flyer]

The new look SQ website was released last weekend but they are still de-bugging

Whatever happened to testing websites before they go live?

 

[QF WP]

This weeks' articles - 26 August

Class divide

SAS will offer one-way fares in all three classes from September 1, giving business travellers the chance to travel in one class and back in another. Passengers can choose between three classes – Economy for the lowest fares, Economy Flex for those who need more flexibility, and Business Class for passengers who want extra in-flight comfort.

"Anyone who travels on business knows when a meeting is due to start, but often does not know when a meeting will end and needs the flexibility to be able to change travel arrangements," said Lars-Ove Filipson, general manager for SAS UK and Ireland.

"Our new pricing structure gives travellers the opportunity to combine low Economy fares one way with the flexibility of Economy Flex or Business Class, therefore giving choice and flexibility to the business traveller," he said. The new fare structure is available on all routes except for intercontinental services.

In addition, the airline has lifted restrictions on tickets such as minimum or maximum stay requirements and advance purchase conditions. Specifically targeting the UK traveller, it has also lowered fares so that adult one-way fares start from just £45, including taxes, from UK to Scandinavia destinations.

The airline flies from 10 UK airports to the Nordic countries, with connections to the Baltics, rest of Europe, US. and the Far East.


New business airline confident of September launch

All-premium class airline, Eos, is insisting it is still on schedule to launch flights at the end of September between London Stansted and New York JFK.

Eos has recently received its 'show cause order' from the US Transportation Department, tentatively approving the airline's certification, and is currently waiting for the FAA approval that will allow it to start flying.

A spokeswoman said this would be achieved in the next week or so and flights will launch at the end of September as planned. The privately-owned airline is promising each passenger 21 square feet in space by offering only 48 seats in a Boeing 757 aircraft which can seat up to 200.

David Spurlock, founder and CEO of Eos and former director of strategic development for British Airways, said: "We've designed every aspect of the Eos experience specifically with the business traveller in mind. We recognise that time in the air could be better spent relaxing and reviving for an upcoming business trip or to accomplish work along the way in privacy." Each ergonomically designed seat, with a privacy shell, is over 21 inches wide when upright and 24 inches wide when fully reclined to a six foot five-inch bed. All 24 window seats have a direct path to the aisle.

Founded in March 2003, Eos is named after the Greek goddess of the Dawn. The company has raised $87 million in equity and approximately $100 million in lease financing.


Hyatt unveils a fourth brand

Hyatt Place has been revealed as the name for Global Hyatt Corp's new limited service brand being rolled out after the group's purchase of the AmeriSuites hotel chain in January. The group is investing more than $150 million on renovation and a marketing campaign for the brand, which will sit alongside its existing three brands – Park, Grand and Regency.

Hyatt is currently building a prototype Hyatt Place which will form the basis of the retrofit of the existing AmeriSuites hotels. Renovation and repositioning of AmeriSuites hotels is due to start at the end of 2005 and be completed in late 2006. No specific details have been revealed at this stage, but a spokeswoman said the Hyatt Place hotels would offer luxury limited service suites with kitchens. "Each one will have a restaurant, but there will not be room service," she said.

The 143 AmeriSuites, all in the US, currently have in-room microwaves and refrigerators, high-speed internet access, complimentary hot breakfast daily, fitness centres and pools, business centres and meeting rooms. Hyatt intends to expand the brand inside and outside of the US.


American menus get the Texan touch

American Airlines has enlisted the help of award-winning chefs to devise new menus for business and first class passengers on transatlantic flights.

From September 1, flights from the US to Europe will feature typical American cuisine inspired by Dallas-based chef Stephan Pyles. Pyles is known as the founding father of 'Southwestern' and 'New Texas' cuisine and is the only chef from Dallas to be inducted into The James Beard Foundation's Who's Who of Food and Beverage in America.

New business class main courses include cowboy steak with red chili onions and corn-bean ragout, lamb shank with an ale tomato sauce, chicken Madeira, or pumpkin ravioli with sage cream sauce. In developing the menu, the airline also took advice from its flight attendants who gave first-hand experience of international passengers' likes and dislikes.

Menus on flights from Europe to the US were updated earlier this summer and now feature dishes created from European ingredients and recipes put together by top European chefs.

Earlier this month, American announced that new business class seats, in-flight entertainment and larger overhead bins will be installed on its Boeing 767-300s aircraft from 2006, and on its Boeing 777s the following year.


New routes for British Airways

British Airways will start flying from London Gatwick to Reykjavik, Iceland, and to Tirana, Albania, from March 2006.

It will be the first time BA has served either city. Tirana flights will leave London three times a week on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays, with fares starting at £205 return.

Reykjavik flights go every Monday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday with fares from £149.

In the same month, the airline is launching twice-weekly flights from Gatwick to Varna on Bulgaria's Black Sea coast from £149, and to Izmir, Turkey's third largest city, three times a week, for the same price.

Alan Burnett, BA head of UK and Ireland sales and marketing, said: "We believe these new routes will attract holiday-makers who are looking for new, exciting destinations to visit, as well as business customers, friends and relatives travelling to and from the UK."

 

[QF WP]

This weeks' articles - 2 September

Business jets for KLM

KLM is following in the footsteps of Lufthansa and Swiss with a transatlantic business class-only service.

The Dutch carrier is launching six flights a week between Amsterdam and Houston from October 30. The flights will be operated by a Boeing 737-700 aircraft with 44 lie-flat seats in a 2-2 configuration with plug-in points for laptop computers, and like Lufthansa and Swiss the flights are being operated by Geneva-based company PrivatAir.

The flights will replace the current three times weekly Boeing 767 flights operated by KLM between the two cities, but will supplement the daily Boeing 747-400 flights. The net effect is an overall reduction in general capacity but a 45% increase in business class capacity on the route. Passengers will travel in a PrivatAir liveried jet but can expect the same in-flight service offered in KLM's World Business Class cabins. The flight is being operated as a codeshare with Northwest.

KLM is targeting the service at large corporations, and hopes to appeal in particular to executives from the oil sector. Oil giant Shell recently moved its headquarters from London to Holland, thereby increasing business traffic out of Amsterdam. The new service will also appeal to passengers in transit from Europe, Middle East and North America.

It follows the launch of the Dedicate service by KLM's partner Air France, which ferries oil-related business traffic from Paris to less conventional business destinations such as Equatorial Guinea and Congo-Brazzaville (although Air France offers two classes and uses smaller planes). Flights will leave Amsterdam at 2.25pm and arrive at Houston at 6.45pm, and will return from Houston at 8.15pm, arriving in Amsterdam at 12.35pm the following day. The service will operate every day except Wednesday.

Report by Alex McWhirter and Ginny McGrath


New loyalty scheme for Eurostar

Eurostar claims its relaunched Frequent Traveller scheme is simpler than those of its airline rivals. The new scheme, launched this week, means passengers earn points according to how much they pay for their ticket, rather than the type of ticket they buy. For example, three tickets purchased for between £300 and £499 (equivalent of three return tickets in Business Premier class), would earn 900 points - enough for a return ticket in Standard class.

Eurostar loyalty scheme manager Joanna Ball said: "Our scheme is now far more flexible than before and, with points earned for every ticket purchased, also much simpler than those of competitor airlines." Points can now be earned on promotional fares and on indirect journeys to Eurostar Connections destinations such as Lyon and Amsterdam.
There are two levels to the Frequent Traveller scheme. The higher level, Carte Blanche, applies to customers who earn 1,500 points per year, the equivalent of five return Business Premier tickets. This level of points must be earned each year to retain Carte Blanche status.

Points can be redeemed for tickets booked up to four hours before departure for Carte Blanche members and up to seven days before departure for all other members. Members cannot redeem points for travel on Eurostar's ski service to Bourg St Maurice, Moutiers and Aime-la-Plagne.

To join the scheme customers need to register online and provide proof of purchase of a Eurostar return ticket worth £185 or two singles worth £92.50. To retain membership at least one trip must be made with Eurostar every year.

In addition to its new frequent traveller scheme, Eurostar has introduced a new three-class service. The first class carriages on each train are now divided into Business Premier and Leisure Select, with the number of carriages devoted to each class changing throughout the day according to demand. The remaining carriages are Standard class. For more information go to Eurostar web site.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Radisson goes for wow factor

Frankfurt's hotel offering is being shaken up by the arrival of a striking Radisson SAS property. The 428-room hotel, which opens in November, is located near the Frankfurt Messe exhibition centre and about 15 minutes from Frankfurt International Airport.

The jaw-dropping exterior has a shimmering glass block as the main body of the hotel, framed by a circular disc of blue-tinted glass. All rooms have high-speed plug-in and wireless internet access plus flat-screen televisions, laptop-sized safe and cable and pay movies. The rooms, styled by Italian designer Metteo Thun, come in four different themes: chic, fashion, fresh and at home, to suit the mood of the guest.

The hotel has a choice of two restaurants – Coast Brasserie and Oyster Bar for Pacific Coast cuisine and Gaia Restaurant serving Mediterranean dishes. There are also the Wunder Bar and Cigar Lounge and Jam coffee shop. In addition there's a fitness centre on the top floor with panoramic views over Frankfurt and an eight-metre swimming pool with counter-current unit to save guests the boredom of doing laps. The centre is equipped with steam room, solarium and sauna.

The meeting facilities can cater for 1,000 delegates and all rooms have natural daylight with floor-to-ceiling windows. A ballroom with terrace is available for large events.

The hotel is taking bookings from November 1 with rates from 185 Euros including VAT per night. For more information go to Radisson SAS Web site.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Virgin unveils new lounge

Already famous for its in-flight massages and pre-flight hair cuts, Virgin is going one step further for its premium passengers with a new luxurious lounge at Heathrow.

Upper Class passengers will be able to enjoy the new Clubhouse lounge from this month, when the first phase opens. When the second phase opens at the end of December, the lounge will be twice the size of the original Clubhouse.

Entered via an elaborate staircase, the lounge has been decorated to look like a private members' club with features such as a Swarovski crystal chandelier and solid walnut and leather seating. It features a spa with a steam room, sauna and spa pool, as well as a tanning booth and therapists offering manicures, pedicures, facials, massages and a wet shave for men. The spa is being operated by the Soho House spa brand Cowshed, and the hair salon by fashionable hairdressers, Bumble and Bumble.

There will be a 14-metre coughtail bar and restaurant serving full meals and light snacks in addition to buffet stations and bars. If there's still time to get on with work, passengers can access wireless internet access or get online through computer terminals provided in the work area. Alternatively PlayStation portable units are available to play games, download music and watch movies.

Report by Ginny McGrath


No-frills expansion for Newcastle (UK)

Jet2.com has announced its second destination from Newcastle International Airport.

From October 20 the carrier will fly to Cork, with three or four flights a week (schedule varies – see Jet2.com web site). The carrier's other service out of Newcastle commences next week to Murcia. Jet2 faces no competition on the Newcastle-Cork route but fares are competitive, with prices starting at £9 each way including taxes. Jet2 also offers flights out of Leeds Bradford to 16 destinations, from Manchester to 16 destinations and from Belfast to five destinations.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Dusseldorf gets new hotel

The InterContinental Dusseldorf will open on September 1 on the Koenigsallee, the city's main shopping and business street. The hotel is three miles from the airport and close to Dusseldorf's main train station, so it can be easily accessed by international travellers.

It has 254 guest rooms and 32 suites, an all-day dining restaurant, wine room, bar, and a Holmes Place Health and Fitness Club with an indoor pool, sauna and whirlpool. It also has extensive meetings and conference facilities, including the largest ballroom in Dusseldorf.

 

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UK in line for BA.com booking fee

BA has quietly brought in a booking fee for passengers booking online using ba.com from certain European countries. Unlike other carriers, who highlight their online fees, the BA charge is only apparent once the "taxes, fees and surcharges" box is reached on the final booking page.

BA's new fee, roughly Euros 5 per person per ticket, was introduced on August 31. It applies to flights originating at 27 countries in mainland Europe, Scandinavia and Israel. But "the online fee will be introduced into the UK once we have worked out the technicalities," confirmed a BA spokesperson to Business Traveller.

By levying this fee, BA has fallen in line with rivals like Austrian Airlines, Finnair, KLM, Lufthansa, SAS, Swiss and TAP who are already charging for online bookings in various countries (the UK excepted). Adds BA, "What we are saying is that British Airways is committed to transparent pricing and that the fee reflects the cost of the booking systems."

The airline says it hasn't yet determined how much its UK online fee will be. But whatever it is you can sure that once BA acts, its rivals will follow suit in the UK. And once imposed, fees have a nasty habit of increasing – witness the London Congestion Charge.

Report by Alex McWhirter


Under 25% of business travellers go wireless

A survey published this week claims that actual use of wireless internet technology by business travellers is far below anticipated levels. The survey of more than 2,000 business travellers from the US and UK found that only 25% of US respondents and 17% of UK respondents use wireless internet access.

The reason for the slow take up of the technology, according to technology research and analyst firm Gartner, which carried out the research, is not because people are bamboozled by the technology required to enable wireless internet access. The survey claims that instead the desire to be "out of reach" of the office is the overwhelming factor behind the sluggish take up. The results were in stark contrast to a poll of Businesstraveller.com readers in October 2004, which found that 64% of respondents use wireless internet access.

The survey reports that 78% of US respondents and 75% of UK respondents said they welcome the chance to be out of contact for a while whilst on an aircraft. Commenting on the results research vice president Delia MacMillan said: "Some airlines such as Lufthansa and SAS in Europe and ANA, JAL and Singapore Airlines in Asia are offering wireless internet access to their passengers but, although the service is accessible, there are a number of technical and business issues that are obstructing growth regardless of the mode of transport."

Additionally an average 31% of the sample said they have no need to use wireless hot spots on the ground. Other factors slowing use of wireless internet access is concern over the cost of access and location of hot spots.

Report by Ginny McGrath


BA admits inflight service still limited

Though out of the headlines for the moment, the catering problems on British Airways flights out of Heathrow continue.

Executive Club members will have recently received an email note from BA Commercial Director Martin George, detailing the current offering. "In World Traveller and World Traveller Plus customers will have a choice of hot main courses for the main meal service with a deli-bag for the second meal. From 6 September, a full bar service will be available on all long-haul flights from London Heathrow (inbound 6-11 September depending on route) as well as duty free sales."

Reports from Business Traveller readers confirm the problems on both short-haul and long-haul.

On a recent flight from Heathrow to Nice, there was no catering on the flight and the drinks service was patchy ("Outbound, drinks served included tea, coffee, water some juices (no ice), inbound a service announced but none materialised"). BA is offering an enhanced food offering in the lounges to compensate, but if you do not have access to the lounges, beware. You may have to ask for a meal voucher (currently £5), particularly if you check in by internet or using self service terminals. The same reader found that it was only by approaching a BA member of staff that a voucher was offered at Nice airport (for Euro15).

Long-haul, the drinks service seems to be close to normal, but there are limited choices of main courses, and indeed Martin George in his note admits that, "due to the reduced catering service, we are currently unable to meet any special dietary requirements onboard our flights to/from London Heathrow".


All business to go lie-flat

Passengers flying the growing number of transatlantic all business class Boeing 737 flights operated by Lufthansa, Swiss and, soon, KLM can look forward to more comfortable and spacious seating.

The services are all operated by the airlines under contract by luxury Swiss charter carrier PrivatAir. Passengers had to make do with older seating which, although adequate by Nineties' standards, is now outclassed by the latest generation. Travellers turned a blind eye because, with less than 50 seats, these B737 flights provided a club-like travel atmosphere with faster ground handling.

But by developing a PrivatDream seat (pictured), the Swiss carrier can at last provide passengers with the benefits of lie-flat seating. Speaking to Business Traveller, marketing executive Markus Schofert says, "Our PrivatDream seat is lie-flat style. It offers 60 inches of legroom and 172 angle of recline. This compares with a seat pitch of 55 inches and a 135 angle of recline on the seating currently offered on the B737 we operate for Lufthansa between Munich and New York Newark."

Until recently it was believed it wasn't feasible to fit the latest generation of popular lie-flat business class seating owing to space and weight constraints, but now PrivatDream seating (which also offers a hand held entertainment system but no email or internet) has been fitted to the B737 operating on behalf of Swiss between Zurich and New York JFK. In addition, 44 PrivatDream seats will be installed on the B737 provided to KLM for its forthcoming Amsterdam-Houston service [commencing October 30]. Towards the end of this year the PrivatDream seat will appear on Lufthansa's Munich to New York Newark B737 service.

Report by Alex McWhirter


Fresh start for London Marriott

Marriott's multi-million pound renovation of London's iconic Grosvenor House Hotel on London's Park Lane continues apace. The US chain is spending GBP 100 million over the next two years on converting this five star property into a JW Marriott, its most prestigious brand.

Meanwhile the Grosvenor House remains open for business. Two hundred existing rooms (out of a room count of 446) are available for sale while the remainder of the hotel is extensively refurbished.

Chip Stuckmeyer, who is in charge of sales and marketing strategy at the Grosvenor House told Business Traveller: "All accommodation is being stripped right down to the concrete while we install the very latest guest standards including state-of-the-art air-conditioning and communications facilities."

The first of the new-look rooms will come on line in July 2006 with the remainder and including all public areas following by March 2007 when the JW Marriott rebranding will be completed.

The property will then feature some of the best accommodation in London's Mayfair district complete with a 22-metre swimming pool and the largest ballroom in Europe. Existing midweek room rates start at £239 (plus tax) with a useful £249 (plus tax) rate throwing in breakfast, internet access and earlier 10.30 check-in. For more information go to Marriott web site

Report by Alex McWhirter


Fairmont eyes Europe

The luxury hotel group Fairmont Hotels & Resorts has announced more details of its expansion plans.

The group, which currently has 44 hotels around the world, announced at the weekend that it is actively seeking properties in Milan, Amsterdam, Paris and Berlin, and aims ultimately to have 10 hotels across Europe. The announcement was made by John Johnston, executive vice-president for Europe, Africa, Middle East of Fairmont Hotels at the group's Monte Carlo property. The hotel is a new acquisition for Fairmont and this week celebrated its 30th birthday following a rebrand in March this year. The group also took over ownership of London's iconic The Savoy in January 2005.

The focus on Europe will put Fairmont in direct competition with the Jumeriah group, which is actively expanding, and Shangri-la, which is expected in the near future to announce the site for its first US property.

Report by Tom Otley

 

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Then there were four...

Faced with billions of dollars of debt, two of the biggest US carriers, Northwest and Delta, joined United and US Airways in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection yesterday.

Delta is the third largest US carrier and is based in Atlanta. Northwest is the fourth largest and is headquartered in Minneapolis. Both belong to the Skyteam alliance whose members include Air France, KLM and Korean.

For now Northwest and Delta claim it's business as usual.

Says Delta CEO Gerald Grinstein, "We are open for business and will continue regular operations today and throughout the reorganisation process. We are committed to our international markets and look forward to adding new routes and destinations around the world as we continue to implement our transformation plan and move Delta towards a more secure future."

American and Continental are the only two US major carriers trading normally (although Continental has previously twice traded in Chapter 11). Airlines can trade in Chapter 11 for a period of months or years while they reorganise themselves by cutting labour costs and renegotiating contracts with caterers, airports, oil firms and so on.

Some carriers eventually emerge from Chapter 11 (for example, America West and Continental) but most do not.

Pan Am, TWA, Eastern and Braniff are four majors who traded in Chapter 11 but were eventually forced to close.

For that reason passengers planning to use a Chapter 11 airline must check their travel insurance policy carefully. Not all firms will insure against financial failure of Chapter 11 carriers.


Domestic fares down

Increased competition from Virgin Trains has prompted Belgian airline VLM to cut fares. The two UK domestic routes affected are out of London City.

Return flights to Manchester (served eight times daily between Monday and Friday) now start at £78 with Liverpool (served five times a day during the working week) leading-in at £58.

Although VLM's passenger numbers are doing well compared with last year (up by 38% in the case of the Manchester route), Virgin Trains is becoming a fierce rival. The train firm now operates all services with Pendolino tilting trains and from September 25 it will offer new, last minute cheap ticket deals which will be more accessible to business people (see "Trains adopt low-cost airline pricing", online news August 18).

VLM's new tariffs narrow the gap between air and rail pricing. It also means it is substantially cheaper to fly from London City than from Heathrow. Booked today (Thursday) a day return trip to Manchester for September 20 (allowing a stay of seven hours) costs £158 whereas the British Airways price from Heathrow would be £256. A one night stay based on peak time flights and travelling out on September 19 costs £218 from City compared with £295 from Heathrow.

According to VLM's commercial director Peter Kenworthy, "A good number of passengers departing Liverpool and Manchester are using London City as a springboard for harder to reach destinations in mainland Europe."

London City has the only direct flights to cities like Antwerp, Berne, Bremen, Lugano and Rotterdam. You can also fly to Paris Orly (with better access to the capital's south) rather than CDG.

"London City has a 30 minute transfer time," adds Kenworthy, "which doesn't present a problem because lots of passengers using this airport carry only hand luggage." Fly VLM

Report by Alex McWhirter


Improved site for Lufthansa

Lufthansa is busy updating its website. Yesterday, without any fanfare, the German airline launched a new booking engine which provides transfer passengers with clearer displays enabling them to locate a better fare more easily.

Not before time, critics might say. The former lufthansa.com was sluggish, long-winded and only provided transparent prices for simple point-to-point flights. This seemed strange when millions of Lufthansa passengers were booking trips not just to Frankfurt or Munich but to destinations worldwide via these two important hubs.

Says a Lufthansa spokesperson, "The new booking system (supported by airline system Amadeus along with IBM) offers two possibilities. Passengers can choose between a 'fare driven' or 'schedule driven' booking. Fare driven provides maximum price transparency for three days either side of your chosen date so you can select the best price and routing combination for your needs. Schedule driven lets you choose your exact dates and flights at a favourable price.

Existing features such as the facility to book "open jaw" and multiple sector trips are retained.

Lufthansa points out that the new site is in the early stages of its launch period. Other features will be added in the days ahead. For more information go to www.lufthansa.com

Report by Alex McWhirter


Prague routes dropped

Passengers intending to fly from London Gatwick to Prague have less choice now that two carriers have recently quit the route.

Fierce competition from Easyjet and British Airways is understood to have prompted budget Czech airline Smart Wings scrap its daily service earlier this summer. National Czech carrier CSA quietly dropped its twice daily flights at the beginning of this month.

Says a spokesman for CSA, "Management decided to make better use of the B737 [the plane being used between Gatwick and Prague] on other routes, especially those between Prague and Eastern Europe where flight frequencies have been increased."

It means that business travellers are now poorly served with limited day trip possibilities. Existing schedules mean that the first Gatwick-Prague flight (with Easyjet) doesn't depart until 11.40 while the first inbound service to Gatwick (also with Easyjet) doesn't leave the Czech capital until 15.05.

Easyjet's other service departs at 18.20, returning from Prague at 21.45. The existing BA service departs Gatwick at 1155 returning at 15.30.

But matters improve with the start of the winter timetable on October 30. Although BA retains roughly the same schedule. Easyjet will advance its present mid-morning service to give an 07.40 from Gatwick with an 11.15 return from Prague.

Ryanair has announced a new UK base. The carrier is expanding its services from Nottingham East Midlands Airport from 5 to 15 routes, with the addition of the following destinations: Berlin, Derry, Nimes, Carcassonne, Nantes, Dinard, Limoges, Lodz, Wroclaw and Bergerac.

Ryanair already flies from Nottingham East Midlands Airport to Dublin, Shannon, Murcia, Barcelona and Rome. The new routes are expected to launch from March 7.

Report by Alex McWhirter and Ginny McGrath


Buenos Aires opening for Hyatt

Park Hyatt is converting a 1930s Argentinian palace into a striking hotel in the heart of the country's capital.

Called Palacio Duhau – Park Hyatt Buenos Aires, the 165-room hotel is set to open early next year, and is expected to wow both the business and leisure markets.

The hotel is located in the Recoleta district, which is home to other upmarket hotels such as Four Seasons and Kempinski properties, as well as a popular shopping district.

The restored palace, a remnant of the district's aristocratic past, is surrounded by landscaped gardens designed by Carlos Thais, who also designed the botanical gardens of Buenos Aires. There are 23 rooms and suites in the main palace, while the remaining 142 are in a separate Posada-style building, linked by an underground walkway, and constructed to complement the architectural style of the palace.

The top suite, The Duhau Suite is on the top floor of the palace and has a private terrace overlooking the gardens.

The hotel's lavish interior, with its bespoke furniture, will also feature an extensive art collection by local and international artists. The hotel will have wireless internet access in public areas and high-speed wired access in all guest rooms.

The restaurant serves international cuisine and is supplemented by a wine bar and cheese room, while the main bar has a 300-year old Normandy oak bar, a wood-burning fireplace, and its own terrace, or there's a more genteel affair next door serving breakfast, afternoon tea and snacks.

Guests will also have access to a gym, indoor swimming pool and five treatment rooms, and there is underground parking for 150 cars. There is a business centre with four computers offering wired and wireless internet access, plus five meeting rooms, two boardrooms, and an event space large enough to hold 300 guests, or the gardens can be hired for receptions.

The Buenos Aires property is one of 28 Hyatt hotels and resorts currently under development, which includes ten hotels in China. For more information go to www.hyatt.com.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Style and substance from Orient Express

Orient Express Hotels & Resorts had its summer party this week.

Lots of news, not least concerning its fourth Italian property, the refurbished Hotel Caruso in Ravello on the Amalfi coast. The hotel is on the site of the old Hotel Caruso Belvedere, which dates back to 1893, and in previous incarnations everyone from Virginia Wolf and Graham Greene has visited, enjoying dramatic, plunging views over the Gulf of Salerno.

Orient Express has spent US$30 million restoring the hotel, which is located 50 minutes from Naples and has extensive meeting facilities, with indoor and outdoor banqueting space for up to 300 people. It might be state of the art, but that old world charm has been retained. Having opened its doors in June, the hotel is closing on November 6 for the winter. Now that's style. Visit www.orientexpress.com.

Also mentioned at the party: the ultimate treat for carnivores: the Orient Express-owned restaurant steakhouse La Cabana in Buenos Aires which opened in 1935 is now offering a complete run-down on the provenance of customers' steaks. Good to know the meat comes from British herds, but a bar code label on your steak allows you to take a peek online at the pastures that nourished your cow, discover its sex and date of birth – and indeed death – the vaccines it received and its weight at slaughter. With food scares becoming more common, this could be the future.

 

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US flights cancelled

British Airways is among a number of international and US domestic carriers to cancel a raft of US-bound flights as Hurricane Rita approaches the south-east coast of the US.

The Category 5 storm, with winds in excess of 155mph, is the ninth hurricane to affect the region this year and is predicted to hit land on the Texan coastline between Galveston and Corpus Christi. Both the domestic airport, Houston Hobby and international airport, George Bush Intercontinental, are likely to be affected.

British Airways has cancelled Gatwick-Houston services and Heathrow-Chicago-Houston services due to depart on Friday. Passengers due to travel on Houston flights that are cancelled can rebook an alternative date, choose an alternative destination or get a full refund. Anyone with tickets for travel to Houston up to September 28 can rebook on another date within two weeks of the original date of travel.

Southwest Airlines is cancelling all flights in and out of Houston Hobby from midday Friday September 23 in the interests of its staff and customers, and hopes to resume services from mid-morning on Sunday September 25, depending on the state of the hurricane. Continental has not yet issued a statement concerning the operation of flights in and out of Houston, but is expected to follow suit.

Evacuations warnings have been issued in parts of Texas, including Galveston and low lying parts of Houston, resulting in heavy traffic on some highways heading north from the coast.

Houston's airports are asking passengers without confirmed reservations not to turn up with the expectation of catching a flight because both airports are reporting "unusually high amounts of traffic and flights are already reaching capacity or full". It is urging passengers to contact the relevant airline to find out if their flight is operating.


Report by Ginny McGrath


Up to £100 surcharge on Oz flights

Travellers heading Down Under are facing ever-higher oil surcharges, which could mean it makes financial sense to book direct rather than transfer flights. Passengers booking a long-haul flight to Sydney may believe they are paying one surcharge for each leg of the trip - while this is true with British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, it's no longer the case when choosing an Asian airline.

Main players in the UK-Australia market such as Cathay Pacific, MAS, SIA and Thai have quietly adopted a policy of charging per sector rather than per trip. When you fly British Airways or Virgin Atlantic directly between London and Sydney you pay two long distance fuel surcharges. But with Cathay Pacific, MAS, SIA or Thai (who operate to Australia with an en route plane change rather than direct) you would end up paying four such surcharges even when you transfer flights.

So whereas with BA the oil surcharge for a London-Sydney return would cost £60 with SIA via Singapore the same surcharge would be USD200 or £111. Foreign carriers don't publish surcharge details on the fares display. Instead these sums are disguised within the "taxes, fees and charges" box shown on final booking page when you reserve your flight online. These now vary widely depending on the airline.

Based on flying economy class the total cost of the "extras" on a return economy ticket booked online amounts to £131 with BA or Virgin. But with MAS the sum is £178, with Cathay Pacific £158 (set to rise further from October 1), with SIA £186 and with Thai £189.

Simon Evans, chief executive of the AUC (Air Transport Users Council) says, "There is nothing sinister in these different oil surcharges as it reflects the cost of doing business. But why not just increase the fares... that's something people would understand."

Report by Alex McWhirter


NY flight for Stansted

Yet another transatlantic all-business class airline has come forward. And this time it stands a better chance of getting off the ground.

US-based Maxjet has announced plans to fly from London Stansted to New York JFK from November 1. The service will operate daily (except Saturday) with a wide-bodied B767 configured with 102 roomy business class seats arranged six across (2-2-2) featuring 60 inches of legroom.

The flight will depart Stansted at 10.00 arriving JFK at 13.00. On the return, passengers will leave JFK at 18.30 to arrive Stansted at 07.00. In-flight service will be to normal long-haul business class standards and passengers will have use of deluxe lounges at both ends of the route. Tickets will cost from £1,278 return (including taxes and charges), which is substantially less than the prices charged by the big airlines out of Gatwick and Heathrow.

A spokesperson for Maxjet said that the airline hopes to appeal to firms based in London's Canary Wharf and the City. It will also prove convenient for travellers based in East Anglia and the Midlands from where there are convenient road links to Stansted. Maxjet also hopes to attract passengers flying into Stansted with the budget airlines, especially those coming from cities with no transatlantic service.

But, despite the keen prices, the carrier admits it will be "a challenge" filling 102 business class seats from Stansted. That's because Heathrow and Gatwick are convenient for a great many people and because flight frequency from these two airports is so much greater, plus there's competition from newcomer Eos (see below).

You can book flights with Maxjet from September 26. The airline can be contacted on 0800 0234300 or visit Maxjet

* Maxjet faces direct competition from Business class-only carrier Eos, which plans to launch flights from New York to Stansted on November 1. Fares start at £3,500 return, but there is an introductory fare of £2,500.

Report by Alex McWhirter


Geneva route hots up

Scottish low-cost airline, Flyglobespan is launching flights on a key business route out of Stansted.

The airline will launch flights from the Essex airport to Geneva on December 22 following the acquisition of two Boeing 737-600s from SAS. Flyglobespan faces direct competition with three other airlines operating between London and Geneva: Swissair, British Airways and Easyjet.

It will also launch a London Stansted-Tenerife service from November 1. Existing Flyglobespan services include flights from London Stansted to Glasgow and Edinburgh, which launched on June 1, and carried 20,000 passengers in the first three months, according to the airline.

Managing director and chairman, Tom Dalrymple has also announced his intention to launch further routes from London. "We want to mirror what we have achieved in Scotland in the important London market and we are actively looking at extending our network of flights and services available from Stansted," he said.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Step closer to in-flight mobiles

Shrill ring tones and loud chatter could be coming to an aircraft cabin near you from next year following initiatives by two European airlines to enable mobile phone use in-flight.

If Bmi and TAP Portugal go ahead with plans announced this week, mobile phones and GPRS-enabled devices such as the Blackberry, could be used by passengers travelling with both carriers from the end of next year. Both are partnering with technology provider OnAir, which is working with Airbus and Siemens to develop the technology. The in-flight service, which is yet to receive regulatory approval, will begin initially as a test phase, available only on certain routes.

Bmi chief executive Nigel Turner stressed that this is not just to pilot the technology but also to evaluate the "social issues" surrounding mobile phone use in-flight. But he added: "Our research tells us that our premium passengers have two key concerns. These are getting quickly through the airport and the ability to carry on working during their journey."

The debate over the use of mobile phones on aircraft is raging in the US where authorities are considering removing a 14-year ban. While business travellers are broadly in support of use of mobile phones in-flight, the organisation representing flight attendants says its members are concerned that use of phones in-flight could spark "air rage" incidents and also pose a security threat.

Report by Ginny McGrath


Hong Kong presence for luxury hotel brand

Four Seasons has unveiled its latest hotel in Asia.

The luxury property, which opened this month, is located in Hong Kong. It is part of the International Financial Centre, a contemporary mixed-use development of shops, offices and apartments located at Central Waterfront, 23 minutes via the Airport Express train from Chek Lap Kok Airport.

The Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong is next to Four Seasons Place, the luxury offering from the brand that caters for long-stay guests. The 399-room hotel has two restaurants: Caprice serves French cuisine and has been created by the team from the three-star Michelin restaurant in the Four Seasons George V in Paris; and Lung King Heen, which serves contemporary Cantonese food.

There is also a bar and lounge, plus a series of meeting rooms including two ballrooms that overlook Victoria Harbour and seven smaller rooms. The spa has 18 treatment rooms, a vitality pool, crystal steam room, ice fountain and Finnish sauna. There is also an Executive Club floor where guests have harbour views and can access business and concierge service 24 hours a day.

Rates start from HK$3,200 (£230) for a Deluxe Peak View Room including breakfast for two, excluding tax and service. The hotel is the second of three Four Seasons properties opening in Asia. The Shanghai hotel is already operating and the Beijing property is under construction. For reservations contact 00 800 6488 6488 or visit Four Seasons website.

Report by Ginny McGrath