Photo: Villafranca del Bierzo, Spain

Villafranca del Bierzo, Spain

I took this photo from the window of my room at the Hotel Plaza in Villafranca del Bierzo, Spain.

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A380 At JFK

There are now more than 30 A380s in service around the world, but it’s still a thrill to see one.

This one, in a photograph by my sister Maryanne Leblanc, is being unloaded at JFK simultaneously from two decks, using two jetways.

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Delta Adds Calendar Web Feature

I was looking for a better seat on my next Delta flight (no luck there) when I happened on a smart new feature on the airline’s Web site  – a link to add flight details to my electronic calendar with one click.

The feature works for Outlook, the Mac’s iCal and the Yahoo! and Gmail calendars.

I have to hand it to Delta, which has always been a leader in integrating its reservations system and its Web site.  A sweet little feature like that may not be enough to win my business on its own, but every little bit helps.

Delta Adds Flights From Bradley To Raleigh-Durham

Delta has announced that it will begin twice-daily flights Nov. 1 between Bradley and Raleigh-Durham, The Hartford Courant reports. Starting in October, Delta will start also flying once a week between  Bradley and Las Vegas and three times a day to Reagan National in Washington. Coincidentally, this news arrived just as I was booking my daughter on one of Delta’s last direct flights between Bradley and Los Angeles, which will drop off the schedule Sept. 26. Sadly, there will no longer be any transcontinental flights out of Bradley at all.

One-Day Sale At JetBlue

JetBlue is having a one-day sale on fares for Tuesdays and Wednesdays between Aug. 31 and Oct. 27.

The discounts are substantial, but availability is limited. For example, flights from Boston to Washington-Dulles are $39 each way, which comes out to $99 round-trip with taxes and fees. Fares from JFK to Aruba are $129 each way, which comes out to $347 with taxes and fees.

One day means buy those tickets today, Aug. 24, 2010, or forget about it.

JetBlue will start flying out of Bradley on Nov. 17, after this sale has expired.

Icelandair Launches Fare Sale

Icelandair has some falls sale fares from Boston, New York and Seattle kicking in to various European destinations. A round trip between Boston and London, for example, costs $626 with taxes and fees included. 

The fares are available from Boston for flights between Nov. 1 and  Dec. 10; New York , Nov. 15 to Dec 16 ; and Seattle,  Oct. 25 to Dec 16 .  Technically this is indeed a fall sale, but it seems more of a pre-winter sale to me.  Brrr.

The tickets must be booked by Aug. 26.  More details are available from airfarewatchdog.com and icelandair.com.

How To Avoid Foreign ATM Fees

If you think banks have treated you badly in the United States, try traveling abroad. The fees imposed on foreign currency transactions — at ATMs and in credit card fees — are horrendous.

Joe Brancatelli dissects the problem neatly in his latest Portfolio column. And he mentions a tactic that I happen to have employed recently: I opened a Capital One money market account that does not charge the punishing currency exchange  fees imposed on most bank accounts for foreign ATM withdrawals.

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Weekend Car Rentals From Alamo: $20 A Day

Alamo is offering weekend rentals for as little as $20 a day, plus taxes and fees.

The rate for compact cars is $20, mid-size $24, full-size $28 and premium $30. Cars may be picked up as early as 9 a.m. Thursday and must be returned by the pickup time on Monday. The offer is valid from August 19, 2010 to September 20, 2010, and reservations must be made 24 hours in advance. Use rate ID: 7015392.

For example, you could get a Nissan Versa or similar compact car at Bradley International Airport from Friday to Monday for $60, plus $26.92 in taxes and fees for a total of $86.92. A premium vehicle — a Buick LaCrosse or something similar — would total $123.31.

Could Passenger Rights Be Good Business?

It turns out that the airlines did not, as they claimed, have valid reasons for treating their customers like hostages.

The Department of Transportation reports that only three domestic flights were stranded for more than three hours on the tarmac last month — compared with 268 in July 2009. Last month was, not at all coincidentally, the first full month of new regulations that impose stiff fines on airlines that violate the three-hour limit.

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Governments Jump On Rental Ban-Wagon

Laura Bly at USA Today has a story today about the trend toward banning short-term rentals of apartments, condos and houses in vacation areas.

Arthur Frommer has also been following this issue very closely on his blog.

New York, Chicago and Maui are restricting short-term rentals and many other local governments are considering similar measures. Ostensibly, the idea is to protect neighborhoods and their residents.

Of course, these measures also protect hotels. And they hurt middle-class families that can’t afford exorbitant rates for multiple hotel rooms in popular vacation areas.