Air Fare Increase Holds Its Ground

A small but broad-based air fare increase seems to be sticking this week, after airlines were forced to roll back attempted increases last week, writes Scott McCartney in the Wall Street Journal’s Middle Seat Terminal Blog. “A $10 round-trip hike has stuck, as of Monday morning, on many routes for summertime travel,” he writes.

Arthur Frommer Tells All

I’m finding it impossible to finish Arthur Frommer’s new book “Ask Arthur Frommer: And Travel Better, Cheaper, Smarter” because I keep running across tips that I can’t wait to check out.

So I’ll read a few pages and run to the computer to follow up. A holistic yoga retreat on the Big Island of Hawaii? I’m there! Low-cost Spanish lesson in the gorgeous university city of Salamanca, Spain? Got to check it out.

Now I realize I have to keep my netbook next to me while I read or I’ll end up getting way too much exercise running to the computer.

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Cruising Out Of New York Or Boston Can Be Affordable

Want to cruise out of New York or Boston this year for a reasonable rate? It can be done, though not at the height of summer.

I’ve often thought it would be nice to take a cruise from the Northeast because I could skip the air travel and take a car to the port. Trouble is, the cruise fares are often rather high out of New York, and I’ve always found lower rates out of the crowded (and competitive) ports in Florida and California.

This year I decided to dig in and analyze the cruise fares out of Boston and New York, and I did find a few decent bargains, which I define as under $100 per person, per day, for the least expensive inside cabins. These fares includes all taxes and fees:

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Travel Companies May Face Bankruptcy

MSN Money recently published a list of 30 companies at risk of going bankrupt, and it’s heavy on companies involved in the financial sector, the auto industry and, of course, travel.

On that list at:

No. 4: Six Flags, which announced an offer Friday to exchange stock for debt. If that effort is unsuccessful, the company “may file for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code,” the Washington Business Journal reports.

No. 18: Harrah’s Entertainment, which controls 30 percent of the hotel rooms on the Las Vegas Strip, is controlled by private equity investors who are trying to buy the company’s debt at a steep discount so they’ll remain in charge if the company goes bankrupt, the Las Vegas Sun reports.

No. 24: UAL, the parent company of United Airlines, will report first-quarter results Tuesday and analysts are not optimistic, the Chicago Tribune reports. The whole airline sector is in trouble, and some analysts think United is a likely merger partner.

No. 25. MGM Mirage, which controls half the hotel rooms on the Las Vegas strip, recently worked out a deal to save its massive CityCenter project but some investors, including corporate raider Carl Icahn, are pushing for bankruptcy, MarketWatch reports.

No. 30: Travelport is not a consumer brand, but the company sells computer software and technology to the travel industry.

Bradley Administrator Quits

The administrator of Bradley International Airport has quit, Eric Gershon reports in The Courant. Jeff Schultes, previously manager of the Portland International Jetport in Maine, has been on the job less than a year. It’s one of those “pursue other interests” sorts of thing and nobody’s really talking about why.

Snakes On A Plane: Really!

Four baby pythons got loose on a Qantas jet and nobody can find them, the Associated Press reports. I point this out only because it gives me an opportunity to refer people once again to Samantha Bee’s Daily Show sendup of the movie. (Warning: rough language.)

Obama To Cuba: Your Move

After President Obama eased restrictions on visits by Cuban-Americans to their famillies on island, there was plenty of speculation about what happens when the Cuban trade embargo is lifted entirely and all Americans can visit the island.

Not so fast. Obama is making it clear that he wants Cuba to make some changes, too.

Bradley to Honolulu: $401, Round-Trip

Here’s a prediction. Someday you’re going to be shelling out $800 or $900 for a round-trip ticket to Hawaii and you’re going to remember that you once passed up a $401 round trip — with taxes and fees included — from Bradley to Honolulu.

Unless you go now.

This fare is widely available on Delta and Northwest during the month of May. Check it out on Kayak.com or the Web site of your choice.

United Airlines Sets New Policy On Obese Passengers

Much is being made of United Airlines new policy on obese passengers, but it’s pretty much what most domestic airlines have been doing for quite a while. It’s also, under the circumstances, reasonable.

United will require obese passengers to buy a second seat, but only if they can’t fit in a single seat, put on a seat belt with an extender and lower the armrest. And if there’s an empty seat, United will seat the obese passenger next to it, at no extra cost.

Fair enough. Airlines should do what they can to accommodate every passenger up to the point where it infringes unreasonably on others.

But there’s another issue here. The seats are too narrow for too many people, not just the clinically obese.

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Ewww: Bedbugs And Scabies

If the news that bedbug infestations are on the rise in the United States was not disgusting enough, it turns out there have been several cases of scabies at Boston’s Logan airport.

All together now: ewwww.

Americans are not good with this kind of thing. Nobody likes bacteria and biting insects and microscopic mites that burrow into the upper layer of the skin. (Again. Ewww.) But Americans — identifiable worldwide by our travel-size bottles of hand sanitizer —  might be a bit more neurotic about it than others.

Britain’s Guardian newspaper recently published a piece suggesting that bedbugs are really not all that bad. Sorry, but my upper lip doesn’t get that stiff. I’m an American, and bedbugs are going to make me freak out.

Oh. Man. I think have an itch …