3. Skyscanner

Trademark Trial and Appeal Board Electronic Filing System. https://estta.uspto.gov ESTTA Tracking number: ESTTA1136351 Filing date: 05/26/2021

IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE BEFORE THE TRADEMARK TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD Notice of Opposition

Notice is hereby given that the following party opposes registration of the indicated application. Opposer Information

Name Skyscanner Limited Granted to Date 05/26/2021 of previous ex- tension Address 1 BEDFORD AVENUE FLOOR 6, THE AVENUE LONDON, WC1B 3AU UNITED KINGDOM

Attorney informa- JOHN L. STRAND tion WOLF, GREENFIELD & SACKS, P.C. 600 ATLANTIC AVENUE BOSTON, MA 02210 UNITED STATES Primary Email: [email protected] Secondary Email(s): [email protected], rmvtrade- [email protected] 617-646-8000

Docket Number S21405000000 Applicant Information

Application No. 90117302 Publication date 01/26/2021 Opposition Filing 05/26/2021 Opposition Peri- 05/26/2021 Date od Ends Applicant Foshan Shuijingling Home Co., Ltd. RM.201,2/F,NO.102,W.LONGJIANG SECTION NATIONAL HIGHWAY 325,LONGJIANG TOWN SHUNDE,FOSHAN, 528300 CHINA Goods/Services Affected by Opposition

Class 020. First Use: 2019/08/12 First Use In Commerce: 2019/08/12 All goods and services in the class are opposed, namely: Pillows; Bed rests; Bedroom furniture; Futons; Interior textile window blinds; Living room furniture; Mattress toppers;Residential and commercial furniture; Sleep products, namely, mattresses, spring mattresses, box springs and mattress foundations; Sleeping pads Grounds for Opposition

Priority and likelihood of confusion Trademark Act Section 2(d) Other common law rights in SUNRISE LOGO Marks Cited by Opposer as Basis for Opposition

U.S. Registration 6242138 Application Date 08/09/2019 No. Registration Date 01/12/2021 Foreign Priority 05/21/2019 Date Word Mark NONE Design Mark

Description of The mark consists of the design of a series of rays forming an arc over a curved Mark band with a downward point, all in white, on a blue background. Goods/Services Class 035. First use: First Use: 0 First Use In Commerce: 0 Advertising services provided via the Internet; opinion polling, namely, publi- copinion polling; provision of business information; business information services; data processing services; auctioneering; all of the foregoing relating to the travel and hospitality sectors Class 039. First use: First Use: 0 First Use In Commerce: 0 Travel information; travel arrangement services provided from an Internet website, namely, providing a website featuring travel and transportation booking and reservation services; providing travel information about flight, travel and travels tours via means of a global computernetwork; travel information provided online from a computer database; travel information accessible via a mobile phone utilising wireless application protocol technology; travel agency services, namely, making reservations and bookings fortransportation; travel booking agencies; booking of airport parking spaces Class 042. First use: First Use: 0 First Use In Commerce: 0 Providing search engines for the Internet relating to the travel and hospitality sectors Class 043. First use: First Use: 0 First Use In Commerce: 0 Booking of temporary accommodation; travel agency services for booking temporary accommodation; information and bookingservices in relation to temporary accommodation provided from an Internet website; providing information relating to temporary accommodation via means of a global computer network; information relating to temporary accommodation provided online from a computer database; information relating to temporary accommodation accessible via a mobile phone using wireless application protocol technology; restaurant reservation and booking services; restaurants and bar information services

U.S. Application/ Registra- NONE Application Date NONE tion No. Registration Date NONE Design Mark

Goods/Services travel arrangements, advertising, the provision of travel and hospitality information, travel bookings, and data processing

Attachments 79279675#TMSN.png( bytes ) SUNRISE LOGO- Resized.JPG S2140.50000US00 Notice of Opposition.pdf(196707 bytes ) S2140.50000US00 Exhibit A.pdf(615805 bytes ) S2140.50000US00 Exhibit B.pdf(1032806 bytes ) S2140.50000US00 Exhibit C_Part1.pdf(6171184 bytes ) S2140.50000US00 Exhibit C_Part2.pdf(5341693 bytes ) S2140.50000US00 Exhibit C_Part3.pdf(5028599 bytes ) S2140.50000US00 Exhibit C_Part4.pdf(6188291 bytes ) S2140.50000US00 Exhibit D.pdf(2669858 bytes ) S2140.50000US00 Exhibit E.pdf(1011968 bytes )

Signature /John L. Strand/ Name John L. Strand Date 05/26/2021 DOCKET NO.: S2140.50000US00

IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE BEFORE THE TRADEMARK TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD

Skyscanner Limited,

Opposer,

Foshan Shuijingling Home Co., Ltd., Mark: Serial No. 90117302 Opposition No. ______Applicant.

NOTICE OF OPPOSITION

Skyscanner Limited (“Opposer”), a limited company organized and existing under the laws of the United Kingdom, having a place of business at 1 Bedford Avenue, Floor 6, The

Avenue, London, WC1B 3AU, United Kingdom, believes it would be damaged by registration of the mark depicted in Application Serial No. 90117302 (the ’302 Application) – filed by Foshan

Shuijingling Home Co., Ltd. (“Applicant”), a limited company organized and existing under the laws of China, having a place of business at Rm. 201, 2/F, No.102, W. Longjiang Section,

National Highway 325, Longjiang Town, Shunde, Foshan 528300, China, and published for opposition in the Official Gazette on January 26, 2021 – and hereby opposes the same.

The grounds for this Opposition are as follows:

1. On August 16, 2020, Applicant filed the ’302 Application for the mark shown below (“Applicant’s Mark”) for “pillows; bed rests; bedroom furniture; futons; interior textile

window blinds; living room furniture; mattress toppers; residential and commercial furniture;

sleep products, namely, mattresses, spring mattresses, box springs and mattress foundations;

sleeping pads.”

2. The ’302 Application was filed pursuant to Section 1(a) of the Trademark Act, 15

U.S.C. § 1051(a), based on alleged use of the mark in commerce since August 12, 2019.

3. From a date long prior to Applicant’s filing date and date of priority, Opposer has used the mark shown below (“Opposer’s Mark”) continuously and extensively in the United

States and around the world for a wide variety of services in the travel and hospitality sectors,

including travel arrangements, advertising, the provision of travel and hospitality information,

travel bookings, and data processing.

4. Opposer’s website www.skyscanner.net features Opposer’s Mark and its

travel/hospitality services and receives over 100 million visitors on a monthly basis. As of 2019,

Opposer’s website was ranked 1,671st worldwide for internet traffic and engagement by

Amazon, with a substantial portion of that traffic coming from U.S. IP addresses. Attached as

Exhibit A are printouts from Amazon’s database for this domain at

www.alexa.com/siteinfo/skyscanner.net (accessed on November 12, 2019).

5. Opposer’s website www.skyscanner.com likewise features Opposer’s Mark and

its travel/hospitality services and has been ranked 1,285th in the U.S. for internet traffic and engagement by Amazon. 72% of all visitors to this website originated from U.S. IP addresses.

Attached as Exhibit B are printouts from Amazon’s database for this domain at

https://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/skyscanner.com (accessed on May 24, 2021).

6. Opposer has over 1,000 employees and physical offices in several countries—

including the U.S.

7. Opposer and its services have received widespread, favorable recognition and are

routinely featured in well-known U.S. publications, including The New York Times, Forbes, The

Washington Post, USA Today, The Los Angeles Times, and The Huffington Post. Attached as

Exhibit C are representative articles from these publications.

8. Opposer has also won or been shortlisted for a litany of awards for its branding

and travel/hospitality services, including:

• Best APAC Travel Mobile App - TravelMole (2015)

• Tech Tour Growth Award (2015)

• Tabby Award Nominee (2015)

• Best Technology Provider – Travolution (2015)

• Brand of the Year – Travolution Awards (2011)

• Best Use of SEO – Travolution Awards (2011)

• Best Metasearch Website – Travelmole Web Awards (2010)

• Media Guardian Innovation Awards Finalist (2009)

• GP Bullhound Media Momentum Awards Top 50 (2009)

• Tech Media Invest 100 (2009)

• Deloitte Technology Fast 50 (2009)

Attached as Exhibit D are copies of Opposer’s press releases with additional

details about these awards.

9. Through extensive use, promotion, and recognition, Opposer has created valuable

goodwill and acquired strong common law rights in Opposer’s Mark, which represents high

quality services to consumers throughout the U.S.

10. In addition to its common law rights, Opposer owns U.S. Reg. No. 6,242,138 for

Opposer’s Mark for the services below:

• Class 35: Advertising services provided via the Internet; opinion polling, namely, public opinion polling; provision of business information; business

information services; data processing services; auctioneering; all of the foregoing relating to the travel and hospitality sectors

• Class 39: Travel information; travel arrangement services provided from an Internet website, namely, providing a website featuring travel and transportation booking and reservation services; providing travel information about flight, travel and travels tours via means of a global computer network; travel information provided online from a computer database; travel information accessible via a mobile phone utilising wireless application protocol technology; travel agency services, namely, making reservations and bookings for transportation; travel booking agencies; booking of airport parking spaces

• Class 42: Providing search engines for the Internet relating to the travel and hospitality sectors

• Class 43: Booking of temporary accommodation; travel agency services for booking temporary accommodation; information and booking services in relation to temporary accommodation provided from an Internet website; providing information relating to temporary accommodation via means of a global computer network; information relating to temporary accommodation provided online from a computer database; information relating to temporary accommodation accessible via a mobile phone using wireless application protocol technology; restaurant reservation and booking services; restaurants and bar information services

11. Under 15 U.S.C. § 1115(a), Opposer’s above-identified registration for Reg No.

6,242,138 is prima facie evidence of the validity of the registered mark, of Opposer’s ownership thereof, and of Opposer’s exclusive right to use this mark in commerce in connection with the services specified in the registration. Under Trademark Rule 2.122(d), attached as Exhibit E are printouts of the electronic records of the USPTO from the TESS database for this registration.

COUNT I (Likelihood of Confusion Under 15 U.S.C. § 1052(d))

12. Opposer incorporates paragraphs 1 through 11 by reference.

13. Despite Opposer’s prior rights in Opposer’s Mark as described above, Applicant filed an application under § 1(a) of the Trademark Act for Applicant’s Mark on August 16, 2020.

14. The August 16, 2020 filing date and August 12, 2019 date of first use alleged in the ’302 Application is subsequent to Opposer’s date of first use for Opposer’s Mark, and subsequent to the August 9, 2019 filing date of Opposer’s ’138 Registration.

15. Applicant’s Mark is confusingly similar to Opposer’s Mark. Both marks consist of a stylized sun design, with the top half of the sun rising/setting above a hill and five thick short lines suggesting sun rays that extend out from the sun portion. The sun designs in both marks are halfway above a curved hill comprised of a single downward arching line. In both marks there is a dip extending down from the center of the arch that comprises the hill. In view of the foregoing, the parties’ marks are confusingly similar in appearance, connotation, and commercial impression.

16. The goods identified in the ’302 Application are related to the services offered by

Opposer under Opposer’s Mark in that both are frequently purchased and/or used in the hospitality industry.

17. The goods identified in the ’302 Application are sold or offered to the same classes of consumers as the services offered by Opposer under Opposer’s Mark.

18. In light of the similarities in appearance, connotation, and commercial impression between the marks; the related goods and services; and the overlapping consumers; relevant consumers are likely to believe that Applicant’s goods offered under Applicant’s Mark emanate from—or are licensed by, approved by, sponsored by, or otherwise associated with—Opposer, when that is not the case. Consequently, there is a likelihood of confusion under Section 2(d) of the Trademark Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1052(d).

19. Opposer has a reasonable belief that issuance of a registration for Applicant’s

Mark will proximately cause damage to Opposer. At the least, consumer confusion caused by the

registration will result in injury to Opposer’s commercial interest in sales. Opposer’s interest in

avoiding at least consumer confusion is within the zone of interests protected by 15 U.S.C. §

1051 and 15 U.S.C. § 1052.

* * * * * * WHEREFORE, Opposer believes it will be damaged by registration of Applicant’s Mark, and prays that this Opposition be sustained, that Application Serial No. 90117302 be rejected, and

that the mark applied for therein be refused registration.

Respectfully submitted,

Date: May 26, 2021 By__/John L. Strand/______Ryan M. Van Olst John L. Strand Christina M. Licursi WOLF, GREENFIELD & SACKS, P.C. 600 Atlantic Ave. Boston, MA 02210 617-646-8000 [email protected] [email protected]

Attorneys for Opposer Skyscanner Limited

EXHIBIT A

EXHIBIT B chsa copu lpiSar Heog Log in toepmionr cooer bui2ing tcf:c kyw: d:88 c:DfL

Dnrmhee m0a fea1h Huo5rau 81manrion mo gam Wuaa 2oMAamimiBa inmaeeigan2a h’opm Mieeionr oW 5a’rimar 50iea Pop ’uo5ra m0a 5a’C rsPr2hnnauC2oM ToMAamimiBa fnhePrirv .husaming .i1 hnS cuhWWi2

BrC 20ahAWeig0mrC2oM 20ahAohiuC2oM shPhsC2oM rsPr2hnnauCnam

yBauBia5

4aP5ouS oAAoumpnimiar ’uahsSo5n ToMAhuiron Mamui2r tiMiehu timar ’P fpSian2a yBauehA

tahu20 cuhWWi2 tiMiehu rimar yBauehA r2oua 6 I,CI s yAmiMiFhmion yAAoumpnimiar c0ir rima YUCKG 20ahAWeig0mrC2oM N/C7 7YCN s 4aP5ouS lhAr ToMAC fBgC KIC7G /IUC, s 6 shPhsC2oM U7CY dinSv :ah20v hnS TonBaum kopu comhe //C/ s HpPau 4aP5ouSr fpSian2a 6 20ahAohiuC2oM UKC, xC7 s 8hrP-mo-:hns 4aP5ouSr lam Wuaav 2prmoMiFaS iSahr mo 6 Hopn2a uhma rsPr2hnnauCnam UUCI opmrMhum 2oMAamimour hnS mhsa c0ir rima U/C7G Popu rahu20 Mhusaming uarpemr mo m0a na1m eaBae 5im0 fea1h9r tima ToMAC fBgC UxC7G yBauBia5 mooeC

Jir2oBau aBan Moua iSahr 5im0 h 4aP5ouS yAAoumpnimiar ToMAamimiBa fnhePrir fpSian2a :aAoum Wuaa muihe oW fea1h9r fSBhn2aS behnC kop9ee WinS m0a mooer Pop naaS mo SuiBa Moua muhWWi2v in2epSing& coA inSprmuP moAi2r ’P ro2ihe 8nghgaManm cyb 48kzy:Jt tahu20 fea1h uhns ,( ShP muanS Hk c:fddDT cuhWWi2 4aP5ouS uarahu20 ToMAamimiBa hnhePrir rsPr2hnnau ,C/7G Tonmanm hnS t8y hpSimr fpSian2a hnhePrir ropm05arm hiueinar Weig0mr NCKIG za’rima muhWWi2 rmhmirmi2r fBauhga 8nghgaManm Wuonmiau hiueinar UCK7G c0ir rima uhnsr& muhBaeaur E Kv,NI K&KY tmhum kopu duaa cuihe c0ir tima / rsP r2hnnau /C(xG geo’he inmaunam JhieP ciMa on 2prmoMau rauBi2a ToMAamimou fBgC /, in heeagihnm hiueinar (CIUG anghgaManm tima 2prmoMau rauBi2a comhe fBgC /x SaAhumManmr

to2ihe 8nghgaManm fnhePrir coA 4aP5ouSr cuhWWi2 .amui2r

4aP5ouS yAAoumpnimiar

4aP5ouS lhAr 8hrP-mo-:hns 4aP5ouSr 4aP5ouSr SuiBing muhWWi2 mo 2oMAamimourv fBgC cuhWWi2 mo tahu20 boApehu saP5ouSr 5im0in m0ir rima9r :aeaBhn2a mo m0ir tahu20 ’pm nom mo m0ir rima ToMAamimour boApehuimP 2oMAamimiBa Ao5au rima boApehuimP

20ahA mi2samr Weig0mr K, KU 2hm0hP Ah2iWi2 Yx xU

hiueina mi2sam K7 NY m0hi hiu5hPr U/ YK JuiBa .oua cuhWWi2 Weig0r Kx U, ami0hS hiu5hPr /I YK DMAuoBa uarpemr WuoM rahu20 hnS Weigm0r Kx U, )hmhu hiu5hPr /Y xK 2onmanm MhusamingC wra fea1h9r saP5ouS uarahu20 mooer mo&

dinS ghAr in Popu saP5ouS tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee 4aP5ouSr Hoorm muhWWi2 ’P Wieeing ghAr tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee 4aP5ouSr …o5 mo WinS ahrP saP5ouSr rmuhmagP DSanmiWP 0ig0-Bhepav ’pPau saP5ouSr wn2oBau 2oMAamimour9 moA saP5ouSr HpPau 4aP5ouSr yAmiMiFhmion yAAoumpnimiar DSanmiWP hnS 2oMAama hghinrm 4aP5ouSr m0hm r0o5 h 0ig0 Apu20hra fBgC cuhWWi2 mo yughni2 OauP AoApehu saP5ouSr heuahSP SuiBing tahu20 boApehuimP yughni2 t0hua oW m0a moA rimar in Popu inSprmuP inmanm ToMAamimour ToMAamimion roMa muhWWi2 mo m0ir rimaC Ooi2a tign pA Wou h Wuaa muihe oW opu 20ahA Weig0mr IY 7( aMiuhmar AuaMipM a2onoMP UY /CYUG fSBhn2aS behn mo h22arr hee oW opu saP5ouS hnS t8y hnhePrir mooerC 20ahAarm Weig0mr 7N xY ahrPVam hiueinar UK UC7G

20ahA mi2samr 7U xY SanBau mo rhn Wuhn2ir2o UY /CYxG tmhum kopu duaa cuihe 20ahA hiueina mi2samr 7( xY Weig0mr mo 2hnhuP irehnSr /, KC,IG

tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee 4aP5ouSr yAmiMiFing Wou ’pPau saP5ouSr tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee 4aP5ouSr DMAuoBing a1irming 2onmanm

…o5 mo fnhePFa ToMAamimou 4aP5ouSr :ahS f 2oMAamimou saP5ouS hnhePrir ir h guahm 5hP mo WinS m0a ’arm saP5ouS oAAoumpnimiarv hnS roeiSiWP Popu 2onmanm Mhusaming hnS t8y rmuhmagPC

to2ihe 8nghgaManm f3fLktDt coA to2ihe coAi2r to2ihe 8nghgaManm coA moAi2r ’P momhe anghgaManm hMongrm m0ir rima hnS im9r 2oMAamimour c0a momhe humi2ear hnS hBauhga anghgaManm h2uorr hee rimar comhe fumi2ear fBgC 8nghgaManm

muhBaeaur 20ahAohiuC2oM K,/ I fBgC 8nghgaManm comhe fumi2ear rsPr2hnnauCnam KNK , dinS ouiginhev uaeaBhnm 2onmanm c0ir tima / NN iSahr rsPr2hnnauC2oM U(K /7 ToMAamimou fBgC /, K( Jir2oBau 0o5 mo uah20 Popu shPhsC2oM /,Y I hpSian2a 5im0 m0a 0aeA oW fea1hXr 2onmanm uarahu20 2hAh’ieimiar& 20ahAWeig0mrC2oM // / 2prmoMau rauBi2a dinS 2onmanm ghAr Wou )pi2s- 5in humi2ea iSahr fBgC 8nghgaManm comhe fumi2ear cuh2s Popu r0hua oW Boi2a tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou 8nghgaManm Jamhier c0ir tima ( N hMongrm saP AehPaur in h moAi2 rAh2a ToMAamimou fBgC /( 7Y Jir2oBau pni)pa hngear Wou na5 hnS a1irming 2onmanm

boApehu fumi2ear tign pA Wou h Wuaa muihe oW opu coA humi2ear ’P momhe anghgaManm hMongrm m0ir rima hnS imr 2oMAamimour fSBhn2aS behn Wou h22arr mo hee oW 2prmoMau rauBi2a SaAhumManmr opu 2onmanm mooerC fBgC 8nghgaManm comhe fumi2ear comhe 8nghgaManm comhe t0huar

c0ir tima ( ( 0mmAr&RR555CrsPr2hnnauC2oMR Nv/N7 I7N tmhum kopu duaa cuihe ToMAamimou fBgC /( IN rsPr2hnnauC2oM LhmhM fiueinar luopA deig0mrv fiueina ci2samr Z JaherI/x /(, 20ahAohiuC2oM

tsPr2hnnau 1 cuhBhePrm YUN /x( rsPr2hnnauCnam 0mmAr&RR555CrsPr2hnnauCnam Y/( UYK tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee moAi2r rsPr2hnnauCnam

tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee humi2ear

81Aeoua boApehu fumi2ear ’P coAi2 Jir2oBau ua2anm muanSing humi2ear h2uorr U7Y! moAi2rv hnS Monimou m0a lam tmhumaS 2onBaurhmionr Popu hpSian2a anghgar 5im0C

ToMAamimiBa fnhePrir

cuhWWi2 topu2ar :aWauuhe timar timar ’P 0o5 MhnP om0au E :aWauuhe bau2anmhga oBauhee rima muhWWi2 WuoM G tahu20 to2ihe :aWauuhe Jiua2m ah20 20hnnae rimar SuiBa muhWWi2 mo m0aM timar

20ahAWeig0mrC2oM 77C7G shPhsC2oM UC7 s rsPr2hnnauC2oM YUCKG rsPr2hnnauCnam /CY s ypmAauWouM m0a ToMAamimion 20ahAohiuC2oM K7CIG rsPr2hnnauC2oM Ix/ Han20Mhus hnS muh2s Popu rsPr2hnnauCnam NYC,G AauWouMhn2a uaehmiBa mo Popu 20ahAohiuC2oM IY7 2oMAamimourC fea1h9r 2oMAamimiBa shPhsC2oM NNCxG hnhePrir mooer 0aeA Pop iSanmiWP 20ahAWeig0mrC2oM x,7 2oMAamimou rmuangm0r hnS 5ahsnarrar Pop 2hn eaBauhga mo tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee ropu2ar …o5 mo in2uahra rahu20 muhWWi2 gam m0a aSgaC tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee :aWauuhe timar lam h Wuaa muihe oW opu fSBhn2aS behn Wou pneiMimaS h22arr mo&

ToMAamimiBa 4aP5ouS .hmui1 coA 4aP5ouSr fpSian2a yBauehA ToMAamimiBa Hh2seins T0a2sau fpSian2a yBauehA cooe tiMiehu rimar m0hm r0hua m0a rhMa Birimour hnS rahu20 saP5ouSr 5im0 m0ir rimaC tahu20 t0hua oW tima ToMAhuironr rsPr2hnnauC2oM cuhWWi2 Ooi2a timaXr yBauehA t2oua tiMiehu timar mo c0ir fea1h :hns wra m0ara mo 2oMAhua 5a’rima rsPr2hnnau ,C/7G /KCI,G NY tima muhWWi2 hghinrm 2oMAamimourv WinS ghAr in Popu 2onmanm hnS t8y ropm05arm hiueinar Weig0mr NCKIG /(CUIG N/C7 20ahAWeig0mrC2oM /,v/YU rmuhmagPv ou WinS rimar m0hm r0hua hn hpSian2aC Wuonmiau hiueinar UCK7G NCKIG U7CY shPhsC2oM IIY

rsP r2hnnau /C(xG /KCI7G UKC, 20ahAohiuC2oM ,vI(x tmhum kopu duaa cuihe heeagihnm hiueinar (CIUG 7CN7G UUCI rsPr2hnnauCnam 7vU(7

U(CK muhBaeo2imPC2oM Nv/Nx

tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee 4aP5ouSr

tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee tiMiehu timar

8-Hoos& .h1iMiFa kopu HuhnSXr ToMAamimiBa bomanmihe Jo5neohS ToMAamimion a1irmr in hee inSprmuiarC Hpm 0o5 So Pop gam h0ahS oW m0a 2oMAamimion 50an m0aP hua 5ousing mo So m0a rhMa? cuhWWi2 tmhmirmi2r

fea1h :hns 8rmiMhma fpSian2a laoguhA0P 8rmiMhma fee Birimour mo m0ir rima in m0a Ahrm N( ShPr c0ir rima uhnsr& Dn geo’he inmaunam muhWWi2 hnS anghgaManm /C,7 4 E Kv,NI oBau m0a Ahrm ,( ShPr

E cuhWWi2 hnS bauWouMhn2a

:hns .ahrpua Popu rima9r AoApehuimP 5im0 fea1h9r muhWWi2 hnhePrir mooerC fea1h tign pA Wou ona oW opu Auo Aehnr mo 2aumiWP Popu rima hnS h22arr& ,( ShPr hgo coShP E xv,KU E Kv,NI timar Linsing Dn tima cuhWWi2 Jhmh fee cuhWWi2 topu2ar fee Oirimour ’P TopnmuP TopnmuP fea1h :hns Oirimour ’P TopnmuP fee TopnmuP fea1h :hnsr tima 4aP5ouSr 中国中机 wnimaS tmhmar 中国中机 wnimaS tmhmar 7UC(G DMAuoBing Popu fea1h :hns luaa2a ICKG E /vUIY 中票中ü tmhum kopu duaa cuihe 中日中本 ToeoM’ih YC/G

tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee Oirimour ’P TopnmuP tima .amui2r 8rmiMhma fee Birimour mo m0ir rima

8nghgaManm bhrm ,( JhPr KCKx UG K&KY U/C7G ,G JhieP bhgaBia5r Aau Oirimou JhieP ciMa on tima Hopn2a uhma

cuhWWi2 topu2ar bhrm N( JhPr

tmhum Wuaa tmhum Wuaa tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee muihe Wou hee muihe Wou hee YUG ro2ihe eins Siua2m

tahu20 to2ihe :aWauuhe Jiua2m

tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee cuhWWi2 topu2ar

tima deo5 bhrm x( JhPr

OirimaS Vprm ’aWoua OirimaS uig0m hWmau

K/C7G googeaC2oM NKC7G googeaC2oM

/C,UG Popmp’aC2oM UCIG Popmp’aC2oM

/CYYG a1AaSihC2oM UC/KG Wh2a’oosC2oM

/CK7G Wh2a’oosC2oM /C,7G a1AaSihC2oM

/CU,G Ph0ooC2oM /CYIG hhC2oM

Ix/ comhe timar Linsing Dn

tmhum Wuaa muihe Wou hee timar Linsing Dn

JaBaeoAau cooer

Loosing Wou AuoguhMMhmi2 h22arr mo opu Shmh? cuP opu fbDr T0a2s opu fbD9r

fSSimionhe .husaming cooer

HpieS h .husaming tmuhmagP kop fua TonWiSanm Dn

lam h22arr mo Moua mooer 5im0 h Wuaa /K-ShP muihe oW fea1h9r fSBhn2aS AehnC

:a2puuing tima fpSimr giBa Pop fpSian2a fnhePrir cooer iSanmiWP Hh2seins fnhePrir cooer iSanmiWP hn h2mion Aehn mo saaA Popu rima m0a rimar hnS moAi2r Popu eins ’pieSing hnS Ahumnaur0iA WpeeP oAmiMiFaS Wou rahu20C hpSian2a 2huar h’opm MormC oAAoumpnimiar mo 0aeA guo5 Popu hpm0ouimP hnS muhWWi2C

tcf:c kyw: d:88 /K-Jfk c:DfL

Lahun Moua h’opm m0a fSBhn2aS Aehn

t8y cooer ToMAamimiBa fnhePrir cooer .husaming :aropu2ar ToMAhnP

4aP5ouS JiWWi2pemP cooe fpSian2a yBauehA cooe aHoosr f’opm

ToMAamimou 4aP5ouS .hmui1 tima ToMAhuironr OiSao cpmouiher cahM

yn-bhga t8y T0a2sau za’rima cuhWWi2 tmhmirmi2r Heog Thuaaur

ToMAamimou Hh2seins T0a2sau dinS tiMiehu timar bui2ing

t8y fpSim cooe coA timar tpAAoum

fea1h Huo5rau 81manrion Tonmh2m wr

fbD

航 fea1h Dnmaunamv Dn2C /,,x - U(U/ buiBh2P cauMr Tonmh2m fbD EXHIBIT C Prince Harry to Launch Green Travel Initiative - The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/03/travel/prince-harry-travel-travalyst...

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/03/travel/prince-harry-travel-travalyst.html

Prince Harry to Launch Green Travel Initiative The Duke of Sussex is putting his popularity as a member of the British royal family behind a consortium devoted to sustainability in tourism.

By Tariro Mzezewa

Published Sept. 3, 2019 Updated Sept. 14, 2019

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex announces Travalyst, a partnership between himself, Booking.com, SkyScanner, CTrip, TripAdvisor and Visa, at A'dam Tower in Amsterdam. Chris Jackson/Chris Jackson Collection, via Getty Images

Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, will lead a global sustainable travel initiative to bring companies, consumers and communities together, he announced on Tuesday in Amsterdam.

The initiative, called Travalyst, has been in the works for three years, Kensington Palace said. The duke began engaging in conversations with the travel industry in 2017, and the first official partnership meeting took place in January with a group of travel companies including Booking.com, Ctrip, Skyscanner, TripAdvisor and Visa, in hopes of making the tourism industry more environmentally responsible.

“Our world faces environmental challenges of unprecedented scope and scale,” the duke said on Tuesday. “From deforestation and the loss of biodiversity, to ocean plastics and poaching, the problems can sometimes seem too big to fix. These human-caused challenges often need a giant system shift to make a significant enough impact.”

Travalyst comes at a time when airlines and cruise companies, along with restaurant and hotel companies, are grappling with how to make the travel industry less damaging to the environment. It also comes weeks after the duke and his wife, Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, came under fire for traveling on private jets, which have a greater relative carbon impact than commercial planes. The duke flew commercial to Amsterdam.

The consortium aims to educate people about sustainable travel, overtourism and make it easier for them to understand whether their own travels are helping or hurting the planet and who is benefiting from travel dollars.

1 of 3 5/24/2021, 10:32 AM Prince Harry to Launch Green Travel Initiative - The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/03/travel/prince-harry-travel-travalyst...

“We want to make sustainability a priority across the entire travel experience,” said Gillian Tans, Booking.com’s chairwoman. “Another goal is how to minimize the environmental footprint of travel, and the other goal is to protect and preserve local environments, welfare and cultural heritage and help to improve the welfare of local people for the longer term.”

Increasingly, people expect travel companies to offer more sustainable options and want the money they spend on tourism to go back into the local communities they visit, and that’s where Travalyst will come in, the duke said.

“Sometimes when we appreciate the world’s beauty, we heighten its fragility,” he said. “It’s a paradox. But in our enthusiasm we can put great strain on the natural wonders we travel to see as well as the communities that call these places home.”

A number of travel companies have recently launched sustainability initiatives, including the hotel companies IHG and Marriott, both of which said they would ban small plastic bottles of bath and skin products. KLM, the Dutch airline, has run ads asking consumers to rethink their travel plans and perhaps skip a plane trip.

But this will be the first time a member of the British royal family has been involved. The duke previously has publicly supported mental health awareness, founded a charity to help children living with H.I.V. /AIDS and has spoken about environmental conservation projects across Africa.

“If you think about the duke,” Ms. Tans said, “for all his life he has been supporting conservation projects, and also he has traveled so much and has seen the connection between environmental damage, community struggles and tourism.”

She added that the duke’s passion for sustainable travel has been evident throughout the planning and organization of Travalyst.

On Saturday, the duke and duchess announced on Instagram that in the next few weeks they would be traveling to South Africa as a family and that the duke would visit Malawi, Botswana and Angola. In the post, the couple also called attention to 22 organizations, most of them local groups that work in conservation and local empowerment in countries including Namibia, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya.

In the debate over whether travel is a net good or bad for the planet, the duke appears to come down on the side of good.

“If conducted responsibly, tourism can benefit communities for generations,” the duke said.

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex with Gillian Tans, the chairwoman of booking.com, Jane Sun, the chief executive of CTrip, Kanika Soni, the president of hotels at TripAdvisor, Suzan Kereere, the global head of merchant sales and acquiring at VISA and Bryan Dove, the chief executive of Skyscanner, in Amsterdam on Tuesday. Chris Jackson/Chris Jackson Collection, via Getty Images

2 of 3 5/24/2021, 10:32 AM Prince Harry to Launch Green Travel Initiative - The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/03/travel/prince-harry-travel-travalyst...

The United Nations World Tourism Organization said that in 2018, 1.4 billion people traveled internationally, and it estimates that 1.8 billion international trips will be taken annually by 2030. Since 2000, the number of trips taken annually by people around the world has more than doubled, according to the World Bank, and there is no sign of these numbers tapering off.

The U.N. estimates that in 10 years, the number of tourists visiting countries in emerging markets will reach 1 billion annually, making up 57 percent of all international trips globally. That is one of the reasons that Travalyst is focusing on the communities affected by travel.

"By harnessing the power of the private sector, Travalyst will complement some of the great work already being done by NGOs, activists, governments, and multilateral organizations across the world,” the duke said.

52 PLACES AND MUCH, MUCH MORE Follow our 52 Places traveler, Sebastian Modak, on Instagram as he travels the world, and discover more Travel coverage by following us on Twitter and Facebook. And sign up for our Travel Dispatch newsletter: Each week you’ll receive tips on traveling smarter, stories on hot destinations and access to photos from all over the world.

3 of 3 5/24/2021, 10:32 AM 5/24/2021 Coronavirus and Booking Travel: Considering the Risk - The New York Times

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/16/travel/coronavirus-booking-travel-risks.html

Travelers Consider Their Risk Tolerance Inexpensive deals abound, and coupled with newly relaxed change and cancellation policies, some travelers are seeing little to no risk in pointing, clicking and purchasing.

By Sarah Firshein

April 16, 2020

Travel and travel planning are being disrupted by the worldwide spread of the coronavirus. For the latest updates, read The New York Times’s Covid-19 coverage here.

On March 12, the day after the World Health Organization declared the coronavirus a pandemic, Sery Kim, a lawyer in Coppell, Texas, noticed that the number of American Airlines AAdvantage miles needed to book a May flight to Barbados she had been eyeing dropped from 130,000 to 30,000 — a decrease of nearly 77 percent.

Thus set off a four-day hunt for future trips. In addition to Barbados, Ms. Kim purchased six round-trip Southwest Airlines tickets, starting later in March, to Washington, D.C., where she keeps an apartment for work. She paid $99 apiece for flights that normally cost upward of $183, with dates extending into September. She spent $93 on a late-April flight to Miami that usually costs around $330. Then she booked a safari vacation in July for about $900 round trip to Cape Town — about half what she paid for a South Africa flight in 2016.

Ms. Kim, 41, was indulging in what might be called flight arbitrage. Inexpensive airfare deals abound currently; couple those with newly relaxed airline change and cancellation policies and some travelers are seeing little-to-no risk in pointing, clicking and purchasing. They are betting that things will have improved enough to travel, and if they haven’t, they can roll their money forward into an even later trip.

“There’s an arbitrage opportunity that has never really existed in modern air travel,” said Scott Keyes, founder of Scott’s Cheap Flights, an online alert service with more than two million members. “Not only are fares super low, but to be able to cancel if you decide not to take the trip is rare. And there are absolutely people taking advantage of it — not in a pejorative sense, but literally by booking flights for when hopefully, fingers crossed, things are safer.”

To proceed cautiously amid travel advisories and border closures, Scott’s Cheap Flights is only promoting deals from July onward, and only for airlines waiving change and cancellation fees.

After her April tour through Japan was canceled, with all of her payments successfully recouped, Karen Burrows, a 56-year-old health care worker, used Scott’s Cheap Flights to purchase a $282 round-trip flight from New York City to Athens, Greece, departing in September.

“It’s a comfort — a consolation prize — and a way to look forward to something else after the disappointment of Japan,” said Ms. Burrows, who lives in Feura Bush, N.Y. “I’ll probably wait until August, and if it’s not looking like things are going to be healthy, I’ll make changes with the airline. I wouldn’t make any nonrefundable accommodations at this point, either.”

September prices for Athens flights from New York City often cost upward of $1,000. But Ms. Burrows has another reference point: Two years ago, she paid $446 for a flight to Athens from Newark, N.J. — another Scott’s Cheap Flights find.

“The comparison of real prices today versus reference prices that consumers have in their memories — ones they may even be unaware that they hold — is leading to this kind of purchase behavior,” said Priya Raghubir, a New York University Stern School of Business professor who studies consumer psychology and spending.

Before the coronavirus pandemic, Rina Baraz Nehdar, the editor in chief of the website L.A. Family Travel, had been watching round-trip flights from Los Angeles to Rome; August fares hovered around $900 apiece. In early March, she found $400 flights on Ovago, an online travel agency.

“Our trip isn’t scheduled until August so I pray we still get to go, and if so, I’m stoked about our great bargain. Since we can only travel during the time school is out, we typically have to pay premium prices. This was a nice relief for us,” said Ms. Baraz Nehdar, 45.

Cheap summer flights like the ones Ms. Baraz Nehdar found are expressly attributable to the coronavirus, said Mr. Keyes, of Scott’s Cheap Flights. Even though air travel has become generally less expensive in the last 40 years, summer has remained a much-sought-after — and therefore pricey — time to fly.

And with airlines poised to burn through $61 billion of their cash reserves during the second quarter of this year, according to a recent analysis by the International Air Transport Association, having customers on the books — even if they eventually cancel — is a strategic move.

“Selling cheaper tickets for future travel is a good way for airlines to generate sales activity and also start restoring consumer confidence for future travel, which gets shaken badly in events like this,” said Khalid Usman, senior vice president at Oliver Wyman, a management consulting firm.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/16/travel/coronavirus-booking-travel-risks.html 1/2 5/24/2021 Coronavirus and Booking Travel: Considering the Risk - The New York Times Although inexpensive airfare affects yield — the average fare per passenger per mile — it also helps drum up demand. According to new data from Hopper, a travel-booking app that analyzes and predicts flight prices, round-trip domestic airfare is down about 41 percent from last year and 44 percent from 2018.

Hayley Berg, Hopper’s economist, has seen demand shift to the latter half of the year; demand for international travel doesn’t pick up again until August. Skyscanner, a travel-deals website and app, saw a slight uptick in flight bookings in the last week of March (compared to earlier in the month) for departures in August, September and October.

But hopeful travelers looking to take advantage of what is effectively a buyers’ market should still know what they’re getting into.

“While governments around the world are planning to provide support to airlines financially, some element of financial risk for travelers remains, such as airlines canceling flights or, in the worst case scenario, airlines going out of business,” Mr. Usman said.

According to a policy that was reiterated by the Department of Transportation in early April, passengers are entitled to cash refunds if their flight is canceled (or substantially changed) for reasons relating to the coronavirus. Facing travel advisories and decreased demand, many airlines have already significantly reduced their service.

But passengers who voluntarily cancel may have little choice but to accept a voucher, which might not cover the cost of a more expensive ticket down the line and often expires 12 months after the original booking date.

That’s why some experienced travelers, like Nelson Yuan, a Hong Kong–based investment strategist who flew around 300,000 miles last year for business, haven’t gone beyond window-shopping.

“Cash is fungible. At this point, many airlines are effectively not giving refunds despite their stated policies; they’re short on cash so they’re pushing credits,” said Mr. Yuan, 37. “In that case you’re basically giving them a short-term loan.”

Ms. Kim was forced to cancel her Miami trip (without penalty) because the hotel she had hoped to book is closed. But despite the widespread stay-at-home orders and quarantine-on-arrival advisories, including in Barbados and South Africa, she remains undeterred about her other plans.

“Unless the airlines cancel the flights, I’m planning on going,” she said.

Sarah Firshein is a Brooklyn-based travel writer. If you need advice about a best-laid travel plan that went awry, send an email to [email protected] — Sarah is also our Tripped Up columnist.

Follow NY Times Travel on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Get weekly updates from our Travel Dispatch newsletter, with tips on traveling smarter, destination coverage and photos from all over the world.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/16/travel/coronavirus-booking-travel-risks.html 2/2 Aug 25, 2019, 07:56am EDT | 309 views Incredible Fare: Fly West Coast To Beijing For $269

Gabriel Leigh Contributor Travel I cover travel and transport with an eye on urbanism and adventure.

For those after a good excuse to go to China on a whim, the sub-$300 airfares available now from Los Angeles to Beijing might be just the ticket. This is an exceptionally low fare and seems to be available on various dates in September and October. The lowest fares are for flights on Air China – a reasonably well-regarded airline and a Star Alliance member, while many dates also have an American Airlines option usually for only a little bit more. In both cases, flights are nonstop.

The best place to find these fares is Skyscanner.

An example of the $269 fare to Beijing. SKYSCANNER

We're currently enjoying an era where low fares to a number of international destinations are plentiful, and those show no sign of letting up. Even so, this is about as low as I've seen a fare from the US to Asia where it wasn't a mistake on the part of the airline. The fare has been available for a few days but odds are it won't be for too much longer.

Keep in mind, of course, that US citizens need a visa for China. HT: Secret Flying.

Passport

Get a First-Class Guide to Luxury Travel Explore the finest destinations and experiences around the world in the Forbes Passport newsletter.

Email address Sign Up

You may opt out any time. By signing up for this newsletter, you agree to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy

Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn.

Gabriel Leigh Follow

I'm a writer and lmmaker, born in Manhattan, raised in Japan and the UK and now based in Stockholm. In between I've been to 50 countries and counting, and I speak… Read More

Reprints & Permissions

ADVERTISEMENT Democracy Dies in Darkness How to score unbelievably cheap airline ights with mistake fares

By Danielle Bra Oct. 24, 2019 at 8:00 a.m. EDT

Maybe this has happened to you. You’re casually scrolling through social media when you spot a friend crowing that she’s headed to Japan next month because she just scored a flight for $247 round trip.

What? Where? Your casual scrolling transforms into a frantic Web search and simultaneous call to your partner to check on possible dates. You finally find the right airline, only to see that the $247 round-trip deal was a mistake that has since been corrected. You’re crushed; you never knew you always wanted to go to Japan for $247 until you couldn’t.

Mistake fares are lovely surprises that occur for a number of reasons, says Scott Keyes, the Portland-based founder of Scott’s Cheap Flights, who likes to share that he once traveled to Milan from New York for $130 round trip because of one such blunder. “It can be caused by human error or by a fat-finger discount,” Keyes said. He said he thinks his Milan fare probably was supposed to be $1,300 — but because of a misreading or a slip of a finger, a zero was omitted, shaving $1,000 off the cost of his ticket. This also happened in 2007, when customers were able to score a business- class flight from San Francisco to New Zealand for $1,500 rather than $15,000.

Currency conversion errors (in 2012, a flight from Myanmar to the United States was $300 because of a currency conversion mistake), an algorithm (in 2013, some people snagged flights to Hawaii for $7 round trip because of a computer glitch) and other human errors (programmers may forget the fuel surcharge, for example) can lead to these mistakes.

Until 2015, the Transportation Department required all airlines to honor mistake fares; now the government simply requires airlines to refund your mistake fare and reimburse you for cancellation fees if you bought that fare and then tacked on hotels, excursions and other travel plans.

Still, Keyes said, almost all the airlines continue to honor their mistake fares. “If they cancel the tickets, they have thousands of irate customers,” Keyes said. “Those folks vent about it on social media, and it becomes a huge PR nightmare.” Not only do those mistakes sometimes fly (pun intended), but occasionally the airlines even use the mistakes as a PR plus. After Hong Kong Airlines honored its $600 round-trip United States to Asia business-class seat mistake, it handed out cards to the fortunate recipients: “As one of the lucky few to get that deal of a lifetime .. . we would love to see some of your photos onboard,” the cards said. The airline received plenty of Instagram love.

But before flying via a mistake fare, you have to snag that mistake fare. Here’s how to find them or other super-low fares. Pay for membership to special deal sites. Dale Johnson, co-founder of Nomad Paradise, has scored deals like New York to Johannesburg round trip for less than $200 because he pays for memberships to Scott’s Cheap Flights and Flystein, which send deals to him often. Sometimes these are mistake fares, and other times they’re simply particularly good deals.

Set up price alerts. Google Flights or Kayak will let you know when a flight has dropped below the rate you set, Johnson said. In this case, you’d have to set a price alert for a specific route rather than waiting for a random deal — but if there is a mistake or a very good deal offered on your route, you’ll be the first to know about it.

Sign up for daily alerts. There are a few newsletters/email alerts focusing on mistake fares, said Sophie Anderson, founder of the Wanderful Me, a vegan travel and adventure blog. Her favorites: Secret Flying, Airfarewatchdog, the Flight Deal and FlyerTalk Mileage Run Deals.

Follow apps that don’t send alerts at set times (check the fine print to see whether you’ll get instant alerts). If a travel company is offering a daily price alert at the same time every day, then you’re going to miss some great deals, said Brianna Schneider, a spokeswoman for Hopper, a travel-booking app. Instead, you want to follow apps such as Hopper, Scott’s Cheap Flights or Skyscanner, which monitor the prices all day every day via algorithms that detect mistake fares instantly. These apps will alert users via a push notification immediately, because the mistake fares don’t last long and can happen at any time, Schneider said.

Click “see first.” A little-known option on Facebook is to use the “see first” button so you can prioritize which friends or pages you want to see first when you open Facebook. Use this for the mistake fare pages you follow so you are more likely to see them as soon as they post a deal. The lucky people in front of Facebook when the deal is posted will be able to snag it.

Book through the airline’s website, not a travel agency. Travel agencies tend to make a request for the ticket. This takes time, and during these precious hours, the mistake fare may disappear. If you book without a middleman, you’ll snag the deal faster and get your ticket in your inbox — which usually means it’ll be honored, Keyes said.

Don’t hesitate. Federal law states that if you book a flight directly with an airline and are at least a week out from travel, the airline must give you 24 hours to cancel without penalty, Keyes said. So book the flight even if you aren’t completely sure about the dates; just make sure you check the dates and make a final decision within 24 hours. While the law only applies to U.S. airlines, most airlines outside the country also have a 24-hour penalty-free cancellation policy.

Focus on North America and Europe. Flights departing from North America and Europe typically see the largest number of fare errors, simply because the higher number of flights, the more chances of mistakes, said Tarik Allag, founder of Secret Flying. “Additionally, flights which have multiple airlines operating on the same ticket are more susceptible to becoming error fares,” Allag said, explaining that fuel charges are added after commercial airline reservation systems are created, and this often leads to errors on the airline’s complex, outdated systems. When more than one airline is present on the same ticket (in other words, when flights are booked through one airline but operated by another carrier), these types of glitches occur more frequently. Although there aren’t particular airlines that stand out in terms of having the most frequent error fares, a few years ago, United Airlines was flubbing fares about every few days over a two-week period Allag said few days over a two-week period, Allag said.

Search for flights through a VPN. A virtual private network allows you to browse the Internet anonymously from anywhere — so you can essentially log in from another country, said Johnson of Nomad Paradise, an online guide to traveling the world as a digital nomad. “Due to exchange rates, booking flights in some countries is far cheaper than others,” he said. When he needed to fly from Singapore to Denpasar, Indonesia, Johnson tried several countries, and when browsing from Thailand, some of the flights were up to $200 less (it’s not technically a mistake, but this trick lowers the price to mistake fare levels).

First, you have to purchase and download a VPN. (Johnson recommends Express VPN, which costs $9.99 for the monthly plan.) Next, clear your cookies so that the sites can’t detect your strategy. You will also need to find a website in the country you want to search from. For example, if you’re using a VPN for an IP address in Spain, you’ll need to go to Expedia.es instead of Expedia.com. Some recommended countries to search are Argentina and Russia, which tend to offer lower fares than other countries.

Follow your local airport on social media. Anderson’s local airport is Minneapolis-St. Paul, so she follows it, and it regularly updates its Facebook page with flight deals.

Be aware of currency devaluation. Sometimes, when there’s an overnight currency devaluation, it can be really inexpensive to book a flight in a foreign country when all the systems haven’t caught up to the exchange rate change, Keyes said. It wouldn’t technically be a mistake fare, but it can save a lot of money. For example, in 2012, when Myanmar’s government stopped pegging its currency to the U.S. dollar,causing its value to plunge virtually overnight from 6 kyat per dollar to 800 kyat per dollar, travelers were able to book business- and first-class flights out of Yangon that had previously been more than $10,000 for as little as $250, Keyes said.

Braff is a writer based in Chicago. Find her on Twitter: @daniellebraff.

View more Democracy Dies in Darkness Fall used to be considered the oseason for travel. Not this year.

Travel’s typical slow period could become 2020’s peak. Keep these tips in mind before embarking on a fall trip.

By Natalie B. Compton August 26, 2020 at 1:44 p.m. EDT

In a normal year, when the leaves begin to turn and the children go back to school, it’s shoulder season in the travel world. But as we know, 2020 is not a normal year.

With school and work still taking place remotely for many and some coronavirus restrictions lifting, relatively more people may opt to travel in what’s typically the offseason.

“This is going to be a different fall than in the past, because probably 90 percent of the schools are closed, and so people can travel,” says Roger Dow, president and CEO of U.S. Travel Association.

After a record-breaking August in terms of occupancy and room rates, Gurney’s Star Island resort in Montauk, N.Y., is on pace to have a strong fall, with three times more bookings this September than in 2019.

“We already have now more business on the books than we budgeted for the year,” says George Filopoulos, owner of Gurney’s resorts. “I think now we’re seeing people who … are budgeting time to spend out here to extend the summer, or to catch up on summer plans maybe they didn’t have.”

While domestic travel is returning faster than international, Gavin Harris, the commercial director for travel booking site Skyscanner, says fall international booking behavior is on the rise, too. “Travel providers are driving the return to domestic and international travel with extremely attractive pricing, enhanced safety measures and flexible booking policies,” Harris said in an email.

At this time, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continues to warn that “travel increases your chance of getting and spreading covid-19.” Health experts say that those who are at high risk for a severe case of the coronavirus are advised against travel unless it’s essential.

If you do embark on a fall trip this year, here are some tips to keep in mind.

Some traditional fall trips may still be viable this year

With the exception of big events like Oktoberfest and Halloween parades, many of fall’s best-loved travel activities can be enjoyed without crowds. Popular fall travel destinations like Salem, Mass., will still host Halloween tourism events, but only if they can be carried out with social distancing in mind.

Once the 2020 fall foliage prediction map comes out, you can plan a road trip to see the country’s most colorful changing leaves near you.

Many of fall travel do’s and don’ts still remain. Remember to avoid approaching wildlife, touching gravestones, walking around with lit candles or taking nature home with you from national parks.

Consider a more remote getaway

Avoiding crowded transportation methods, and crowded destinations, can reduce your risk of coronavirus exposure.

Lin Chen, a doctor and director of the Travel Medicine Center at Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Mass., says that even though there are not many confirmed cases of in-flight coronavirus transmission, traveling by car may be safer than traveling by plane, or crowded bus or train, during the pandemic.

Just as important as choosing how you get there is choosing where you’re going. If you travel this fall, pick a destination that allows for easy distancing from others.

Bookings on travel organizing app TripIt between Sept. 15 to Nov. 15 showed flights to city destinations like Chicago, New York, D.C. and Seattle dropped considerably this year, while such beach destinations as Cancun, Mexico, Honolulu and Fort Myers, Fla., have increased considerably.

Kelly Soderlund, a spokesperson for TripIt, says its data shows “large increases in the share of flight reservations for more remote or beachy cities, especially in Hawaii, and in resort destinations in Mexico and the Caribbean.”

And even if your fall trip is to an outdoorsy destination, travelers should be mindful about avoiding crowds. “If you decide, ‘I’m going to a crowded beach or a crowded gathering,’ then obviously you are putting yourself in a riskier situation with a higher ability to get infected,” Syra Madad, a special pathogens expert who was recently featured in Netflix docuseries “Pandemic: How to Prevent an Outbreak,” told The Washington Post in May.

Consider getting a coronavirus test before you leave

Before you take off, consider getting tested for the coronavirus to know you won’t be taking the virus on the road with you. According to the CDC, travel-associated coronavirus testing is a “worthwhile concept” that can help reduce the risk of spreading the virus.

But a negative test result doesn’t mean you’ll be protected while you travel. Remember to stay vigilant about mask- wearing, hand-washing and physical distancing whenever you’re out in public.

Check with your general practitioner and local and state health department websites, for information on coronavirus testing options in your area.

Know the travel restrictions of your destination, and your home state

Coronavirus travel restrictions change often and can be difficult to keep straight. Dow says that as of last week, 31 U.S. jurisdictions have no travel restrictions for visitors coming from other places, and 21 have restrictions for visitors that could require self-quarantines.

“They need to do a lot of homework about all the different [coronavirus] policies,” Chen says. “Whether you’re going to go to Maine, or you’re going to go to Rwanda, you have to figure out of the policy at the destination and along the way.”

By “along the way,” Chen means travelers should be aware of coronavirus travel restrictions in any places people could pass through on a trip.

“What if the trip is interrupted and they’re stuck there, what are the policies?” Chen says.

Before you leave for a trip this fall, check the government website(s) of the destination(s) you’ll be in along the way, and your local government website to see what kinds of restrictions you’ll face when you come home from a trip.

If you’re trying to plan international travel, you can consult CovidEntryCheck, a new tool that monitors more than 34,000 travel routes, as well as websites and data sources, to show travel restrictions and the number of reported coronavirus cases at your desired destination.

Is entirely contactless travel possible? I planned a trip to find out.

A pandemic challenge for lifeguards: Protect beachgoers, and themselves Cruise lines are already canceling sailings into 2021

Restaurants in Italy are reopening ancient ‘wine windows’ used during the plague

Sign in to join the conversation View more Introducing 5 FP Newsletters: Energy, Manage Print SIGN UP Economy, Investor, Work and Finance Financial Subscription Post: Introducing 5 Newsletters Sign Up Now> at o a ost Sections Search Subscribe Sign In

News Politics NP Comment Post Picks Financial Post Healthing Driving The GrowthOp Videos Podcasts E-Paper Refer a Friend

World / News Mistake airline fares are the best way to score super cheap plane tickets. Here's how Milan to New York for $130? The U.S. to Asia for $600 in business class? First class out of Myanmar for $250? All possible

Washington Post Danielle Braff

Oct 24, 2019 • October 24, 2019 • 7 minute read • Join the conversation A little-known option on Facebook is to use the "see rst" butt on so you can prioritiz e which friends or pages you want to see rst when you open Facebook. Use this for the mistake fare pages you follow so you are more likely to see them as soon as they post a deal. PHOTO BY GETTY IMAGES/STOCK

Maybe this has happened to you. You’re casually scrolling through social media when you spot a friend crowing that she’s headed to Japan next month because she just scored a ight for $247 round trip.

What? Where? Your casual scrolling transforms into a frantic Web search and simultaneous call to your partner to check on possible dates. You nally nd the right airline, only to see that the $247 round-trip deal was a mistake that has since been corrected. You’re crushed; you never knew you always wanted to go to Japan for $247 until you couldn’t.

Ad : (0:29)

Gear we love in Lululemon’s marked-down section

Mistake fares are lovely surprises that occur for a number of reasons, says Scott Keyes, the Portland- based founder of Scott’s Cheap Flights, who likes to share that he once traveled to Milan from New York for $130 round trip because of one such blunder. “It can be caused by human error or by a fat-nger discount ” Keyes said He said he thinks his Milan fare probably was supposed to be $1 300 but discount, Keyes said. He said he thinks his Milan fare probably was supposed to be $1,300 — but because of a misreading or a slip of a nger, a zero was omitted, shaving $1,000 off the cost of his ticket. This also happened in 2007, when customers were able to score a business-class ight from San Francisco to New Zealand for $1,500 rather than $15,000.

STORY CONTINUES BELOW

This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

Currency conversion errors (in 2012, a ight from Myanmar to the United States was $300 because of a currency conversion mistake), an algorithm (in 2013, some people snagged ights to Hawaii for $7 round trip because of a computer glitch) and other human errors (programmers may forget the fuel surcharge, for example) can lead to these mistakes.

Related Reading

5 Tips to Sleep Better on Your Next Trip

May 31, 2018

https://www.nytimes.com/guides/travel/how-to-fly 5/24/2021 How to Have a Good Flight - Travel Guides - The New York Times Page 26 of 27

Seeking Redress When Air Travel Goes Awry

May 2, 2012

Fliers, Do You Know Your Rights?

April 12, 2017

Too Hot to Fly? Climate Change May Take a Toll on Air Travel

June 20, 2017

About the Author

Elaine Glusac is a Chicago-based freelance writer, frequent contributor to The New York Times and aviation geek.

https://www.nytimes.com/guides/travel/how-to-fly 5/24/2021 How to Have a Good Flight - Travel Guides - The New York Times Page 27 of 27

• NYTimes.com • Guides • Send us Feedback

• Privacy Policy • Terms of Service • © The New York Times Company

https://www.nytimes.com/guides/travel/how-to-fly 5/24/2021 Airline Booking Hacks: What Works, and What Might Get You in Trouble - The New Yo... Page 1 of 5

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/29/travel/airline-booking-strategies.html 5/24/2021 Airline Booking Hacks: What Works, and What Might Get You in Trouble - The New Yo... Page 2 of 5

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/29/travel/airline-booking-strategies.html 5/24/2021 Airline Booking Hacks: What Works, and What Might Get You in Trouble - The New Yo... Page 3 of 5

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/29/travel/airline-booking-strategies.html 5/24/2021 Airline Booking Hacks: What Works, and What Might Get You in Trouble - The New Yo... Page 4 of 5

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/29/travel/airline-booking-strategies.html 5/24/2021 Airline Booking Hacks: What Works, and What Might Get You in Trouble - The New Yo... Page 5 of 5

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/29/travel/airline-booking-strategies.html 5/24/2021 Oct 4, 2017, 11:37am EDT 5 Best Online Tools for Searching Flights

Johnny Jet Former Contributor Travel Optimizing travel with travel credit cards and reward guides

It seems that airfare comparison sites are a dime a dozen. With so many different sites you would think that you would get identical search results from every single site. The next time you plan to fly and are flexible about which airline to use, try using one of these online tools for searching flights first.

Searching online for ights DEPOSITPHOTOS

1. Google Flights Google Flights is another great option as you get the usual quick and simple search experience for everything else you "Google" and for flights as well. Google uses the powerful meta-search data powered by ITA Matrix to find all the various prices and flight times in an instant.

Google's lowest cost flight from Chicago to Tucson was the same flight times as Momondo and Kayak and it cost $319 (the same as Kayak). But, Google Flights displayed the results as quickly as you can enter the information, unlike the other online tools that require you to enter all the information and then wait several seconds for the results to populate.

If you want to choose each flight leg separately, Google Flights might be the best option for "a la carte pricing." With other search engines, you need to browse through all the packages and find the departure and arrival combinations. Using Google Flights, you first pick the departing flight that best fits your schedule and it will show you the lowest price (round-trip) if you choose that particular flight.

After choosing the departure flight, you are taken to a screen with the return flights. The cheapest flight times are listed first (regardless of carrier) and the more expensive flights are listed in ascending order.

Whether you want to book a one-way, round-trip, or multi-city fare, it can be easily done with Google Flights and you can even get tracking prices sent directly to your Gmail account if you are still watching prices.

2. Kayak

Kayak has long been a crowd favorite for being quick and simple. It is still one of the best online tools for searching flights, but, it doesn't always find the cheapest flights. Using the sample route from Chicago to Tucson, the cheapest fare was the exact same itinerary as Momondo, but, since they Kayak didn't display the results from Omega Flight Store, the cheapest price for this far was $319 when purchased from American. Compared to Momondo, Kayak did show other fares that cost $319 as well with different flight times. The next cheapest flight for Momondo was $333 after the initial low fare of $306 was listed. Kayak does seem to do a better job of listing all the flight possibilities directly from the carrier first. As many carriers keep the best prices to themselves, this can be a good thing.

The Kayak website is also easy to navigate. You will have to uncheck a box on the search screen to not compare fares to other search engines in a separate window. One nice feature about Kayak is that they will show a green dot next to a day that signifies a lower airfare price when viewing the travel calendar.

3. Skyscanner

Another popular website many travelers like to use is Skyscanner. It's a British tool that searches the results of 22 different travel providers and airline carriers to find the lowest prices.

Interestingly, they found a different itinerary for $309 round-trip from ORD to TUS on American Airlines. This is cheaper than Kayak's bottom fare and they had several offerings at this low price point, unlike Momondo. And the flights could be booked directly from American Airlines, not a third-party agency.

The layout of Skyscanner is a mix between Momondo and Skyscanner. Its top row has the same three cheapest price points as Momondo, but, has the basic white background like Kayak does.

4. Momondo

One online tool that is near the top of many travelers list is Momondo. It has received the accolades from many leading publications for their efficiency and ease-of-use. Momondo might be your best option for multi-city searches and also when you use your mobile device. Above the search results, the top row will display three different price points: cheapest, quickest, and best. Clicking on either of those three prices will take you to the flights within the price range. Or, you can scroll through the results as Momondo will show the results by the carrier, flight times, and price.

Momondo also has a unique ranking system that combines flight time and price to determine a happiness rating for that particular flight itinerary. It is a 10-point scale with 0 being bad and 10 signifying a good flight.

One other advantage of searching with Momondo is that you don't have to unselect a box to compare prices for other search engines. This means less of those annoying pop-up windows you need to close to see the price.

As a sample route, Chicago (any airport) to Tucson displayed the lowest fare of $306 on American Airlines as it was able to search the fares of Omega Flight Store (all fees were included in the $306 price) which happens to be cheaper than directly from the carrier.

5. AwardEx

A newcomer to the flight searching arena, AwardEx makes the list as you can calculate how many rewards points it takes to fly. While the list is growing, you can view prices for each flight leg from Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, Starwood Preferred Guest, and 60 individual carriers like Aeroplan and Delta Airlines.

The site is a work in progress, but, searching for award flights just got easier as you compare the mileage requirements from several different programs all in one place. You can only search one-way or round-trip fares only at this point on AwardEx. And, a mobile app for Apple devices will be arriving soon as well.

Summary of the Best Online Tools for Searching Flights Any of these websites will help you find the lowest deals and be able to cut through the fluff that other third-party booking sites add to the search process. To find which site is best for your needs, you might try two different ones for the first few flight searches. And, don't forget that compared award mileage just got a little easier too!

Passport

Get a First-Class Guide to Luxury Travel Explore the finest destinations and experiences around the world in the Forbes Passport newsletter.

Email address Sign Up

You may opt out any time. By signing up for this newsletter, you agree to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy

Johnny Jet Follow

For the past 20 years I've averaged 150,000 miles and 20 countries. I've been featured in many major publications and have appeared on ABC, CBS, CNBC, CNN, FOX, MSNBC,… Read More

Reprints & Permissions

ADVERTISEMENT Feb 1, 2019, 05:26pm EST | 5,729 views Best Travel Tips And Vacation Spots For 2019

Richard Eisenberg Contributor Next Avenue Contributor Group Retirement Editor of the Money and Work channels for NextAvenue.org

This article is more than 2 years old.

The Polar Vortex this week was good for one thing: giving many of us incentive to ponder where we’d like to vacation to get away from the big chill. Soon! After spending two days at The New York Times Travel Show in New York City recently, I have some suggestions as well as ways to save money when you take a trip in 2019. Where to Go in 2019

“The world is on sale,” said Mark Murphy, president and CEO of Travalliance Media. “The dollar is strong against every foreign currency. If you ever thought about going abroad, 2019 is the best time.” Murphy said traveling abroad is 30 to 40% cheaper, based on the dollar, than 10 years ago. But he had a caveat: airfares. “The most expensive thing you’ll do is fly. But when you’re on the ground, things are dirt cheap.”

Pauline Frommer, editorial director of the Frommer’s travel guidebooks and co-president of FrommerMedia, reeled off her annual list of the best places to go. Among her picks, which she said are “less expensive than usual or have special celebrations going on or are under the radar but about to pop big:”

Also on Forbes:

Tahiti “It’s a great year to go there believe it or not,” Frommer said. “The new airline French Bee is doing direct flights from California for a fraction of what others charge, so there’s a major airfare war going on. Prices are sometimes 30 to 40% lower than a year ago.” Frommer recommend tourists visit the nearby Austral Islands — “Tahiti as Gaugin would’ve experienced it, where you stay in guest houses on the beach. It’s not Bora Bora where you might spend $400 or $500 a night. Here, it’s more like $100.”

Matera, Italy “This is the year to go to one of the longest continually inhabited places on earth,” said Frommer. (Mel Gibson used the setting as a stand-in for Jerusalem in The Passion of the Christ.) A city of caves, “Matera will be one of Europe’s Capitals of Culture in 2019, with 1,000 artists descending and putting on artworks, dance, opera, and theater. It will be amazing to be there,” said Frommer.

New York State “We think our home state is one of the best places to go in 2019,” Frommer said. “It has more ski resorts than any other state and more improvements the year, with better trails, snowmaking and resorts.” Also, she noted, in March, New York City will begin opening the largest real estate development in U.S. history, 28-acre Hudson Yards (what Frommer’s calls “the grandly envisioned, multi-tower mini-city”), an indoor-outdoor arts complex with an Escher-like climbable sculpture called The Nest. The Jackie Robinson Museum will open downtown, too. And there are two big, 50th anniversaries: June’s Stonewall Inn gay rights uprising, which will be marked during WorldPride NYC (“Madonna is rumored to be performing,” Frommer said), and Woodstock 2019 coming August 15-18, two concerts to be held at the site of the original rock concert.

Singapore “It became famous this year in the hit movie Crazy Rich Asians,” Frommer noted. “You’ll see cutting-edge, wacky architecture, with vertical gardens and elevators big enough for a car. But the real reason is it’s a culturally-rich place and a very unusual one, with some of the best food on the planet. And it has the most inexpensive Michelin-star restaurant on earth — a noodle shack where you can eat for $1.80.”

Frommer said a few spots have become overrun with tourists, though, and had alternatives for them: Instead of Iceland, go to the nearby Faroe Islands. Skip Bali and go to Komodo Island instead. In Thailand, rather than sunbathing on May Beach, head to the Similan Islands. And ditch Dubrovnik for Rovinj, also in Croatia.

Rudy Maxa, of public television’s Rudy Maxa’s World, said “I really like Uruguay. It’s quite unspoiled and it’s not a place Americans talk about a lot.” He also talked up the former Soviet republic of Georgia. “It’s my new favorite place. I expected grim Soviet-style buildings and grandmas with babushkas. I was surprised. It’s an incredible value for the American dollar and has five-star hotels for $189 a night and dinner for two for maybe $33. But it’s a little tough to get to; I had to overnight in Istanbul.”

How to Save on Flights and Hotels Saving on airfares Kurt Knutsson, aka “Kurt the Cyber Guy” from Fox & Friends, says the site where he starts looking for airfares is Google’s ITA Matrix, which shows “every single seat for sale for the best price and experience.” He also recommended the Donotpay.com travel site. “It’s an amazing resource. You sign up free for a flight and they watch the fare. If it’s worth re-ticketing between the time you bought it and the time you’ll travel, they’ll alert you,” he said.

Frommer said her company’s search for the lowest airfares had the best results with the Momondo and Skyscanner.net sites. “They whupped the competition,” she noted.

Book airfares on Sundays and avoid purchasing on Fridays, Frommer said. She cited an Airline Reporting Corporation study that found you can save 17% buying on Sundays and pay 12% more on Fridays.

Also, she said, for the lowest fares, it’s best to book flights six to eight weeks in advance. ‘You won’t save booking seven or eight months out.”

Saving on hotels A few websites are especially good for finding hotel deals. Frommer’s picks: Booking.com, and for Asian trips, Agoda.com. If you don’t mind using an opaque site (think Priceline) where you don’t know in advance which hotel offers the lowest price, Frommer recommends BiddingTraveler.com and TheBiddingTraveler.com.

Also, look for an anniversary deal at resorts and hotels. “Many resorts offer really nice anniversary packages,” said Nancy Barkley, a Philadelphia-based travel planner and founder of Honeymoons and Get-A-Ways. “They may offer a complementary romantic dinner.”

And see if you can get a free night by staying an extra day. “You might be able to pay for three nights and get the fourth free at a luxury hotel,” said Matthew Upchurch, chairman and CEO of the Virtuoso network of luxury travel agencies. 11 More Travel Tips

Be careful about “New Distribution Capability” or NDC. This travel-industry online pricing program “will shape how you book airfares in coming weeks,” said Frommer. Essentially, NDC will let airlines track you better to learn how you’ve booked tickets in the past “and then give you what they think you want and what will give them the most money.” The problem? If you’ve bought tickets for work, and paid for, say, priority boarding and a checked bag, the airline will assume you’ll pay that higher price for a vacation and only show you that fare, Frommer noted. To avoid NDC, Frommer advised, “be anonymous when you search for travel online and clear your history and cookies. It’s the only way you will see the true prices.”

If you want a tour, check out marketplace websites that vet tour operators. Frommer recommended Tour Radar, StrideTravel, Viator and Evaneos.net.

Know the differences among river cruise companies before you book a river trip. Frommer said Uniworld, Tauck and Scenic are “over the top” lines. By contrast, Emerald Waterways, Croisieurope, Grand Circle U and Vantage are budget lines.

Scrutinize a travel insurance policy before you buy it. Travalliance’s Murphy said it’s essential to read the fine print so you’re not unpleasantly surprised that the policy doesn’t cover what you expected. “It ought to have trip interruption insurance to cover you for prepaid items if you don’t fulfill the trip. Be sure it picks up costs if your airline cancels on you and you need a hotel or meals.” Frommer likes the Squaremouth.com site, which searches for the best travel insurance policies. “Never buy travel insurance from the same people you’re buying your travel from. If they go belly up, you’ll lose the cost of the trip and the insurance. And you’re paying them a commission that’s more than if you go direct,” she said. Consider using a travel agent — now called a “travel adviser” — to get luxury-travel perks. Upchurch, of the Virtuoso network of luxury travel agencies, gave an example. “A client called about booking a three- night stay at the Aria hotel in Las Vegas, after finding an ‘awesome’ rate online and asked one of our travel advisers to beat it. The adviser said: ‘I can’t beat the rate; my rate is $20 more per night, but if you book with me, you get breakfasts included and a VIP upgrade and a $100 resort credit, so the value of the stay is much better. You’ll pay an extra $60 total for a three- night stay in exchange for $200 in value.”

Spend money for a private guide when traveling abroad. “If you’re going to splurge on one thing, do it on a private guide who can take you places where you can’t go otherwise or wouldn’t have gone — a local who knows the ins and outs so you’re not waiting in lines,” said Barkley. If you need to find one, ask your hotel’s concierge, she added. And, Upchurch said, you may be able to get a guide for 20 to 40% less during the week than on a weekend.

Try “high/low” eating when overseas. That, said Upchurch, means you might go to a Michelin-star restaurant lunch (where prices can be half those at the same place for dinner) and then have street food for dinner.

Know whether haggling is expected or shunned. “In some parts, it’s expected and it’s a nice thing to do, going back and forth. When I was buying jewelry in India, tea was brought out,” said Daisann McLane, a former New York Times Frugal Traveler columnist. “I wouldn’t try doing it in Paris.”

When packing a suitcase, lay on the top a printout with your name, address, phone number and email address. That way, said Liam P. Cusack, managing editor of Cruise & Travel Report, “if your baggage tag gets ripped off and your bag gets delayed by the airline, they’ll be able to know how to find you.” Be sure your passport is valid for at least six months after you plan to travel. If it’s not, Cusack said, you may be denied boarding on your flight.

Buy an AirSelfie, said Knutsson. “It’s a drone with a camera that you can fit in your pocket. You download the app and throw the AirSelfie up in the air and it takes aerial pictures of you for a minute or two and then comes back to you,” he explained. The AirSelfie2 sells for $199.95.

Investing Digest

Discover What's Making Markets Move Know what's moving the financial markets and what smart money is buying with Forbes Investing Digest.

Email address Job Title

Sign Up You may opt out any time. By signing up for this newsletter, you agree to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy

Richard Eisenberg

I'm the Senior Web Editor of the Money & Security and Work & Purpose channels for Next Avenue, a new site for people 50+ from PBS. I have helped people manage their… Read More

Reprints & Permissions

ADVERTISEMENT 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post

Discussions / Live Q&A’s

October 3, 2016, 2:01 P.M.

Talk about Travel

Talk about Travel is here to help at 2 p.m. Mondays. Have a travel-related question, comment, suspicion, warning, gripe, sad tale or happy ending? The Post Travel section's editors and writers are at your service. Past Talk about Travel chats

The Discussion

Oct 03, 2016

Talk about Travel is here to help at 2 p.m. Mondays.

Have a travel-related question, comment, suspicion, warning, gripe, sad tale or happy ending? The Post Travel section's editors and writers are at your service.

The Pitons on the Caribbean Island of St. Lucia Past Talk about Travel chats (AP/Scott Sady).

Nicole Arthur :

Hello all, and welcome to Talk About Travel -- and October. Questions about fall travel plans? You've come to the right place; it's hard to believe our queue is already filling with holiday-travel questions. On Sunday, the Travel section featured an aerial view of Telluride, Colo. Ever incorporated hot air ballooning into your travel plans? Tell us about it below. Most compelling answer gets a copy of Michelle and Brian Sharkey Vaught's adult coloring book, "American Road Trip." On to your questions!

– October 03, 2016 2:01 PM

Thanksgiving travel Have I missed my chance to book Thanksgiving flights? I saw a great price on a flight to my preferred destination last Thursday (DC to Spokane), and now it's almost $100 more expensive. Should I expect it to just go up from here? I can usually finagle a last minute flight to a more close-by destination, but DC to the west coast leaves less flexibility with dates and such. – October 03, 2016 12:45 PM

https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 1/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT :

No, there's still time. I just received some interesting data from Skyscanner that suggests this month has the best opportunities for airfare savings. The week of Oct. 17 offers savings of 5.10 percent and a mere four weeks out, the week of Oct. 31, offers the highest potential savings of 7.7 percent. Last minute bookers could find 1.98 percent in savings the week of Thanksgiving, according to Skyscanner.

– October 03, 2016 2:02 PM

Flights during holidays I waited too long to buy my DC to LA tickets for the Christmas holiday this year, and now not only are they expensive ($500+), the flight time are terrible - pretty much the returns are all red-eyes. Do the airlines ever add flights if there is a large demand, or are the flight schedules pretty much set? And if you have advice on finding good reasonably priced flights to LA in December, please share! Thanks! – October 03, 2016 12:30 PM

CAROL SOTTILI :

If it makes you feel better, even had you planned in advance, the prices around the holidays would have likely been $500-plus, although the times would probably have been better. And no, the airlines won't add flights. Check out alternative airports (BWI instead of Dulles, for example, and Long Beach, Burbank, Santa Ana instead of LAX). Consider connecting flights. Travel on the holidays. Look at discount carriers (Spirit Airlines is one), but keep in mind that everything, including carry-on bags and seat assignments, costs extra.

– October 03, 2016 2:04 PM

Airline price matching

Do any airlines do price matching if other airlines offer lower prices. If so which ones? Thanks !!

– September 28, 2016 2:21 PM

CAROL SOTTILI :

Fairly certain this policy does not exist in the airline industry.

– October 03, 2016 2:05 PM

getting Euros at AAA

https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 2/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post A follow-up from the chat 2 weeks ago about different places to purchase Euros. One big advantage of AAA over ATMs and (most? all?) banks is you can specify the exact denominations you want. For example, I've found that people in Slovenia are very reluctant to accept bills much larger than the purchase price, so having a wallet full of 5s and 10s is definitely more helpful than 20s and 50s. With AAA, I could get as many small bills as I wanted. When I withdrew 200 Euros from an ATM there, I got four 50s. – September 30, 2016 10:20 AM

CAROL SOTTILI :

Good point, although some banks, such as Wells Fargo, will also honor your requests for specific denominations if you order ahead of time.

– October 03, 2016 2:09 PM

balloons I took the Balloon Over Bagan ride in Myanmar a few years ago. Expensive at about $300, but worth every penny to me. Amazing views of the temples at dawn. Lots of great photos. There seems to be several companies there doing the same thing now so the morning sky is pretty crowded. – October 03, 2016 2:06 PM

NICOLE ARTHUR :

We ran a piece about Balloons Over Bagan earlier this year -- check it out here!

– October 03, 2016 2:13 PM

Florida Keys Never been to the Fl Keys and have no idea where to start planing a last minute short getaway (Friday-Tuesday). Interested in a nice beach and access to good food. I guess a rental car is inevitable right? Any information will be appreciated! – October 03, 2016 7:04 AM

CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT :

I know I'm going to get into trouble for saying this, but there are no real beaches in the Keys. If you're looking for a traditional beach experience with surfabable waves and all the beachy things you expect from an East Coast shore adventure, you'll probably want to head up the coast to Miami or Fort Lauderdale. But there are plenty of other things to do, including boating, fishing and sightseeing. If you've never been to the Keys, I'd recommend Key West (you can fly there, which will save you the almost five-hour drive from Miami). Check out the https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 3/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post official Florida Keys site and also consider working with a qualified travel agent. If you're more of a road tripper, you might want to take that scenic drive down the Overseas Highway. It's truly spectacular. Chatters, do you have any Keys recommendations?

– October 03, 2016 2:13 PM

Travel from Simla to Dharamsala in India? Has anyone done Simla / Dharamsala in India? Following a guided (expensive) tour to Delhi / Varnasi / Agra, we've decided to go north to Simla and Dharamsala, then south to Jaipur and Jodhpur before coming home. We’re having the tour company book our transport ation for the add-on. For Simla to Dharamsala they want us to use a one-way car and driver for $145 (almost the cost of the plane tickets to Jaipur from Dharamsala). The other option that we found is the state transport bus which is under $10. Has anyone done this? Is the extra cost for the car and driver really worth it? They also wanted us to use a car and driver between Jaipur and Jodhpur, but there are several bus and train options on this leg so we declined and they agreed to book what we wanted. Is the other leg more upsell or is it better to spend the money? – October 03, 2016 12:16 PM

ANDREA SACHS :

In most countries, I am pretty adventurous, but India's public transportation system is very challenging. When I visited Dharamsala, we considered a car and driver but chose to fly instead, because of the time commitment and, from what I had heard, harrowing route (note: I was coming from New Delhi.). In McLeod Ganj and the suburb of Dharam, you can rely on taxis, which don't charge very much. And you can easily walk around the little town and visit the Buddhist and Hindu sites. If it were me, I would fly to Dharamsala. I have not taken the bus, but I did see buses in town, and they looked crowded and chaotic. You might find a cheaper driver on your own. Tour companies often charge more, but on the flip side, you have an accountable agent who can help you if the driver doesn't show or there's a breakdown. So, the answer depends on your budget and comfort level. PS Here is my piece.

– October 03, 2016 2:16 PM

Car/Bus/Flight best? Next year I am planning a trip to Tulum, Mexico and want to take a side trip down to Corozol, Belize. I always heard that one can not take a rental car across borders. What would be your advise for getting down to Belize and back? – October 03, 2016 1:37 PM

CAROL SOTTILI : https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 4/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post You can probably find a local car rental place in Tulum that will allow you to drive the car into Belize. But you can also take the bus from Tulum to Chetumal and then get a cab to Corozol. Take a look at two bus companies: Marvelus and Ado.

– October 03, 2016 2:18 PM

All-inclusive family resort I'm looking for a place to have a family reunion for 15 (including seven grandchildren). We've looked at rental houses, but wanted to compare costs to all-inclusive resorts. I can find plenty in PA and VT and the rest of the east coast, but do you know of any in the west, preferably ones that aren't dude ranches? Thanks! – October 03, 2016 1:12 PM

CAROL SOTTILI :

If you are willing to cook in your rental houses, I can just about guarantee that it will be cheaper to go that route than to book into a U.S. resort that includes meals and activities. Almost all the all-inclusive resorts out West that include meals are, if not true dude ranches, at least horse-involved.Dunton Hot Springs near Telluride has all-inclusive packages, but it's expensive. Chico Hot Springs in Montana is another place to investigate. Any chatters have ideas?

– October 03, 2016 2:20 PM

Christmas Travel I made our Christmas reservations to Phoenix near the end of August and a desirable return time--senior fare---was already sold out. – October 03, 2016 2:19 PM

CAROL SOTTILI :

Traveling around Thanksgiving or Christmas is always going to be expensive. There are the same number of seats, but a whole lot more people who want to fill them.

– October 03, 2016 2:22 PM

Air BNB ratings Is it true that ratings for airbnb's aren't too reliable? A friend told me that both the renters and the owners review each other so sometimes renters aren't completely honest in their review of properties in order to preserve their own reputation as good renters. I heard that it's safest to check on TripAdvisor. Any truth to that? – October 03, 2016 2:13 PM

https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 5/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT :

Most of the complaints about review accuracy that I've received are about either TripAdvisor or Yelp, but I've also had a few about Airbnb. Your strategy is sound -- I would check a variety of review sites before making a decision. Self-hosted reviews have an inherent bias, of course.

– October 03, 2016 2:24 PM

Ontario, CA Also worth checking in lieu of LAX, if you're headed east of L.A. – October 03, 2016 2:12 PM

CAROL SOTTILI :

Yes, worth a look. But I always wind up booking into LAX because there are so many more flights from here to there.

– October 03, 2016 2:25 PM

Cuba My mom, sister, and I want to travel to Cuba for 4-5 nights. From my initial research it looks like there are a variety of companies that do tour packages with a pretty broad range of pricing. We usually make our own arrangements, but are thinking this may be a time where we might want to consider doing a package. Any recommendations for whether it's better to do a travel package or put together our own itinerary (keeping in mind the travel categories). If it is better to do a travel package, any recommendations on how to figure out which ones are the best value for your money? – October 03, 2016 11:05 AM

ANDREA SACHS :

Cuba is more open but not fully. Americans are not permitted to participate in purely leisure tourism yet. I suggest you read the requirements outlined by the U.S. embassy in Havana. As a law-abiding traveler, I recommend a package tour. I traveled with Friendly Planet, which organizes a number of wonderful trips. I also suggest you visit the countrywide, as Havana is overrun with, um, tourists.

– October 03, 2016 2:28 PM

FL Keys beaches

I made the drive to Key West about 25 years ago with a group of co-workers. We were teaching a prescribed (wild)fire training class at the Everglades. I'm glad we drove down. But yeah,

https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 6/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post there's not much in the way of beaches, although we did take a dip at Bahia Honda. And the water was nice and warm compared to what I'm used to (NJ shore).

– October 03, 2016 2:21 PM

CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT :

Bahia Honda is great. The bridge is worth the stop. But alas, no waves. I highly recommend it, too.

– October 03, 2016 2:30 PM

Travel safety.... The latest reports say the two sisters who were found dead in their room in a luxury resort in the Seychelles were poisoned by a bedbug insecticide. Do you have any thoughts about that, and more broadly, when you travel in Third World countries (or anywhere), do you take any safety measures that you might not in the U.S. or Europe? Do you bring your own smoke and CO detectors, door locks, etc.? Any recommendations? – October 03, 2016 1:47 PM

CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT :

I've been following this tragic story, but I hadn't heard about the insecticide link until I read your question. If the speculation is true, then this might have been avoided by leaving the windows open -- but again, there's really not enough information at this point. I know some travelers who take their own smoke detectors. I'm not sure if that would have helped in this case. I will start tracking this more closely and add it to our Navigator schedule.

– October 03, 2016 2:32 PM

Budget European Family Christmas My husband and I are planning a trip to Paris for the Christmas holidays with our 4 children (ages 15-24). I don't want to spend 2 days here and 2 days there. That's exhausting and we're a large group. We plan to spend several days (up to one week) in Paris and would like to focus on one other region. My children are not athletic nor do they like spending tons of time in museums. We are thinking about French countryside, Amsterdam, Munich, Prague, Barcelona, or Seville Spain as our 2nd area of interest. I'm not sure if we should travel by car or railroad and I'm assuming Air bnb would be our best bet for lodging. Any ideas/advice would be welcome! – September 30, 2016 12:08 PM

CAROL SOTTILI : https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 7/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post It's difficult to say without knowing your tolerance for adventure and for more complicated travel arrangements. Prague and Seville are too far. Barcelona could be done, but it's also a long haul. Driving to Amsterdam would be fairly quick. Either train or car to Munich is very doable. Have you considered London? I'd also look at Strasbourg, France and the surrounding area.

– October 03, 2016 2:35 PM

Nicole Arthur :

Today's code is TT5542. It expires at midnight, so be sure to enter it each Monday to get credit for participating.

– October 03, 2016 2:36 PM

Getting to Rotorua, NZ I'll be in Auckland on my way to Wellington in late October, early November. I'm not driving. How can I get to Rotorua? Bus, plane, train? – October 03, 2016 11:57 AM

CAROL SOTTILI :

There are buses, but I'd opt for the 45-minute flight from Auckland on Air New Zealand. Price starts at about $50 one way.

– October 03, 2016 2:38 PM

Sri Lanka Just got back from a few weeks in Sri Lanka. Had a very good time. It's an interesting country with fantastic nature and historic sites. Very good hospitality...although people seemed to be inordinately interested in my marital status (or lack thereof). I had a private guide/driver for 2.5 weeks and the cost was quite reasonable all things considered. Flew on Cathay Pacific on the way over and ended up with a 24 hour layover in Hong Kong which was a nice bonus. – October 03, 2016 2:11 PM

ANDREA SACHS :

That is great to hear. I have always wanted to go!

– October 03, 2016 2:44 PM

Car Reservation Mileage Limits? https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 8/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post I booked a car rental in upper Michigan during deer hunting season and noticed that one airport had a 600 mileage limit and the second a 700 mile limit. I've never heard of such a thing. Each additional mile in .31 cents...given I have a day work trip on one end of the UP and am flying in and out of the other it will be cutting it close...and these are Alamo, Avis and National...what gives? – October 03, 2016 2:31 PM

CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT :

That's highly unusual, but not unheard of. Some franchises will impose mileage restrictions at certain locations. Nice job reading the fine print, by the way. I would shop around and find a location that doesn't charge per mile.

– October 03, 2016 2:44 PM

Thailand and zika Hello! We're recently married and had been considering a honeymoon to Thailand by the end of the year - with the recent CDC zika-related travel advisory, I now think it's too risky. Would you tend to agree? We'd love warm temperatures and some beach time, so now considering New Zealand as an alternative. Thanks for your thoughts! – October 03, 2016 8:44 AM

ANDREA SACHS :

The CDC is only warning pregnant women to avoid Thailand. But if you are worried about contracting the virus, don't go there. New Zealand is stunning and Zika-free.

– October 03, 2016 2:44 PM

Travelling with Pets We are planning a year long visit to France. What is the preferred way to transport our 3 miniature Labradoodles to ensure their comfort & safety? Via ship or by air? If the former, which ship would you recommend? – October 02, 2016 5:20 PM

ANDREA SACHS :

First, make sure you know France's regulations for entering with pets and also for returning to the States with your pups. Here is the information from the French embassy. The least stressful mode of transport for dogs is flying in the cabin, but you need to check the airline for size requirements. Plus, you can likely bring only one dog per passenger, so unless https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 9/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post there are three of you . . . If you send the dogs as cargo, you need to check the airline's restrictions. Many ban certain breeds, for example, and limit the number of dogs you can send. I can't recommend a ship because that is a personal decision. You need to ask the cruise line where they keep the dogs, how often you can visit them, how often they are walked, etc. I saw many dogs on the Queen Mary II, which lived in a kennel. A man with a chihuahua said he would never sail with his dog again, that it was too traumatizing. But a couple with two standard poodles cross the Atlantic with their dogs all the time. Best to consult with your vet on the best form of travel. Also, ask about how to prepare your pups for the voyage, in terms of food, water and tranquilizers.

– October 03, 2016 2:46 PM

Barge Cruses Your thoughts on a 50th wedding anniversary barge trip, 8-12 passengers, in Europe or the USA. France and the Netherlands are favorite destinations but Ireland is a possible choice. Thank you. – October 02, 2016 1:36 PM

CAROL SOTTILI :

I'd stick with Europe for a small vessel barge cruise. Contact an agency that represents a bunch of different vessels to get ideas. Try European Waterways or Barge Lady Cruises.

– October 03, 2016 2:47 PM

Helsinki and St Petersburg Am thinking of travelling to Helsinki for about 3 days and then on to St Petersburg for 5 days ( 3 days at the Hermitage) and then 3 days in Moscow, and I was wondering what you thought about travelling overland to these destinations? – October 03, 2016 12:56 AM

ANDREA SACHS :

Chatters, any thoughts?

– October 03, 2016 2:49 PM

Can't Decide: To Tas or not To Tas Hi all-- I'm headed on a 3 week Australian adventure next month and having a had time deciding if I should dip down in to Tasmania for a few days. Right now, I have 6 days that don't have any plans or arrangements and I could easily go down and tour around Hobart and surrounding areas for a few days. I've read that the weather is variable in the Spring and I'm https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 10/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post concerned that would hamper day hikes/tours. An alternative would be to spend time in and around Melbourne for those days. Also- how different is driving on the left really? I wouldn't think of trying to drive in/around Sydney- but am thinking of hiring a car if I do decided to go to Tas and then possibility later in my trip out to Western Australia. Thanks! – October 03, 2016 2:12 PM

ANDREA SACHS :

Melbourne is very charming but it is a big city (it reminds me of Boston). If you love nature and outdoor activities, I would go to Tasmania. And what's a little rain to a hearty traveler! Driving on the left is easy. Don't overthink it: Follow the other cars and remind yourself to stay left, left, left.

– October 03, 2016 2:50 PM

False fares online I'm getting really frustrated with online booking sites advertising false fares. I can't tell you how many times I've gone to book an inexpensive flight I've found on kayak or travelocity or (insert any other website here) only to be told "Your request cannot be processed" or to be redirected to the airline's webpage where the prices are several hundred dollars more expensive. I've been traveling quite a bit for around 10 years now, and it seems to me to be getting worse. I'm not sure if you're a budget traveler or not, but what websites do you use to get good fares? Websites I use are simply not reliable any more. – October 03, 2016 2:39 PM

ANDREA SACHS :

That recently happened to me too, on JetBlue! But I typically get a sense of fares and times by checking Kayak and TripAdvisor, then I go to the individual airlines to see if there are other options that I can mix and match. I find that I am booking more one-way flights on different carriers.

– October 03, 2016 2:50 PM

RE: Q: Budget European Family Christmas I second Strasbourg France. I traveled to France for 2 weeks and moved every few days. Strasbourg was by far my favorite. – October 03, 2016 2:44 PM

CAROL SOTTILI :

https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 11/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post Yes, I also loved Strasbourg and the Alsace region. The wineries are lovely.

– October 03, 2016 2:52 PM

Be sure to check what there will be available to do right around Christmas. Things (places to see, stay and eat) are slightly more likely to be closed than they are here. I wouldn't want to be in London for Christmas and Boxing Day if I were only going to be there for 3 days. – October 03, 2016 2:48 PM

CAROL SOTTILI :

Good point.

– October 03, 2016 2:52 PM

What trips would you take? I am trying to figure out what trips I should take next year and wanted advice. Each of these would be a week long and I get to pick two of them. What would you pick, and is there anything else I should consider? I'm pretty adventurous but mostly go to meet people, learn other cultures and take lots of pictures!! I've done the Galapagos, Ireland, Argentina, Australia and Africa (Botswana) in recent years. Amsterdam and Paris Panama North and South Dakota Japan Montreal and Prince Edward Island South Africa A cruise Thank you! – October 03, 2016 12:32 PM

CAROL SOTTILI :

When I only have a week at a time, I don't want to spend a huge chunk of that traveling there and back. Hawaiian islands, Alaska, Costa Rica and Northern England (Lake District) are some places that come to mind. I also just got back from Austria last night, and it is a delightful country.

– October 03, 2016 2:54 PM

Fun New England weekend for 8 gal pals: Hi! Thanks for taking my question. A gang of my gal pals met up in Salem, Mass. for a winter weekend away and had a ball. Looking for another site for this winter. Cost has to be reasonable (can't swing Boston) but we're sharing rooms. We love dining, spas, dancing, live music. Any sites within 2 hours of Providence? – October 03, 2016 1:44 PM

https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 12/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post ANDREA SACHS :

Portsmouth, N.H., might be a good fit. Or New Haven, Conn. Hotel rates on Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard also drop, though the scene quiets down in the winter.

– October 03, 2016 2:56 PM

Laundry on a Cruise I just returned from a 12 night cruise that visited Japan, South Korea, and China. On at least one other cruise, I did my own load of laundry in a small laundry room. On this cruise, the only option was to use the laundry service, which had prices starting at $3 for a pair of socks. Having 4 days of clothes washed (mostly t-shirts and shorts) cost more than $100. I found the price way too expensive considering I should have been able to do it myself in a single load for a few dollars. How do other people handle long vacations? I had planned to have 7-8 days of clothes and do a load of laundry mid trip. – October 03, 2016 2:33 PM

ANDREA SACHS :

I wear the same clothes again and again (swapping tops and bottoms to avoid the appearance of repetition), and wash the ickiest ones in the sink with detergent and water.

– October 03, 2016 2:57 PM

St. Petersburg etc... It might be a nice trip, but does the poster know he/she will need a visa to enter Russia, and the application process is expensive and time-consuming? He/she can't just go to the Helsinki airport and say "Ticket to St. Pete, please." – October 03, 2016 2:53 PM

ANDREA SACHS :

Very true!

– October 03, 2016 2:57 PM

Travel with Pets DO NOT tranquilize pets. Makes no difference what your vet says airlines will not transport animals that have been or appear to have been drugged. – October 03, 2016 2:52 PM

https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 13/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post ANDREA SACHS :

Not knock them out but the vet might suggest an anti-anxiety treatment.

– October 03, 2016 2:57 PM

Tolls and Rental Cars Chris, Just wanted to say nice column on Sunday. I have found it interesting when renting and having the transponder in the car ready to go. The assumption you want to use it throws me for a loop sometimes. Of course, when driving out of places like Logan airport in Boston you don't have a lot of choices to avoid the toll roads and in turn the transponder. – October 03, 2016 2:34 PM

CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT :

Thank you. I'm glad you liked the column. I'm going to follow up on that Navigator soon and answer some of the other questions it raised, including whether or not you can bring your own transponder.

– October 03, 2016 2:57 PM

Car Rental Companies Charging for Tolls Chris--I really appreicated your article about the various charges car rental companies make for tolls incurred while driving their cars. My husband was burned on this once, so when we went to Florida a couple years ago, we purposely planned our route to avoid toll roads. That was a bit of pain, but I wasn't going to pay the rental car company "X" dollars per day for a 7 day rental when we were only going to be on one toll road on one day. Anyway, my question is: How do you find out what each company charges for tolls and/or toll transponders? It is not easily available when you are trying to book a car, and that information might make me choose Company A over Company B. – October 03, 2016 2:37 PM

CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT :

Thank you. It's a little tricky. OK, make that very tricky. You have to check the rental company site to determine their policies. Researching them for this story was a headache. I read some of them several times before I thought I understood them ...

– October 03, 2016 2:58 PM

hot air ballooning I went ballooning once in AZ. I love flying so I thought it would be fun, but really it was so boring! Just floating slowly over red clay desert. But then the wind blew us over town and we https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 14/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post couldn't find anywhere to land. That was quite entertaining. People came out on their decks to wave at us. Someone asked if we could land on the heli-pad of a hospital but the answer was no. Finally drifted over a soccer field and landed there. – October 03, 2016 2:48 PM

NICOLE ARTHUR :

Yikes!

– October 03, 2016 2:58 PM

Fla Keys Also made trip by car about 14-15 years ago. My adult son and I were doing some tarpon fishing along way . Agree with prior comments as I remember. Little in beaches as we know them. Lot of places to stay, and GREAT seafood in many places. – October 03, 2016 2:37 PM

CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT :

Absolutely! I lived in the Keys for six years. All of the above is still true.

– October 03, 2016 2:59 PM

Re: Florida Keys alternatives? Thanks for answering my question, would you recommend other beach destination then? We've already been to PR, MX and Dominican Republic. Thanks! – October 03, 2016 2:46 PM

ANDREA SACHS :

I just got back from Turks and Caicos, and the beaches were sublime! My piece comes out Oct. 16.

– October 03, 2016 3:00 PM

Wells Fargo for Euros--Not!! I tried to get Euros from Wells Fargo, and they insisted that I had to set up an account in order to do so. After the fact, I discovered that the exchange rate they were offering was far worse (for me) than the booth at the airport. – October 03, 2016 2:56 PM

https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 15/16 5/24/2021 Talk about Travel - The Washington Post CAROL SOTTILI :

Yes, I think you do need to be a customer. And their exchange rate is not any different than other places I've seen. Best bet is not to exchange too much money and to use your credit card or ATMS, especially if you've checked the associated fees before you go. I needed to exchange a lot of cash because I was staying in a small village where the hotel did not take credit cards. But most people are not in that situation.

– October 03, 2016 3:00 PM

The sisters... I should have said that the reports of the sisters and phosphine are speculations based on similar events, including two Canadian sisters, not confirmed. But I was asking more broadly what you might do to protect yourselves in places that might not meet western standards? And no, a smoke detector wouldn't protect you against insecticide. But it would protect you against fire, which is probably a much more common danger. – October 03, 2016 2:46 PM

CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT :

I understand. That's an excellent topic, and I'm going to add it to our schedule. I think a lot of readers are asking the same question.

– October 03, 2016 3:00 PM

Nicole Arthur :

Looks like we're out of time -- thanks for chatting! Runaway balloon, drop us a line at [email protected] to claim your prize. See you next Monday for Talk About Travel, Columbus Day edition.

– October 03, 2016 3:01 PM

https://live.washingtonpost.com/talk-about-travel-10-03-2016/print.html 16/16 TRAVEL Man Finds 47-Year Layover On Travel Site, Gets The Perfect Response From Customer Service

We'd happily spend 47 years in the airport if Jen from Skyscanner could be there, too.

By Jamie Feldman 30/08/2016 06:02pm BST

Skyscanner is an airline search engine, that, according to its website, “compares millions of flights to find you the cheapest deal, fast.”

Skyscanner is also a company that hires hilarious people to manage its social media channels.

Need proof? Meet Jen, Skyscanner’s social media manager for the U.K. and Ireland. She became a sensation among customers after Skyscanner user James Lloyd noticed the site suggested he take a 413,786-hour, 25-minute layover on an already exhausting-looking trip from New Zealand to London.

ADVERTISING

Belmond - Sponsored Belmond - Sponsored Let's Belmond Together Let's step aboard

Discover More Discover More

“Just wondering what you’d recommend I do during the 47- year layover your website has suggested?” Lloyd posted on Skyscanner’s Facebook page.

Commented on Skyscanner's public post

Skyscanner Unless you're a huge fan of The Terminal, I'd probably re spending those years outside of the airport, so here are a few suggestion

• Missed Songkran ...See More 289 Replies · 9060 · about 5 years ago · edited

Airlines and airline travel services are known for their high response rate and willingness to interact with customers on social media, but attempts are not usually this hilarious. Jen not only offered to look into the mistake, she also offered some very valid options for Lloyd to consider during his extended layover in Bangkok: a river cruise on the Chao Phraya, for example, or “become a Tai Chi expert.”

FACEBOOK SKYSCANNER

LOL.

Social media, of course, was quick to have a field day with the cheeky response. Some people flat out praised Jen. FACEBOOK SKYSCANNER

Drops mic.

Others were inspired to start using Skyscanner’s services from the exchange.

FACEBOOK SKYSCANNER

Jen appeared to have a hilarious kickback for every commenter, including those with less-than-flattering remarks (there’s one in every comment thread, right?).

FACEBOOK SKYSCANNER

Jen's responses = everything.

A spokeswoman for Skyscanner told The Huffington Post the company “never imagined the Facebook discussion between Jen and James would gain this much interest,” but “being able to deal with customers’ questions while building relations with them is key.”

$41.99 sale $25.19 sale $213.75 sale $69.99 sale $67.49 sale $89.99 sale

Still, was the brand upset at just how far this interaction went? Not even slightly.

“We’re lucky to have a great team who feel passionately about this. Jen’s light-hearted response has shown that brands can be human at the same time as efficient. Needless to say, we are very proud to be #teamjen,” she said.

We too, are totally on #TeamJen.

H/T Mashable

Best Budget Airlines

SEE GALLERY

BEFORE YOU GO Padma00:52 Lakshmi responds to social media haters over sexy pics

Suggest a correction

MORE: AIR TRAVEL CUSTOMER SERVICE SKYSCANNER

LAYOVERS

Jamie Feldman Fashion &amp;amp;amp; Lifestyle Editor, HuffPost

0 Comments Sort by Oldest

This thread is closed

Facebook Comments plugin

NEWS CORONAVIRUS

POLITICS ENTERTAINMENT LIFE PARENTS

ABOUT US CONTACT US

WORK FOR US ADVERTISE WITH US

STANDARDS AND CORRECTIONS RSS

USER AGREEMENT COMMENT POLICY

pressureleases Stfscanner :karys Stfscanner :karys

wwny Sepde8Der wmbm Df Stfscanner

Stfscanner ha2e kon or Deen shordlisdey 0or n18ero1s akarys5 Here are o1r 8osd recend kinsW Stfscanner ha2e kon or Deen shordlisdey 0or n18ero1s akarys5 Here are o1r 8osd recend kinsW

Meloidde Aechnologf Basd ’mP wmbb Stfscanner rantey wny in Scodlany any wCdh o2erall

Trany o0 dhe vearP Ara2ol1dion :karys wmbb Mon.d 8iss o1r ladesd Tesd 6edasearchI,rice Fo8parison SideP Ara2ol1dion :karys wmbb neks4

Tesd Yse o0 SUKP Ara2ol1dion :karys wmbb ,riye wmwbW vo1r g1iye do parayesP pardies any 2ird1al e2ends aro1ny dhe korly

Fan G dra2el do SpainP dhe Fanarf any Talearic GslanysN Forona2ir1s dra2el ay2ice LG/U Ladesd dra2el neksW Spain kelco8ing Tridish do1risdsP Headhrok :irpord la1nching separade 0acilidf 0or rey lisd passengers vo1r g1iye do Dooting kidh con0iyence as dra2el red1rns

/FuTactey 6anage8end Aea8 o0 dhe vearP wmbb Scodlany any 7ordhern Grelany regionP T/F: ,ord0olio Fo8panf :karys

Ahe Ara2el 6arteding :karysP wmbb

Stfscanner in wny place xsil2er sdanyary- in 9Desd dacdical ca8paign. 0or id.s 9 0a8iliesuonlf

secdion 9 on planes5 S1nyaf Ai8es bmm Tesd Fo8panies do kort 0or in dhe YJP wmbb Stfscanner lisdey as one o0 dhe Desd s8all co8panies do kort 0or in dhe YJP placing &zdhP one o0 (1sd dko Scoddish co8panies do 8ate dhe graye5

Meloidde Aechnologf Basd ’mP wmbm Stfscanner rants wny in Scodlany any Emdh in dhe YJ o2erall

Ara2ol1dion :karysP wmbm Stfscanner kins Desd 8edasearch 0lighd co8parison side) (1yges co88end dhad Stfscanner is …cleanP easf do 1se any na2igade aro1nyP any dictey dhe DoOes in der8s o0 originalidf o0 yesign any 0ead1res5…

S1nyaf Ai8es 6icroso0d Aech Aract bmmP wmbm Stfscanner placey wbsd any kas dhe highesd ranting dra2el co8panf in dhis lisd o0 0asdesd groking dech co8panies

Ara2el8ole VeD :karysP wmbm Stfscanner scoops akary 0or Desd 8edasearch side

3ey Herring Aop bmm U1ropeP wmbm Stfscanner selecdey as 0inalisds 0ro8 a pool o0 h1nyreys 0ro8 across U1rope Hidkise Aop bmP X1luMec wmmR Stfscanner rantey as a Hidkise Aop bm keDside

Meloidde Aechnologf Basd ’mP wmmR Stfscanner rantey Ery in Scodlany any Ebsd o2erall

Aech 6eyia Gn2esd bmmP wmmR Stfscanner rantey as a Aop bm ArailDlaZer

Ara2el8ole :nn1al VeD :karysP wmmR Stfscanner r1nners 1p in airline cadegorf

!, T1llho1ny 6eyia 6o8end18 :karys Aop ’mP wmmR Stfscanner lisdey in dop Em any kas dhe highesd ranting online dra2el co8panf

6eyia !1aryian Gnno2adion :karysP wmmR Stfscanner one o0 dhree co8panies do De shordlisdey as 0inalisds in dhe Migidal Freadi2e cadegorf

Vanyerl1sd Ara2el :karysP wmm& Stfscanner 0inalisd in dra2el keDside cadegorf

Ao see khad dhe press are safing aDo1d Stfscanner ? 2isid dhe Stfscanner ,ress F1ddings page

3ed1rn Kne kaf 61ldiucidf

Bro8 Ao

:yy nearDf airpords :yy nearDf airpords

Mepard 3ed1rn FaDin Flass 中 Ara2ellers

wRIm’Iwmwb m’ImzIwmwb b ay1ldP Ucono8f

Mirecd 0lighds onlf Search 0lighds

3eladey z o0 dhe Desd places do C’国 dips 0or planning dhe 2isid in Scodlany 1ldi8ade roay dripW 0ro8 creading fo1r idinerarf do choosing dhe Desd ga8es any songs Stfscanner do la1nch 0irsd o0 ids tiny dra2el ins1rance UOplore ,ardners Fo8panf Help Fidies Vort kidh 1s :Do1d 1s Help Fidf Treats :y2erdise kidh 1s Vhf StfscannerN ,ri2acf seddings :irpords Ara2el Gnsighd 6eyia Sec1ridf

Fo1ndries I 3egions :00iliades K1r people :irlines Ara2el :,Gs :ccessiDilidf Blighds S1sdainaDilidf Hodels Trany sdorf Far hire Fo8panf Medails Ara2el g1iyes XoDs :pp Ara2el 0ead1res 中 neks Ara2el Gns1rance Footie policf ,ri2acf policf Aer8s o0 ser2ice Legal nodices 6oyern sla2erf

Gndernadional Sides

Fheap 0lighds :1sdralia u Fheap 0lighds 机票 u ü日 BlfDilledder

S1o8i u lennod Brance u 2ols Me1dschlany u Bl本ge Gnyia u Blighd dicteds

Grelany u 0lighds Gdalia u 2oli 航空 u 券é– 6РOico u 21elos

/liegdicteds Tillige 0lfDilledder ,olsta ? danie lodf осиияа u вбявляетыñ

Ynidey :raD U8irades u 0lighds YS: u 0lighds

cospanu netf :tarkfy atarkfy atarkf :tarkfy atarkfy atarkf

wwnk Sepdes8er wDmb 8u S2ufcanner

:pp fhordlifding ank dechnologu 0inalifdf

1e5re Weru happu do annoMnce te5We 8een fhordlifdek or nasek 0inalifd 0or a nMs8er o0 atarkf dhif sondhA

S2ufcanner5f Blighdf :pp haf 8een fhordlifdek in dhe Li0e ’oolf cadegoru 0or wDmb Pe00ufA

1idh oMr so8ile appf haWing 8een kotnloakek oWer CDs disef acroff dhe glo8ey te5re kelighdek dhad oMr 0lighdf app haf 8een recognifek af Tenhancing ank fispli0uing confMserf5 von5d siff oMr ladefd liWef5A netf. ’he Pe00ufy rMn 8u glo8al so8ile drake 8oku Po8ile 4cofufdes BorMsy if a fed o0 indernadional atarkf 0or recognifing cossercial fMcceff ank retarking innoWadion acroff 6rike wDwmI ,oMr gMike do parakefy dhe so8ile ecofufdesA pardief ank WirdMal eWendf aroMnk dhe torlk Fan draWel do Spainy dhe Fanaru ank Uetf alfo cosef dokau dhad te5We 8een fhordlifdek in dhe bdh :nnMal LoWie :tarkf in dhe Y Po8ileI Kefd NifMal vefign cadegoruA Kalearic YflankfG ForonaWirMf draWel akWice LYN4 Ladefd draWel netfI Spain telcosing Kridifh doMrifdfy Headhrot :irpord laMnching feparade 0acilidu 0or Pore atarkf fhordlifding 0olloteky af te5We 8een lifdek af a 0inalifd in dhe ’raWolMdion :tarkf rek lifd paffengerf

wDmby 0or 8odh dhe T Kefd Pedafearch ank Kefd ’echnologu 6roWiker cadgeoriefA ,oMr gMike do 8oo2ing tidh con0ikence af draWel redMrnf Lafdluy te5re kelighdek do 8e annoMncek af 0inalifdf 0or dhe Scoddifh KMfineff :tarkfy 8odh

0or 4splouer o0 dhe ,ear ank ’ech Fospanu o0 dhe ,ear A

atarkf y so8ile y 6rokMcd

/edMrn 7ne tau PMldixcidu

Bros ’o

:kk near8u airpordf :kk near8u airpordf

vepard /edMrn Fa8in Flaff - ’raWellerf

w9JDbJwDwm DbJD&JwDwm m akMldy 4conosu

virecd 0lighdf onlu Search 0lighdf

/eladek

Fossidding do kifa8ilidu Bros zfanidaggekz inclMfionI S2ufcanner lMggage do 0acial (oinf ’he NalMa8le bDD recognidion ad 8oarking x mD draWel dechnologief uoM can eEpecd do fee 4Werudhing uoM neek do pofdxF7NYv 2not a8oMd 0leEi8le draWel

4Eplore 6ardnerf Fospanu Help Fidief 1or2 tidh Mf :8oMd Mf Help Fidu Krea2f :kWerdife tidh Mf 1hu S2ufcannerG 6riWacu feddingf :irpordf ’raWel Ynfighd Pekia SecMridu

FoMndrief J /egionf :00iliadef 7Mr people :irlinef ’raWel :6Yf :cceffi8ilidu Blighdf SMfdaina8ilidu Hodelf Krank fdoru Far hire Fospanu vedailf ’raWel gMikef )o8f :pp ’raWel 0eadMref - netf ’raWel YnfMrance Foo2ie policu 6riWacu policu ’ersf o0 ferWice Legal nodicef Pokern flaWeru

Yndernadional Sidef

Fheap 0lighdf :Mfdralia x Fheap 0lighdf …O x V3 Blu8illedder

SMosi x lennod Brance x Wolf veMdfchlank x BlXge Ynkia x Blighd dic2edf

Yrelank x 0lighdf Ydalia x Woli RZ x !?中 P国Eico x WMelof

Nliegdic2edf Killige 0lu8illedder 6olf2a 机 danie lodu 票ü日日本航 x 空券本空é本–Рос

4fpaиa x WMelof SWerige x 0lug Schteiя x BlXge ’Xr2iue x Mаa2 8iledleri

вnidek :ra8 4siradef x 0lighdf вS: x 0lighdf

б S2ufcanner Ldk wDDwxwDwm Help Log in

Search results for: skyscanner awards

8th December 2015

Skyscanner Wins Mobile Award

By Skyscanner

We’re delighted to announce that Skyscanner was today awarded the Best APAC Travel Mobile App award by TravelMole.

4th April 2016

Triple award win for Skyscanner: International Tech Star, Finance Director of the Year and Young Accountant of the Year Awards

By Skyscanner

Triple award win for UK teams

8th December 2015

Skyscanner app shortlisted for The Tabby Awards 2015

By Skyscanner

Another award nomination for our Hotel app

8th December 2015

Skyscanner scoops Growth Award, named a Top 50 High Growth Company

By Skyscanner

Skyscanner has been honoured with the prestigious Tech Tour Growth Award

10th November 2020

Skyscanner to launch first of its kind travel insurance

By Skyscanner

We’re partnering with Cover Genius to introduce a first of its kind travel insurance package, offering 24/7 emergency medical assistance, repatriation and expenses cover, trip cancellation cover for prepaid travel costs foregone due to Covid-19 and more.

15th June 2020

Terms & Conditions Little Box of Books Give away

By Skyscanner

The prize draw is open to all mainland UK (England, Wales and Scotland only) residents aged 18 years or over, except employees of the Promoter,… 11th January 2021

Everything you need to know about flexible travel

By Anne Marie Crosthwaite

Flexible travel options are an unexpected benefit of the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn how to take advantage of them so you can travel smarter when the time is right.

3rd July 2020

PHOTOBOX LIMITED SOCIAL MEDIA GIVEAWAY

By Alex Jordan

TERMS AND CONDITIONS The giveaway is open to all mainland UK (England, Wales and Scotland only) residents aged 18 years or over, except employees of…

16th November 2019

Air New Zealand Black Friday deals 2019

By Jemma Porter

In partnership with Black Friday Air New Zealand Deals 2019 Don’t miss out on Air New Zealand’s unbeatable Black Friday deals this year! Why book…

… 1 2 3 24

Explore Partners Company Help Cities Work with us About us Help City Breaks Advertise with us Why Skyscanner? Privacy settings Airports Travel Insight Media Security

Countries / Regions Affiliates Our people Airlines Travel APIs Accessibility Flights Sustainability Hotels Brand story Car hire Company Details Travel guides Jobs App Travel features & news Travel Insurance Cookie policy Privacy policy Terms of service Legal notices Modern slavery

International Sites

Cheap flights Australia - Cheap flights 中国 - 机票 Flybilletter

Suomi - lennot France - vols Deutschland - Flüge India - Flight tickets

Ireland - flights Italia - voli 日本 - 航空券 México - vuelos

Vliegtickets Billige flybilletter Polska – tanie loty Россия - авиабилеты

España - vuelos Sverige - flyg Schweiz - Flüge Türkiye - uçak biletleri

United Arab Emirates - flights USA - flights

United States Patent and Trademark Office

TESS was last updated on Mon May 24 03:17:23 EDT 2021

Logout Please logout when you are done to release system resources allocated for you.

Record 1 out of 1

( Use the "Back" button of the Internet Browser to return to TESS)

Goods and IC 035. US 100 101 102. G & S: Advertising services provided via the Internet; opinion polling, Services namely, public opinion polling; provision of business information; business information services; data processing services; auctioneering; all of the foregoing relating to the travel and hospitality sectors

IC 039. US 100 105. G & S: Travel information; travel arrangement services provided from an Internet website, namely, providing a website featuring travel and transportation booking and reservation services; providing travel information about flight, travel and travels tours via means of a global computer network; travel information provided online from a computer database; travel information accessible via a mobile phone utilising wireless application protocol technology; travel agency services, namely, making reservations and bookings for transportation; travel booking agencies; booking of airport parking spaces

IC 042. US 100 101. G & S: Providing search engines for the Internet relating to the travel and hospitality sectors

IC 043. US 100 101. G & S: Booking of temporary accommodation; travel agency services for booking temporary accommodation; information and booking services in relation to temporary accommodation provided from an Internet website; providing information relating to temporary accommodation via means of a global computer network; information relating to temporary accommodation provided online from a computer database; information relating to temporary accommodation accessible via a mobile phone using wireless application protocol technology; restaurant reservation and booking services; restaurants and bar information services Mark Drawing (2) DESIGN ONLY Code Design Search 26.05.02 - Plain single line triangles ; Triangles, plain single line Code 26.11.21 - Rectangles that are completely or partially shaded 26.17.01 - Bands, straight ; Bars, straight ; Lines, straight ; Straight line(s), band(s) or bar(s) 26.17.04 - Bands, vertical ; Bars, vertical ; Lines, vertical ; Vertical line(s), band(s) or bar(s) 26.17.06 - Bands, diagonal ; Bars, diagonal ; Diagonal line(s), band(s) or bar(s) ; Lines, diagonal 26.17.09 - Bands, curved ; Bars, curved ; Curved line(s), band(s) or bar(s) ; Lines, curved

https://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=4803:qz3ex8.2.1 5/24/2021 Trademark Electronic Search System (TESS) Page 2 of 2

Serial Number 79279675 Filing Date August 9, 2019 Current Basis 66A Original Filing 66A Basis Published for October 27, 2020 Opposition Registration 6242138 Number International Registration 1516855 Number Registration January 12, 2021 Date Owner (REGISTRANT) Skyscanner Limited Limited Company UNITED KINGDOM Floor 6, The Avenue, 1 Bedford Avenue; LONDON WC1B 3AU UNITED KINGDOM Attorney of Christina M. Licursi Record Priority Date May 21, 2019 Description of The color(s) white and blue is/are claimed as a feature of the mark. The mark consists of the Mark design of a series of rays forming an arc over a curved band with a downward point, all in white, on a blue background. Type of Mark SERVICE MARK Register PRINCIPAL Live/Dead LIVE Indicator

https://tmsearch.uspto.gov/bin/showfield?f=doc&state=4803:qz3ex8.2.1 5/24/2021 USPTO Assignments on the Web Page 1 of 1

United States Patent and Trademark Office

Assignments on the Web > Trademark Query

No assignment has been recorded at the USPTO

For Serial Number: 79279675

If you have any comments or questions concerning the data displayed, contact PRD / Assignments at 571-272-3350. v.2.6 Web interface last modified: August 25, 2017 v.2.6

https://assignments.uspto.gov/assignments/q?db=tm&qt=sno&reel=&frame=&sno=79279... 5/24/2021