Recorded in the Gaithersburg, MD Marriott outside Washington, DC at the end of an intense week of travel that had me flying from the East Coast to the West Coast and then back east again… on four different airlines. With many airlines’ plummeting customer satisfaction scores, we ask the question “Who raves about their airline?” Recent trips allow me to do a “seat-to-seat” comparison of two high-buzz airlines — JetBlue and Virgin America. Our recurring Travel Tech topic talks about replacing a laptop with the latest evolution of Nokia’s Internet tablet, and hunting down power outlets in airports. Also, a listener suggestion on local food in DC’s Reagan National Airport leads to frustration at missing a great burger. Here’s a direct link to the podcast file.
Recorded in the TravelCommons studio outside Chicago, I’ve been bi-coastal since the last episode, bouncing between New York and San Francisco. A side trip down to Philadelphia yields a great street-food breakfast when I take the time to walk outside my hotel. Delays in my flights between O’Hare and LaGuardia airports cause me to dig for the FAA’s latest airport capacity report and gnash my teeth against the NIMBYs standing in the way of reasonable fixes. Here’s a direct link to the podcast file.
Recorded in the San Francisco Airport Marriott, a recent city-a-day business trip through Europe allowed me to do a first-hand comparison of the European air travel experience to the much maligned state of US air travel. We also update our thoughts on the state of mobile computing devices. Is it possible to travel “PC-less” yet, or are we still one release away from leaving the laptop at home? Here’s a direct link to the podcast file.
Recorded in the Marriott Courtyard in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, the current “blogstorm” about United Airlines’ poor customer service provides the data to calculate the true cost of connecting flights. A recent combined business and family trip to New York City makes me realize that my family isn’t a burden in my travels, but instead an eyeopener. Listeners comment on my recent blog posts; one uses Twitter to report his hotel broadband speed test results. Here’s a direct link to the podcast file.
Recorded in the Grand Geneva Resort and Spa, the former Playboy Club, in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, I talk about the travails of “playing injured” — traveling while sick. A listener comment makes me wonder if I’m exaggerating the state of the US travel experience. We get a good suggestion on how to wrestle with charging all those electronic devices we carry, and some detailed “behind-the-scenes” explanations of how air crews are treated by the TSA. Here’s a direct link to the podcast file.
Recorded in Marriott Courtyard in San Francisco’s SoMa district, I confess to some base emotions — my inner child has been throwing tantrums now that American and United Airlines have taken away some of the special treatment they used to give their mid-tier status fliers. I also had a bit of an awakening while on vacation with my family in South Africa — the number of electronic devices they carry has mushroomed and they suffer from bad Internet withdrawal. We have a few stories about how diapers make for some “smelly skies”, a listener finds great free bandwidth in Denver, and we feature some listener music. Here’s a direct link to the podcast file.
Recorded in the TravelCommons studios outside of Chicago, we talk through some of the problems that have made United Airlines’ skies less friendly than their ads would like you to believe. This has definitely been the winter of United fliers’ discontent. I also follow up on last episode’s travel technology upgrade topic. I’ve now found a use for the 3G technology in my new Samsung phone, though not sure that Cingular would completely agree with it. A group of listeners have good things to say about Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport; another listener ponders the impact if the 2001 shoe bomber had tried to ignite some other piece of his wardrobe. Here’s a direct link to the podcast file.
Recorded in the SFO Marriott at the start of a trans-continental travel week, we talk about the need to “re-balance” your frequent traveler elite status at the beginning of the year — should you re-up with your current airline or hotel, or move elsewhere? I’ve upgraded a good bit of my travel technology over the last couple of weeks. I talk about my new toys and the reason travelers invest so much time personalizing these bits of circuitry. One listener describes the inner workings of United Airline’s standby queue, while another listener tells some stories of traveling in the Far North. Here’s a direct link to the podcast file.
Recorded in the TravelCommons studio after hanging around home for the holidays. I talk about yet another tough struggle to get home when a pre-Christmas blizzard shuts down Denver, a couple of listeners share their trials of sitting next to travelers with killer bad breath, and we talk about new class distinctions among frequent fliers with the emergence of the Super Elites. Here’s a direct link to the podcast file.
Recorded in the TravelCommons studio after a week in the Bay Area and a tough struggle to get back home in the teeth of the first winter storm of the season. A listener passes along the story of a trip as an inadvertent stowaway. I walk through the timelime of my efforts to get home to Chicago and, in the Travel Tech segment, talk about two wireless applications I use every day. Here’s a direct link to the podcast file.
Print This Post
