By Latasia Brown
It’s 2010…whoa! I feel like I need to repeat that 10 more times before it sinks in.
It’s been one heck of a year. 2009 literally threw us through the ringer — economically and in the ever-changing world of travel.
The airline sector of the travel industry had its share of craziness. Several fees were born and then skyrocketed, customer service went missing and, most recently, airport security has become even more strenuous. So I think it’s safe to say that we’re collectively a little happy to kiss that cantankerous year good-bye!
Before we let the past year fade away completely, however, we want to continue the tradition of New Year lists with our own “Best, Worst & Crazy of 2009: Travel Edition!”
The Hudson Miracle
The safe landing of US Airways’ Flight 1549 on New York’s Hudson River Jan. 15, 2009, will definitely be in the history books. All 155 passengers were rescued from the river after pilot C.B. “Sully” Sullenberger ditched the plane in the frigid water. He had reported a “double bird strike” shortly after take off and was trying to return to N.Y.’s LaGuardia Airport when he had to make the emergency landing.
When Pigs Fly
It’s official, pigs can fly — as well as cats, dogs, birds and most other animals you can call pets. Thanks to
Pet Airways, your little curly-tail friend can fly as comfortably as you do.
Uhh…When Do We Land?
The two pilots of Northwest Airlines claimed to have lost track of time while chatting and working on their laptops as they overshot their destination by 150 miles. Is it me, or does this story
still sound fishy?
Oasis Ahoy!
The largest cruise ship ever built finally took its maiden voyage on the open seas. The 220,000-ton
Oasis of the Seas truly lives up to its name and expectations. If you haven’t taken a gander at this beauty yet, I suggest you do, pronto!
Tweet! Tweet! Tweet!
Social networking has forever transformed the world of travel. Good-bye experts and professional travel tippers. Hello friends of friends of friends who live in Timbuktu and recommend the best of the best from the local’s perspective — and honestly, would you trust some “expert?” Or would you trust the opinions of the people who actually live there? Some of the best travel advice comes from those who actually live in the destinations you’re looking to visit. Twitter enables people to share travel blogs with tips on attractions and events, cheap deals and packages and more! Thanks to Twitter and other social media sites, we’re able to feature local bloggers on this site, and then
share their expertise on the location they know and love, their home city.
Twitter isn’t the only social media site where travelers can gain access to great deals one tweet at a time; Facebook is another great avenue. For example, American Airlines has a feature in its
“American Airlines Travel Bag” section that enables Facebook users to search for the cheapest fares in real time, as well as customize itineraries and share them with friends.
Price check on Flight 101!
Long gone are the good ole days of checking in your luggage for free. I swear there was a collective gasp that could be heard nationwide (and maybe even worldwide) when we first discovered what the airlines were up to. An added fee of some kind was expected since the economy tanked, but an escalation from $5 per bag to $30+ per bag is a pretty big leap! The bad news is, it’s most likely only going to get worse.
Skyping Your Best Friend from 30,000 feet in the air: Priceless
Remember when we thought Wi-Fi in Starbucks was the greatest thing ever? Try using Wi-Fi while cruising thousands of miles in the air. Delta, Virgin America, American, Southwest, Air Canada and United are just a few carriers that provide Wi-Fi during their flights. Some airlines host Wi-Fi on some, not all, planes; be sure to check your respective airline’s Web site for more information.
Travel Light
Some airline carriers have come up with other interesting ways to save. Imagine. A flight of 216 passengers, all with full bladders, boarding an ANA Boeing 767. “That’s about 1.1 pounds of fluid [per passenger],” ANA North America spokeswoman Jean Saito told ABC News. “...That extra urine would weigh about 240 pounds.” To save on fuel, Japan’s All Nippon Airways is asking its passengers to empty their bladders before boarding select flights.
Securing the Future
Since the attempted bombing on Christmas day last year, the TSA has been scrambling to come up with new security measures.
Here is its official statement.
No Sneezing Allowed
Of course, we cannot forget the infamous H1N1 flu virus — which I found curiously amusing since we had the avian flu, which disappeared into the swine flu, which disappeared into the H1N1. This was the flu times 10. Thus far, it looks like it’s under control. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.
Small Airlines Will Travel
Many of the small airlines have started to branch out to bigger cities with their low fare flights — keeping the major airline companies on their toes, one flight at a time; I like it!
Tell us what you think about these moments in 2009, or add your own awesome, horrible or just plain weird piece of 2009 travel history.