Thank you for your patience this weekend as we had a short “content lock” and welcome to the redesigned OMAAT site! In the 13 years that I’ve been writing this blog, this is only the second real redesign ever. It’s been in development for a long time and I hope our readers enjoy it. Yes, there is a completely new look, but much more important, the new page should be significantly more functional than the old one, especially for the readers, but also for us in the backend. In the coming days I’ll be writing more about individual elements of the new site (including our new OMAAT status levels!), But just wanted to cover a few highlights for now as you navigate the new site. The site has a new structureAs you may notice, the structure of the website is a little different. If you go to the OMAAT homepage, you’ll see that it is no longer just showing the latest posts (although the five most recent posts are always on the top right of the page), but rather that it is supposed to be a better resource page. Why? Well, we’re trying to make the site more accessible – both for regular readers and new readers. They could get a story link from a friend or find an article on Google that they like, but then they are confused when they find out that the next post is from a fake African airline and the post after that is from a 64 year old Freight plane flies over my house (okay, I guess that kind of sums up what OMAAAT is). We also wanted to make it easier to find reviews, guides, and other resources. There are tens of thousands of posts on OMAAT and I continue to write ~ 50 posts a week which can make it difficult for people who don’t check in every day. We’ve grouped content into key sections (News, Reviews, Offers, Guides, Insights / Adventure) to make it easier for you to find what you’re looking for. But don’t worry, of course our long-time readers are most important to us:
The page has a newly designed comment functionThe biggest change I want to highlight is our new OMAAT community / comment system. We are really proud of this, and I think frequent commentators (and those who like friendly dialogue) will appreciate it. It is important to me that people can communicate with each other on the blog, but I also know that the internet can be a toxic place. We hope we have developed a comment system that encourages helpful and friendly discussions. A couple of things to consider:
At the bottom of each post, you’ll see some of the most helpful comments (as you picked!), And then you’ll find that a full window opens up showing the rest of the comments. We’ve replaced the standard “blog sidebar” with this comment section, and hope this will add meaning to the conversations between readers and encourage more people to participate. Bottom lineThe new OMAAT website is finally live. As you can see, this is a major overhaul, both in terms of design and functionality. I know changes can be difficult so please be patient with us – we will still be tweaking some more, there will be changes in the coming days, and I’m sure there will still be a few kinks to be solved. However, we’re excited and proud of the new site and especially the new comments feature that I think will make things better here. As always, thanks for reading! Via https://globalconnekt.com/welcome-to-the-new-omaat/
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In autumn 2018 the Air France-KLM World Elite Mastercard was launched on the US market. The card is issued by Bank of America and reflects a general trend we’ve seen with non-US airlines issuing credit cards in the US. Last summer we saw the best sign-up bonus we’ve seen since the card was launched. It was dragged for a while but has now returned – with this offer you can Earn 50,000 bonus miles plus $ 150 credit after spending $ 2,000 within the first 90 days of opening your account. Let’s take a closer look at the map … Air France-KLM credit card detailsHere are the basics of the map:
My opinion on the Air France KLM credit cardIn general, I don’t recommend using an airline credit card for much of your expenses as there are usually better credit cards out there for everyday expenses. This is more of a general comment than anything specific to this card. That’s simply because cards that collect transferable points give you a lot more flexibility and often have better bonus categories and welcome bonuses. Is this the greatest airline credit card ever? No. But I think it has some solid perks and unique perks that could make it a keeper:
Personally, I don’t have the card. Flying Blue is a transfer partner of Amex Membership Rewards, Chase Ultimate Rewards and Citi ThankYou. I would rather maximize my rewards with some of these credit cards as many of them offer 1.5-2x points per dollar spent. In addition, we sometimes even see transfer bonuses to Flying Blue, which can improve your points collection rate even further. For example, we’ve seen 25-30% bonuses from Amex and Citi in the past. Bottom lineThe Air France KLM card is one that many people might not have considered, but it might be worth it. The card currently offers a bonus of 50,000 Flying Blue miles plus $ 150 credit if the minimum spend is met. When you factor in the $ 89 annual fee, you really get 50,000 miles plus $ 61. If you are aiming for status with Flying Blue, this could be even more valuable, although otherwise I think there are better options. Anyone planning to collect the Air France-KLM World Elite Mastercard? Via https://globalconnekt.com/big-bonus-on-air-france-klm-flying-blue-credit-card/ Having traveled frequently through King’s Cross St Pancras, both for the northern line and for the international canal voyage, I got pretty used to what I once considered to be the ugliest example of 1970s modernism in town. The gleaming white brutalist architecture in the egg carton style of the 70s just seemed to scream: “What are you looking at?” I am talking about the building in which the Standard Hotel now resides. It stands in shocking contrast to the fairytale turrets and pink stone of Sir Gilbert Scott’s Gothic Kings Cross on the opposite side of Euston Road. Since then my gaze has softened. I now realize that this is a fascinating piece of historic architecture that looks a little regal, crowned by a glass extension at its tip. After all, this is where the Camden Town Hall Annex was once located, known as St Pancras Town Hall until 1965. In 1996 it was finally placed under a preservation order. Standard logo upside down ![]() Small reception ![]() King of Kings bedroom In fact, The Standard, an American import, is nothing like that. It was designed in collaboration with Shawn Hausman Design, concept design gurus, and with its upside down logo there really isn’t anything for a traditionalist to hang his hat on. From the small reception desk to the carpets in the hallways, there are many geometric styles whose playful geometric shapes reminded me of the art space in a kid’s room I was in before all the moons. For whom?The standard attracts a tune from millennials and slightly older jokers. The atmospheric library room, al fresco dining, and rooftop bar make the hotel a destination in itself and with jazzy music, a bevy of celebrity DJs playing funky disco music, a legacy of podcasts on culture and lifestyle topics it totally makes sense. When the Eurostar cross-channel services resume, the hotel will no doubt see its Gallic clientele return. The accommodation![]() The Standard has 266 rooms, ranging from Cozy Core (windowless) rooms to suite suites with outdoor bathtubs on top with floor-to-ceiling glass walls. Although they differ in size and shape, the only word that unites them is “funkydelic”. Mine was a King of Kings double with a nice view over the clock tower of King’s Cross. It’s a large room with plain white walls and a huge double bed in the middle on a blue carpet. The duvet offers the colors red, blue and black in geometric block colors by Wallace Sewell. By the way, you are the company behind the fabrics from TfL – Transport for London. There is a flat-screen TV and a workspace with retro lamps for laptop action, including a well-stocked minibar. There is also a raffle to reveal a cocktail shaker and all the gatherings for making a cocktail.
Surprisingly, there’s no Nespresso machine, but a kettle is humbly hidden behind the streamlined red wardrobe door. The stylish bathroom, made of dark pink and black tiles, has a wide (if somewhat short) bathtub and a spacious shower. Bathrobes are unusually green. I enjoyed the complete silence of the room – no ambient noise whatsoever – and was able to regulate the temperature comfortably. to eat and drink![]() Books in the library ![]() Library lounge The Library Lounge, a nod to the past where a functional library once stood, is an atmospheric space with lush vegetation and fireplaces to enjoy a bite or just a cocktail while reading one of the many books on the shelves. I slipped into a comfortable Saporiti leather sofa with Prosecco in hand as I leafed through a book about successful relationships. The Isla restaurant, its terrace and the lobby lounge all seem imperceptibly to merge into a single social space. Double Standard, just around the corner is the long bar and terrace to enjoy hearty dishes like burgers and beer. When the sun is shining, it has to be The Rooftop. It has its own elevator, the red exterior of which can be seen by passing traffic as they get on and off. The food here is limited to a hot dog and a small selection of cocktails on tap, but who cares sipping a tangy margarita while devouring the rooftop view is something special. Breakfast can be a croissant, fruit salad, avocado on sour bread, or even a full English. I went for room service for one of those luxurious breakfast moments in bed. InvestmentsCheck out the hotel’s regular shindigs. The Standard has a 24-hour reception, fitness room and room service as well as a very friendly concierge service. There is free WiFi everywhere. How much?Double rooms from £ 249 per night. What’s nearFor travelers, Kings Cross is opposite St Pancras Bang. There are tons of trendy restaurants and bars nearby, especially around Coal Drops Yard.
Via https://globalconnekt.com/the-standard-kings-cross-london/ Hope everyone has a nice weekend so far! It’s been an exciting weekend here at OMAAT as we (hopefully) launch a redesigned site. Note that comments will be disabled this weekend until the new website is updated. If all goes well, the new site will be available early Monday morning and people who have pre-registered will shortly receive emails asking them to create their passwords. We will resume regular operations on Monday morning (with or without a new location). Thank you for your patience! With that out of the way, here’s a look back at this week on the blog: Recommended storiesDetails: America and Alaska Elite Mutual UpgradesAlaska Airlines joined the oneworld alliance on March 31, 2021. At the same time, Alaska Airlines and American Airlines introduced mutual upgrades as part of their strategic partnership. I’d like to recap the latest on how these mutual upgrades work, especially as the upgrade process has been improved this week for Alaska MVP Gold 75K members traveling on American Airlines. Impressive seat guarantee from British AirwaysCredit where credit is due is an enhancement to the British Airways Executive Club program that many members will benefit from. Guide to the UK Passenger Search Form and TestsAll passengers traveling to or transferring to the UK are required to present a negative coronavirus test result and complete a passenger search form. Yes, this also applies if you are only traveling by air while traveling between two other countries. TIPS: Earn miles and promosGreat new Amex offer for Marriott stays TRICKS: redeem milesMarriott Bonvoy adjusts point advance feature TRAVEL With Ben (Lucky)I am bringing my mother to Greece! REVIEWS & travel reportsA perfect American Airlines transatlantic business class flight GUIDES & programsGuide to the UK Passenger Search Form and Tests News updateReport: FAA Downgrades Mexico Aviation Safety Rating I wish everyone a nice rest weekend! Via https://globalconnekt.com/weekly-review-may-29-2021/ In a previous post I discussed our excellent American Airlines business class flight from Charlotte to London as we were en route to Greece. In this episode I hinted how our flight ended on a sour note, so in this post I wanted to talk about what happened. Specifically, we mixed up. Let me know beforehand that this wasn’t specifically anyone’s fault – if you are a frequent traveler you just have to go with the flow and make the most of every situation and there is no need to get out of shape. How smoothly flight operations run is usually a miracle, especially when you consider the complexity of the whole thing. Sometimes things go wrong. I think we just hope it doesn’t happen when we go on a very special trip with our mothers on an already very long day of travel. But we’re blessed to be able to take this trip in the first place, so it wasn’t a big deal in the end. I still wanted to share what happened because it was almost funny how many things went wrong at once. Our itinerary was probably too good to be trueWe flew from Tampa to Charlotte to London to Athens on a single American Airlines award ticket (with the last leg on British Airways), and then we had a separate ticket from Athens to Chania on Aegean Airlines. It was a long day of travel – about 27 hours door to door – but it seemed like the best option:
Unfortunately not everything went as planned … First our jet bridge broke …The winds across the Atlantic did not work in our favor, and despite a punctual departure, we landed about 20 minutes late. We had 1 hour 50 minutes left, which should have been more than enough time. After all, we were already at Terminal 5, and in the distance I could even see our connecting plane! Look as we pulled into our gate in London Heathrow The seat belt buckle went off and we waited for the jet bridge to approach the plane, but … it didn’t. The jet bridge just didn’t move for about 10 minutes after which the captain announced that there was a problem with the jet bridge and that they are working to fix it. He said hopefully it shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes. Our uncooperative jet bridge At this point the captain informed us that it was determined that the jet bridge was indeed broken. He explained that they would get stairs and buses and get us out through the tail of the plane. I’m not sure how this is more efficient than just pushing back and going to a different gate (presumably they have some spares right now and that would also solve the problem of getting on the plane when it leaves again) but what whatever. Suffice it to say it was a total cluster. About 20 minutes later, some buses showed up, although there were still no stairs. See you guys! Then it was another 20 minutes before they got up stairs. At this point we sat at the gate for about an hour. Eventually they started putting people on buses to the terminal, but they were limited to about 20 people per bus to allow the distance. Since the stairs were in the back of the plane, we were on the very last bus. That took another 40 minutes. Ordinarily, I’d think that’s a pretty cool point of view Everyone did what they could individually, but the collective incompetence and lack of coordination among the ground staff was incredible (and there’s no point in even describing it). In the end we arrived at the terminal at our scheduled departure time for Athens, so unfortunately we had a wrong connection. We went to the transit counter where the next round of fun began … Then American Airlines’ systems failed …We went to the British Airways transit counter in Heathrow Terminal 5 and explained that we had a wrong connection and needed to be rebooked. The agent was friendly and tried to be helpful. Heathrow Terminal 5 transfer desk After a few minutes of typing, the conversation went something like this:
Great, we cut the connection and American systems were down for an hour and they didn’t know when they would be back up. At least the agent was nice compared to one of the other agents who faced a passenger on our flight who dared to book a British Airways route on a separate ticket. The British Airways agent literally laughed in the customer’s face when he asked about rebooking on the next British Airways flight:
Anyway, we sat on the floor in the transit area (as there is hardly any seating) and about 30 minutes later the British Airways agent found us and told us he could rebook us as American systems are still there failed. I thanked him for his help because he could have just taken the “not my problem” approach, but he didn’t. It pays to be nice to the front line staff. Then there was a rebooking adventure in the Aegean …I had purposely booked us flexible tickets with Aegean Airlines from Athens to Chania in the event of a bad connection. Suffice it to say that it was practical. While sitting at the bottom of the transit desk at Heathrow, I tried to rebook our flight on Aegean, seeing that the last flight of the evening had only three seats left. Our transit counter view while waiting The Aegean website claims you can easily make changes online and I was pleasantly surprised to find that I was able to rebook this flight and even issue boarding passes with just a few clicks. Well, at least I was impressed until I got “Standby” on my boarding pass, which wasn’t what we were hoping for. On the previous page, it appeared to be a confirmed change. I called Aegean hoping an agent could help. After waiting for more than 30 minutes, the (friendly) agent claimed that there was a “technical error”. She said she was on the other line with the “technical department” and asked if she could call me back in a few minutes. Wow, a call back? This is great service and I wish more airlines would! Unfortunately, I hadn’t received a call back over two hours later (despite being told it would take minutes) and our reservation still didn’t reflect the change. I called again, spoke to someone else, and explained the situation. Again he promised to call me back after speaking to the “technical department”. As we were about to board our flight, I was almost ready to just book a new itinerary because the risk was too great. Three new tickets cost less than the night we would lose at our hotel if we didn’t make it to Chania that evening. He assured me the tickets would be reissued and when I went to check-in at Athens Airport we were confirmed the flight even though the reservation was not updated online. Angry. Glad it was confirmed because the flight ended up being oversold and they were begging for volunteers. Flying within Greece is not a lot of fun! Bottom lineIf you travel enough you will no doubt run into some operational issues, which to expect. I think we all hope that our “special” trips aren’t the ones that have these problems, but sometimes it just works that way. In this case, we had a bad connection at Heathrow due to a broken jet bridge and it took about two hours for everyone to get off the plane. Things didn’t get much better when we got off the plane, from American’s systems to the awful Aegean rebooking. Luckily my mother was a great sport and we’re lucky we made it to Chania that same day, even if it was a very long journey. Traveling these days involves many logistical risks and challenges, and in this case a three-stop route was our best choice so we can’t get too upset about it. Now we are in paradise so everything will end well! Via https://globalconnekt.com/grrr-our-unfortunate-london-heathrow-mismatch/ For our trip to Greece, my mother, her partner and I crossed the Atlantic with American Airlines and flew from Charlotte to London. Our overall itinerary was Tampa to Charlotte to London to Athens, and I booked these for 57,500 American AAdvantage miles and less than $ 30 in taxes and fees per person. I am not going to write a detailed report on the transatlantic flight as I recently reviewed the American to Hawaii 777-200 Business Class so many details are similar. Our plane from Charlotte to London Rather, I just wanted to give Americans credit for what I consider to be a legitimately solid transatlantic business class experience, at least in these times. The way I see it, American got all the basics right here – great seating, solid furnishings, good food, and friendly service. This last category can often be the hardest to find, so kudos to the crew for that. The last time I flew across the Atlantic from Charlotte was on US Airways in 2013, and I still remember the purser of that flight – Miss Peggy. She was something … Anyway, let me share the highlights of this flight below. Reverse herringbone seats are greatWe flew an American Airlines 777-200 with inverted herringbone seats from Collins Aerospace. These are comfy seats so it’s not much better for a 7 hour 55 minute flight. For those who are curious what transatlantic cargoes look like these days: 22 of the 37 seats in Business Class were occupied on this flight. American Airlines 777-200 Business Class seat The ticket for our flight from Charlotte to London Solid furnishings, especially bed linenWhile not as good as United Polaris’ long-range bedding, American’s Casper bedding is excellent with a large pillow and cozy blanket. American Airlines Business Class Linen by Casper Bang & Olufsen headphones are also decent for anyone who likes to use in-flight entertainment on the plane (which I rarely do other than to keep an eye on the map).
My flight also had America’s brand new amenity kits from Shinola, which seemed mightily unobtrusive to me.
Surprisingly good foodHere was the menu for our flight: And then here is the drinks menu: The service started shortly after the start with drinks and packaged mixed nuts. I don’t usually drink when flying on US airlines, but when I saw Lanson champagne on the menu, I thought to myself, I’ll order a glass. I mainly ordered it on principle – I think if there is a decent wine option on American you might as well be seizing the moment as anyone can guess when that will happen again. ? Americans continue to use plastic cups, even though the spouts, at least, have been generous. American Airlines Business Class Drinks & Nuts Dinner was served shortly after departure and all dinner was on a tray. I really appreciate that American allows you to pre-order your meals so you’re guaranteed to get your first choice. Everything was served packaged, as is customary these days. I think I’m a fan of the one tablet service on a short transatlantic flight and I almost hope it stays as it really speeds up the service.
I have to say the food was very good.
The starter consisted of grated beef with lemon aioli, edamame guacamole and pico de gallo. There was also a packaged bun that was warm and surprisingly soft.
I decided to be petulant about my main course order and chose the crab cakes with lemon and chive cream sauce, broccoli chipotle coleslaw, and bubble tomatoes. While I have a feeling that crab cakes can go very wrong on a plane, they were rightly decent – I’d love to see these served in a mediocre restaurant (that’s a compliment, just to be clear) .
For dessert there was a salted caramel tart, which was good too.
Breakfast was served about 75 minutes before landing, with either a continental breakfast or an omelette. I chose the continental breakfast which had a nice varied fruit platter, cereal and yogurt. I skipped the croissant which was tough. American Airlines business class breakfast Friendly & professional serviceUltimately, a crew can make or break a flight, and that crew couldn’t have been nicer. The ladies in business class were professional, friendly, informal, playful, and seemed to really enjoy their work and that’s always so nice to see. Often it is the smallest things that make the difference. For example, on my United flight from Maui to Chicago a few weeks ago, the flight attendant took the food orders without any kind of greeting as follows:
On this flight, the purser Lisa took the food orders as follows:
US airlines will never be able to compete with Singapore Airlines and Qatar Airways for consistent and professional service. What they can do, however, is strike a great balance between being authentic, fun, and professional, and this crew did just that. Hats off. The crew took great care of my mother! Bottom lineOn a good day, American Airlines can be really competitive across the Atlantic. You always get excellent flatbed seats with direct access to the aisle, along with solid bedding. The rest of the experience is consistently inconsistent. Fortunately, we were lucky on this flight, with great food, excellent champagne and an absolutely lovely crew. If only Americans were always this good. Oh, shoot, I completely forgot to mention the one thing (completely out of the crew’s control) that soured this flight out. I’ll save that for the next post. Via https://globalconnekt.com/a-perfect-flight-with-american-airlines-in-business-class/
Southwest Airlines decided not to serve alcohol on flights this summer because the airline believes passengers are incapable of behavior. Southwest will withdraw upon resumption of serviceAirlines suspended much of the flight service at the start of the pandemic, although we saw airlines slowly scaling back the service as the situation got better under control thanks to widespread vaccination. Last week, Southwest announced it would resume selling alcohol on flights this summer as the company sought to restore “more elements of Southwest hospitality that customers know and love.” Well, apparently not that fast. Southwest is postponing the sale of alcohol on board indefinitely. Southwest’s head of in-flight operations, Sonya Lacore, said she “made the decision to reevaluate the resumption of alcohol service on board due to the increase in in-flight passenger disruption.” This follows a Southwest flight attendant who was recently physically assaulted by a passenger and even had two teeth knocked out. The passenger had repeatedly ignored instructions on how to buckle up, set up tray tables, etc. Is Alcohol the Problem?The passenger behavior that we have seen over the past few months has been absolutely terrible at times. The last incident we saw when a Southwest flight attendant was attacked sucks me. We have seen an increase in incidents in air anger, and I recommend that the FAA take action and take a zero-tolerance approach. That being said, I’m not sure if alcohol is the problem here or that alcohol would make things worse? Let’s remember that the vast majority of the incidents we saw during the pandemic did not involve alcohol as they happened while the airlines were offering almost no service. Hell, the only “under the influence” story I’ve seen lately is about a guy who took his own cocaine on a flight. Many people feel nervous and stressed about getting on a plane these days and simply have bad attitudes. It’s been a tough year. Perhaps a drink will help some people calm their nerves and not act like idiots? In this sense:
Bottom lineSouthwest Airlines was scheduled to resume in-flight alcohol sales in June, but the airline has pulled out. This is due to an increase in air rage incidents, including a Southwest flight attendant who was physically assaulted last week. While seeing where the southwest is coming from, is this one case where I’m not sure if alcohol is the problem? Virtually all of the incidents we’ve seen happened without the airlines serving alcohol, and that didn’t seem to do the job. What do you think of Southwest continuing to suspend alcohol services? Via https://globalconnekt.com/southwest-will-not-be-serving-alcohol-due-to-air-rage/ I think this is considered to be one of the stranger reasons for a flight diversion … Bat flies around the Air India cabinOn Thursday, May 27, 2021, Air India flight AI105 was quite an adventure. A Boeing 777-300ER with the registration code VT-ALM was planned for the ultra long haul flight from Delhi to Newark. The plane took off from Delhi on schedule at 2:27 a.m., but a bat flew around the cabin about 30 minutes after take-off. Initial reports had suggested the crew discovered a dead bat carcass in business class, although the footage suggests the bat was alive and well during the incident. The pilots were made aware of this and decided to return to Delhi. This required going into a holding loop to drain fuel as the plane was too heavy to land. So the plane flew for almost two hours before returning to Delhi in the early hours of the morning. The plane is believed to have been cleaned and fumigated, although it appears Air India was still flying another plane to Newark. At 6:37 a.m., an Air India Boeing 777-300ER with the registration code VT-ALU took off for Newark. It made the 14 hour and 19 minute flight and landed at 11:25 a.m. which was 3 hours 30 minutes behind schedule. That delay isn’t bad at all considering the amount of time it takes to deflate and how long it takes to change aircraft. I also wonder if the same crew made the second flight? Either they did a great job finding a replacement crew quickly, or that crew had an extremely long day. This is an expensive detour …Initial reports had suggested that the flight was diverted because a bat carcass was found in the cabin, rather than because a live bat was flying around in the cabin. The first report confused me as I don’t know exactly what a diversion would have done. However, the fact that a live bat was flying around the cabin sheds much more light on this situation. I can see a bat get on a plane when it’s parked on the ground with the door open. I think the only surprising thing is that the bat didn’t fly around the cabin until 30 minutes after the flight. This is, of course, a delicate situation as diversions are expensive and time consuming, and fuel dumping alone has likely cost the airline tens of thousands of dollars (and that doesn’t even take into account the environmental impact). At the same time, I’m not sure if there is a better solution when a bat is flying around? I think there is no practical way for the crew to catch the bat so returning and starting over was probably the only option. Bottom lineA bat flying around in the cabin of an Air India Boeing 777 caused a stir. The Delhi to Newark flight eventually returned to India, which required draining of fuel and delayed the flight for several hours. I suspect there isn’t a really good alternative here, and if anything, I’m surprised it doesn’t happen more often. Via https://globalconnekt.com/bat-arranges-for-air-india-flight-to-be-diverted-to-newark/
IHG initially announced that it had bought Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants back in 2014. However, until a few years ago, the brands continued to operate separately. In 2018, the Kimpton Karma Rewards program was finally integrated into the IHG Rewards Club program. Understandably, many people were concerned that IHG’s acquisition of Kimpton would mean the brand would lose what makes it special. Kimpton has always been known for how well cared for guests is, and although there are several dozen locations, the hotels still have a boutique feel to them. The good news is that, for the most part, Kimptons hasn’t changed too much and Kimpton continues to offer a very cool perk to its guests. Kimpton has had a seasonal “secret social password” for years, which you can provide at check-in for a special surprise. This password was usually available on social media channels so Kimpton could interact with guests in other ways. Kimpton has now introduced its new secret social password, which is valid until September 6th, 2021 and it is called “No More Sweatpants”.
Simply mention this when you check-in at a Kimpton property and you will receive a special surprise, which could include, for example, a free upgrade, free breakfast, free parking or the like. Note that there are many inconsistencies related to this benefit. Some hotels offer significant perks while other hotels offer a 19-cent branded koozie. I think as social media becomes more popular, more people are aware of these and therefore they are less specific. You can combine this with other ways to maximize your Kimpton stays, from IHG’s current global points promotion, to the Amex Kimpton stay deals, to the InterContinental Ambassador sign-up offer. If you have the chance to use Kimpton Social Password in the coming months, please report what you get!
Via https://globalconnekt.com/kimptons-new-secret-social-password/ Hawaiian Airlines will discontinue its regional subsidiary Ohana by Hawaiian, which means the airline will be forced to discontinue flights to some destinations. Hawaiian Airlines terminates regional subsidiaryOhana by Hawaiian, which was founded in 2014, was the regional subsidiary of Hawaiian Airlines. The airline operated a fleet of seven ATR turboprop aircraft – including four cargo ATR-72s and three passenger ATR-42s. Hawaiian’s Ohana suspended operations during the pandemic for several reasons:
Well, today it was announced that Ohana by Hawaiian will permanently cease operations:
Peter Ingram, CEO of Hawaiian Airlines, describes this decision:
Hawaiian’s Ohana will not resume operations What are the practical implications of this?Hawaiian Airlines flies Boeing 717s on Hawaiian inter-island routes and nothing will change there. Hawaiian Airlines uses 717 for its inter-island routes However, there are some routes that were only served by smaller aircraft due to runway restrictions and demand. In particular, flights from Honolulu to Lanai and Molokai were served exclusively by these aircraft.
During the pandemic, the Four Seasons Lanai had to intervene to get passengers to the hotel. The hotel offers round-trip Lanai Air transfers between Honolulu and Lanai at room rates as this is one of the few convenient ways guests can get to the resort. The hotel even has a private lounge at Honolulu Airport. The Four Seasons has offered transfers with Lanai Air The regional carrier Mokulele Airlines is expected to take over some of these routes. The airline currently flies Cessna 208 aircraft but is expected to take over some Beechcraft 1900D aircraft for flights out of Honolulu. Mokulele Airlines will fly Beechcraft 1900Ds Bottom lineHawaiian’s Ohana suspended operations during the pandemic, and it has now been announced that the airline will cease operations on a permanent basis. Apparently, the pandemic caused Hawaiian Airlines to crack the numbers for this operation and decide that it is no longer practical. While Hawaiian Airlines’ Boeing 717 can service most inter-island routes, there are a few exceptions, such as Honolulu to Lanai. For these routes, Mokulele Airlines is expected to step in and add the service with larger aircraft. What do you think of Ohana if Hawaiians go out of business? Via https://globalconnekt.com/ohana-from-hawaiians-ceases-operations/ |
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March 2022
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