11/07/2008-The Weekly Round Up : Watching The World Go By; The 'New' FareCompare; 12 CEOs Send Out An 'Open Letter'; Southwest & WestJet Team Up; Etc

Web: www.fishfoto.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

11/07/2008-The Weekly Round Up : Watching The World Go By; The 'New' FareCompare; 12 CEOs Send Out An 'Open Letter'; Southwest & WestJet Team Up; Etc

This week has been an interesting week for industry news, with the CEOs of 12 major U.S. Airlines signing a single 'Open Letter" to all airline customers and US low cost carrier Southwest Airlines and Canadian low cost carrier WestJet announcing their international code-share agreement plan. From a consumer stand point , this week also saw the launch of some new FareCompare tools that make the economic decisions in choosing flights clearer to understand.

.......so here we go, The Weekly Round Up!

We kicked off this week on a flight that left San Francisco on the 4th of July and landed in Philadelphia on the 5th of July. I seem to miss the Independence Day fireworks more often than I'd like. Sometimes I see them from the sky on departure, sometimes on arrival, and this year all I saw was dense fog. I often this of home, and my time away from my kids on overnight flights, it's bed time and rather than saying goodnight I'm taking off. So on my red-eye flight this past Friday I sat down in Seat 22A, on United Flight 188, and wrote this entry: 5/07/2008 - Watching The World Go By

My coverage of the business of travel began with my review of FareComare's new tools for booking travel. In the past I had used FareCompare as 'base tool,' never relying much on the actual costs I was being shown. FareCompare's new tools, and access to booking engines, is quite accurate from what I have seen and is quite powerful. The potential booking options are fantastic and are not to be overlooked. If you'd like to read more about FareCompare's new and improved site click here: 9/07/2008 - FareCompare Updates Travel Tools

The first 'big news' of the week I chose to write about was an 'Open Letter To All Airline Customers,' that was sent out by 12 major U.S. airlines and signed by all 12 airline CEOs. Airlines argue about nearly everything, airlines argue externally, they argue internally and in some cases they argue with their customers......so when I stopped and read the e-mail and saw 12 separate CEOs signatures I had to stop and read the content. The airlines have banded together to try and address the critical issue of the rising cost of fuel, and the over inflated cost of crude-oil. To find out these 12 airline CEOs banded together to say, check out this post: 9/07/2008 - Open Letter From 12 Major U.S. Airlines To All Airline Customers

The second 'big news' of the week I dove into was the code-share agreement announcement by Southwest Airlines and WestJet. Southwest Airlines is, and has been, purely a US domestic airlines, while WestJet is heavily focused on Canadian domestic routes, and routes to warmer, popular, destination routes frequented by Canadians (and one business routes to Newark Liberty Int'l Airport - EWR). These two airlines compliment each other in many ways and I very much look forward to flying their code-shared routes! To find out more on why I think Southwest and WestJet compliment each other so well, check here: 11/07/2008 – Southwest Airlines & WestJet Forge Code-Share Agreement : Is There A More Perfect Match For Two Airlines?


This week I officially launched 'The Travel Strategist." Although I have been contacted by a number of journalists who cover business, airlines and travel, and written up in international business journals such as 'Arabian Business,' the write up that made me smile the most was the one on AeroChannel.com. I have been following AeroChannel's growth over the last few months and love the services they offer their readers. To be recognized by a site that believe will take off, and really streamline much of the pre-flght logistics checks, was something that I really enjoyed. You can read what AeroChannel said about 'The Travel Strategist' here: 11/07/2008 – Flying With Fish 'Offshoot' The Travel Strategist Featured On AeroChannel.com

.........'The Great Mountainsmith Bag Give Away From Flying With Fish' deadline is almost here! Your entries must be in by the 14th of July at 12:midnight eastern-time (GMT -5)! To learn more about how you can win one of three great Mountainsmith bags for your travels check this entry out: 10/07/2008 - Mountainsmith Bag Giveaway Deadline Is Rapidly Approaching!!!


Like last week, I will be rounding up my 'Weekly Round Up' with the reminder that there are still seats available or the No Jet Lag Photo Workshops. Both the Europe Workshop and the Round The World Workshop are designed to push the participants to the edge of what they think they are capable of handling as both photographers and travelers. There are whole new sets of skills awaiting you. Sign up now and Come Fly With Fish! For more info visit: www.comeflywithfish.com

Happy Flying!

FareCompare Updates Travel Tools

Web: www.fishfotoworldwide.com -- E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com

9/07/2008 - FareCompare Updates Travel Tools

For years many flyers have used FareCompare's (www.farecompare.com) search tools to find multiple travel options, while comparing pricing options.

The 'old' FareCompare was a bit challenging to use at times, however overall it was a good option for quickly referencing multiple options. The 'new' FareCompare's tools not only streamline the process of searching multiple flight options, but the information displayed is more detailed and makes understanding your purchasing options clearer.

Rather than searching for a flight from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to London Heathrow (LHR) and seeing only
NZ - $786
BA - $1093
UA - $1089

The new fare compare shows you the airline (by code), fare class, cabin, advance purchase requirement, trip type (one way or round trip), base fare, fuel surcharge, international surcharge (which is often nearly the same cost as the base fare on this route), taxes, total.....and my favourite options, it shows you the Price Per Mile (PPM).

This information gives you a more informed choice on airfares and the "PPM" is an excellent tool for really knowing what your trip is costing you!

So for an Air New Zealand (NZ) flight from LAX to LHR you'll see the break down
Airline: NZ
Fare Class: GX12SL
Cabin: Coach
Adv Pur: 7 days
Trip: Roundtrip
Base: $414
Fuel: $0
Intl Sur: $200
Taxes: $172
Total: $786
PPM: $0.14

With this, you can also search the Fare Rules, Flight Schedules and Routing Information. If you want to fly a specific routing you are can also search to filter out specific airlines, you can search by airline alliance, as well as by trip type, base price, total price.......and even search by your price per mile.

While this information might seem confusing or more info than you want to know, it is a great tool for selecting your preferred travel routes and creating cost-controls for your travel expenditures.

So, planning your next trip? Check out the 'new' tools at:
www.farecompare.com/fare-display/index.html

Happy Flying!