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Continental to Cut Coach Me...

March 15, 2010
Continental Airlines plans to begin selling food aboard its flights for coach passengers—a trend echoed throughout the airline industry. A spokesman of the Houston-based airline said today that they expect a $35-million boost from combined cost savings and increased revenue. The airline has long boasted about its complimentary meal service and even centered ad campaigns around this amenity. The fourth largest U.S. airline, Continental will still serve complimentary meals to first and business class passengers and to all passengers on select international routes and on six hour-plus domestic flights. Snacks like pretzels and nonalcoholic drinks will still be free for all. The alterations to in-flight service will happen in the fall. continental.com

Westin Makes a Musical Debu...

March 15, 2010
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide announced the grand opening of The Westin Austin at The Domain on March 11—the first Westin hotel to open in Austin, Texas. The newly constructed, 340-room hotel offers nearly 17,000 sq. ft. of meeting space, a 24-hour gym, a business center and a heated pool. Less than 15 minutes from downtown, the hotel is located within The Domain (Austin’s upscale lifestyle, retail and dining complex) and is convenient to the live music venues on Sixth Street, the lounges of the Warehouse District and top-rated University of Texas’ sporting events. westin.com

Lake Havasu gets new Chief

March 10, 2010
The Lake Havasu City CVB has named Doug Traub as its new president/CEO, who will assume the position on March 15. Traub was the president and CEO of the Huntington Beach Conference and Visitors Bureau for most of this past decade and led the branding campaign that furthered Huntington Beach’s recognition and notoriety as “Surf City USA.” With 15 years of destination marketing experience, Traub sees an opportunity to reprioritize how Lake Havasu City, Ariz., presents itself to the world.
www.golakehavasu.com

JetBlue & Delta Seek Fee Ex...

March 9, 2010
According to the Associated Press, JetBlue and Delta are asking for temporary exemptions from the new U.S. government rule that will limit the time passengers can be held on the tarmac. They say delays caused by the closure of the main runway (which went into effect on March 1) at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York could cost them millions of dollars in fines. The Department of Transportation’s new rule, which takes effect April 29, orders airlines to let passengers off planes delayed for three hours or more, or face hefty fines. The new rule could slap an airline with a fine of $27,500 per passenger for that kind of delay. For an average Boeing 737 with a full load of passengers, the fine could be around $3.5 million. JetBlue and Delta are the biggest operators at J.F.K., an airport that was among the worst in the nation for delays last year. Federal Aviation Administration expects delays there will average about 50 minutes during peak times and 29 minutes at other times during the four-month shutdown. jetblue.com; delta.com

Calgary’s Triple Threat

March 5, 2010
Tourism Calgary, the Calgary TELUS Convention Centre and the Calgary Hotel Association announced yesterday a partnership aimed at attracting new meetings and conventions to Calgary. The team will align marketing efforts and pool resources to intensify efforts in building awareness primarily in the U.S. and international markets. This group will operate under the umbrella of the recently formed Meetings & Conventions Calgary (MCC). Its mandate is to assist meeting planners, association executives and corporate clients in selecting Calgary as a prime location for their meetings and conventions. “The goal of the partnership is to reach out to specific target groups with competitive offers, consistent branding, quick turn-around and coordinated responses tailored to unique needs. It’s essentially a turn-key approach. The industry is evolving rapidly, becoming more demanding—customized offers and unique experiences are what it’s all about,” says Peter Gregus, managing director, Meetings & Conventions Calgary.
meetingscalgary.com

Continental Adds Aloha

March 5, 2010
Continental Airlines will begin new flights this Sunday, March 7, from Los Angeles and Orange County to Maui and a flight between Orange County and Honolulu. The new daily flight is between Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Maui’s Kahului Airport (OGG) and the airline will also add a second daily flight between LAX and Honolulu. The new Orange County-Maui flight will operate four times weekly between John Wayne Airport (SNA) and Maui’s OGG. continental.com

More Money, More Legroom

March 4, 2010
Starting March 17, Continental Airlines will offer customers the option of purchasing, at check in, premium seat assignments for unreserved economy-class seats that feature extra legroom. Continental's OnePass Elite frequent flyer members and their traveling companions will be able to continue to assign themselves seats with extra legroom in economy class without charge. Depending on the type of aircraft and row, seats with extra legroom provide customers with a minimum of seven additional inches of leg space.
continental.com

Lake Las Vegas Closures

March 2, 2010
Casino MonteLago at Lake Las Vegas in Henderson, Nev. will close its doors on March 14, according to AP. This news follows that of the of the nearby Ritz-Carlton closure. The 348-room, Four-Diamond Ritz-Carlton Lake Las Vegas will close its doors permanently on May 2, according to USA Today. Nearly 600 jobs will be lost as the result of the two closures. lakelasvegas.com

Eagle Takes Flight Between ...

February 25, 2010
American Eagle Airlines, the regional affiliate of American Airlines, will begin nonstop jet service between Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and Reno-Tahoe International Airport (RNO), beginning June 10. Eagle will operate the service with 44-seat Embraer ERJ-140 jets. "This is great news for Reno because more flights mean more people who will stay in our hotels, visit Lake Tahoe and take advantage of our top-notch entertainment," said Nevada Senator Harry Reid. "It's also good news for a few of the airline's employees who will now be put back to work after losing their jobs because of the struggling economy. I appreciate American Airlines for making this investment in northern Nevada." aa.com

Starwood Launches TelePres...

February 24, 2010  
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide unveiled its first in-hotel Cisco TelePresence meeting suites yesterday with a virtual, interactive meeting spanning across two continents. The W Chicago City Center and Sheraton on the Park Sydney are the first in Starwood’s global portfolio to introduce the new meeting facilities, showcasing the state-of-the-art Cisco TelePresence technology. Participants in both locations had a seat at the table and were able to meet “face-to-face” utilizing ultra-high definition video, superior audio and life-size imagery of all participants. In addition to the W Chicago and Sheraton on the Park Sydney, inaugurated as part of a partnership with Tata Communications, two more Cisco TelePresence meeting suites will open in the first half of this year in the Sheraton New York Hotel & Towers and Sheraton Centre Toronto, which will come online in the coming months. Other Starwood locations planning to open telepresence suites throughout 2010 include The Westin Los Angeles Airport, with the anticipation to expand the offering to key domestic and international business markets such as Dallas, San Francisco, Brussels, Paris, Hong Kong and Frankfurt. The public facility offers users who do not have telepresence rooms within their company, access to this cutting-edge technology at an hourly rate. tatacommunications.com/telepresence