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Southwest Air: Forget To Set Alarm...Forget Refund


We fear that Southwest, once our favorite laid-back economy airline, is slip-sliding into the nickel-diming mode of other airlines. The most recent example is that SW will no longer refund the fare of passengers who fail to be there for scheduled flights.

In the past, if you showed up late, there were ways to get around it. The SW airport staff would do their best let you board a later flight, or even get you on a rival airline flight. And it cost you nothing beyond the fare you paid for your original ticket.  

Under the new SW policy, if you miss your flight without adequate reason or prior contact, you may have to forfeit your fare. Flyers should be aware of the logical reason for the new SW rule. In these days of tightening budgets and high fuel prices, flights with empty seats represent lost income for airlines.

For more information, contact your favorite hometown or online travel agency, or go to www.southwest.com

Sarasota: Elephant movie reminds of circus history PDF Print E-mail

Circus elephant

If you’ll be in the Sarasota, Florida, area, stop in to visit the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art and Museum. It’s a fascinating look back on the early circus days. A popular new movie, “Water For Elephants”, is bringing more focus on the wonderful era before TV, when people actually took the whole family to see the clowns, tigers, trapese artists and elephants.

If you want to stay awhile, check out the Courtyard Marriott Ringling Museum. It offers a package that includes a room and two "Member For A Day" Ringling Museum passes, for prices ranging from $129 per night.

 
Four Seasons Hotel grows fresh harvests on the roof PDF Print E-mail

Fruit and vegetables

The downtown luxury hotel in Atlanta GA has an extensive garden on the roof that provides seasonal fruit, vegetables and herbs for its Park 75 Restaurant. Hotel guests can enjoy their meals knowing they’re getting the absolutely freshest ingredients.

The garden is pollinated by bees housed right next to the vegetables and fruit growing on the roof. The hives provide honey to the hotel chefs for many desserts and other cooking menus.

 
Grand Canyon, Arizona: Fantastic views PDF Print E-mail

Grand Canyon bottom

A mile straight down from the canyon rim, the Colorado River offers a boating paradise amid soaring cliffs.

 
Israel: Where Biblical history has emerged PDF Print E-mail

Jerusalem, Israel

In the mid-20th Century, the 2,000-year-old Dead Sea Scrolls were found in caves near Qumran, by the Dead Sea in Israel. There were more than 900 scrolls in the discovery, including texts said to have actually been written Biblical times.

The parchment scrolls were created by scholars in ancient times in several languages, including Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. More than 60 years after their discovery, modern-day scholars are still pore over the scrolls, and argue about whether the writings are authentic ancient history or creatively fictional religious sermons.

Most of the original scrolls are in the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. If you plan to visit the area and want to see and find out more about the Dead Sea Scrolls and where they were found, go to www.deadseascrollsfoundation.com

 
No hotel wake-up call & missed my flight! PDF Print E-mail

Old phone

Q: I left a call at the front desk of my hotel for 6 am, so I could get a taxi to the airport for an 8 am flight. The call never happened. I woke up at 7 am, but checking out and getting a cab was already useless.

It cost me extra money to book another flight and I missed an important business meeting. I asked the hotel chain to reimburse me for the trouble and extra expense. I was turned down. What can I do about it?

Jay P., Orlando FL

A: Absolutely nothing! No matter what, you’re responsible to make your flight, not poor service at the hotel. We travel often, and always carry two battery-operated mini-alarm clocks with us. We set one for get-up time and the other to ring 20 minutes later.

Don’t depend on the plug-in alarm clock usually on the night table next to your hotel bed. Too often, it doesn’t work at all or the last guest set it to ring at 2 am, and will blast you out of a deep sleep at the wrong time.

 
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