Team Up, Fly, and Win on United Airlines

CHICAGO, March 10 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — It pays to be one of United
Airlines’ best customers, and United is giving customers 50 million more
reasons to become one. Premier Mileage Plus members are teaming up with
friends, family members, and coworkers to win their share of 50
1-million-mile prizes in a first-of-its-kind contest.

Members may compete in teams of four during 2008 by earning more miles
than last year, and the top 50 teams will split 50 million Mileage Plus
miles, with each team receiving one million miles — 250,000 miles per
person.

“We are always looking to give our members diverse ways to accrue and
redeem Mileage Plus miles, and this unique competition will be fun and
rewarding for our most loyal customers,” says Robert Sahadevan, United
Airlines vice president — Mileage Plus. “Whether they flew a hundred or a
hundred thousand miles last year, our premier members will have a chance to
compete for the biggest reward we will give this year.”

Through the United Elite Team Contest, premier members will try to earn
more Elite Qualifying Miles (EQM) in 2008 than 2007. Each team will consist
of four Mileage Plus members, and the team’s total 2008 EQM will be
compared to the previous year.

The top 50 teams at the end of the year with the greatest increase will
each win the following reward, to be shared evenly among the four team
members, all of whom must have premier status with United: one million
miles, 50,000 EQM, 50 Elite Qualifying Segments (EQS), eight confirmed
regional upgrades, and eight United Red Carpet Club(R) one-time passes.
U.S. members who were enrolled in Mileage Plus prior to Jan. 1, 2007 can
register for the contest through Sept. 7, 2008 at united.com/2008choice,
and full terms and conditions are below.

Redeem you miles with the Fly Guy, click here

 You’ll soon have to pay $25 for checking a second bag when flying some airlines — here are tips for packing less.

If the bellman gets a hernia just looking at your suitcases, it might be time to start packing lighter.
Two major airlines are cracking down on the number of bags you can check for free. Come May 5, United Airlines and U.S. Airways will begin charging $25 to check a second bag. Previously, you could check two bags without racking up fees.

For travelers, the message is clear: lose that extra duffel bag or lose money.
“I think people are going to become smarter about their packing,” said Colleen McCarthy, owner of The Baggage Cheque, a luggage store in Edwards. “They’re going to learn to live with less.”

Less is more
For women, shoes can be the downfall of efficient traveling. We pack every clunky boot and dainty heel, on the off chance we might be dispatched to an emergency runway show.
“We always want to carry more pairs than we need,” McCarthy said. “We just don’t like to leave anything behind.”
In reality, a spring breaker can suffice with a pair of sneakers, a pair of flip flops and “a nice, casual, sturdy shoe,” McCarthy said.
No room for that last pair of Tevas? No worries. Even budget travelers can afford to buy a pair of sandals overseas.
So says David Brown, an Indonesia resident who is visiting Edwards with his parents. He has traveled around the world five times.
“Buy stuff as you go along,” he said. “If you need another T-shirt, buy one. It’s so inexpensive. Don’t reserve yourself that when you’re packing, that’s all you’re going to use. Pick up stuff and discard stuff.”
Or better yet, recycle. Instead of hauling around her whole wardrobe, Vail Resident Christie Höchtl brings a few sink-washable pieces. That’s how she survived for a month in Europe with one small suitcase and a daypack.
Brands like Patagonia, Ex Officio and Mountain Hardware, which dry quickly and stay wrinkle free, work best for traveling, Höchtl said.
Once you have outerwear covered, don’t feel pressured to unload the contents of your underwear drawer into the suitcase.
“If you have three pair you’re fine because you can have one on, one clean and one you can wash and just hang up in the bathroom and it’s dry the next morning,” Höchtl said.

Fold or roll?
When it comes to packing clothes, two schools of thought exist: folding and rolling.
Höchtl rolls each piece of clothing, then wraps a rubber band around it.
“Then it’s virtually impossible to mess up your suitcase,” she said. “You can jumble through it, but nothing really gets messed up.”
Sebastian Arrese is a folder. A Peru native who is staying in Avon, he brought one suitcase and a single pair of shoes for the winter season. Folding the clothes is “better than just jamming them in whatever you’re using,” he said.

Toiletries in miniature
The travel aisle of the local supermarket is like the Land of the Little Horses in Gettysburg, Pa.

Things that are boring in life-size, like shampoo and shaving cream, are infinitely more exciting in miniature. If you don’t want to buy an army of tiny liquids, you can try transferring your lotions and whatnot into small plastic bottles, Höchtl said.
Arrese packs shampoos he picked up at hotels or sample packets of products.

The light gear
Unless you’re smuggling a family of eight across the border, ditch the bulky suitcase.
Most airlines charge extra for heavy bags. United Airlines, for example, slaps you with a fee if your bag weighs in over 50 pounds. That’s why starting out with a light suitcase is key, McCarthy said.
The latest luggage has polycarbonate frames, which are less hefty than the magnesium frames of yore, she said.
For a weeklong trip, McCarthy recommends a 22-inch-long carry-on suitcase that weighs about 7 pounds. Because being crushed under your own suitcase is a bad way to start a trip. “There’s a lot of people that take a suitcase I can fit in,” Höchtl said. “Why do you need that unless you’re moving across the country?”

For more information on traveling to the mountains and travel tips, click here

The Fly Guy would love to hear your packing tips, so don’t hesitate leaving your comments.

A traveler pulls her luggage through the United Airlines terminal at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago in December. United recently anounced a policy of charging many $25 for checking a second piece of luggage. BLOOMBERG NEW

Last week’s announcement by United Airlines that it will begin charging an additional $25 to check a second bag on its flights is bad news for tourists and conventioneers who visit Las Vegas.

Not only will United’s new policy affect a customer base that local tourism officials are trying to expand, but it appears that the nickel-and-diming United is imposing on its customers may spread faster than you can say airborne virus.

For more information, on what to do with your luggage, visit my website www.stayaspensnowmass.com

Click here to continue reading…

Will United Airlines’ price gouging ever stop?

Apparently not. The Chicago-based carrier’s latest cash grab will hit passengers who check a second piece of luggage. The price tag: $25. That means a two-way flight with at least one extra bag will cost fliers another 50 bucks.

United will pardon frequent fliers — those who have Premier status or higher in United’s Mileage Plus program — from the surcharge. They happen to be the same type of fliers who can afford this spike.

But for the leisure/economy travelers who like to bring their outdoor gear — think a second bag with skis, golf clubs or a fishing rod — flying in and out of Aspen is already expensive enough.

Not surprising, United said the reason for the fee is to keep fares competitive. It also added that the rule change will generate another $100 million annually in revenues and cost savings (fewer bags to handle and therefore lighter planes).

United can call this new “fee” whatever it wants, but it’s a fare hike.

Even the perpetually positive Bill Tomcich, the president of central reservations agency Stay Aspen Snowmass, deemed it as such. Tomcich, whose job includes negotiating with commercial airlines and maintaining a positive relationship with them, could not bite his tongue on this one.

“This, in disguise, is the largest single fare increase I have ever witnessed in the 17 years I have worked in this industry,” he told The Aspen Times this week. “This is the first time that a major carrier has done this.”

United’s move — which takes effect for flights after May 5 — will be felt in fliers’ pocketbooks all over the country, but especially in resorts, where leisure travelers tend to bring extra gear. As the anchor airline of both Denver International Airport and Aspen-Pitkin County Airport, United has a virtual monopoly in Colorado, though it has seen challenges from both Frontier and Southwest, neither of which serve Aspen.

There’s still hope that Frontier will penetrate the Aspen skies, but nothing has happened yet.

In the meantime, air travel to Aspen will get more expensive very soon. And with such a limited choice of airlines to fly here, the only way some travelers can avoid the fare increase is to choose another resort. This could be a deal breaker for many travelers, and that could hurt Aspen.

What are your thoughts on the $25.00 Fee? Are you still going to take your skis on vacation? Let the Fly Guy know your thoughts, comments or just ask him wha this trick would be to avoid the fee…

Visit his website: www.stayaspensnowmass.com