10 California holiday stories

"A group of police officers from Quincy, California decided to challenge their generally negative reputation and rewrite the script by handing out ice cream to unsuspecting citizens. The police officers pulled people over, asked a few intimidating questions, told the drivers to wait a moment, then returned with Wall’s ice cream cones for a sweet surprise."



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/life/10-california-stories-will-make-smile-holidays/

#NGTRadar: Travel Lately

Travel Lately—a roundup of the best new dispatches from the travel blogosphere—is a regular feature on Intelligent Travel every other Wednesday. You can play, too. Follow us on Twitter @NatGeoTravel and tag your favorite travel stories #NGTRadar to help us find the crème de la crème on the Web.



from Intelligent Travel http://intelligenttravel.nationalgeographic.com/2014/12/24/ngtradar-travel-lately-43/

500 Free and Easy Miles, Marriott Asks Permission to Block Your Internet, and a Letter to a 5 Year Old Elite Flyer

News and notes from around the interweb: 500 free Virgin America points just for entering name and account information. And Virgin America points are roughly like 1000 miles in other programs. Really heartwarming. My Fox News Happening Now appearance yesterday with tips for holiday travel: be aware, be nice, and be persistent. Know where your […]

The post 500 Free and Easy Miles, Marriott Asks Permission to Block Your Internet, and a Letter to a 5 Year Old Elite Flyer appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/12/24/500-free-easy-miles-marriott-asks-permission-block-internet-letter-5-year-old-elite-flyer/

In 2015, let's redefine YOLO

"We’re living in a world where girls look up to Hannah Horvath and don’t know who Malala Yousafzai is, where all it takes to be 'edgy' is two sleeves of tattoos and a social smoking addiction. And that ain’t something to be proud of." Here's how to really YOLO.



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/life/2015-lets-redefine-yolo/

American Flight Attendants Get Better Contract After All

I had intended to write about this last week, but got sidetracked. In early November I wrote about how American flight attendants rejected their new contract, which would have led to them getting a $193 million pay raise. This was interesting on a few levels:

-- The flight attendants were the first to vote on a combined contract at the "new" American, so the way they negotiate sets a precedent for the other labor groups

-- Out of over 8,000 votes, the contract was rejected by a margin of only 16 votes

-- Both airline management and the union leadership were pretty clear about the fact that if they rejected the contract they would go into arbitration, and the most they could get out of that was $112 million, which is $81 million less than in the proposed contract

The post American Flight Attendants Get Better Contract After All appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/12/24/american-flight-attendants-get-better-contract-after-all/

14 amazing cruises setting sail in 2015

It's going to be a big year for travelers who love cruising.

from CNN.com - Travel http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/23/travel/best-new-cruises-2015/index.html

UberBLACK NYC Airport Flat Rate Prices Increase Today

All things considered I'm a big fan of Uber. They engage in some shady tactics to enter new markets and no doubt have growing pains, but the concept of an on demand car service is brilliant, and they're the most dedicated to making that happen (even if their $41 billion valuation leaves me scratching my head).

Anyway, Uber just sent out an email indicating that their UberBLACK flat rate airport pricing to JFK and EWR are increasing as of today (there's no flat rate pricing to LGA):

"Two weeks ago we introduced new quality standards on UberBLACK in order to enhance the experience for riders and increase earnings for partners."

The post UberBLACK NYC Airport Flat Rate Prices Increase Today appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/12/24/uberblack-nyc-airport-flat-rate-prices-increase-today/

Tornado in Mississippi an ugly prelude to bad U.S. holiday travel weather

This Christmas, people will grieve and heal in southern Mississippi. They will clear rubble and restore power lines in the wake of a tornado system that killed four people and packed an emergency room with dozens of injured.

from CNN.com - Travel http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/24/us/holiday-travel-weather/index.html

3-minute memoir captures incredible country

A team of wedding cinematographers on a two-week trip have produced a stunning video of Sri Lanka.

from CNN.com - Travel http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/23/travel/sri-lanka-travel-video/index.html

Free and Discounted Lounge Access

Last week the LoungeBuddy iPhone App offered readers a chance for free credit towards lounge day passes. And anyone that didn’t win? Still start off with a free $10 credit towards your first pur purchase with code viewftwing (you get all the credit, no referral benefit to me). I’m not a part of the Apple […]

The post Free and Discounted Lounge Access appeared first on View from the Wing.

from View from the Wing http://viewfromthewing.boardingarea.com/2014/12/24/free-discounted-lounge-access/

Vermonters had a good 2014

"GMO labeling bill / scaring Monsanto and Starbucks: In May, we voted for food containing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) to be labeled. Monsanto and Starbucks turned around and sued the state of Vermont." Nice work in 2014, Vermonters!



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/life/7-things-vermonters-proud-2014/

Perfect Christmas Gift For Aviation Nuts

It's a good thing I'm homeless and have never owned a home, or else I'd probably spend more furnishing it than the place itself costs. Not with luxury stuff, but rather with airline goodies. I've always wanted a galley cart, for example.

All Nippon Airways (ANA), the Japanese Airline, retired their last 747 in March of this year. And from December 25, 2014, through February 28, 2015, they'll be selling seats. Via CNN:

The post Perfect Christmas Gift For Aviation Nuts appeared first on One Mile at a Time.

from One Mile at a Time http://onemileatatime.boardingarea.com/2014/12/24/perfect-christmas-gift-aviation-nuts/

Spending the holidays in Greenland

"You purchase enough fireworks to ring in New Year's twice -- 8pm and midnight: Greenland is part of Denmark's government, so when the clock hits midnight in Denmark and 8pm here in Greenland, we shoot off a round of fireworks. Then the big show happens at our midnight; the fireworks are known to last more than two hours." Happy holidays from Greenland!



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/life/6-ways-spend-holidays-greenland/

Trekking the mountains of Bhutan

Bhutan, one of the most untouched countries in the world, offers some stellar treks and hikes. Check out our guide to trekking across the world's happiest country!



from Matador Network » Matador Network http://matadornetwork.com/trips/trekking-the-sacred-mountains-of-bhutan/

International Real Estate: Real Estate in the Turks and Caicos Islands

The Turks and Caicos Islands’ housing market has been growing stronger, helped by their location, beaches and tax-friendly status.

















from NYT > Travel http://rss.nytimes.com/c/34625/f/642561/s/41bcf9e5/sc/22/l/0L0Snytimes0N0C20A140C120C250Crealestate0Creal0Eestate0Ein0Ethe0Eturks0Eand0Ecaicos0Eislands0Bhtml0Dpartner0Frss0Gemc0Frss/story01.htm