Deals

Indianapolis Airport auction big success

Deals, Events

Looks like yesterday’s auction at the old Indianapolis International Airport terminal was a big success.

According to this article, about 2,5000 people showed up and snatched up most all the “furniture, furnishings and fixtures” put on the auction block.

IND AUCTION INCANDELA

(Photo courtesy Daniel Incandela)

Evan Strange, who’s just finishing up his Communications & Marketing Internship at the airport, attended the auction and sent along some notes:

I have been to auctions before, but nothing quite like this.  Not only were there thousands of items, but they were all being sold in an abandoned airport, which added a sense of eerie nostalgia that is hard to explain…. One of the best parts of the auction was seeing all the people that came out… People from all walks of life, locals and internationals, serious bidders, and souvenir searchers were all there looking for their “piece” of the old IND.

The people I talked to at the auction seemed to be surprised about all of the different items being auctioned, from aerial photographs of the old terminal, to water coolers and refrigerators.

Wish you’d been there?   Dan Incandela was and he was kind enough to post some of his photos from the event on Flickr.

Here are my favorites:

IND Airport Dan Incandela

IND XMAS TO GO INCANDELA

(Photos courtesy Daniel Incandela)

If you attended the auction, please let us know what you saw – and if you bought anything!

Auction day at Indianapolis Int’l Airport

Deals

If you’re in the market for some concrete outdoor planters, aluminum and glass pedestrian shelters, a steel mezzanine, Shaker style seating areas, air compressors, pay phone or remote parking stations, and anything else that may have been used at an airport, then you’re in luck.

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All this and more, much more, is being auctioned off today at old Indianapolis International Airport starting at 10 am.  Doors open at 8:30 am.

You can study many of the items up for auction in this brochure, but it unfortunately does not include the lost-and-found property such as watches, luggage, laptop computers, and jewelry, which will also be auctioned.

ScreenHunter_03 Aug. 03 23.56

I sort of had my heart set on an escalator, or those Shaker style benches, but I’m sure those items will find good homes elsewhere.

If you attend the auction and go home with anything fun, please let us know!

Tidbits for travelers: “Receipt treats” at airport Starbucks; Taste of Chicago mini-fest

Deals, Food,

Starbucks

I’m not a big fan of spending a lot of money while traveling and certainly not a big fan of overpaying for things just because I’m away from home.  So it’s always bugged me that any deals offered by “real-world” Starbucks never seem to be available in airports, where prices for even a cup of drip coffee can be quite a bit higher than out on the street.

So I’m pleased to see that from now through September 29th, 2009 airport Starbucks branches (which are operated by HMS Host) will be offering what they say is an airport-only deal:

If you buy a Starbucks drink at one airport in the morning – keep your receipt.  When you arrive at another airport, you can use that receipt after 2 PM to buy any iced Grande drink for $2.

The offer is geared at promoting the Vivanno smoothies Starbucks is rolling out mid-July that will surely cost way more than $2, but you can use that receipt to knock down the price of other iced Grande drinks as well.

(I saved quite a few bucks when they were offering a similar deal last summer at neighborhood Starbucks by channeling the Five Easy Pieces Jack Nicholson and asking for an iced coffee, “but just hold the ice. And use hot coffee. Please.”

Now, what would go well with an afternoon coffee at an airport? The Chicago Airports have an idea:

CHICAGO TASTE

The Taste of Chicago is in full swing now at Grant Park and runs through July 5th.  If you don’t have the time or the inclination to join the crowds there, you can still get a taste of both the food and the music at Chicago’s O’Hare and Midway airports.

From now through Sunday, July 5, restaurants at both airports are offering specially-priced “Taste” portions.   Both airports will also have live music in the terminals on July 2 and 5 from 2pm until 5 pm.

Performances at O’Hare will take place beyond the security checkpoints in each domestic terminal and in the Arrivals Level of International Terminal 5. Live music at Midway will take place in the Baggage Claim area.

LAX FlyAway: still a great deal at $1 more

Deals

Beginning on August 1, 2009, fares go up for the popular LAX FlyAway bus service from Van Nuys and Union Station to Los Angeles International Airport.

The new one-way fare for these two routes will go from $6 to $7.  The Westwood to LAX fare will remain unchanged at $5.

It’s never good news when fares for anything go up, but at $7 the fare to get to LAX is a still a great deal. Especially when  compared to fares for shared-ride shuttle vans and limousines, which can cost from four to seven times as much.

Interested in trying this out? Bus schedules, parking information and maps for all LAX FlyAway locations are available at www.lawa.aero/flyaway.

lax-flyaway-bus-rouse
(Photo: Flickr user Sean Yoda Rouse)

Cheap airport eats: two-for-one meals at T.G.I. Friday’s

Deals, Food, Restaurants

Many shops  and restaurant chains don’t extend their special sales and offers to their airport branches.

But the T.G.I. Friday’s chain does.  And through June 22, the chain is offering a buy-one-entrée-get-one-free coupon offer that’s good at all 18 of its airport branches.

You’ll need to print out the coupon and bring it with you, but you can keep printing out coupons each time you go.tgifjunebogocoupon

Here are the T.G.I Friday’s airport locations: Ontario, CA, Detroit, DFW – 6 locations, San Francisco, San Antonio, MSP, ATL, Tampa, Newark, Indianapolis, Islip, Tulsa, Pittsburgh

Cheap airport eats: $5 meals at LGA, PHL and a dozen other airports

Deals, Food, Restaurants,

“For a limited time only,” which could end up stretching throughout the summer, you’ll be able to get $5 meals at both Philadelphia International Airport and New York’s LaGuardia Airport.

6x6_register_cardBetween the two airports, there are 50 restaurants and food vendors participating in the WOW! $5 CHOW! promotion, which includes special offers for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

If your summer travel plans include either airport, I’d suggest printing out the list and tucking it into your carry-on.

Here’s a link to the participating restaurants at LaGuardia Airport and here’s a link to the participating restaurants at Philadelphia International Airport.

Also, keep in mind, that T.G.I. Friday’s, which has more than 18 airport branches, is offering full size portions of 16 salads and sandwiches for $5 through the month of May.  If you sign up for their Give me more Stripes program, you’ll also get other free stuff throughout the year. (T.G. I. Airport branches include:  Detroit, DFW – 6 locations, San Francisco, San Antonio, MSP, ATL, Tampa, Newark, Indianapolis, Islip, Tulsa, and Pittsburgh.

Who needs First Class seats?

Check-In, Deals, First Class,

Can’t afford First or Business class, but don’t want to fly in the economy cabin on your next flight?  Soon you’ll have a new option on Air France:

The airline is carving out a new cabin section, Premium Voyageur, between the Business and Economy cabins and putting in these swanky new fixed-shell seats:

airfrancepremiumvoyageur_legendes

The new section will have extra legroom and many of the amenities of the Business Class cabin. The meal service will be the same as  in Economy, though: aperitifs, champagne,  a choice of two hot meals, liqueurs, wines and, on flights over 12 hours long, mini-sandwiches and Häagen Dazs ice-cream.

The new cabin section comes with some Business Class perks at the airport as well: priority check-in desks, increased baggage weight allowance, and priority baggage delivery.

Can’t wait to try it out? The first available destinations will be New York-JFK, Tokyo and Osaka. For more details, see the Air France Website.

New tools for making sure you get the best travel deal

Deals, , ,

An airline mileage sale convinced me that now was a good time to visit London.  But I’ve been spinning my wheels trying to find a hotel I can afford.

Then, moments after I fork over my credit card number for a non-refundable rate that still feels a bit high, I get this email from the folks at Yapta.com about the launch of a new feature:

We’re launching the first hotel price tracking service that will enable travelers to monitor prices on more than 110,000 hotels around the world.  Unlike the “opaque” accommodation booking services (i.e. Hotwire.com) which do not allow travelers to see the specific hotel property they’re bidding on, Yapta enables travelers to designate the hotel they’re most interested in and then sign up to be automatically alerted when the rate drops.

Thanks, guys! One day too late for me to test it in real time for my trip, but a good thing for everyone to know about now that hotels in many cities are fighting to get our business.

Yatpa’s hotel tracking service isn’t the only fresh tool on the market. Tripadvisor recently launched a new flight search tool and Travelzoo just launched Fly.com.

Let’s go!

family_vacation

Customer Appreciation Week at DFW

Deals, Events

If you’re at Dallas/Forth Worth International Airport (DFW) this week, don’t be too alarmed if an airport employee comes up to you and shakes your hand.

It’s all part of customer appreciation week at the airport and to celebrate they’ll be handing out discounted coupons for parking (the valet parking coupon also offers food and retail discounts inside the terminals), and talking up some new food outlets, including:

In Terminal C: a new Urban Taco restaurant, a Blimpie sandwich shop,  and the Cereality Cereal Bar and Café with, yes, a wide variety of cereals and other foods you can eat for breakfast – or all day.

cereal

In Terminal B (Gate 8), there’s also a new U Food Grill, a popular healthy food option with globally-influenced menu items.

Yum!