CVG airport

National Ice Cream Month is around the corner

July is National Ice Cream Month.

And the Stuck at the Airport team is team is getting ready for the holiday by taste-testing its way through this six-pack of Greater’s Ice Cream that arrived at the office.

So far, the limited-edition Hot Honey Crunch is our favorite.

We’ve been told that ice cream eaten at an airport has no calories.

We SO want to believe that, because a cup or a cone is often our go-to treat when we’re waiting for a flight.

We’re putting a call out for great airport ice cream shops so we can do a proper round-up once the holiday month gets underway.

So please leave a note in the comments section about your favorite places to get a scoop or a sundae at an airport.

(Here’s a link to the airport ice cream deals and celebrations we found last year)

In the meantime, here’s a deal for you at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) from Greater’s.

The Cincinnati-based, family-owned company started in 1870 and is well-known for handcrafting its ice cream 2½ gallons at a time. Back in 2016, they opened a storefront at CVG on Concourse A that is, as you might imagine, very popular with passengers.

For those passing through CVG this summer, we’ve heard from Greater’s that the airport shop will be carrying peach ice cream now through mid-August and offering the limited-edition strawberry sorbet starting July 1. Key lime pie ice cream will be in the shop starting August 1.

Better yet: If you download Graeter’s app and sign up for their “Sweet Rewards” program, you’ll get an offer for a free cone.

During National Ice Cream Month, Sweet Rewards members are promised a variety of other offers as well.

Where do you get ice cream when you’re Stuck at the Airport? Please leave a note in the comments section below.

(Photo courtesy Nationa Archives)

LAX & CVG Airport Bet on Super Bowl 2022

It could get ugly.

But so far, officials from Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) are being very civil about the wager they’ve made on whether the Los Angeles Rams or the Cincinnati Bengals will win Super Bowl 2022.

They’re calling it the Battle of Heartland vs. Hollywood. And, per the wager, the airport CEO of the team that loses Super Bowl 2022 will have to wear the QB jersey of the opposing team for a day.

We’re going to keep an eye on the Super Bowl competition on the field – and in the terminals.

In the meantime, for fans heading to Los Angeles for the Big Game, LAX has some travel tips to help you get there safely.

Sweepstakes in honor of CVG Airport’s 75th Birthday

This month Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) is celebrating its 75th anniversary.  

The exact birth date was January 10, 1947. On that day, at 9:23 a.m., an American Airlines flight from Cleveland was the first plane to land. Minutes later the first Delta Airlines and TWA flights landed.

To celebrate the airport’s 75th anniversary and its growth over the years, CVG is hosting a year-long Travel Dream Sweepstakes through December 2022.

Monthly winners will be chosen to receive a minimum of a $500 travel voucher for flights from CVG Airport. You can enter the CVG sweepstakes here or at stations set up in the airport.

CVG: 5 Things We Love About Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport

The “5 Things We Love About…” series on Stuck at The Airport celebrates features and amenities at airports around the country and the world.

Today we’re sending some love to Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG).

If we miss an amenity at CVG that you love, please be sure to mention it in the comments section below. The same goes for nominating another airport for the series.

CVG: 5 Things We Love About Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport

1. Miniature Therapy Horses that visit CVG

Many airports have teams of therapy dogs that come by to help destress passengers in the terminals.

CVG has a partnership with Seven Oaks Farm, which brings miniature therapy horses by the airport.

2. CVG’s Autonomous Floor Scrubbers and Vacuum Robots

CVG is serious about staying clean. So keep on the lookout for Neo, a floor-scrubbing robot made by Avidbots and vacuum robots from Softbank.

3. CVG’s themed Cincinnati Zoo play area

The Cincinnati Zoo partners with CVG to make a play area celebrating Fiona, the zoo’s celebrity hippo who gained fame for being the smallest hippo to survive being born six weeks premature.

4. History exhibits at CVG

In another charming community partnership, CVG features Cincinnati Museum Center exhibits – including the Mastodon in Concourse B.

5. Beer, Bourbon and Cute Souvenirs at CVG

Cork N’ Bottle and has several other establishments at CVG feature a wide variety of Kentucky bourbons. They love beer here, too. And the airport has partnered with the Christian Moerlein Taproom to make the bespoke JET CVG beer.

Need a souvenir? Of course you do.

Cincinnati’s unofficial mascot is a winged pig, which celebrates the city’s pork processing past.

CVG’s shops carry everything from piggy banks to chocolate pig “poop”.

Travel Tidbits from airports and airlines

New amenities at CVG Airport

Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) will get new nonstop service to Memphis, TN on Allegiant, starting May 22.

CVG also boasts some new shops and amenities, including a Be Relax spa (at B16), The Scoreboard sports memorabilia shop (B10) and the Gaslight Market for travel necessities.

Walk this way at SEA

If all goes according to plan, on Thursday night workers at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) will hoist this 900-foot long aerial walkway into place 85 feet above an existing taxi lane to connect the South Terminal with the new International Arrivals Facility.

When completed, this will be the longest aerial walkway over an active taxiway in the United States.

Heading to the Super Bowl in Miami?

To meet passenger demand and help fans get to the big game, some airlines are putting larger aircraft into service on key routes and adding extra flights.

United Airlines will offer  29 additional nonstop flights to Miami from its seven U.S. hubs including Los Angeles, plus seven special point-to-point flights between Kansas City and Miami.

American Airlines announced extra flights to Miami (MIA) from Kansas City (MCI), San Francisco (SFO) and San Jose (SJC). American will also add larger aircraft — Boeing 777-200s — to Miami from its hubs in New York (JFK), Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW), Los Angeles (LAX) and Chicago (ORD).

Between January 30 and February 3, JetBlue will add more than a dozen flights between San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL).

From January 30 to February 4, JetBlue is adding ten flights between New York’s John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and Fort Lauderdale (FLL).

On Friday, January 31 Southwest Airlines has five nonstop flights scheduled instead of the regular two from Kansas City (MCI) to Fort Lauderdale (FLL). The airline will add a bonus nonstop flight between San Jose, CA (SJC) and Fort Lauderdale (FLL) as well.

On Monday, February 3, Southwest will send five flights from FLL back to MCI and the bonus nonstop flight to San Jose from FLL.

Spirit Airlines and Delta Air Lines are adding extra flights to and from Miami as well.

And the Heinz Ketchup brand is offering to pay all but 57 cents of the $200 airline change fee for 300 Tennessee Titans and Green Bay Packers fans who bought tickets to Miami before their teams lost out.

Celebrating National Aviation Day

Sculpture at the Wright Brothers National Monument _courtesy National Park Service

Today (August 19) is National Aviation Day, which celebrates the development of aviation and marks Orville Wright’s birthday.

Airports and aviation fans around the country will be noting the day in various ways.

Courtesy CVG

At Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG), they’ll be celebrating with two events.

*From 11:30 a.m to 1:30 p.m. CVG is inviting community members to stop by the Airport Viewing Area to watch planes take off and land and enjoy a family-friendy outing with the Kona Ice truc, the CVG fire truck, games and other activities.

*From 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. CVG and Graeter’s Ice Cream will be greeting arriving passengers with samples of ice cream. There will also be a performance from ArtsWave Presents and aviation-themed giveaways in the terminal.

Mural honoring Wright Brothers – at Tampa International Airport

On National Aviation Day, one of my traditions is to remember Katharine Wright, Orville and Wilbur’s sister, who was often referred to as “The Third Wright Brother.”

Don’t know about her? That’s because Orville tried to have Katharine’s role in the brothers’ accomplishment erased from history.

Here’s a short feature story I produced about Katherine Wright back in 2003 for National Public Radio as part of my Hidden Treasures Radio Project series.

CVG Airport serving Jet CVG beer

The Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport is now home to the Christian Moerlein Malt House Taproom at CVG.

Opereted by HMSHost, the more than 1,600 square-foot full-service restaurant and bar is located at Concourse A by gate A15.

A local favorite, the Christian Moerlein Brewing Company opened in 1853 in Cincinnati’s Over-the-Rhine neighborhood. The new Christian Moerlein Malt House Taproom at CVG brings a taste of the brewery’s heritage to the airport with both handcrafted brews and a menu that includes meat and cheese boards, salads, burgers, and other beer-friendly entrées.

Among the Christian Moerlein’s signature craft beers being served in a setting reminiscent of Cincinnati’s celebrated 19th century beer gardens is a special new brew called JET CVG.

Here’s the brewery’s description of the JET CVG beer:

It’s a German-style Schwarzbier beer that “jet” black in color with a light mouth feel and clean lager taste. It pays tribute to Cincinnati’s German brewing legacy featuring Old World Pilsner, Munich, Caramunich II, Carafa III, and Chocolate malts as well as German Hersbrucker hops. Aroma and flavor are a combination of roasted malts, slight coffee, and hints of tobacco. 

Sounds tasty!

Happy Birthday CVG Airport

Happy Birthday, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport!

CVG began service on January 10, 1947 with an American Airlines flight and celebrated it’s 70th year of service on Tuesday with a party for passengers that included Gold Star coneys (hot dogs topped with chili, onions and mustard and grated cheddar cheese), small gifts and birthday cake.

The party doesn’t stop there, as part of  ‘Project Gratitude’, CVG promised to thank passengers with 70 surprise acts of gratitude throughout the year.

No clues on what those surprises will be, but CVG promises the act of gratitude with brighten travel days, enhance the travel experience and, of course, be documented and shared on social media.

 

 

(Replica) of Neil Armstrong’s spacesuit at CVG Airport

President Richard Nixon telling jokes to astronauts Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin

President Richard Nixon telling jokes to astronauts Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin while they were in the Mobile Quarantine Facility on the the USS Hornet after their return from the moon.

July 20 is the 47th anniversary of the 1969 moon landing and, to mark the event, the Cincinnati Museum Center (CMC) is unveiling a replica of Neil Armstrong’s spacesuit at Cincinati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) as part of the museum’s Curate My Community project.

CVG SPACESUIT

“Today is a special day for the aviation industry,” said Candace McGraw, chief executive officer at CVG. “Neil Armstrong, like many of us, was fascinated with flight. We’re honored to partner with the Museum Center to display Neil’s spacesuit exhibit for CVG travelers and the community to continue to enjoy.”

On the evening of July 20, 1969, people gathered around their televisions to watch the grainy, black-and-white footage of Neil Armstrong setting foot on the moon in his puffy white spacesuit.

 

 

More ice-cream at CVG Airport

What’s better than at an airport kiosk dispensing small batch, handcrafted ice-cream?

CVG  GRAETER'S

It was great that Graeter’s Ice Cream had a kiosk at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) but now there’s 657 square foot Graeter’s storefront in CVG’s Concourse A serving up decadent pastries, candy and ice cream.

Bonus: the storefront is open daily from 5:00 AM to 8:00 PM.

CVG GRAETER's INSIDE

CVG recently announced another sweet airport amenity: miniature therapy horses will be visiting the airport on a regular basis.

CVG Pony 2

Good work CVG!!