holidays
Holiday Travel Tidbits
A few travel tidbits for you as we head into the busy holiday weekend:
Free meals for military personnel at MSY
Several Delaware North-dining locations at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport will be offering free meals to traveling military personnel during the upcoming Christmas holiday week.
From Saturday, Dec. 24, through Saturday, Dec. 31, uniformed servicemen and servicewomen can receive their free meal – an entrée and a large fountain drink – at these locations:
- Lobby: Dooky Chase, West Beignet
- Concourse B: Air Meals, Le Petit Bistro, PJ’s Coffee
- Concourse C: Copeland’s Gourmet Kitchen, PJ’s Coffee, Zatarain’s kiosk
- Concourse D: Copeland’s Cheesecake Scoop Café, WOW Café & Wingery!
Free parking at DFW
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport is offering a free day of Terminal Parking for every two days travelers park during the holiday.
Travelers must enter the terminal by December 31st and park for a full two days at the terminal to be eligible for the promotion. The current Terminal Parking rate is $24/day. Details here.
(Photo: courtesy Library of Congress, via Flickr Commons; The Jon B. Lovelace Collection of California Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith’s America Project, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.)
Santa has a ticket to fly
Wondering if Santa is going to make it to your house this week?
For the 61st year, the folks at the North American Aerospace Defense Command have the NORAD Tracks Santa website (and apps) ready to keep an eye on Santa as he flies around the world.
Right now the website has a holiday countdown, games, activities, holiday songs and tidbits about Santa, his elves, and the reindeer in eight languages: English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, and Chinese.
At 2:01 a.m. EST on Dec. 24 you can go to the NORAD website to see Santa get ready for his flight.
Then NORAD’s “Santa Cams” will have videos of Santa flying around the world.
If you’re concerned about exactly where the jolly fellow is and exactly when he’ll be in your town, at 6 a.m. EST, you can start calling a NORAD tracker and ask (1-877-Hi-NORAD (1-877-446-6723) or send an email to noradtrackssanta@outlook.com.
Cortana will also be able to tell you Santa’s location and OnStar subscribers can press the OnStar button in their vehicles to locate Santa.
https://youtu.be/0kG1NskQMZM
Holiday treats for Lufthansa passengers
Airports and airlines are getting in the holiday spirit and Lufthansa is no exception.
All this month, the carrier is offering treats and surprises for passengers.
In Frankfurt,visitors to the Lufthansa First Class Lounge and First Class Terminal are being served a holiday meal of roasted duck with caramelized red cabbage, potato cranberry-dumplings and goose liver Figaro.
And all Lufthansa lounges are serving sweet pastries such as Stollen cake, roasted almonds and fresh-baked cookies.
On flights, there are decorated advent wreaths and small chocolate gifts for all passengers. And, beginning on December 12, children flying on Lufthansa will be presented with little teddy bears named Paul and Sam.
Happy 4th of July weekend – travel safely
If you’re driving this weekend – to the airport or to the beach – please take care.
July Fourth is, on average, the deadliest day of the year for drivers.
So stay safe, please. And take into consideration this chart from Allstate’s 2016 America’s Best Driver’s Report, which ranks the largest cities in the U.S., based on safe driving.
Valentine’s Day at airports
Philadelphia International Airport team members hand out red carnations for Valentine’s Day 2015
Valentine’s Day is around the corner and several airports are getting ready to help travelers celebrate with special events, chocolates and flowers.
As they have done many years in the past, Florida’s Jacksonville International Airport will be surprising at least 1000 passengers with red carnations on Valentine’s Day.
Philadelphia International will be doing the same this Friday, February 12, plus offering an origami demonstration and class in making paper hearts from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM at the B-C Food Court stage.
Austin’s Bergstrom International Airport is celebrating Valentine’s Day by giving travelers a chance to take their photo with an iconic Austin mural in baggage claim on February 12, 13 and 14.
They’ve altered a replica of the “I Love You So Much” mural on South Congress to read “AUS Loves You So Much,” and anyone who shares their photos on Twitter (@AUStinAirport; use the hashtag “#LoveAUS”) will get entered in a drawing for a free box of chocolates.
Free small chocolates will also be distributed at the mural, at the Visitors Center in bag claim and on the concourse from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. on February 12, 13, and 14- and 34 passengers waiting to depart at their gate will be randomly selected to receive a free box of chocolates.
And as usual – fresh, handmade, chocolate covered strawberries from local favorite Amy’s Ice Creams will be for sale at the airport for $18 per dozen/$10 half dozen on Friday and Sunday from 9 a.m. – 8 p.m. and 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. on Saturday near bag carousel 3 in the lower level baggage claim and at Amy’s concourse location, which is past security checkpoints near Gate 12.
Happy New Year!
Here’s to safe travels and great adventures in 2016!
Courtesy Flickr Commons
Happy Halloween
Happy Halloween – drive safely!
Holidays at the airport
Many travelers dread going to the airport this time of year for fear of encountering long lines at the security checkpoints, delayed or canceled flights due to bad weather and cranky fellow passengers taking their one flight of the year.
You may indeed have to put up with a bit of that, but you’ll also find that many airports go all out this time of year to offer entertainment and amusement for holiday travelers.
Here’s a sampling of what’s in store:
Photo-ops with Santa and Choirs in the Concourses
Santa Claus is scheduled to make regular visits this season at airports stretching from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Helsinki, Finland.
DTW KaraokeLots of airports present occasional music performances or concerts series year-round, but during the winter holidays it seems there are carolers and choirs in every concouprse.
Denver International Airport offers its live “Wintertainment” in the Jeppesen Terminal, with carolers and instrumental holiday music from December 14 to 24 and a world music festival from December 26 to 30 that features music of Latin America, Germany, Japan, England, the Middle East, the Caribbean and many others world regions.
Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) has a Holiday Concert Series underway through December 20 with choruses and jazz bands from area schools performing in the Landside Terminal.
Holiday karaoke is on tap at from 11 am until 7 pm on December 19th and 20th by the water feature in the center of the A Concourse at the McNamara Terminal at Detroit Metro Airport.
And, as is the holiday tradition at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, December’s Music in the Air schedule includes the Judy Lee Dancers (on December 20), a local tap dance troupe whose performers average age 60 and older.
Stress-free shopping, contests and free gifts
In addition to live entertainment every Thursday and Friday afternoon in December, the Food & Shops at LaGuardia Terminal B offer free 10-minute chair massages Fridays through Sunday this month, from noon to five. Shoppers can also take advantage of printed or mobile versions of a 20% off coupon.
Kate Spade SaturdayOver at John F. Kennedy International Airport, there’s Kate Spade Saturday holiday pop-up shop open through December 20 in JetBlue’s Terminal 5. Passengers can get the gifts purchased at the pop-up shop shipped for free; pick-up a complimentary “Make Time Fly” booklet filled with word games and puzzles; and enter a daily contest to win a Kate Spade Weekender Bag and a roundtrip adventure for two on any JetBlue route.
Travelers who spend as little as $50 on some last minute shopping right through December 24 at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport this holiday season will also be able to get their gifts wrapped and shipped for free.
Airlines getting into the holiday spirit as well
Beginning December 17, children flying on Lufthansa will be given teddy bears as presents and Cathay Pacific is gathering “Santa Selfies” – Instagram photos of people dressed up as Santa or posing with him – for a contest with a grand prize of two round-trip tickets from the U.S. to Hong Kong.
This story first appeared on the Runway Girl Network