Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport

Flying with King Cakes and Rubber-tipped spears?

Food, Security, , ,

It’s Mardi Gras season and the folks at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) have some intriguing travel advice posted on the Web site:

king_cake

What to do when traveling with a King Cake:

King cakes, filled and plain, can be brought through the security checkpoint.  But, please be advised that king cakes are subject to additional screening.

Other Mardi Gras Items:

Rubber tipped spears and Zulu coconuts will be allowed through security and may be subject to additional screening

What’s a King Cake?  According to the city’s official tourism Web Site, NewOrleansonline.com:

It’s a traditional confection “made of braided Danish pastry, laced with cinnamon. It is always iced in the Mardi Gras colors of purple (justice), green (faith) and gold (power). Hidden in each king cake is a tiny plastic baby. The person who finds the baby must buy the next king cake or host the next party.”

Zulu coconuts? They’re the most most coveted Mardi Gras souvenir.

msy-mardi-gras

(Photo courtesy: Jean-Paul Gisclair and NewOrleansOnline.com)

New Orleans airport and Southwest Airlines celebrate with prizes and karaoke

Free Stuff, Fun Stuff,

Southwest Airlines is celebrating 30 years of service at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) today with a 1979-infused party that includes a  DJ spinning “records” from ’79,  decorations and costumes from the 70s, a karaoke machine, and games and prizes throughout the day, including a “Money Cube” where customers can grab prizes.

There should also be folks dressed like 1970’s-era Southwest Airlines flight attendants.

southwest-uniforms

(1970’s era uniforms courtesy Southwest Airlines)

Walking path at Louis Armstrong New Orleans Int’l Airport

Health, ,

Next time you find yourself with a little extra time to spare at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, don’t just sit there – take a walk on the airport’s new walking path.

Officially “opened” today, the walking path is less than a half mile long and follows a marked area that’s inside the airport terminal, but not within any secured areas. A brochure that outlines the route is available at the Audubon Information Booth.

As I mentioned here earlier, the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and Lambert-St. Louis International Airport also have walking paths inside the terminals. And, as I wrote in an “At the Airport” column for USAToday.com a while back, there are also a fair number of airports that have walking paths right outside the terminals.

So if you find yourself stuck at any of these airports, you can at least keep moving.

(More) greetings from the airport bathroom

Bathrooms, , , , ,

My Well Mannered Traveler column on MSNBC.com last week was about some of the products and amenities I found at a recent airport conference.

Titled “Fresh Amenities for Pooped out Travelers,” the column mentions some nifty gadgets popping up in airport restrooms, including toilet seat covers that change automatically.

I was delighted to find two companies marketing these self-changing toilet seat covers. And pleased to learn that a dozen or so airports already had these electronic seat covers installed.

Then I got an angry e-mail message from David Jablow. I could tell he was mad because he wrote in BOLD CAPITAL LETTERS. UNDERLINED.

Although his company hadn’t exhibited at the airport conference, Jablow wanted to make sure I knew that his company, Brill Hygienic Products, is “the largest sanitary toilet seat company in North America” and “the only company in the USA which manufactures their own seats and plastic in the USA.”

He especially wanted to make sure I let folks know that the company’s “hands-free high tech electronic sanitary toilet seats” are in restrooms at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport, Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and in Portland, Maine at the Portland International Jetport.

Happy to share the news. And happy to know there are even more airports where sitting around will be sanitary.