Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport

Great spots for plane-spotting

Air Travel, Observation Decks, Planespotting, , , , ,

I recently put together a USATODAY.com column highlighting some of the observation decks at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP), Baltimore-Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport (BWI), and other North American airports.

Minneapolis - Observation deck - wide

Today I’ve got a column about plane-spotting sites outside airport terminals.

The sites listed range from Millbrae, California’s Bayfront Park, which offers great views of take-offs and landings at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), to Gravelly Point near Washington, D.C.’s Reagan National Airport (DCA), and a few unusual but, we’re assured, legal spots nearby Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL).

For a photo-gallery and a list of other highly-recommended plane-spotting sites  around the country, please see the full column on USATODAY.com.

RDU Observ Park - courtesy RDU Airport

(Raleigh-Durham International Airport’s Observation Park)

And of course, please share your favorite plane-spotting sites.

Travel tidbits: Nix the baggage handlers; MSP wind turbines; DTW’s ambulances

Baggage, Energy, , ,

Would you load your own baggage?

baggageYou book online, you print out your own boarding pass, why not load your own luggage on the plane? According to a Reuter’s report:

Europe’s largest low-cost airline Ryanair is looking at the possibility of getting passengers to carry their luggage all the way to the plane, cutting out the need for baggage handlers.

“We would say to passengers… take your own bag down through airport security, leave it at the bottom of the steps, we put it in the hold and on arrival we deliver it to the aircraft steps and you take it with you,” CEO Michael O’Leary told a news conference on Thursday.

Good idea or not?

MSP going greener

msp-wind-turbines

Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport is doing its part to save the earth – and some money – by installing and testing ten 1 kilowatt wind turbines

And the folks at Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW) had a little party to celebrate the arrival of these new ambulances, which will be put to use on the average half dozen or so EMS runs that occur at the airport daily.

dtw-ambulancesLet’s hope you don’t actually have to see the inside of one of these buses, but if you do it may be comforting to know that the word at the airport is that the stretchers are “awesome. Totally hydraulic. The firefighters don’t need to lift stretchers up and down when transporting a patient.”

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.

Head to an airport for sales, Santas and songs

Deals, Holidays, Shopping, , , , ,

(Yummy stuff from Phoenix Sky Harbor Int’l Airport)

It may seem unnatural to blend a holiday shopping excursion with a trip to the airport, but this season many airports are working overtime to court you and your gift-buying dollars with prizes, promotions, festive décor, and lots of top-notch entertainment.

(A TSA choir -really- will perform at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport)

There are plenty of other reasons to shop for holiday gifts at an airport. Over the past few years, airports have been steadily upgrading the quality and variety of their concessions. Stores generally open early and close late to accommodate travelers’ wacky schedules. And many airports impose a “street pricing” policy, which means that the prices charged inside the airport must closely match the prices at local malls. Besides, if you travel by air, you’re already spending a lot of time hanging out in airports. So you may as well be merry while you multi-task.

Where are the best deals? At the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and the Sacramento International Airport you can pick up discount coupon books. Oregon’s Portland International Airport has a holiday festival with food sampling, demonstrations and a drawing for tickets on JetBlue. (You can enter on-line.) And check out the Frankfurt Airport’s Web site for a chance to win a big diamond.

There’s lots more information about airports offering holiday shopping specials and entertainment in my “At the Airport” column posted today on USAToday.com

Holiday shopping discounts at Minneapolis-St. Paul Int’l Airport

Deals, Free Stuff, Shopping

Heading to or through Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) this holiday season? Be sure to leave some time for shopping.

The airport is giving out holiday coupon books with discounts, freebies, and gift-with-purchase offers from more than 60 airport shops and restaurants.

The coupon booklets will be available at the airport information booths and downloadable from the MSP Web site. Valid dates: November 26-December 31, 2008.

But why wait? Here’s a copy of all the coupons and offers.