 
Joe's Travel Newsstand for 2017
WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT THE NEWSSTAND When Joe Brancatelli launched JoeSentMe two weeks after 9/11, it was all he could do to get his own columns, Brancatelli File and Tactical Traveler, posted. When he decided to keep the site running, however, one of the first things he created was the Travel Newsstand. At the time, it was aimed at linking to all the travel news and commentary sites on the Web. Now it is Joe's way of linking to useful travel stories that appear elsewhere on the Internet. December 28: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it! Lots of stuff has happened on the road while we've been blissfully ignorant hiding out at home during the holiday season. Here's a quick catch-up, stripped of drama, but chock full of the usual dose of snark. You update on airport blackouts, train derailments, iPhone batteries, diverted flights, snowy conditions, racially tinged downgrades and more. December 14: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it! Germany's new train was supposed to cut two hours off the Berlin-Munich run. So far, not so much. The battle between the U.S. and Canadian sides of Niagara Falls. U.S. airlines learn Trump is no different than Obama. Planes, trains and automobiles in London. A new fee in Rome. Mexico City's star chef. Tel Aviv's split hotel. And more. December 7: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it! International travel to the United States falls--but not as fast as Trump's hotel chain loses properties. The Supreme Court says Travel Ban 3.0 can go into effect while it is litigated in lower courts. Brexiteers have made baseless financial claims about everything. Why New York's subways are failing. Tales of food (and ovens). And more. December 1: ON THE NEWSSTAND Today we launch BizTraveLife, focusing on how business travelers interact with the hub cities they visit. Consider these first five destinations--London, Rome, Dublin, Lisbon and Cuba--beta tests. Take a look. See what you think. Tell me what you like, what you don't and, most importantly, what you need that they are not providing. November 16: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it! Delta Air Lines thinks it's master of the universe and bullies suppliers, politicians and other airlines. Guns don't kill people. Hotel Do Not Disturb signs kill people. The hardscrabble and the happy in England. A passenger doesn't get upgraded and cops detain a flight crew. RVers find a friendly welcome at Walmart. And more. November 9: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it! The app you're using to order food instead of calling room service? The restaurant may not be a "real" restaurant at all. Where you going? Barcelona. Um, no, not right now given the chaos in Catalonia. Surviving ultra-long-haul flights and underpaying housekeeping staff. Maybe Trump doesn't want to build all of the wall after all. And more. October 25: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it! A butter shortage in France, spam thefts in Hawaii and a village in Italy that's more Scottish than Italian. What it takes to be a "palace" hotel in Paris, Atlanta's new "view" hotel and how the Harvard Club in New York sold a painting to fund a lodging expansion. Plus our baseball coverage from the road over the years. And much more. October 19: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it! Travel Ban 3.0: An odd case of déjà vu all over again. Spread the news: Vegemite goes upmarket in Australia. The big battle over a small jet for Delta Air Lines from October 12: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it: Amazon.com is buying up the shopping malls it helped put out of business. An historic hotel in Atlanta is returning to its roots. How the Las Vegas airport became a haven during this month's deadly shooting. Vacationing on St. Helena, where Napoleon was exiled. The world's "healthiest" airports. Durian fruit explained. And more. October 5: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it: Pick your poison (and your health facility) at Dallas/Fort Worth. LA by way of Goose Bay: the Tale of Air France Flight 66. When the airlines had city ticket offices. The horror rains down from a hotel-room window in Las Vegas. Rick Steves gets pickpocketed. How Politico tracked Tom Price's flights and took him down. September 28: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it: The war on hotel buffet breakfasts. Uber apologizes to London in its license battle, but then strong-arms Quebec. Your tax dollars at work in travel and you won't like it. Do you want to rollerblade to Houston or do you want to shut up and fly United? How to keep small towns in Italy alive. And much more. September 11: ON THE NEWSSTAND Looking over the columns I've written about 9/11 leaves me with these conclusions: We'll never escape the shadow of that awful day. We are forever scarred. But new business travelers don't bear the mark of 9/11. When the earth moves under their feet and they feel the sky tumbling down, I hope it is because of love. Not the hate that caused towers to fall and innocents to die. September 7: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it: How a small beachfront resort in Maine molds national perceptions of guest-worker visas. Planes, trains, automobiles and RVs. Heathrow is auctioning off an entire terminal. Italian pasta laws are a sticking point in the European Community's drive for a single market. Watch some of America's iconic resorts go to seed. And much more. August 24: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it! A tip on tipping: Go big in Idaho and West Virginia. Pittsburgh tops off its revival with a best-place-to-retire honor. It was 20 years ago today and I hammered Northwest Airlines for the start of its inevitable decline and fall. The last word (and stunning pictures) on this week's eclipse. And much more. August 17: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it: Delta lied about its plans and prices for business class suites on its Airbus A350s. Hotels remake room service to compete with food-delivery services. Trump's Washington hotel is making money and it raises ethical eyebrows. You may not be surprised where the busiest branches of chain eateries are located. (Hint: It's at the airport.) A rest-stop rhapsody. And more. August 3: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it: If Atlanta/Hartsfield is any indication, we prefer fast food and fast casual dining at the airport. You can take the "H" train in New York while the Silver Line in Washington is failing even before it reaches Dulles Airport. Let them eat macaron--or buttered rolls. The new Air Force One might be an old Russian Boeing 747. And more. July 27: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it: The pound plunges against the euro and that creates crazy bad exchange rates at the airport. But the Brits are worried about train classes and golf tournament names, too. Meanwhile, the failed Lockheed L-1011 flies again while the Boeing 757 falls out of favor again. Air France and KLM have the 13-year itch and more. July 20: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it: This week in Trump travel and the details are tough to keep straight. The Twitter fight between Ann Coulter and Delta Air Lines yields at least one good (if never to be implemented) idea about selling airline tickets. The Titanic battle between Uber and London's black cabs. The dawn of pop-up hotels, the case of the missing golf clubs and more. July 13: ON THE NEWSSTAND Read all about it: In the battle between major U.S. airlines and the Gulf carriers, your choice is backing a liar (Delta boss Ed Bastian) or a louse (Qatar Airways boss Akbar al Baker). New apps that will help you run through airports faster. The scary tale of Delta Flight 129. Some strange airport doings. A new study on our tipping habits. And more. June 29: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: United Airlines gets caught being United. Again. Meanwhile, back at Air India, another awful airline. Trump wins a partial Supreme Court victory for Travel Ban 2.0. Fly the secular skies of El Al. Plus the cost of coffee in Italy, what lack of sleep does to our brains and more. June 22: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: High temperatures really do make it harder for aircraft to fly. How the airlines fell into their current despicable state. Why are so many people being injured in turbulence? Big planes like the Airbus A380 and Boeing 747 are history--and you are not going to like the replacements. And much more. June 15: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: As bad as United and American are, Delta is the big bad in the sky and tries to suppress and bully everything and everyone that gets in its path. Plus the demise of a Fat Ham in Philadelphia, the continued court ban on the Trump Travel Ban, what we were writing about 20 (and 30) years ago, travel credit cards, American's seat pitch and the plan to privatize air traffic control. June 11: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: It's still Jeff Smisek's world--and we still have to pay for flying in it. Willie Walsh says the British Airways computer meltdown was fake news no matter what you were told or how long you were delayed. The strange and tangled web of conflicting Arab interests crippling Qatar Airways. Fifty years after the Six Day War, revisit Martin Deutsch's column from Israel just three weeks after the shooting stopped. And many more links. May 25: ON THE NEWSSTAND That bizarre Hawaii laptop incident didn't happen--or at least it didn't happen the way you heard. Rudy Giuliani don't know nothing about no Muslim ban no matter what he claimed on TV. A pilot, a passenger and a genuinely heartwarming tale. And plenty more. May 11: ON THE NEWSSTAND Someone whacks an airline chief executive with a pie in the face--and reporters want to know what flavor. A travel lifer hangs out with the guys who played the game. Candidate Trump versus President Trump on Travel Ban 2.0. And much more. May 4: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: Airline terminals of the rich and famous. Of course Delta was lying about last month's meltdown. The Cruise News. The TSA's paper chase in Kansas City. And much more. April 20: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: The more things change in African aviation, the more they stay the same. Or get even worse. Pizza makes the world go around. The big-bully general who runs Homeland Security may unravel our options for visa-free travel. Plus life after death for London train stations. And lots more. April 13: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: The Dao of United. From the archives: I told you Munoz would be a bad hire. Cathay Pacific gets into a fragile situation with Rimowa bags. Meanwhile, back at the Trump Travel ban. Plus the value of points and miles, the American people who work in glass factories and Customs-snooping by the numbers. And lots more. April 6: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: How many frequent flyer miles can dance on the head of a pin? Way too much talk--and silly talk at that--about in-flight food. The feel-good musical about 9/11 gets good reviews (mostly) on Broadway. And lots more. March 30: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: British Airways "pranks" passengers at Heathrow and reveals something dumb about us. It came from the archives: When frequent flyer programs were young. Nabbing a criminal pol in the nick of time at the airport. And more. March 16: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: The Cuba boom goes bust. One man, one gun, five deaths and collateral travel damage. Love in the afternoon ... in the hotel. Frequent flyers sees niche, creates global business. Plus the mass-marketing of Irish pubs, an ode to Odessa and our really deplorable infrastructure. And more. March 9: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: The TSA goes reverse Coué. Hertz continues to scam renters on tolls. Trump, Obama and real and imagined travel policies. All the news that's fit to print ... years ago. The best way to sleep on a plane, the best road trips, the countries no one visits and the worst reason for an aircraft diversion. And more. March 2: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: Food for (in-flight) thought. Chicago's snow drought. There'll always be a Heathrow ... unfortunately. President Trump runs the country like he ran his airline. Tight connections around the world. And many more links. February 23: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: Death and incompetence at security checkpoints. A new take on pilots buying pizza. Evil Uber keeps growing. The fault is not in their stars, but their French selves. Mama said there'd be days on the road like this. And many more links. February 16: ON THE NEWSSTAND This week: The electronic border battle over mobile tech searches. Toto doesn't know which Kansas City we're in anymore. He landed ... poorly. Wild and woolly times at the airport. And many more links. These columns originally appeared at JoeSentMe.com. Copyright © 2017 by Joe Brancatelli. All rights reserved. |