More than half of German companies are confident in seeing an upturn in business travel before the end of the year it has been reported in the results of a poll of members of the Association of German Travel management (VDR) for trade show ITB. The poll found that a quarter of those questioned expect to see a recovery in business travel activity at the start of next year. Only ten per cent of companies said they were concerned that there would not be a recovery in business travel.

Almost 60% of VDR member companies are still paying particular attention to costs and are looking at cheaper travel options. Only 11% of these companies are cutting out all travel which is not deemed absolutely necessary, compared with twice as many in October 2009.

In order to cut down on travel, companies are making more use of web, video and telephone conferencing. One third of the VDR member companies that were questioned now use this technology instead of business travel. A further 20% are following this trend in order to improve internal communication.

Dr Martin Buck, director of the competence centre travel & logistics and show organiser Messe Berlin, said: “The trend that has been revealed by the latest snap poll by the VDR is giving the industry reasons for cautious optimism. This is good news for ITB Berlin.”

Trade Travel Show, ITB Berlin 2010 takes place from 10th- 14th March.

Barcelona photo by Flickr User Jsome1

Year-round flights between London City Airport and Barcelona are being re-introduced by British Airways. The service was previously run only in summer but will now resume at the end of the month and will continue all year.

An extra Saturday morning service will be introduced in May, bringing the total number of flights to seven a week.

The expanded Barcelona capacity comes in addition to the start of flights to Majorca and Ibiza in May and an existing service to Madrid.

Luke Hayhoe, commercial manager for BA CityFlyer, the wholly owned BA subsidiary which will operate the services, said: “The Spanish destinations are proving extremely popular from London City Airport. Barcelona has traditionally operated as a summer only destination but there is a big demand from both business and leisure passengers for us to continue through the winter.”

Easyjet Ryanair advert source http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/mar/03/easyjet-ryanair-asa#zoomed-picture

The Advertising Standards Authority has upheld a complaint by Ryanair against its rival EasyJet after they made a claim in an advertising campaign that claimed that the Irish competitor did not fly passengers “to the place you actually booked”.

The poster, which appeared on a train, suggested Ryanair flew to airports in the proximity of the cities promoted as destinations; but Ryanair successfully argued that the ad was misleading as it implied people would not fly to the city they booked to whereas the advertising and website made clear where the airline flew to.

Upholding Ryanair’s complaint, the ASA said: “While we noted EasyJet’s argument that the ad was merely a comparison between airport locations, we were concerned that by listing the airports which Ryanair flew to but only referring to the ones EasyJet flew to in much smaller print at the bottom of the ad and by not giving any data which readers might use to make an assessment of the facts, the ad did not achieve that end.

“We considered the challenging tone of the headline ‘Who loves flying you to the place you actually booked?’ combined with the implication that Ryanair misled customers and flew them to airports different to the ones they had booked was denigratory.”

EasyJet UK general manager Paul Simmons said: “It is a well-know fact that EasyJet flies to major airports whereas Ryanair serves out-of-town airfields which can be a two hour bus ride away from your destination.

“While we are disappointed by the ruling which is based on a technicality, we respect the ASA’s decision and will not repeat the advert in the same form.”

It’s rather ironic that Ryanair had to turn to the ASA to use the very same codes of conduct that in previous years they have had disputes over.

Foreign travellers to the US face paying a fee of $10 to help fund a planned new body to promote tourism to the country. The Corporation for Travel Promotion public-private partnership is due to be approved by President Obama after winning Senate approval.

The initiative is funded through a matching program of up to $100 million in private sector contributions and a $10 fee on visitors to the US who do not pay $131 for a visa to enter the country. The fee will be collected once every two years in conjunction with the Department of Homeland Security’s Electronic System for Travel Authorisation. This will mean the US taxpayer will avoid making any contribution.

The Corporation will work with the US departments of Commerce, Homeland Security and State to develop a nationally co-ordinated, multi-channel marketing and communications program to attract more international visitors and explain changing travel security policies.

Caroline Beteta, chair of the US Travel Association and president and CEO of the California Travel & Tourism Commission, said: “We know how successful a public-private partnership to promote travel can be from our own experience at the state level.

“With the best minds coming together from government and private industry to boost international travel to our country, we can make travel an even stronger economic engine for America.”

Commenting on legislation which establishes the Corporation, US Travel Association president and CEO Roger Dow said: “The United States Congress has sent a clear message that travel is a high priority to our nation and that tangible steps must be taken to increase travel to and within the United States.”

It has also been reported that US airlines must also take an active role in the new partnership, not out of good-will, but out of self-interest by purchasing advertising space on the DiscoverAmerica.com website once the site traffic has increased and thus improving their own exposure.

Google, together with Russian Railways have launched a virtual train journey along the famous Trans Siberian Railway which goes across two continents, 12 regions and 87 cities. You navigate the journey by clicking on the area you’d like to view and are taken along as if you are sitting on the train and gazing out of the window. The film quality is brilliant and you can accompany your journey with the realistic sound of the rumbling of wheels, or by listening to some Russian radio or Nikolai Gogol’s “Dead Souls”, or even Leo Tolstoy’s “War and Peace”. You can also click on icons on the map which will give you interesting information about areas on the journey.

I imagine that this step for Google and Russian Railways will push forward the virtual world that many use  already online, it will enable people looking at different places to go on holiday to get a realistic taster of the feeling of being there rather than staged shots in travel guides where a lot of the pictures can be quite similar.

Some state that this could be an alternative for cash-strapped people who want to look at areas of the world they may never get to travel to, however I think that it may give those with the natural curiosity to travel even more itchy feet; it certainly did me! For whatever reason you’d like to see the Trans Siberian Railway though, this new view is worth a look. Check it out here.

BA strike pic by Flickr User quinn.anya

I wrote about reactions to the possible British Airways strike earlier in the week which indicated a feeling of disenchantment towards the airline from passengers. However, a recent  consumer poll has found that 75% of people are actually behind BA in the dispute with its cabin crew, describing them as “overpaid and underworked”.

Only 20% of the 1,087 people asked gave support to the flight attendants, who they endorsed as being “the best in the industry”. The remaining five per cent said they would consider backing the strike but only if their flight was not affected by any disruption it brought about.

The online poll was conducted by Cheapflights UK. It closed two hours before the result of the Unite union strike ballot was announced.

Participants were asked whether they would support BA cabin crew if industrial action was called, choosing from three responses: Yes, No or Maybe. The results point to overwhelming support for BA in the row over pay and working conditions.

“This survey definitively adds the flying public to the chorus of voices already pleading with cabin crew to see sense and call off the strike,” said Cheapflights global brand director Joseph Sikorsky, a former BA head office employee.

“BA cabin crew are far more privileged than their counterparts at airlines such as Virgin Atlantic, Bmi and EasyJet.

“The changes that have been made to their working conditions reflect fundamental restructuring which is vital if the flag carrier is to avoid the fate of so many other airlines that ceased operations during the recession.

“The numbers speak for themselves, and our survey shows that passengers have no illusions about the gravity of BA’s predicament.

“Cabin crew will only add to their woes if they press on with this damaging and unjustifiable strike.”

Is this support for British Airways reflected by the readers of this blog? Let us know what you think by leaving a comment below, it’s always interesting to get some different opinions.

Yesterday’s announcement that British Airways cabin crew voted to give the union a mandate for industrial action is a “disaster” for the airline, according to Bob Atkinson, travel expert from travelsupermarket.com.

“Customers will get a sense of déjà vu as they face travel disruption yet again,” he said.

“But today’s result isn’t just a kick in the teeth for loyal BA passengers, it’s a disaster for both British Airways and BA’s staff, as all stand to lose out unless the airline re-engineers itself to compete in the cut-throat airline market. Customers are already deserting the airline – we have seen a significant 19% reduction in people clicking through to BA flights since this latest ballot started.

“Customers will undoubtedly be questioning why and how their travel plans could be disrupted by possible strike action yet again, and justifiably so” Atkinson added.

“What BA lacked last time was customer communication, so it is even more important that they get it right this time – with each and every customer. Travellers deserve to understand exactly how their bookings and plans will be affected, not left in limbo.

“Customers who booked before the ballot announcement on 18 January and have travel insurance covering strike action should be able to recover losses from making new bookings if their BA flight is cancelled. However, those who booked after 18 January or have no insurance will be left high and dry to make new arrangements if their flight is cancelled.

“Whilst BA may rebook, re-route or refund them for the original ticket price as a last resort, nothing is guaranteed. Availability for booking alternative destinations or airlines may not be ideal, and it’s almost certain that many customers will be forced to pay more for their revised travel plans should BA fail to deliver on an original booking.

“We urgently call on BA and Unite to resolve this long running issue once and for all, to put an end to the customer misery from this strike action, and to do so behind closed doors to allow the Great British travelling public to carry on with their plans undisrupted.

“It’s not surprising that many BA customers have opted to travel with alternative carriers where possible, and if this is not resolved we could see many more follow suit.”

After such a damning response to the latest news, I’d be interested to know if any of you echo this feeling and what your experiences have been with British Airways over the period of strike threats? Has it put you off flying with BA?

BA Tail picture by Flickr User Simon_Sees

Passengers face fresh risks of strike action with British Airways as it was announced today that the cabin crew backed the Unite ballot for industrial action. Unite have said that they don’t plan on announcing strike dates just yet as they hope to reach a negotiation with BA before resorting to strikes.

80.7% of the ballot papers were returned, with a whopping 78.7% voting in favour of industrial action. Len McCluskey, the union’s general secretary said this was “a clear indication of the deep sense of grievance that our members feel”.

The union has pledged that it will not allow the strike, which if it goes ahead will start 1st March at the earliest, to affect the Easter holiday plans of thousands of Brits. However, some crew writing online and commenting on the situation suggest that there is a plan to “play dirty” and strike around the long Easter weekend, causing chaos as services are backed up.

According to an online poll by Unite, some two thirds of cabin crew want ten days of action so that the message would be put across of disgruntlement at changes in salaries and staffing levels.

There is an official response to the ballot on BA’s website which states:

“In the weeks before and during the ballot period, Unite claimed that we had breached individual crew members’ contracts by making modest changes to on board crew numbers on flights from Heathrow. We have always said this claim was false, and it was rejected by the High Court three days ago.

The vast majority of crew who voted in this ballot will have done so before the High Court decision. We hope Unite will bear this fact in mind as it considers its next steps.”

In the event of strike action BA state that you will be able to:

 Rebook onto another British Airways flight to the same destination within 355 days of the original date of travel

Rebook onto another British Airways flight to/from the nearest alternative airport (for example, if booked to/from Boston you could rebook to/from Philadelphia or New York)

Cancel your booking and get a refund.

All of these booking options, of course, will be subject to availability.

BA will also keep you informed via email (or SMS text if you have supplied your mobile number) with any news which may affect your flight as soon as they can, to check your details are correct, click here.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission has waded in to the body scanners row. In a letter to Transport Secretary Lord Adonis, they have warned that the use of scanners at UK airports may be unlawful. The commission has expressed concern that the technology – currently in place at Heathrow and Manchester – may be breaking discrimination law as well as breaching passengers’ rights to privacy.

In the letter, the commission said it acknowledged the threat posed by terrorist activities but it had concerns ”about the apparent absence of safeguards to ensure the body scanners are operated in a lawful, fair and non-discriminatory manner”.

It added that it also had ‘’serious doubts that the decision to roll this (body scanning) out in all UK airports complies with the law”.

Currently the scanners are being trialled and passengers may ask for same sex scanners to help them feel more more at ease with the procedure, however there may still be allegations from people such as that from Bollywood star Shahrukh Khan, who claimed his naked image was printed and circulated by Heathrow scanner operators. This sounds rather implausible from what we know about how the pictures are treated, in private, and are not held or saved anywhere; but cases such as these are likely to continue to arise if people lack confidence and trust in the system and if what the Equality and Human Rights Commission state is true.

See my last blog post regarding the scanners here.

There will be no Eurostar services to Brussels until at least Sunday following the commuter crash outside the city this week that killed 18 people and injured 150 people.

The operator says it is running a reduced service between its English stations and Lille and normal services between London and Paris. Brussels to Cologne operations resumed on Wednesday. However, the high speed service to Amsterdam is still suspended and you should check services out of Paris before travelling there.

Eurostar passengers are reaching Brussels from Lille via limited capacity shuttle bus but if it is not necessary to travel and you have tickets booked from now until the 26th February then you can get a refund or exchange your tickets as there are likely to still be major disruptions to services during this time. For more detailed advice on how to exchange your tickets, go to the Eurostar website via this link.