Newspaper story about LUKE AFB Airshow

The following is a letter I wrote to the Arizona REPUBLIC with reference to a whiney story about "all the problems" at the Luke AFB airshow over the weekend of March 28th and 29th. I gain nothing from this; I had nothing to do with the show.

I was going to let the "Air-show snags bother visitors" from Monday's REPUBLIC just roll off my back. I cannot. I have been an airshow performer since 1977, and I have seen real snags. What people are whining about at Luke AFB are minor inconveniences.

I have announced a couple of the Luke shows, and between base security and the local police departments, the agencies do the best they can.

Granted there are more people and cars coming in recent years, but Luke has two ways in and two ways out. They are both the same ways. Remote site parking is a great idea, but if the shuttle buses aren't kept separate from the cars, traffic will never improve. Open a little-used and little-known-about gate on the west side of the base -- a gate that only snakes and coyotes know about -- and run the shuttles back and forth that way. Make the shuttles the ONLY vehicles which can use it. Isolate shuttles from any other vehicles.

Passing through screening will take some time, but do it offsite, at remote parking. Screen 'em, get 'em onto the shuttles, and move 'em out.

Ten bucks to park? With four people in a vehicle, that's $2.50 each. And the show is FREE! This show would be about a $15 to $20 ticket as a civilian show. So there was a long line? STAND in the line. You are going to see a helluva show!

I announced the show at what used to be NAS Miramar north of San Diego for the three consecutive years following the release of the movie TOP GUN. You cannot fathom the traffic trying to get into that show! It was always the second weekend in August, and cars began lining up pre-dawn for a 9 AM gate opening. (The show started at Noon, thankfully.) Base security used to escort all the performers through the aforementioned little-used and little-known-about gate on the west side of the base. It was a delight. All parking was on-site for spectators back in the 80's, but no one complained about the traffic at the two gates.

Getting off the base is usually complicated by people whining at the cops, "I don't wanna turn left! I wanna go RIGHT...." The sooner people learn to go the way security wants them to go, the quicker they can get home.

What moron brings a gun to an airshow? At a military base? And every newspaper ad and broadcast commercial, not to mention posters, said: "NO Backpacks, No Pets,"etc. Of course there is always some fool who takes the pet back to the car and locks it in. I have personally helped to "liberate" pets from these wheeled ovens.

One other thing. When people call the base, most will ask, "When do the Thunderbirds (or Blue Angels or Canadian Snowbirds) fly?" Unfortunately they are frequently told the target time. Then people will say, "They don't fly until 3 PM, so we can go over around 2:45 and see them." Wrongo. First of all, many many dummies have the same idea, and they will all wind up watching from some distance away, stuck in terrible traffic. Second, the military team is just a PART of a fantastic performance which a bunch of people have spent an awful lot of time and effort to put together. Sponsors have put money into the show so the show can pay for all the performers and the support they require. The answer to the original question should be: "The gates open at 8 AM, the flying begins at 10 AM, and the Thunderbirds are the featured act."

There weren't any "woes." It may have taken longer to get in and out, and you can't legislate against the stupidity of people who bring prohibited items and screw up the flow, but inside, you DID indeed see a world class airshow, safely and professionally managed and performed. Any "problems" as people perceived them will be fixed in time for the next show. And aside from paying ten bucks to park, no one paid a DIME for a day's entertainment, and the day's entertainment didn't cost one taxpayer one cent.

Guess what's UP in Las Vegas?

Word out of Sin City sez that, while hotel/resort room prices may be down, the price of shows has been going up. (!)

Production show prices have risen between 5 and 9% in the last year. This does not include touring headliners, like if Elton John (first name that came to mind) were in for a three night concert at Mandalay Bay, prices would probably be in the $150 vicinity. Check show prices carefully if you want to see one, and remember that same-day tickets are available to MANY shows. Check for coupons in the Las Vegas tourist magazines and in the booklets in every hotel room. As noted in an earlier BLOG, you may be able to get tix for a hot show, but the seats may not be together. If ya REALLY REALLY want to see it, maybe you can get past the "not together" thing. We have lucked out on a couple of occasions with half-pricers side by side!

Quick Update on Harrah's

72 Hour "FLASH Sale" - Decide QUICKLY!

A very brief note, different for me.

Harrah's wants to get some revenue in the till, so for THREE DAYS (including today, Friday, March 27th) there is a booking window for Las Vegas' Harrah's from $39 per night, Flamingo from $45 per night, and Imperial Palace from $30 per night. Certain nights and date limited through August, but there are accompanying spiffs included. Check it out HERE.

HERE WE GO!

I TOLD YOU that this was coming!

I want to get this up as quickly as possible.

From Travelzoo, word has just come down that MGM Grand wants money NOW, so they have put up a special offer good through (get this) DECEMBER 29th! That's so they can try to get their usual tariff for the rooms over New Years Eve. This may CHANGE or BE MODIFIED overnight.

$49 a night plus a $25 "casino credit". That means, go run you credit through a slot machine, then cash out. You will probably have about $21 in cash. Read about it in this TRAVELZOO special edition.

A catch? Yes; you have to make a reservation by April 3rd. Read the fine print carefully.

Have a nice time!

Ahhh... the Las Vegas Story is never ending

More News, and more GOOD News

In an earlier post, I mentioned MGM Mirage is up to its fanny in large bitey things. Yesterday's Wall Street Journal carried an extensive story on how Dubai World, a conglomerate owned by the government of Dubai, is suing MGM Mirage to limit their exposure to damages arising from the $8.6-billion City Center project. Bottom line --- Dubai wants out. 76 acres in the heart of the Strip has already seen large sums of money spent on its development, but Dubai is signaling in the lawsuit that it probably won't make a $100-million payment on the project due Friday, March 27.

(There is also some pretty good name-calling followed by mud-slinging from Dubai World, blaming MGM Mirage for mismanagement and massive cost overruns.)

Once again, I would suggest that you watch for some pretty good "flash sales" from MGM Mirage; they need some cash NOW, and they will probably be making special reservations offers for months down the road. But remember, one night only in advance, refundable, and use a credit card.

______________________________

Because we see Las Vegas so frequently, I tend to take things for granted. One of those things is my mentions of Boyd Gambling and their hotels, and there is one which I tend to forget about. One of Boyd's earliest properties is SAM'S TOWN on Fremont Street, far from downtown. That's a neat old place which caters more to the fifth wheel travel trailer crowd. It's far enough away from the heart of the action that we may visit, but we don't stay there.

On the other hand, the ORLEANS Hotel and Casino, a Sam Boyd property, has a deal through the Thursday before Labor Day. Three nights midweek (Sunday through Thursday) OR Two nights weekend (Friday and Saturday) for "only" $219, including a $100 "property credit." That credit can be used in almost any restaurant, bar, showroom, movie theater, even room service. That's a pretty good special when you break it down.

Downtown, the GOLDEN NUGGET has a co-op deal with Southwest Airlines. (Ya hafta GET there, remember.) SWA has cut one-way fares for Vegas; from $49 to $99. AND you can have a Golden Nugget North Tower Room for $25 per night, a Gold Club Room for $50 per night. We have stayed at the Nugget, and it's a nice place with very convenient parking. It's a real "Old Las Vegas" feel, being in the middle of downtown.

There are a load of disclaimers, but you can click HERE and read them all for yourself. You have to book by April 6th for travel through August 14th.

I leave up old posts just so you can go back and see what you MAY have missed. New offers will be posted as I hear about them. And remember Anthony Curtis' Las Vegas Advisor; Anthony knows everything.

Airshows can be a lot of fun

I have been pretty fortunate over the past 32 season of airshows, having met some outstanding people. Athletes, movie stars, just about every airshow performer there is, and in this case, a photographer who is so low-key, many wouldn't know she is doing her job.

Laryl Hancock lives in Yuma, AZ, and she has photographed the entire Marine Corps Air Station Yuma airshow on Saturday, March 14th. I mean, many many photos. I had the pleasure of previewing the entire gallery, and I am impressed! For me, that's going some.

She had requests to put together a 2010 calendar, and that's what she has been doing over the past week. And yes, she is going to sell them mail-order herself. $10 each + S&H. Her pics are all grabbers. If you want to see the cover for yourself, check this SAMPLE.

You can order right off her website, and she has a button on her site for you to use PayPal, if you want. And no, I am not getting a cut. Sheesh. You people....

Watch for those travel deals... really

Travel industry is in tough shape. YOU are in luck

A story in The Wall Street Journal of Friday, March 20th, notes that spending on travel and tourism declined last year for the first time since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, this according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Dollars spent fell at an annualized rate of an amazing 22% in the last quarter of 2008.

Cities most hard hit in the U.S. are those whose economies are heavily dependent upon tourism dollars. Unemployment in Las Vegas jumped to 10% in January from 8.7% in December. As noted in an earlier post, MGM Mirage lost $1.14-billion in the fourth quarter, due to a 17% drop in gambling revenue and a 21% drop in room revenue. Nationally, shopping dropped 11.6%, according to the USDOC, spending on food and drink dropped 6%, demand for lodging dropped 10%, and passenger air transportation dropped 13%, down for the third consecutive quarter.

Yesterday (Mar 19) Station Casinos moved to seek bankruptcy protection by April 15th, following their announcement that they had elected to NOT make a $9.9-million interest payment due at the end of the week. Station Casinos owns Red Rock, Green Valley Ranch, Aliante Station, Sunset Station, Santa Fe Station, Place Station, Texas Station, Boulder Station, Fiesta Henderson, Fiesta Rancho, and Wild Wild West. These hotels are already priced in the lower tiers to attract folks who wanted to save a buck or two, and all are excellent values. They are referred to as "off-strip" hotels (something akin to referring to a show in Harrisburg, PA, as being "off-Broadway.")

I am going to make an obvious point shortly, but the history of what is happening is extremely germane.

This past February Boyd Gaming made an offer to buy "a significant portion" of Station Casinos. Sam Boyd purchased most of the "Coast" properties a year or so ago, including Gold Coast and Orleans, two of my favorites, and Barbary Coast across the street from Bally's. (Barbary Coast subsequently became Boyd's Gambling Hall.) So the Station Casinos are very much alive -- viable hotels which at the moment are renting lodging at very reasonable rates.

Further, one airline in particular, JetBlue, announced that it will offer a full refund to people who book flights through June 1, 2009, then lose their jobs, making travel financially infeasible.

This all means that planning ahead can save you a bunch of dollars. (I wish I could go anywhere on JetBlue conveniently. From Phoenix, passengers are basically on a ferry flight to reposition aircraft for the following day.) For the hotels you care about, you MUST watch for "flash sales", which are very short-time offers, perhaps as short as a week, but which may be reserved six to nine months out. Remember that room reservations are secured in most cases by a refundable one-night deposit, and in the event that a hotel or group SHOULD fail, make the booking on credit card, preferably on a virtual number.

Also remember Anthony Curtis' website. If anything is going down, he knows about it. He also always has great hints as to where to find entertainment and meal deals, including a famous 99-cent shrimp cocktail that... nahh, read it in his site.

Good hunting!

Looking for something REALLY CHEAP. Why?

There are things out there besides cheap pens

It's kinda humorous, the "Can you help me" calls we get. See, we are promotional products consultants first, then sales people. The majority of people call us saying they need help, then saying their minds are already made up. "Really inexpensive pens" is what we hear most often.

We joke when we ask, "You mean the kind you steal from a motel?" Our bank gave us a pen which, at the quantity they purchased them, cost about 11 cents. Cheap? Yes. Leave an impression of a solid financial institution? Not really.

The idea of a promotional item is to leave a warm, fuzzy memory of you FIRST, then to increase your visibility and hopefully broaden your customer base (or base of friends; many folks have called us for awards and for wedding mementos.) So "really inexpensive pens" is not always the answer.

There are many thousands of inexpensive items out there which are NOT stick pens. Of those items there are hundreds of variations on a theme. When you seek promotional items, let your promotional goods purveyor HELP YOU! That's what we do.

FLASH SALE in Las Vegas!

NO SOONER do I enter the story about the changing rates of Las Vegas hotels/resorts than Paris Las Vegas announces a rate of $50 per night Sunday through Thursday in June and July. The rack rate is $129. Friday and Saturday nights start at $75; rack rate is $250. If you want to go, you have to book quickly, because a deal like this will sell out quickly and the end date fopr the offer is Wednesday, March 25th.

This must be booked by March 25th through the TravelZoo link. There are a few blackout dates, but rooms may be still available. You will probably never be able to stay at a Four-Diamond resort for these prices again.

MGM Mirage is In Deep

The Wall Street Journal of Wednesday, March 18th, has a story of how MGM Mirage is on the verge of defaulting on payments on billions of dollars in loans as early as mid-May.

MGM Mirage has 10 casinos in Las Vegas, and it has more than $13-billion in debt, posting a fourth-quarter loss of $1.14-billion compared to net income of $872-million for the fourth quarter of 2007. Pending the possible default, the opening of the $8.4-billion 67-acre City Center project on the strip could be delayed, and the debt for the existing construction loan of $1.8-billion may also go into default.

You scared yet?

Las Vegas has always felt that as long as there is the urge to gamble, owning a property in the town and much of the state, would be tantamount to having a license to print money. When the economy started heading south a year and a half ago, the fallacy of building more and more hotel rooms and waiting for people to fill them up has made itself obvious. Ain't got the jack, ain't gonna come.

The result is to the advantage of those who want to go to Las Vegas, but want to do it on a budget, which does not include a 4,000 square foot suite with butler service and a stretch limo standing by. Resorts/casinos need cash today, even for reservations far down the road. It is for that reason that the deals are out there!

We offer this advice: if you are planning to go to Las Vegas, for business or for fun, and you are relatively sure of your dates, book rooms as soon as you hear of or read about a "flash sale." Once again we remind you that these are SHORT TIME sales, so a delay may actually cost you money. However, always book a reservation with a credit card (preferably with a "virtual number" for security sake) and read your reservation's details before you hit the BUY button. If the hotel should happen to close up [not really likely] you will at least be able to have a little leverage when it comes to demanding a refund; you will have the credit card company behind you.

Who ISN'T ticked off at A.I.G.

Lou Dobbs' coversation on Tuesday, March 17

Watching Lou Dobbs on CNN last night, guest talkshow host Mark Simone brought up an interesting point, which is completely valid.

The subject was the bonuses being paid to A.I.G. executives, despite the fact that A.I.G. has taken billions from us, taxpayers of the U.S. Mark noted that the $165-million is "like 37 cents" in the overall scheme of things. And he was absolutely correct. It's like making a big thing out of an extra bucket of water going over Niagara Falls.

That $165-million has been made very visible, as it should have been. The problem I have with it is that politicians have found a neat way to get face time on TV and newspapers; they stand up and whine how they are going to demand the money BACK, even to the point of what Senator Charles Grassley, Republican from Iowa, has suggested. He suggested that executives should follow the Japanese example and either resign or commit suicide, an extreme which Lou Dobbs came to refer to as the "Grassley Penalty." It all boils down to members of congress from both sides of the aisle trying to out-outrage each other.

The fact is that the "37 cents example" is valid, but it must be regarded as how that 37 cents affects the American taxpayer who has done his or her job well for many years, then finds the pink slip because, either the company can't keep as many employees or the company has gone bust. The outrage comes when those people see a group of elitists grabbing a bonus which they clearly have not earned, meanwhile the little guy gets nothing more than, "Sorry."

That $165-million may not be all that important when comparing it to the TRILLION-DOLLAR bailout, but to someone who was bringing home a few hundred dollars a week after taxes, those bonuses are the ultimate insult.

MORE on Las Vegas Specials

Las Vegas Specials from Harrah's are still out there

In an email on March 16, we got information that Harrah's group of hotels is changing some of the "specials" pricing at their Las Vegas hotel/resorts. The waaay advance price for Bally's is the same (at the moment) but the price for Paris has increased by $14. This is why we always suggest that when you see information for a "flash sale", you investigate it and take advantage of it ASAP. Don't let any good pricing opportunity slip away; if you are dead certain of your dates, JUMP on the special. The requirement is one night's advance for the reservation, and you can CANCEL it a few days in advance. Not bad.

T-shirts are a HUGE business right now

In the world of promotional products, "wearables" comprise about HALF of the industry. Getting into the warmer weather, imprinted Tees are a very large business.

T-shirts are always available, but right NOW, we are receiving notices of "flash sales" which last only a few (very few, like three) days. Even if you don't need T-shirts for a couple of months, now might be the time to buy the cases of shirts you need. As a giveaway item, the most commonly ordered size is EXTRA LARGE.

Just wanted you to know.

GOOD Travel News, and MORE GOOD Travel News

And the OFFERS just KEEP ON COMIN'

I am a regular on US Airways, an irregular on Southwest. Both have "frequent flier" programs.

Airlines carry frequent flier mileage on their books as a debt that has to be paid. Since free seats seem to dry up pretty quickly, the lines need some way to move the miles. The more unused miles out there, the softer their balance sheets look. So that's why we all get magazine offers, hotel offers, vacation trip offers, etc. from various lines, hoping we will burn those miles off their pages.

"If you can't raise the bridge, lower the river." US Airways (my "hometown airline") is attacking the debt problem from the other end. Today they are very nearly begging me to join their VIP club, so I can have some place quiet to go after the screeners pat me down. Anything to bring a buck in the door. So, watch for more "flash deals" from the airlines.

We are trying to keep up with the "special offers". Sometimes we luck out and find a SUPER special offer, which we pass along as quickly as we can. However, there are some specials you can track for yourself. One is TripRes.com, a site with outstanding hotel deals and more. The link should take you right to Las Vegas hotels, but you can also look for cars, restaurants and more in MANY cities.

And HERE is what I mentioned yesterday, Anthony Curtis' Las Vegas Advisor. If there is a deal to be had in Las Vegas, this guy knows what and where it is. One of the prominent posts on his home page is The LVA Top 10 values. You can join his membership club if you want to, but it is not necessary for most lookups. This is well worth your bookmarking and referring to frequently if you are planning a trip.

More when I can.... Frank

Airlines are in a World of Hurt

A HERITAGE Airline is looking for CA$H NOW

As mentioned yesterday, airlines are trying to put bodies in seats. Today, tomorrow, next month, half a year from today. But they would like to get some dollars in the bank now. As a result, many are running what has come to be called "Flash Sales," unannounced, short-time special offers which may have to be booked, like NOW!

American Airlines just launched a huge domestic fare sale for spring travel featuring some of the lowest fares on thousands of routes across the U.S. starting at $37 each way, based on round trip purchase. To take advantage of this sale, book by March 16! Later in the year there will be MORE air fare sales that will most likely extend into the Christmas holiday season, so keep watching in here.

Here are some of the longer-distance fares, one-way based on your eventually going home:

• Denver-Los Angeles — $67
• San Diego- Dallas/Ft. Worth — $95
• Los Angeles- Washington, D.C. — $97
• San Diego-Chicago — $97
• San Francisco-St. Louis — $97
• Denver-Miami — $98
• Los Angeles-Orlando — $107
• San Francisco-New York City — $115
• San Francisco- Boston — $118
• Los Angeles-New York City — $118

These special fares shown are valid for travel Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, there are a couple of blackout dates around Holy Week, and fares are valid for travel through May 20.

This alert came to me from TRAVELZOO; click only HERE to check on other American Airlines routes which may interest you. But remember, (a) you have to book by March 16, and (b) you have to complete travel by May 20th.

We are keeping watch for all kinds of travel goodies for airlines, cars, hotels, dining and entertainment (especially in Las Vegas.) I am endeavoring to make a Las Vegas "connection" that can offer you deals on EVERYTHING far beyond my wildest dreams.

Thanks for looking in.

Keeping Watch on Airfares

An EASY way to $ave more than a few BUCK$

One of the good things about being able to plan travel way out front is that you can grab pricing deals when they become available. This means not just airfares but hotels and rental cars as well.

The Wall Street Journal of March 10, 2009, has two articles about airlines and airfares. With the exception of the Middle East, air travel is off (sometimes waaaay off) around the globe. Here in North America the airlines discovered one way to save money, especially on fuel, was to NOT fly empty seats around the sky. That seems pretty obvious. What the airlines didn't count on was so many fewer people are flying. Anywhere. For anything. So cutting capacity has been outpaced by the loss of travelers. Bottom line is there are still empty seats, and the airlines want people in them.

All the major carriers expect that trend -- fewer travelers month by month -- to continue. This includes Southwest, which has always seemed to be ahead of the game. The industry has cut 28,000 jobs, leaving 392,000 still working for the airlines, but for how long? The airlines were pretty proud of themselves for limiting their own capacity, enabling them to charge higher fares and add fees to services which used to be included, such as checking baggage and charging for water(!) and soft drinks. There are airlines who want to charge a fee for booking online(!), and one low-cost carrier in Europe wants to charge passengers to use the lavatory(!!!!)

This means that many airlines will be making short-term offers to the traveling public -- offers like deeply reduced fares six or nine months out -- just to get some cash into the till today. These offers, which are called "Flash Sales", are not widely publicized and may be in effect for only a few days. We will endeavor to make those offers known here, in this BLOG.

At the top I mentioned TWO articles in the WSJ; here is Number 2.

When booking travel through services like Expedia, Hotwire, Orbitz, Priceline, and the like, the comparison prices don't always tell the whole story. Even when going directly to an airline's own website, you may not discover ALL the "additional charges and fees" until you have pushed the button to purchase your ticket. Here are two websites to put into your "Favorites":

www.TripAdvisor.com
www.FlyingFees.com

Trip Advisor gets into the fees for everything you need to travel, including airfares, car rentals [how about those little add-ons like "license recovery fee", "airport convenience fee", "fuel surcharge fee", for that FREE ride to the gate in the company van, and on and on. Here in Phoenix, taxes and fees can DOUBLE what a rental costs], hotels, restaurants, and visitor attractions.

Flying Fees gets right into it, with baggage charges, fees for headsets, pillows, blankets, ticketing at the airport, fuel surcharges, security charges, food & drink, etc. This site tracks fees at 27 airlines, then lists the five cheapest carriers in some fee categories.

According to industry insiders, by the end of this year most airlines will be filing their fees and charges along with their fares. This will make comparison shopping a whole lot easier. But until then, it's every traveler for him- or herself.

Watch the papers and check broadcast news for any stories about airfare wars, and don't waste time. Buy the tickets you know you will need (on a credit card, preferably with a virtual number) as soon as you have travel dates. We will try to keep you up to date in here.

Las Vegas Deals are HERE Already!

THIS WAS WRITTEN WITH AN HOUR OF THE TIME THE OFFER WAS MADE MARCH 1st.
IT MAY HAVE TIMED OUT BY NOW, BUT OTHER OFFERS WILL APPEAR.
IT IS MOST IMPORTANT THAT YOU CHECK HERE REGULARLY.

If you have followed this blog (or read newspapers, especially the Wall Street Journal) you know that the Las Vegas resorts are in deep discomfort. Travel is off, gambling is off, restaurants are off, and they want to get bodies into the rooms. In order to generate some cash TODAY, they are offering some pretty sweet deals for down the road, even when they expect to have more people available to spend money. Like the Pro Rodeo Finals, and like the ICAS Convention. So this is one of the specials that has a limited booking window.

Here's the deal, and it's a real GET IT NOW! The Harrah's properties are offering deep booking discounts NOW for December. It's called "Get Your Wings." The odd part is that for December the $300 airline voucher for a future flight does NOT apply, but who cares? Here is a website for you to look into in a few moments.

Paris, one of the Harrah's properties, is included at $76 per night, and that fare applies from Sunday through Thursday nights through the convention period. HOWEVER, right next door and connected by an inside passageway is Bally's. Their rate is $40 per night, NOT the $51 per night on the web page. We have booked that for four nights at $174.40 including taxes.

You can read the deals at the other hotels including the Flamingo and Harrah's, both right down the strip a ten-to-fifteen-minute walk. On a December morning that can be a mite chilly.

There is one small catch, and it is in your favor; you need a Harrah's "Total Rewards" card. If you got one during one of your stays at RIO, activate it by getting a pin number, and you are IN. If you don't choose to get a "Total Rewards" card, the prices are substantially higher.

One more thing: if you want a car [taxicab rates are outrageous] try this site. This site will locate the BEST car rental deals from name-brand rental outfits, and some of the specials are not published in the companies' regular sites.

If this is a help to you, please drop me a line and tell me.